Jesus' parable on the workers in the vineyard (Mathew 20:1-16) is not compatible with any kind of Socialism. Especially verse 15-"Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things?". Of course scripture tells believers to help the poor and needy, and for the church to help the needy, but there are no commands for the community as a whole (whether tribe,state or nation) to use force to help the poor.The OT practice of gleaning -Leviticus 19:9-10,the book of Ruth,etc.- seems to be more of a "workfare" system rather than state run "welfare".
If you really want to research the bad effects of Socialism, <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/read.gif" alt="" /> I would recommend Economic Calculation in the Socialist Commonwealth by Ludwig von Mises. He argues than Socialism is not just impractical or inefficient, but literally impossible!. After finishing that little paper, <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/einstein.gif" alt="" /> you can try his book-length Socialism. Both -and others- can be found in Adobe pdf format at www.mises.org
I also recommend looking at the books available at www.freebooks.com, especially the economics books by Gary North. Ones does not have to agree with his views on Theonomy to learn from his "Economic Commentaries" on the Bible. Even where he is wrong, <img src="/forum/images/graemlins/argue.gif" alt="" /> he is at least trying to look at the implications of many scriptures that the Christian world has ignored for centuries. IHMO this neclect is partially responsible for the world ignoring the Church and listening to false prophets like Marx and his followers. If Christians have no answers on economic questions of course people will look elsewhere.
