Do you know why Communism and Socialism failed?

Question

Please give reasons pro or con

Answer 1

An incentive-less system is one that is bound to fail. It is only a matter of time.

Answer 2

Yes, the reason that both Communism and Socialism failed is that the people are given no hope to better their lives. I read somewhere that the early New Englanders tried to share the land, the work, and the fruits after three years and almost starving they decided that it would not work. After Russia gave the people the right to farm 1 acre for themselves, they created more food from the 1 acre than they did from the rest of the fields that offered them no profits. The only real pros is that the lifestyle for the whole country is more equal, but at a lesser degree than where it was before. From what I understand, in Europe, they have socialized health care that means that the people pay for it through higher taxes. Every one has more of a tax burden to pay for the goods that the government provides to you at what they want to charge. Private automobile ownership has jumped in the Eastern European countries and overall living standards are increasing. I read a report on how come the education in the US sucks really bad compared to other countries. It is because our education system is controlled by Socialists who think that all children learn the same way and are not accountable for how well the students preform. The reason that private schools do better overall, even with troubled students is because of more parental input, higher expectations, and less bureaucracy.

Answer 3

Communism and socialism are not related. Many people equate them to each other.
Communism is a dogma in which, theoretically, almost all things are produced and shared and shared for the common good. there never has been a true communistic state. Most of them turn totalitarian. I believe,from what I read and have seen, that Cuba is as close as any one has come. It appears to be a totalitarian but benign state.

Socialism is a democratic state which, through taxation, is operated to operates social programs for all of it's citizens. Some of these programs would include health care, which would include medicines child care,schooling through university, employment insurance, care for the aged, pensions,etc..

A socialist state is built upon the need for capitalism. A good example of a country close to being socialist is Sweden.

If you think that this is similar to communism, then the U.S. with it's health care for the poor, social security (as a pension(to which the gov't contribute) and other state health plans must be leaning toward communism while it is only a touch of socialism.

Answer 4

Communism has never actually existed in any form other than theory. The governments which have ruled under the guise of "communism" are actually totalitarian socialist empires. (USSR, China) or are facist socialist regimes. The whole concept of communism dictates that there is no ruling government body. Instead everybody does their part, provides to the society as a whole and takes only what they need. It is the greed inevitably inherent in a certain percentage of human animals that makes this only a pipe dream and never a reality.
Socialism, on the other hand, has not failed entirely. There are many countries that practice varying degrees of socialism. It would never work in a country such as the US because we are simply too large. But many smaller European countries with populations around 50-80 million are able to implement many socialist practices.

Answer 5

Communism is alive and well in just about every family household across the world. The idea of community owned property, given out as needed to members of the community, works great on the small scale. It just doesn't work on the large scale for the reasons mentioned above: lack of incentive because people's status in most cultures is based on property ownership rather than individual merit.

Socialism doesn't work well because any government large enough to provide resources an industry for a large population gets so bloated and inefficient that they ceases being able to function effectively. Compare the efficiency of the US federal government to any large private business. The government wastes huge amounts of time and money on overhead, in way that would have driven any profit-oriented company out of business long ago. In fact, if Congress didn't keep raising the debt ceiling every time they maxed out the government credit limit, the federal government would have shut down long ago.

Socialism cannot work without a government that is small enough to be efficient, and responsive enough to changing circumstances to adapt to the business world. And there is no incentive to create such a government currently.

Communism as an economic model would only work if technology reaches a production threshold where there is no limitations on physical resources, and where property ownership no longer has any associated status. See James P Hogans book "Voyage from Yesteryear" for a functional example of just such a society.

Answer 6

Yes, because the only way to enforce it is through suppression of dissenting voices. Why do you think China is monitoring the internet?

To the person who says it hasn't and that 25% of the world is under Communist rule, that is actually a fallacy. China represents over 20% of the world population and they are not communist (little c equals the doctrine, big C equals the party). The ruling party may be "Communist" but it is a consumer driven society that engages heavily in trade with other nations. Does North Korea do that? I didn't think so ...

Research attempted socialist communities in America, i.e. New Harmony. They tried to share everything but it simply isn't sustainable.

Answer 7

Yes, communism failed because imperfect men ran the government. They ran it wrong and ran it into the ground, using their position to further their family and friends careers and set up their own version for themselves while another for the people.

If communism were run perfectly with everyone getting the same treatment, respect and items earned most people would have been content - however because of the corruption of Stalin, and the others, it didn't work.

Answer 8

Communism and socialism has never failed because it has never existed. Russia, china, and Cuba to name a few were not, and are not fully developed communist/ socialist societies. what they should be thought of, is societies in transition to socialism or communism.

that's like saying Mexico is a fully developed capitalist society. at best Mexico is a society in transition to capitalism.

i think the better question would be: why has socialism and communism as ideologies failed.

or maybe that's what you meant. sorry.

Answer 9

A society that does not allow anyone to be wealthy will stagnate its economy. When no one is wealthy no one purchases pools, boats, jewelery ect...... thus cutting down on the amount of workers selling/building pools, boats, jewelery, thus cutting jobs. Also when all of the money is locked up in a bureaucracy it is not available for investment in the stock market. The removal of competition in the market place causes the products produced to be poor. This removes them from any possibility of international trade. I could go on and on.....

Answer 10

Yes, I do.

And if you look up the REAL story of Thanksgiving in America, you'll find out why Socialism failed in America, back in the 1600's

Answer 11

Communism, and economic socialism fails because it is one large welfare state. There is no reason for an individual to excel as there is no reward.