People say Obama is a Socialist. They said the same thing about FDR.

Why do people not understand that there is a place between socialism and communism? I am getting called a 'communist' quite frequently over here (I am from England) because I agree with some of my own countries practices (socialized healthcare, for example.) All I hear over here is people bleating about the 'tyranny' and 'evil' of socialism and I am sick of being told my country is 'evil' when over here I am getting sicker because the 'tyranny' and 'evil' of living under the control of insurance companies means I cannot pay for treatment for a long term illness. I know from conversations with many friends over here that what people believe about living in a socialist society is far from accurate on the whole - people have told me ridiculous things about how we live there, because obviously having lived there 30 years means I don't know a thing...lol Why don't people stop throwing political labels about and actually do something towards change? Because this country needs its own solution, particular to the unique country it is - but it wouldn't hurt to stop sitting with fingers in ears going 'lalalala you're not American so we're not listening'.......lol From what I have seen so far here, you vote in a President and think hes wonderful and then as soon as he does anything at all, he is the next candidate for the anti-Christ within a couple of months.

I haven't followed US History as much as I should have. I don't know as much about politics as I should... But I did notice that Obama made an interesting mention of Ted Kennedy in one of his speeches. I don't think either of them is a "socialist". I think their intentions are in the right place, but I also think that Obama is trying to do too much too quick and some things are getting thrown into the Health reform bill that aren't such great ideas...

Because it was equally true abour FDR. Obama asked us to judge him by the people he surrounds himself with. How many more socialists does he need to surround himself with before you start to take Obam at his own words?

FDR was one of the worst presidents we ever had. He was a socialist in actions, if not by party affiliation. He also put millions of American citizens - Japanese, Italian and German - into internment camps during the second World War. To deprive US citizens of due process, property, livelihood and to imprison them was a heinous act fueled by racism and bigotry. He not only did not bring us out of the Depression, he prolonged it with his spending on social programs. He is the only reason we now have term limits for presidents after people became afraid he would be president for life. And just as a matter of interest, Obama greatly admires FDR. That should have been enough to tell us what sort of man he is.

I am not a big fan of FDR. He took a bad situation and made it worse and like Obama, he didn't look to the future and the burden that has been and will be put on future generations. And just as Obama is doing, he built up labor unions (you know, those people who pretty much destroyed General Motors, through greed) whose job, it seems, is to destroy business rather than build it. http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/FDR-s-Policies-Prolonged-Depression-5409.aspx I think this article says it all.

FDR was one of our greatest Presidents as he took people from the shadows of life and into the sunlight. At a time when our nation may have moved toward the real tyranny of communism and socialism, he move us to ward a sharing of the burdens we faced and a greater concern for the working man and woman. I agree with the terrible things done in the name of national security at the time, but it was a strange time with Uboats prowling the eastern seaboard and the fear of attack while millions of isolationist and pacifists were in the streets calling ofr our staying out of the war. Franklin and Eleanor worked to raise the life of the working man, to help those forgotten from the disabled to minorities to farmers. He was a true uniter, not a divider. Every great leader who breaks eggs to make an omelete is ridiculed. Every great idea starts with one person saying "why not" and a thousand others saying "what are you thinking??!!" Such is the case with our 44th President.