What is wrong with socialism?

Of all the lies the right likes to tell, the lie that socialism is bad may be the most damaging of all

Of all the things conservatives lie about to maintain their rigid (and dangerously stupid) worldview, socialism has got to be at or near the top. If you love licking the boots of billionaires (or fake billionaires like Trump), stop reading now so you don’t spontaneously combust.

Global inequality is surging at an unprecedented pace. According to Oxfam, the world’s 26 richest people currently have the same amount of wealth as the poorest 3.8 billion—down from 61 people in 2016. As the rich get richer, sea levels are rising, tribalism is flourishing, and liberal democracies are regressing. Even some of the wealthiest nations are plagued by job insecurity, debt, and stagnant wages. Ordinary people across the political spectrum are increasingly concerned that the system is rigged against them. Trust in public institutions is near an all-time low.

In Letters from an American, Heather Cox Richardson recently reminded her readers that socialism and American socialism are two different things. …