From: utzoo!decvax!wivax!linus!genradbo!mitccc!zrm Newsgroups: net.politics Title: Re: What IS wrong with socialism Article-I.D.: mitccc.379 Posted: Tue Feb 22 14:26:20 1983 Received: Wed Feb 23 04:53:56 1983 References: hou5e.234 Mr. Almquist believes I am confusing the "Socialist" governments of, say Austria, where I lived for 1.5 years, with the socialist (their terminology) Comecon countries. Well, living a half hour's drive from Eastern Europe itself, I don't think that I ever foirgot which side of that border I was on. The SPOe has been in power in Austria since the Soviet Union gave up its occupation in the fifties. The government owns most of the big heavy industry concerns and ALL the banks in the country. It does not own most consumer goods ventures and most of the "sunrise" enterprises in electronics and such. This is a mixed economy, and the concept of private property is firmly embedded in the constitution and laws. Half an hour east is Hungary, probably the most livable of the Comecon countries. There all major enterprise from department stores to distilleries to almost all factories are state owned. One could quibble without end as to the differences between these two countries, but the drive from Vienna to Budapest, the foci of the Austro-Hungarian empire, would make it clear in anyone's mind that Austria embraces "capitalism", and Hungary has had "socialism" forced upon it. I don't think I could confuse the two. Cheers, Zig