The Soviet Reporter

Reporting from the future USSR

  • 969 Posts
  • 69 Comments
Joined 2 years ago
Cake day: December 21st, 2023
  • The Soviet Reporter@lemmygrad.mlOPtoCommunism@lemmygrad.ml•Che Guevara argued that market socialism devolves into capitalism
    8·
    8 months ago

    After Che left Cuba, they used the soviet model which had some benefits and allowed Cuba to enter the soviet trading system which brought even more benefits, but then that model had to be abandoned because what Che said would happen did happen: corruption, individualism, petit bourgeois consciousness, inefficiencies etc because the soviet model had a big emphasis on material incentives, bonuses if you over fulfilled the plan, etc

    A bit after Che left they implemented the Soviet system, then got rid of it the 80s, then the special period happened after the socialist bloc started collapsing.

    Under the Soviet system firms literally operated like businesses

    Che’s Balanced Flows System planning was an attempt at firms would simply be transferring the goods between each other, their finances would be managed centrally by the central bank etc

    His idea was that firms in the country wouldn’t be buying and selling from each other and therefore the Cuban economy would be ‘one giant factory’. There would still be stuff sold to consumers, still be wages, money etc

  • The Soviet Reporter@lemmygrad.mlOPtoCommunism@lemmygrad.ml•Che Guevara argued that market socialism devolves into capitalism
    22·
    8 months ago

    No, they had problems like underdeveloped agriculture, a peasantry, lack of infrastructure, access to things like electricity, etc. These are problems that Cuba, China, Russia, etc., had. Market socialism is the path they’ve chosen to develop. So the question for them is, how do they get these things while maintaining socialism? It is encouraging development because it’s creating infrastructure, etc. You can argue that you need elements of capitalism to develop.

    Because socialism comes from capitalism.

    But, as Che argued, things like the law of value, material incentives, bonuses, etc., undermine socialist consciousness.

    Which is why he was opposed to the Soviet system.

    And the USSR collapsing and the effects it had on Cuba after they adopted it proved him right.

    I mean, China had those counterrevolutionary protests in Tienanmen Square in 1989. So, China is socialist, but if they are not careful, their market socialism can devolve into capitalism.

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