Lesotho Review Staff
June 12, 2022
We know that socialism is a bad idea because it’s been tried throughout history and has failed every time. But how exactly does socialism start? It begins with good intentions and the central government making decisions for everyone (kind of like what we have now). Then the government decides how much people can produce and how much they should get paid for doing it. The government also runs the health care system, schools, transportation, and other services. That might sound pretty good (especially to you Obama supporters out there), but it typically ends up under tyranny because there is no incentive to innovate or do better than anyone else in society.
Socialism works out differently every time it’s tried.
Socialism is not a specific type of government. It is an economic theory that argues for public ownership of the means of production and distribution. Socialism is also not synonymous with communism, although some socialists do advocate for communism as well. Socialism has been tried in many different countries, and it has worked out differently each time. It can be a good idea, but it can also be a bad idea—which makes sense because there are so many variations on socialism that you could never get all the details right anyway!
It starts with good intentions, and a central government that makes decisions for the whole country.
Socialist policies can take many forms, but one thing that remains consistent is the central government’s ability to make decisions for the country as a whole.
Socialist countries can be large or small, but in either case, they are ruled by an authoritarian regime that controls all aspects of society: from what people produce and how much they get paid for it to how much money people earn and how that money is spent on healthcare and education. The government also decides which industries should be nationalized (run by the state) and which ones need to be privatized (run like businesses).
The government decides what people can produce and how much they get paid.
- The government decides what people can produce and how much they get paid.
- The government decides what people can produce, not the people.
- The government decides how much people get paid, not the people.
The government runs the health care system, schools and other services.
The government runs the health care system, schools and other services.
The government can’t be trusted with the health care system.
The health care system should be left to the market.
The government can’t be trusted with the schools.
The schools should be left to the market
It might start out with central control but might end up under tyranny.
It might start out with central control but might end up under tyranny.
In a socialist society, the government will have control of everything. The government will have control of people’s lives and money. And it will also have control of businesses.
Conclusion
Socialism is an interesting theory, but the reality is that it fails more often than it succeeds. There are a few examples where it has succeeded, but they are the exception rather than the rule. This is because people don’t want to give up their freedom and in most socialist countries freedom of speech is limited or nonexistent, so everyone just does what they’re told without question.
