I will also add that one of the primary reasons your socialist government isn't going to work during peacetime is because of people like me (aka most people). I'm not interested in working my ass off for a common goal. After all, what is the "Common Goal?" Who decided what this goal is? Is it simply to maximize output? Ok fine, but in what areas? Generate wealth? Ok, but of course most wealth relates directly back to production and then you're stuck with the problem of who and what direct production.
Ok, so we give The People the power to direct production. There is still a huge logistical problem here. There are so many facets of an economy that, were everyone in the population obligated to decide upon every issue they would become so mired in the process that nothing else would get done (How many tons of steel to produce this month? Shall we expand bauxite mining operations in Georgia? Do we increase or decrease our beef stock for the next year and if so, by how much? What, pray tell, shall be the ratio of harvested timber to planted trees this year in the Snoqualmie forests of Washington State this year? How about that service sector, anyway?).
So you introduce committees, regional directors, etc. In other words you form a bureaucracy to relieve The People of some of the more mundane tasks of governing. And then you immediately reintroduce the problem of conflicts of interest, corruption, elitism, etc that you were trying to get rid of in the first place. In some cases these problems do not overwhelm the advantages of a collective economy, however in most cases they do.
The fact is market economies aren't about serving the bourgeois, they're not about making piles of money or achieving social justice or maximizing production. They are about efficient decision-making. Few other economies inherently place such harsh penalties upon a bad or late decision regarding what to make and who to make it for - how much to produce and where to produce it - who to hire and why, etc etc. On the other hand occasionally the correct decision is so harmful to society that another is forced. This where the percieved need for governmental oversight of certain activities in the market originates. However even this more or less market-economy is not suited for all situations. However, it is suited for the situation we find ourselves in right now, for the most part - that situation being one of frequent peace and prosperity.
Ok, so we give The People the power to direct production. There is still a huge logistical problem here. There are so many facets of an economy that, were everyone in the population obligated to decide upon every issue they would become so mired in the process that nothing else would get done (How many tons of steel to produce this month? Shall we expand bauxite mining operations in Georgia? Do we increase or decrease our beef stock for the next year and if so, by how much? What, pray tell, shall be the ratio of harvested timber to planted trees this year in the Snoqualmie forests of Washington State this year? How about that service sector, anyway?).
So you introduce committees, regional directors, etc. In other words you form a bureaucracy to relieve The People of some of the more mundane tasks of governing. And then you immediately reintroduce the problem of conflicts of interest, corruption, elitism, etc that you were trying to get rid of in the first place. In some cases these problems do not overwhelm the advantages of a collective economy, however in most cases they do.
The fact is market economies aren't about serving the bourgeois, they're not about making piles of money or achieving social justice or maximizing production. They are about efficient decision-making. Few other economies inherently place such harsh penalties upon a bad or late decision regarding what to make and who to make it for - how much to produce and where to produce it - who to hire and why, etc etc. On the other hand occasionally the correct decision is so harmful to society that another is forced. This where the percieved need for governmental oversight of certain activities in the market originates. However even this more or less market-economy is not suited for all situations. However, it is suited for the situation we find ourselves in right now, for the most part - that situation being one of frequent peace and prosperity.
Glad to see some like minded people on the forums
