Obama is presented as such by Michael Moore in his latest film (Capitalism: A Love Story). With friends like Moore, who needs enemies? After all, socialism is a swear-word in the vocabulary of the vast majority of US citizens. Full disclosure: I find Moore's films very funny. One look at Moore's obese profile taking on the ills of the world gives me the giggles.
I rebel against the use of "socialism" as a swear word. Linguists like to argue that it is their task to describe, not prescribe or innovate. Indeed, as a linguist, I describe; as a human being however, I prefer to get things right. The truth is that in all nations with a history of (1) democracy and (2) capitalism, (3) socialist projects have been implemented against the grain of (1) and (2). Capitalism without socialism does not exist, and the combination is, though the devil is in the details, a good thing. It is a balancing act.
But everywhere one looks, socialism in the sense of *an alternative* to capitalism is dead, dying, or merely imposed by a wicked despot.
What is Michael Moore up to, besides hurting the Democratic Party he identifies with, and proving Marx right yet again, that history repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as comedy? Three things:
(1) He plays with anti-Semitism to build his base into a froth.
(2) He sullies Christianity by suggesting that the New Testament and Jesus back up his pseudo-populist socialism.
(3) He ridicules math and science graduates who, instead of using their skills for the common weal, found a job on Wall Street and designed the derivative securities that almost destroyed the economy.
Ann Althouse notes all of these things and more (see previous link).
Still, how serious are (1) and (2) in a blatant comedy? Moore has a point with (3). But gold-rush math and science grads are not going away anytime soon. It’s up to the rest of us who have a moral compass to make sure that they are not given free rein. That didn’t happen, because virtually the entire country acted like gold-rushers in the boom and bubble days. Since what goes up must come down, now we pay the price, especially those with little to begin with. A love story indeed.
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