Chapter 22: The Rise and Fall of World Communism

“Communism is a social structure in which classes are abolished and property is commonly controlled, as well as a political philosophy and social movement that advocates and aims to create such a society.”

- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communism

“Communism is a social organization in which all economic and social activity is controlled by a totalitarian state dominated by a single and self-perpetuating political party.”

- < http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/communism>

“Communism is the doctrine of the conditions of the liberations of the proletariat. The proletariat is that class in society with lives entirely from the sale of its labor and does not draw profit from any kind of capital; whose weal and woe, whose life and death, whose sole existence depends on the demand for labor- hence, on the changing state of business, on the vagaries of unbridled competition. The proletariat, or the class of proletarians, is, in a word, the working class of the 19^th century.”

- < http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/11/prin-com.htm>

I feel a little embarrassed to say this, but I have never understood communism very well. I remember in high school some kids could talk about it for what seemed like forever, and I was just uninterested. Not uninterested in history, but uninterested in the off-topic rants my classmates felt were necessary to interrupt class with.

Anyway, I thought these definitions were helpful and when I found the last one interesting because the connotation is so much different. It makes it sounds like communism is the hero of political parties, freeing people whose only purpose is to work. This last definition does not mention the general control of money and land to make sure that all people are equal in every aspect of social economics.

While I consider myself patriotic, I am not blind to the problems with our country and government. There was a comment made in class about nationalism and the US military actions in Iraq. I don’t think the post-9/11 nationalism is what led to the war with Iraq. I do think it influenced, or at least had the power to influence, the government’s decision to engage with Afghanistan. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, the US entered WWII, but there was also a mission specifically designated to attack Japan as a military strategy and as retaliation for the death and destruction caused on December 7, 1941. When there is an attack on American soil, I think it makes the entire nation “take it personally.” So 9/11 was similar (although the entire world was not at war) because it was the most deadly attack on US ground. How can we not take it personally? The government then decided to go to war with those suspected to be involved, in Afghanistan.

The nationalism that developed so strongly and so quickly after the attacks was appropriate (although my opinion may be biased) because it showed that Americans felt sorrow, empathy, and anger for those who were killed. Family friends were working for the New York City Fire Department at the time; the closest of them, Brogan Healy, grew up in Santa Cruz and 9/11/01 was his first day with FDNY as a full-time professional firefighter. Both survived that day, but Lt. Tommy Roberts passed away earlier this year from lung cancer and complications from upper respiratory disease caused from the debris and working at ground zero.

After 9/11 I can remember my family, neighbors, and friends being more patriotic- I think we all remember the American flags being flown everything and stickers on cars! But I remember people saying that we deserved it, a Capitalist nation finally getting pay back for how we treat our citizens and other nations. I remember one classmate, David, advocating communism and saying how the attacks wouldn’t have happened if this were a communist country. I was deeply offended by these remarks. I felt that by saying that, David was demeaning the country, the attacks, and the people that died innocently. Clearly he was talking about the government, but because I took the attacks so personally (as did many other Americans) his words about the politics of it all made me so mad.

Another comment in class was about President Obama’s healthcare plan and it containing hints of communism. Because the plan makes healthcare more affordable and accessible to so many more people it is creating a safety net, in some ways. According to MSNBC, the number of uninsured Americans has grown to over 32 million, leaving so many people uncomfortably close to financial ruin- it only takes one medical emergency, illness, or disease to rack up a medical bill bigger than s skyscraper. Then people cannot pay off the medical bills, they go into financial ruin, loose their jobs, and then depend on the government for assistance. It makes sense to have a safety net, I can understand why it can be seen as communist, but so what. Even if it is a “communist” idea, it is still a good idea. I know that paying for this bill will probably be a nightmare for our country, but it makes sense to take care of our people.

The end of the chapter talks about the end of communism: “More rapidly than its beginning, and far more peacefully, the communist era came to an end during the last two decades of the 20^th century” (p. 681). I think it is way to early to make claims that communism is over. There are still communist nations today, like Cuba, North Korea, China, and others. And these nations are not regarded as “friends” or “allies” with the US. Plus, the fact that people are calling Obama a communist, and saying it as a negative thing, proves that communism is still an issue. People don’t like the idea, they don’t want it as their government, and they see it existing today, which is why they have that fear. The cold war might be over, but communism is not gone. At least not gone enough to write about it in history books.