Final answer:
The greatest difficulty with making Socialism work is balancing social ownership with resource redistribution without authoritative control and maintaining economic efficiency. High taxes and market limitations can lead to inefficiencies, and there is often reluctance to fully redistribute income in societies valuing capitalistic principles.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Greatest Difficulty with Making Socialism Work
The greatest difficulty with making Socialism work in a society is achieving a balance between social ownership and effective distribution of resources without resulting in authoritative government control or economic inefficiency.
Centralization of power often becomes necessary to manage the economy and redistribute wealth, which can lead to an authoritarian regime that may resist relinquishing power, as seen in historical examples such as the authoritarian governments of Eastern Europe. The challenge becomes how to create a society that is both wealthy and classless without suppressing individual freedoms or economic productivity.
Another critical issue is that Socialist governments need to impose high taxes to support social programs, which can result in fewer choices in the marketplace due to a lack of competition. Consequently, inefficiencies can arise, and prices for many goods can become artificially high.
Moreover, there is often a reluctance, as in the United States, to redistribute income comprehensively due to the belief in the benefits of controlled capitalism, private property, and the profit motive, which many perceive as essential to freedom and individual accomplishment.