Socialism is better system to provide homes for all

I am writing in response to Dean Moser's recently published Marin Voice commentary (“Reserve rent control for those In need,” Sept. 22). Moser needs to know that socialism is not a dirty word.

Young people especially see its reality as more attractive than capitalism. It's a safe bet that, in the wake of three economic collapses in a generation, we will be hearing more calls for public benefit to replace private profit as the principal objective of economic activity.

Those who think that this means the great experiment in American liberty is about to sink into the abyss of Bolshevik socialist tyranny need to take a closer look. A socialist reordering of priorities needn't come at the expense of personal freedom.

With respect to housing, the example of Austria's Vienna suffices to establish this. In that beautiful city, nearly half of all housing is rented — either provided by the government or controlled, regulated and subsidized by it.

This policy, created by socialists over a century ago, has yielded high-quality affordable housing for all where renters never pay more than 30% of their income for a place to live, a guarantee that is written into law. Homelessness is not an issue there.

Moreover, the program is so popular that it is politically untouchable. No form of Austrian government has dared to face the popular wrath that would ensue from any attempt to return housing to the “free market.”

Rats and roaches live by competition in the system regulated by “supply and demand.” Thanks to socialism, human beings have a better option.