Economics
Leftist economic beliefs range from
Keynesian economics and the
welfare state through
industrial democracy and the
social market to
nationalization of the economy and
central planning,
[28] to the
anarcho-syndicalist advocacy of a council- and assembly-based self-managed
anarchist communism. During the
industrial revolution, leftists supported
trade unions. At the beginning of the 20th century, many leftists advocated strong government intervention in the economy.
[29] Leftists continue to criticize what they perceive as the exploitative nature of
globalization, the "
race to the bottom" and unjust lay-offs. In the last quarter of the 20th century, the belief that government (ruling in accordance with the interests of the people) ought to be directly involved in the day-to-day workings of an economy declined in popularity amongst the
center-left, especially
social democrats who became influenced by "
Third Way" ideology.
Other leftists believe in
Marxian economics, which are based on the economic theories of
Karl Marx. Some distinguish Marx's economic theories from his political philosophy, arguing that Marx's approach to understanding the economy is independent of his advocacy of revolutionary
socialism or his belief in the inevitability of
proletarian revolution.
[30][31] Marxian economics does not exclusively rely upon Marx, but it draws from a range of Marxist and non-Marxist sources. The "
dictatorship of the proletariat" or "
workers' state" are terms used by some Marxists, particularly
Leninists and
Marxist–Leninists, to describe what they see as a temporary state between the
capitalist state of affairs and a
communist society. Marx defined the proletariat as salaried workers, in contrast to the
lumpenproletariat, who he defined as outcasts of society, such as beggars, tricksters, entertainers, buskers, criminals and prostitutes.
[32] The political relevance of farmers has divided the left. In
Das Kapital, Marx scarcely mentioned the subject.
[33] Mao Zedong believed that it would be rural peasants, not urban workers, who would bring about the proletarian revolution.
Left-libertarians,
libertarian socialists and
anarchists believe in a
decentralized economy run by
trade unions,
workers' councils,
cooperatives,
municipalities and
communes and oppose both
state and
private control of the economy, preferring
social ownership and local control, in which a nation of decentralized regions are united in a
confederation.
The
global justice movement, also known as the
anti-globalization movement or
alter-globalization movement, protests against
corporate economic globalization due to its negative consequences for the poor, workers, the environment and small businesses.
[34][35][36]
