Sad state of our National Parks-II

Charlie D. wrote:

Yosemite Sam1 wrote:
Let’s also update ourselves and not be scared-sh*tless with the word “socialism”. It’s not the 50’s or the 60’s anymore where this means Soviet Union, China, Cuba and North Korea. The new economic-political system now refers to it as the old-fashioned Communism and, Socialism currently is referred as Benevolent Capitalism or Democractic Socialism modeled by the Nordic countries: Denmark, Finland, Norway, Switzerland, etc. These countries have been surveyed to be the happiest and healthiest on earth with free college, universal healthcare, 48:1 CEO to worker pay gap (US is 354 times average worker), and comfortable social security pensions for seniors.

Well-If you could convince American's that Finland's personal income rate of 51.6% and sales tax rate of 24% and Corporate rate of 20% along with Norway's 31.5% personal tax rate, sales tax of 25% and Corporate tax rate of 22% is a good thing. I think those who work fwor wages would be opposed Those who pay no or little taxes would like it and those are the voters the "Free Stuff"
O, Free College, and Free Medicare politicians are courting.

Those arguing for socialism have no concept of how much smaller their paychecks will be if 50+% tax rate on income from dollar one is enacted. Currently a couple making $60,000 pays around $8000 in federal income taxes. At those socialism utopia rates they would pay $30,000, thus lowering their monthly take home pay by $2,667.00. And then everything you buy will be 20% more expensive because of that pesky VAT tax. But hey, you have socked it to the rich (if they don't just move to more tax friendly counties like has happened in Europe) and you get free healthcare.

However, the biggest reason socialism has always failed is human nature. The principle of "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs" means you no longer benefit from your labors. People are not wired to work and then give their paychecks to strangers. They quickly learn that not working and becoming receivers of benefits is the smart move. That is why forced labor has gone hand in hand with communism, communism being the ultimate final outcome of socialism. One has to look no further than countries that had the same social norms yet were divived be political systems. Does anyone want to argue the free market economies of West Germany and South Korea delivered an inferior standard of living than their Eastern and Northern counterparts?