When industrial modernity was new
The full dominance of industrial modernity can be dated to around 1850. So when Einstein wrote “Why Socialism” in 1949, the former was still a relatively new phenomenon. And, in 1949, it was still common to make the mistake of conflating “society” (the Leviathan of industrial society) with “community.”
https://monthlyreview.org/2009/05/01/why-socialism/
Under capitalism production is carried on for profit, not for use. There is no provision that all those able and willing to work will always be in a position to find employment; an “army of unemployed” almost always exists. The worker is constantly in fear of losing his job. Since unemployed and poorly paid workers do not provide a profitable market, the production of consumers’ goods is restricted, and great hardship is the consequence. Technological progress frequently results in more unemployment rather than in an easing of the burden of work for all. The profit motive, in conjunction with competition among capitalists, is responsible for a systemic instability. Unlimited competition leads to a huge waste of labor, and to that crippling of the social consciousness of individuals. I am convinced there is only one way to eliminate these grave evils, namely through the establishment of a socialist economy. In such an economy, the means of production are owned by society itself and are utilized in a planned fashion. A planned economy, which adjusts production to the needs of the community, would distribute the work to be done among all those able to work and would guarantee a livelihood to everyone.
That sounds right. And it was tried. It took some deep re-thinking to figure out why it was theoretically deficient.
Einstein: The education of the individual, in addition to promoting their own innate abilities, would attempt to develop a sense of responsibility for fellow citizens in place of the glorification of power and success in our present society.
Noble sentiment … and it would apply within a communitarian context. But industrial modernity obliterates that context of life. This explains the failure of the Soviet and Chinese Communists. Their value system prioritized industrial development, thus negating the socialist ethos. Mohandas Gandhi was prescient about this dynamic.
