Cobra
3rd October 2003, 00:36
This is a list of some common erroneous beliefs I hear commonly made about communist theory. To each of these I have given a reply pointing out the illogicalness of the statement. I am doing this because I know that there are millions of people who have been brainwashed by capitalist propaganda. Being spoon-fed by the capitalist media, many people often neglect to do much thinking on their own. By pointing out the absurdities of capitalist philosophy I hope it will help people (including myself) better see the reality of the world we live in and how it can be transformed for the better. This list is really short and Im sure there are a ton of things that are not on it, so if you have something that I didnt mention, please add it add to my list.
1. If everything cost the same as what it costs to produce then why produce it at all?
-Because someone needs it.
2. Communism provides people with no incentive to work.
-Not true, in the communist system the state will pay the more efficient workers more than less efficient workers.
3. Communism is an unfair system.
-Quite the contrary, Capitalism is far more unfair than communism. In the capitalist system the most unethical people are granted the highest profits. Those who have the hardest jobs are often paid the lowest wages. Many capitalist dont even work, they just return to their business and collect the money. Also, The chaotic market, which makes some rich and some poor for no reason other than chance, guide much of capitalism. Communism on the other hand has the necessary structure in place to give everyone what he or she rightly deserves.
4. If people are willing to pay me a madly high price for my goods or services, then, why shouldnt they?
-Because the money they pay might not go to where it is most needed most. In the communist system, the money you give to a state owned institution gives the state the necessary resources to meet the needs of the citizens better; thus, the customer gets what the or she wants and is helping to better serve the needs of the populous. A highly sophisticated well thought-out planned economy is far better than capitalisms invisible hand in meeting the needs of the people.
5. Capitalism is better than Communism because the Communist system uses crappy inefficient technology.
- This fallacy most likely exists due to the often forgotten fact that all Communist countries (with the exception of some of the Eastern European countries) were highly lacking in technology when they became Communists. Before Russia was the Soviet Union, it was mostly an agricultural country and most the factories had not yet been built. Even so, the time the Soviet Union was born (around 1920) to the time the Soviets put a man in space (the 1961) was an incredibly short period of only about 40 years. For the United States to put a man in space it took them nearly 200 years, 5 times as long. When the people a united in a common cause they can accomplish far more than what a bunch of greedy capitalist who only look after there own self-interest ever could.
Though to be fair, the Soviets could have done a much better job researching and developing better and more efficient machinery for their workers. However, This blunder was not due to the communist system, but rather, was a result of bad leadership.
6. Communists are lazy and their productivity is wasted.
- The reality is quite the opposite. In the capitalist system the purpose of most jobs is to make the superiors richer, which is actually quite pointless. Also, many capitalist make money through fixing things and making new products available for when breaks. So to make higher profits, things are made to break faster when they are built. TVs, Radios, Highways, Computers, Cars, Clothing, and a myriad of other products of labor are built under the notion of planned obsolescence. The capitalists want the products you buy to break so you have to go out and buy a new one, or pay them to repair the one you have. Sure, you could try to repair it yourself, but that would void the warranty or there could be a risk of electric shock, consumers are actually persuaded by this garbage into supporting the planned obsolescence system. This is extremely wasteful, not only in terms of labor, but also in terms of natural resources that are consumed.
In the communist system, everyone has a right to a job and every job is needed. There is an actual purpose to there labor. Communists work not to just survive, but for the benefit of the people and to make the world better. This gives workers a sense of dignity and pride in the work they do. Workers know that there is an actual point to there labor, giving there lives more meaning.
Side Note about the usage of the word Communism: The communism Im using in not the same as Marxs communism (which is basically anarchy with a different name), but is actually Marxs Socialism with a few minor changes due to the historical progression of Marxs theories. Im using the term communism because it has become common to use the two words interchangeably and I think the word communism sounds better than the word socialism.
1. If everything cost the same as what it costs to produce then why produce it at all?
-Because someone needs it.
2. Communism provides people with no incentive to work.
-Not true, in the communist system the state will pay the more efficient workers more than less efficient workers.
3. Communism is an unfair system.
-Quite the contrary, Capitalism is far more unfair than communism. In the capitalist system the most unethical people are granted the highest profits. Those who have the hardest jobs are often paid the lowest wages. Many capitalist dont even work, they just return to their business and collect the money. Also, The chaotic market, which makes some rich and some poor for no reason other than chance, guide much of capitalism. Communism on the other hand has the necessary structure in place to give everyone what he or she rightly deserves.
4. If people are willing to pay me a madly high price for my goods or services, then, why shouldnt they?
-Because the money they pay might not go to where it is most needed most. In the communist system, the money you give to a state owned institution gives the state the necessary resources to meet the needs of the citizens better; thus, the customer gets what the or she wants and is helping to better serve the needs of the populous. A highly sophisticated well thought-out planned economy is far better than capitalisms invisible hand in meeting the needs of the people.
5. Capitalism is better than Communism because the Communist system uses crappy inefficient technology.
- This fallacy most likely exists due to the often forgotten fact that all Communist countries (with the exception of some of the Eastern European countries) were highly lacking in technology when they became Communists. Before Russia was the Soviet Union, it was mostly an agricultural country and most the factories had not yet been built. Even so, the time the Soviet Union was born (around 1920) to the time the Soviets put a man in space (the 1961) was an incredibly short period of only about 40 years. For the United States to put a man in space it took them nearly 200 years, 5 times as long. When the people a united in a common cause they can accomplish far more than what a bunch of greedy capitalist who only look after there own self-interest ever could.
Though to be fair, the Soviets could have done a much better job researching and developing better and more efficient machinery for their workers. However, This blunder was not due to the communist system, but rather, was a result of bad leadership.
6. Communists are lazy and their productivity is wasted.
- The reality is quite the opposite. In the capitalist system the purpose of most jobs is to make the superiors richer, which is actually quite pointless. Also, many capitalist make money through fixing things and making new products available for when breaks. So to make higher profits, things are made to break faster when they are built. TVs, Radios, Highways, Computers, Cars, Clothing, and a myriad of other products of labor are built under the notion of planned obsolescence. The capitalists want the products you buy to break so you have to go out and buy a new one, or pay them to repair the one you have. Sure, you could try to repair it yourself, but that would void the warranty or there could be a risk of electric shock, consumers are actually persuaded by this garbage into supporting the planned obsolescence system. This is extremely wasteful, not only in terms of labor, but also in terms of natural resources that are consumed.
In the communist system, everyone has a right to a job and every job is needed. There is an actual purpose to there labor. Communists work not to just survive, but for the benefit of the people and to make the world better. This gives workers a sense of dignity and pride in the work they do. Workers know that there is an actual point to there labor, giving there lives more meaning.
Side Note about the usage of the word Communism: The communism Im using in not the same as Marxs communism (which is basically anarchy with a different name), but is actually Marxs Socialism with a few minor changes due to the historical progression of Marxs theories. Im using the term communism because it has become common to use the two words interchangeably and I think the word communism sounds better than the word socialism.