I recall an occasion some years ago when I was asked whether there is any logical objection to socialism. I thought I had to say 'no' because, as I understood the matter, the various possible reasons for objecting to socialism, such as that it doesn't work, stifles initiative or leads to oppressive bureaucracy, are practical, psychological or even moral, but not logical.

Now I wonder whether I was wrong. To begin with, the argument that socialism (sometimes blurred over with communism) has repeatedly failed can be taken as an instance of inductive reasoning. Whether it's convincing is another question, and one still sometimes hears the claim that socialism has not been tried yet. That all adds to confusion over what socialism really means.

Socialism is not the only ideology which can be criticised for assuming we have a simple (and simplistic) morality. Social solidarity is not always based on the equality and sharing that socialists have traditionally espoused. A related point is that fairness, or a 'fair society', is a complex notion that may be about reward for effort rather than equality. 

These points can also be taken as logical, at least in the sense that socialist interpretations are not the only possible ones, and therefore are not necessary or certain.

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