Rethinking Politics and Community

On a recent episode of Real Time with Bill Maher (November 7), the discussion turned to the new mayor of New York, Mamdani. Bill O’Reilly labeled him not a socialist, but a communist — simply because Mamdani supports putting the means of production in the hands of workers. The reaction was familiar: “Watch out for the communists; they’re coming to get you!”

Meanwhile, the same people sounding the alarm over socialism seem far less concerned about their own country’s creeping flirtation with fascism. That contradiction isn’t just hypocritical — it’s a reflection of how deeply fear-based populism still shapes political discourse in America.

The Politics of Labels

Why do we so quickly define people by political affiliation? Calling someone a “socialist,” “communist,” “fascist,” or “capitalist” often tells us little about the person’s character, integrity, or intentions. These labels function less as descriptors than as tribal markers, shorthand for who belongs and who doesn’t.

This fixation on political identity distracts from the real questions: What kind of system is this person supporting? What effects does that system have on people and society? When we reduce people to their politics, we end up blaming individuals for the failings of entire systems — systems that require the participation and support of many.

No leader, whether Trump or Obama, operates in isolation. They are products of their institutions, their backers, and their voters. If we seek accountability, it cannot rest solely on one figure; it must extend to all who uphold and benefit from the system itself.

Power, Wealth, and the Fragile Idea of Freedom

If you are powerful or wealthy, it’s natural to want freedom to do as you please. But in a shared society, that kind of unbounded freedom often means imposing your will on others. It breeds resentment, inequality, and social fracture — precisely the opposite of what community requires.

Real politics, the “politics of the people and for the people,” should be about building community, not tearing it apart through competition and division. Any system that consistently favors the few over the many cannot be said to serve the common good.

Competition or Collaboration?

There’s nothing wrong with competition — as long as it’s healthy and fair. But when the goal becomes producing winners and losers, competition ceases to build community; it destroys it.

Collaboration, by contrast, levels the playing field. It allows everyone a reasonable living and a fair chance to grow. Giving workers both control and accountability over their labor encourages shared responsibility and mutual respect. This isn’t naïve idealism — it’s how cooperative models like Semco have thrived in practice.

The real problem is that such models struggle to gain traction in a self-centered economy, where sharing is seen as weakness and power is hoarded, not distributed. Those who stand to lose the most guard the system the hardest — glorifying capitalism while vilifying anything that sounds like socialism or communism.

Reclaiming the Core Question

In the end, maybe the real question isn’t which ism we support, but something simpler and more profound:

How do we want to live together?

If our goal is to build communities rooted in fairness, dignity, and wellbeing, then any system that enriches a few while impoverishing the many cannot be the answer.

Profit itself isn’t evil. But toxic profit — the kind that comes at the expense of others’ wellbeing or the environment — corrodes the very foundations of a healthy society. What we need is not endless growth, but sustainable cooperation, grounded in shared responsibility and mutual care.

That isn’t a radical idea. It’s simply a return to what made us human in the first place: collaboration born out of necessity, sustained by empathy, and guided by the understanding that none of us truly thrive unless we all do.

Govert van Ginkel

This article is written by Govert van Ginkel. Govert specializes in Nonviolent and Effective Communication and is active in this field as a trainer, speaker, coach, and mediator. More information about Govert can be found here. The current training offer can be found here