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Originally Posted by dippin
Actually, socialism and so on aren't vague feelings or emotions that each can have their own definition of. Otherwise, it would actually be impossible to discuss politics.
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The value of Pi has a precise definition. Socialism is a concept that is subject to interpretation. People do have problems discussing politics because many common terms have imprecise definitions.
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Socialism, in its purest form, is the social ownership of the means of production. The community owns it not in some vague way, like "some members own it," or "based on community standards," but in very real and actual terms in which the means of production belong to the community as a whole. And not "some means," or for "some of the time."
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So, what is the difference between socialism and communism?
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How to get there is obviously a matter of debate, with the communists, in the traditional marxist sense, hoping to get there by making everything state property.
Socialism and capitalism themselves are not really related to centralization or decentralization. Adam Smith and others, for example, certainly envisioned a capitalism of small producers, and decentralization the norm. But anarchists also envisioned a socialism of decentralized communities. On the other hand, people like Hayek and Mises opposed any form of trust busting, de facto defending big corporation capitalism.
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"Decentralized communities?" Can you give an example of what you mean in the context of socialism?
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Originally Posted by Willravel
You can't invent your own dictionary, your' "view" is entirely irrelevant.
The definition I used was lifted from the dictionary on my desktop. It agrees with the several online dictionaries I know of and the several dictionaries on my book shelf. For good measure, I checked my encyclopedia and a few internet encyclopedias (not wiki) just to be sure. They're all in perfect agreement. They all disagree with you.
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That definition has no meaning in the practical sense of determining when socialism exist and when it does not. Can you give an example of "socialism" and the opposite of "socialism?
This does not disagree with me.
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3. (in Marxist theory) the stage following capitalism in the transition of a society to communism, characterized by the imperfect implementation of collectivist principles.
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Socialism Definition | Definition of Socialism at Dictionary.com
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You need to drop this nonsensical "my view of the world is the correct view for me" thing. Facts are objectively verifiable. Disagreement with that statement isn't opinion, it's error.
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I know what you think about me personally. Perhaps, a more in dept look at some of these concepts would help us communicate better. I generally do more than regurgitate what I read, in some cases I put some thought into complicated matters and concepts. Thousands of books have been written on these concepts, great minds have given these concepts thought - and you dismiss what I present based on a few internet encyclopedia references. O.k., I now better understand the level of discourse. Thanks