HIST410N-63225 Chamberlain Political History and Philosophies discussion

Communism was an economic-political philosophy founded by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in the second half of the 19th century. Marx and Engels met in 1844, and discovered that they had similar principles. In 1848 they wrote and published “The Communist Manifesto.” They desired to end capitalism feeling that it was the social class system that led to the exploitation of workers. The workers that were exploited would develop class consciousness. Then there would be a fundamental process of class conflict that would be resolved through revolutionary struggle. In this conflict, the proletariat will rise up against the bourgeoisie and establish a communist society. Marx and Engels thought of the proletariat as the individuals with labor power, and the bourgeoisie as those who own the means of production in a capitalist society. The state would pass through a phase, often thought of as a socialism, and eventually settle finally on a pure communist society. In a communist society, all private ownership would be abolished, and the means of production would belong to the entire community. In the communist movement, a popular slogan stated that everyone gave according to their abilities and received according to their needs. Thus, the needs of a society would be put above and beyond the specific needs of an individual. It became the dominant political philosophy of many countries across Asia, Eastern Europe, Africa and South America. In the late 19th century, communist philosophy began to develop in Russia. In 1917, the Bolsheviks seized power through the October Revolution. This was the first time any group with a decidedly Marxist viewpoint managed to seize power. They changed their name to the Communist Party, and sent their ideals to all European socialist parties. They then nationalized all public property as well as putting factories and railroads under government control. Stalin continued leading by the communist philosophies, and extended the growth of the the USSR. This example of Communism has been followed in many countries since then, including China and Cuba. Some achievements were that communism was a theory or system of social organization in which all property is owned by the community and each person contributes and receives according to their ability and needs; examples are: China, Laos, Cuba, North Korea and Russia; economic decisions are made by the community as a whole. In reality attempts to establish communism have ended in creating state-driven authoritarian economies and regimes which benefit single party political élite who are not accountable to the people or community. When a government takes over all economic activity, there are drastic consequences. Controlling all economic activity requires a strong dictatorship and totalitarian measures of oppression and violence. Individuals are required to divorce themselves from who God created them to be and serve the state instead. Cultures and countries fail when leaders construct a society that operates opposite of God’s design. The Soviet Union was a failure because it revolted against God’s design and desire for creation. It failed because it denied people the ability to live into who God created them to be. It stripped citizens of their personal choices and provided no incentives for them to unleash their creativity in productive ways.Fascism is a form of radical, right-wing, authoritarian ultra nationalism, characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition, and strong regimentation of society and of the economy, which came to prominence in early 20th-century Europe. The first fascist movements emerged in Italy during World War I before it spread to other European countries. Fascists believe that liberal democracy is obsolete and regard the complete mobilization of society under a totalitarian one-party state as necessary to prepare a nation for armed conflict and to respond effectively to economic difficulties. Such a state is led by a strong leader—such as a dictator and a martial government composed of the members of the governing fascist party—to forge national unity and maintain a stable and orderly society. Fascism rejects assertions that violence is automatically negative in nature and views political violence, war, and imperialism as means that can achieve national rejuvenation. Fascists advocate a mixed economy, with the principal goal of achieving autarky (national economic self-sufficiency) through protectionist and interventionist economic policies. Since the end of World War II in 1945, few parties have openly described themselves as fascist, and the term is instead now usually used pejoratively by political opponents. The descriptions neo-fascist or post-fascist are sometimes applied more formally to describe parties of the far-right with ideologies similar to, or rooted in, 20th-century fascist movements. Some achievements of fascism were the clearance of many swamps and used the freed terrain for agriculture; agricultural engineering and land reclamation; conquest of colonies in African brought abolition of slavery in Ethiopia; the creation of a somewhat better elementary school system; tighten the screws against the Sicilian mafia; fascism wanted to create the image of a government that helped all the citizens, included the poor ones: the students that came from poor families were given free healthcare, textbooks and school uniforms. Fascism failed to penetrate the masses.  Dissatisfaction increased as Italians lost confidence in the government when World War II began.  The fact that Italians were fed up with fascist authorities trying to insert themselves into daily life led directly to the easy overthrow of Mussolini a mere fifteen days after the Allies landed in Sicily in 1943.  Clearly the masses did not need much of an excuse to rise.  Although a sense of familial sacrifice increased devotion to the regime, ordinary local trivialities, as well as powerful traditions and rituals, stopped the new political religion in its tracks.  Fascism could not supplant the Italian love for nation, for religion, for family and community, for small towns, for music, for food, and for religion.   References: Walter, A,. (2014). “Fascism and  in Italy: A Reassessment.” Contemporary European History. 23.1.43-73.Brower, D., & Sanders, T. (2014). The world in the twentieth century: From empires to naPolitical Religiontions (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson. Reply Reply to Comment