Political Memes

One of the great failings of the English language is the word “social” and the myriad of meanings it has, most of which are significantly different from one another.

A socialist is much like an atheist. An atheist simply doesn't believe in God or gods. Likewise, a socialist, in the most basic sense, advocates for an economy in which the means of production are socially or collectively owned rather than privately owned by individuals or corporations.

The surrounding philosophy is a separate matter. Atheism itself does not prescribe a particular philosophy, political system, or worldview, and socialism likewise does not, by itself, tell you everything about someone's broader political beliefs.

That is why communism can go hand in hand with socialism in much the same way that secular humanism can go hand in hand with atheism. Neither is strictly predicated upon the other, but they can coexist because they address different aspects of one's worldview.

AOC is a Democratic socialist. You can call her a Democrat or a socialist, but those labels indicate two different things. Neither one, by itself, communicates the whole picture.

You can call a car an automobile, but “automobile” doesn't tell you whether it's a sedan, truck, or sports car. Likewise, calling AOC a socialist is not necessarily wrong, but it omits an important distinction: she is specifically a Democratic socialist.

Again, the disclaimer and the graphic are intended to be quick references. They are not novellas, books, or even pamphlets explaining every aspect of the concepts they're describing.

Although I will admit that I should probably revise the disclaimer somewhat to make that distinction clearer.