State socialism
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'''State socialism''', broadly speaking, is any variety of socialism which relies on ownership of the means of production by the state.
State socialism is often referred to simply as "socialism"; the attributive "state" is usually added only by socialists with a different vision, wishing to criticise ''state'' socialism.
Today, many political parties on the left-wing politics|political left advocate a mild version of what may be considered "state socialism", in the form of social democracy. These moderate socialists do not advocate the overthrow of capitalism in a socialist revolution, and they support the continuing existence of the capitalist state and the capitalist economic system, only turned to more social purposes.
Democratic socialism|Democratic Socialists argue for a gradual, peaceful transition from capitalism to (full) socialism. They wish to abolish capitalism, but through ''evolution'' rather than ''revolution''.
In contrast, Marxism holds that a socialist revolution is the only practical way to implement fundamental changes in the capitalist system. Furthermore, it holds that after a certain period of time under socialism, the state should "wither away", producing a communist society.
Of course, the state did not, in fact, wither away in the 20th century's Communist states.
Some Marxists defend them and contend that the transitional period simply wasn't finished.
Other Marxists denounce those "Communist" states as Stalinist, arguing that their leadership was corrupt and that it abandoned Marxism in all but name.
In particular, most Trotskyist tendencies of Marxism call those countries deformed workers states to contrast them from states where the workers directly hold power; a few Trotskyist currents call them ''state capitalist'', and argue that the bureaucracy in the USSR had become a capitalist class by the 1930s..
Libertarian socialism|Libertarian socialists go further, deriding even Marxism as ''state socialism''. They use the term in contrast with their own form of socialism, which involves collective ownership of the means of production without state intervention.
See also
New class
State capitalism
Bureaucratic collectivism
Coordinatorism
Degenerated workers state
Deformed workers state
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