| Just because the government does something does not make it, per se, socialist, and even if those were "socialistic programs", that would not make America, overall, a socialist country. Traditionally, governments have undertaken poor relief, emergency relief, set up hospitals for those with limited means, and the like. These were not socialist ideas, but ideas derived from the traditional understanding of the promotion of the general welfare, or common good. They were conducive to social stability and acted as insurance against adversity for citizens. Medicare and Social Security were merely extrapolations in a more affluent age, but were designed to cover an over- broad segment of the citizenry, in order to get a large middle class "buy in", and therefore are teetering nowadays....... |
