The word “capitalism” was invented by leftists to disparage Europe’s predominant economic system in the 19th century. While he didn’t invent the word, Karl Marx was its main popularizer. So the term was originally intended, and has always been used by the Left, as a term of disparagement. Nevertheless, conservatives have generally adopted the word “capitalism” and have sought to defend it.
Meanwhile, throughout the 20th century, “socialism” was a widely popular concept in Europe but was anathema in America. More recently, polls have suggested that, as a result of far-left indoctrination in the schools, many young Americans have become enamored of socialism.
We decided to test these concepts with voters in the Thinking Minnesota Poll that will be released in a few weeks. We asked Minnesotans whether they have a favorable or unfavorable view of capitalism, free enterprise, socialism and communism. While the poll was done in Minnesota (500 registered voters), I think the results would be similar on a national basis.
We included the term “free enterprise” at my suggestion, as I generally use that term rather than “capitalism.” I have long thought that conservatives’ adoption of the Left’s pejorative “capitalism” was a mistake, and that “free enterprise” would resonate positively with more Americans. The results of our poll support that view.
Overall, these are the favorable/unfavorable percentages for each of the four ideologies among the entire sample group:
Free enterprise: 69%/11%
Capitalism: 58%/29%
Socialism: 34%/53%
Communism: 6%/82%
So I think there is much to be said for couching our economic arguments in terms of free enterprise.
While free enterprise remains vastly more popular than socialism, that is not the case among liberals. 77% of self-described liberals say they approve of socialism, compared to 40% approval of capitalism and 48% approval of free enterprise. And 15% of liberals say they approve of communism. So I think we can say that in today’s world, “liberal” is a misnomer. The large majority of liberals are in fact radicals.
As are most Democrats: Democrats approve of socialism by 61%/22%. To be fair, though, 61% of Democrats also say they approve of free enterprise. It is hard to see how to reconcile those numbers.
How about young people? The alarm that has been expressed here is well-founded. Among respondents aged 18-34, 51% approve of socialism and 11% approve of communism. That compares to 44% who like capitalism and, in an odd inversion, 42% who say they approve of free enterprise. Maybe young people are hostile to the word “free.” All I can say in response to this is, get your kids out of both public and (unless they are consciously conservative) private schools.
While considerably more Americans approve of free enterprise than socialism, that disparity declines with age. These are the percentages who say they approve of free enterprise, by age group:
65+: 86%
55-64: 82%
45-54: 66%
35-44: 59%
18-34: 42%
It seems clear that we are in the process of losing the culture that has made America both prosperous and free.
