Riley B - Final Project

Political Ideologies Riley B

Collectivism Collectivism is an umbrella term for essentially anything left of centrism such as democratic socialism, utopian socialism, communism, and marxism. Stalinism is the furthest left and personally I believe it does not fall under the umbrella of socialism when it involves the murder of the people who are meant to be seen as equal

Communism/Marxism in the Past From the Soviet Union to countries like Cuba communism has either worked very well or barely held until it's fall. Today countries such as Cuba decided on communism as their political norm. Economically though, while Cuba is still centrally planned it has a much more mixed view on the economy than Karl Marx’s version of communism. Karl Marx, a German philosopher, had the idea for a Communist Manifesto in the 1840’s. Communism was a way to serve the people's needs while keeping everyone equal. “The last capitalist we hang shall be the one who sold us the rope.” -Karl Marx

Socialism Socialism is an idea very similar to that of communism, a social safety net, government ownership of resources, and many social programs. Many countries such as Norway thrive with a socialist government, Norway being one of the wealthiest countries has just over $1 Trillion in savings due to their government owned and run offshore oil operations. By not centrally planning the economy, Norway has been able to not only feed and house majority of their citizens, but also keep them happy and healthy from all the social programs like free healthcare, free daycare, many days off and shorter hours. “It’s great to live free of the other sheep until you hear the wolves howl.” -max brooks

Liberalism/Centrism Liberalism is an ideology in which the rights of the individual are upheld while still having some social programs. The most commonly referred to Government when speaking about a liberal democratic government is the USA. The US, being one of the most successful countries in the world, is the “golden standard”. The voted in officials voting on issues under constitution has been an effective way of governing since 18th century Europe and has been adapted to suit different cultures ever since.

Conservatism Conservatism is an ideology that involves the preservation of past accomplishment and traditional ways of life. The main focus of a conservative government typically involves economic growth and mostly uninterrupted production of goods rather than taxation in order to produce more jobs and in turn wealth. Examples of a Conservative government would include that of Reagan (US) or Harper (CA). “How can one not be fond of something that the Daily Mail despises?” -Stephen Fry

Fascism The Reactionary ideology otherwise known as Fascism is the belief that the present and future are not good enough and the past is what will work best for society. A reactionary government would make citizens abandon their new age ways of life by force and make them work live and learn on their own terms. A reactionary government generally involves mass militarization which is easy due to the lack of jobs and large amounts of poverty almost forcing men to join the military in order to feed their families. Examples of reactionary governments would be Italy and Germany in the second world war.