Socialists like AOC and Bernie Sanders point to Scandinavia as successful socialist countries, but they are wrong on two counts. First of all, their economies are capitalistic and only their social programs can be considered consistent with their values.
AOC and Sanders believe that government should control businesses. Secondly, their social programs are failing, largely due to the influx of migrants who siphon off benefits without contributing anything. By the same token, American socialists (DEMOCRATS) haven’t got a clue on how to pay for their programs.
Meanwhile, social programs in Scandinavian countries are failing.
“Finland’s coalition government resigned on Friday a month ahead of a general election, saying it could not deliver on a healthcare reform package that is widely seen as crucial to securing long-term government finances,” Reuters reported March 8.
“Healthcare systems across much of the developed world have come under increasing stress in recent years as treatment costs soar and people live longer, meaning fewer workers are supporting more pensioners,” the report said. “Nordic countries, where comprehensive welfare is the cornerstone of the social model, have been among the most affected.
“But reform has been controversial and, in Finland, plans to cut costs and boost efficiency have stalled for years.”
And how fantastic is the system that this money pays for? Ed Dutton, an expatriate writer in Finland, wrote about his experiences with Finnish health care in a piece for The Guardian in 2016:
“Imagine going to your nearest doctors’ surgery at 9am on a weekday with your sick six-year-old daughter because you cannot make an appointment over the phone. After your drive to another part of the city, you can’t simply book a time with the receptionist. There isn’t one. Instead, you must swipe your daughter’s national insurance card through a machine, which gives you a number.
Then you and your feverish child simply sit and wait. Or rather, you stand, because the room is so crowded that people are sitting on the floor, on steps, or leaning against walls. The numbers come up on a screen every 10 minutes or so, in no particular order so you’ve no idea how long your wait will be as your daughter complains of feeling cold then hot and then cold again. …