Democratic socialists” have been getting the teenage-idol treatment from giddy reporters and editors at legacy media outlets for years. Their newest crush is on the jihadi-apologist and Marxist New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani.
In a 4,500-word cover story about the candidate, “The Meaning of Zohran Mamdani,” Time magazine paints a caricature of a well-meaning, authentic, and not-really-so-radical go-getter. An “ideologue interested in creative solutions” is how Time puts it. Sure, Mamdani might support genocidal rhetoric, but the Jewish community will be pleased to learn that he “often talked about the problem of antisemitism and the need for anti-hate-crime funding.”
Is Mamdani, as many would have it, a generational talent whose campaign should be mimicked nationally by Democrats? For me, it’s difficult to see much “meaning” in the trope-ridden rhetoric he offers. “I think the most important thing,” the candidate, who, like most socialists, is a child of privilege, notes, “is that people see themselves and their struggles in your campaign.” Deep stuff. His “creative solutions” entail fresh ideas like rent control, a policy Mamdani benefits from personally that was instituted in 1943.
While journalists are mightily impressed, the truth is that Mamdani is running in a hard-left city against a gaggle of unlikeable, corrupt has-been Democrats. Much like Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), his fame is propelled by his radicalism and youth. Neither of them has passed a single consequential piece of legislation, come up with a new idea, much less a solution, or delivered a memorable speech.
Anyway, as one commenter pointed out, New York City is already something of a “socialist” city, with 40% of its residents living in rent-controlled apartments, 600,000 working for the city, and another 600,000 working for nonprofit groups largely funded by government.
You may recall that elegant gown Ocasio-Cortez donned with the slogan “Tax the Rich” written on it at the 2021 Met Gala, where guests selected by Vogue’s Anna Wintour ponied up about $35,000 a pop to hobnob with the rich and famous at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Well, the top 1% pay about 48% of New York City’s bills, and .01% pay nearly 31%. New York’s top 1% pay a combined 52% top tax rate, the highest in the country. The top 10% of earners paid about two-thirds of the city’s income tax revenue. In 2023, 41% of taxes were paid by millionaires, who make up about 4% of the population.
Technically, socialism entails the state controlling the means of production and distribution. “Democratic socialism,” on the other hand, entails young people demanding that others pay for all the benefits of the market system they pretend to detest.
And there is no doubt that “socialism” is gaining popularity and normalization, especially among the young. A recent poll by the Cato Institute and YouGov found that though 59% of Americans still had a favorable view of capitalism (41% unfavorable), 62% aged 18 to 29 had a “favorable view” of socialism. Then again, more than a third of young people hold favorable views of communism. Do they really understand that 100 million died trying to make it work? Maybe.
David Harsanyi, The Washington Examiner
THE ARTFUL DILETTANTE 