COMMUNISM

Communism?A theoretical economic system characterized by the collective ownership of

property and by the organization of labor for the common advantage of all members.

Communist Manifesto

The Manifesto argues that communism is inevitable, and that capitalism is inherently unstable, however a revolution (usually violent over-throw) will be required for this to occur.

Also states that Communism is the ending point of our social and political life, where there are no governments, and everyone is equal with no hierarchy, according to the manifesto.

The Communist Manifesto explains the goals of Communism, with the theory underlying this movement

Continued...

Flow Chart

Primitive Communism •small tribe

•not very educated

•no one owned land

•shared everything

Feudalism •king/emperor becomes ruler•gives land to nobles to rule the people for him•people kept uneducated•some people got richer due to trade•Used religion as justification of current ruling situation. People at bottom rewarded on the after-life, this was “God’s Plan”

Flow Chart

Capitalism •business owners get richer seeking profits at

the expense of workers

•capitalists get more power to serve their own interests (power = influence of those who make decisions)

•created a huge-class of people who get angry and organize into unions (the 99% ?)

Socialism•all rulers, kings, churches, capitalists are got rid of – elimination of private ownership of “Means of Production”•workers take control of the country to produce things for everyone•profits not the driving force and everyone benefits•ideas make a lot of people happy……(especially the poor)

quotes from book about MarxConsider, for example, Marx’s prediction of how the inherent conflict between capital and labor would manifest itself. As he wrote in Das Kapital: “companies’ pursuit of profits and productivity would naturally lead them to need fewer and fewer workers, creating an ‘industrial reserve army’ of the poor and unemployed: ‘Accumulation of wealth at one pole is, therefore, at the same time accumulation of misery’.”

“The process he [Marx] describes is visible throughout the developed world, particularly in the U.S. Companies’ efforts to cut costs and avoid hiring have boosted U.S. corporate profits as a share of total economic output to the highest level in more than six decades, while the unemployment rate stands at 9.1 percent and real wages are stagnant.

“U.S. income inequality, meanwhile, is by some measures close to its highest level since the 1920s. Before 2008, the income disparity was obscured by factors such as easy credit, which allowed poor households to enjoy a more affluent lifestyle. Now the problem is coming home to roost.”

Even Captain America is a pat of the 99%

Flow Chart

Communism•no more class divisions, people are

sharing, and no need for money

•human activity goes towards benefiting each other

“From each according to their abilities, to each according to their needs”

Changes to CommunismDefinition of Communism: A system of government in which the state plans and controls the

economy and a single, often authoritarian party holds power, claiming to make progress toward a higher social order in which all goods are equally shared by the people. (thefreedictionary.com)

The definition above is not what Communism was preached to be by Karl Marx. The definition above basically states a Dictatorship or Totalitarianism type of rule. The original meaning of Communism" is by definition

“From each according to their abilities - to each according to their needs”

In reality, communism has changed from being a peaceful, non-governing state, to a government who looks over a classless society.

Communism Today

Lists of Several “Communist” Countries:

1.China (1949)

2.Cuba (1961)

3.Laos (1975)

4.North Korea (1948)

5.Vietnam (1976)

6.USSR (1922-1991)