ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the differences in patterns of poverty, not between "capitalist" and "non-capitalist" countries, but rather between communist and non-communist countries. "Capitalism" is, first and foremost, a political word, and political language depends in part on ambiguity for its impact. Modern politics and the modern state have, however, created a class of governments which stand apart from all others. It is both manageable and instructive to compare their progress against poverty with the progress of those non-communist nations whose social and economic systems would overhauled and replaced. A first broad indication of postwar changes in living standards in the less developed countries comes from changes in population growth rates. Demographic figures— population totals, death rates, and birth rates— are essential in any quantitative assessment of poverty. Since poverty is a problem that affects people, it is necessary to know where the people most likely to be affected are, and in what numbers.
