I notice you assume this trend would 'horrify' social democrats, but that itself is an unsubstantiated claim that reveals your own perspective. Social democrats would likely interpret this data very differently: Social democrats would probably see growing dissatisfaction with unregulated capitalism as validation of their longstanding critique - that capitalism needs robust democratic regulation, strong social safety nets, and redistribution to be sustainable and just. They'd view young people's receptiveness to economic alternatives as an opening for social democratic policies, not as a threat. Your framing reveals an ideological divide: By grouping 'anti-communists, social democrats, and Trotskyists' together as equally horrified, you're viewing this through a specific Marxist-Leninist lens that sees social democracy as fundamentally opposed to any leftward movement. But social democrats don't see themselves that way - they see themselves as already offering the economic security and equality young people are seeking, just through democratic rather than revolutionary means. The real question: When young Americans say they view 'communism' favorably, are they expressing desire for a vanguard party, central planning, and dictatorship of the proletariat? Or are they saying 'capitalism as currently practiced isn't working for us'? The evidence - their actual policy preferences - strongly suggests the latter. You're right that we're both making interpretive claims. But mine is based on the gap between label approval and policy preferences. What's your evidence that these young people want actual Leninist communism rather than Nordic-style social democracy?"
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#40108): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/40108 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/117115628/21656 -=-=- POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. #4 Do not exceed five posts a day. -=-=- Group Owner: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/13617172/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
