Tony Brasunas

Are you a democratic socialist? If you haven’t already thought about it, yes, you probably are. In my experience, most decent people in the United States today are democratic socialists, even if they don’t know it yet.

Democratic socialism is the main reason we’re not living in a fascist or feudalist country right now.

Essentially all developed countries on earth today, including the US, have a mix of two basic economic systems: socialism and capitalism. Let’s look at these two fundamental approaches to distribution of wealth and power.

socialist — in the interest of society
capitalist — in the interest of capital

Capitalist policies favor people and corporations who have the most wealth or capital to invest to create more wealth. If left unattended, over a few decades, a purely capitalist system will crystallize a small .01% of a population who are (more…)

1. Innocence. You’ve heard of Bernie from occasional appearances in the mainstream media, but you have a neutral or negative impression based on a New York Times or CNN piece. He looks so unpolished. He’s definitely unusual. You become curious.

2. Curiosity. Out of civic duty, a friend’s suggestion, or just boredom, you look up Bernie online. You go past the big media outlets and read a few articles at USUncut, TYTNetwork, DemocracyNow, Huffington Post, or one of dozens of smaller media outlets. You visit Bernie’s own website. You learn about his actual policy proposals and his impressive political history. He seems honest, his ideas are refreshing, and you find yourself agreeing with him.

3. Agreement. You’re drawn in deeper and learn about Bernie’s personal integrity, his longstanding and tenacious commitment (more…)