We are all products of Socialism, it is all around us, look out of your window and you will see Socialism, drive your car and you will witness Socialism. Society is a social construct and Socialism can help organise society along the lines of the French Republics, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity.
Labour has become anti-Marxist as it was dragged rightwards as the Overton window changed in the 70s and the social consensus of the Post WW2 settlement was overhauled by the new Hayekian move to Neo-liberalism inspired by the Chicago and Frankfurt schools of economic thought and developed by the rise of the Think Tanks promoting the virtues of the free market and capitalism. Labour accepted the free market under Blair and it became comfortable with wealth inequality and did nothing to stop the demonization and castration of the Unions. It is a fact that when Union strength was at its greatest, inequality was at its lowest. Labour did nothing to stop the decline of Social Housing, if anything it promoted it and the sale of the social housing stock has lead to even greater wealth inequality and we are now at a situation where the chances of owning a new home for youngsters is virtually non existant. If there was a Socialist government committed to rebuilding the social housing stock it would not only create jobs for traditional working class trades it would give everyone a place to live and the disgusting sight of people without a home of there own sleeping roughshod on the streets of the nation could be countered.
You decry these things as old and out of touch, as Socialism being the language of the past, tell that to the kid sleeping on the streets of Manchester in the middle of winter, tell that to the family who feels humiliation as they visit a food bank to feed their kids, this isn't ideology, its common decency and its affordable in the 5th largest economy on the planet. Common decency losing elections is not the fault of Socialist ideology, its the product of years of demonization of the left using the terms you have used, programmed almost Macarthy like into our brains by the Capitalist system. Why on earth anybody who considers them on the left would vote for capitalism and all its wasteful excess, its iniquities, consolidation of power in those with wealth who want what little wealth you have too is beyond me. The propaganda is powerful though and it works, Socialism scares those with power and wealth because Socialism can balance out the power and wealth and give you, me, ordinary people an equal opportunity in life to do what can with our lives. Equality of opportunity is what is required, but you will see it described as equality of outcome. That shows a distinct misunderstanding of one the tenets of Marx, "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs" receive from each person what that person's ability allows him/her to give and to give to a person according to his/her needs are. It comes from the Communist Manifesto by Marx, it means that all things shall be equal. Everybody contributes what they can, and takes only what they need rather than the society we have where the wealthy take the majority and the poor take the least.
You may see Socialism as an old ideology that needs updating into a modern form but the basic tenets of it are still relevant today, Marx has probably never been more relevant. As capitalism replaced Feudalism, capitalism itself will be replaced and hopefully common sense and decency for all will prevail and Socialism will be the new order.
