Socialism

New Harmony, a model community presented by Robert Owen, 1838

Socialism is an economic and political system in which the workers or the government own the buildings and tools that make goods and services like farms and factories. This can be achieved through decentralized and direct worker-ownership, or through centralized state-ownership of the means of production. This is different from Capitalism, where the means of production are privately owned by capital holders. Socialism is a left-wing view.

Forms of socialism

There are many kinds of socialism. In all types, at least in principle, the state or workers own the means of production. The major differences between the different varieties are the role of the free market (market planning), how the means of production are controlled, the role of management of workers, and the government's role in the economy.

Collectivization

One kind of socialism is "collectivization." In this system, money and goods are shared more equally among the people, with the government in control. In theory, this system results in the gap between classes getting smaller, with the state helping the nation's poorest people, while the richest agree to higher taxes and economic restrictions.

Communism as a goal

Socialists with more radical views believe that socialism will evolve into what they see as a more advanced system: communism, with no state, money, hierarchy or social classes whatsoever. In Marxist theory, socialism is a temporary social state between capitalism and communism, although some socialists have no intention of transitioning to communism.

Many label these economic theories into one as "communism" when they mean the Marxist and Leninist ideas and beliefs of Russia's Bolshevik party. Marx believed that capitalism followed the economic and political system of feudalism. He also believed that capitalism would unfairly treat many people and that those people would eventually revolt and switch to socialism. He also thought that socialism could be another bridge on a path to communism. However, many people incorrectly use the term "Communist" to refer to a socialist state as a pejorative insult. Others call this 'State Socialism,' to distinguish it from the communist goal that does not need a state or any form of government. To non-communists, the word 'socialism' is now used mostly for attempts to come close to this goal in a capitalist state.

Democratic socialism

Democratic socialism is the belief that socialism can be achieved through reform of what Marxists call Bourgeois Democracy―as opposed to achieving socialism by a revolution. The goals of these reforms are aimed to achieve a more just society, so that ordinary people can participate in the many decisions that affect their lives.

Social democracy

Social democracy is a form of capitalism (although often misclassified as socialism) that attempts to mix parts of socialism with capitalism. It is not a form of socialism, but shares some ideas with it. In this system, despite there still being private property, the government generates tax revenue, typically from the wealthiest in the society and corporations, and distributes it to the poor, or even everyone in the society, via in the form of social programs. These programs range from single-payer healthcare, to other welfare programs such as expanding SNAP benefits. While the intentions of social democracy and socialism can be similar or shared, social democracy keeps the capitalist system intact, and tries to reforms it. Achieving socialism would mean completely getting rid of the capitalist system. Social democracy is often confused with democratic socialism due to the similar names and having the same short-term goals. The biggest difference is social democrats want to stop reforming capitalism when they think their reforms are good enough, but democratic socialists will not stop until capitalism is gone. Some examples of social democracies are the Scandinavian countries.

In social democracies, some services and industries are subsidized (given subsidy money to help them run), partly controlled by the government, or both. For example, education, health care, housing, utility companies and public transportation are some industries that might be owned/supported by the government in a social democracy. For the most part, people working in these industries are paid by the government, with money paid by the people as taxes. A strong Welfare system is key to social democracy.

Utopian socialism

Utopian socialism is the first form of modern socialism. Unlike other forms of socialism, utopian socialism doesn't include belief in the necessity of class struggle.

Other

Many people and countries see socialism differently. The Socialist International is an organization dedicated to the cause of promoting socialist ideals, and has ties with many socialist parties, especially Social Democratic parties.

History

The followers of a Welshman, Robert Owen, began calling themselves socialists in 1841. Owen is seen as a founder of the Co-operative Movement in Britain. He said that workers should own the companies they worked for. The workers would then share the profits among themselves. He set up a new model factory in New Lanark, Scotland.

Karl Marx is the most well-known creator of the theory of socialism, and of communism. He wrote a book about capitalism, socialism, and communism, called "A critique of the social economy". Friedrich Engels co-wrote the book, and paid for much of Marx's work and research.

Many socialist political parties were formed during the 19th century and early part of the 20th century. During the decolonization movement in the 20th century, many armies fighting for independence planned to establish socialist countries.

Related pages

• Capitalism
• Communism
• Social democracy