Socialism And Governance

Probing the relationship between socialism and governance, the author offers a new perspective for understanding Chinese politics since 1949. China's politics can be roughly divided into two periods - the Maoist period (1949-1978) and the Dengist Period (since 1978) - characterized as Revolutionary China and Reformatory China. These two periods are better understood when they are compared with each other. For, to study an epoch, we need a logic that transcends that epoch. A comparative approach is very helpful in uncovering the deeper meaning of Chinese revolution and Chinese reforms. Using the key concept 'two worlds of life' (Experiencing World and Meaning World), the author argues that there is a sharp discrepancy between the two worlds of life in all the self-claimed 'socialist' countries. Although the Meaning World is 'socialist', the Experiencing World cannot be adequately understood as being socialist. 'socialism' has become an ideational veil which masks the true nature of the Experiencing World. After the 'socialist' revolution, the chain of the concept of 'socialism' awaits the proletariat. Only through Entborgenheit can we understand the true nature of the Experiencing World of all 'socialist' states. It is argued that the concept 'real socialism' is still misleading, for such a 'socialism' is still unreal; that the concept 'state socialism' is no more than a confusing concept and needs also to be rejected, for there is not such a thing as state socialism in our experiencing world. We had neither 'real socialism' nor 'state socialism', we had only statism in our experiencing world. The Maoist Chiina was a schizophrenic case of 'socialism', due to the inherent conflict between statism in the Experiencing World and 'socialism' in the Meaning World. All the Communist states created a Janus-faced creature, with one face being statism and the other face being 'socialism'. This is caused by the pathology of treating statization of means of production as socialization of means of production. Dengist China initiated a de-statization process, but this process is not socialization either.

This book states that the political systems of China, Vietnam, Cuba and other socialist countries are showing distinct maturity and ability to deal effectively with challenges – the most recent being the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to understand how they have developed their structures, it is time to return to the roots of the Marxist tradition and re-examine the question of socialist governance. It was Friedrich Engels (and less so Marx) who laid out some of the theoretical foundations for socialist governance. On the basis of extensive research in 1870s and 1880s, Engels developed his analysis of the nature of hitherto existing states as a ‘separated public power’; the role of the dictatorship of the proletariat and its exercise of power; the actual meaning of the ‘withering away of the state’, which would be one of the very last outcomes of socialist construction; and the nature of socialist governance itself. On this matter, he proposed a de-politicised public power that would stand in the midst of society and focus on managing the processes of production for the sake of the true interests of society.

DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "Socialism and Democracy in Europe" by Samuel Peter Orth. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.

Probing the relationship between socialism and governance, the author offers a new perspective for understanding Chinese politics since 1949. China's politics can be roughly divided into two periods - the Maoist period (1949-1978) and the Dengist Period (since 1978) - characterized as Revolutionary China and Reformatory China. These two periods are better understood when they are compared with each other. For, to study an epoch, we need a logic that transcends that epoch. A comparative approach is very helpful in uncovering the deeper meaning of Chinese revolution and Chinese reforms. Using the key concept 'two worlds of life' (Experiencing World and Meaning World), the author argues that there is a sharp discrepancy between the two worlds of life in all the self-claimed 'socialist' countries. Although the Meaning World is 'socialist', the Experiencing World cannot be adequately understood as being socialist. 'Socialism' has become an ideational veil which masks the true nature of the Experiencing World. After the 'socialist' revolution, the chain of the concept of 'socialism' awaits the proletariat. Only through Entborgenheit can we understand the true nature of the Experiencing World of all 'socialist' states. It is argued that the concept 'real socialism' is still misleading, for such a 'socialism' is still unreal; that the concept 'state socialism' is no more than a confusing concept and needs also to be rejected, for there is not such a thing as state socialism in our experiencing world. We had neither 'real socialism' nor 'state socialism', we had only statism in our experiencing world. The Maoist Chiina was a schizophrenic case of 'socialism', due to the inherent conflict between statism in the Experiencing World and 'socialism' in the Meaning World. All the Communist states created a Janus-faced creature, with one face being statism and the other face being 'socialism'. This is caused by the pathology of treating statization of means of production as socialization of means of production. Dengist China initiated a de-statization process, but this process is not socialization either.

This book examines the historical development—in practice and theory—of governance in socialist systems. With more than a century of such development from many parts of the world, including the Soviet Union, China, and the DPRK (North Korea), it is possible to gain much from careful study of their political systems.But what is the nature of this socialist governance? It is abundantly clear that the type of governance in socialist countries had never before been seen in human history. How does this governance work? What was the political theory that arose from the practice? How did this type of governance develop over time and in light of specific conditions?These are the questions that Socialism in Power sets out to answer. It does so not by using methods developed for studying Western liberal nation-states, but by deploying Marxist-Leninist analysis. Not an abstract Marxism, but concrete Marxism, as it was applied and developed in light of the particular historical conditions of the countries in question.The book begins with careful analysis of the works of Marx and Engels, with a particular emphasis on Engels, who was crucial in establishing the basic principles of socialist governance. Next, the book focuses on the Soviet Union, which was the first country in human history to experience socialism in power. The rarely studied DPRK (North Korea) comes next, as a transition to East Asia, followed by a number of chapters on China, which arguably has the most developed form of socialist governance.

The story of socialism and communism is a saga of idealism and cynicism, revolution and repression, power and powerlessness. The entire political and economic history of the modern era is contained in this account, forming a detailed and lively panorama. The world is still grappling with age-old questions regarding governance, equality, justice, and freedom. As this enthralling text details so vividly, socialism and communism attempted to answer these questions definitively. In that they failed, but in doing so, they highlighted the importance of the questions themselves and of the ordinary people whose lives hang in the balance, waiting for answers

The work includes a detailed historical account of the Manley years, focusing on shifting relations between contending social forces and on the interaction between economics and politics. Originally published in 1986. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

In the economic sphere, it advocates regional economic regulation through public-private partnerships, the promotion of self-governing industrial districts, and the democratization of the company.