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'''Communism''' is the political and economic doctrine that aims to replace [[private property]] and a [[profit]]-based economy with [[public ownership]] and communal control of at least the major means of [[production]] (e.g., mines, mills, and factories) and the natural resources of a society. Communism is thus a form of '''[[socialism]]''' — a higher and more advanced form, according to its advocates. Exactly how communism differs from socialism has long been a matter of debate, but the distinction rests largely on the communists’ adherence to the revolutionary socialism of [[Karl Marx]].<ref name="Britannica_communism">Encyclopædia Britannica Online. [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/129104/communism "communism (ideology)"], referenced 26 January, 2012.</ref> | |||
{{See also|Socialism}} | |||
{{See also|Economic calculation problem}} | |||
==History== | |||
Like most writers of the 19th century, Marx tended to use the terms communism and socialism interchangeably. In his ''Critique of the Gotha Programme'' (1875), however, Marx identified two phases of communism that would follow the predicted overthrow of [[capitalism]]: the first would be a transitional system in which the working class would control the government and economy yet still find it necessary to pay people according to how long, hard, or well they worked; the second would be fully realized communism—a society without class divisions or government, in which the production and distribution of goods would be based upon the principle "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs." Marx’s followers, especially the Russian revolutionary [[Vladimir Ilich Lenin]], took up this distinction. | |||
In ''State and Revolution'' (1917), Lenin asserted that socialism corresponds to Marx’s first phase of communist society and communism proper to the second. Lenin and the Bolshevik wing of the Russian Social-Democratic Workers’ Party reinforced this distinction in 1918, the year after they seized power in Russia, by taking the name All-Russian Communist Party. Since then, communism has been largely, if not exclusively, identified with the form of political and economic organization developed in the [[Soviet Union]] and adopted subsequently in the [[People’s Republic of China]] and other countries ruled by communist parties. | |||
For much of the 20th century, in fact, about one-third of the world’s population lived under communist regimes. These regimes were characterized by the rule of a single party that tolerated no opposition and little dissent. In place of a capitalist economy, in which individuals compete for profits, moreover, party leaders established a [[command economy]] in which the state controlled property and its bureaucrats determined wages, prices, and production goals. The inefficiency of these economies played a large part in the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and the remaining communist countries (excepting [[North Korea]]) are now allowing greater economic competition while holding fast to one-party rule. Whether they will succeed in this endeavour remains to be seen. Succeed or fail, however, communism is clearly not the world-shaking force it was in the 20th century.<ref name="Britannica_communism" /> | |||
==References== | |||
{{Reflist}} | |||
==Links== | |||
* [http://mises.org/daily/2652 The Death Camp of Communist China] by Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr., July 2007 | |||
* [http://mises.org/daily/1832 Why do people vote for Communists?] by Luca Ferrini, June 2005 | |||
* [http://mises.org/daily/352 The Black Book] by Ralph Reiland, December 1999 | |||
* [http://mises.org/journals/jls/5_1/5_1_5.pdf War Communism to NEP: The Road from Serfdom] (pdf) by Sheldon L. Richman, 1981 | |||
* [http://mises.org/daily/4492 The Myth of Monolithic Communism] by Murray N. Rothbard, 1979 | |||
* [http://mises.org/daily/2197 The Death Wish of the Anarcho-Communists] by Murray N. Rothbard, 1970 | |||
* {{wplink}} | |||
[[Category:Ideologies]] | |||
Revision as of 08:28, 19 February 2012
Communism is the political and economic doctrine that aims to replace private property and a profit-based economy with public ownership and communal control of at least the major means of production (e.g., mines, mills, and factories) and the natural resources of a society. Communism is thus a form of socialism — a higher and more advanced form, according to its advocates. Exactly how communism differs from socialism has long been a matter of debate, but the distinction rests largely on the communists’ adherence to the revolutionary socialism of Karl Marx.[1]
History
Like most writers of the 19th century, Marx tended to use the terms communism and socialism interchangeably. In his Critique of the Gotha Programme (1875), however, Marx identified two phases of communism that would follow the predicted overthrow of capitalism: the first would be a transitional system in which the working class would control the government and economy yet still find it necessary to pay people according to how long, hard, or well they worked; the second would be fully realized communism—a society without class divisions or government, in which the production and distribution of goods would be based upon the principle "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs." Marx’s followers, especially the Russian revolutionary Vladimir Ilich Lenin, took up this distinction.
In State and Revolution (1917), Lenin asserted that socialism corresponds to Marx’s first phase of communist society and communism proper to the second. Lenin and the Bolshevik wing of the Russian Social-Democratic Workers’ Party reinforced this distinction in 1918, the year after they seized power in Russia, by taking the name All-Russian Communist Party. Since then, communism has been largely, if not exclusively, identified with the form of political and economic organization developed in the Soviet Union and adopted subsequently in the People’s Republic of China and other countries ruled by communist parties.
For much of the 20th century, in fact, about one-third of the world’s population lived under communist regimes. These regimes were characterized by the rule of a single party that tolerated no opposition and little dissent. In place of a capitalist economy, in which individuals compete for profits, moreover, party leaders established a command economy in which the state controlled property and its bureaucrats determined wages, prices, and production goals. The inefficiency of these economies played a large part in the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and the remaining communist countries (excepting North Korea) are now allowing greater economic competition while holding fast to one-party rule. Whether they will succeed in this endeavour remains to be seen. Succeed or fail, however, communism is clearly not the world-shaking force it was in the 20th century.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Encyclopædia Britannica Online. "communism (ideology)", referenced 26 January, 2012.
Links
- The Death Camp of Communist China by Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr., July 2007
- Why do people vote for Communists? by Luca Ferrini, June 2005
- The Black Book by Ralph Reiland, December 1999
- War Communism to NEP: The Road from Serfdom (pdf) by Sheldon L. Richman, 1981
- The Myth of Monolithic Communism by Murray N. Rothbard, 1979
- The Death Wish of the Anarcho-Communists by Murray N. Rothbard, 1970
- Communism at Wikipedia