https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4opFbB6okwo

Instructions

For this discussion you'll compare/contrast characteristics of capitalism and socialism. First, you'll watch the video below or read the transcript to hear two perspectives on each system; one speaker is an American who had lived in Sweden for two years, and the other is a Swede who had lived in the U.S. for two years.

Prepare

Sweden's economic and political model is often misunderstood, especially by Americans not familiar with social democracy. In this video, the speakers present a comparison between American's economic model and Sweden's economic model, and let you decide for yourself which system you think is superior.

You live in a small country that has recently gained its independence. You have been appointed to an economic advisory council tasked with recommending an economic system for your country to adopt. For your first post to the discussion,

• Respond to both of these questions:
  • In what ways might capitalism be a better economic system than socialism?
  • In what ways might socialism be a better economic system than capitalism?
• State which system you would recommend. Use at least three main ideas from either functionalism or conflict theory to explain why you chose that system.
• End your post with an open-ended question for your fellow council members to respond to.