By Addie Mae Villas | USA

Currently, 44% of millennials would rather live in a socialist country than a capitalist country. What they often get wrong is not only the definition of socialism, the study states that 66% of the participants gave the wrong definition, but also the fact that socialism kills and would never work in the United States. From just 1914-1999, socialism had killed over 94 million people, but with socialism being alive and well currently, that number has only risen. Vladimir Lenin once said “the goal of socialism is communism.” so why aren’t people realizing that socialism is an atrocity?

Socialism is dangerous for many reasons, it gives unchecked power to the state, removes freedoms, and destroys the economy. With socialism, it causes all production to be regulated by the state, as well as attempting at creating equality through distribution. In our current capitalist market, we have diversity and incentives to succeed because businesses are upheld with their own capital. In a socialist economy, the government bears the harm of failure but also gains all profit. When there is no incentive to do well, products are created to just get by and the markets are controlled with a tight fist leaving no space for originality. On a larger picture, socialism leads to large governments, that restrict liberties for everyone. One can easily turn to North Korea or Venezuela, two socialist countries where human rights are violated without an eye being batted. What makes it even worse is the fact that everyone is equally poor. In order to achieve the equality that so many people look for in socialism, everyone suffers. Margaret Thatcher wisely stated that the problem with socialism and socialist is “They always run out of other people’s money.” Distribution of wealth divides the goods of the people across everyone. This forces people to give up their possessions, again causing the loss of rights. Socialism is a killer, and when it isn’t, it takes away human rights and freedom.

So why is socialism so popular with the youth of America? The YouGov study, cited earlier, that millennials believe that socialism is the way to create a utopian society with safe spaces and equality, but in the end, it does none of the things it promises. Currently, Venezuela is collapsing after years of socialism. Citizens of the once prosperous nation, now are starving and seeing one of the world’s fattest inflations. In North Korea, the people see no freedom and greatly suffer under the totalitarian regime. Often times, socialists turn to the Scandinavian socialism as a form of socialism that would work in the US. The problem with that version of socialism is the fact that Scandinavia is 15 times smaller than the US and Scandinavia has a very homogenous population. Even then, most of the countries in Scandinavia don’t practice true socialism as they still have freedom in the markets. Plus, most of the countries see high tax rates in order to compensate for their government spending. So, in the end, socialism fails on all aspects.

It’s high time for people to leave the dreams of socialism in the past. But, it is also time for the future children of the world to learn from the past and prevent the horrors of socialism coming to the United States. Ayn Rand remarked that “There is no difference between communism and socialism, except in the means of achieving the same ultimate end: communism proposes to enslave men by force, socialism – by vote. It is merely the difference between murder and suicide.” Maybe millennials should pick up a history textbook and learn that socialism has never and will never work.