Scandinavian style socialism works in small geographic and homogenius population groups who are generaly willing to go along with it. Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark each is about the size of a medium to small state in the United States. Your populations are smaller than California's. California can only force semi socialism by having it's Liberal power base in the 2 major coastal cities. Inland california is moderate to conservitive mostly capitolistic.
The economy of the United States is a function of 48 continental contiguos geographic areas with about 240millin people. The USSR tried socialism at the point of a gun with a larger land mass and slightly larger non homogenious population. They went broke after 70 years. Funny semi socialist california almost went broke recently.
Capitolism is not perfict and prone to abuse as is socialism. Capitolism has a redeaming factor. You can change it because profit is dynamic and changeable. If you don't like how WalMart delivers its goods and services, come up with a better more prophitable way to do the same thing. Yes and take care of the masses if you can. And the masses will beat a path to your door to give you profit.
Biggest problem with unions and socialism is who pays for them? Someone always has to bust their arse to pay for those who can't. Unions drive up the price of goods beyond their real worth to pay the $30per hr salary to a tire changer who other wise could never earn that amount on his own merit. The Union becomes the Guido and Nunzio knee breaker club in the shadows. It makes the cost of living for everyone become inflated to meet the minimum Union salary rates. Socialism winds up making the hi achivers slaves to paying the tax rates that governemnt then gives to the under achivers. No incentive to be all you can possibly be in life. Atlas shrugged and quit holding up the world.
Capitolism allows anyone if they want to, to work as hard as they want and keep a higher amount of their efforts. But the cost is simple, you have to get off your sorry arse and actually do it. And this is not fantasy or whatever smug intelectual word gaming many of you will play on it. I came to california 20 years ago, during that time I made mistakes, lost everything and became homeless. I got tired of eating garbage and filth. I worked out of it and raised myself up to working for the 3rd largest bank in the United States. I don't like starving, being sick, preyed upon by criminals or being destitute. Capitolism works if you want to work your arse off and stop whineing about social inequalities.