The Socialist's Scapegoat

It was 1991. I was only an infant, the first George Bush was in the White House, and in December of this year, the Soviet Union collapsed. They were caught up in the arms race and the space race with the U.S. They lost both of them. They were outspent by the U.S., and this led to the collapse of the Soviet Union. At least, that is what is commonly taught. It's never flat out said that the Soviet Union was attempting to organize society under the flawed system of socialism. If it is, it's not what I was taught in public school.

No, contrary to what seems to be popular belief, no matter how much the U.S. chose to spend, it's not what caused the collapse of the Soviet Union. It sounds a little silly when you think about it. Today, if another country decided it was going to spend massive amounts of money, would that cause the U.S. to collapse? Not unless they attacked us. Otherwise, who cares what another country spends. The truth is, the Soviet Union collapsed from within, from its failing economic and social structure. But it seems that history/media tends to cover up the negative consequences that have stemmed from socialism. As you will see, this isn't the only example.

If you ask someone what caused the latest recession in the U.S., they would most likely blame banks that gave out bad loans based on greed... To make a profit as the little guy's expense. If we believe this, the obvious response to such a problem would be to more strictly regulate the banks. It just so happens, that seems to be exactly what the public is calling for. The conclusion that has been reached is that unrestricted capitalism isn't practical. Regrettably, I once believed this. We tend to believe things, if everyone is saying it. 

Let's look at the real causes of the recession. Yes, it goes back to the banks, but it goes beyond that. The accusation is that banks gave out bad loans based on greed. Well, in a free market system, there is no profit in giving out bad loans. Banks make a profit when loans are payed back, so they should have no reason to give out bad loans. So why were these loans given? It goes back to the Community Reinvestment Act, through which the government gave banks incentives to give out loans to lower income levels. This was done in the name of helping the poor (it didn't) - A socialistic policy. 

This policy led directly to the artificial housing boom. Those loans should have never been made, as there was no real credit available to many of the people who got loans. They would have never been made in a purely capitalistic system. But they were. Then reality struck back, when people couldn't pay off these loans based off of false credit. Seems like, if nothing else, this would be a great economic lesson for us. But, no, somehow they still managed to blame the recession on capitalism and greed, and we believed it. 

When when will the people stand up to the propagandists? My hope is that people won't believe what they are told, but will look into issues thoroughly, then make their own conclusions. If not, the problems we are facing may continue to be attributed to the wrong cause. I expect the lies to continue. I have already seen capitalism blamed for the recent riots in England. Why, you ask? It's because someone whose livelihood depends on defending a flawed system must find a scapegoat. Socialists found capitalism.