Russia is Capitalist (1974)

From the April 1974 issue of the Socialist Standard

No matter what lies their leaders tell them (chiefly to make them work harder), the people of Russia, China, Cuba, and countries like them live in capitalism — not Communism or Socialism. You want proof ? — In all these countries, just like Britain or U.S.A., capital is invested for profit; commodities are produced for sale; ordinary people work for wages. — That’s capitalism. It doesn’t make any difference if the state nationalises some, or all, industries — as we know in this country — the people still don’t own them. That is why they have to sell their energy and skill to those who do own them — and the state can be a more powerful and ruthless boss than private companies.

Wherever people work for wages or salaries, they have been robbed of the land, the mines, the factories and so on; and they are steadily robbed of everything they produce, because it doesn’t belong to them when they have made it. In Communism or Socialism (same thing) it will belong to them. The land and factories will belong to the whole people. But that doesn’t exist anywhere in the world yet. It is the next stage in the evolution of society — the system to supersede capitalism. The sooner we make the change-over the better.

CAPITALISM IS DUE FOR THE SCRAP HEAP