It provides a safety net by pooling the resources of the community to support the less fortunate. This prevents people from having to sacrifice their long term goals because their short term needs may not be otherwise met.
Also in contrast to capitalism that treats society as a zero sum game (“I can’t get ahead unless I take something from someone else”) socialism is a benefit multiplier (“I’m part of the community. By making the life of everyone in the community better I’m also improving my own life”).
Democratic control over the means of production by workers
I think of it as a mental disease societies can catch. I do acknowledge that is full of good intentions. it just doesn’t work and ends in missery. it just fails to account for basic facts like human nature.
Not that it’s necessarily what you’re implying, but it’s ridiculous to me that people think capitalism is an inevitable result of human nature but socialism isn’t. Either of them are just ideas we made up. The benefits and flaws of each are the result of human nature, just with different influences and in different ways. Socialism may fail to account for the parts of human nature that you find relevant. Because you’ve been brought up in a capitalist system to believe that, OR you’re directly benefiting from its exploitation. That doesn’t mean those are the only relevant parts of human nature.
What do you like about capitalism?
