The Ben G

O rly? I haven't been paying attention to that.

Sure, good luck and again, read around.

Internationalism was not unique to the Trotskyists only, Marx spoke about the need for an International and established one. As far as Lenin is concerned, it is worth reading some of his pre-1917 writings in order to get a sense of where he was coming from and where he ended up. I recommend you check out Paul Mattick's 1949 essay entitled "Spontaneity and Organisation" over at the Marxist Internet Archive website.

Haha thanks man, huge shining and jack nickleson fan

Why don't you join the Left Communist forum group and discuss some of the issues you have there, perhaps they will be able to provide some answers or at least be willing to discuss them with you.

Hopefully you will reconsider left communism.

Thanks, comrade. I like your album cover.

I may not be quite right. Wikipedia says he was expelled for not meeting tuition fees, and then joined the Bolshevik position afterwards. It also says he rebelled against the church establishment while a student, though it gives little detail as to how and why. After leaving he was marked by the czarist secret police as an outlaw, extortioner kidnapper and bank robber, working in the caucuses for the Bolsheviks.

I don't know too much about Stalin's early life. I know he was raised and educated in a seminary and had an interest in poetry. I also know he got rapped up in a gang, as was labeled a revolutionary (all organizations outside of the state were labeled "revolutionary" so that's where he began mixing with communist circles. This upbringing in the clerical class probably contributed to many of his decisions and policies.