Section 1
Economic Systems
By Boundless
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In the most simple of terms, economies consist of producing goods and exchanging them; they are fundamentally social systems.
Capitalism is a system that includes private ownership of the means of production, creation of goods for profit, competitive markets, etc.
Karl Marx saw capitalism as a progressive historical stage that would eventually be followed by socialism.
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Socialism is an economic system in which the means of production are socially owned and used to meet human needs, not to create profits.
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Critiques of socialism generally refer to its lack of efficiency and feasibility, as well as the political/social effects of such a system.
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Democratic socialism combines the political philosophy of democracy with the economic philosophy of socialism.
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The informal economy consists of economic activity that is neither taxed nor regulated by a government.
Welfare capitalism refers to a welfare state in a capitalist economic system or to businesses providing welfare-like services to employees.