European Social Democracy Doesn't Work

The great danger of the current distressed economic situation is not the downturn itself but rather the subsequent political reaction that has brought us to the verge of abandoning the very principles that have made our country the greatest national success story of the modern world. Our nation has been the global economic engine and the global shining light of freedom because of traditional American free market principles and traditional American personal freedoms. American innovation, ingenuity , and our free market system has spawned the lion’s share of the modern world’s innovations in health technology, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, computer technology, communications, etc. from which the entire planet has benefitted. Undeniably, our country faces serious problems including the ailing economy, unsustainable expense of healthcare, inadequate primary and secondary education, incoherent energy policy, environmental deterioration, etc. But our troubles are not a result of the failure of those economic principles and values but rather a result of corruption of those principles and values by self-interests, special interests, and misconceived government policies.

Proposed policies creating a more centrally controlled economy so government can provide broad social programs such as health care for all, higher education for all, housing for all, etc., are inherently economically flawed. Funding for these programs inevitably requires increased taxation for nearly all individuals and businesses but disproportionately the successful ones. Eventually however, the increasing tax burden discourages and suppresses innovation, risk taking, and personal and business success, resulting in fewer and fewer successful persons and businesses. The resultant suppressed economy generates less private revenue (wealth) and in turn, progressively lower tax revenues. As tax revenues decrease, unsustainable deficit spending to pay for the social programs further restricts the economy. Ultimately with a decreasing ability to pay for those social programs, the government "benefits" inevitably are provided (rationed) at a minimal level. At the same time, because the government has promised to provide expansive public social programs and by policy discouraged individual achievement, fewer and fewer people try to provide for themselves. The end result of this system is an increasingly dependent and dispirited citizenry and, at best, a tepid economy. This is not theory but has proven to be the case throughout Europe and every where else such policies have been implemented.

We have reached a defining crossroads in our nation’s history. We can sit back and watch our country and our children’s’ futures slide down the slippery slope to European style socialism, which can only result in economic insecurity and individual dependency and unhappiness; or we can enact policy that both utilizes the self-energizing and auto-correcting forces of traditional American free market principles and addresses the corrupting influences of self-interests and special interests by increasing transparency in the public and private sectors. Our current economic and social problem can only be successfully reversed by utilizing those traditional American free market principles and personal liberties that made our great land the global economic powerhouse and bastion of freedom.