Question:
Why do conservatives say Norway is not socialism but capitalism but then insists Venezuela is socialism? How is this not a double standard?
anonymous
2018-05-11 13:39:40 UTC
Most businesses and corporations in Venezuela are privately owned. The majority of Venezuela's entire economy is driven by capitalism.

The only thing "socialist" about Venezuela is that Hugo Chavez nationalized th oil industry to fund things like healthcare and public education.

Public healthcare, education, while still maintaining a capitalist economy... huh... sounds an awful lot like NORWAY doesn't it??

It seems to be a dishonest double standard that conservatives want to claim all countries that are successful at "socialism" as "actually capitalist" and all countries that fail at is as "true socialism".

This is just dishonest to the highest degree, Norway has way more social programs and policies than Venezuela by miles!

Either they're BOTH not "true" socialism, or they're BOTH "democratic socialism" (what the left likes to call it).

The values of Venezuela's economy can't simply be boiled down to "muh socialism", it's a lot more complex than that. The social policies they introduced already exist in almost every first-world country, the UK, Japan, France, Canada, Norway, Sweden, Finland, etc.

None of those countries crashed after introducing public services like healthcare and education and housing and the like.

So simply saying that those policies are the soul reason for Venezuela's collapse is mindbogglingly stupid.
Seventeen answers:
anonymous
2018-05-16 02:32:33 UTC
Why do conservatives say Norway is not socialism but capitalism but then insists Venezuela is socialism? How is this not a double standard?

I doubt it.



~Peanuts2345
DosCentavos
2018-05-11 13:53:39 UTC
Norway is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. It has a capitalist economic system but a 70% tax rate so that government redistributes wealth in a socialist style.



Venezuela is a communist dictatorship masking as a presidential republic. The country is actually fascist as the government is constantly seizing control of private industry assets. (E.g. Exxon Mobile and GM facilities).
?
2018-05-11 13:50:48 UTC
It's because they don't understand what socialism is, they're just parroting things that they've read on the internet.
anonymous
2018-05-11 13:47:53 UTC
Norway isn't socialism because it's not run by dirty Brown people.



#MAGA #TRUMP2020
Sam
2018-05-11 13:46:39 UTC
all political labels suck. Communist are just as crooked as Capitalist. Venezuela is a dictatorship, they suck too. When there is a political label called Humanity, I'll join.. Until then, they can all play their games without me.
Maxwell
2018-05-11 13:46:37 UTC
Scandinavia, isn't called "not socialist" by just Americans.....The "Nordic model" countries themselves say they are not socialist.



Here is the Danish Prime Minister to explain:



"I know that some people in the US associate the Nordic model with some sort of socialism. Therefore I would like to make one thing clear. Denmark is far from a socialist planned economy. Denmark is a market economy,” Rasmussen said.



“The Nordic model is an expanded welfare state which provides a high level of security for its citizens, but it is also a successful market economy with much freedom to pursue your dreams and live your life as you wish,”



https://www.thelocal.dk/20151101/danish-pm-in-us-denmark-is-not-socialist
?
2018-05-11 13:46:36 UTC
The mechanics of socialism might produce a Norway (might), but also open the door for the very real possibility of a Venezuela.



Have you noticed the demographics of the countries where it "works"?
anonymous
2018-05-11 13:42:54 UTC
Well, we now know the left has gone full retard. Why does the left claim that Norway is a socialist paradise yet Venezuela is a country ruined by imperialist capitalists from the USA?
anonymous
2018-05-11 13:42:24 UTC
Generalization. When democrats are fact slapped, they generalize. SMH
?
2018-05-11 13:42:11 UTC
Venezuela is driven by illegal drugs, while Norway's isnt.
GEORGE B
2018-05-11 15:54:51 UTC
Your knowledge of the current Venezuelan situation between their government and their businesses approaches zero.



The characteristics you described are more that a decade old.



https://www.forbes.com/sites/dougbandow/2017/08/14/socialism-is-destroying-venezuela-its-people-not-the-u-s-military-must-restore-democracy/



https://www.dailysignal.com/2017/08/02/socialism-destroyed-venezuela/



https://nypost.com/2017/08/01/venezuela-a-nation-devoured-by-socialism/



https://mises.org/library/how-socialism-ruined-venezuela



https://www.heritage.org/americas/commentary/socialism-has-destroyed-venezuela



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJqa-Z9Souc



https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2017/07/socialism-is-destroying-venezuela-but-the-left-will-never-admit-it/
Davros
2018-05-11 14:56:23 UTC
Many on the right either deliberately or through ignorance refuse to understand that there are many forms a left-wing state can take. To some anything at all that is further to the left than the "right-of-centre" is just commies. There's no point engaging with these types as their minds are clamped shut.



Norway is of course one of the most socially advanced nations on the Planet. It is also currently regarded as the most democratic country on Earth. Venezuela on the other hand is an economic basket case sliding into authoritarianism. The nations are not readily comparable with extremely different social and political genealogies.



Important point here: There is a significant difference between "social democracy" and "democratic socialism". Changing the order of the words does make a major change in meaning. "Social democracy" is the Scandinavian hybrid of free market capitalism married to a highly developed cradle-grave social welfare system. "Democratic socialism" on the other hand is an ideology further to the left - a democratically elected socialist polity with much state controlled means of production and centralised infrastructure.



Whereas "Social Democrats" are seen as a liberal left-of-centre form of government (and the predominant form seen in modern Europe), "Democratic socialism" basically occupies ground closer to communism. (of which Venezuela is one of the very few examples).



The terms get mixed up all the time so it can get very confusing.



Norway is the model of social democracy. In fact the country is so well tuned right now that practically any change Norwegians made to their political system would probably lead to a reduction in freedoms.

It's not all just because Norwegians are uber-generous, inclusive and peace loving (although that's usually true). Norway is by luck of demographics and geography an immensely wealthy state. Norwegians are practically tripping over the natural resources the world hungers for. They are able to run almost their entire infrastructure on cheap renewable energy and they have very friendly neighbours who share all their ideals. In many respects they are lucky b@stards for whom in the modern world it is easy to run a utopia.



Venezuela on the other hand hasn't had so easy a time of it lately. Their socialist government was for a time very effective at bettering the lives of their citizens but their over-centralised command economy was unable to deal with the collapse in oil prices upon which their wealth was based. They have 6 times the population of Norway, income sources that are nowhere near as diverse, only a fraction of Norway's wealth and have infrastructure nowhere near as highly developed. Their main problem right now is that their government is headed by a president who is bulldozing the rights of his people in a desperate bid to retain his power. Venezuela may have been democratic socialists but it's hard to call them democratic anything these days. They're now on the borderline of dictatorship



Incidentally Norway's democratic freedom rating is: (out of 10) 9.9. Venezuela's is 3.9 and falling.



As you say, blaming socialism for their current problems is not really looking at the wider picture of ill fortunes affecting the nation. But that doesn't stop those with a political agenda claiming that Venezuela is what any nation who adopts socialist principles will turn into despite the clear evidence that this is arrant nonsense.
?
2018-05-11 13:51:23 UTC
Norway and Venezuela have many more similarities, for example; both have economies that depend on natural resources, very similar to Saudi Arabia.

The difference is Venezuela did nationalization. Norway gov. owns stocks of it's giant fossil fuel and natural gas companies, while Venezuela gov. simply nationalized and seized all assets.

Venezuela also nationalized many other sectors, including it's major banks.

When you nationalize, you run the business, something government is not efficient at doing. To stay afloat Venezuela gov. has printed their currency into hyperinflation.



Norway does not have that problem, they are far more capitalist than Venezuela. Look up the 'ease to do business index' Norway I guarantee ranks far above Venezuela [I have not seen the list recently].



With that said, Norway is very socialist, but like United Arab Emirates, that is because they are blessed with God given resources [just so happen to be sitting on top of the biggest reserves in Europe].
anonymous
2018-05-11 13:51:06 UTC
they are just plain dumb

where do you think they hear 'things' about Venezuela?
?
2018-05-11 13:49:28 UTC
And the same people who complain about Venezuela and socialism are mum about Bolivian socialism. Why?



I should note that socialism doesn't exist anywhere, and it really hasn't except perhaps in very brief moments of small areas (Paris Commune, Revolutionary Catalonia, etc.)



Venezuela is also severely misunderstood. When Chavez came to power, conditions in the country improved greatly. People can't see anything prior to the economic crash of 2014 though. Venezuela's problems stem from too heavy reliance on one item (oil) and when the price of oil collapsed in 2014, so did their economy. It's a rather nuanced discussion.
Just Say No to War
2018-05-11 13:46:46 UTC
He did more than nationalize the oil industry. And what exactly does 'nationalizing' an industry entail? Seizure of public property. Arrests and murder. That's what it entails. Norway does no such thing.
?
2018-05-11 13:42:25 UTC
National and International Socialist Democrats would not recognize capitalism if it vaccinated them in the bum.


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