2008 Woodie Awards
IS THIS déjà vu, or have I seen this before?
By L.I.B.E.R.T.A.D.
Issue date: 10/13/08 Section: Observations
Let's go back a few decades.
The 1950s. Once there was a man named Joseph McCarthy. And he was very important. Why? He accused countless government officials of being Communists, which was a big no-no back in that time. See, Communism is BAD. No privately-owned businesses means business owners can't make millions and billions of dollars!
This means wealth is evenly distributed among EVERYONE? Blasphemy! The idea of universal healthcare, you know, giving every human being their share of medical health coverage, is just downright unpatriotic! At least, this is what the middle and working class citizens were conditioned to believe. But was Communism really as bad as it was portrayed?
Try to picture, if you will, a place where no one has to worry about getting sick; for fear of receiving never-ending bills in the mail. Imagine a world where poverty is a myth.
You may say, I'm a dreamer…but I'm not the…….sorry.
This scenario is very unlikely, as nice as t would seem. The fact of the matter is, most communist countries are led by dictators with no intention of balancing the wealth among the people. The essence of Communism stems from Socialism. Socialism, as the name implies, is a "social" government structure designed to benefit the greater good.
However, socialism calls for one to rule all. When someone like Saddam Hussein or Kim Jong Il takes a potentially beneficial plan and abuses it for personal growth and power, that would be where Communism gets such a bad rep. The idea of socialism isn't the culprit, it's the one who executes and abuses it.
Don't hate the game, hate the playa.
Let's go back to our friend Mr. MCarthy. Did he really have any proof that the people whom he claimed were communists, were indeed supporters of the Communist party? No. However, such was the paranoia and effectiveness of political propaganda, that the mere whisper of the words spread like wildfire. It seems anyone could just call you a communist out of thin air, and BOOM! Say Good-bye to your rights.
The 1950s. Once there was a man named Joseph McCarthy. And he was very important. Why? He accused countless government officials of being Communists, which was a big no-no back in that time. See, Communism is BAD. No privately-owned businesses means business owners can't make millions and billions of dollars!
This means wealth is evenly distributed among EVERYONE? Blasphemy! The idea of universal healthcare, you know, giving every human being their share of medical health coverage, is just downright unpatriotic! At least, this is what the middle and working class citizens were conditioned to believe. But was Communism really as bad as it was portrayed?
Try to picture, if you will, a place where no one has to worry about getting sick; for fear of receiving never-ending bills in the mail. Imagine a world where poverty is a myth.
You may say, I'm a dreamer…but I'm not the…….sorry.
This scenario is very unlikely, as nice as t would seem. The fact of the matter is, most communist countries are led by dictators with no intention of balancing the wealth among the people. The essence of Communism stems from Socialism. Socialism, as the name implies, is a "social" government structure designed to benefit the greater good.
However, socialism calls for one to rule all. When someone like Saddam Hussein or Kim Jong Il takes a potentially beneficial plan and abuses it for personal growth and power, that would be where Communism gets such a bad rep. The idea of socialism isn't the culprit, it's the one who executes and abuses it.
Don't hate the game, hate the playa.
Let's go back to our friend Mr. MCarthy. Did he really have any proof that the people whom he claimed were communists, were indeed supporters of the Communist party? No. However, such was the paranoia and effectiveness of political propaganda, that the mere whisper of the words spread like wildfire. It seems anyone could just call you a communist out of thin air, and BOOM! Say Good-bye to your rights.
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