The Only Failure We Have to Fear Is the Fear of Failure; D. R. Lee and R. McKenzie

186 The Only Failure We Have to Fear Is the Fear of Failure by Dwight R. Lee and Richard B. McKenzie S ocialismhas been, by any measure of eco nomicsuccess,a total failure.The hope of socialismwas that it would promotewealth and distributeit fairlyby transferringpoweraway from capitalistsinterestedonlyin profitsand give more control to political representatives con cerned with economicgrowth and socialjustice. That hope has been dashed. Socialismhas suc ceededonlyinprovidingspecialprivilegesto a few by imposinggrindingpovertyon everyoneelse. With socialism a sinking ship, the goal in countryafter countrythat has been impoverished bythelegacyofKarlMarxisto achievethewealth creatingpower of capitalism.The most dramatic examples of the rejection of socialism and the moveto embracecapitalismhavecomefromEast ern Europe and the SovietUnion,countriesthat have experienced the poverty of socialismfirst hand.Butcountriesin Africa,SouthAmerica,and otherpartsoftheworldthathavebeenbeguiledby the false promisesof socialismalso are anxiousto trade socialismfor capitalism.