A few questions

[socksthegnome]

Hello. I am new to this website and not quite sure if I'm posting this in the right place or not. I have been interested in socialism for quite some time. But, as I debate with my friends about socialism, some valid points have been brought against me to which I would like to have enlightened answers.

First, can people choose the jobs they take? What I mean is: do people choose the sort of work and place and where to live or does the government assign such a place?

Second, is everyone paid the same amount or is there a salary cap? Does a doctor make the same as an unskilled worker despite the years of extra training a doctor must go through?

I have more but I must go for now. Thank you in advance for any answers.

Socks

[bolshevik1917]

Hello comrade,

These are common questions, i'll try to explain as best as I can.

Firstly, communism comes in stages. This begins with the working class revolting and taking control over the running of the country and the state. The state as we know it now is a tool of the bourgouise, many sects like the SWP beleive that in taking control of the state the job is done and you have socialism.

Not quite though, as the working class take control of the state, the state withers away. The workers set up a 'dictatorship of the prolitariat' in order to weed out all the former cappies (who are still greedy and corrupt) and generally shit/lazy people who would not contribute.

In this 'first stage of communism' which we call 'socialism' work is spread out around everyone - so people are working less hours, and because there is no one to extract profit/surpluss value the wages are pretty good too. As an answer to one of your questions, people could choose what jobs they wanted - if anyone refused to work they would get nothing though.

The idea of this 'first stage' is for the general rules of the community to become simply a habit, not a chore. As people are now being brought up in a good society there is no breeding ground for lazyness, selfishness etc.

The working class then will decide in their own time when conditions exist to move into 'higher stage' communism.

Obviously this is very breif, I had recently written a short pamphlet using quotes from Marx, Lenin, Engels and Trotsky to attempt to understand the transition from capitalism to communism. Email me at [email protected] and I will gladly send you a copy.