Socialism as it is : $b a survey of the world-wide revolutionary movement — John Shaqi
Socialism as it is : $b a survey of the world-wide revolutionary movementWalling, William English
History
Socialism as it is : $b a survey of the world-wide revolutionary movement
Walling, William English
Socialism
"He will pay a large proportion of his rent-rate outgoings to the
State and Municipality, and less to the landlord. Ultimately he
will pay it all to the State or Municipality, and as a voter help
to determine how it shall be spent, and the landlord will become a
government stockholder. Practically he will get his rent returned
to him in public service.
"He will speedily begin to get better-educated, better-fed, and
better-trained workers, so that he will get money value for the
higher wages he pays.
"He will get a regular, safe, cheap supply of power and material.
He will get cheaper and more efficient internal and external
transit.
"He will be under an organized scientific State, which will
naturally pursue a vigorous scientific collective policy in support
of the national trade.
"He will be less of an adventurer and more of a citizen."[13]
Mr. Churchill while denying any sympathy for Socialism, as both he and
the majority of Socialists understand it, frankly avows himself a
collectivist. "The whole tendency of civilization," he says, "is towards
the multiplication of the collective functions of society. The ever
growing complications of civilizations create for us new services which
have to be undertaken by the State, and create for us an expansion of
the existing services. There is a growing feeling, which I entirely
share, against allowing those services which are in the nature of
monopolies to pass into private hands. [Mr. Churchill has expressed the
regret that the railways are not in the hands of the State.] There is a
pretty steady determination, which I am convinced will become effective
in the present Parliament to intercept _all_ future unearned increment,
which may arise from the increase in the speculative value of the
land."[14] (Italics mine.)
Mr. Churchill's declared intention ultimately "to intercept _all_ future
unearned increment" of the land is certainly a tremendous step towards
collectivism, as it would ultimately involve the nationalization of
perhaps a third of the total wealth of society. With railways and
monopolies of all kinds also in government hands, a very large part of
the industrial capital of the country would be owned by the State, and,
though all agricultural capital, and therefore the larger part of the
total, remained in private hands, we are certainly justified in calling
such a state of society _capitalist collectivism_.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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