The Case Against Socialism

Starting off the New Year by reopening my blogs with a review of what is undoubtedly a polemic text, Rand and Kelly Paul's The Case Against Socialism, is a good way to put myself back out there in blogosphere after a period of darkness. This darkness cannot compare to the darkness socialism has wrought upon the world which the Pauls so elooquently describe. Stalin, Mao, Hitler, Pol Pot all obviously figure prominantly as exemplars of socialism taken to its logical end - when fashioning society into a socialist dreamworld people tend to resist, and the ideal of the dreamworld selects for the most vicious leaders who are willing to kill those they see as standing in the way of creating it.

What the Pauls also do that really sets this book apart is look at the countries of Europe, especially Scandinavia where I live, and provide the context on what made these countries wealthy (hint: Norway's discovery of oil in her coastal waters is a lot more important than her socialist government). That plus an interesting digression into literary criticism round out a thoroughly enjoyable book!