Which is more Utopian: Thinking socialism and then communism can or work, or hoping Capitalism can sustain us?

France and greece are socialist, the whole EU is socialist and has been for some time now, are you saying they are better off than the USA? Our standard of living is better than the Europeans for one reason alone- we have more capitalism than they do. How many people from around the world are flocking to the EU for a chance to "make it"? or pursue their dreams? None. We are already over regulated to be a true capitalistic society, but we still have more than true socialism. We are taxed too much now to be truly capitalistic

We were about as close as we're apparently going to get to an capitalist utopia twenty years ago, since then socialist entitlements have broke the country in more ways than one. I see the U.S. trying to sustain itself for a short period of time before it falls into chaos. America is like a car without the engine (capitalism) or wheels (desire), it's not going anywhere fast.

Trick question. Capitalism is a term used by marxists and liberals to describe the American "free market"; just as they describe our government as a "Democracy" when it is actually a Republic. After time, the wrong labels become the main stream labels, and so the denigration begins. They label us something that we are not and then say, "look at how bad it is". All forms of government and economy have their strengths and weaknesses. When you study history, you will know what they are. Here are the facts... FACT: No form of Marxism has ever achieved the social, economic, technological, educational, ecological and individual success that has been achieved here in this Republic with a free market economy (nor has any other society). FACT: Marxism is responsible for more avoidable human death than any other social structure in human history (Most by forced starvation). FACT: We have not had a free market since the 1920s. FACT: As we move towards Marxism (Socialism/Communism), our middle class shrinks while the numbers of the very rich and very poor increase. (So much for spreading the wealth) FACT: The two most lethal dictators in human history were both Communists. FACT: All five of the most lethal dictators of the 20th century were Marxists. FACT: Marxism = zero freedom FACT: Our system has proven success while Marxism has proven horrible failure. FACT: Marxism is an utopian fantasy.

More and More government intervention is causing Capitalism to morph into Socialism - so in reality it is Socialism that is failing right now not Capitalism, since we are no longer a Capitalistic Society.

I agree with the first guy. Capitalism isnt failing...larger and larger government is making us fail. And you act like capitialism is the reason for environmental destruction and outstripping of resources. Do you think that people will stop using oil, lumber or whatever else if we become communist? People will still cut down trees and drill for oil. People just work slower when they are all getting paid no matter how fast they move and getting the same wage as everyone else.

is noam chomsky resorting to yahoo answers now? ill let ayn rand take this one. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7CjdJ1QyxI

Capitalism has sustained us. Even Marx himself agreed in his "The Communist Manifesto" that Capitalism has produced more wealth than all other previous generations combined: "The bourgeoisie, during its rule of scarce one hundred years, has created more massive and more colossal productive forces than have all preceding generations together. " (The Communist Manifesto) Capitalism's sustenance of humanity can hardly be called "Utopian" because it is already manifested in reality. The dissolution of the USSR on the other hand, and indeed, the dissolution of virtually every socialist state, has proved that the philosophy behind it is indeed utopian, and can not work. We do not even need to look at the historical data; the Austrian School has already gone to great lengths to demonstrate how Communism is not only unfeasible (such as von Mises' "Economic Calculation Problem" explication), but too to a great extent immoral (look at Bohm-Bawerk's criticisms of beliefs on interest). The environment is not destroyed by Capitalism, but rather, by a lack of private property rights. If parts of the environment was declared as "private property" by a conservationist group, then their ownership of that part of the environment can not be destroyed, otherwise, the perpetrator would be subject to a hefty fine (known as "internalizing the costs to the polluter). Communism on the other hand, through its lack of private property rights, suffers from something known as the "tragedy of the commons"; as there is no private property, parties aim to diminish the environment as quickly as possible before the other party. This has been cited in game theory literature. There is no such thing as "working class" or "Proletariat". Is Kobe Bryant a member of the "proletariat" because he plays basketball for a team and must "work" for a living. If so, is he really that similar to a janitor? The only thing that exists are individuals, not classes. The "working class" is not exploited because they voluntarily agree to work for a living with a Capitalist. Thus, it is a mutually beneficial agreement, and because of this mutually beneficial agreement, the real wealth of the Working class in the Western world has increased by leaps and bounds; hence of course why there is a huge difference in living standards between "the working class" in America and that in China.

Socialism is more of a Utopian ideal, while Capitalism is an Dystopian ideal. Capitalism naturally rewards humanities greed and desire to succeed at the cost of others.

First of all socialism/communism has already collapsed all over the world, it has already been proven that those two systems do not work, they cannot economically sustain themselves. And it has already been proven that Capitalism is a self-correcting system (i.e. recessions) and that it is sustainable. The USA has a 'mixed-economy'.