China isn’t communist anymore even though it’s run by the communist party. As noted a couple of pages back, ironically it’s one of the worst countries for worker rights. If you think union protections are bad in the US, try working in a Chinese factory!
You don't need to explain that to me. In fact, I thought I already made that clear? Let me make it clear; I know what China is, I know what their worker rights are, I know what their human rights are. You genuinely DON'T need to explain it to me. FWIW, just like the US always wore the phrase and ideals of 'anyone can make it', so China uses the badge of 'communism' as a 'brand' it is proud to wear. As we've established, it's a brand. Again I ask, have you been? It's something! The Bund in Shanghai looks like Vegas!!!!!
But we are a little lost. Let’s recap.
1. you flagged up how capitalism is worse than ever.
2. espoused degrowth as a solution
3. No ones yet been able to articulate how we’d achieve the aim of degrowth, apart from GutterBoy (who’s an undercover ranging capitalist!)
4. To impose a new economic degrowth model on a nation you’d need a Chinese -like authoritarian government.
5. The ideals of degrowth seem aligned with aspects of Marxist and communist ideology. So we can and must learn from how communism tried (and failed) to implement a change from materialism and build an economy based on human need rather than growth. It’s fascinating and informative to understand why it didn’t happen.
I think it is FAR simpler than you package up, by proxy.
I am not sure you're actually reading what I'm writing more than extrapolating bits and pieces which don't fit your questions.
Let me recap.
IF we're talking about a PRACTICAL implementable solution in the next 5 years, then there will be no imposing of anything, let alone 'degrowth'.
We need to start shifting the public and societal conscience to at least take care of fundamental aspects of living for the general public.
Nationalise power and water.
Reinvest heavily in affordable housing (in the process creating jobs)
Introduce greater checks and balances on private vendors executing public services, and rebalance from simply picking the cheapest bidder to one which is cost-effective but also supplies a quality service.
These are all DOABLE in the near future, and would at the very least not leave so many of the economically marginalised actually in dire straights.
As for why 'communism' didn't work, IMO it's because it's an ideal. A political/social theory. When applied by humans, well, there's no way it can succeed in it's defined form, because inevitably, power and greed become players. Thus communism becomes dictatorship; leaders believe that because everyone has a roof, a job, and some bread and basic food that they are being benevolent and caring. The truth is obviously NOT that.
There are interesting question to answer: can we improve on our current societies with huge disparities of wealth? People are far happier when there is less disparity. Then how can we stop polluting and destroying our environment. Technologically we have all the tools and resources to do so. But societal structures and economic systems are not changing quickly enough.
Unfortunately, in think we're in the middle of a 10-15 year cycle of extremes. If you want to improve current societies wealth disparuty, there has to be a collective belief in core principles, such as people's right to heat, water, electricity, shelter, healthcare, and that will require a buy in from everyone. Just giving people those basics at an affordable/subsidised rate will give society a chance to find the middle ground again.
As much as anything, we are currently reaping the 'rewards' of a sore under-investment in education/monetising of university eduction. A society's cornerstone is its education system. And if it isn't invested in, then we see populations increasingly swayed by false news, social media, rhetoric and buzzwords. That's going to take a generation to solve -and only if we take the issue seriously now...
