Reaching post-scarcity
An argument I've heard against socialism/communism/anarchism is that any such society would only work once we've reached post-scarcity. The mechanism to make post-scarcity happen, they argue, is advancements in technology and automation of work. Tech and automation is advancing under the current dominating economic system and we only need to keep it functioning well enough until we can produce everything everyone needs, and that will bring about a better, maybe post-capitalist (?) society.
Capitalism does help advance technology and automation, no question. Will it bring post-scarcity? I doubt it. Capitalism needs scarcity. The beloved formula of supply and demand does not work if supply is saturated.
There are many examples of artificial scarcity today: planned obsolescence, throwing away unsold goods, patents, copyright, (lack of) right to repair... Even unemployment is artificial scarcity of work, a concept essential for capitalism to function. Abandoning scarcity for the good of mankind seems an unlikely goal of capitalism.
Assuming that capitalism would somehow, when production is efficient enough, cease to be or take on some other form where every person's needs are met, there's another issue: Capitalism requires economic growth.
This growth has, thus far, been closely associated with greater exploitation of resources. We (primarily the global north) are using more resources than what is sustainable for a single earth. Seeing as the global north has not yet reached post-scarcity, how would capitalism be able to bring humanity to post-scarcity before the climate collapses? I see no other possible conclusions than:
- Post-scarcity is not possible, or
- Post-scarcity is not possible under capitalism.
The latter seems more likely.