From: "Rosser Jr, John Barkley" <rosserjb-AT-jmu.edu>
Subject: M-I: Is China socialist?
Date: Wed, 1 Jan 1997 21:13:06 -0500 ()


     Recently Doug Henwood stated here that China is 
capitalist.  I beg to differ.  It is certainly a mixed 
economy that is "capitalist roading," to use that good old 
Maoist term.  But, as of now, based on crude statistics, 
the sort for which Doug has a healthy respect (not my 
current condition), the overwhelming majority of China's 
means of production remains state-owned, if one counts 
local governments, which I do.  Of course, he can get 
somewhere if he claims that the long-term leases of the 
peasants constitute "private ownership," so we may be 
dealing with a difficult definitional issue.  For me, 
socialism basically boils down to the ownership issue, as 
it did for Marx, I believe.
     On the other hand, I tend to side with him that the 
most rapidly growing parts are in the non-traditionally 
socialist sectors, the TVE sector and the outright 
capitalist sectors in the SEZs.  All the gains for China's 
capitalist roading are also showing up with its problems, 
growing inequalities and mounting environmental problems.  
This remains the biggest story on the planet.
Barkley Rosser

-- 
Rosser Jr, John Barkley
rosserjb-AT-jmu.edu




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