Communism/Socialism

Communism

© 2018 Rick Adamson  

By Rick Adamson 5.2.18

I saw this on a cousin’s wall and, although I do not know its original 
context, it struck a chord.

If people truly believe what the poster says then they have been poorly 

instructed and have no earthly idea what they are suggesting.

Having had the pleasure of knowing and hearing the stories of a Russian immigrant I can tell you that unless you want the government deciding whether you can attend college, where you work and live and how much you earn you do not want communism. Although, it might eliminate some anxiety as there would be less angst’s over not being born rich because everyone would be earning the same $2.00 an hour.

It might sound good on paper or in discussions but it doesn’t really work that way and produces an inherently unfair society. I wish these young people would learn a little history and stop replacing reason and logic with ‘feelings’, ‘emotions’, and the denial of all traditional truth claims.

I am reminded of a quote by Jordan Peterson as he describes how lucky we are: “The highly functional infrastructure that surrounds us...is a gift from our ancestors: the comparatively uncorrupt political and economic systems, the technology, the wealth, the lifespan, the freedom, the luxury, and the opportunity.”

 
Are things perfect, of course not? We are human beings; flawed and 
discontent with an almost insatiable desire for things we do not possess.

I would remind these youngsters that for most of mankind’s existence 
extreme poverty was the standard as it is for much of the world’s 
population today. That means lack of food, clothing and shelter as 
opposed to the American definition which equals middle class in most parts of the world.

The secret of America’s success is the opportunity it has provided its people. The opportunity to do as one pleases only limited when one infringes on another’s rights.

“In no society have all regions and all parts of the population developed equally.” Fernand Braudel

“Those who have promoted the prevailing social vision, in which lags, gaps or disparities to the detriment of “certain” people are the fault of “other” people, are trapped in the corollary that these lags, gaps or disparities should disappear, once those “other” people are constrained by civil rights laws and policies. But nothing of the sort has happened in the wake of the civil rights revolution of the 1960s.

However dramatic the increase of political representation of “certain” people at local and national levels, there were no correspondingly dramatic reductions in economic disparities”. Thomas Sowell

The goal of society should be to provide freedom and opportunity. The struggle for the individual should be to be the best person one can be; not to be ever happy or to have some government give you happiness-it isn’t going to happen.

People must develop their human capital (skills), work hard and be 
responsible if they want to live a happy and purposeful life in pragmatic 
America.

But, for those who really want communism, I suggest a stint in Russia, Venezuela, Cuba or China. Go ahead give it a try. If after a few years in one of these places you still believe there will be plenty of folks that will listen to your pitch.

Peterson says of Postmodernists (like the one pictured), “...are obsessed with the idea of oppression, and, by waging war on oppressors real and imagined, they become oppressors themselves.”

He sees liberals, or leftists, or ‘postmodernists,’ as aggressors, think “Antifa”. The danger, it seems, is that those who want to improve Western society may end up destroying it.

And That's that!