GOSPLAN
The following article was written in the summer of 2008 to chronicle the economic plans of HateBot and the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. It was originally in the main Russia article.
Economy
From the beginnings of the country till April the country was a free-market. However, in April the Communist Party of the Soviet Empire (CPSE) took power with 66% majority and instigated economic reforms. Invented, created, improved, monitored, and administered by Commissar of Trade and Labor HateBot, the country was the first in eRepublik to ever attempt full-scale Socialism. The entire economy was based on the real world Soviet Russian economic system deemed "GOSPLAN."
Theoretical Application
The entire system was built off the Greek ideal of "Direct Democracy" and Marxist-Leninism. The workers should control their own welfare, all goods, services, money, gold, etc. belong to their fellow man rather than the individual.
Starting from the bottom, the entire population of Russia regardless of political affiliation had the right to be apart of "Workers Unions." The dominant political party would give these Unions a united voice within the interior bureaucracy. Demands for wages, more production, etc. would all be taken into consideration and discussed between General Managers and the Commissar of Trade and Labor.
Each industry had, in theory, 5 "General Managers" who were elected by the majority of the populace to maintain and control each select industry. So, for example, if Comrade Stalin was elected as a General Manager of Foods, he controlled owned and operated all foods companies in the country. All General Managers submitted (weekly) reports to the Commissar of Trade and Labor declaring the state of their specific industry. This included all information relevant to an economy, taxes, production, demand, selling, profits, wages, and more. From these reports, the COT&L could make an informed decision on the economic situation.
The Commissar of Trade and Labor of "Soviet" Russia was elected by the populace as the chief economic planner. It was his (or her) job to access the situation presented by the democratically elected General Managers and recommendations to them on the situation of the country. The Commissar would create a large post on the forums of the ruling party and General Managers would vote on if it should be implemented. The report included everything from wages, to the number of workers required to be moved to the new industry. If the General Managers refused the economic proposal they would have to meet and unanimously vote and administer a new economic plan without the Commissar's approval.
Practical Application
Administering the GOSPLAN was quite difficult. To begin with, Unions never truly got used or started; players could care less about them it seemed. Also, it is impossible to "take over" companies in the game. It has to be given voluntarily. When the CPSE won the election on April 1st they began rebuilding the entire countries industries from scratch. This period of time was deemed the "Reconstruction" in Soviet history, as every company from the ground up was rebuilt and re-established by the ruling party. However, on April 5th a period known as "The Compromise" was proposed, written, and established by Comrade HateBot; "The Compromise" convinced competing party members to submit their companies to the GOSPLAN after the threat of losing employees and thus the welfare of the company itself. By the end of Soviet Rule, the countries economy was a patchwork of the entire nation's resources, both sides contributed to these companies for the success of the country.
The GOSPLAN did not have complete success. The first problem was economic reports which were hardly ever completed by General Managers and led to inefficiencies in the economy. It didn't produce shortages, it just nulled the ability of the economy to function as an easily as a free market, specifically when it comes to transferring labor forces to industries which require heavier production. The entire system was built off the idea of consistent and trustworthy General Managers. Weeks into the establishment of the GOSPLAN General Manager inactivity (specifically from the FTM) began to rot the system from the inside out. Soon enough it became necessary to collectivize all industry in the hands of the Commissar of Trade and Labor (the initiative was proposed to the party, and passed with 100% "Yes" 0% "No") until a proper population base could be established and managers could be deemed worthy enough to handle the entire countries economy (during that time gold was very difficult to come by). Soon after Norway invaded Russia and put an end to the GOSPLAN experiment. Further testing, refining, application, etc. was halted when the country was taken over by force on May 6th.
The economy was not a total failure though. During the GOSPLAN period, Russia experienced the greatest amount of economic growth in the countries history. Wages were highest, prices were lowest, and despite the problems, user activity was the highest the country had ever seen.
Currently with the innovation of "SO" accounts the GOSPLAN would likely run far more efficiently than before. As one inactive general manager wouldn't stall the market, another could simply take over.
