Would you rather live in a very conservative, but socialist country, or a very progressive, but capitalist society?

[Anonymous]

To clarify, one country is socially conservative to the fullest. Absolute disdain for anything outside of traditional values, no immigration, no "woke" ideology, zero abortions, etc... But the economy is full-blown socialist. So no private ownership of anything that produces any income and no private ownership of land. All income and production goes directly to the government for dispersal.

On the other side, a complete hatred for anything resembling tradition. Marriage, holidays, religion, etc... is out the window and the only values that are accepted have to be in contradiction to traditional values. Wide open borders. Abortions, up to the point of cutting the umbilical cord. But, the economy is true capitalist. The government cannot regulate business (criminal laws still apply, of course) and cannot collect any tax out of the businesses. Same with land. Individuals can still be taxed for income, but it's reduced only to basic necessities like police, fire, military at the border, some roads, etc...

[phraseology]

You can't have a progressive capitalist society. Progressives want economic and political equality of all members of society (i. e. socialism). Conservatives choose what to conserve. So socialism could be conserved if it has been established in a society for a number of generations and people want to keep it that way. Both are just socialism. the first is establishment socialism where the communist party hierarchy is already in place oppressing the people and the later is a bunch of socialists using propaganda to try to destroy capitalism as they push for violent revolution.

[Friendlybro79]

You're misrepresenting progressiveism from a right wing perspective.

Progressivism gets a bad rap as a result. It’s not about socialism or communism—those are totally different things. Socialism is where the government owns big industries, and communism is about getting rid of private property altogether. Progressivism, on the other hand, works within capitalism. It’s just about fixing things that aren’t working well and making sure everyone gets a fair shot.

Think about it—stuff like Social Security, Medicare, public schools, and workplace safety laws? Those are progressive ideas. They don’t tear down the system; they just make life a bit better and fairer for regular people.

Progressive ideas have actually been supported by people from all sides. Teddy Roosevelt, a Republican, was big on breaking up monopolies and protecting the environment. And the Civil Rights Act in the 60s? That was a progressive move supported by folks across the aisle.

At the end of the day, progressivism is about practical solutions. Everyone wants clean water, safe workplaces, and fair pay, right? These are ideas we all benefit from, no matter what political label you wear. It’s not some radical takeover; it’s just about making things work better for everyone.

[KostasKouvalis]

It's hypothetical

[Asker]

@Friendlybro79 I'm surprised I haven't seen you post more on GAG. Especially the politics section. You seem to have solid insight and perspective. Cheers to you 🍻

[phraseology]

You sure do write a lot of propaganda to try to trick people into socialism.

[phraseology]

"Socialism is where the government owns big industries" then "Think about it—stuff like Social Security, Medicare, public schools" You know big industries like health insurance and education. What a fucking moron...

[phraseology]

Since you guys are Democrats and have the IQ of a turd eating short bus rider, let's put some numbers to it. The American steel industry which is the largest medal manufacturing industry in the USA was a $325 billion industry in 2022. When you compare that to the industries you mentioned you find that the individual health insurance industry has a market size of $1.6 trillion in 2022 and the education industry market size was worth 1..5 trillion in 2022. The industries "progressives" (socialist) think are no big deal, are some of the largest industries in the country.

[KostasKouvalis]

Oh my God, that's a tough one, because I hate the part about not being able to own land or have your own business, and it sounds like the Conservatives you're talking about are the radical assholish kind that they have in Europe, that I can't stand.

But with the second option it sounds like you're saying I wouldn't be allowed to practice traditional values under any circumstances. So for that reason alone, I will take Option A, as I'm sick of woke culture being imposed on me

[Asker]

Thank you for this detailed response and reminding other that this is a hypothetical.

[12karen]

I live in a conservative country, not fully conservative as you describe but quite conservative, we tend to be more socialist but I like the balance.
But if I had to choose, I'd say socialist

[12karen]

Thank you for the MHO 💯

[Friendlybro79]

I was blocked by @phraseology because he likes to censor people that call his bs out. He is saying progressivism is socialism. It isn't. It allows for capitalism and a private sector but expands on popular much needed programs like social security and Medicare which are social programs. That doesn't mean America is completely socialist in the Venezuela sense of socialism. They just want to use fear to prevent hard working people from getting by and convince citizens they should not be guaranteed things. They assume we mean no one pitches in and I one contributes and mooch off the system but it's quite the opposite happening. We're all mostly working till we die with nothing and the top 1percent get richer by dividing us and telling us only they should be doing well

[Anonymous]

conservative socialist country

sure it sucks that socialism will incentivize some to be lazy and take advantage of those who work harder

but when it comes to gender transitioning of minors, celebration of murdering babies, MeToo movement, crimes getting excused based on identities, political correctness etc. nah fuck that

[Anonymous]

The question is moot because conservatism and socialism are incompatible.

[Asker]

Social ideology and economic ideology are completely separate though. Think of Nazi Germany or Fascist Italy where they had very conservative social ideology, but very socialist economies. The government owned and/or strongly controlled the components of their economies.

[KostasKouvalis]

It's hypothetical

[Adel50]

A conservative, socialist country.

[Hellraiser1984]

Progressive capitalist country.