[exDemMom]

And these young people are far more educated than I. Obviously, they didn't learn anything about economics in school.

In the 1960s and 1970s, I was taught that government is an endless source of money, and that if we did not get very much in welfare, it was because selfish and greedy rich (i.e. Republican) politicians wanted to keep all that money for themselves.

At some point in my 20s, I finally figured out that government does not magically create money and that any wealth the government has is only taken from taxpayers.

The same breed of teachers is still teaching, and many young people will never figure out that the money that supports socialism only comes from people who work. Without that understanding, socialism appears wonderful--you get everything you need and want without having to work for it!

[VTenigma]

[and many young people will never figure out that the money that supports socialism only comes from people who work.]

Actually we print 42% of it.

[Steve_Seattle]

Socialists (and progressives) promise an endless supply of "free" things: elementary education, secondary education, school lunches, rent support, health care, retirement benefits, early childhood education/daycare, and so forth. Young people - especially - never seem to ask who's paying for it all, or even realize that it needs to be paid for.

I think in the back of their mind they believe that money is an artificial human construct and is therefore something you can just keep printing. They do not understand that money is a proxy for goods and services, i.e., it is a facilitator of trade. So if you accumulate debt, it means that you are providing insufficient goods and services in return for the goods and services that you have consumed.