Understand what every operating economy represents in reality
Study and Learn the Words:
| English | English equivalents | Romanian | Russian |
| at least | cel puţin | по крайней мере | |
| to some degree | în oarecare măsură | в той или иной степени | |
| utilities (n) | servicii publice | коммунальные услуги | |
| real property | proprietate imobiliară | недвижимость | |
| projected needs | planned needs | ||
| professed aims | aims that have been publicly made known | ||
| waste (n) | devastare | разорение | |
| to advocate | to propagate, to sustain | ||
| to set prices | to establish prices | ||
| to fare | a o duce | поживать | |
| to outweigh | a depăşi | перевешивать | |
| static (adj) | not changing or developing | ||
| to attain | a atinge, a ajunge la | достичь | |
| subsidy (n) | subvenţie, subsidiu | субсидия | |
| to wind up (wound, wound) | to stop running a company and close it completely | ||
| to resort to | a recurge la | прибегнуть к | |
| staff (n) | personnel | ||
| unemployment (n) | şomaj | безработица | |
| debt (n) | datorie | долг | |
| on behalf of sb | din partea cuiva | от имени кого-л. |
As we have briefly discussed the workings of supply and demand in a market economy, let us look quickly at two other economic systems that contrast sharply with the capitalism of Adam Smith. These systems are sometimes called planned economies,because the answers to the three basic economic questions are determined, at least to some degree, through centralized government planning.
SocialismIn a socialist economy, the key industries are owned and controlled by the government. Such industries usually include transportation, public utilities, communications, and those producing important materials such as steel. (In France, the major banks are nationalized, or transferred to government control. Banking, too, is considered extremely important to a nation's economy.) Land and raw materials may also be the property of the state in a socialist economy. Depending on the country, private ownership of real property (such as land and buildings) and smaller or less vital businesses is permitted to varying degrees. People usually, may choose their own occupations, but many work in state-owned industries.
What to produce and how to produce it are determined in accordance with national goals, which are based on projected needs, and the availability of resources—at least for government-owned industries. The distribution of goods and services is also controlled by the state to the extent that it controls rents and wages. Among the professed aims of socialist countries are the equitable distribution of income, the elimination of poverty and the distribution of social services such as medical care to all who need them, smooth economic growth, and elimination of the waste that supposedly accompanies capitalist competition.
Britain, France, Sweden, and India are democratic countries whose mixed economies include a very visible degree of socialism. Other, more authoritarian countries may actually have socialist economies; however, we tend to think of them as communist because of their almost total lack of freedom.
CommunismIf Adam Smith was the father of capitalism, Karl Marx was the father of communism. In his writings (during the mid-nineteenth century), Marx advocated a classless society whose citizens together owned all economic resources. He believed that such a society would come about as the result of a class struggle between the owners of capital and the workers they had exploited. All workers would then contribute to this communist society according to their ability and would receive benefits according to their need.
The People's Republic of China, Cuba, and North Vietnam are generally considered to have communist economies. Almost all economic resources are owned by the government in these countries. The basic economic questions are answered through centralized state planning, which sets prices and wages as well. In this planning, the needs of the state generally outweigh the needs of its citizens. Emphasis is placed on the production of capital goods (such as heavy machinery) rather than on the products that consumers might want, so there are frequent shortages of consumer goods. Workers have little choice of jobs, but special skills or talents seem to be rewarded with special privileges. Various groups of professionals (bureaucrats, university professors, and athletes, for example) fare much better than, say, factory workers.
The so-called communist economies thus seem to be far from Marx's vision of communism, but rather to practice a strictly controlled kind of socialism. There is also a bit of free enterprise here and there. For example, in the former Soviet Union, the farmers' markets (rinki in Russian) not only were allowed but were also essential to the nation's food supply. However, like all real economies, these economies are neither pure nor static. Every operating economy is a constantly changing mixture of various idealized economic systems. Some evolve slowly; others change more quickly, through either evolution or revolution. And, over many years, a nation, such as Great Britain, may move first in one direction—say, toward capitalism—and then in the opposite direction. It is impossible to say whether any real economy will ever closely resemble Marx's communism.
I. VOCABULARY PRACTICE
A) Explain the meaning of the following phrases:
1. to contrast sharply
2. the key industries
3. public utilities
4. banks are nationalized
5. smooth economic growth
6. to change through either evolution or revolution
B) Find English equivalents:
1. În dependenţă de ţară/в зависимости от страны
2. Avere imobiliară/недвижимость
3. Într-o măsură oarecare/в той или иной степени
4. Ramurile industriei care aparţin statului/отрасли промышленности, принадлежащие государству
5. În concordanţă cu scopurile statului/в соответствии с целями государства
6. Printre scopurile proclamate/среди провозглашённых целей
7. Distribuirea echitabilă a venitului/справедливое распределение дохода
8. Lichidarea devastării, care ipotetic însoţeşte concurenţa capitalistă/ликвидация разорения, которое предположительно сопровождает капиталистическую конкуренцию
9. Practic lipsa totală a libertăţii/практически полное отсутствие свободы
10. Deficitul frecvent al mărfurilor de larg consum/частый дефицит товаров широкого потребления.
II. COMPREHENSION
A) Answer the following questions:
1. Why are socialism and communism sometimes called planned economies?
2. Who owns the key industries in a socialist economy?
3. Does private ownership of property exist in a socialist economy?
4. Where can people work in socialist countries?
5. Who controls the distribution of goods and services in a socialist society?
6. What economies do Britain, France, Sweden and India have?
7. Who was the father of communism and what did he advocate?
8. What countries are considered to have communist economies?
9. Who answers the 3 economic questions in a communist society?
10. Do the so-called communist economies correspond to Marx’s vision of communism?
11. What does every operating economy represent in reality?
B) Read the text more carefully and mark the statements with TRUE or FALSE:
1. Planned economy is an ecomomy in which the answers to the 3 basic economic questions are given by private individuals.
2. The key industries of any country are transportation, utilities, communications, and banking.
3. What to produce and how to produce it in a socialist economy depends on the availability of resources.
4. One of the professed aims of socialist countries is the distribution of social services to all who have money to pay for them.
5. India is a social democratic country.
6. In a communist society there is a slogan „Everybody will contribute according to their ability and will receive according to their need”.
7. In a communist society prices and wages are set by the state.
8. Workers in a communist economy can choose any job they like.
9. Land and raw materials may belong to the state in a socialist economy.
10. There is no free enterprise in planned economies.
11. In a communist economy capital goods are produced in larger quantities than consumer goods.
12. In the real world no economy attains „theoretical perfection”.
III. Match the words in column A with their definitions in column B:
| A | B |
| 1. subsidy | a) The state of a company which is unable to pay its debts and has to be wound up. |
| 2. overstaffing | b) Inability to find a job |
| 3. unemployment | c) A component of the market forces which when it prevails makes prices of goods rise. |
| 4. supply | d) A payment by a government to producers of certain goods to enable them to survive in a difficult economic situation. |
| 5. demand | e) Rights over property |
| 6. ownership | f) Employment of personnel in excess of the real necessities |
| 7. bankruptcy | g) A component of the market forces which when it prevails makes prices of goods fall |
IV. Fill in the gaps with the words from the list at the end of the text:
A market economy is based on private ...(1) in contrast to planned economy where ...(2) ownership prevails. In a free market economy efficiency is the key word, while on the other hand planned economy most likely leads to ...(3). In a free market economy inefficient businesses go ...(4), whereas in a planned economy businesses are ... (5), thus allowing them to survive in spite of their non-satisfactory economic performance. This enables the latter type of economy to resort to ...(6), that is employing more personnel than actually required. Market economy leads to high ... (7) of goods and services, while on the other hand planned economy will not focus on offering high quality goods and services to ... (8). This is due to the fact that in the latter type of economy there is actually no ... (9), as there are ...(10) monopolies and therefore the options of customers are severely restricted. On the other hand in a market economy companies freely ...(11) for a larger ...(12) share, and are thus forced to be efficient and ...(13) staff according to real necessities and ... (14) their resources with utmost care.
Bankrupt; compete; competition; customers; inefficiency; manage; state; overstaffing; ownership; quality; market; employ; government; subsidized.
V. On the basis of the above text complete the table giving the characteristic features of 2 types of economic systems, the first one has already been done for you:
| Market economy | Planned economy |
| - private ownership | - state ownership |
| - | - |
| - | - |
| - | - |
| - | - |
VI. Match the following 3 defintions with the words: Capitalism, Socialism, Communism.
1. An economic system in which everyone has an equal right to a share of a country’s wealth and the government owns and controls the main industries. __________________
2. An economic system in which the state controls the means of producing everything on behalf of people. __________________
3. An economic system in which a country’s businesses and industry are controlled and run for a profit by private owners rather than by government. _____________________
VII. DISCUSSION
Give extensive answers to the following questions:
1. What are the professed aims of a socialist economy?
2. Do you know the countries in which poverty does not exist?
3. Is it ever possible to eliminate poverty completely or it is something unreal?
VIII. DEBATE
Work in groups. Do you agree or disagree with the following statements? Give your reasons:
1. The rich cannot exist without the poor.
2. The state has an obligation to take care of homeless and poor people.
3. The only thing that can remove poverty is sharing.
4. Poverty is not just being without food. It is the absence of affection.