Any time the discussion over coffee or drinks turns to politics, it becomes evident pretty quickly that my views lean far to the left. And it doesn’t take long before someone asks, “Are you a socialist?” I wish I could give a quick answer. But the fact of the matter is that there is so much confusion and misunderstanding out there about socialism, so many myths and errors, that to answer yes would just lead to more confusion. So let me clarify a few things before I try to answer the question.
First off, the is no one socialism, no block of beliefs carved from stone. There are many socialisms. A quick glance at Wikipedia and you’ll find these, among others: Utopian socialism, Marxist socialism, anarchism, democratic socialism, eco-socialism, religious socialism, and even libertarian socialism (which seems to me to be an oxymoron); and some of these categories have sub-categories. There are also a number of historical political movements that have used the term socialism which were not remotely socialist—The National Socialist German Workers' Party, the Nazi Party, comes to mind. There are a number of socialist political movements through history which perhaps started as socialist, or at least envisioned themselves as socialist, which either weren’t or didn’t last long in that form: the USSR and Communist China, for example.
The most basic definition I can come up with would be that socialism is the communal ownership of the means of economic production and the subsequent management of that production. But there is more than one problem with this definition: what does “communal ownership” mean, for example? Does that mean government? A co-op? A group of workers? A city? Mostly, the answer depends on the type of socialism you are talking about. And what is meant by “management”? Certainly not the type of dictatorship we saw quickly grow in the USSR. But some entity has to do that management.
Want to see a good example of socialism? Check out the U.S. military: “[I]f there was any question about how socialist the army is, they removed all doubt when they adopted their last slogan: Army of One. That sounds positively communist. Why don't they just call it the collective? And in the US military everyone pledges to support one another no matter what. No one gets left behind. Everyone gets government provided housing, health care, and even government clothing. The military is the most socialist institution we have.”*
And let’s make one thing clear: regardless of what Fox “News” and the ignorant Palins of the world claim, President Obama isn’t remotely a socialist; hell, he’s not even a particularly good leftist.
What socialism could do is stop or curtail the built-in, self-destructive structural problems inherent in capitalism, “the concentration of wealth at the top, which eventually makes economic growth impossible — stagnant wages mean capitalists’ customers don’t have the money to keep the economy growing—and leads to crisis.”**
First off, the is no one socialism, no block of beliefs carved from stone. There are many socialisms. A quick glance at Wikipedia and you’ll find these, among others: Utopian socialism, Marxist socialism, anarchism, democratic socialism, eco-socialism, religious socialism, and even libertarian socialism (which seems to me to be an oxymoron); and some of these categories have sub-categories. There are also a number of historical political movements that have used the term socialism which were not remotely socialist—The National Socialist German Workers' Party, the Nazi Party, comes to mind. There are a number of socialist political movements through history which perhaps started as socialist, or at least envisioned themselves as socialist, which either weren’t or didn’t last long in that form: the USSR and Communist China, for example.
The most basic definition I can come up with would be that socialism is the communal ownership of the means of economic production and the subsequent management of that production. But there is more than one problem with this definition: what does “communal ownership” mean, for example? Does that mean government? A co-op? A group of workers? A city? Mostly, the answer depends on the type of socialism you are talking about. And what is meant by “management”? Certainly not the type of dictatorship we saw quickly grow in the USSR. But some entity has to do that management.
Want to see a good example of socialism? Check out the U.S. military: “[I]f there was any question about how socialist the army is, they removed all doubt when they adopted their last slogan: Army of One. That sounds positively communist. Why don't they just call it the collective? And in the US military everyone pledges to support one another no matter what. No one gets left behind. Everyone gets government provided housing, health care, and even government clothing. The military is the most socialist institution we have.”*
And let’s make one thing clear: regardless of what Fox “News” and the ignorant Palins of the world claim, President Obama isn’t remotely a socialist; hell, he’s not even a particularly good leftist.
What socialism could do is stop or curtail the built-in, self-destructive structural problems inherent in capitalism, “the concentration of wealth at the top, which eventually makes economic growth impossible — stagnant wages mean capitalists’ customers don’t have the money to keep the economy growing—and leads to crisis.”**
Socialism can put ethics back into politics.
So when people ask me if I’m a socialist, I hedge; I ask them what they mean and when they mention the USSR or Marx or, good grief, President Obama, I say simply, “Probably.” If pinned down I’ll call myself a democratic socialist (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_socialism).
The sad fact is that, at 71 years of age, I will not live to see a socialist society as I envision it. For now, capitalism reigns supreme, and one has only to watch the news on a regular basis to see where that is leading us. Frankly, I am pretty pessimistic about the future.
——————————
A couple of short videos to watch if you want to know more:
The great Howard Zinn on socialism:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJ9UChMSJPU
Bill Maher on socialism:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMS_P09dKbc
Three books I can recommend:
Looking Backward, by Edward Bellamy
The Case for Socialism, by Alan Maass
Imagine: Living in a Socialist USA, edited by Frances Goldin, et al.
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*http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cenk-uygur/is-the-us-military-a-soci_b_252526.html
**http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/04/04/1199205/-Socialism-what-it-isn-t#
So when people ask me if I’m a socialist, I hedge; I ask them what they mean and when they mention the USSR or Marx or, good grief, President Obama, I say simply, “Probably.” If pinned down I’ll call myself a democratic socialist (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_socialism).
The sad fact is that, at 71 years of age, I will not live to see a socialist society as I envision it. For now, capitalism reigns supreme, and one has only to watch the news on a regular basis to see where that is leading us. Frankly, I am pretty pessimistic about the future.
——————————
A couple of short videos to watch if you want to know more:
The great Howard Zinn on socialism:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJ9UChMSJPU
Bill Maher on socialism:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMS_P09dKbc
Three books I can recommend:
Looking Backward, by Edward Bellamy
The Case for Socialism, by Alan Maass
Imagine: Living in a Socialist USA, edited by Frances Goldin, et al.
——————————
*http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cenk-uygur/is-the-us-military-a-soci_b_252526.html
**http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/04/04/1199205/-Socialism-what-it-isn-t#
