(07-07-2016, 07:23 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: Socialism does not equal a totalitarian police state; that has developed under capitalism too.
It's developed under large scale socialist governments and large scale governments with mixed economies that tend towards crony-corporatism. Neo-liberal / Neo-con policies of big government lead towards a police state. Free market competition does not lead to a police state. When governments remains small and localized with fewer strict laws less people are disenfranchised, communities are more trusting of each other, and there's less of a need for surveillance and curtailing of rights.
And the best thing about it is different communities can try different things out. It's easier to see what laws work and what laws don't. Given more freedom individuals can try different things too. With freedom comes innovation and experimentation. And though it often leads to mistakes, that's how we learn and grow. One big overbearing government that stifles everything we do just tends to stagnate everything to decay.
Quote:I have to say too, that I'm now leaning to vote for Hillary. I don't like the way Stein is attacking her. She needs to advocate for the Green Platform, not play politics by attacking the Democrats with the kind of exaggerated charges that Republicans use. I also disagree with her support for Brexit. Well, we'll see where I end up with Stein. She got my vote in the primary, and my vote in 2012. Now I'm not so sure about my vote in the general for 2016.
I like Jill Stein. She's probably my second choice. And having my college debt erased would be nice. But there's a lot of statist baggage that comes along with her as well. Gary Johnson's my first pick.