Communism Won: The Novel

“Suppose in our persistent groping toward a better system than communism, we had done nothing better at last but stumble into and rediscover the very same old capitalism that we had been reviling for two centuries as the depth of human iniquity and misery”.

– Time Will Run Back 

The 1919 Bolshevik Revolution in Russia not only sparked a Communist revolt in Europe but also gave rise to the Communist Party in the United States.  Looking to reorganize America under a Soviet American Republic, the new domestic party acted to make America part of a world Soviet Union, a literal USSA, to match the coming USSR. 

After establishing the Soviet Union in 1922, the world’s first communist nation, Lenin promptly abolished private ownership, nationalized industry, and moved to a one-party rule.  With state control over all sectors of the economy, the Soviets acquired the ultimate concentration of power.  During the 20^th century, another 40 countries would also give it a go, duped by its ideological appeal.  But time has revealed the folly of illusory central planning.  Today, only five remain: China, North Korea, Cuba, Laos, and Vietnam.  And even among the remaining, allowing aspects of capitalism and freedom has undoubtedly extended their expiration dates. 

In Henry Hazlitt’s 1966 revised novel, “Time Will Run Back,” Hazlitt teaches economics in the Soviet Socialist Republic of Wonworld, where its new leader, Peter, bereft of training in Marxist ideology, begins to question the reason for its dystopian state.  He naturally looks for ways to devolve power from the state, and as he begins to implement trade and markets, its misfortunes are reversed.  Although capitalism had been dead for more than a century, its allure could not be contained.  In fact, to overcome mass poverty, the reinvention of capitalism was the only logical course.  Hazlitt’s fictional treatise focuses on the many reasons why socialism doesn’t work. 

Marxist theory was employed in Wonworld to shape its society on cooperation and shared ownership to bring about fairness and equality.  Since Marx believed that families existed only to protect private property and capitalism, their demise was key to socialism's success.  That became the underlying basis of the Marxist approach to organizing society. 

In the capital city of Moscow, in the Year 2100, the Soviet Socialist Republic of the World was the ruling global regime.  The economy was centrally planned and controlled by the Politburo.  All goods were available through ration coupons to ensure equality of distribution.  Since there was no monetary system, the quality of services and goods suffered for the lowest class.  Citizens were assigned numbers and functions, instead of names, with uniforms differentiating by class, while they lived in communal property owned by the state.  Forced equality led to a lack of accountability and responsibility for one’s own life.  Yet, despite the state’s conceit, there had not been any progress in more than a century since capitalism was eliminated.   

Collectivized farming operated based on a quota system where bureaucrats determined not only what to produce, but how much.  Ration coupons were then distributed by class, with each citizen receiving equal shares of public goods.  Without economic calculation, however, maintaining proper inventory was impossible.  The results were shortages in both resources and goods that ultimately led to mass starvation.  The system also failed due to a lack of incentives.  Since workers had no skin in the game and could not advance themselves through their own production, they simply toiled to meet state quotas and minimal personal sustenance. 

After a war breaks out, Peter flees to the Western Hemisphere, where he establishes Freeworld.  Unlike Wonworld, he institutes economic freedom with private property, competition, and incentives.  Private ownership of the means of production quickly solves the economic calculation problem, leading to massive industrial planning, the emergence of prices, and higher yields.  At first, citizens were allowed to trade their ration coupons, granting personal choice for the first time.  Then, workers were free to keep what they produced while exchanging the excess with others.  This led to the development of markets and brokers.  A system of rules and laws, along with decentralized decision-making, led to an explosion in new enterprise.  Ownership in company shares led to the emergence of a stock market, while gold emerged as a medium of exchange. 

The opposite of state-controlled production is private businesses openly competing to produce based on consumer demand in a market economy.  Here, buyers determine not only what is produced, but also how much is needed to meet their diverse needs.  It is a system based on freedom of choice for the masses that leads to expanding enterprise and increased innovation.  Allowing people to exercise their free will leads to the spontaneous emergence of order.

After being injured by a bomb when the war returns, Peter is in rehabilitation for three months, during which time the government grew once again.   A fiat currency was instituted by bureaucrats with the best of intentions, leading to runaway inflation, while the implementation of price controls caused supply chain problems.  The more government intervened, the more citizens lost their freedom and autonomy, revealing the ongoing need for constant vigilance to keep government at bay.  Socialism, in any form, always leads to less liberty.   

All too often, to explain the failures of previous attempts at socialism, the standard line is always: “but, we haven’t had true socialism yet.”  Many have tried and continue to offer a broad spectrum of their utopian dreams.  But in its truest form, it was Lenin who gave the game away when he revealed that the actual goal of socialism is communism.  And based on Marxist theory, a stateless and classless society would naturally emerge once the proletariat overthrew the bourgeoisie.  The truth: the state never withers away but only becomes bigger and stronger.  Socialism always ends in authoritarianism.

In the real world, New York City, July 2026, newly elected mayor Zohran Mamdani recently announced the implementation of ration shops, that is, government-run grocery stores, to provide taxpayer-subsidized products to needy citizens, as he moves one step closer to his utopian promise of equality. 

For this, no one should be surprised.  What went around in the 20^th century is back again for another try.