, Research Paper
Are We Familiar With Communism Enough
The most devastating social order of the modern society is communism. From its founders Karl Marx and Fredrick Engels, who gave communism its philosophical meanings, to Vladimir Ili Lewin (Lenin), who gave it power after the October revolution in 1917, until today the communism hasn t changed its primary meaning and the ideology. World War II, the Cold War, the war in Vietnam, Korea, Afghanistan, and most recent one in Bosnia, the starvation and poverty throughout the communist and former communist countries are all the consequences of this so-called people s democracy system. Comparing it with imperialism (being governed by communism), capitalism (developing parallel with communism), and socialism (continuation of the communism), communism is a society without money, without country, without property, and without social classes. The best example for the rise and later on the downfall of communism is the former Soviet Union.
What is communism? Is it as the democratic world sees it anarchic, dangerous, and careless? Is it maybe the theory that the knowledge of one person, one individual, one among the thousands and sometimes millions is enough to decide for the whole nation, even though he or she doesn t even know one percent of it? The newest edition of Webster s dictionary describes communism in a couple of ways: as a social organization in which goods are held in common; a theory of social organization advocating common ownership of means of production and a distribution of products of industry based on needs, such as a political doctrine based on revolutionary Marxist socialism that was the official ideology of some countries. Communism cannot be explained by words. Even the previous edition of Webster s dictionary has some variations when we are explaining the word communism: it is a theory or system of social organization based on holding all property in common, actually ownership being ascribed to the community or to the state, such as a political doctrine or movement based on Marxism and developed by Lenin and others, seeking a violent overthrow of capitalism and the creation of a classless society. All of the possible explanations are valid, but one has to live through it in order to discuss or even try to describe the word communism
In the early stages of its development in the late 19th century until today, communism was developing very progressively but carrying a lot of problems with it. Karl Marx and Frederick Engels started the idea for the new social order called communism. Their desires were to form a social order without starvation, unemployment, and monarchy, with equal rights among peoples in other words, a people s country. At that time, while the industrial revolution was still taking place, it looked promising and possible. The idea spread very fast through Europe.
The Bolshevik Vladimir Ili Lewin (Lenin), the Russian communist party follower, changed the future and the recent past of the whole world with the putsch on the royal dynasty Romanov forever. Since Russia was the most powerful country of that time, the new communist country affected all other well-developed countries like France, England, Germany, and Italy as well.
People come together to carry out a project or to respond to some need of the human community but without the possibility of their collective activity taking the form of the enterprise that involves wages and the exchange of its products. The circulation of goods is not accomplished by means of exchange; quite the contrary, the by-word for this society is from each according to their abilities, to each according to their needs. This primary thought was maintained at the beginning of its era. Communism reached the top of its power in the late 1960 s through the late 1970 s. With time, society was changing too, but not the communism; that s one of the reasons for its downfall. Such differences made communism crash in the late 1980 s. With the fall of Berlin Wall most communist countries collapsed in the next couple of years. In last 10 years almost all former communist parties became socialistic parties having the same issues and believes as the communists did but under different names. Just a few communist countries are left in the world struggling for their survival.
The consequences from the communist era are catastrophic. In the World War II, millions of people lost their lives. The Germans, who defined themselves as the people of higher social class and who should rule the world, started the war, and the communists, the defenders in that war, had the same idea. Instead of having one country that will rule the world, in this case Germany, the communists had the idea of ruling the world through all the countries with equal social classes. In 1950 s the new phase had begun, the phase of the Cold War. Billions of dollars were invested in both sides weapons. Until 1989, the world
Compared with other social orders such as capitalistic, socialistic, former imperialistic, democratic, republic, etc, communism has many unique forms. Contrary to the illusion produced by the present society, the state and its institutions are not inevitably the result of the growth and complexities of societies but the opposite, the result of frantic socialization of the species without community. The necessity for distinct organs of administration, repression, and assistance has its cause in maintenance of class society. The state is the defender of the dominant class, which is increasingly integrated into it. It is forced to alleviate destitution which is increased by a social life where man becomes predator for man. With communism the oppositional but complementary relationship between the political and economic spheres disappears. In other words communism is just a phrase for protecting one group of people, one class, one society, the rich society, and leaving the poor people to struggle for their lives and share among each others whatever they might posses.
My experience with communism is six years old. Just before the war in Bosnia, before the separation of Yugoslav republics, Yugoslavia was still communist country. The only good thing about communism I can come up with would be living as one nation. There were no minorities, white and black, everybody was equal and everybody was either your brother or your sister. Everybody acted jointly in solving problems, acted jointly as one. Communism is based on it, to be one, one, and only one. Is that bad? I don t think that is bad but what s bothering me is the fact that the father of the nation has whole rights over controlling your life. He can terminate it at any moment and usually with no reasons. That is communism I saw and I am fighting against.
It is very easy to find others bad opinion about communism, the opinion that I also share. The Internet is one of the sources where one can see both good and bad sides of communism. Boris Kretenov, Russian ideologist and politician, said: It is not surprising that after a century and half of fierce conflict, the defenders of socialism, communism, and capitalism should have considerably muddied waters by caricaturing each other s positions and misusing each other s terminology.
Another reason for the downfall of communism is religion. People always believed in something. The Allah, the God, the Buddha, certain animals or stars and planets, were always present with them. The communism forbids the religion. In other social orders there s freedom of religion. Without the protector, the believers have no reason for being in this world. There s no moral among them and results are weaker. The more the believers, the weaker communist society is.
One of the best examples for all the rises and falls, poverty and richness, glories and defeats, is Russia. Before it became a communist country it was the most powerful country in the world. It dictated the world s politics and economy. It was known by glory only. After the October Revolution, the old name Russia was changed to Soviet Union. The country felt first serious poverty after the World War I. After World War II the Cold War era took place. The Soviet Union, as the leader of communist countries, revived again. Still, as the most powerful country, it send a first man into space. Soviet scientists in chemistry, physics, and astronomy, were famous all over the world. In 1989 the Berlin Wall was ruined. The Soviet Union fell apart into Russia and fifteen smaller countries, no more communism in Russia. The second glory is down. The new Russia is trying to recover from communism, but having former communist government, as the current one will just makes things go harder.