Dickson Igwe, Resident Socio-Political Commentator
All ideologies are a mix of social and economic ideas that have been tested in the cauldron of geography and history.
The issue of what idea is best for a society is in the orientation. Where do specific ideas on economy and politics fit into the wider spectrum of society and economy.
Terms such as Socialism, Capitalism, Democracy, Social democracy, Market Economy, Communism, Fascism, are all components of governance. They are combined into one governing model with each having a weighting that impacts the whole of society.
Within democratic socialist societies- which this writer advocates as ideal for the Caribbean and Virgin Islands- markets thrive and businessmen prosper. The preceding are all pillars in the socialist economy.
However in a social democracy the market is viewed as servant not master.
Under democratic socialism the community is supreme. The welfare of the citizen is paramount- every citizen and their welfare is placed at the center of policy: the welfare state.
In a western world that has allowed the market to rule without check- Post Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher – the result has been a liberal economics model that has driven a vast social and wealth inequality that is simply unsustainable in the long term, and created huge social misery for the poor and vulnerable.
Deregulation and free markets without checks and government interventions, have created a new class of billionaire who practically rule the world.
In percentage terms the world’s richest man Jeff Bezos pays less tax than his employees, while half the US population lives paycheck to paycheck.
In the USA, President Joe Biden speaks of turning the tide against this wave of uncontrolled greed and corporatism with a massive new investment in policies averting climate change, the creation of millions of new and environmentally sustainable jobs, millions of new social homes in a social housing revolution, and placing human welfare- caring for the young and elderly, including universal childcare- at the core of a new left of center economy and society.
Biden speaks of an industrial policy that gives power to working people, and that allows workers to organize for their own welfare. One must ask: when did Biden become so left of center?
The fact is the US President understands there is no true prosperity without greater equality and human welfare.
One can only observe whether the right wing, who are against everything democratic socialist, allow Biden’s plans to prevail.
In the UK, left of center thinkers speak of a brand new world where there is a new ”social contract” that offers every citizen an equal stake in the economy. There is a recognition that deep inequalities must be bridged.
The market economy must be put in its place as servant and not master within society.
When citizens truly rule, not wealthy individuals and their corporations, and government is fully accountable to citizen’s demands, the world is a better place.
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Dickson Igwe is an education official in the Virgin Islands. He is also a national sea safety instructor. He writes a national column across media and has authored a story book on the Caribbean: ‘The Adventures of a West Indian Villager’. Dickson is focused on economics articles, and he believes economics holds the answer to the full economic and social development of the Caribbean. He is of both West African and Caribbean heritage. Dickson is married with one son.
