Terminology - Use to Confuse?

All kinds of words are being used to describe our political candidates. Let's review what they really mean.

Welcome to Idaho County Governance. Today’s podcast had technical difficulties causing me to use the posting format. If you subscribe to Substack there is an audio option where you can listen to an AI generated version. Give it a try. I think you will like it.

Let’s proceed.

Democracies can be messy and ours seems to be getting messier with each election. Part of the messiness is some of the terminology being used inappropriately to slant our perceptions. Let’s examine some of these misused words and their actual meanings. That way when someone you know uses one or more of them inappropriately you can ask them to be more specific on how that word actually applies to the candidate or candidates.

Democracy and dictatorships or autocracies are important political systems. We all should feel comfortable with their basics. As stated earlier, democracies can be messy. They have various political parties designed to represent different points of view. However, it is the population which does voting or electing. The person who gets the most votes becomes the leader and must govern according to established laws. In democracies, the power lies with the people and their chosen party. In a dictatorship there is one leader who has total control, and their party must bend to his/her will. The people who put the dictator into power no longer have any power. Dictatorships exert tight control and monitor what people do by surveillance or “Snitch” laws. In democracies it is the people’s decision whether or not their activities or locations are known or shared. Democracies allow for criticism of leaders by individuals or news media. Dictatorships do not and will create propaganda to disseminate to the people to create a dictator desired belief system. Dictatorships imprison or eliminate anyone who disagrees with them. People in democracies decide for themselves what books they read, what movies they watch and what groups they join. In dictatorships you do not have that level of freedom. If someone shares that they don’t think our democracy is worth it, best ask them what they want from a dictatorship.

Another word fight you may hear from people trying to divide us is we are not a democracy; we are a republic. Boiled down to its simplest version - with democracies, the power lies with the people, they elect representatives to govern on their behalf. A republic is a form of government where the people elect their representation. Power rests with the people who vote or elect their leaders and representatives. This is just a dumb argument. Don’t fall for it. Don’t engage.

We all feel pretty comfortable we can describe the differences between capitalism and socialism. Capitalism is an economic system where private individuals or businesses own and control the means of production and distribution of goods and services. Capitalistic societies allow private property, free markets, competition and the pursue of profit. Ideally, prices and production levels are determined by marketplace supply and demand.

With socialism you have an economic and political system where production, distribution and exchange of goods are determined by the community as a whole. Wealth is distributed more evenly. Equality is emphasized and class distinctions are reduced or eliminated. There are theories and systems that lead to socialism. Marxism is a theory that promotes a classless society whose members are then in control of and own the means of production. Marxism is designed to eliminate capitalists. Some people seem to believe a Marxist wants the capitalist to pay more taxes (heaven forbid!). But a true Marxist wants to get rid of capitalism.

What about communism? Yes, it is also a form of socialism where all property is publicly owned. Communism is classless. There are no rich or poor. Wealth and power are said to be equally distributed. Marxism is supposed to lead to communism. However, communism is doomed to fail for a myriad of reasons. Individual incentive or a lack of incentive is a big reason. Seems a failed communistic system is a favorite of dictators. North Korea anyone?

Lastly, let’s look at fascism and Nazism. Both are far right in their ideology. Fascism is an authoritarian political ideology where a dictator centralizes power and suppresses opposition. Nationalism and the military are key in the creation of a controlled society (according to the dictator’s desires). Again, North Korea pops into my mind.

Nazism differs slightly from fascism in that this was World War II’s fascism in Germany on steroids. Extreme nationalism, racism and antisemitism were used to create oppression and atrocities. I can’t help but think of the probable similarities to present day life in Afghanistan where they have substituted hatred of women for antisemitism.

Let’s stop here and reflect. Remember why we left England. We fought the Revolutionary war for a reason. In the United State we do live in a democratic republic. Our economy is capitalist. We have a lot of forces trying to manipulate our understanding of our government, the people in it or trying to be part of it. Things are really messy right now. It feels like forces are trying to take our democracy away and give it to an elite few. Don’t opt out. We need you. Continue to be involved and learning. We need legislative fixes that both parties are refusing to address. We need to return to the time where politicians served people instead of themselves. Don’t vote for someone that doesn’t believe in term limits. Progress isn’t a straight line.