I said it once, and I'll say it again: the welfare state is *not* socialism. My argument is as follows:
Suppose the welfare state is socialism.
Then, socialism is compatible with capitalism. Most countries that have welfare states are capitalist nevertheless.
But socialism is not compatible with capitalism. Socialism means that the means of production are distributed equally and are publicly owned. Capitalism means the the means of production are privately owned and in the hands of a few.
Therefore, the welfare state is not socialism.
I think that's much different from what you'd read in a text-book though.
