Socialism is not "Bad" it just does not work very well, IMHO because it goes against mindset that evolution has instilled. Basically with socialism there is no motivation to work. Why would you work your ass off when all the proceeds are spread out to your neighbors and it gains you nothing? You won't, you will do the absolute minimum required to get your share. Competition/greed is a large driving mechanism of progress. Imagine natural selection where the lions shared all their food with the hyenas. Not much evolution would happen would it? That being said, a completely free market system is not the answer. Greed will quickly corrupt without oversight. Also, for those of you who want every industry deregulated, think again. It does not make sense to have 20 electric/gas/telephone company running wires/pipes to every single home in the country. What would be the point in having 20 gas lines running outside your house? It would be utterly wasteful. What's the answer? I would say something in the middle, but I think the question that is being asked or at least should be asked. Is what is fundamentally wrong with the system we (the USA) have now? There really isn't much wrong with it, but the people doing the overseeing have not done their jobs well. i.e. the Madoff ponzi scheme and the mortgage meltdown. Obviously the people who were suppose to be watching and investigating these type of things were asleep at the wheel. If you really want to understand what is going on take a look at this book http://www.amazon.com/Broken-Branch-Congress-Institutions-Democracy/dp/0195174461 it will give you an insight into why congress does what it does.