(02-08-2023, 10:52 AM)NewJagsCity Wrote:

(02-08-2023, 09:47 AM)mikesez Wrote: (1) socialism can make it easier for bad people to overturn democracy (see Venezuela) but it is not incompatible per se (see Norway, Brazil, Mexico).

(2) "Traditional values" in Virginia call for the segregation of races, especially in schools and marriage.  If we only teach kids anywhere in this country one thing about history, it should be that we expect them to be better than the "traditional values" they will encounter in history.

Norway can afford to be 'socialist' because of their high per capita income (thanks to Capitalism), so they are an idealized model that probably can't be replicated with a larger population.  I'd argue that Mexico is more democratic than socialist since the turn of the millenium.  Brazil; don't know and don't really care.

The simple test of socialism is, is there significant government ownership or control of productive industries.  Norway, Brazil, and Mexico all have state owned oil companies. Norway does have many capitalist features, which contributes to their wealth. Brazil and Mexico also have many capitalist features but they are not as wealthy, for other reasons, mostly having to do with history.

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