Sunday, May 17, 2020

Review: Why Not Socialism?

Why Not Socialism?Why Not Socialism? by G.A. Cohen
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

It's shocking that any thinker takes this famous book at all seriously. While I didn't expect to agree with Cohen or find his arguments ultimately persuasive, I did expect at least to find an argument. But this is how I would summarize the book: "Let’s assume markets produce unjust results. Let’s assume socialist equality is ideal. Therefore, socialism--even though I admit it is not feasible. " The camping trip thought experiment is utterly unconvincing and not realistic. It baldy confuses cooperation with collectively. His extension of this to his claims about socialism is a spectacular non-sequitur.

Cohen may deserve his philosophical reputation for his other work, but this book is just embarrassing.

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