I’ve recently been reading a biography of Jack London—the rugged American adventurer and author best known for The Call of the Wild. What struck me was how deeply engaged he was with the ideas of socialism. His era—around the 1890s—was a time of intense industrial expansion, fierce class divides, and labor unrest. London wanted to blend his creative writing with his socialist ideals, hoping fiction could push forward real change. He admired Karl Marx, and while I don’t agree with all of Marx’s conclusions, I’ll admit the man had a sharp understanding of how economies function, especially around the concept of the ownership of the means of production.
But history often proves this: even when ideas begin with idealism, they can falter in the real world. Corruption, power consolidation, and inefficiency creep in. Leaders grow stagnant. Economies collapse. And the very system meant to uplift the people becomes a burden to them.
So, why is socialism still so popular?
Let’s take a step back.
The Appeal of Socialism
At its core, socialism promises fairness: equality, dignity, and care for all. Especially in the wake of unchecked capitalist greed or gross inequality, socialism seems like a compassionate alternative. After World War II, many developed countries introduced aspects of socialism—universal healthcare, public education, pensions—that genuinely helped millions.
Today, many young people, particularly millennials and Gen Z, are drawn to “democratic socialism” or social democracy. To them, it’s not about the state owning every factory and farm, but about the state stepping in to make sure no one falls through the cracks. Free education, healthcare, a basic income—these aren’t seen as luxuries but as rights. Scandinavian countries often get held up as examples of how it can work.
In South Africa, we technically run a capitalist economy—with a few social policies, like grants and state-run services. But we are far from a social democracy in the Scandinavian sense.
Where It All Falls Apart
Let’s be blunt: in South Africa, the capitalist system is failing to provide the basics. Electricity, water, hospitals, schools—chaos. But that’s not because the ideas behind these services are wrong. It’s the people running them who are looting and mismanaging them. Corruption—not socialism—is the disease here.
This failure of the state leads many South Africans to long for a fairer, more just economic system. Hence the romantic appeal of socialism. But again, the problem isn’t just the system—it’s the human nature inside the system.
Ambition vs. Distribution
For the realist, for the ambitious person who wants to build, create, and accumulate—socialism can feel like a cage. If you want the freedom to rise on your own terms, capitalism (especially in its freer forms) gives you that space. You can start with nothing and end with something. You can grow.
But for those who are tired of the greed and inequality that can accompany capitalism—those who value the collective over the individual—socialism offers a powerful vision.
The South African Dilemma
Here’s where we sit: too much corruption in the state, too much inequality in the private sector. We have a capitalism that doesn’t deliver and a state that squanders what little it has. So what’s the answer?
For me, it comes down to this: I’ve lived both sides.
When I started out in journalism, I was paid a pittance. And the longer I stayed, the more I realised I was digging myself deeper into a hole where one could not rise from poverty. My father—who had been a journalist all his life—once told me, “If you want to be a journalist, you need to have private income or inherited wealth.” At the time, I didn’t want to believe him. But over time, I realised he was right.
Eventually, through further education and opportunity, I was able to pivot. I moved into industries like financial services, food manufacturing, and industrial engineering—enterprises that actually rewarded skill and initiative. These jobs provided me with the income to rise above the survival line.
I never gave up my creative side—writing and art have always been a part of my life—but they became a sideline. A treasured one, but not a livelihood. Capitalism, in its better form, gave me that space to grow and redirect.
So What’s the Way Forward?
We don’t need more dogma. We need systems that allow people to rise. That means real free enterprise—where people can start small, grow, and not be crushed by red tape, monopolies, or political patronage. It means social safety nets that prevent disaster, without creating dependency or stifling initiative.
Whether you call it a mixed economy, ethical capitalism, or social entrepreneurship, it comes down to this: people must have dignity, access, and agency.
And no system, whether capitalist or socialist, can give that automatically. It must be earned, built, and protected—by all of us.
