The Economics of Bernie Sanders

[Suzanimal]

As the political campaign of Hillary Clinton continues to run aground, Democrats are flocking to the campaign of Bernie Sanders, the self-described “socialist” US senator from Vermont, who has been a fixture in that state for more than three decades. Not unlike the presidential campaign of Ron Paul, Sanders is drawing large, enthusiastic crowds who are very receptive to his message of increased state control of the US economy.

Obviously, when a person running a campaign based upon socialist principles is drawing attention and big crowds, we might ask just what does Sanders mean by “socialist,” and what would he do if he were elected president of the United States? To better answer that question, I am taking a closer look at what we would call the “economics” of Bernie Sanders.

What Do We Mean by “Socialism”?

Before looking at Sanders’s platform, however, I believe it is important to note that when socialists speak of “victories” in the economy, they are not talking about actual results, but rather political achievements in the forms of laws being passed that mandate certain policies. Whether or not these policies actually achieve what socialists claim will be accomplished is another story altogether, but results are irrelevant to socialists.

This should surprise no one because, after all, socialism is based upon political control of the economy. True (or at least original) socialists believe that state agents via the “magic” of their authority should allocate all resources to where there is the greatest need for them. Political representatives, not surprisingly, determine what constitutes the greatest need. The state would take ownership of all factors of production and then wisely determine the needs and how production of goods would fulfill them.

Ludwig von Mises in 1920 in his short work, Socialism (three years later expanded into a book), exploded the socialist myth by pointing out that in a world of scarce resources, economies needed private ownership, prices, profits and losses to determine where resources should be directed. The early years of the “experiment” of the Soviet Union proved Mises correct, and socialists then sought to redefine what socialism actually meant.

In the USSR, and later in China and North Korea, the state took ownership of factors of production, but tried to create a parallel economy by using shadow prices and production functions via the mechanisms championed by Polish communist Oskar Lange, who admitted that Mises had pointed out serious flaws in the original plans of socialists. We also know how that “experiment” turned out, which is why there no longer is a USSR, China has abandoned much of the economics of Mao, and North Korea is a failed state where most people live in grinding poverty.

But people like Bernie Sanders, while maybe not rejecting the old socialism spiritually, nonetheless have embraced a “socialism” in which government takes ownership of large portions of what has been produced by private enterprise and transfers wealth from one group of people to another. A look at the Sanders website spells out his brand of “socialism” that he says is based upon what Nordic countries like Sweden, Denmark, and Norway have done, levying high taxes with governments using that funding for social programs like medical care and other public welfare initiatives.

...

The problem, economically speaking, is that Bernie Sanders proposes nothing that actually would enable entrepreneurs to help bring about a true economic recovery. In Sanders’s world, entrepreneurs are parasites and employers are oppressors who seek to harm their employees, and wealth is defined by how much governments have in their treasuries.

If I could put the economics of Bernie Sanders into a nutshell, it would be this: Burden private enterprise with one directive after another, and then demonize it when it ultimately falls down under the awful weight of taxes, higher costs, and mandates. While many people believe that instituting the Sanders economic agenda would help turn the USA into another Sweden or Denmark, the more likely outcome would be turning this country into another Venezuela.

https://mises.org/library/economics-bernie-sanders

 

[RonPaulFanInGA]

"Flocking" to Bernie Sanders? The most recent national poll has him trailing Mrs. Clinton by 29 points. The only time Sanders ever polls well nationally is when pollsters include Joe Biden's name, who gets double-digit support, almost all of it from Clinton, not Sanders.

 

[Ronin Truth]

https://www.google.com/search?q=ber....1ac.1.34.heirloom-serp..1.11.689.tOeqE-z-bsc

 

[acptulsa]

Meanwhile the media still won't talk about O'Malley or Webb, and continues to act like Democrats' only other choice is Biden.

It's the Year of the Clown. If you ain't a clown, they ain't talking about you.

 

[VIDEODROME]

He seems to idolize Scandanavia. I'm not sure how well their systems perform. I think Norway's socialism is paid for by oil.

 

[r3volution 3.0]

bolsheviki are popular....

people wear che guevara T-shirts

...the West is finished.

so, what now?

...Personally, I'm praying for a coup d'etat; I ought to have joined the army.

 

[AngryCanadian]

In the meantime the media still wont touch Rand Paul as they still look after a Obama look like. Typical.

 

[Cutlerzzz]

He seems to idolize Scandanavia. I'm not sure how well their systems perform. I think Norway's socialism is paid for by oil.

It doesn't really exist. Norway is 6th in the world in ease of doing business, Denmark 4th, Sweden 11th, Finland 9th, and Iceland 12th. This is out of 189 countries.

Scandanavia basically amounts to capitalistic countries with low regulations, free trade, low taxes on business and investors, but with large welfare states and high taxes to pay for them.

What Sanders actually wants is called Venezuela.

 

[Jan2017]

He seems to idolize Scandanavia. I'm not sure how well their systems perform. I think Norway's socialism is paid for by oil.

Thanks for posting this article - I just saw Bernie on the cover on the newstand magazines shelves with "socialism" -
Hillary is imploding so Bernie Dimocrat-Indies are gonna draw some crowds.

Norway is a very high per capita income - and never joined the EU - voted against by referendum.

Denmark and Sweden are highly taxed . . . there are many political parties, even communists, in the legislatures, but yes Democratic Socialists are a party.

In Denmark, if you graduate from hs you get a monthly stipend of about 240 dollars or so - so you are subsidized.

 

[Jan2017]

If I could put the economics of Bernie Sanders into a nutshell, it would be this:
Burden private enterprise with one directive after another, and then demonize it when it ultimately falls down
under the awful weight of taxes, higher costs, and mandates.

Yeah, that sounds accurate.

 

[RPfan1992]

It doesn't really exist. Norway is 6th in the world in ease of doing business, Denmark 4th, Sweden 11th, Finland 9th, and Iceland 12th. This is out of 189 countries.

Scandanavia basically amounts to capitalistic countries with low regulations, free trade, low taxes on business and investors, but with large welfare states and high taxes to pay for them.

What Sanders actually wants is called Venezuela.

According to the left wing U.N Sweden will be a third world country in fifteen years.