Description and criticism of the analysis of present day capitalism by Claus Offe. Explanation for the ability of capitalism to renew; crisis averting mechanisms; specific features of modern capitalism that make it different from earlier ones. It discusses the issue of how much can capitalism be harmonised with democracy and to what extent is the thesis on their basic incompatibility still valid today.

The article wishes to contribute to the rehabilitation of Marxism from the charges that it is the ideology of state domination through the presentation of the history of Lassalle's state socialism ideas (and some of his followers') and through the sharp criticism of that notion by Marxism.

The authors make an attempt to explain the current processes from he point of view of formation theory. Examining the possibilities of a post-capitalist society (and in this regard with optimism) they try to explain at least in connection with certain issues why was it necessary – and in contrast to the general public notion how and why did it come organically from East Europe's social conditions – that the foundations of a society denying capitalism were laid down.