Quite frankly, the Republicans are right on this. Under any reasonable definition, Medicare IS a socialist program. Social Security IS a socialist program. Taxation IS in itself a socialist program. Public schools ARE a socialist program. Hell, even our Department of Defense - the Pentagon itself - is a socialist program.

And this is what I find so frustrating about today's parameters for discussion wherein socialism is automatically discounted as a legitimate approach to gain leverage that will help solve large social problems (millions without any "old age" pensions - Social Security) or undertake massive projects (i.e. Interstate highway construction) that serve the public good.

The MSM has joined this curious post-Reagan "reality" wherein "capitalism" and "libertarianism" are the only legitimate political ideologies in America; that anything else is simply "unpatriotic" or even "un-Constitutional" somehow.

"Government IS the Problem!," we are told. Socialism is determined rhetorically to be an "un-patriotic surrender" to communism, Stalinism, and probably Satan himself. This really complicates the discussion on items such as health care reform. As soon as there is mention of any changes that might adversely affect the health insurance industry's profit line, for example, the alarm gets raised that "Hey! That's socialized medicine."

The proper response to such a rhetorical "bombshell" is to say quite simply "And what is your point? You are aware that the health insurance industry is itself a socialist enterprise of redistributing dollars, do you not?"

No, instead we allow the opposition - and the MSM - to reaffirm the canard that says "All socialism is bad and even subversive, and so we rule your suggestion for single-payer or a public option to be un-American and therefore out-of-order because it will 'LEAD to socialized medicine.'"

Let's get real and agree to state the obvious: Our present health care system is in fact "socialized medicine," wherein we pool our resources to minimize each individual participant's personal exposure to risk. After all, It makes it very difficult to even talk reform of a necessarily socialist program like our present health insurance system if we can't even get out of the gate because we must first agree to rhetorical diversions that actually shape a alternate and truly perverse reality.