Terror attack in Istanbul, Turkey...

[SJ Zero]

The one who is confused may be you.

Nope, "we" were fighting communism.

PS: What you describe is called SOCIALISM.

No, it isn't.

From dictionary.com:
A theoretical economic system characterized by the collective ownership of property and by the organization of labor for the common advantage of all members.

A scheme of equalizing the social conditions of life; specifically, a scheme which contemplates the abolition of inequalities in the possession of property, as by distributing all wealth equally to all, or by holding all wealth in common for the equal use and advantage of all.

Note: At different times, and in different countries, various schemes pertaining to socialism in government and the conditions of domestic life, as well as in the distribution of wealth, have been called communism.

Living in what is considered a socialist country myself(canada), let me assure you that we don't have much "ownership" of anything. We have high taxes and a relatively liberal government who likes giving money to poor slackers(Mike Harris is my hero! :p). The Cold War managed to warp the perceived meaning of the words, but it is, at heart, the same thing; an economic system, and nothing more.

Here's what socialism is:

1. Any of various theories or systems of social organization in which the means of producing and distributing goods is owned collectively or by a centralized government that often plans and controls the economy.
2. The stage in Marxist-Leninist theory intermediate between capitalism and communism, in which collective ownership of the economy under the dictatorship of the proletariat has not yet been successfully achieved.

In this, the government owns the means of production. It's meant as an intermediary between capitalism and communism. In practice, many governments like the idea of redistributing wealth far more than the idea of giving up all that power, while others never meant to become communist, and just like the idea of socialism by itself.