Impossible REALLY?

So it came up in class (as I am pretty sure it does in the process of EVERY conversation about communism EVER) that communism seems so unlikely and maybe even impossible because “people just wouldn’t do it.”  One way to look at any existing or possible economic system differently, though, is to see it as a part of the human construct.  This of course does not mean that economic systems are not real and do not have very real effects on people’s lives, but it means that the system does not ONLY work on individuals because individuals ALSO work on (form) the system.  So from a sociological standpoint, we (that is, people) create economic systems (like capitalism) and social values (like individualism) which might disallow a communist society from existing.  But what that means is that the power to CREATE those things is ours—it is not “innate” or “destined” or “natural” for people to live with the particular systems or values that we live with.  So I believe that a communist society is completely possible but only as far as people believe it is too, because to consciously shape the systems of one’s society, one must first become aware that he or she plays a role in shaping them.

Also…

The idea that humans are innately flawed or evil or selfish is a commonly held one, I think, and we experience things that seem to point to the legitimacy of that idea for sure.  But what about that idea that there’s some good in everyone, too?  I further think that such a community would actually be possible because I think that people ARE actually “good” in general.  I read an article called "Why Are People "Irrationally" Generous to Strangers?" that talks about a study addressing people’s tendencies to reach out and help people even when they don’t know them.  The study essentially finds that people have actually evolved to be kind and outreaching, which seemingly conflicts with Darwin’s longstanding view that evolution (much like capitalism) is driven by competition and always champions the most fit over the least (the elite bourgeausie over the working proletariat).  But it turns out that people ready to cooperate with others have a better chance of benefiting from any relationships that might result, meaning that cooperation is a trait of humans that evolution favors—a trait that wins when compared to “defecting” social interractions (refusing to cooperate).  The author, Ronald Bailey even says that “being nice is a winning strategy when it comes to economics and evolution.”

So knowing that we create our economic system just as thoroughly as it creates us AND knowing that generosity (community-minded perhaps?) gives an evolutionary advantage to people, do you agree that communism could be possible (even if only on a small-ish scale and not in the near future)?  Is there any hope or chance that we will enter Marx’s last epoch of history??