Thanks. To be honest, I had a suspicion this is what you meant, but wanted to hear it for sure.
My study of history never gave me the impression that the push for socialism - not just socialist programs like unemployment insurance and right-to-work programs, but actual "community" ownership of the "means of production" - was never as severe in the U.S. as it was in Europe. I think the few instances of open socialist sentiment - the Haymarket riots, the various commune experiments of the Progressive era, etc - are noted historically because they're unique and atypical, not because they're indicative of a trend. And while the Progressive movement itself - Frank Norris, Ida Tarbell, etc - probably drew a lot of water from the socialist well, I don't think it would be ideologically accurate to call that movement "socialist" itself. So, my answer is: I don't think there was a strong socialist movement in the U.S. to begin with, so I don't know how legitimate the question is. -JP >From: "Gray, Lynn" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >To: "'[EMAIL PROTECTED]'" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: RE: economic history question >Date: Wed, 10 Apr 2002 13:35:48 -0500 > >The program I was manly referring to was the unemployment insurance >program. >By calls for the US to abandon capitalism I was referring to the vocal >supporters of American socialism back in the years leading up to the Great >Depression. The % share of the US public which advocates socialism has >seemingly declined since programs like unemployment insurance have been put >in place. > >If it were not for these type of programs might we have seen an increasing >level of social unrest with a decreasing patience with capitalism. Such >increasing unrest finally giving way to the end of capitalism and to US >socialism. Thus it would follow that limited govt interventions in the >market actually "saved" capitalism. > >Lynn > >-----Original Message----- >From: John Perich [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] >Sent: Wednesday, April 10, 2002 11:03 AM >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Subject: Re: economic history question > > >There are a lot of abstractions that it'd help to qualify in that last >statement. For instance: which government programs (FDR's right-to-work >packages? LBJ's war on Poverty)? Whose calls for the U.S. to abandon >capitalism? What is a "safety net [...] for capitalism as a whole"? > >We need data! > >-JP > > > >From: "Gray, Lynn" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >To: "'[EMAIL PROTECTED]'" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >Subject: economic history question > >Date: Wed, 10 Apr 2002 10:08:41 -0500 > > > > > > > >Would it be safe to say that the introduction of govt programs such as > >unemployment insurance had an impact in quieting the calls for the US to > >abandon capitalism and take up socialism? In other words did these types > >of > >govt programs serve not only as safety nets for individuals in need but > >also > >for capitalism as a whole? > > > > > >Lynn Gray > > > > >---------------------------------------------------------------------------- >-- >I'm never gonna work another day in my life. >The gods told me to relax; they said I'm gonna be fixed up right. >I'm never gonna work another day in my life. >I'm way too busy powertrippin', but I'm gonna shed you some light. > >- Monster Magnet, "Powertrip" > > >_________________________________________________________________ >Chat with friends online, try MSN Messenger: http://messenger.msn.com _________________________________________________________________ Send and receive Hotmail on your mobile device: http://mobile.msn.com
