Learning a lot ...

[SellasieI]

I am getting into the ideas that are talked about in these forums, and I agree with a lot of it. I have been reading like a fiend trying to get some info (such as the communist manifesto, revolution in the revolution, perestroika, communist anarchy, etc.), but I still need to find out what everyone's views are on everything.

Im kinda confused with the differences between socialism and communism, what are the similarities and differences??

Nobody I know at my school really know anything about communism, socialism, and anarachy (which is a lot different I can tell). I myself am not a punkrocker (even though I listen to oldschool punk), but all the "anarchist" punks at my school seems to know nothing about what anarchy is all about, and when I was talking to one of them i sad "So...you follow anarhy huh?" he says "Sure do" and i say "What do you think about communism and socialism", he says "Hate it". Im having a hard time trying to anylyze that, and am wondering that he knows nothing about it but is making uneducated desicions upon it.

I dont really talk to my frineds about it, because their not really intersted. But I want to let other people in my school and city get to know the facts about all of it. I was thinking about starting a Socialism/Communism club at my school so that I can help others learn, and also learn more about it myself.

So, is there anything that anyone can tell me?? Such as words of wisdom, advice, anything really, I just want to know more about the subject and how I can help.
Thanks a lot.

[RedCeltic]

Here are two web sites that may help you in your quest for knowlege comrade. The first does a fair job in defining diffrent types of Socialists. The second is a good resource to archive many marxist works.

And from that first web site, here are the deffenitions of Communism, and Democratic Socialism. (Which is what I am)

COMMUNISM: A catch-all phrase for numerous branches of Socialism. During the 19th century, the term Communism was used to describe all forms of Marxism. However, after the Russian Revolution of 1917, Communism came to be the primary label of the Leninist branch of Marxism. Today, what most people describe as Communism is primarily associated with Stalinism and its related political ideologies, Maoism and Kimism. A few main points which unite all the different definitions of Communism are 1) A belief in revolutionary measures to achieve socialism, 2) A belief in extreme socialism, 3) A belief in strong government to protect a socialist-Communist economy.

DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISM: The belief that the equality which socialism is designed to bring cannot be achieved without democracy. Unlike Social Democracy, Democratic Socialists are more Left-wing than Centrist. Democratic Socialists are opposed to both Communism and capitalism, feeling that both systems have failed to emancipate the workers of the world from exploitation. During the Cold War, when the Social Democrats sided with the capitalist West and the Communists sided with the East, Democratic Socialists were pulled in the middle, because they saw both systems as evil in different ways. While the Soviet Union had political inequality, America had economic inequality. Perhaps the earliest large Democratic Socialist movement in America was the Socialist Party of America, which was founded in 1901 by Eugene V. Debs and his comrades. Today, the largest Democratic Socialist groups are the Socialist Party USA and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). There are also Democratic Socialists within the Greens USA. Perhaps the most well-known European examples include the non-Blairite factions of the British Labour Party as well as the German Party of Democratic Socialism.




In Solidarity and Unity.

RedCeltic

http://www.geocities.com/redencyclopedia/

http://csf.colorado.edu/mirrors/marxists.org/index.htm






(Edited by RedCeltic at 11:16 am on Oct. 23, 2001)

[jose lopez]

hey sellasie, thats good that youre interested in communism, and all kinds off leftish ideas, but one thing is for shure that youre going to have problems trying to make a communist club in your school, remember that the communist are" baaadddd " ...thats what the movies say and most of the people see those movies..try to explain someone that hollywood lies, or reagan hooohohoho but anyways do it cuzz you thats how the revolutionaries started............go on..but dont smoke too much ganya when you explain your ideas ....heeee just joking .....salud...

[DaNatural]

i think its great that new people are getting involved in these issues, a good way to find out more to pick up a Marx and Engels booklet, in there im sure they will have various writings of theirs and u will be able to learn more about it, communism basically is the abolition of private property(we dont own shit anyway) and an end to exploitation of man by his fellow man. it means sharing the wealth. socialism is along the same lines, i hink socialism strives to acheive communism in the end, which is basically no state at all. where the people run the city according to what is needed. but until that point which seems like forever we must have people running the show and i think thats what socialism is all about i hope i helped and didnt confuse, anyway a great site to check out is, www.marxists.org
peace