Raised Right is a weekly column written by senior Veronika Bondarenko on social issues from a conservative perspective.
Socialism, especially to us students, seems like perfection. Free stuff at its finest- no work required! Free education, free healthcare, taxing the 1%, rebuilding roads and expanding social security- oh my! In all, these social programs will cost about $18 trillion in new spending over a decade, according to a tally by The Wall Street Journal. This sum alarms conservatives- and even makes many Democrats pause.
Since us high schoolers have to worry about college soon, Sanders’ plan is attractive to many. “Free college,” as Senator Sander promises, does not in fact mean free college. Nothing in this world is free. Someone is paying for your college under Sanders’ proposal. Someone is being taxed at exorbitant amounts- practically legalized theft- in order to cover your college costs. Is that what “equality” really is?
Senator Sanders is critical of capitalism, Wall Street, and essentially the entire idea of a Republican Democracy. Millennials seem to think that this is an actual, realistic way to run the United States of America-it is not, and all we need to do is look at nations such as the former USSR, Cuba, and China who have fallen into tyranny at the hands of socialist ideology, open our eyes, and realize that we need to tone it down a little.
Taxing the 1% does not help the middle class. Giving away free things only inhibits the masses and keeps them in an impoverished and dependent state.  What DOES help is ensuring that our people are educated, have jobs, and are able to stimulate the economy. Let’s not take the extreme route here folks- socialism and the United States of America were never meant to go hand in hand.
Erick Cohen • Nov 13, 2015 at 12:26 pm
It’s awesome to see the Lightning Strikes’ new website! I love it!
As far as the article goes, when you hear socialism, everyone in America goes crazy. All socialism is, is everyone pools in money for services. The public high school education is socialized. In fact, the police is also socialized. Can you imagine if after you called the police they MADE YOU PAY for their services? It seems ridiculous right? But that is socialized police. So why would it be crazy to have socialized education and healthcare? That would “ensur[e] that our people are educated, have jobs, and are able to stimulate the economy.” When you hear socialism, the countries you need to look at are Finland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Iceland. USSR and Cuba are communist; communism and socialism are not the same things. And another point, even Cuba has better healthcare than the United States.
jim • Jun 27, 2016 at 3:49 pm
You should go to Cuba next time you need medical attention if they are so great. Why stay here in the US for inferior treatment? With all that state-of-the-art medical equipment, hospitals, and top notch doctors who are so well paid, yeah, I’m sure you will receive waaaaay better treatment in Cuba than in the US. To say you are a moron is an understatement.
Igor • Nov 13, 2015 at 10:40 am
Very good column, clearly the socialism and USA incompatible.