My opinion? It hardly exists anymore, so I don't understand the obsession with it. Some countries are welfare states but majority of countries nowadays are capitalistic in more or less refined form. What you call socialism is extremely US-centric (I hope I worded that right), but the world doesn't not revolve around US. Each country has a right to self identify. If US want to call themselves socialist under potential future democrat rule with afordable health care so be it, I won't object. But I will laugh.
Edit:
Background. I have actually lived first 10 years of my life in true socialism and then in transition period. I remember the war my country had to fight to get out of it.
Edit:
Background. I have actually lived first 10 years of my life in true socialism and then in transition period. I remember the war my country had to fight to get out of it.
The "more or less" is the issue here, the US has been drifting toward Socialist policies for some time now, and that's what Trump was a referendum on. Also it seems to be US-centric because this thread is literally about a US Socialist representative in the US government. I don't like that every freak show that happens here is a matter of international debate any more than you do, however the internet is inherently international so this is going to be a relative constant for some time.
Part of the issue here is too, there are a lot of people here active on the forum that are outside of the USA, but still seem to think they understand all the complicated internal cultural, economic, and political dynamics unfolding internally here. I don't claim to be an expert on any other nations, but I know my own pretty well because I live here and those events most directly effect me and those that I care about. Some how though the world is filled with "experts" in US domestic policy who have never set foot here.
