I just read Jonathan Baird’s paean to Bernie Sanders (Monitor Opinion, April 20), and I couldn’t agree more that Bernie was and is one of a kind in pointing out the ugly consequences of economic inequality and unbridled, winner-take-all capitalism.
I believe that one of the biggest problems of some on the left is their embrace of the label “socialist.” You can be in favor of a $15-per-hour minimum wage, student loan forgiveness, higher taxes on the wealthy and universal health care without embracing that label. Unfortunately, the label “socialist,” rightly or wrongly, has too many negative associations.
The USSR, a tyrannical empire, called itself socialist. The Nazi party was the “National Socialist” party. The Castro and Maduro regimes call themselves “socialist.” I just wish Bernie had dropped that label.
When we advocate for working people, we’ll inevitably be called “socialist.” The answer should be along the lines of “are highways socialist?” Are universal education, Medicare, and police and fire departments socialist?
BRIAN MILLER
Bow