"In short, what's needed is a coherent Left presence in American political life. Nor is this pure pie in the sky. There already is a Left presence in Congress, in the form of the Progressive and Black Caucuses, that expresses traditional Socialist principles," says James Weinstein.

Weinstein, the author of The Long Detour: The History and Future of the American Left, might have added that the entire Democratic Party, U.S.A., represents a State Socialist presence in Congress. Anyone listening to and falling for the line of the Democratic Pasrty's current crop of presidential candidates would have to conclude that the answer to America's problems is more and higher taxes, special privileges for minorities, more government control of the nation's educational system, more environmental regulation, a much enlarged and comprehensive system of national health insurance subsidized by the taxpayers (i.e., socialized medicine), and more and more government programs.

Weinstein has written an interesting book. A dedicated Socialist and one-time Com- munist, the author is an enthusiastic supporter of Capitalism, so long as it under- writes Socialist programs. Corporations may be evil exploiters of the working class, but, by golly, they do generate a lot of wealth (and employment!). Weinstein devotes a lot of energy to attacking the Soviet form of thoroughgoing State Socialism, denounc- ing it in no uncertain terms as just an extension of the absolutism, or dictatorship, formerly exercised by the Czars.

Weinstein provides the reader with a look at the failure of the Socialist Party in America to gain any foothold among voters. "By 1936, the parties were over for the Socialists and the Communists in the United States, as each [of the two Left groups] had failed to develop a substantial popular following, and neither had any prospect of doing so."

However, many Socialist objectives have been put into place and, for that, we can mostly thank the Democratic Party. Weinstein says: "New Deal reforms created a government that is now responsible for 45 percent of national spending." Weinstein cites various programs, noting accurately that the U.S.A. is now "more than half Socialist today" because "more than half of the total output of the country is being distributed in a way that is determined by the government."

To the astonishment of Conservatives and Libertarians, these days it is Republicans who are carrying on the tradition of enlarging the role of government in every aspect of the economy and expanding the government's control over our lives.

Weinstein points out that the Socialist Party advocated "the eight-hour workday, women's suffrage, unemployment insurance, workmen's compensation, Social Secu- rity, legal protection of labor unions' right to organize, a heavily progressive (or graduated) income tax, prohibition of child labor, and the legal right to advocate birth control, and [that] all [of these] were being partially adopted by Congress or granted by the courts."

Weinstein, of course, sees the world through a Socialist perspective. Thus, he writes, "When the Cold War ended and the United States emerged as the world's last super- power, a new excuse for militarization was required. The Clinton administration came up with the ludicrous idea that we were threatened by rogue states, epitomized by North Korea and its one or two long-range missiles, or by an essentially demilitarized Iraq." Of course, some might suggest that letting rogue nations continue their mis- chief can only inevitably lead to worse troubles.

In the end, it is hard to reconcile Weinstein's love of Capitalism with his support of State Socialism. "The introduction of individualism as a social principle was one of Capitalism's great virtues," he writes, adding "The Utopians simply hated Capital- ism." But Weinstein remains a Utopian, advocating "a worldwide program of demili- tarization, led by the United States" and the removal of "the profit motive in arms production by nationalizing all military production, except small arms." Naturally, he sees the United Nations and World Court as the ultimate arbiter for the future of the U.S.A. and all other nations.

It is a wonder that Americans embraced Ronald Reagan's Conservatism in the 1980s and returned to George W. Bush's "compassionate" version of it in 2000. It is a wonder that Conservative radio talk show personalities are so popular. It is a wonder that there is still a debate over cutting taxes. It is a wonder that the federal govern- ment remains everyone's answer to all problems.

To Weinstein and others, it seems obvious that, in the last century, Americans con- cluded the federal government should be involved in everything from education to local zoning. The Socialists have won.

Alan Caruba is a veteran business and science writer, a Public Relations Counselor, Communications Director of the American Policy Center, and Founder of the National Anxiety Center, a clearinghouse for information about media-driven scare campaigns. Caruba writes a weekly column, "Warning Signs," posted on the Inter- net website of the National Anxiety Center (www.anxietycenter.com). He is the au- thor of A POCKET GUIDE TO MILITANT ISLAM and THE UNITED NATIONS VS. THE UNITED STATES, both available from the National Anxiety Center, 9 Brookside Road, Maple- wood, New Jersey, 07040.

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