 
there are two words that stand for two different ways of carrying on 
economic life. 
one is communism. 
under communism, goods are produced and income is distributed according to 
government plans. 
the government owns or controls the factories and farms and makes all the 
important economic decisions. 
in general, people cannot buy and sell for profit under communism. 
factory managers and workers are paid by the government to carry out 
government orders. 
this is called a command economy because everything is ordered by the 
government. 
russia and china are two communist countries. 
capitalism is different from communism. 
in a capitalist economy, private individuals, not the government, own the 
factories, businesses, and farms. 
this is why capitalism is also known as private enterprise. 
the private owners (capitalists) run their enterprises to make a profit 
for themselves. 
they do not want the government to interfere with their profit-making. 
capitalists want to be free to seek their own fortunes. 
most countries today have some form of private enterprise system. 
the united states is one of these countries. 
during the past hundred years, people have argued over which economic 
system is better, capitalism or communism? 
they have asked, "does capitalism really benefit all the people?" 
no, said karl marx, a famous german communist who wrote in the middle 
1800"s. 
factory owners grow richer and richer at the expense of the workers. 
finally, conditions become so bad for the workers that they revolt and 
drive out the capitalists. 
yes, said john maynard keynes, a british economist who wrote in the early 
1900"s. 
