Communism/Socialism vs Capitalism
By Julien, Newcombe SC, Geelong
http://www.cnr.vt.edu/boyer/geog1014/TOPICS/109ec_dev/econies.html
Introduction:
Our lives form a small part of an extremely complex society. The evolution of
the human society has never been more rapid. [...] This evolution has engendered
two opposite political, economic and social systems. On the "left" of politics
are communism and socialism and on the "right" is capitalism.
COLLECTIVISM
Socialists believe that the inequalities that exist in our society are unjust
and that the minority of the population should not own the vast majority of the
wealth. Socialists do, nevertheless, differ on ways by which this change should
be achieved. Some believe that the change should be gradual, achieved through
parliament and others believe that the change should be rapid, brought about
through revolution.[...][...] Modern socialism emerged as the world went
through the process of industrialisation. From the 18th century the industrial
revolution transformed Western Europe and North America from agricultural,
trading nations to industrial nations. The metamorphosis of these country's
economic structure led to great and complex changes in the lifestyle of their
people. The average worker went from being a self-employed farmer to being an
employee at a large factory. The working class was formed!
People began to move away from the country and the population became
centralised. Cities grew rapidly and overcrowding became an enormous problem.
This new industrial workforce, the proletariat, worked and lived in appalling
conditions. Poverty was rampant. The cities were havens for crime and disease.
The tumultuous transformation affected not only the lives of the workers (factory
fodder) but also craftsmen, such as handloom weavers, who were being forced out
of business by factories which could produce the same product at a lower price.
Much of the working class was confounded by the radical changes that were going
on.
Without anyone planning it, capitalism had emerged and began to flourish as
there was no opposition to it. The factory owners became richer and low-skilled
workers and the unemployed became poorer. Workers whose trades were less secure
decided to form trade societies (the forerunners of trade unions). [...]For the
next hundred years capitalism thrived. In opposition to this, trade unions grew
in magnitude also. [...]
Nowadays almost all western countries have Labour (or gradualist, socialist)
parties who believe in achieving either total or partial socialism gradually.
These parties go in and out of government just like the Liberal (or
conservative) parties.
Karl Marx became the prophet and teacher of
Marx believed that man should labour not only for himself as an individual
but for society as well. Implied in Marxist philosophy is the notion that man
being a social animal has his destiny indeed his reality inextricably linked
with his society. [...] In a capitalist society the proletariat invests its
labour so that the bourgeoisie (or upper-class) can make all the profits without
investing any labour themselves. The disconnection of a worker from the end
product of his labour leads Marx to his theory of alienation. Workers are
alienated from the product they manufacture, having no control over what becomes
of it. Finally workers are alienated from other human beings, with competition
replacing co-operation.
Marx's theory of history is an account of the different stages of government
through history. His analysis describes capitalism as the first stage followed
by socialism and finally communism. Marx believed that socialism is an
unrealised potential in capitalism and once most workers recognised their
interests and became "class conscious," the overthrow of capitalism would
proceed as quickly as capitalist opposition allowed. The socialist society that
would emerge out of the revolution would have all the productive potential of
capitalism. People would be aided on the basis of social needs. The final goal,
communism, toward which socialist society would constantly strive, is the
abolition of alienation. A class-less society would be advantageous for the vast
majority of the population.
[...]
Communism, a form of government, inspires some people with the zeal of a
religion. Communism in theory stands for total public ownership and rejects
private property and personal profit. In practice, however, the state determines
how strictly the doctrine is applied in any particular country.
Communism in Russia:
The huge losses (both human and
material) in the First World War intensified the revolutionary spirit in Russia.
In 1917 Lenin led a small party of professional revolutionaries, the Bolsheviks,
to power after the Tsar was overthrown. To achieve the transition from
Capitalism to socialism and finally communism, Lenin used Marx's theory of "Dictatorship
of the Proletariat". The most politically advanced section of the proletariat
would form the communist party and lead the rest of the country forward. Since
the Bolsheviks totally represented the people, all other political parties were
abolished. The party: tolerated no opposition, owned all industry and property,
had a powerful secret police, kept strict control over all levels of education
and disallowed all liberal literature and art from entering Russia; [...]
After Lenin's death in the late
1920's, Josef Stalin took control of Russia. It was under Stalin's command that
the terrible political purges in the 1930's took place. Until his death in 1953,
this dictator showed what Marxism-Leninism could mean in practice, which is
vastly different than in theory.[...]
The Bolshevik government actively discouraged all religious practice, handing
out pamphlets and closing down churches. Schools were totally under the control
of the communist party. Marxism was taught in schools like religion.
There were programs such as the "young pioneers" for children under 14 and
the "communist youth league" for teenagers and young adults which were set up to
promote the involvement of young people with the communist party.
At the conclusion of the Second World War Russian Forces pursued the last of
the German troops into Germany and on their way occupied most of Eastern Europe.
In these countries Stalin imposed communist regimes. These nations became known
as the satellites of the USSR. Over the next 25 years there were many attempted
revolutions that were mercilessly crushed by the Soviet government. Gradually
these countries became increasingly independent of the Soviet Union until its
demise in 1993.
In January 1959 Fidel Castro became the head of a new revolutionary
government in Cuba. Castro freed his country from the excessive US influence. In
retaliation the US imposed a trade embargo on Cuba. As a way of protecting Cuba,
Castro allied himself with the other super power, the Soviet Union, and within 3
years Castro was proclaiming "I am a Marxist-Leninist".
The Cold War:
As the USSR set up left-wing governments in most of Eastern Europe much of
Western Europe feared that the "Red Army" may venture further west. In an effort
to prevent this threat NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) was set up.
In that same year the communist countries signed the Warsaw Pact. During 1949
the Soviet Union exploded its first nuclear bomb and in 1950 along with China it
aided the North Koreans invasion of South Korea. The US helped South Korea
defend the communist invasion resulting in an indecisive three year war. After
some relaxation of the tensions between the two super powers, the Cold War
reached a climax in 1962 when the Soviet Union secretly installed nuclear
missiles in Cuba, less than 200km off the coast of Florida. After discovering
the missiles President Kennedy gave an ultimatum to the Soviets; remove the
missiles or risk nuclear war. After a long and agonising week Nikita Khruschev
backed down. The world escaped Armageddon.
Communism in China:
In 1949, after a fifteen year war, the communists seized power in China. Mao
Tse-tung took control of China and removed Chiang Kai-shek (the nationalist
general) and his army. Chiang Kai-shek took refuge in the Chinese island of
Formosa (present day Taiwan), thus creating what the Chinese government consider
today its biggest problem with the West, particularly with the US.
Mao's army consisted mainly of peasant farmers because the majority of
China's people lived through agriculture. This came to be the fundamental
difference between Russian and Chinese communism; Russia's form of communism was
urban and factory-based while China's form of communism is rural and
peasant-based.[...]
Capitalism:
AUDIO: MP3 file
Capitalism is a political system in which factories, companies, land, etc.
are owned privately in order to create profit for the owners. Prices of goods
and services fluctuate depending on the desire of the consumer and the
availability of the goods
(the law of supply and demand).
In a capitalist society their will be significant differences in wealth and
power between those who have capital (machines, factories, ships, land, etc.)
and those who do not.
No one can say when capitalism first began. Clearly the development of
capitalism was not revolutionary like that of communism. Instead it emerged
gradually without anyone making a plan of what it should become. However,
aspects of modern capitalism such as the stock exchange, banks and great
disparity in wealth came about during the industrial revolution.
In 1776 Adam Smith, a Scottish university professor, produced a book which
described the workings of a capitalist society. He believed that a country's
wealth depends on all people pursuing their own interests. If a person promotes
his own interest he or she is unintentionally promoting his country's interest.
Smith thought that governments should promote free trade and not interfere by
protecting certain industries from competition. The only duty of governments,
Smith wrote, was to provide services that couldn't be profitable like the
building of roads, schools and churches. These policies were adopted by much of
western Europe and continue to be fundamental components in the thinking of most
right-wing governments today.
Marx believed that capitalism would bring about its own demise. As capitalist
companies competed against each other they would reduce in number. Due to fewer
companies unemployment would rise and people would have less money to spend.
This would mean that people could not buy the goods that the companies were
producing. Finally in an attempt to find new markets, companies would go abroad
only to come into conflict with other companies looking to go abroad and wars
would begin as a consequence. The other faults, as Marx's sees it, are the
advances in technology reducing the need for human labour and the economic
"boom-slump cycle" which is evident in all capitalist countries.
Nevertheless capitalist governments are in power in almost every country in
the world and show little inclination to change their system.
Conclusion:
The war between capitalism and communism is an interesting one, with many
battles and new developments still to come. I believe that the conflict between
these different ideologies is by no means over.In theory both capitalism and
communism have their advantages. In a theoretical capitalist society there is an
extremely strong profit incentive which leads to the accelerated development of
new products and technological advances which benefit not only those who are
strong enough to succeed but also those who are left behind, through the famous
"trickle down effect". In a theoretical communist society there is no
unemployment, no inflation, higher productivity in times of crisis and no
disparity in wealth, status and power.
However, in practice the story is vastly different for both political systems.
Capitalism in practice leads to high unemployment, alienation, the boom-slump
cycle, poverty and crime. Communism in practice leads to political control, the
suppression of free speech, limited travel, the repression of religion and
restricted expression of the arts. Marx idea of the ultimate abolition of the
state was in practice as far as it could be.
Bibliography:
Communism:
People in Politics,
Rex Winsbury
Socialism:
People and politics,
Richard Evans
Socialism:
The Options,
Ron Breth and Ian Ward
Capitalism for Beginners,
Robert Lekachman and Borin Van Loon
Capitalism:
People and Politics,
Peter Donaldson and Harold Pollins
Encyclopaedia Britanica,
volumes 3,7,9,17
The New Grollier Multimedia Encyclopaedia
http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/street/pl38/sect2.htm
FASCISM
A relative newcomer (1919 - Mussolini) fascism is characterised by elements of
pride in the nation, anti-Marxism, the complete rejection of parliamentary
democracy, the cultivation of military virtues, strong government, and loyalty
to a strong leader. Whereas in communism the individual is second to the
society, in fascism the individual is second to the state or race. It is not
'right wing' per-se, but is virtually the same as national socialism (Nazism),
it therefore shares much with Marxism in its view of mankind as a collective. We
all know what can happen when sufficient people in a state are in eager support
of national socialism, hence its widespread repulsion.