Description
Tackling perhaps the most contentious and socially urgent political movement of the last century, Scott R. Sehon lays bare the arguments for and against socialism, investigating their logical scaffolding and revealing exactly what is assumed in charged and often vital discussions of labor conditions and human well-being. Sehon provides a straightforward presentation and logical analysis of the arguments to make very clear which arguments work, and which do not.While the book aims to be fair to the arguments from both sides, Sehon ultimately sides with socialism and maintains that the arguments indicate that we should move in a strongly democratic socialist direction. Nearly every contemporary counterclaim to socialism is addressed and interrogated, and even the more dubious arguments in favor of socialism are taken up. Naturally, the defender of capitalism will deny these premises and claim that capitalism better promotes human well-being; many capitalists also claim that socialism does violate individual rights, particularly property rights. The bulk of the book sorts through the data and arguments on both sides, considering arguments from philosophers such as G.A. Cohen, Ronald Dworkin, David Schweickart, John Tomasi, and Jonathan Wolff, as well as prominent economists such as Milton Friedman and F.A. Hayek. The reader of Socialism will find a clear introduction to one of the most crucial social movements of our time.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments Part I. Introduction 1. Logic and Arguments Argument Ad Hominem What Is an Argument? A Sample: Socialism and Starvation A Look Ahead 2. Defining ?Socialism? Don't Argue about Words It All Comes in Degrees The Classical View Some Rough Distinctions Scandinavia and Democratic Socialism 3. Moral Philosophy Background and The Master Arguments The Fundamental Question A Moral Framework Promoting Well-Being Rights Part II. Rights-Based Arguments4. Does Socialism Violate Rights?Socialism and Political RightsSocialism and Economic Rights Self-ownership and the Nonaggression Principle Self-authorship and Economic Rights5. Does Capitalism Violate Rights? Extraction of Surplus Value: The Basic Idea Initial attempts at an argument Filling the gap in the argument: the exploitation principle Final version of the argument Evaluating premise (2) of Capitalism Exploits: Is the Distribution Undeserved? Evaluating premise (1) of Capitalism Exploits: Is It Unfair? Part III. Socialism and Human Well-being 6. The Progress Argument Empirical Evidence and The Master Arguments Humanity's Spectacular Progress Capitalism as the Explanation? Correlation Versus Causation and the Capitalist Argument Testing the Capitalist Hypothesis: Data from 20th Century Communism Science and Technology as the Real Explanation 7. Redistribution: Inequality and Envy The Pettiness of Envy Diminishing Marginal Utility Versus Incentives The Empirical Evidence: Optimal Rates of Taxation Inequality Is Toxic 8. Collective Control: The Democracy ArgumentEmpirical Correlations: Scandinavia AgainCommunity versus CompetitivenessWhy Is Democracy Good? The All Affected PrincipleDemocracy and Traditional Governmental FunctionsDemocracy and Economic DecisionsMarket SocialismMarkets and the Capitalist Reply to The Democracy Argument for SocialismPart IV. Capitalism and Human Well-being9. The Case for MarketsHayek: The Better Information ArgumentFriedman: The Better Incentives Argument10. Market Failures I: Public Goods The Argumentative Situation Hayek and the Diffuse Benefit of Some ServicesApplications11. Market Failures II: Monopolies and MonopsoniesMonopolies Where Shopping Is ImpracticalMonopsony and Labor ?Government is not the solution?? 12. Market Failures III: Neighborhood Effects and Climate ChangeNegative Externalities and Neighborhood Effects Other Examples The No-brainer? Future Generations and climate change 13. Conclusion A Brief Annotated Selection of Suggested Readings
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