Communism vs Socialism – Difference and Comparison | Diffen
Philosophy From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs. Free-access to the articles of consumption is made possible by advances in technology that allow for super-abundance. From each according to his ability, to each according to his contribution. Emphasis on profit being distributed among the society or workforce to complement individual wages/salaries. Ideas All people are the same and therefore classes make no sense. The government should own all means of production and land and also everything else. People should work for the government and the collective output should be redistributed equally. All individuals should have access to basic articles of consumption and public goods to allow for self-actualization. Large-scale industries are collective efforts and thus the returns from these industries must benefit society as a whole. Key Proponents Karl Marx, Fredrich Engels, Vladimir Lenin, Leon Trotsky. Robert Owen, Pierre Leroux, Karl Marx, Fredrick Engels, John Stuart Mill, Albert Einstein, George Bernard Shaw, Thorstein Veblen, Emma Goldman. Key Elements Centralized government, planned economy, dictatorship of the "proletariat", common ownership of the tools of production, no private property. equality between genders and all people, international focus. Usually anti-democratic with a 1-party system. Economic activity and production especially are adjusted by the State to meet human needs and economic demands. "Production for use": useful goods and services are produced specifically for their usefulness. Political System A communist society is stateless, classless and is governed directly by the people. This however has never been practised. Can coexist with different political systems. Most socialists advocate participatory democracy, some (Social Democrats) advocate parliamentary democracy, and Marxist-Leninists advocate "Democratic centralism." Political Movements Leninism, Trotskyism, Marxism-Leninism, Maoism, Left-Communism, Stalinism. Democratic socialism, communism, libertarian socialism, social anarchism, and syndicalism. Private Property Abolished. The concept of property is negated and replaced with the concept of commons and ownership with "usership". Two kinds of property: Personal property, such as houses, clothing, etc. owned by the individual. Public property includes factories, and means of production owned by the State but with worker control. Economic Coordination Economic planning coordinates all decisions regarding investment, production and resource allocation. Planning is done in terms of physical units instead of money. Planned-socialism relies principally on planning to determine investment and production decisions. Planning may be centralized or decentralized. Market-socialism relies on markets for allocating capital to different socially-owned enterprises. Definition International theory or system of social organization based on the holding of all property in common, with actual ownership ascribed to the community or state. Rejection of free markets and extreme distrust of Capitalism in any form. A theory or system of social organization based on the holding of most property in common, with actual ownership ascribed to the workers. Religion Abolished - all religious and metaphysics is rejected. Freedom of religion, but usually promotes secularism. Ownership Structure The means of production are commonly-owned, meaning no entity or individual owns productive property. Importance is ascribed to "usership" over "ownership". The means of production are socially-owned with the surplus value produced accruing to either all of society (in Public-ownership models) or to all the employee-members of the enterprise (in Cooperative-ownership models). Social Structure All class distinctions are eliminated. Class distinctions are diminished. Status derived more from political distinctions than class distinctions. Some mobility. Economic System The means of production are held in common, negating the concept of ownership in capital goods. Production is organized to provide for human needs directly without any use for money. Communism is predicated upon a condition of material abundance. The means of production are owned by public enterprises or cooperatives, and individuals are compensated based on the principle of individual contribution. Production may variously be coordinated through either economic planning or markets. Free Choice Either the collective "vote" or the state's rulers make economic and political decisions for everyone else. In practice, rallies, force, propaganda etc. are used by the rulers to control the populace. Religion, jobs, & marriage are up to the individual. Compulsory education. Free, equal access to healthcare & education provided through a socialized system funded by taxation. Production decisions driven more by State decision than consumer demand. Discrimination In theory, all members of the state are considered equal. The people are considered equal; laws are made when necessary to protect people from discrimination. Immigration is often tightly controlled. Way of Change Government in a Communist-state is the agent of change rather than any market or desire on the part of consumers. Change by government can be swift or slow, depending on change in ideology or even whim. Workers in a socialist state are the nominal agent of change rather than any market or desire on the part of consumers. Change by the State on behalf of workers can be swift or slow, depending on change in ideology or even whim. Examples Ideally, there is no leader; the people govern directly. This has never been actually practiced, and has just used a one-party system. Examples 0f Communist states are the erstwhile Soviet Union, Cuba and North Korea. Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR): although the actual categorization of the USSR's economic system is in dispute, it is often considered to be a form of centrally-planned socialism. Earliest Remnants Theorized by Karl Marx and Frederick Engels in the mid-19th century as an alternative to capitalism and feudalism, communism was not tried out until after the revolution in Russia in the early 1910s. In 1516, Thomas More write in "Utopia" about a society based around common ownership of property. In 1776, Adam Smith advocated the labor theory of value, ignoring the previous Cantillonian view that prices are derived from supply and demand.
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Communism vs Socialism - Difference and Comparison | Diffen
- The end of post-socialism and the opportunity for a European public service media house - New Eastern Europe - April 30th, 2025 [April 30th, 2025]
- Socialism, the only alternative in the face of danger - Granma - April 18th, 2025 [April 18th, 2025]
- Study group: What are the prospects for socialism in the U.S.? - Freedom Socialist Party - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- Debunking the Not Real Socialism Myth - New Ideal - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- Capitalism versus Socialism: The Confusion of Knight, the Clarity of Mises | Peter J. Boettke - Independent Institute - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- Dilemmas of Humanity: Socialism is the only way, says Vijay Prashad during the conferences opening - Brasil de Fato - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- Brinda Karat interview: Socialism is only alternative to capitalism, loot, American hegemony - The Federal News - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- Letters: "The bandwagon of vindictive socialism [against farming] rolls on" - Farmers Guardian - April 3rd, 2025 [April 3rd, 2025]
- Leipzig Book Fair 2025: David North to present the German edition of his book Sounding the Alarm: Socialism Against War - WSWS - March 28th, 2025 [March 28th, 2025]
- Democrat Party Imploding as Bernie Sanders and AOC Embark on Fight Oligarchy Socialism Tour - Megyn Kelly - March 28th, 2025 [March 28th, 2025]
- Trump's tariffs fly like socialism in the face of free enterprise capitalism | Letters - The Columbus Dispatch - March 22nd, 2025 [March 22nd, 2025]
- Cybernetics with Chinese Characteristics: How big data is eliminating poverty and building socialism - People's World - March 13th, 2025 [March 13th, 2025]
- The defense of science requires a fight for socialism! - WSWS - March 11th, 2025 [March 11th, 2025]
- Womens liberation and the fight for socialism are inseparable - Counterfire - March 11th, 2025 [March 11th, 2025]
- Faced with Trumps tariffs: working class unity and international socialism - In Defence of Marxism - March 11th, 2025 [March 11th, 2025]
- The Dialectics of Ecology: Socialism and Nature book review - Counterfire - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Oklahoma Republican says prohibiting hitting disabled kids is socialism and violation of scripture - Heartland Signal - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Talk to tell forgotten history of socialism in West Norfolk town - Lynn News - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Red Reviews: Economic Problems of Socialism in the USSR - Fight Back! Newspaper - February 18th, 2025 [February 18th, 2025]
- Socialism at the Milk Bar - Tribune magazine - February 18th, 2025 [February 18th, 2025]
- To Fight The Right, Fight For Socialism - Socialist Alternative - February 18th, 2025 [February 18th, 2025]
- Like the GDR, GAA must balance socialism and capitalism - The Irish News - February 18th, 2025 [February 18th, 2025]
- Jenny Erpenbeck: There is a place in the world for socialism - Hindustan Times - February 18th, 2025 [February 18th, 2025]
- AIs growth will pave the way for socialism - The Times of India - January 30th, 2025 [January 30th, 2025]
- Boomers, its time to hand over your dosh and kill millennial socialism - The Telegraph - January 30th, 2025 [January 30th, 2025]
- System change not climate change Socialism and the fight to save our environment - Socialist Worker - January 9th, 2025 [January 9th, 2025]
- A Deputy claims that young Cubans want to stay in Cuba to "build socialism." - CiberCuba - December 25th, 2024 [December 25th, 2024]
- Milei becomes a symbol of the global far right: We must put an end to the garbage of socialism once and for all - EL PAS USA - December 8th, 2024 [December 8th, 2024]
- John Bellamy Foster: The Dialectics of Ecology: Socialism and Nature Book Review - MR Online - December 8th, 2024 [December 8th, 2024]
- Socialism holds its ground and grows stronger with Chinas contribution - Workers World - December 8th, 2024 [December 8th, 2024]
- LETTER: Provincial, federal governments have 'drifted toward socialism' - BurlingtonToday.com - December 8th, 2024 [December 8th, 2024]
- Yall called it socialism: The internet calls out Republicans hypocrisy over American healthcare - The Mary Sue - December 8th, 2024 [December 8th, 2024]
- Andrew Wilkes Is Convinced That the Gospel and Socialism Go Together - Sojourners - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Socialism Today editorial: Trumpism and its limits - Socialist Party - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Editorial: Neither free trade nor protection but socialism - Morning Star Online - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Socialism, Coach Doherty & More On The Brett Winterble Show - WBT - November 28th, 2024 [November 28th, 2024]
- Inclusion of socialism, secularism into Preamble didnt reflect the will of the people - India Legal - November 21st, 2024 [November 21st, 2024]
- The Fight for Palestine and the Fight for Socialism is The Same - CounterPunch - November 17th, 2024 [November 17th, 2024]
- Students for Socialism hold press conference near the Arch - Red and Black - November 16th, 2024 [November 16th, 2024]
- No Evidence Obama Suggested Gradually Bringing Socialism to US 'Without the People Realizing' - Snopes.com - November 16th, 2024 [November 16th, 2024]
- Sounding the Alarm: Socialism Against War: Foreword to the German edition - WSWS - November 16th, 2024 [November 16th, 2024]
- Hotbed of socialism in Kipnuk? The village voters who went wild for Cornel West - Must Read Alaska - November 16th, 2024 [November 16th, 2024]
- Book presentation in Nuremberg: Leon Trotsky and the Struggle for Socialism in the 21st Century by David North attracts great interest - WSWS - November 8th, 2024 [November 8th, 2024]
- Lukashenko: The world is increasingly starting to talk about socialism - BYU News - November 8th, 2024 [November 8th, 2024]
- Senator Rick Scott after electoral victory: "There is no place for socialism in the United States." - CiberCuba - November 8th, 2024 [November 8th, 2024]
- Election Day, Rebuttal of Socialism and More on The Brett Winterble Show - WBT - November 5th, 2024 [November 5th, 2024]
- Americans dont understand the Difference between Socialism and Communism How Confusion about Socialism shapes U.S. Elections - Sarajevo Times - November 5th, 2024 [November 5th, 2024]
- Nehru-era legacy of socialism is still an obstacle to progress, but Im an optimist - The Times of India - November 5th, 2024 [November 5th, 2024]
- Socialism has never worked, wouldnt work for Harris admin - Washington Times - October 26th, 2024 [October 26th, 2024]
- Socialism and the fight against war and genocide - WSWS - October 12th, 2024 [October 12th, 2024]
- No one expected socialism, but unless wealth is challenged, whats the point of Labour? - The Guardian - September 24th, 2024 [September 24th, 2024]
- See all the bike paths around the Tri-Cities? Thats socialism coming for us all | Opinion - Tri-City Herald - September 24th, 2024 [September 24th, 2024]
- Socialism means never having to say youre sorry - The Telegraph - September 21st, 2024 [September 21st, 2024]
- Interview | Wrong to Say Kulgam is a Fight Between Islamism and Socialism: CPI(M) Candidate Tarigami - The Wire - September 21st, 2024 [September 21st, 2024]
- LUCIAN DAVIDS: The ANC must be clear socialism or neoliberalism? - EWN - September 19th, 2024 [September 19th, 2024]
- Sitaram Yechury: A champion of socialism and coalition-building - The Tribune India - September 16th, 2024 [September 16th, 2024]
- 10 years on Scottish independence, the British state and the struggle for socialism - Socialist Worker - September 16th, 2024 [September 16th, 2024]
- LETTER: Starmer is a real dud. We face a cost of socialism crisis - Basingstoke Gazette - September 16th, 2024 [September 16th, 2024]
- Party for Socialism and Liberation, Green Party discuss priorities for 2024 election - WABE 90.1 FM - September 3rd, 2024 [September 3rd, 2024]
- Celebrating 75 years of Chinese Socialism - Workers World - September 3rd, 2024 [September 3rd, 2024]
- The SEP intervention in the UAW election and the fight for socialism among autoworkers - WSWS - September 3rd, 2024 [September 3rd, 2024]
- Will the 2024 election be a referendum on socialism? - The Christian Post - September 3rd, 2024 [September 3rd, 2024]
- The Unsung History of Heartland Socialism - In These Times - August 31st, 2024 [August 31st, 2024]
- LETTER: There's a big difference between neighboring and socialism - Midland Daily News - August 31st, 2024 [August 31st, 2024]
- Kamalas Plan to Address Root Cause of Migration: Expand Socialism to U.S. - California Globe - August 31st, 2024 [August 31st, 2024]
- Op-Ed: The conservatism of Gov. Kim Reynolds vs the socialism of Gov. Tim Walz - The Center Square - August 31st, 2024 [August 31st, 2024]
- How China moved from a command to a free market economy and is now restoring socialism - Pearls and Irritations - August 31st, 2024 [August 31st, 2024]
- Cattle futures dont like the prospect of socialism - Beef Magazine - August 20th, 2024 [August 20th, 2024]
- Trump: Democrats Are Party of Socialism - Newsmax - August 20th, 2024 [August 20th, 2024]
- The Crown Jewel of American Socialism - The Future of Freedom Foundation - August 18th, 2024 [August 18th, 2024]
- Kamala Harris's Economic Plan: The Road to Socialism - MacIverInstitute - August 18th, 2024 [August 18th, 2024]
- Democrats are pushing for a radical redistribution of socialism: Rep. Andy Barr - Fox Business - August 16th, 2024 [August 16th, 2024]
- Economic Growth Myth & Why Socialism Is Rising - Real Investment Advice - August 16th, 2024 [August 16th, 2024]
- Adopting free market socialism, a just thing to do - The African - August 16th, 2024 [August 16th, 2024]
- Maybe a little socialism isnt all that bad. We may get legislation that benefits everyone! - Daily Kos - August 16th, 2024 [August 16th, 2024]
- Florida Democrats try to flip the script on socialism attacks with Venezuela - POLITICO - August 14th, 2024 [August 14th, 2024]
- Salazar Mocks Walz's 'Socialism' Comment, Says Latinos 'Cringe' at the Word - The Floridian - August 14th, 2024 [August 14th, 2024]
- Milwaukee, the city hosting the Republican National Convention, has roots in socialism - Madison.com - July 15th, 2024 [July 15th, 2024]
- Why I joined the Socialist Party - Socialist Party - July 15th, 2024 [July 15th, 2024]
- Milwaukee, the city hosting the Republican National Convention, has roots in socialism - Lake Geneva Regional News - July 15th, 2024 [July 15th, 2024]