If Democrats don't like the word 'socialist,' they need to change their platform

Lewis Diuguid, Kansas City Star Editorial page columnist, says the McCain-Palin team is misusing the term ‘socialism’ in describing the Obama-Biden ticket. Not.

I’ve learned the hard way any time I ask a question about the Obama-Biden ticket, even if it’s a legitimate question, I’ll likely be called a racist. That’s really comical because my own family is truly black and white with a little Latino thrown in for fun. The McCain-Palin ticket, responding to Sen. Barack Obama’s promise to “spread the wealth,” pegged his idea socialistic. That would be accurate. Memo to Diuguid: we're talking about the economy, your candidate's favorite topic of late.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard Obama surrogates Bill Burton and Madeline Albright, not to mention the candidate himself, bring up the gap between rich and poor. That little phrase is repeated with the rhythm and cadence of the tree frogs that sing in my yard at night.

Just for fun, take a look at the Socialist Worker website. Here’s an excerpt from the column, ‘Marxism is more relevant than ever’: "The latest round of assertions came after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. 'Socialism is dead! Capitalism is triumphant!' It's time for the "peace dividend." This assertion came amid a growing gap between rich and poor the world over…"

That old gap between rich and poor says it all—it’s a staple in every Marxist or Socialist tract you will read. Maybe Obama-Biden could come up with a little ‘straight talk’? And maybe the Kansas City Star columnist could get a grip.