Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Real-World Socialism Fading Away 

Filed As:  General

Long term, socialism doesn't work. Never has, never will.

The oldest kibbutz (commune) in Israel has voted, overwhelmingly, to privatize.

Until now, the 97-year old settlement was the model of socialism. Says the Guardian newspaper:

"In the past the 320 members of the kibbutz saw their salaries paid into a communal account and then received free services and an allowance based on need, usually determined by the size of their families."

But the times, they are a-changin'.

"In future they will be paid varied salaries based on ability not need and, most importantly, they will be allowed to keep them."

The socialist impulse isn't dead entirely; residents will have to pay a "progressive" income tax.

Still, 85 percent of the residents realized that socialism doesn't work. (The Pilgrims learned the same thing the hard way.)

A 42-year resident of the kibbutz said "I think the search for community still exists. It is still the basic concept."

Fair enough. The search for community is innate to the human condition. But community through socialism--even voluntary socialism--is a non-starter.

Making common cause with someone, sharing interests, works reasonably well in fraternal societies, unions (assuming the membership is voluntary), professional societies, athletic leagues, religious organizations, neighborhood associations, and so forth. That's where we can build community, which is a far piece from socialism.

Government works best when it provides the rudimentary legal requirements of a society. When we seek to establish programs or tweak the tax code to impose "community," we're using the wrong tool for the job.

• posted by John LaPlante
• 11:30 am
• 0 comment