QUORA: ‘If socialism is about the workers owning the means of production, then why do most socialists advocate for state ownership of everything?’

QUORA: ‘If socialism is about the workers owning the means of production, then why do most socialists advocate for state ownership of everything?’

I posted this answer:

If by “means of production” one means businesses that start, own, and run the mines, factories, data centers, stores, patents, etc., then in a free society “workers” are free to create their own businesses, or pool their resources and offer to buy and run existing businesses. No one could interfere or stop them, so long as they seek only voluntary agreements. 

If by socialism one refers to a political system whereby all businesses and associated assets are confiscated and turned over to the “workers” regardless of the consent of the owners (the shareholders), there is only one way a doctrine of that kind can be established and maintained--by brute, physical force. And that means, the state, which has a legal monopoly on the use of physical force. Without the political power of the state, any worker or group of workers who take over the “means of production” by any other than voluntary means is a common criminal. When established politically, socialism is legal organized crime.

Of course, the idea of a fully socialist society in which workers own all means of production without state coercion is a fantasy. Without state coercion, workers would be thwarted by any business owner that simply said no. That’s why modern socialists--i.e. Marxists--must advocate for state ownership of “the means of production.” Of course, the ultimate means of production is the productive labor, both physical and intellectual, of the individual. So, socialists must advocate for, and achieve, state ownership of everything, including the individual. “Workers owning the means of production” is a hollow phrase. That’s why socialism, as a political/legal system, must, of necessity, devolve into a totalitarian state.

[For a more in-depth analysis of this subject, see my essay Criminal Socialism vs. a Free Society.]

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QUORA: ‘Given that I live in a capitalist society, how can I avoid having my labor exploited?’

QUORA: ‘Can a communist society include capitalists?’

Criminal Socialism vs. a Free Society