What Is Socialism?

If you had to ask three different people what Socialism is, you will probably get three different answers. Many people debate Socialism in comparison to Capitalism but with very little understanding of what it is and often with completely different points of views. When you throw Communism into the mix, it gets even more confusing with many people believing Communism and Socialism being different names the same thing.

These terms also spark a lot of emotions and sometimes even anger making debate even more difficult and complex. Unfortunately, it is unavoidable, as we need to take a good, hard look in the mirror. As a country, we need to understand that our government is run by a party that openly promotes Socialism and Communism, and is actively working to migrate us from a Democracy to a Socialist state.

Some might think that is a good thing without knowing what they agreeing to until it's too late.

Definitions

It's vital to have a clear definition of what we are talking about and agree on the meaning of words. Many will point to some countries as examples of Socialism because their government provides free services when they two different things.

Democracy is a political system where the people vote for their leaders, and the government is formed from the elected representatives.

Capitalism is an economic system determined by private ownership competing in a free and open market.

Socialism is an economic system but also a social and political theory, and the means of production are collectively owned by the government.

Communism is an economic system but also a social and political theory, where all property ownership is removed, and everything is shared and there is no government.

Welfare is a type of government support where the state provides services using tax money mostly to the poor without infringing on private ownership or free markets.

What Is Socialism?

What is mine is mine, and what is yours we share.
-- Unknown

In simple terms, Socialism is where the government owns everything and many of the freedoms and human rights that our Constitution provides for today cannot exist as they are in direct conflict with the state controls that are required in a Socialist government.

Socialist states, depending on the model they following, may allow people to own and run businesses. The difference is that if the government does not like what you doing, they can take it away or nationalize it because private ownership of any property does not exist in a socialist country.

In a socialist state, there is no free market, and the government can decide the prices and salaries of anything and anyone. With collectivism a common feature as a replacement for free markets.

Welfare Vs Socialism

Often examples of welfare are used incorrectly as an example of Socialism. Just because a government is taxing their citizens 60% of their income, and in return providing free education and health services does not make them a Socialist state. To clear things up, Patriot Democracy draws a clear distinction between welfare and Socialism.

For something to be described as Socialist or an example of Socialism, human rights and freedoms need to be infringed in some way or removed entirely. An example of welfare may be free health care, an example of Socialism would be 100% state-provided health care, and private health care would be outlawed or strictly controlled. The one supports the people, and the other removes rights, freedom of choice and forces participation.

Socialist systems can often start as a welfare program, promoted as good for the people and then slowly altered and changed to infringe on peoples rights and freedom of choice, slowly moving towards Socialism over time.

Democracy & Rights

In a Democracy, all power and control are spread out equally among its citizens in the form of human rights. In a Democracy, the people hold all the power and empower the government by giving them the authority to act on the people's behalf. If the government is not performing or acts in corrupt ways then the people of a country can punish the people in government by removing them from power and putting somebody different in power.

The peaceful change of power from one democratically elected government to another is a cornerstone of this power the people have. In countries that do not have this, violence and military coups are the only means of changing a government leadership.

Beyond governance, democracies have been the catalyst for the biggest reduction in poverty in the world over the last 30 years. As people have been giving the right to own property and the right to control their own lives people have been rapidly and dramatically uplifting themselves out of poverty all around the world.

In contrast, Socialist countries have been a source and net creator of poverty and wealth destruction.

The War Against Private Property

The trouble with Socialism is that eventually, you run out of other people's money.
-- Margaret Thatcher

The single biggest distinction between a free market Democracy that has been so successful in reducing poverty, compared to Socialism, is that the right to private property is abolished. There is nothing more important and is always the end goal of any Socialist.

By being in government and circumventing and removing property rights, the political elite can seize power and control of anything and everything, and control it all, often through brutal and violent means.

To understand the importance of private property rights we should always keep in mind that when we talk about the private sector we are talking about normal people, like yourself owning something. This could be a business, a car, a house, even your cellphone.

Any attack on private property rights is an attack on the citizens of a country ability to own and create wealth.

Socialist often try to create conflict between wealthy private business owners and the poorer working class and unemployed because it helps their cause to move power away from the people to the government.

What About Communism?

Communism and Socialism are often used interchangeably as if they mean the same thing. A significant difference is that Communism based on its definition has never really existed, as there has never been a true communist country, and probably never will be. This is because the theory of Communism abolishes all forms of ownership, even state ownership. For a country to call itself a Communist country, there would need to be no government, no private property, no ownership of any kind. Not even money could exist, and we would need to share everything.

Communism is the sales pitch promoted to the poor and general masses as this utopia that is being strived for, and that Socialism is the first step on the road to this Communist utopia. Unfortunately, this is all a lie, we sold Communism, but leave the store with Socialism and with Socialism the government controls and owns everything, even the people.

With Communism, it's suggested that at some point on the path to this utopia, the government drunk on power will dismantle itself, and we will all live in a country with no rules or laws, and everyone will be happy. There will be no need to worry about anything, including another nation invading and taking over as we share everything and we are all completely equal in every way. Nobody is rich or poor, we are all the same in every way.

The Power Hungry

It's important to note that Socialism and Communism are both a political system and an economic system all wrapped into one, with Democracy and Capitalism they are separate and independent. This is a very important difference, as Socialism cannot survive without controlling both the economics and the politics of a country.

When living in a free democratic country, with a free market, it's recognised that there is a conflict of interest mixing economics and politics, leading to corruption and the abuse of power. To prevent corruption Democracies will try to spread out and separate power and controls in such a way that they keep each other in check.

Socialism is a system that embraces corrupt practices. In a Socialist state, power is centralised, and every aspect of the country is controlled. The abuse of power that always follows is devastating for the people and the country.

Socialism is the prefered form of government with Dictators for good reasons. They can sell their ideas as helping the people but can rule with complete control, unchallenged and with no accountability.

Socialism has been described as government slavery because once the government removes all private property rights, and owns everything, all power and rights are taken away from the people. Everything you do, everything you say and everything you produce is not yours. You become a slave of the government, and your slave masters are the political party in power.

Mixed Grey

The reality is that most countries are a mix of state control and free markets. This can make it a little complicated at times as a government can easily promote laws and actions that are similar to Socialist ideas in a free market-driven Democracy, and promote them to the people as being good for the country and people.

Examples of this would be the state control of the sale of alcohol or a government preventing the general population from owning military weapons, or controlling the sale and use of dangerous chemicals.

There are many examples where a government is controlling or prohibiting the ownership and use of some types of private property, and these would generally not be considered Socialist laws.

Planning & Plans

A feature of all Socialist states is where all power is centralized and concentrated in one part of government generally referred to as the Executive. This requires the government to provide for a large amount of the economy that under normal circumstances would happen naturally through free markets.

This is known as the command economy or a centrally planned economy, where all control is centralized in a single small group of individuals. The Executive would decide on what, and how much food, goods and services are produced and at what price.

As the government grows and has to decide on so much to make the country work. The process of planning and executing these plans become a large focus. For this reason, the Soviet Union invented the concept of the Five-Year plan. Modified versions of this model have been adopted by many other Socialist states, including China.

You never see all-encompassing five-year plans in free-market democracies, they just not necessary.

Versions Of Socialism

How Socialism works is not set in stone, and several models have been tried. The Soviet model of the Soviet Union is probably the one that most people think of when they think of Communism or Socialism, but there are other models.

National Socialism or what sometimes is referred to as Nazism is the system invented by Adolph Hitler in Nazi Germany. Where the Soviet model nationalized everything, Nazism allowed for businesses to operate but under strict laws and legislated control. These businesses should not be compared to businesses found in Democracies, but more like government outsourcing economic activities under strict control and oversight.

Communist China was originally born out of the Soviet Union, and followed the Soviet model but struggled to make it work. It has since diverged and adopting free-market capitalism in special economic zones.

Today China is an example of how successful Capitalism can be when you remove government obstacles, as the Chinese special economic zones have few restrictions and laws inhibiting and regulating business activity.

The Soviet Virus

The Soviet Union was the first country to adopt Socialism after the 1917 October Revolution led by Vladimir Lenin. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was formed in 1922 and existed till 1991 when it all fell apart.

During this time, especially under Joseph Stalin, the Soviet Union looked to create friends in the form of other Socialist countries. To achieve this, they created a strategy and process of how to turn a Democratic country inside-out, often through violent Socialist Revolutions and flip it to a Socialist state that was friendly to the Soviet Union.

This International Socialist Playbook was very effective, and this influence was the strongest close to home. Following the end of World War 2, large parts of Eastern Europe fell under Soviet control. In South-East Asia with countries like China, Cambodia, Vietnam and North Korea all becoming Socialist states with a push from the Soviet Union.

Africa received a lot of attention from the Soviet Union when European powers started to leave Africa, and the decolonization of Africa began. The Soviet Union worked hard to convince newly forming African states to reject capitalism as a western colonial system and embrace Socialism, with several countries including Angola, Algeria, Congo, Ethiopia and Somalia all following the Soviet Union, all with disastrous consequences.

The South African Communist Party (SASP) before and during Apartheid, received strong support from the Soviet Union. Through this alliance, the African National Congress (ANC) received training, strategic direction and financial support as the Soviet Union looked to spread its Socialist influence in Southern Africa.

Power & Control

Socialism attracts power-hungry people, and a major feature of all socialists is the desire to control everything around them. They want to control what the people around them do and the way they perceived by the people.

Socialist likes to project strength even if it is fake hollow posturing. This show of strength often manifests and can be seen when they come into power and how they govern.

Socialist want to control the land, and everything on it, and will use everything in their power to achieve this. This control always involves information and propaganda, as Socialist know their power is only possible with the support or fear of the people.

Warning Signs

Being able to spot a Socialist idea is important. Patriots need to know what to look for and how to recognize them, and strongly oppose any socialist idea when they see it.

• Attacks on private property ownership and nationalization.
• Limiting of rights through centralized state control using legislation to control.
• Orchestrated racism and favouring one ethnic or racial group over another.
• Turning an ethnic minority into a national enemy of the people to blame for the people's problems.
• Growing of government in size and power as it takes more people to run.
• Cronyism where political officials are never held accountable, but just moved around.
• Attacks on free speech and anybody that speaks out about government.
• Promotion of state-provided services and industries over private enterprise, with health care, finance, bank, mining and food production being common targets.

Socialism thrives when good people say and do nothing, and we all suffer together.