And the Case for Capitalism
I asked myself what’s the difference between socialism and communism, and I couldn’t come up with a convincing answer, so I googled the question. After looking at a couple of different web sites, it appears there’s an overlap, a number of similarities between the two. So I googled, how many communist countries are there in the world? I got a straightforward answer, five. China, North Korea, Vietnam, Laos and Cuba. I asked the same question about socialists countries, and the answer was there are a few, including Cuba, Vietnam and Laos. One site said there are 3-5, depending on how you define socialism. When I googled, what is the definition of socialism and then, what is the definition of communism, both answers were almost identical. No wonder I struggled coming up with a good answer as to the difference between the two. I did find a site with a more complete, longer answer, which compares socialism and capitalism. There’s a link to that site below.
For me, growing up during the height of the cold war, communism meant Russia, then later, after troops were sent to Viet Nam, communism meant North Viet Nam. The word communism brings to mind the Cuban missile crisis in 1962, where the 3rd World War and a nuclear Armageddon seemed very close. I remember doing a drill in elementary school, in the 3rd or fourth grade, and the teacher said if we see a very bright light, meaning an atomic bomb just exploded, we were to get under our desks and get in the fetal position. She failed to tell us that after getting in the fetal position, to kiss our you know what goodbye. Years later when I saw film of some of the atomic bomb tests in the Nevada desert, and seeing the film of the nuclear bomb exploding in Hiroshima, Japan, I knew that if an atomic bomb exploded close enough to our school so that we could see the very bright light of the explosion, it would have been unlikely that our school would have survived, the building and all the students.
My Dad, who spent almost 30 years in the Air Force, was sent to Viet Nam in the summer of 1963, where he was a military advisor to the South Vietnamese Air Force. Years later he told me we were in Viet Nam because we had a treaty with France, who had been trying since the end of World War II to regain control of their colony, Viet Nam. He mentioned the domino theory that predicted that if South Viet Nam fell to the communist north, countries in the region would start falling to communism like dominos. The last American troops were pulled out of Viet Nam in 1973, and two years later in 1975, Saigon, the capitol of the south, fell to communist North Viet Nam. Only one country became a communist country after that, Laos. Not so with Burma, Thailand, Malaysia and others in the region. The domino theory didn’t hold true. I don’t think the Viet Nam war was a war about idealism, communism vs democracy, but a war about nationalism. Viet Nam simply didn’t want to be under French control. But what happened in Viet Nam a few years later, is worth mentioning.
In the 1980’s, Viet Nam started incorporating capitalism into their economy, creating jobs that pulled many out of extreme poverty. In 1993-94, the Vietnamese government agreed to work with the US government in finding the remains of American soldiers who went missing in action during the Viet Nam war, resulting in the removal of US sanctions against Viet Nam, further enhancing Viet Nam’s ability to grow their economy. I’ve heard over and over that sanctions impact the people of a country, no so much high ranking government officials or the wealthy, who can weather the storm. Sanctions often cause shortages of goods and high inflation. Making this agreement with the US and having the sanctions removed was a big deal for Viet Nam. In 2023, former president Biden stopped in Viet Nam on his way home from the 2023 G20 conference held in India, and reinforced most favorite nation status on Viet Nam, and Viet Nam agreed to reduce tariffs on some goods. Biden also discussed ways to improve diplomatic relations with Viet Nam. This meeting took place 50 years after the last American troops were pulled out of Viet Nam, marking a significant change of relationship between the two countries.
Viet Nam makes the case for capitalism, in my opinion. I have heard some people claim that capitalism is bad, evil and based on greed. Looking at Viet Nam’s recent history, and China’s also, leaves me believing that capitalism has many benefits, especially when it comes to allowing for the growth of a middle class. I believe it was in the 90’s when China pushed very hard to create an environment conducive for manufacturing, becoming the 2nd largest economy in the world, 2nd only to the US. Many Chinese people were lifted out of extreme poverty during this time. Still, the people of China do not have the freedoms we have here in America. A news special I watched a few years ago pointed out that the Chinese must carry a cell phone, which contains their personal information, allowing them to board a train and use other means of transportation. Their phones are their mobil IDs, allowing the Chinese government to track their every move. Sadly, it appears this is happening in the US, with the government working with software companies to develop and implement surveillance software, and then coupling that with AI. This is why some independent journalists and pod castors are critical of software companies which specialize in surveillance and data collection.
I have heard that one company has sold software to some European countries, software that is predictive, claiming that by using data collection and AI, the software can predict who will likely commit a crime. How will that work in America, if we can be arrested because a machine says we are likely to commit a crime? How will you be able to defend yourself in court over a crime you haven’t committed, but AI says you will if you are not stopped? Where are we headed?
In summary, comparing the definitions of socialism and communism, there seems to be very little difference, but for me, communism causes me to think of former Soviet Russia, and the threat of nuclear annihilation, or communist North Viet Nam, and later North Korea, firing off test missiles that could reach the US carrying a nuclear warhead. I first remember the term socialism being thrown around when Bernie Sanders was running against Hillary Clinton to be the Democrat’s presidential candidate back in 2016, and he promoted medicare for all and free college tuition. These are socialists policies, not a form of government. Our free K-12 public education system, to me, is a socialist policy, paid for with state and federal taxes, a policy that benefits most of society. That’s how I differentiate between the two, one refers to policy, socialism, and the other refers to a type of government, communism. At least that’s how I differentiate the two.
For all it’s faults, I think our democracy, with the backing of the constitution, is the best form of government in the world. And what about Russia and it’s Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, where Lenin led the overthrow of the Czar, ending 300 years of Romanov rule? Lenin died in 1924, leading to the rise in power of Joseph Stalin, who became a ruthless dictator, who believed ideas were dangerous. He built hundreds of Gulags, work prisons with harsh conditions, resulting in many prisoners dying at a young age. Read the story of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, author of The Gulag Archipelago, an account of 8 years spent in a gulag, where he memorized the stories of the people he got to know while imprisoned. His manuscript was smuggled out of Russia and published in the west, and he won a Nobel prize for literature in 1970. Why was he thrown into a gulag? The story I read was that he was corresponding with a friend at the end of WWII, one of whom complained that Stalin was moving Russia away from Lenin’s ideals, and the letter was intercepted by the government. Both were imprisoned. His writings are credited with exposing to the world just how brutal Stalin was. And now it appears that Russia has become a dictatorship again. Putin has been in power for 25 years with no signs of giving that power up. And Viet Nam? It became a hybrid form of government, incorporating capitalism, which brought about a middle class, lifting many out of poverty. China too has become a hybrid form of government, relying on capitalism to become the 2nd largest economy in the world.
There isn’t a country that I’m aware of that has a better form of government than the US. Yes, we have our faults. Throughout history, there are examples where people take advantage of others when they have the opportunity. Egypt and Rome used slavery. There have been monarchs, Kings and Queens, Czars and Emperors that took advantage of their subjects. Landowners during the feudal times in Europe lorded over the less fortunate. Regardless of the form a government takes, human nature will find ways to take advantage of situations, to get something for nothing, or take advantage of others. This is something the founding fathers our our nation were aware of, and they tried to put in safeguards. Things such as the separation of power, creating the three branches of government. The right to free speech and a free press, free to expose corruption. The right to worship as you choose. Due process. It may not be perfect, but I don’t know of any better system. Our constitution is our safeguard, our safety net. The two biggest threats to our democracy are the censorship of the internet and a loss of privacy due to the government’s data collection of our digital activity, my opinion. I hope the constitution can weather the brewing storm.
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Investopedia: Capitalism vs. Socialism: Key Differences Explained
