Why did George Orwell hate Stalinism?
Definitions
Communism — Marx said that capitalism will give rise to automation to eliminate labor costs. Competition will lead to automation. But this will displace so many jobs that unemployment will rise, causing misery and suffering that would make the Great Depression look like nothing. People will rise up and seize the means of production for themselves. Workers will own the means of production and managethemselves. A new age will begin, the age of communism. Society will become moneyless, stateless, and classless. “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.”
“Communism” — colloquialism. In America the term “communist” is used to describe Marxist Leninist socialist nations like the USSR, China, and Cuba. As indicated by the definition above, these nations did not meet the definition of true communism as they still used money and still had a state. Colloquialisms are words that are everyday meanings used by people but which are not accurate.
Socialism — Workers own the means of production. There is still money and a state.
Marxism-Leninism — a form of socialist government that relies upon a vanguard party of revolutionary intelligentsia that help lead the proletariat toward increased class consciousness and understands Marxist theory. The means of production are owned by the workers and held by the state. There is one party, the Communist Party. It maintains ideological purity and filters out candidates that don’t believe in socialism. State managers must be members of the Communist Party.
NEP style Leninism (a subset of Marxism Leninism) — after the bloody civil war with the Whites, there had been a famine from the White Army taking food from farmers to survive. A poor yield one year, combined with the common occurrence of famines in Russia and the Ukraine throughout history under the Tsar led to yet another famine. This was alleviated by international relief efforts. Lenin permitted some private ownership and businesses. Farmers could sell their extra yields. It was considered one step back to recover from financial crisis so socialism could take two steps ahead later. This was still socialism. Nobody considers the Lenin period as capitalism.
Stalinism — (a subset of Marxism Leninism) that eliminated most private property, collectivized agriculture, and relied on a planned economy to run the economy. This was the dominant ideology under the leadership of Stalin. This was reformed after his death, ineffectively. Stalinism was adapted to Maoism in China under Mao. But Deng Xiaoping turned to Leninist NEP style socialism after Mao had administrative problems during the Great Leap Forward. Mao was a brilliant visionary, poet, and military leader and thinker, but he was not an agricultural expert or a good manager like Stalin. Cuba was primarily Stalinist until the last few years, which now permits some Leninist NEP style reforms.
Capitalism — believes property rights are natural rights. Believes humans are enlightened, self-interested, rational actors that when they act in concert this creates an invisible hand that guides the market. Markets are not planned or controlled by the government. It is believed by capitalists that markets are self-correcting. They believe that if everyone behaves rationally out of self interest, the market will work for the common good. The means of production are privately owned. The opposite of this is Stalinism (Marxism Leninism) in which the means of production are owned by the workers and held by the state. The economy is planned and not based on markets.
Neoliberalism — (subset of capitalism), believes in deregulation, privatization, free trade, elimination of labor and union protections, few market restrictions, tax cuts for the wealthy, and advocates liberal democracy.
Social Democracy — capitalism that is similar to FDR New Deal Democrat philosophy. Believes in regulation of big business and banks, labor protections, some major industries nationalized, Social Security type retirement and disability benefits, in Europe healthcare and education is free or affordable. Canada and the Nordic nations are Social Democracies. Bernie Sanders subscribes to this. He claims to be a socialist but he isn’t a socialist by any normal definition.
