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Political Systems of the World
Socialism
Examines the history of socialism, how it has evolved, and its effect on other forms of government.
160 pages, Library Binding
First published September 1, 2007
50 people want to read
About the author
Thomas Fleming
94 books24 followersThomas Fleming is the editor of Chronicles: A Magazine of American Culture and the president of The Rockford Institute in Rockford, Illinois.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 1, 2018
A brief overview of Socialism in 150 pages or fewer? Dr Thomas Fleming accomplishes this daunting task with clarity and wit.
"Socialism is both a political theory and a political economic system that emphasizes the duty of society to ensure social and economic fairness and equality." (p. 13)
Regarding theorists like Saint-Simon, Fourier, and Comte: "Each of them also believed that the world had been in darkness until he had created his system and that within a few decades the new system would transform the world." (p. 34)
"Value subjectivity, as useful a tool as it can be, illustrates one of the main tendencies of liberalism, which is toward value-neutrality and amorality." (p. 42)
"The Fabians may have believed in economic and social equality, but they refused to abandon their belief in the superiority of intellectuals." (p. 45)
A surprising statistic regarding the US government: "In total, the federal government owns about 650 million acres, or 28 percent, of the land of the United States. This includes a majority of the territory of some Western states: 89 percent of Alaska, 86 percent of Nevada, and 47 percent of California." (p. 62)
"This is a pattern that repeats itself throughout most of the twentieth century: Conservative governments, to win votes, either initiate socialist legislation or else consolidate innovations introduced by socialists." (p. 75)
"Few critics, however, challenge the basic socialist principle that it is government's responsibility, by one method or another, to provide retirement income." (p. 78)
"Equally attractive to many converts is the moral message of socialism that asks men and women to live for something beyond the "getting and spending" that is the gospel of modern capitalism. (p. 89)
"As August Comte argued, man could never establish a rational and secular society so long as individuals devoted themselves to a supranatural being and clung to their selfish desire for salvation." (p. 90)
"There is more than a hint of ethnocentrism in the argument for global integration. It is based on the assumption that people in the developed West lead happier lives than the peoples of poor countries. There is absolutely no evidence that this is so, as economist Lord Peter Bauer has pointed out, and there is no reason to believe that people in Third World countries actually desire the modernization that Western countries are so eager to provide. Some leftist socialists agree, and the antiglobalist movement is dominated by the far left, as is evident from the people who turn out for the hostile demonstrations that greet international economic conferences.
This is not really a paradox. Some Western socialist have grown tired of an ideology that reduces human life to so many years of schooling, so many square feet of housing space, so many hours of work a day, and so many weeks of paid vacation time." (p. 101)
"Even in principle, though Marx would have denied it, socialism requires a powerful government directed by unselfish experts." (p. 106)
"Though few non-Marxists have accepted his view that history is reducible to a series of inevitable class conflicts over material resources and means of production, Marx was among the few people of his age to have realized that nineteenth century capitalism was not a traditional economic system but part of a revolution that had transformed the world...Marx also saw what classical liberals refuse to see, namely, that industrial capitalism had undermined all the security enjoyed by poor people in traditional societies." (p. 111)
"Socialism is both a political theory and a political economic system that emphasizes the duty of society to ensure social and economic fairness and equality." (p. 13)
Regarding theorists like Saint-Simon, Fourier, and Comte: "Each of them also believed that the world had been in darkness until he had created his system and that within a few decades the new system would transform the world." (p. 34)
"Value subjectivity, as useful a tool as it can be, illustrates one of the main tendencies of liberalism, which is toward value-neutrality and amorality." (p. 42)
"The Fabians may have believed in economic and social equality, but they refused to abandon their belief in the superiority of intellectuals." (p. 45)
A surprising statistic regarding the US government: "In total, the federal government owns about 650 million acres, or 28 percent, of the land of the United States. This includes a majority of the territory of some Western states: 89 percent of Alaska, 86 percent of Nevada, and 47 percent of California." (p. 62)
"This is a pattern that repeats itself throughout most of the twentieth century: Conservative governments, to win votes, either initiate socialist legislation or else consolidate innovations introduced by socialists." (p. 75)
"Few critics, however, challenge the basic socialist principle that it is government's responsibility, by one method or another, to provide retirement income." (p. 78)
"Equally attractive to many converts is the moral message of socialism that asks men and women to live for something beyond the "getting and spending" that is the gospel of modern capitalism. (p. 89)
"As August Comte argued, man could never establish a rational and secular society so long as individuals devoted themselves to a supranatural being and clung to their selfish desire for salvation." (p. 90)
"There is more than a hint of ethnocentrism in the argument for global integration. It is based on the assumption that people in the developed West lead happier lives than the peoples of poor countries. There is absolutely no evidence that this is so, as economist Lord Peter Bauer has pointed out, and there is no reason to believe that people in Third World countries actually desire the modernization that Western countries are so eager to provide. Some leftist socialists agree, and the antiglobalist movement is dominated by the far left, as is evident from the people who turn out for the hostile demonstrations that greet international economic conferences.
This is not really a paradox. Some Western socialist have grown tired of an ideology that reduces human life to so many years of schooling, so many square feet of housing space, so many hours of work a day, and so many weeks of paid vacation time." (p. 101)
"Even in principle, though Marx would have denied it, socialism requires a powerful government directed by unselfish experts." (p. 106)
"Though few non-Marxists have accepted his view that history is reducible to a series of inevitable class conflicts over material resources and means of production, Marx was among the few people of his age to have realized that nineteenth century capitalism was not a traditional economic system but part of a revolution that had transformed the world...Marx also saw what classical liberals refuse to see, namely, that industrial capitalism had undermined all the security enjoyed by poor people in traditional societies." (p. 111)
March 28, 2019
Socialism is an in depth look at the political structure and philosphies of the socialist ideology. It does a good job of creating distinctions between communism and socialism as well as clarifying and refuting misconceptions about it. Furthermore, plenty of past and contemporary examples as well as a historical timeline really enhance the historical relevance of the book itself.
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September 11, 2020good
January 31, 2023
A really good look at the history of socialism pre Marx and Lenin.
November 21, 2015
Excellent history and explanation of socialism from Plato to contemporary times. There have been many different flavors of socialism over the years. In modern times, socialism has often been a reaction to the displacement and insecurity people have felt from being moved off traditional small farms and shops and into large industrial run societies. Although socialism may have made life easier and more just for some people, millions of others have suffered and died under extreme forms of socialism/communism. In modern times, socialism has morphed from economic concerns over the exploitation of workers to concerns over the environment and fighting for the rights of various identity groups (i.e. racial, sexual, gender, etc.). At the end of the book, the author lists well-reasoned criticisms of socialism made over the years by a variety of political thinkers (i.e. Aristotle, Milovan Djilas, Friedrich Hayek, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, etc.). I highly recommend this book.
April 20, 2009
Pretty straightforward. We got it at school and I was combing it for material I could use when teaching Orwell. Of course, true to nature, I got lazy and just read it for myself. Note to self: "liberal" used to mean what we deem "conservative" today, and by Fleming's definition, Obama is a dyed in the wool socialist (the book was published before the November election). Plenty of sidebars and side stories/graphics to help fill the reader in. Hopefully some of my more militantly political minds will consult some of the facts before charging anything about the current or former administration. Fat chance.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews