The current moral breakdown and malaise in our country can be laid at the feet of the nation’s major institutions and their leaders failing to provide a clear vision of the good of society. Television has become a mountain of lies and misinformation that has split the nation in half. Our economic system based on greed and rewarding the few at the expense of many has left half the population struggling to survive. And worse of all are major religious institutions, guilty themselves of a cover-up or hoarding billions, that are now hardly capable of wielding the moral influence they once had.
We need a political system free of the money and power of special interests, with policies that enhance moral behavior and punish the greed driven wayward. We need a party with enlightened leaders who can clearly define a new direction, a better way.
The healthiest democracies are found in countries that embraced socialism and whose citizens enjoy the benefits of full equality and a compassionate safety net for all, countries that do not have half their population working full time yet failing to escape poverty.
The Democratic Party works hard to avoid the socialist label, which is foolish. Socialism provides the necessary economic ideology and enlightened laws for a democratic, post-industrial society, and reluctance to openly admit it only slows down the needed social and economic changes required. Socialism is a powerful ideal combining the compassion and reason that unites a nation.
We are now facing an internal threat to our democracy and external threat of climate change. Only the structure for sharing and cooperation found in socialism can save us.
Ron Molen, Salt Lake City
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