{"id":1136,"date":"2008-10-27T21:56:06","date_gmt":"2008-10-28T01:56:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/s265039441.onlinehome.us\/philpaine\/?p=1136"},"modified":"2010-09-14T23:28:39","modified_gmt":"2010-09-15T03:28:39","slug":"monday-october-27-2008-sense-and-nonsense-about-socialism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/?p=1136","title":{"rendered":"Monday, October 27, 2008 \u2014 Sense and Nonsense About \u201cSocialism\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

The word \u201csocial\u00adism\u201d is used to mean vir\u00adtu\u00adal\u00adly any\u00adthing imag\u00adin\u00adable, but if it means any\u00adthing at all intel\u00adli\u00adgi\u00adble, it is \u201ccon\u00adtrol of pro\u00adduc\u00adtive enter\u00adprise by the state\u201d. More exact\u00adly, it means that the peo\u00adple who con\u00adtrol pro\u00adduc\u00adtion and the peo\u00adple who con\u00adtrol the state are the same peo\u00adple. Most states in human his\u00adto\u00adry have been pre\u00addom\u00adi\u00adnant\u00adly social\u00adist. In most pre-mod\u00adern soci\u00adeties, the state had direct con\u00adtrol of pro\u00adduc\u00adtion. Peas\u00adants worked land owned by an aris\u00adtoc\u00adra\u00adcy, and that aris\u00adtoc\u00adra\u00adcy con\u00adsti\u00adtut\u00aded state pow\u00ader. Indus\u00adtries were owned by the king or rel\u00ada\u00adtives of the king, by barons, by the Church, or by cor\u00adpo\u00adrate bod\u00adies, all of which exer\u00adcised the author\u00adi\u00adty of the state.<\/span> Some\u00adtimes a bureau\u00adcrat\u00adic appa\u00adra\u00adtus, answer\u00ading direct\u00adly to a monarch, planned and direct\u00aded pro\u00adduc\u00adtion, and some\u00adtimes con\u00adtrol was divid\u00aded among a few aris\u00adto\u00adcrat\u00adic fam\u00adi\u00adlies, or a few cor\u00adpo\u00adrate enti\u00adties. Where non-aris\u00adto\u00adcrats engaged in trade or man\u00adu\u00adfac\u00adtur\u00ading, they were vul\u00adner\u00ada\u00adble at all times to seizure, con\u00adtrol, or black\u00admail by the aris\u00adtoc\u00adra\u00adcy. The goal of the upward\u00adly mobile was to bribe their way into that aris\u00adtoc\u00adra\u00adcy, and to exer\u00adcise those self-same pow\u00aders. Many coun\u00adtries pre\u00adserve that pat\u00adtern today, though some\u00adtimes it is masked by a thin veneer of pseu\u00addo-democ\u00adra\u00adcy. Some\u00adtimes the pat\u00adtern is specif\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly called \u201csocial\u00adism\u201d, and some\u00adtimes not, but there is no impor\u00adtant dif\u00adfer\u00adence between those which use the term and those which do not.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thus, social\u00adism can be char\u00adac\u00adter\u00adized as the ortho\u00addox, con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive eco\u00adnom\u00adic doc\u00adtrine. In the twen\u00adti\u00adeth cen\u00adtu\u00adry, var\u00adi\u00adous total\u00adi\u00adtar\u00adi\u00adan move\u00adments, such as Com\u00admu\u00adnism, Fas\u00adcism, and Nation\u00adal Social\u00adism per\u00adpet\u00adu\u00adat\u00aded the doc\u00adtrine of state con\u00adtrol of pro\u00adduc\u00adtion, and can be char\u00adac\u00adter\u00adized as \u201csocial\u00adist\u201d. They were in no sense engag\u00ading in any new kind of eco\u00adnom\u00adic sys\u00adtem. They were mere\u00adly repro\u00adduc\u00ading the same eco\u00adnom\u00adic struc\u00adtures prac\u00adticed in ancient Egypt, in clas\u00adsi\u00adcal and medieval empires, or in the France of Louis XIV<\/span>, only doing so more thor\u00adough\u00adly. All these total\u00adi\u00adtar\u00adi\u00adan move\u00adments are best clas\u00adsi\u00adfied as forms of extreme ultra-con\u00adser\u00advatism. They achieved the max\u00adi\u00admum degree of cen\u00adtral\u00adiza\u00adtion, turn\u00ading entire nations into the prop\u00ader\u00adty of a small aris\u00adto\u00adcrat\u00adic oli\u00adgarchy, or even a sin\u00adgle dic\u00adta\u00adtor. They also achieved the max\u00adi\u00admum degree of tyran\u00adny, injus\u00adtice, and human suf\u00adfer\u00ading. But emper\u00adors like Mao Zedong, Vladimir Lenin, and Adolf Hitler did not use any eco\u00adnom\u00adic the\u00ado\u00adries or struc\u00adtures that were not per\u00adfect\u00adly famil\u00adiar to Genghis Khan or Ashurbanipal.<\/span><\/p>\n

The state can con\u00adtrol pro\u00adduc\u00adtion through a vari\u00adety of tech\u00adniques. Pro\u00adduc\u00adtive enter\u00adpris\u00ades can be admin\u00adis\u00adtered through a state bureau\u00adcra\u00adcy, they can be parceled out to a hered\u00adi\u00adtary or mil\u00adi\u00adtary aris\u00adtoc\u00adra\u00adcy, or to cor\u00adpo\u00adrate bod\u00adies which are the\u00ado\u00adret\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly (but not actu\u00adal\u00adly) \u201csep\u00ada\u00adrate\u201d from the state. All these con\u00adfig\u00adu\u00adra\u00adtions can log\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly be called \u201csocial\u00adism\u201d. If large por\u00adtions of pro\u00adduc\u00adtive enter\u00adprise are engaged in mil\u00adi\u00adtary pro\u00adduc\u00adtion, whose only cus\u00adtomer can be the state, then that too should ratio\u00adnal\u00adly be called \u201csocial\u00adism\u201d. Any coun\u00adtry that engages in pro\u00adtract\u00aded and exten\u00adsive war\u00adfare is, ipso fac\u00adto, social\u00adist. If large por\u00adtions of pro\u00adduc\u00adtive enter\u00adprise are tied to gov\u00adern\u00adment through spe\u00adcial priv\u00adi\u00adleges, sub\u00adsi\u00addies, bailouts, or gov\u00adern\u00adment con\u00adtracts, that is social\u00adism as well. Any coun\u00adtry whose econ\u00ado\u00admy is dom\u00adi\u00adnat\u00aded by giant cor\u00adpo\u00adra\u00adtions, which manip\u00adu\u00adlate and deter\u00admine state pol\u00adi\u00adcy, is socialist.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Unit\u00aded States has long engaged in exten\u00adsive social\u00adist prac\u00adtices. The Amer\u00adi\u00adcan Con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive move\u00adment has been the most aggres\u00adsive pro\u00admot\u00ader of social\u00adism, by encour\u00adag\u00ading ram\u00adpant mil\u00adi\u00adtary spend\u00ading, and pro\u00admot\u00ading the con\u00adcen\u00adtra\u00adtion of state-cor\u00adpo\u00adrate pow\u00ader and priv\u00adi\u00adlege. The U.S. is far more \u201csocial\u00adist\u201d than, say, Cana\u00adda, where there is con\u00adsid\u00ader\u00adably less of these activ\u00adi\u00adties. To repeat what should be obvi\u00adous, you have social\u00adism when the peo\u00adple who con\u00adtrol pro\u00adduc\u00adtion and the peo\u00adple who con\u00adtrol the gov\u00adern\u00adment are the same peo\u00adple. Nobody with an ounce of com\u00admon sense would deny that this is the case in the Unit\u00aded States, today, and any\u00adbody who both\u00aders to think straight should see that this is the cen\u00adtral ide\u00ado\u00adlog\u00adi\u00adcal desider\u00ada\u00adtum of the Con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive move\u00adment. Amer\u00adi\u00adca\u2019s social\u00adism is the prod\u00aduct of its dom\u00adi\u00adna\u00adtion by Con\u00adser\u00adv\u00ada\u00adtive ideology.<\/span><\/p>\n

Social\u00adism has noth\u00ading to do with the pro\u00advi\u00adsion of gov\u00adern\u00adment ser\u00advices. Risk-reduc\u00adtion ser\u00advices, such as Canada\u2019s health insur\u00adance sys\u00adtems, or pen\u00adsion plans, or wel\u00adfare ser\u00advices, or edu\u00adca\u00adtion\u00adal ser\u00advices pro\u00advid\u00aded by gov\u00adern\u00adment, are not con\u00adtrol of pro\u00adduc\u00adtion. They are not \u201csocial\u00adism\u201d or \u201csocial\u00adist\u201d. Pro\u00adgres\u00adsive tax\u00ada\u00adtion is not \u201csocial\u00adist\u201d. Mea\u00adsures to pro\u00adtect the pub\u00adlic from fraud, or pro\u00admote pub\u00adlic safe\u00adty, or to over\u00adcome injus\u00adtice or to pro\u00adtect the rights of labour\u00aders are not \u201csocial\u00adist\u201d. There is no con\u00adnec\u00adtion what\u00adso\u00adev\u00ader between these things and socialism.<\/span><\/p>\n

In fact, the more social\u00adist a state is, the more pow\u00ader it can exert over its peo\u00adple, and the less it has to answer to them. Con\u00adse\u00adquent\u00adly, it is less like\u00adly to pro\u00advide these ser\u00advices, and less like\u00adly to cre\u00adate social jus\u00adtice. Com\u00admu\u00adnist regimes, for exam\u00adple, have nev\u00ader pro\u00advid\u00aded any sig\u00adnif\u00adi\u00adcant amount of pub\u00adlic ser\u00advices. What would com\u00adpel them to? An omnipo\u00adtent Com\u00admu\u00adnist aris\u00adtoc\u00adra\u00adcy can do what\u00adev\u00ader it pleas\u00ades with the peo\u00adple \u2014 feed them or starve them, pam\u00adper them or kill them, throw them onto the trash heap, evict them for a pow\u00ader dam or a sky\u00adscraper, allow them con\u00adsumer goods or take them away, accord\u00ading to its whim. Regimes that con\u00adtrol the means of pro\u00adduc\u00adtion are most like\u00adly to pro\u00advide only the bare min\u00adi\u00admum of ser\u00advices that stave off rebel\u00adlion, and use their dis\u00adburse\u00adment to dis\u00adci\u00adpline and con\u00adtrol the peo\u00adple. You find good qual\u00adi\u00adty pub\u00adlic ser\u00advices in demo\u00adc\u00adra\u00adt\u00adic regimes, where the peo\u00adple have been strong enough to lim\u00adit cor\u00adpo\u00adrate-state con\u00adtrol of pro\u00adduc\u00adtion. Cana\u00adda has bet\u00adter health care than the Unit\u00aded States part\u00adly because it is less social\u00adist than the Unit\u00aded States. The Unit\u00aded States has infe\u00adri\u00ador health care because it is more social\u00adist than Canada.<\/span><\/p>\n

The aim of tru\u00adly pro\u00adgres\u00adsive polit\u00adi\u00adcal and eco\u00adnom\u00adic thought is to pre\u00advent the con\u00adcen\u00adtra\u00adtion of pow\u00ader in the hands of the few, and the con\u00adcen\u00adtra\u00adtion of prop\u00ader\u00adty in the hands of the few. It should seek to pre\u00advent con\u00adcen\u00adtrat\u00aded cor\u00adpo\u00adrate pow\u00ader or aris\u00adtoc\u00adra\u00adcy from gain\u00ading con\u00adtrol of pro\u00adduc\u00adtion. Pro\u00adgres\u00adsive thought is then, by log\u00adi\u00adcal neces\u00adsi\u00adty, anti-social\u00adist and anti-cor\u00adpo\u00adrate. But pro\u00adgres\u00adsive thought embraces the util\u00adi\u00adty of gov\u00adern\u00adment ser\u00advices when\u00adev\u00ader they enable and enhance the free\u00addom and auton\u00ado\u00admy of the indi\u00advid\u00adual (as, say, our health insur\u00adance sys\u00adtem does in Cana\u00adda). It just as firm\u00adly rejects sham gov\u00adern\u00adment \u201cser\u00advices\u201d that are mere\u00adly strat\u00ada\u00adgems to give pow\u00ader over the peo\u00adple to a man\u00adage\u00adr\u00adi\u00adal elite. Thus, a Pro\u00adgres\u00adsive who glad\u00adly sup\u00adports health insur\u00adance reform should oppose state plans to herd \u201cthe low\u00ader class\u201d into state-con\u00adtrolled hous\u00ading. Pro\u00adgres\u00adsive thought embraces a social \u201csafe\u00adty net\u201d under all our feet, pro\u00advid\u00aded it is not rigged to con\u00adtrol its recip\u00adi\u00adents, and always rejects hand\u00adouts and sub\u00adsi\u00addies for the rich. Democ\u00adra\u00adcy\u2019s mean\u00ading is clear: the peo\u00adple should rule; they should not be ruled.<\/span><\/p>\n

The rev\u00ado\u00adlu\u00adtion\u00adary aim of democ\u00adra\u00adcy is to cre\u00adate a soci\u00adety where every indi\u00advid\u00adual has a sig\u00adnif\u00adi\u00adcant share of prop\u00ader\u00adty and exer\u00adcis\u00ades prac\u00adti\u00adcal auton\u00ado\u00admy, where the oppor\u00adtu\u00adni\u00adties and fruits of enter\u00adprise are open to every\u00adone, and where no priv\u00adi\u00adleged clique exer\u00adcis\u00ades pow\u00ader over the major\u00adi\u00adty. The demo\u00adc\u00adra\u00adt\u00adic state is sup\u00adposed to serve this aim, and nev\u00ader to pro\u00admote the inter\u00adests of an elite, whether it dress\u00ades up as man\u00addarins, dukes, com\u00admis\u00adsars, or CEOs. What\u00adev\u00ader moves soci\u00adety in this direc\u00adtion is \u201cpro\u00adgres\u00adsive\u201d. Let\u2019s get our con\u00adcepts and ter\u00admi\u00adnol\u00ado\u00adgy in order.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The word \u201csocial\u00adism\u201d is used to mean vir\u00adtu\u00adal\u00adly any\u00adthing imag\u00adin\u00adable, but if it means any\u00adthing at all intel\u00adli\u00adgi\u00adble, it is \u201ccon\u00adtrol of pro\u00adduc\u00adtive enter\u00adprise by the state\u201d. More exact\u00adly, it means that the peo\u00adple who con\u00adtrol pro\u00adduc\u00adtion and the people \u2026<\/p>\n

Read more \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1136","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-as-blog-2008"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1136","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1136"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1136\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2840,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1136\/revisions\/2840"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}