If socialism actually worked and didn’t destroy people’s lives or the economy, I’d be a socialist. I certainly believe in charity. But government wealth redistribution is not charity. It’s theft. I guess it just depends on what a person believes. If someone offered me something I didn’t earn that was taken from someone else, I’d refuse it. However, you can’t deny that many people enjoy plundering their neighbors. The plunderers are also very diverse. They include everything from business owners trying use government to regulate their competition out of existence to single moms swiping EBT cards. It can’t last, but I suppose it’s good for some people while it lasts.
You’re right.
Socialism sort of works on a VERY small scale (e.g. a family unit), or a small community of HONEST/UNSELFISH individuals where ACCOUNTABILITY IS HIGH and VISIBLE.
But beyond a certain size of human groups, dishonesty and selfishness creeps in because people view the gov’t as having deep pockets. And cheaters can go unnoticed.
Socialism also can almost work in monoracial/monocultural countries, like Japan where people aren’t fighting against each other in tribal strife like we have here. People in Japan think of themselves as “family - because we’re all the same race/culture.” Well, Japan isn’t completely socialist, but has a Euro-style health care plan that works because people are ingrained to be humble and not to take too much from others.