Socialism Breeds Mediocrity

One last post on the whole Europe thing before I move on to another subject...I was at the grocery store today and only two lines were open. There were a few people in front of me in line; and I watched as Angelo, the cashier who's been there for some time, do his job. He slowly lifted the items to scan as if he had all the time in the world, and it didn't dawn on him to look up to see how long the line had become.

It was infuriating.

Angelo is a nice man, but Angelo is not the type of person who will move up in the ranks. Angelo is not what I would call a hard worker. If I were his boss, I'd tell him he needs to move faster as a cashier.

So why am I mentioning this? Because as I stood in line I thought about something I forgot to mention in yesterday's post about Denmark -- or socialism in general. (By the way, when Oprah referred to Denmark as a "socialist" country, the women she interviewed -- from Denmark -- said they preferred to use some other term. I can't remember what it was, but the point is this: If you have to use a different term for something (much in the same way we use "reproductive choice" rather than abortion), that should tell you THERE'S SOMETHING OFFENSIVE WITH MEANING OF THE ACTUAL TERM.)

But I digress. What I forgot to write is that this whole happy notion that "everyone is taken care of in Europe" (financially speaking, health and education speaking, etc.) discounts the flip side of all this care by the government -- namely, that it breeds mediocrity because there's no incentive for anyone to do well. In Denmark, or Germany, or Sweden, or any other socialist country, Angelos are EVERYWHERE.

Without competition, or reward for a job well done, people have zero reason to do anything but the bare minimum. The result is that those who like, want, and need to work their butts off are stymied by the system. They want to work hard and be rewarded, but they can't. They actually can't be rewarded. Think about that. Whatever it is you do for a living, imagine if you wanted to do your best, but there's no reason to. How awful would that be? Not to mention that mediocrity translates to poor efficiency, low productivity, and a huge loss of time.

I know my readers are all smart enough to know all of this, but it's just shocking to think there are people who don't get this most basic economic concept.

TOMORROW: Indoctrination U. (for sure this time!)

5 Responses to “Socialism Breeds Mediocrity”:

  1. Anonymous says:

    So then what's the excuse for people who don't work hard in a Capitalist society? They're everywhere here, too.

    Scary that you were once a teacher...Your arguments fall so flat, without fail.

  2. Your question doesn't make sense. People who don't work hard don't succeed. That's to their discredit, to be sure; but a capitalist society will reward those who do choose to work hard. In a socialist society, nobody can move forward. Everyone's locked in a neutral zone.

    I always find it amusing that those who take issue with my posts (and, by all means, people should feel free to do so) sign off as "Anonymous."

  3. Anonymous says:

    Yes, a capitalist society MOSTLY rewards those who work hard, and sometimes it doesn't. To say that no one can move forward in a socialist society and that everyone can in a capitalist one is a very rudimentary understanding of economic realities that could otherwise be called, well...ignorant.

  4. Anonymous says:

    Just look at the United States federal government. Have you stood in line at the post office or a drivers licence bureau lately? It is much more difficult for government employees to get fired. I lived in France, a socialistic country. It seems to me to be similiar to France's system. Is that where we are headed, even in our private sector? What, with the ACLU cramming political correctness up our "feet". It's extrememly difficult to get fired in that country. And people there know it. If that's the case, many people (not all) think to themselves "why work so hard? Mediocrity is just fine with me".
    In addition, in France, if you are an employee, one is expected to create jobs, not weatlth. So, in France, if you are a business owner, it's is difficult to create wealth. (not to mention, the taxes are historically high levels compared to other countries.) The US is headed in the same direction. THAT is the scary part.

  5. Anonymous says:

    I don't have an account here, so I will use anonymous.

    I'd just like to add.... It's really even an gross exaggeration to say that all who work hard in a capitalist-based country like the U.S., will succeed. But, I guess it all depends on how you define "succeed." To me that would include an ABSENCE of working-class struggles - i.e. how will we afford Mary's braces, how can we feed our family a healthy, nutritious meal free of chemicals like antibiotics and growth hormones every week, how will we divide our time at work and the home to ensure our kids have enough time with both parents to ensure a strong family foundation, paying all the bills, including the ever rising winter heat oil etc etc etc. Clearly that's not the case in this country.... people are HARD workers out there, and they feel betrayed when they work hard and still struggle to make ends meet in their homes.