Editor,

Dear Americans, are you for or against Social Security?

Here’s what the polls say: On average 80 percent of Americans are in favor of keeping Social Security. They’re even willing to pay more to keep it effective.

So, next topic: The 2020 elections. Republican politicians are labeling Democrats as socialist and comparing that to communism. Well, that’s not going to be an effective path. Why? Because a social dictator form of government is not what we have.

We have a social democracy. The definition of the word social is “relating to society.” Relating to society is all it means. The Social Security system in America is a program that relates to society.

We should be celebrating the social programs that we benefit from. Don’t let any greedy 1-percenter politician influence you on demonizing the meaning of social. In fact, if a politician claims that social programs are bad for our country, then look at his/her wealth. If they are worth $8 million or more, they have no authority to tell you social programs are bad. The top 1-percent households average a net worth of about $8 million and own 40 percent of the country’s wealth.

And interestingly, Finland topped the chart again for “happiest” county along with the other Nordic countries, while the U.S. rating went down again on the chart.

Why? Because Finland has social safety nets for its citizens, including a public health care system. A good social democracy is what we should strive for.

Look at the statistics and judge for yourself. Do you want a happier, more wealth-balanced society, or the ever-widening wealth gap we have, with more unhappy people and eventually more inequality and crime?

Ron Sharp

Oak Harbor