Research Essay-Contemporary China-Has Socialism Been Achieved In

Research Essay-Contemporary China-Has Socialism Been Achieved In Research Essay-Contemporary China-Has Socialism Been Achieved In China. Discuss In Relation To The â€" Essay Example > Introduction Socialism can be defined as a form of economic system in which the control and ownership of the means of production is cooperatively done. It is a system based on self management and social relations embedded in social organization of the systems. It is a system where the management of political and economic affairs is not based on hierarchy but rather on equal relations of power (Hans-Hermann, 2001). Economically, the production of goods and services is carried out in order to satisfy human needs and economic demands. Markets are the major channel through which goods and services are distributed. Income distribution is also based on different factors such as individual contribution or individual merit (Sassoon, 1998). The advent of the modern socialism can be traded back to the criticism that emerged in the 18th century regarding the effects of private property and industrialisation on the society. This criticism was raised by the political movement of the working an d intellectual classes in the 18th century, some of whom, advocated for industrial planning and technocracy (Cole, 1965). Others advocated for the application of technology in order to eliminate anarchy and rationalise economic activities. In this regard, socialism is characterised by several elements that include direct allocation of the available resources to increase useful production, the use of markets for goods distribution, planned economy where the means of production are planned by the state but owned by the public, decentralized or self-managed economy based on independent self-regulating actors in the economy as well as decentralized decision-making and mechanism of allocation (Bertell, 1998). The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which socialism has been achieved in China which means that China is run by a modern government and not a revolutionary a revolutionary party. In doing this, the major point of focus will be on how the environment policy show t he approach of the modern government or a revolutionary party. Background China’s extensive environmental degradation can be traded back to Maoist era which is given as the best example of extreme human interference in the natural world. Maoist era is a period that depicts the relationship between political repression and environmental degradation (Shagren, p.3). The dynamics of the environment during Maoist era demonstrates congruence between violence among human beings and violence by humans towards the non-human world. The utopian schemes introduced by Mao were destructive and thereby established the foundation for revolutionary excesses. Projects and campaigns affecting the environment during the Cultural Revolution were driven less by utopianism than by coercion and chaos. Earth transforming campaigns that were centrally launched such as Learn from Dazhai and In Agriculture were applied nationwide (Shagren, p.5). This was done without due regard to the natural climate and to pography. The parable of feudalism and imperialism advanced by Mao exhorted the people to re-shape the physical world radically. The urban relocatees that were involuntarily resettled in the wilderness and other sparsely populated areas were encouraged and induced by the Maoist regime to carry out whatever reclamation activities that would suit their needs for improving their living conditions. This resulted into immeasurable environmental degradation (Shagren, p.7). However, the relocatees had little sense of connection or stewardship towards the environment because the environment (nature) was perceived as an enemy of mankind.