Article Critique 5

Generally, socialism refers to an economic system or political organization in which the means of production and distribution are owned or controlled collectively, often by a centralized government. Centralized government management of the economy is also known as a Command Economy and is a State-centric form of socialism. Socialism also has a specific meaning under the Marxist-Leninist theory as the intermediate stage between capitalism and communism marked by the "revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat" where strong government rule is seen as the method by which resources are collectivized. The Marxist-Leninist meaning of the word is only a part of the much broader concept of socialism. Socialism has influenced a variety of movements, governments and programs from totalitarian Soviet imperialism to welfare. In this way, each could be considered a subset of socialism or perhaps more appropriately, each specific movement that includes a component of socialism.
The theories of socialism and capitalism have been battling for supremacy for the last hundred years. For Karl Marx, capitalism was a system that promoted of class domination and oppression. The Marxist version of socialism as tested in the Soviet Union, Cuba, China and other places has failed. Complete lack of individual freedom caused unspeakable human suffering and economic ruin. The failure of this dramatic approach has not killed the approach itself. On the other hand, the basic principles of capitalism of voluntary exchange, free trade between nations, and the self-directed market via the "invisible hand" have been accepted by most as fundamental to a successful economy. However, unrestrained capitalism seems to have wrought evils of its own. The preponderance of the world now engages some mixture of capitalist and socialist principles and the debate continues as to the optimal mix.
Adam Smith (1723-1790) was a Scottish philosopher and founder of classical economics. Smith's book "An Inquiry... [continues]

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