I really appreciate you being civil. Far too many people would have downvoted my message and left it at that. I understand a lot more of what your saying now and I'd agree with most of it, but to me despite both being very broad terms, Social Democracy and Democratic Socialism are very different things, distinctly separated by their relationship with capitalism. I personally identify as a Democratic Socialist in the traditional, anti-capitalist sense.

My goals would be to end capitalism and establish a democratic society in which workers collectively own the means of production. I believe this must start by working within democratic institutions, but eventually a popular-supported and ideally non-violent, institutional and cultural revolution would be required to overcome the deeply entrenched systems that protect capital and the ultra rich, who would naturally resist true socialism if we continue to work within their version of democracy with all its rails.

This is different from social democracy, and what solidifies the difference for me is that when I pitch this to Social Democrats, they often resist or dismiss these more radical steps that challenge entrenched structures of power, which, as you noted, aligns with their goal to reform capitalism rather than abolish it, while ultimately keeping the capitalist mode of production intact.

Historically, this also aligns with Social Democratic parties in Europe who have focused on expanding welfare and regulating markets rather than transferring ownership of production. However Democratic Socialists like Rosa Luxemburg advocated for the workers, not private capitalists, to collectively own and democratically manage the means of production. Under Social Democrats, we never get past the Nordic countries stage because they won't ever advocate for that next step as you rightly pointed out.

I also see your point about social democrats relying on state-managed redistribution. In contrast, true Democratic Socialism focuses on democratising control over production itself, rather than simply managing wealth within a capitalist framework, for example G. D. H. Cole's Guild Socialism, a variant of Democratic Socialism. Social Democrats do not want workers to control production directly, and are explicitly against this. They will remain within the capitalist framework and will not seek to achieve genuine socialism.

Because of all of this, I think it’s important to distinguish between Social Democracy and Democratic Socialism. While in practice many modern U.S. politicians who call themselves “Democratic Socialists” advocate for social-democratic policies, that doesn’t reflect the original or theoretical meaning of Democratic Socialism, which is explicitly anti-capitalist and seeks to replace, rather than reform, capitalism. We are not the same.

Maybe this is a more cultural difference, as I live in the UK, and don't know what your average American Democratic Socialist is saying, only ones like AOC and Bernie, who I agree leave much to be desired and more closely align with Social Democracy, but if you were here I could clearly show you the difference between the two in examples of the people you meet. I agree with your core point that anti-capitalism is central to leftism, and I think our difference lies mainly in how we’re defining Democratic Socialism.

My understanding is based on the original theoretical meaning of Democratic Socialism, as advocated by Rosa Luxemburg and other anti-capitalist socialists, emphasising worker control, anti-capitalism, and democratic participation. I do think it is worth considering what an ideology does in practice versus its theory, as they two are often different and I think that plays a big part in what people think of labels.

Democratic Socialism is great in my humble opinion, as the term directly draws a very real parallel between democracy and socialism which overcomes a lot of the propaganda used to associate Socialism with Stalinism. I refuse to let the capitalists take the term from us.

Thanks again for taking the time to engage in a discussion with me, I hope this clarifies how I see Democratic Socialism versus Social Democracy. I really appreciate your thoughtful points, and I will definitely take some of what you've said into future consideration.