In a capitalist society, if you work hard, succeed in what you do, you reap the financial benefits of your hard work.  Yes, you do pay taxes, but the fruits of your labor are yours to enjoy and invest where you see fit. 

In a socialist society,  if you work hard, succeed in what you do, you hand over a significant portion of the financial benefits of your hard work.  Very quickly, the drive to innovate and succeed dissipate.  Who wants to work hard only to be fiscally punished for success?

Eventually, in a socialist society, the engine that fuels the economy - successful businesses - slows and dwindles.  Over time, it cannot support itself as well as a capitalist society.  Yes, there are many social programs that come with socialism: healthcare, day care, welfare, retirement benefits.  But something significant happens: Those who would have had incentive to better their lives through hard work no longer have motivation.  "Desperation is the mother of innovation" isn't just some pretty saying.  There's truth there. 

My question is, if we were to turn to socialism, get cozy and comfy in our social programs, decades from now when the businesses have slowed, thus slowing the economy, how many of us (or our children and grandchildren) who are used to the programs will be willing to give them up to get the economy back on track?  Who will say, yes, please take away my healthcare, daycare, welfare, retirement, and let me work for it and suffer my own consequences?   

Isn't socialism a little (or a lot) like the self-esteem push?  Tell, tell, tell your kids their every second on earth is to be treasured and they are wonderful, wonderful, wonderful in everything, everything, everything they do.  They grow up to have no actual self-esteem.  They have no concept of true self-worth.  

So give, give, give programs to people and make their lives better, better, better.  They eventually have no reason to make their lives better by innovation.  Sure, maybe the first generation does.  But look at the history of trust-fund families.  The first generation worked hard; blood, sweat, and tears to build a business and succeed.  The second generation does little to further the family business.  The third generation is lazy and coasts on name alone (Paris Hilton, anyone?) and squanders the family fortune and name.  The fourth generation picks up the broken pieces and works hard.