Have you spoken to a 20-something Millennial about economics lately? You really should. But I want to warn you; you may be VERY surprised at how they feel about capitalism, communism and socialism.
A recent study from the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation found that over half of Millennials surveyed would prefer to live in a socialist (44%) or communist (7%) system than a capitalist society.
Don’t let the name of the study fool you. The Millennial affinity for socialism is real.
- A 2016 Gallup poll found that 57% of Millennials have a positive perception of socialism.
- Another 2016 poll, this time from Harvard, found that 51% of Millennials don’t like capitalism!
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Over 2 million Americans under the age of 30 voted for self-labeled “Democratic Socialist” Bernie Sanders.
Wait; it gets worse. A surprising 22% of those surveyed had favorable views of Karl Marx, and 13% viewed Joseph Stalin and Kim Jong-un as “heroes.”
Seriously?
Interestingly, when pressed, most Millennials could not cogently describe socialism. “Seven in 10 Millennials either don’t know the definition or misidentify it,” said Marion Smith, the Executive Director of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.
Heck, I was even surprised that 26% of my fellow baby boomers would like to live under socialism. Hey, I like free stuff as much as the next guy, but come on. Someone has to pay for it!
There are undoubtedly several forces at work. But I think the root of the socialist love-fest is the Millennial perception that the U.S. economy is rigged against them. In fact, 63% of those dear, poor snowflakes who were surveyed said as much.
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The problem is that Millennials don’t know much about capitalism. And the little that they do know is wrong. That’s what happens to young minds when they get their information from TV shows, Hollywood movies and ULTRA-liberal college professors.
Of course, my parents said the same about my Woodstock baby boom generation. The United States of America has survived roughly 12 new generations since we declared independence from Great Britain. And I am confident that it will survive the handout-seeking Millennial generation, too.
However, the Millennial generation invests very differently than we do. And you’d be wise to pay attention to what they do with their money, because doing so will help you discover new profit opportunities.
Related story: You Did WHAT With Your College Money?!
I’m talking about things like bitcoin and other digital assets, peer-to-peer lending (Lending Club, Prosper, Funding Circle and Upstart), robo-advisers, green energy, socially responsible investing, and especially their intense love affair with technology and tech stocks.
Talk to any Millennial (with a job) and ask them what type of technology they use the most. For most, the answer is iPhones (Apple), Facebook, Netflix, Twitter, Amazon and Google.
And that happens to be a great list of stocks to keep on your radar screen for the next time they go on sale.
Best wishes,
Tony Sagami
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The problem with millennials is their weak work ethic. For example we hear all kinds of complaints about their student loans. Firstly, many took out big loans for jobs that will never pay what it takes to pay them back. That is just plain STUPID. Secondly, they still spend $$ on all kinds of extraneous things (like Starbucks) instead of getting a second or third job to pay back the loans. That is exactly what I had to do and I paid off the loans. So quit complaining millennials, and WORK.
The ignorance you point out in the millennials evidences the media and education system are rigged against the values of America. Each year it gets worse as more representatives of those doing the rigging take up more positions in these and other systems. Citizens today neither read nor have a clue as to what is transpiring which allows the riggers to use them to further their goals. Ignorance is no longer bliss. Now it is like handing over the keys to your life to others who know exactly what to do with it. They simple say this for some good and the ignorant follow. Multiculturalism is celebrated before the ignorant while it is deployed to water down and destroy individual cultures. The founders said to keep the republic they formed the people need to be vigilant. How vigilant can a person be when their mind is on stumbling blocks like circuses and games meant to distract them instead of on who is pulling the strings. And if they do wonder whose to blame they turn on the tube to get their answers straight from the ones who are leading down the road to ruin.
Give me a break. Saying the ignorance of the millennials evidences the media and the education system are rigged against the values of America is hogwash. The millenials did not vote in Donald Trump and the Republican leadership, a group of people who I think are a real threat to our democracy. i know many millennials who are intelligent, perceptive, work very hard and are also very generous with their time and talent. There are not would be free loaders. The one network leading us down the path to destruction is Fox News, a news channel that is obviously “biased opinion rather than unbiased news†playing to the right wing with hosts that trade truth for money.
What a patronizing tone your article has. “Dear poor snowflakes” indeed. Maybe, just maybe our Millenials are tired of system that constantly “rewards” those who already have more money than they know what to do with. The present tax cut bill is a perfect example. Perhaps they are tired of being held hostage to your awful healthcare system that rewards insurance companies rather than benefits those who need the help. Try to be a whole lot more objective in your writing and leave the snide remarks out.
Amen
I have to say that many of the “Boomer” generation grew up under the same circumstances. The “system” hasn’t changed, except to provide more handouts. I was dirt poor and had no one to help me. I couldn’t get a student loan to go to college. I had to quit school and I had to start WORKING to survive. I have been WORKING ever since. I drove very old, beat up cars and worked two jobs. My parents didn’t give me anything. I never took a dime from the government. I had no health insurance: I had to pay my own medical bills. There was never enough food. I qualified for food stamps but never took them. I lived in a junky little apartment sitting on one piece of cast off furniture that had holes. My mattress was on the floor. My pay check barely covered the rent. There was no such thing as Section 8 housing or any type of help for my shelter costs. I wouldn’t have taken it anyway. When my first baby was born, I got 2 weeks off and then was expected to return to work. My husband got no time off. It was a very difficult time but I never once thought the government or anyone who had money owed me anything. Instead, I looked to people who had money as models of where I could be if I worked hard and made the right choices. Some (not all) of this new generation of Millenials (as well as some of my own and other generations) have an entitlement attitude. From what I see, many of the Millenials are living off government handouts and/or are living with their parents, or grandparents. All my friends have at least one adult child or grandchild living “off of” them, or in their home with them. One has both her son and grandson living with her. Neither of these “leeches” work. Mom/grandma is in her 80’s. Other parents and grandparents are in their 70’s and are still working to make ends meet. All the while their “kids” and grand kids are sitting around their parents’ and grandparents’ homes eating their food and enjoying a nice comfy space. These same “kids”and grand kids are continually making very bad choices: they spend their money on themselves, believe they deserve the best of everything and refuse to look for advancement. They are comfortable so why should they bother to change? Mom and dad and grandma and grandpa worry their kids and grand kids will be homeless if they kick them out. These situations are so wrong on so many levels, it’s beyond words. My parents would have NEVER allowed that. When I was young, I never looked for comfort. I worked hard at my jobs, my husband and I scraped up enough money to buy a home no one wanted because it was “totally trashed.” We worked very hard on that house for two years while working full time. I took side jobs to add to our income. During those two years we had baby. We sold that house and eventually were able to buy piece of land. We then scraped up enough money to buy supplies to build another home. While building that home, again as a mother working full time, my family and I lived in a travel trailer for 4 years, with no power or water for part of the time. For 6 months, we had to haul all our water in jugs in the back of our car. When we finished that home, we did it again: we bought a home that was scheduled to be burned down and lived in a travel trailer, this time with two children. Again, it took over 4 years to make that home livable enough to be able to get out of the trailer. We were eventually able to buy some run down rental property which we remodeled and repaired ourselves. That is the way my husband and I have lived for over 40 years. We learned by doing everything ourselves, sometimes doing it 3 times to get it right. Our whole lives we have kept working and never looked back. We are still working and do all our household and property maintenance ourselves. We have had two scheduled vacations in the past 40 years and have none planned for the future. Living the way we have is the only way we could secure our future to make sure we could pay our own way when we got “old.” How many people are willing to work that hard? The Millenials (and others) who aren’t doing well are the ones who are not willing to start with nothing and work hard to attain what they want. They are the ones and who haven’t bothered to learn the skills necessary to do things for themselves. Most don’t want to learn those skills either. They want to hire someone to do their “dirty work.” These days, many expect their work to be “fun” and exciting. They want to get all their “stuff” without putting in their time. When they discover that they can’t afford all the fun and games and a comfortable lifestyle without hard work, they tap into the government coffers or move in with mom and dad or grandma and grandpa. After all, those people “have more money than they know what to do with.” Perhaps they should examine why those people have money. It’s because they are the ones who have WORKED and made good choices in life. They are also the people who generously support good causes: who make financial donations and volunteer their time. They earned what they have and they use it wisely. They don’t owe the Milleinals (or anyone else) anything. The Millenials have had more opportunity than past generations. There are more programs to help them “get a leg up.” What they have to learn is how to start at the bottom and work hard to obtain their goals. They need to learn to take other people’s “trash” and fix it. They need to learn they have to work hard for their nice housing, the privilege of eating out and visiting Starbucks; for the joy of having fancy cell phones, new cars, pricey vacations and all the other perks that come with “having it all.” They might have to work two jobs. They might have to do without for awhile. Things don’t come easy in life and nothing is free. EVERYONE (including some of the boomers, Gen X, etc.) who are whining about not having enough or not having a “nice nest egg” need to stop blaming the “system,” capitalism, their parents, “rich” people or anyone else for their problems. They just need to look in the mirror to discover why they aren’t succeeding in life.
Amen! We did the same, and feel the same way. (56 y.o.)
Millennials (and some, including this well-off, baby boomers) are disappointed with American capitalism due to the unprecedented wealth inequality it has produced. When 1% of the population controls 90% of the nation’s private wealth, you get extremes of divisiveness, political non-cooperation, and tax bills that give 80+% of the benefits to the wealthiest individuals, mostly because the politicians they have supported are railroading the tax cuts through Congress. For anyone who thought that our current President would look after the little guy because he is too rich to care about garnering further riches, think again. Greed, as Gordon Gecko taught us, has no bounds.
let me guess?…..your a democrat! right?
I just turned Democratic ( voted and donated to Hilary) to Republic or independent after I have experiences what the
spirit of democratic has been hi jacked and hostaged by some democratic judges or politicians who gave handouts and harbored unworthy trash who abusive the systems and fool people’s
compassion.
Answer to life is always responsible for your own life. Work, work and work.
Keep you compassion for someone worthy. And contemplating the spirit of democracy because it has a lot of beauty in it.
Too bad, too much abusiveness .
The millennials are correct. The system is rigging. The 1% control the 99%, And I am not a millennial. I am a senior and have seen it all. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. There has not been real wage growth in this country for 30 years. In the 70’s a guy making 8 dollars an hour had his wife at home with the kids and he could afford to buy a house and drive a new car and take his family to dinner on Friday night. Now a guy making 25 dollar an hour is renting an apartment, his wife is also working, the kids are un-supervised and they are driving a 10 year old cars and probably have a big pile of credit card debt. I have heard that more than 50% of the people in this country have a net worth of less than $50,000.Driving through Los Angeles there are thousands of people living on the streets in tents or just sleeping on the sidewalk. You probably don’t see many homeless up there in Whitefish do you Tony ??
The real decisions in this country are not made in Washington. The real decisions are made on golf courses and at country clubs and that is a fact. Any one who believes that this is a democracy is truly brain washed. All politicians are beholden to the fat cats that financed their campaigns. The average person does not contribute a penny to political campaigns so the politicians have no incentive to represent them. Hillary Clinton received 4 million more votes than Trump so the majority does not really rule. I do not believe that capitalism in this country is working for the average person. In Sacramento the answer to everything is to raise taxes and fees on every possible thing while the governor is on TV bragging that there is billions in surplus.This democratic/capitalistic system has left million and millions of people behind…..
Yes, I would concur with the above statements in that unfettered capitalism or rule of the government by corporations is not what our founders had in mind. Buying out all of your competition or having the government fix the rules to prevent entry into the marketplace is not true capitalism. You may recall that most of the manufacturing plants were taken to Mexico or elsewhere many years ago, and we turned the healthcare system into a for profit business instead of one for human need. But let’s face it, the uneducated and unwashed don’t really deserve anything do they? They should all be sterilized! That’s what the elite think
The ONLY way to fix our system is to get Term Limits for ALL political offices. Yes, it is broken, however, without career politicians, it would run the way it is supposed to run. Our forefathers who framed our Constitution NEVER envisioned that politics would evolve into a career choice.
not just term limits……gawd, that would just afford even more representatives the hallowed opportunity to gain huge corporate “sponsorship” (read: bribery with attendant expectational payback….) thru campaign donations, etc. And lets not forget the legal-for-them ability to trade on insider information….is there any better way to game the equity markets for super accelerated returns???
A very insightful article. I wish there was a way to forward it as I would like some of my friends to read it. Thank you. f.w.b.
I’m not advocating for any system of government control, but the truth is that Communism as Karl Marx described it, has NEVER been tried.
Well it wa tried close enough to want to make you run and scream for your life.
Report the facts. Refrain from name calling. Keep your political views to yourself. Provide data for your financial advise.
I would love to share some of your articles on LinkedIn, but do not see a link. From what you say I should be concerned for my later years. My two millennials would beg to differ with your findings. I always wonder who these polls pin point, though there supposed to be representative of a large group. I am sure this would be regional; ie. CA.
Can you blame them. Look at the new tax bill.
Standard deduction doubles, tax rates go down, corporations are rewarded for returning profit to the US. What am I missing?
In America Capitalism is rapidly turning into sort of an Ayne Rand sort of Fascism with a totallty corrupt bought and paid for Congress. The younger generation sees this clearly, is sickened by it and seeks another solution. I agree with them!
I’m thinking the un-said Public Schools are part of the equation also.
amen……..where’s the analytical microscope on that ever-burgeoning yet failing institution. My older brother went for a jog a few months ago near Arlington TX, and actual saw a 23 car motor pool of that local school district POLICE force. Imagine an actual police force of that size–strictly for school purposes? what does that cost those nearby tax-payers? wow, was i surprised…
Thanks to the demo commie media which has demonstrated the left side of nearly all events since the 1960’s. We are now finally able to hear the other side of some issues. Carl Helmle
Wow, after that, I am really glad I’m old !!!
My own feeling is that millennials are a bunch of over-pampered lazy individuals, who play way too many video games. When I was their age I was working and studying toward a career in medicine. Several of my friends died in Vietnam. These spoiled children (that is what they are) are in for the shock of their lives in the next 5-8 years. As most Americans are also. A big dose of economic reality to rival the Great Depression will teach them a lesson.
Funny, those “big doses of economic reality” you speak of were brought to us by the excesses of capitalism.
If you take the time to actually read and understand the causes of the Great Depression and the Great Recession you will find that it was government intervention that created and prolonged both events.
Wake up. Millenials understand that no one survives if we don’t change the pure profit view you are promoting. This isn’t political for millenials. Capitalism has extracted resources without restriction since mid-1800’s without paying for the real “cleanup” costs. The rest of the world is finally putting the brakes on capitalism monetizing EVERYTHING –
even our garbage. Millenials see the environmental destruction and realize this is a question of survival for them and future generations. Without a change from “me” to “we” in a global sense, there is little chance for survival of future generations. Capitalism is dead unless it begins to have real self-regulating features become part of its’ basic value system. Capitalism gone “wild” is why millenials are viewing the world differently. I’d advise you look a little deeper and listen to what they are really telling you.
Yes, only the Millennials are pure of heart and concerned with the future of the planet. They are the only true altruistic Americans. “Capitalism gone “wild†” – where??? We have never been more regulated and controlled in everything we do than today.
When 0.1% own as much as 90% of the financial wealth in the nation, one must ask how society that unbalanced could function efficiently and provide for the minimal necessities of survival for all without instability and suffering despair and/or violence. The fact is that massive accumulations of unpayable debt are resulting from the creation of counterfeit money (i.e. unlimited credit by the actions and acquisence of the Federal Reserve), Instead of total U. S. national debt (including the Federal Reserve’s “Quantitative Easing” debt) equal to or now exceeding the current U. S. GDP, Russia’s national debt is five percent of its GDP. With no stock market to serve as the financial milking parlor for the producers of tangible goods and services, Russians pensions and individual savings accounts are not being continuously raided to transfer even more wealth to the already wealthy.. No wonder the Millennials have little faith in Crapitalism!
I could not agree more.
MILLENNIALS GROW UP AND FADS GO DOWN, AND LIFE GOES ON.
well, there’s an alarming number of things in capitalism that you don’t know either. that free market regalia stops at the too biggers and corporate wonks, no? Historically, and we will experience it as well, capitalism has limits to its positive effects up to the critical point of highly skewed resource availability…….thence scarcity of vital, life-sustaining “goods” (or utils,as it is oft referred…) ascends the scale/mass of rapid behavior upheaval towards desired survival. This can be accelerated greatly by policy decisionals that heighten the accretion activities of the (by now..) ruling, upper tranche of (now also…) power elite, oligarchs, commissars, dictators….and apparently: nouveau-potus typographies…
Voila!! expresso revolutio!! And in the U.S…….said rulers have allowed gun ownership to prevail, so guess who has the bullseye on them now? and do you expect the widely dispersed, Barney Fife/Rexall Ranger/week-end warrior guardsmen to fire on their very own family, neighbors, and community daily friends…….or do the gated -community, zoned redlined ‘burbster folks have more concern when the insurrection starts?
review histories of other revolutions elsewhere….look for commonality of affects/pragmatics/effects that occurred there…..see the rinse/repeat features?
Urgent….The study of Capitalism and the Constitution starting in elementary school. It would curtail the BS taught at some schools later in life and would help the folk understand why you must not tolerate a runaway Judiciary or executive branch as seen now and in the recent past administration…
I don’t take any of these results seriously. Perceptions of this and knowledge of that by Millennials are simply in keeping with America’s general affinity for low information decision making. Indeed how many times have ordinary Americans been questioned on camera with: Name a country in North America….. North Carolina; Who did we fight in World War II…. England; Who did we fight in the American Revolution…. I don’t know…… How many Moons does the Earth have…….. I should know that, I took a course in astronomy. I have seen all of these. I wouldn’t be surprised if you asked ANY American about capitalism and they thought you were talking about uppercase printed letters.
Yes, as long as it’s not monopoly capitalism, and it certainly seems our government regulates a lot more business than it used to. In my field practically all the states have license requirements and hoops to jump through just to be employed. New Jersey rejected my application after twenty years in my field and licenses in six other states , because I had not taken the form of test that they recognize.
Send them for a year to Venezuela. That should change their attitudes. More oil deposits than anywhere in the world and abject poverty and shortages everywhere.
Love your columns Tony. I have 2 millenials son’s, both of whom work very hard and lead in their vocations. They also are great family guys and super providers. Why? They learned from Dad and Mom timeless values of success. Good parenting is essential as well as solid values and a positive, non-blaming outlook on life.