The New Republic’s contributing editor and Guardian columnist Osita Nwanevu had a curious posting this week as he offered a new definition of socialism for the public: socialism is simply cheaper products. Even Dell apparently is a socialist enterprise under Nwanevu’s new take. Capitalism? Anything that is too expensive. In other words, voters should elect socialists if they like sales.
There is a rising number of Democratic Socialists in Congress and in the Democratic party. Many are seeking to push this trend by getting young voters to identify as socialists. It may be working. Polls show that socialism is now as popular as capitalism with young voters.
Hopefully, they have a better handle on the subject than Nwanevu, who has also written for the New Yorker, Slate, and Harper’s.
“Fundamentally, socialism is about buying affordable consumer products. Are you an Android user? That’s socialism. Do you have a Dell? That’s socialism. Shop at H&M? That’s socialism. The more expensive your stuff is, the more capitalist it is. Marx lays this out in Capital.”
It is wonderful to see those socialists hard at work at that proletarian paradise. . . Dell.
It is not clear where Marx laid out that socialism is like a never-ending Black Friday sale. He did say that “a commodity appears, at first sight, a very trivial thing, and easily understood. Its analysis shows that it is, in reality, a very queer thing, abounding in metaphysical subtleties and theological niceties. ”
However, Marx was not exactly keen on the capitalist production system, even at a discount. He declared “Accumulate, accumulate! This is Moses and the Prophets!” He also noted “Just as man is governed, in religion, by the products of his own brain, so, in capitalist production, he is governed by the products of his own hand.”
Putting that aside, socialist and communist systems historically have resulted in cheaper but fewer products. The old Soviet joke: A man walks into a shop. He asks the clerk, “You don’t have any meat?” The clerk says, “No, here we don’t have any fish. The shop that doesn’t have any meat is across the street.”
The infamous five-year plans of the Soviet Union led to widespread starvation and reduction of goods. What was produced was cheap but shoddy:
“For example, in the 1970s the Soviet Union produced 800 million shoes every year—enough to provide every citizen with three new pairs. But the quality, design, and fit were often so poor that many residents had to spend hours looking for a perfect pair, or buy imported shoes at vastly higher prices.”
Under no interpretation of Marx would Dell undercutting the market be viewed as socialism at work. To the contrary, such supply and demand decisions are more in line with Adam Smith than Karl Marx. The invisible hand of Smith favors certain goods and price points.
You can clearly have soft socialist systems that centralize economies and force the redistribution of wealth without the authoritarianism of communist. They are not synonymous. There are also variations of socialism from command economies to “market socialism.”
However, socialism also has not been shown to reduce prices as much as reducing products. Indeed, systems in countries like Venezuela often trigger rampant inflation and other collateral crippling economic problems.
Still confused, here is the famous primer often used on the rivaling systems in the context of a farmer with two cows:
Socialism: If you have two cows, the Government takes one and gives it to your neighbor.
Communism: If you have two cows, Government takes both and then gives you some milk.
Fascism: If you have two cows, you keep the cows and give the milk to the Government; then the government sells you some milk.
New Dealism: If you have two cows, you shoot one and milk the other; then you pour the milk down the drain.
Nazism: If you have two cows, the Government shoots you and keeps the cows.
Capitalism: If you have two cows, you sell one and buy a bull.
As someone else said,” You can vote yourself into Socialism, but you always have to shoot your way out”
It may be just a State-of-Mind. (Re: The difference between socialism and capitalism)
For an image of that “state-of-mind,” look at a nighttime photo of North and South Korea.
Yes, one aspect of socialism is cheap goods. But that is because socialism reliably produces by enlarge a one-class, poor society. The incentive in socialism is to work as little as possible since there is no reward for hard work.
The 7 Wonders of Communism translated from my native Romanian depicts the system, and you will see how in it’s ideal state, goods are acquired for “free”.
The 7 Wonders of Communism:
1. Everyone had work.
2. Although everyone had work, no one was working.
3. Although no one was working, the plan was carried out over 100%.
4. Although the plan was over 100%, you couldn’t buy anything.
5. Although you couldn’t find anything to buy, everyone had everything.
6. Although everyone had everything, everyone stole.
7. Although everyone stole, nothing was ever missing.
Another insidious aspect of socialism/communism is that stealing, lying and bribery, and falsehood become ingrained in the fiber of society.
It may be just a State-of-Mind.
For example:
A Muscovite goes to work every day, makes his allotment of Rubles and makes a life day-to-day.
Does He really know what s going on in the Kremlin, the Micro-Economics, no He’s just doing what he knows Day upon Day.
A Bostonian goes to work every day, makes his allotment of Dollars and makes a life day-to-day.
Does He really know what s going on in the Capitol, the Micro-Economics, no He’s just doing what he knows Day upon Day.
Socialism, Capitalism, Communism, to the Common Man is just a State-of-Mind. We just think the Other side (The Socialist, the Communist) has it worse off and They are the Enemy, because we are groomed to believe that.
But even in Their Societies they have the Cheerleaders and Football Stars (The Bill Gates’es and Donald Trumps).
They have the same gripes we do; The Economy sucks, the President is an Idiot, the Traffic is a Bi_ch, the Bills are going up up up.
That’s Life. The Grass isn’t Green’er’ on the Other side, It’s just Green. Unless it’s Dead, and I think now a days, the grass on both sides is dying.
Are you ignorant of the real world.
Russia today is an oligarchy not socialism of communism.
We do not think socialism, monarchy, oligarchy, totalitarianism, fascims, … are worse because they are
the enemy”
We think they are worse
because standards of living are lower,
because rates of improvement in standard of living are lower.
because people have less freedom and humans actually value freedom very highly.
because all other forms – especially socialism and fascism which is a form of socialism are intrinsically related to mass murder on a global scale.
because socialist paradises build walls to keep people in.
because free nations have to build walls to keep from being overrun by those escaping at the risk of their lives socialist paradises.
They USSR, Cuba, Mao’s china, North Korea, Venezeula and myriads of other socialist paradises would take anyone who wanted to come – very few did. Conversely the US and other free nations have had their nations and culture disrupted by those fleeing socialist paradises.
because the standard of living did not rise at all during the entirety of Maos china.
The debate regarding socialism vs free markets ended in the 20th century.
Socialism LOST badly. Socialism lost in theory. It lost in practice. it lost by just about every objective measure.
It lost as people voted with their feet.
Say John, do you currently, or have you ever lived in Russia, or any soclaist nation? Didn’t think so.
So, that what you think is an informed opinion here, is just a putrid wind emanating from your underdevelpoed brain instead of your backside.
I’m guessing ou never lived in a communist country. I moved to East Europe shortly after the Berlin wall was opened. It was not just as green. AT ALL.
1. Start with literal. Just driving from West Germany – beautiful landscape and towns, to East Germany: gray and dirty.
2. The cars: German engineers in West Germany offered Opels and VW’s for those that wanted economy, Porsches to those who wanted performance, BMW’s Mercedes and Audi to those who wanted higher quality.
The “engineers” in East Germany? They built the Trabant. Look it up. Piece of junk that in 1989 still looked like it did in 1960. TWO cylinder TWO stroke engine (like your weedeater- you had to mix the gas and oil together and of course put out a lot of smoke. Top speed about 55. Windshield wasther was pump manual like a squirt gun. Gas gauge was UNDER the hood. You stopped. Opened the hood. Opened the cap on the little gas tank (where the oil and gas mix had been poured it). And you stuck a dipstick in to see how empty or full it was. And guess what? Under the communist command economy, it could take being on a list for 7 years to get this piece of garbage.
Here’s video if you don’t believe me:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=No1-4GsQa-g
In Prague Czechoslovakia (which had been under communism for 4 decades) I heard and learned things like:
“95% of all businesses lost money every year”
“We pretend to work, they pretend to pay us”
“We could get bananas once a year, and stand in long lines to get them”
“I work hard, my comrade does not. I will not get promoted I will not get paid more. She will not get fired she will not get paid less.”
Russian farmers would plow deep only close to the road, which is as far back as the government official would look when he came to inspect the farm plowing. He would get out, measure the depth, give the accepted approval and drive away. The farmer doesn’t work. The crop fails. = food shortage.
Here’s a video of a grocery store in Moscow: See for yourself it you think it’s just as green.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWTGsUyv8IE
And one more:
“We were taught to resent anyone who had something we didn’t have.
And to illustrate, here’s a joke I heard there about the Soviets:
A genie offered 1 wish to an Englishman, a Frenchmen, and a Russian.
The Englishman asked for a country manor. Poof, he got it.
The Frenchman asked for a chateau with a vineyard. Poof, he got it.
The Genie asked the Russian what he wanted. He said:
“My neighbor has a goat and I don’t. Kill the goat.”
There’s a reason there was a wall in Berlin. It wasn’t built by the West to keep the West Germans from escaping capitalism. It was built by East Germany to keep the East Germans from escaping, which some were willing to try any way, even under machine gun fire.
NO. The grass was not just as green on the other side.
Climate Changeism: Destroy all farms and farm animals and buy food at the grocery store.