61 Percent of Romanians Want Communism

[Apoi_Viitor]

http://www.pslweb.org/site/News2/233601021?news_iv_ctrl=1261&cmd=articles&page=NewsArticle&id=14658&start=1

The Romanian market research company CSOP and the Institute for the Investigation of Communist Crimes and the Memory of Romanian Exiles conducted a poll in recent months that discovered that 61 percent of Romanians consider communism to be a good idea at present. This is an increase from 53 percent four years ago. Half of the respondents said life was better in their country before 1989.

Only 27 percent of those interviewed said communism was a bad idea, which is a decrease from 34 percent four years ago. Fourteen percent of respondents felt that communism is a good idea that was applied well in Romania, while 47 percent felt it is a good idea that was applied poorly in Romania.

The main reasons people said life was better under the previous system were that everyone was employed, the living standards were decent, and housing was guaranteed. These polls show that Romanian workers are becoming more class conscious because capitalism is unable to satisfy their needs.

EDIT: Here is a better link

http://www.actmedia.eu/2010/09/27/top+story/opinion+poll%3A+61%25+of+romanians+consider+commun ism+a+good+idea/29726

[Nolan]

I thought Romania was one of those countries that was supposed to have had it extra bad.

[Reznov]

Yeah, I thought it was a really horrible place. A "Stalinist" hellhole.

But the people are wanting to return to it? Oh my god, our beautiful Capitalist Democracy, what has happened to her?

[Ocean Seal]

Yeah, I thought it was a really horrible place. A "Stalinist" hellhole.

But the people are wanting to return to it? Oh my god, our beautiful Capitalist Democracy, what has happened to her?
But, but, Ronald Regan defeated the Soviet Empire and gave the people freedom, the freedom to starve and the freedom to exploit. Good, now lets go from reminiscing to bringing back that memory and this time lets do it better.

[Saorsa]

I think this reveals how shit capitalism is, not that Romania under Ceauşescu was some kind of paradise.

It was probably a lot better for most people, but it's not exactly what we're fighting for.

[Sam_b]

An earlier thread: http://www.revleft.com/vb/half-romanians-yearn-t142202/index.html?t=142202

Plus my thoughts:


Why are some of us homogenising the 'communist bloc' and Central and Eastern European countries here? Historically and politically these things cannot be explained by simply lumping "a lot of East European countries are like this" or "nostalgia for the Eastern bloc". It's not right at all. Historically and linguistically Romania had a vastly differing experience to that of, say, Russia, Hungary and Czechoslovakia. Not many of us on here consider Albania or Yugoslavia as epitomising the Eastern bloc so why do we do it to Romania here?

Indeed, sentiments of nostalgia for former 'communist' countries has been on the rise. This is evidenced in Russia, Hungary a few years back before emergences of Fidesz and Czech Republic with the constant of the KSCM. What is puzzling though is appearances of it in Romania which traditionally did not share so deep sentiments and has been experiencing rising growth patterns economically after a near collapse. Wheras romanticisation of Janos Kadar and so-called 'goulash communism' can be fairly understandable due to stability, everyone getting fed etc it is at odds with the late 1970s/80s under Ceucescu; whose days at this time were epitomised by rolling blackouts and exporting food supplies to pay off the national debt: this resulted in often severe food shortages. [as an aside, I find this interesting in the Czech context: http://www.czechfocus.cz/2010/9/22/art53591.html] (http://www.anonym.to/?http://www.czechfocus.cz/2010/9/22/art53591.html])

If I was to make a generalisation, perhaps this 'support' is a way of venting frustration at the 'austerity' measures that are sweeping Europe, or perhaps there isn't a viable leftist alternative currently operating in Romania. I look forward with interest to further articles coming out of this discussion.

[Rafiq]

Those ungrateful little Romanian Commies!

We gave them a wonderful democracy, and they spit on it!

Only one explanation!

North Korean hypnosis!

[Revy]

http://www.pslweb.org/site/News2/233601021?news_iv_ctrl=1261&cmd=articles&page=NewsArticle&id=14658&start=1

The Romanian market research company CSOP and the Institute for the Investigation of Communist Crimes and the Memory of Romanian Exiles conducted a poll in recent months that discovered that 61 percent of Romanians consider communism to be a good idea at present. This is an increase from 53 percent four years ago. Half of the respondents said life was better in their country before 1989.

Only 27 percent of those interviewed said communism was a bad idea, which is a decrease from 34 percent four years ago. Fourteen percent of respondents felt that communism is a good idea that was applied well in Romania, while 47 percent felt it is a good idea that was applied poorly in Romania.

The main reasons people said life was better under the previous system were that everyone was employed, the living standards were decent, and housing was guaranteed. These polls show that Romanian workers are becoming more class conscious because capitalism is unable to satisfy their needs.

well at least most of the pro-communist side agree that it is a good idea that was applied poorly. Ceausescu was a bastard.

[DaringMehring]

Fourteen percent of respondents felt that communism is a good idea that was applied well in Romania, while 47 percent felt it is a good idea that was applied poorly in Romania.


So a M-L would tell the 47% that they're wrong?

To me, this is why the future belongs to Trotskyism (or something with a similar view to Trotskyism on this issue, under some other name). The truth is and the people feel it, that communism is a good idea that was applied poorly in the Eastern bloc and elsewhere. These are the people whose support will be critical in winning the future fights for revolutionary socialism.

[NecroCommie]

So a M-L would tell the 47% that they're wrong?

To me, this is why the future belongs to Trotskyism (or something with a similar view to Trotskyism on this issue, under some other name). The truth is and the people feel it, that communism is a good idea that was applied poorly in the Eastern bloc and elsewhere. These are the people whose support will be critical in winning the future fights for revolutionary socialism.
What a fantastic way of starting a sectarian shitstorm: a strawman! Who has ever said that any leninist would tell 47% they are wrong? And where did you get the idea M-Ls would find that view unwanted, or that they would disagree themselves? Marxism-Leninism is not a dogma, even if some people treat it as such.

And this is great news! No matter what Romania was or what these people think about the old regime, this is an obvious sign of people wanting change. It is a good start for a new communist movement, no matter what the policies of such movement happened to be.

[jingle_bombs]

So a M-L would tell the 47% that they're wrong?

To me, this is why the future belongs to Trotskyism (or something with a similar view to Trotskyism on this issue, under some other name). The truth is and the people feel it, that communism is a good idea that was applied poorly in the Eastern bloc and elsewhere. These are the people whose support will be critical in winning the future fights for revolutionary socialism.

Most M-Ls think that it was applied poorly in the eastern bloc countries. Except perhaps the GDR, but even there it was far from adequate. Don't be so sectarian.

edit: NC beat me to it.

Does anyone have another source on this poll by the way? I'd love to rub these statistics in some people's faces, but the PSL website isn't a great primary source.

[EvilRedGuy]

Great news. Very great news. Workers wake up from the capitalist nightmare!

[Ovi]

Now if people actually knew what communism is, this would be good news.

[Kiev Communard]

It is great that Romanian proletariat has begun realising that the anti-communist propaganda spewed by the establishment media are lies. Too bad the Ukrainian workers remain largely passive even now :(.

[Thirsty Crow]

Yeah, I thought it was a really horrible place. A "Stalinist" hellhole.

But the people are wanting to return to it? Oh my god, our beautiful Capitalist Democracy, what has happened to her?

I don't think that Romanians want to "return to" anything.
Notice the 47 percent of informants who think that the "idea was poorly applied in Romania". I would venture to guess that such a social milieu represents a fertile soil for a committed revolutionary organization which would not be haunted by the spectre of Stalinism/Soviet history.
So, the real question is, given the local circumstances - a potential rise in class consciousness - where are the revolutionary organizations and what are they doing at this the latest turbulent "moment" in history?
Any Romanian comrades or anyone else that knows something about the situation there?

[Nolan]

Leftists in Romania need to raise awareness of the nature of the previous regime and why it collapsed. Until we do that this is meaningless. This study is vague with what it means by "good idea poorly applied." It could mean people feel it was better then but communism is utopian and can't work in the long run.

[Nolan]

So a M-L would tell the 47% that they're wrong?

To me, this is why the future belongs to Trotskyism (or something with a similar view to Trotskyism on this issue, under some other name). The truth is and the people feel it, that communism is a good idea that was applied poorly in the Eastern bloc and elsewhere. These are the people whose support will be critical in winning the future fights for revolutionary socialism.

Why Trotskyism?

[RadioRaheem84]

I really believe that all the people of the Eastern Bloc were wanting Democratic Socialism or some sort of mix of central planning and the consumerism of the West. They didn't want free market exploitation. But that is what the US and the little weasel leaders gave them.

[Sam_b]

We should also consider the fact that Romania has (as of earlier this year) agreed with the US plans of implementing radar defence systems in Central and Eastern Europe, and on their home soil. I'd love to see some figures of support for this. (I always go on about the Czechs I know, who have recently renegaded and are again considering implementation around Brdy, but the figures of opposition in the past have been as high as 70%).

[RadioRaheem84]

It is clear by all the stats, that the people of the Eastern Bloc were wanting something different from State Soviet-Style Planning and Free Market Fundamentalism. They wanted a Democratic system with a full social benefits safety net and the grand cornucopia of consumerism they saw on Western TV.

The US planners and opportunist leaders (along with opportunist workers) saw fit to manipulate the move toward "democracy" in those countries to benefit only the rich elite and the US corporations. Simple as that.

People are so frustrated with the new system that they would be even happier with a return to the old one that they hated so much too.

So that goes to show that they know that they old system was shit too but it was at least BETTER than the one they have now!

Pundits on the right like Christopher Hitchens poke fun at the people who wish for a return to central planning, dismissing their plight as naive nostalgia. Little does he know that the people of those nations know exactly what they had before but are so fed up with the new "democratic" system that they wouldn't care about a return to central planning as long as they have some sort of modicum of decent living standards.

This is a chance for the Left to spread the ideas of Socialism for the 21st Century. To renew ideas about socialism based on the past and take from the past what was good and leave behind the bad.

People are wanting some kind of socialism, that is for sure. Everywhere around the world. They want some sort of security for their lives whether it's full fledged Communism, democratic socialism or plain out social democracy, the march to the left is wanted.

[Rusty Shackleford]

Now if people actually knew what communism is, this would be good news.
im sure they have a pretty good idea of what it is

[Robocommie]

im sure they have a pretty good idea of what it is

Yeah I kinda expected someone to pull that line. It came up when people posted a poll showing a fair deal of Americans want socialism, and some folks declared it meant nothing because most Yanks think socialism refers to social democracy.

I can't possibly see how that could be the case with "Communism." Especially in a country like Romania, which was in the Warsaw Pact for decades, ffs. When Romanians ask for Communism, they know what they're asking for.

[Ovi]

im sure they have a pretty good idea of what it is
Yeah, I'm sure 61% of romanians want to achieve a stateless, moneyless society. After all, we had communism before 1990.

[The Fighting_Crusnik]

Hopefully if they return to Communism, it will work this time and hopefully, after being made into a crap hole during their former "communist" period, they'll know all the ways of corruption and fight it off so that history doesn't repeat itself.

[Rakhmetov]

Ceacescu must have done something right inspite of his crimes.

[BeerShaman]

Love this!

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

What a mis-representation.

14% of people, in effect, both thought the idea of Communism was good and that it was applied well in Romania. So, to get that straight first of all, there's no clamour for a return to the rule of the Caeucescus.

Secondly, Communism? How would anybody know? Has Communism, in praxis, ever existed?

[Rusty Shackleford]

Yeah, I'm sure 61% of romanians want to achieve a stateless, moneyless society. After all, we had communism before 1990.
roughly 40 years of instruction by socialists, no matter how well they implemented socialism, leaves a pretty huge mark on society. also, its not capitalists teaching socialism, its fucking socialists. because of that, they also had things like pioneers, octoberists and what not. and a fair amount of education in marxism and leninism for anyone who wanted to do so.

a comrade of mine is romanian and guess what, before he ever moved to the US, he had a damn good idea of what communism was and will be.

[RadioRaheem84]

Exactly. It's foolish and almost right wing to assume that the Romanian people had no real concept of what socialism meant. They know enough now to know it was better than the capitalist hell hole they're living through now.

[Sentinel]

Many good posts in this thread. I've personally always wanted to believe that the left would after some time start to recover properly from the disaster at the end of the last century -- as it's only logical -- but not quite could, being too young to remember the last proper 'leftwing-wave'.

These are really good news, and needed ones considering the increasing rise of neo-fascism in Europe, which really scares me.

I wonder what the stats could be like for Russia, I trust the election results from there about as much as I can throw a piano.

[Burn A Flag]

It's very heartening to see some current leftist support. It's extremely well supressed by the media though.

[Apoi_Viitor]

I wonder what the stats could be like for Russia, I trust the election results from there about as much as I can throw a piano.

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/13165/russians_regret_collapse_of_soviet_union/

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/12136/russians_say_things_were_better_under_brezhnev/

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/5716/russians_satisfied_with_brezhnevs_tenure/

[The Vegan Marxist]

It's very heartening to see some current leftist support. It's extremely well supressed by the media though.

This documentary shows exactly what people feel of their new current system in Russia:

EqEyLaEkJDE

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/13165/russians_regret_collapse_of_soviet_union/

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/12136/russians_say_things_were_better_under_brezhnev/

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/5716/russians_satisfied_with_brezhnevs_tenure/

IMO, those are three really poor polls to use.

The first one does not at all deal or explore the reasons why Russians regret the fall of the USSR. You will note that it also only asks Russians, not other SSR-participating people.

The second and third relate to Brezhnev. We can all pretty much agree that Brezhnev's rule of 64-82 was a low point for Socialism in the USSR. If that is the period that is apparently most nostalgia-prone for former USSR citizens, then that is not something that reflects well on Socialism in the USSR.

A better poll would deal with the question of economic systems - Capitalism and Socialism. The following contains some good polls:

http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1554/hungary-economic-discontent-democracy-communism

I think it's been posted before but i'll post it again to back up my article. There are polls in there which show that the overwhelming majority of former Eastern bloc nations (and some western European nations!) view the current economic situation as bad, whilst in another poll, those respondents from Hungary, Ukraine, Russia, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Slovakia viewed people as being worse off now than under Communism (oh, how I hate that word!).

Having said that, we should also be realistic about the failings of Socialism in the 20th century. The following link shows that a majority of people from the former GDR, Russia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and a few more approve of the change to 'democracy', as they put it. The same is also true about approval ratings with regards to the change to Capitalism, even when people were asked in 2009.

The 'Nationalist Sentiment in Russia' box halfway down the page also shows that Russia has gone from, at the fall of the USSR, not being a particularly Nationalistic country (only 26% responded positively when asked 'Should Russia be for Russians') to, in 2009, being rather more Nationalistic, with 54% of people agreeing with the same statement.

So, we can conclude, based on the raw data, that there is probably some remaining support for the Socialist systems used in the Eastern bloc in the 20th century, but that the majority (in some cases overwhelmingly so) of people do not want a return to Socialism, as defined by that which existed in the 20th century.

The answer is that we must change our own conception of what Socialism is. Do we have the capability to do that? I'm sceptical that the current bunch of Communists in Europe do (look at the CPRF and the fragmented nature of the UK left as examples of this).

[Crux]

As one of the more left wing (unlike that neoliberal asshole Lech walesa) leaders of Solidarity commented a few years after the fall of the stalinist regime "The worst thing about communism is what comes after".
If Caucesku was better than the current state of affairs you know it's pretty fucking bad.
But then again, it's worth remembering that while a large chunk thought it was better before the fall of the regime and an even larger chunk think communism is a good idea, only 14% think it was well applied in romania. This is very positive I think, because communism is the movement of the future not of nostalgia for stalinism.

[RadioRaheem84]

Well I think what is being pushed by many people is a very democratic socialist idea. People want to keep the consumer culture along with secured social benefits.

[Crux]

Well I think what is being pushed by many people is a very democratic socialist idea. People want to keep the consumer culture along with secured social benefits.
A spark can ignite a prairie fire.

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

Well I think what is being pushed by many people is a very democratic socialist idea. People want to keep the consumer culture along with secured social benefits.

Was the Eastern bloc, by the 70s and 80s, not essentially a humungous welfare state anyway?

Free healthcare, free education, lots of subsidies of living costs etc., but a massive state, rigid hierarchy and the move to a classless society essentially not in the pipeline.

Whilst I am really not a fan of leftists who decry the entire existence of Socialism in the former Eastern bloc, it is also quite annoying that the popular understanding of Socialism amongst the general populace has been absolutely coloured by the experience of Eastern bloc Socialism.

[RadioRaheem84]

Well what most people in the Eastern Blocs wanted was to keep their social safety net while enjoying the consumer freedom of the West, along with everything else they saw on TV.

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

Again, is that not the welfare state?

Do you think that the left in these countries should abandon Socialism then and push for mixed economy Social Democracy?

I am a fan of your posts normally, Raheem, but i'm not quite sure what you're getting at here...

[greenwarbler]

I find it striking that no one in this thread has pointed out the ridiculousness of the name the Institute for the Investigation of Communist Crimes and the Memory of Romanian Exiles (IICCMRE)...

[BogdanV]

Ahem. In original :

"Institutul de Investigare a Crimelor Comunismului în România si Memoria Exilului Romanesc"

Translation appears to be sound.

Alas, all departments, institutes, etc. are like that here. Mix some random letters and you're bound to end up with some department's name.


This proves yet again that not even our (as I have the misfortune to be living in Romania) ruling class takes its role seriously.
They're here to milk us of our cash. and, as opposed to western "democracies", they don't even bother to pretend that they're doing something useful.

Anyway, one comrade asked about what actions does the left do here.
My answer is : what left ?!

Sorry to disappoint, but there's no real organized left in Romania.
Yeah, sure, people may gather in solidarity with gay parade or 1st of may, but that's about it.

Heh, .. even our own flavour of neo-nazis has gone silent in recent years.
The only kind of actual movements are union-organized protests (obviously backed-up by the opposition parties : social-dems and national-liberals).


So there you have it : one Romanian citizen's personal view on the situation.

If anyone has any specific questions about what's happening around here, I'll answer to the best of my knowledge; maybe even translate some media articles if you're interested in what the press has to say.

[RadioRaheem84]

Again, is that not the welfare state?

Do you think that the left in these countries should abandon Socialism then and push for mixed economy Social Democracy?

I am a fan of your posts normally, Raheem, but i'm not quite sure what you're getting at here...

No, El Granma, I am not saying that they should abandon socialism.

I am just pointing out that I think that is what the people of the Eastern Bloc thought they were getting. Some sort of mixed economy.

Also, people are hip to the idea of social democracy and wish for social benefits along with their love for consumerism.

I am not saying it's right, I am just saying that the majority of the population in the world (especially the West) cannot get over the issue of consumerism and thinks it will disappear if they choose socialism.

They've been convinced that a move to socialism would end their consumer dreams, yet they still want social protections, so they go for mixed economy.

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

Most of the population here would rather punish the supposedly 'undeserving' poor, as long as the Daily Mail/Telegraph say that this is what should happen.

Unfortunately, I don't think that the reality in Europe mirrors your idea of what it is really like here. We're far along a path towards US-style Capitalism, tbh. It's pretty desperate.

[RadioRaheem84]

Most of the population here would rather punish the supposedly 'undeserving' poor, as long as the Daily Mail/Telegraph say that this is what should happen.

Unfortunately, I don't think that the reality in Europe mirrors your idea of what it is really like here. We're far along a path towards US-style Capitalism, tbh. It's pretty desperate.

But that is not what the people want, am I right?

That is what the ruling classes want, no?

[REDSOX]

Now the masses in eastern europe have digested 20 odd years of free marker capitalism no wonder they want communism or what they think is communism back. I doubt the romanians would want a nicolae ceaucescu type figure back though :)

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

But that is not what the people want, am I right?

That is what the ruling classes want, no?

Well, i'm loathe to say that ordinary people are purposely making themselves poorer and more vulnerable. But it's not a subject that I want to lie on, just for the sake of naive optimism. I guess the truth is that, in the UK (obviously, you can see that France is probably an exception, as far as western Europe goes), there is little to no class consciousness across the near-entirety of the working class. Hence the situation of the extremely fragmented left in the UK; I believe that, as none of the tendencies have any popular support whatsoever (i'm discounting the short lived Respect/SWP thing, but that was more about Galloway in terms of public support anyway), they tend to fight amongst themselves as, essentially, they have little else to do - it's fairly clear that to instigate a return to popularity of Socialism, an extra-national event will have to happen, or something really, really bad would have to happen here, such as the election of some Nationalists.

So, the truth is that here in the UK at least, the working class have no class consciousness and are making a rod for their own backs, mostly.

[Dunning-Kruger FX]

great spread the communism through out the EU, the "iron wall" will become the "iron fist".

[Nolan]

great spread the communism through out the EU, the "iron wall" will become the "iron fist".

Dude, that is like, so novel, and so deep i just had to write it down.

[timbaly]

I wonder what the poll results would look like if you controlled for age. I'm under the impression that more people of the younger generation are supportive of capitalism than the older generation that lived under socialism.

[Bilan]

The survey isn't linked to. Just a PSL description of it, and who it was conducted by.
There's also no account for why the perception has changed, whether or not it is representative (e.g What's the sample size? How was it obtained?)
People should be more careful. Honestly.

[MellowViper]

Well, then they should elect some working class parties then.

[Apoi_Viitor]

The survey isn't linked to. Just a PSL description of it, and who it was conducted by.
There's also no account for why the perception has changed, whether or not it is representative (e.g What's the sample size? How was it obtained?)
People should be more careful. Honestly.

Here's a better link.

http://waz.euobserver.com/887/30890

And here.

http://www.actmedia.eu/2010/09/27/top+story/opinion+poll%3A+61%25+of+romanians+consider+commun ism+a+good+idea/29726

[Bilan]

This is part of what I was after:



1133 people were interviewed for the study. The error was 2.9% with a probability of 0.95%. Interviews were made based on a standard questionnaire at the respondents’ homes. Data were gathered over 27 August and 2 September as part of CSOP omnibus.


This is of a population of 21 million people.
Now, this is obviously a relatively big sample but it's not that big, and the sweeping claims being derived from it are ridiculous.
You can't make a claim like that based on such a sample (relative to the population).
It is likely, depending on the representativeness of the survey, that many people in Romania are sympathetic to communism and the old Romanian-State socialist regime. But that is not the same as saying as 61% percent support it. That is outlandish and sensationalist, and people ought to be more critical of this type of shit.

you also need to see what kind of questions they've asked.

[Targaryen]

As BogdanV said there is no organized left in Romania, so no mater how sympathetic people here are about the idea of communism, as long as there is no organization to take advantage of it nothing is going to happen.

But the most worrying thing here is that the people have grown extremely apathetic about anything concerning politics to such a degree that now you can hardly find anyone willing to talk politics, not to mention trying to change anything going to a protest or taking any active role. For example if I were to walk through my high school now and ask everybody what their political standing is I don't know if I would find 10 people that have any political opinion at all:(.

So even if they are voting pro communism in a pool they are not going to anything more then that to change things.

Also most union protest and strikes are just attempts by opposition parties to weaken the government (as most union leaders are their puppets and have nothing to do with the workers they should represent).

[madrone]

Communism could very well return IMO, it just will not be called 'communism' ala soviet communism. It will be something more like what belarus and moldavia have.

[Obs]

Communism could very well return IMO, it just will not be called 'communism' ala soviet communism. It will be something more like what belarus and moldavia have.
You mean social democracy?

[RadioRaheem84]

Belarus? Moldavia? I don't know.

I really think that most people are compromising with some sort of democratic socialism or left social democracy, with a slight tolerance for communists to join in but not be dominant in politics.

Not something I like, but that is kind of the way I see things going.

[Tatarin]

I think RadioRaheem84 is onto the right track. What would be interesting to know is what people thought about when they answered that question. I mean, how would the statistics show if the interviewer explained in-depth what communism really was. For example, Hungary is another of those countries where "communism is yearned for", yet the Hungarian Guard (the fascists) can parade openly, discriminate and murder people because they are Roma, for example, and so on.

So in short, the answers were most likely of economic life rather than social, which in many of the former East Bloc is rather conservative (another critical point as to what the USSR and it's allies really did to pave the way for communism).

I think it is more of the phrase "it was better in the past" that is 'often said by older people', so to speak. If a similar poll was made in the USA, similar answers would most likely emerge. "Of course it was better in 1946 when troops returned from the war to buy houses and have jobs that could support entire families in contrast to 2010 when the whole house needs 10 hours work and don't even own houses," maybe?

In Western Europe, similar stripes can be heard from older people - "of course it was better in the past when we didn't have crime and immigration." In fact, precisely this line is what got the Sweden Democrats into parliment recently, if not many other extreme right-wing parties around Western Europe.

There was yet another poll around the same time Angela Merkel denounced multiculturalism as "a failed concept" where 1 out of 10 thought a "furher" would get everything right. Most of those are most likely from the former DDR, where the NDP is strong too.

[Thirsty Crow]

Anyway, one comrade asked about what actions does the left do here.
My answer is : what left ?!

Sorry to disappoint, but there's no real organized left in Romania.
Yeah, sure, people may gather in solidarity with gay parade or 1st of may, but that's about it.

Heh, .. even our own flavour of neo-nazis has gone silent in recent years.
The only kind of actual movements are union-organized protests (obviously backed-up by the opposition parties : social-dems and national-liberals).


You didn't disappoint me since I've been expecting an answer like this. Obviously, the situation in all of Eastern Europe, the former socialist bloc, is like this.
However, I think that you are in fact lucky if your brand of neo-nazis have gone silent because there are reasons to suspect that ex-Yugoslavia countries will witness a rise in neo-fascist elements.
And how about organizing within the existing unions? Are there militant elements? Again, I'm suspecting that the answer will be "no, there are none", which is quite frankly a shame.

[PolishTrotsky]

Romania wasn't the best of the Communist countries. It was definitely stalinist and a Deformed Workers' State. Hopefully this time around, without pressure from a Degenerated Workers' State like the USSR, Romania can become one of the worlds best nations.

[People's War]

See, I hate Ceausescu and think he was an evil bastard. But if they prefer THAT to capitalism, what do you think that says about how bad it is?

[Cheung Mo]

See, I hate Ceausescu and think he was an evil bastard. But if they prefer THAT to capitalism, what do you think that says about how bad it is?

That they don't remember that he was a fascist megalomaniac who sucked off Western capitalists for money and then made the Romanian people starve to pay down the debt? Fuck that traitor. He was closer to Hitler than to Lenin.

All it proves is that they're ignorant both of history and of the true nature of socialism, same as people everywhere.

[Nolan]

Yeah wasn't Ceausescu nicknamed "Nixon's favorite communist" or something?

[NoOneIsIllegal]

The first Bush supported him, and once the people revolted, he came out in support of them and against Ceausecu :rolleyes:

[Nolan]

On top of that he had some very...questionable social politics.

[Cheung Mo]

On top of that he had some very...questionable social politics.

Just questionable? Like racialism, banning abortion, extreme natalism (with awards cribbed from Hitler and which resulted in the orphan tragedy that still haunts Romania), obscenely strict divorce laws? Um. Yeah.

He was the only "communist" leader aside from Mao to maintain relations with Pinochet (which some people here seem willing to forgive judging by the reception Mao gets).

[Nolan]

By "questionable" I was insinuating "very very reactionary."

[Sir Comradical]

That says something when they had Ceausescu as GenSec.

[Apoi_Viitor]

Yeah wasn't Ceausescu nicknamed "Nixon's favorite communist" or something?

Only because early on, he started off by trying to portray his regime as somewhat humane and liberal (sort of like Tito), and he critiqued the USSR's actions during the Prague Spring.