Under capitalism man exploits man. Under communism it is the reverse.

Communism looks like exploited people stripped of their history and culture in gulag building useless inefficient projects.

I guess for projects people consider themselves important this could be done via personal honor system or even just interpersonal relation - I promised my friend the launch loop will be done by equinox & he would sad if I don't hold my word.

It's hilarious how anyone would consider a series of cheesy scifi stories by a collection of hack writers as a basis for discussion of economic systems. Regardless of technology, a post-scarcity is obviously not feasible. Sure we can make staple foods and mass manufactured products incrementally cheaper through automation. But the things that people really want as signaling mechanisms for social status will always be scarce. For example, prime real estate in geographically favorable areas.

If you're going to present Star Trek as a plausible example of what a post-scarcity, post-capitalist society looks like, it's fair to point out all of the BS behind Star Trek's portrayal. In the real world, we can't have free energy. In the real world, we can't have warp drives or replicators that can instantly and perfectly assemble anything from nothing.

And I think it's fair to point out that every vision of utopia necessarily comes at a high cost in blood and violence because you have to do something about the people who don't agree with the vision. Star Trek handwaves this away by saying humanity just "evolved" beyond their base desires and flaws and fully voluntarist socialism just works.

But without the Treknobabble and magitech, what's does the end of capitalism actually look like in a world where there are no easy solutions, and no benevolent space-elves descending from the heavens to save us from ourselves?