Well Marx certainly only saw the difference as a transition from socialism onto communism.....like conservativism and fascism their beliefs sets are essentially differing levels of watered down versions of the former to the latter.

The main difference I can think between classical modern socialism and communism is that socialism believes in a 'mixed' economy and its western form would accept democracy and losing power and so wasn't authoritarian as you implied (that last one is under threat all over the western world).

The reasons the communists aren't a threat however are three fold.

They essentially won.....they just had to change a little and adapt.

Firstly their numbers were always very low, if heavily funded (much could be said about that) and were concentrated where they could do the most damage in the professional class which started in academia....the 'success' of which we see today.

Secondly they won the social battle, essentially we have a western form of Maoism being taught as virtue to both children and adults.

Thirdly the adapting aspect was the embrace of neo and social liberalism as the acceptable form that mainstream socialists who wanted power and to 'get on' became.

The only economic left became the Corbyn crew of actual 'socialists/neocommunists' in the economic sense.

Essentially the mainstream left are now just as much whores to capital and the 'donor' class as the mainstream right.

Money makes the world go round....once nationalism and natural law are defeated money will buy up the nihilistic remains.

Edited by Stirlingsays (28 May 2024 3.07pm)

'Who are you and how did you get in here? I'm a locksmith. And, I'm a locksmith.' (Leslie Nielsen)

To a certain extent the global super rich is the new self appointed aristocracy. As with the aristocracy something like inflation will never harm them, it's only an indirect tax on working class and middle incomes. Indeed, for governments high inflation pays off debt....not that paying that off is realistically possible anymore.

The global wealth class exhibits all the same problems of the self interested and insulated aristocracies of old with none of the loyalty or unwritten social contract that existed between that former class and its governed. No trenches and going 'over the top' like the posh officers did in WW1 for them. They don't see themselves that way.

I've made the point several times before but it's a huge problem when your leaders can create bad outcomes for the majority and then fail upwards within their elite class.

Back in medieval times if your king lost the war then he and his barons would be put to the sword or at least lose their holdings. In other words there was a symbolic relationship between the ruled and the rulers, one depended upon the other.

In the globalistic age that loyalty has been spread out to ideology instead of a people. They are loyal to concepts and their own ideological bubbles.

We live in the age where the west is suffering the consequences of that.

Edited by Stirlingsays (29 May 2024 11.39am)

'Who are you and how did you get in here? I'm a locksmith. And, I'm a locksmith.' (Leslie Nielsen)

Apart from the space ships we are closing in on WALL-E territory. Just to produce CO2 to feed the plants

Completely agree with that.

Only the left and social liberals create the politics that enable these attitudes.

[Link]

'Who are you and how did you get in here? I'm a locksmith. And, I'm a locksmith.' (Leslie Nielsen)

Vile woman. I have very mixed feelings about abortion but that is just gross and does her side of the argument no favours.

She loves killing babies! Fine, how about the elderly and the insane what about people who don't have blonde hair and blue eyes. Jesus Christ.

One more point