Two days ago we watched President Trump deliver an incendiary speech that incited a riot on the Capital of the United States in Washington, DC. His supporters say he did nothing wrong. He was saving our nation and our people from certain socialism. peacefully assemblies are every persons’ right. This rally was anything but peaceful. Two people have died and many more were injured. Some were arrested, but far less than ought to have been. His detractors would like to hold him accountable for sedition and inciting a riot. Will he incur any penalties for this carefully choreographed missteps?
These days people are tossing out Socialism like grains of salt sprinkled over popcorn at the movie theater. I believe they know not what they speak. Therefore, I will endeavor to provide you a brief history of each and then tie them into today. In order to truly understand the differences between our current Capitalistic society, Socialism and Communism we must learn from whence they came. Then, and only then, will you see that our President’s use of that term and they attachment his followers have placed upon it is entirely mistaken.
The Industrial Revolution began England. At that time their country was noticing many socioeconomic, technological, and cultural changes. For instance, agriculture and livestock became true commodities and was being grown beyond the single family use as had previously been the case. They were exported around the world ushering in international trade. Transportation and communication emerged in new ways to accommodate this wider distribution of goods onto the world platform. We saw development of the steam locomotive, the radio, the telegraph, the airplane, and the automobile. They were propelled by steam, petroleum, coal, and electricity. Factories were built to produce en masse, package and ship these goods. Many of these factories were being built from new materials like steel and iron.
Capitalism was born.
According to Merriam-Webster Capitalism means the following.
“Capitalism definition is – an economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods, by investments that are determined by private decision, and by prices, production, and the distribution of goods that are determined mainly by competition in a free market.”
Capitalism gives the power to the people. It was a sweeping success because it brought about trade, wealth, competition, lower prices, and cooperation. The United States, as a new Country, adopted this as our economic business model. Here, in theory and practice, we had a system where people could achieve anything if they worked hard enough. Greed and avarice are rewarded. It has served us well.
Socialism sought to end the abuses of workers, level the playing field, and end the various classes. All factories are owned by the government, all means of transportation are government assets, All production of any sort is dictated by the government and all control remains solidly with the government. The government is supposed to be elected in a democratic fashion.
In a Socialistic system it was thought that greed and selfishness would end. There was no need for either since they could not move ahead, as in, increase their wealth or social status. Education, child care, and healthcare are accessible to all. Think of a cooperative. Socialism works a bit like that. People can, however, own property under this type of governance.
Under a Socialist type of government everyone gets a share of whatever there is. Nothing more and nothing less. Suffice it to say that there is no private ownership in this type of system. Socialism eliminates competition amongst the people and foists collectivism and cooperation upon them instead. There are no pure forms of Socialism in our world today. There are some Social Democracies, i.e. Norway, Demark, and Sweden.
Below taken from https://www.thoughtco.com/difference-between-communism-and-socialism-195448
Communism vs. Socialism | ||
---|---|---|
Attribute | Communism | Socialism |
Basic Philosophy | From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs. | From each according to his ability, to each according to his contribution. |
Economy Planned By | Central government | Central government |
Ownership of Economic Resources | All economic resources are publicly owned and controlled by the government. Individuals hold no personal property or assets. | Individuals own personal property but all industrial and production capacity is communally owned and managed by a democratically elected government. |
Distribution of Economic Production | Production is intended to meet all basic human needs and is distributed to the people at no charge. | Production is intended to meet individual and societal needs and distributed according to individual ability and contribution. |
Class Distinction | Class is abolished. The ability to earn more than other workers is almost nonexistent. | Classes exist but differences are diminished. It is possible for some people to earn more than others. |
Religion | Religion is effectively abolished. | Freedom of religion is allowed. |
The next step toward losing a Democracy moves from Socialism into Communism. Cuba, China, Vietnam, Laos, and North Korea are all Communist countries. Interestingly, they are a bit of a Communist hybrid in that they still have classes for the division of society, the systems hinges on money for the exchange of goods and services, and people can own personal property.
Dictionary.com offers the following to describe Communism.
Differences Between Socialism, Capitalism, Communism, and Fascism
Attribute | Socialism | Capitalism | Communism | Fascism |
---|---|---|---|---|
Factors of production are owned by: | Everyone | Individuals | Everyone | Individuals |
Factors of production are valued for: | Usefulness to people | Profit | Usefulness to people | Nation building |
Allocation decided by: | Central plan | Demand and supply | Central plan | Central plan |
From each according to their: | Ability | Market decides | Ability | Value to the nation |
To each according to their: | Contribution | Wealth | Need | Value to the nation |
*Above taken from https://www.thebalance.com/socialism-types-pros-cons-examples-3305592
As you can see we are in no danger of becoming a Socialistic society. Capitalism reigns supreme in the United States of America. We may see some facets of a social democracy in our government over time, but those changes are meant to help our people move forward with equal access to certain programs and not to destroy their ability or will to compete, create wealth, and/or innovate.
instead of diving our society and stating things that could not be further from the truth we need leadership that is honest and transparent with the people, whether the news is good or bad. The world we live in now is far different that the word was a couple of years ago. Can we not agree that there will be things we do not like and may disagree with, but let us all work together to make our world a better place for ALL people to live? This is the world that can and will help us overcome hate and the coronavirus and so much more. We can do it one person and one family at a time. Please help me.
References:
https://www.britannica.com/event/Industrial-Revolution
https://www.merriam-webster.com
https://www.thebalance.com/socialism-types-pros-cons-examples-3305592
https://www.lifepersona.com/5-fundamentals-and-principles-of-socialism
https://www.history.com/news/socialism-communism-differences
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/communism
https://www.thoughtco.com/difference-between-communism-and-socialism-195448