Because a lot of the anti-communist sentiment in the US tends to be directed at communism-the-system-of-government as epitomized by several present and past cou

Because a lot of the anti-communist sentiment in the US tends to be directed at communism-the-system-of-government as epitomized by several present and past countries (i.e. it's more of a nation-vs-nation dislike of communism--you can see that even in the nationalistic rhetoric the was laced through McCarthyist media). Meanwhile, many US citizens, even conservative ones, enjoy and endorse some ideals that are communitarian or were popularized under communist societies (state-endorsed curricula, vaccination/healthcare/drug treatment, and more). A lot of people like to decry that as hypocrisy, but I see it simply as a difference in perception/definitions of communism instead. I find both viewpoints in myself. I think it's important to be able to pick and choose tactics and governance techniques without committing a state to a heavily ideological philosophy of order. Not that I think the US is currently doing too great a job at either of those.