Jump to content

Communism: Difference between revisions

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
rv - censorship/NPOV...if you want to insert Nepal in the issue, use more neutral words.
No edit summary
Line 1: Line 1:
[[Image:Hammer_sickle_clean.png|thumb|Wikipedia is Communism!]]
<!-- Controversial topic - Please read talk page discussion before making substantial changes. -->
:''This article is about '''communism''' as a form of [[society]] built around a [[gift economy]], as an ideology advocating that form of society, and as a [[popular movement]]. For issues regarding the organization of the communist movement, see the [[Communist party]] article. For issues regarding one-party states ruled by Communist Parties (and everything associated with them), see [[Communist state]].''
{{Template:Communism}}
'''Communism''' is a term that can refer to one of several things: a social and economic system, an [[ideology]] which supports that system, or a [[political movement]] that wishes to implement that system.

As a theoretical social and economic system, communism would be a type of [[Egalitarianism|egalitarian]] society with no [[state]], no privately owned [[means of production]] and no [[social classes|social class]]. In communism, all [[property]] is owned by the [[community]] as a whole, and all people have equal social and [[economics|economic]] status. Theoretically, human need or advancement is not left unsatisfied because of poverty, and is rather solved through distribution of property as needed. This is thus often the system proposed to solve the problem of the [[poverty cycle]].

Perhaps the best known maxim of a communist society is "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need." This economic model is also referred to as a [[gift economy]].

As a political movement, communism is a branch of the broader [[socialist]] movement. The communist movement differentiates itself from other branches of the socialist movement through various things - such as, for example, the communist desire to establish a gift economy, and their commitment to [[revolution|revolutionary]] strategies for overthrowing capitalism.

A '''communist''' is someone who favors communism.

== Marxism and Anarchism ==
A communist society in theoretical [[Marxism|Marxist]] terms is no different from the kind of society that is advocated by [[Anarchism]], (specifically [[Anarcho-communism]]), but traditionally, Marxists argue for a temporary socialist government to facilitate the transition. Both movements are defined by their agitation for the elimination of wage labor and capitalism in favour of a non-statist gift economy. Both Marxist communists and Anarcho-communists seek to abolish private as well as state ownership of the means of production and the state itself.

However, unlike many Marxists, anarchists do not believe that a stage where the state owns the means of production is needed or desirable between capitalism and communism. They wish to implement their libertarian system without going through a period of "state socialism" where the state acts as an "instrument" of the working class. Anarchists, with their distrust of rulers, argue that this ultimately risks the rise of a potentially tyrannous "red bureaucracy", that could hijack a revolution, seizing power, and thus leading to abuse.

This has resulted in a sometimes hostile relationship between many Marxists and Anarchists, though this hostility is generally not present amongst the autonomous and more libertarian Marxist traditions. Anarchists were involved in the [[October Revolution]], and supported the idea of workers' councils or [[Soviet (council)|Soviets]], but are fiercely opposed to the centralization of power away from them that occurred in later periods, especially under Stalin. They considered this, as well as the organization of a central army as opposed to workers' militias run directly by local soviets, to be treachery and leading away from communism.

==Marxism==
The best-known form of communism is [[Marxism]] and its various derivatives. Among other things, Marxism proposes the [[Materialism|materialist]] conception of [[history]]; there are stages of [[economic development]]: [[slavery]], [[feudalism]], [[capitalism]], and communism. These stages are advanced through a [[dialectic| dialectical]] process, progressing society as history progresses. This progress is driven by [[class struggle]]. Communism is the final form of class society as it results in one class, or conversely, no classes, as those divisions cannot exist if only one exists.

Although many small communist societies have existed throughout human history, [[Karl Marx]] and [[Friedrich Engels]] were the first to devise a rigorous theoretical basis for communism. The political theory they created, namely [[Marxism]], became the chief advocate of communism in the modern world.

Marxism seeks to explain historical phenomena in terms of [[class struggle]]. According to Marxists, human society consists of a number of [[social class]]es, which are differentiated by their relationship to the [[means of production]]. For example, [[capitalism|capitalist]] society consists of the [[bourgeoisie]] (the capitalists; those who own the means of production) and the [[proletariat]] (the workers; those who must work for wages in order to make a living, because they do not possess any means of production of their own). One social class is the [[ruling class]], and it uses its [[wealth]] and [[political power | power]] to [[exploitation|exploit]] the other class(es). For example, in capitalism, the bourgeoisie exploits the proletariat by drawing a [[profit]] from the proletariat's [[labor | work]]. According to the theory, a business owner's profit equals what the workers produce minus what the workers get paid - thus, in order for the owner to make a profit, the workers must get paid less than what they produce; see [[surplus value]]. Eventually, one of the exploited classes rises up to overthrow the [[ruling class]] and the existing system, establishing itself as the new ruling class of a new system (for example, capitalism was established when the bourgeoisie overthrew feudalism and the feudal ruling class - the [[aristocracy]]).

According to the theory, class struggle is the engine of a cycle in which socio-economic systems are created, destroyed and replaced. Marxism identifies several systems that have been created and destroyed by it since the beginning of human history. However, social classes - and therefore class struggle - have not always existed. They were created at the dawn of human [[civilization]], when [[nomad]]ic tribes first settled down and started practicing [[agriculture]]. Before that, human beings lived in a kind of classless society that can be described as [[primitive communism]]. Primitive communism ended when agriculture created the conditions for private ownership of the means of production (which, at that time, simply meant private ownership of [[cultivation | cultivated land]]). This differentiated people into [[landlord | land owner]]s and those who needed to work other people's land for a living, and this in turn resulted in the [[slavery]]-based system of the [[ancient world]]. That system eventually gave way to [[feudalism]], which eventually gave way to [[capitalism]].

According to Marxism, the class struggle within capitalism will eventually lead to the proletariat overthrowing the bourgeoisie and establishing [[socialism]]. Socialism, in turn, will result in the gradual fading of social classes (as the means of production are made public property), which will lead to the final stage of human society - communism.

And that is the Marxist foundation for communism. Communism cannot change into another system because class struggle - the mechanism that drives such changes - no longer exists.

===Marxism and Leninism===
Within Marxism, there are several different trends. The largest of these trends is [[Leninism]], which was based on the writings and actions of [[Vladimir Lenin]]. According to Lenin, capitalism can only be overthrown by a [[proletarian revolution]], not by [[parliament]]ary means. Furthermore, in opposition to Marx, Lenin argued that the revolution would occur first in the [[developing nations | less developed nations]], and that it would require a "vanguard of the proletariat" composed of a relatively small, tightly organized [[Communist Party]] of workers de-classed [[intellectual]]s (see the article on [[Leninism]] for an explanation of the differences between Lenin and Marx, and their basis).

Most (but by no means all) present-day communists are of the Leninist variety.

===Leninism versus Democratic Socialism===

As explained above, according to Marxism, the laws of class struggle would drive capitalism to evolve into socialism and then, eventually, into communism. The [[Social Democratic Party of Germany]] (SPD) and other overtly Marxist parties, were formed to fight the class war on the parliamentary front. However, Marx never claimed to know exactly how long this process would take, and Marxists have often made very different speculations on the subject. Some of the more optimistic ones believed that capitalism would begin to fall apart in coming decades.

As the years passed, and with capitalist society showing no signs of collapse, some Marxists began to search for an explanation. Some members of the SPD, such as [[Eduard Bernstein]] decided that class war had failed, that a socialist society would have to be created without [[revolution]], and that it could be brought about through the process of reforming existing capitalist institutions. This ideology became known as [[democratic socialism]] (not to be confused with [[social democracy]]) and began to spread through existing socialist and/or "[[labourism|labourist]]" parties, such as the [[British Labour Party]], although this particular party is perceived as moving into right wing in recent years.

Others, however &mdash; including [[Vladimir Lenin]] and [[Rosa Luxembourg]] &mdash; argued that Marx had failed to analyze capitalism as a global system (since he had concentrated on the issue of how capitalism works and develops inside a single country). They looked at the larger picture, and concluded that capitalism was entering a new stage (called "[[imperialism]]" by Lenin), in which rich countries [[colonization | colonized]] and exploited poorer ones (in much the same way as the rich exploited the poor within a single country). Therefore, a revolution in the poor countries - or a [[world revolution]] - was needed in order to begin the process of overthrowing capitalism and moving towards socialism (with the final aim of reaching communism). This ideology became known as [[Leninism]], and formed the basis on which the political parties of the [[Communist International]] were founded.

Thus, by the [[1920s]], Marxism had split into three distinct branches: The "classical" Marxists (those who held the original [[19th century]] Marxist views), the Democratic Socialists and the Leninists.

It was the Leninist branch of Marxism that used the terms "communism" and "communist" most extensively. All political parties calling themselves "The Communist Party of [country]" were/are Leninist parties.

===Stalinism versus Trotskyism===

In the early 1930's, Leninism itself fractured in two distinct branches: [[Stalinism]] and [[Trotskyism]]. The reasons for this split revolved around the controversial policies of [[Joseph Stalin]] in the [[Soviet Union]]. Previous to Stalin's rise to power, the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union]] functioned on a democratic system (known as [[democratic centralism]]) and members were encouraged to form their own opinions. It was believed that [[freedom of speech]] and [[diversity]] helped strengthen the Party (and Soviet society in general). As such, a number of different currents of opinion formed within the Communist Party. The two most prominent of these were headed by Joseph Stalin and [[Leon Trotsky]], respectively. Stalin argued for the consolidation of [[socialism in one country]] (even one as underdeveloped as Soviet Union was at that time) and claimed that, due to the [[aggravation of class struggle under socialism|aggravation of class struggle]] along with the development of socialism, it was necessary to enforce strict [[Party discipline]]. Trotsky argued that the fate of socialism in the Soviet Union depended on the fate of socialist and communist revolutions around the world (therefore supporting the thesis of [[Permanent Revolution]]), and claimed that Stalin's [[authoritarianism|authoritarian]] practices were harmful and dangerous (therefore calling for more [[democracy]], both inside the Party and throughout the Soviet Union in general).

Stalin eventually succeeded in gaining full control of the Party and the Soviet government. He went ahead with his policies, which became known as Stalinism. Trotsky and his supporters organized into the so-called [[Left Opposition]], and their platform became known as Trotskyism. However, their attempts to remove Stalin from power failed. Stalin imprisoned, executed or exiled most dissenters - especially the Trotskyists. Trotsky himself was exiled, and eventually [[assassination| assassinated]] in [[Mexico]] in [[1940]] when an ice pick was driven into the back of Trotsky's head.

After [[World War II]] and during the [[Cold War]], Stalinism spread to a number of new countries, and gave rise to a few different branches of its own. No country was ever ruled by Trotskyists.

==Other forms of communism==

Many communist societies ([[commune]]s) have existed throughout history, and many non-Marxist (or pre-Marxist) Western intellectuals advocated ideas quite similar to what is today known as communism.

The first [[Christians]], as well as many later groups of [[monk]]s and [[nun]]s, lived in communities organized according to communist-like principles. These early groups shared some elements in common with communism but were not completely identical. The individuals of these groups held no property of their own, thereby allowing the community as a whole to hold all property in common; in this way, a classless community was possible. Along with this similarity, there also exist several key elements that differentiate many of these groups from communism. They did in fact possess a form of a state, or ruling authority with varying degrees of hierarchy. See [[religious communism]] for more information.

[[Thomas More]]'s [[16th century|16th-century]] work ''[[Utopia (Novel)|Utopia]]'' depicted a society organised along communist lines.

Ideas of communal ownership evolved during [[the Enlightenment]], exerting varying amounts of influence on the ''[[philosophe|philosophes]]''. The greatest of these influences were on [[Jean-Jacques Rousseau]], the [[abbé de Mably]], [[Morelly]] (whose thoughts extensively influenced the [[French Revolution]], in particular the [[Jacobins]]) and other revolutionary egalitarian clubs embodied in persons like [[Jean Paul Marat]].

Many [[19th century|19th-century]] [[idealist]]s, disgusted by the ongoing [[oppression]] and mass [[poverty]] created by the [[Industrial Revolution]], broke away from society to form short-lived communal "[[utopia]]s". An example was [[Robert Owen]]'s ''[[New Harmony]]'' community in [[Indiana]]. People who believe that communism can be implemented in such a way are called [[utopian socialism|utopian socialists]] by Marxists.

The French philosopher [[Étienne Cabet]], in his book "Voyage et aventures de lord William Carisdall en Icarie" ("Travel and adventures of lord William Carisdall in Icaria") ([[1840]]), depicted an ideal society in which an [[elections | elected government]] controlled all [[economic activity]] and supervised social affairs, the family remaining the only other independent unit. In [[1848]] he attempted to organize ''Icarian communities'' in the [[United States]]. His efforts were mostly in vain, but small Icarian communities existed even after his death, until [[1898]].

The short-lived [[Paris Commune]] ([[1871]]) was arguably the main example followed by revolutionaries of the early 20th Century, and also the largest historical example of a communist society. The [[Communards]] held [[Paris]] for two months against [[Prussia]]n/[[Germany|German]] and [[France|French]] government soldiers. The Commune passed various [[law]]s reducing the power of property owners, such as canceling [[rent]]s and [[debt]]s, before being bloodily suppressed. Marx later criticized the Commune for being too timid to secure its own survival, but praised it as the first successful revolution of the working class.

Today, a small number of people, primarily from [[industrialized nations]], have, like the [[Owenites]], opted to "drop out" of the existing society, preferring to live on [[Commune (Intentional Community)|commune]]s of their own design. This movement saw its zenith during the [[counter-culture]] phenomenon of the [[1960s]] and [[1970s|70s]] in the West, and such people have been characterized as new [[bohemian]]s or [[hippies]].

Also in the present day, the tradition of communism continues in the form of [[Israel]]i [[kibbutz]]im although these communes have moved away from the communistic ideal and now allow degrees of individual ownership and capitalist production.

==Critiques==
=== Communist states ===
''Main Article: [[Communist states]]''

As communism entails the abolition of the state, a ''communist state'' is an impossibility according to communist theory. There have been, however, a large number of states ruled by self-declared [[Communist parties]]. Large scale human rights violations occurred in these states as documented in extensive historical research, particularly during the regimes of [[Stalin]] and [[Mao]], but shown to have started immediately after the [[Russian revolution]] during the regime of [[Lenin]] and to have continued to occur in all communist states during their existence.

The many abuses that occurred under these regimes have often been used as an argument against the ideology of communism itself, especially by [[anti-communism|anti-communists]], citing for instance Marx's "dictatorship of the proletariat". This is rejected by communists as a simplistic approach to historical events and ideas, noting that communism itself is stateless in theory and thus cannot be related to the actions of 20th century states. Many anti-communists consider this a dodge of criticism that could similarly justify dismissing human rights violations under capitalism as not representative of the capitalist theory. The response is usually that [[capitalism]] is inherently prone to certain abuses by defending property and profit.

=== Economic development ===
Critics of communism say it would be impossible for a communist society to plan its own economy.

People who believe in the [[subjective theory of value]] (STV) think that theoretically, in a capitalist system, scarce [[skill]]s and [[resource]]s are [[rationing | rationed]] by [[price]]s that reflect relative [[scarcity]] of the resources and competing demands. In their view, in a Soviet-style planned economy prices can send the wrong signals to [[consumer]]s and [[state planning | planners]], resulting in decisions that don't reflect the choices they would make if they knew the actual costs and competing demands for those resources.

This is not how communists view the capitalist system. To communists, placing value in a [[commodity]] instead of in the labor necessary to create that commodity is [[commodity fetishism]]. Values do not reflect scarcity but the necessary and homogenous labor time embedded in a commodity. Prices do not "send signals", since they simply reflect an exchange of commodities with an equal amount of homogeneous and necessary labor time congealed in them. Markets do not simplify planning or improve quality or efficiency because such decisions are made in the production of a commodity, not the exchange of it.

To understand the STV objection to communism, it is necessary to unravel the ambiguities of the word "plan". Of course, people and institutions plan very elaborate and far-sighted projects within a capitalist context. For example, nobody questions that human beings possess the rationality necessary to plan a skyscraper.

But the critics of communism say that the planning of a skyscraper (the blueprints, sitting, delivery schedule for materials) all typically takes place within a capitalist/[[contract]]ual context. In their view, [[investor]]s contract to buy [[stock]] or [[bond]]s in a development [[company (law)|company]]. That company hires [[sub-contractor]]s. The terms for the [[raw material]]s are haggled out with suppliers, etc. -- in the STV view, all subject to the rise or fall of prices and alternative [[investment]] possibilities for various parties.

Critics of communism contend that the implementation of communism in the sense described above would involve supplanting precisely these market and contract conditions that make planning possible. In the STV view it would be planning instead of haggling, rather than planning within the context of haggling. That is what they contend is not practicable.

Communists would respond that nothing mentioned here would constitute any kind of roadblock in a communist society. While communists do not "write recipes for the cookshops of future"[http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1867-c1/p3.htm] communist societies, they claim that projects such as [[Linux]], [[Amish]] barn-raisings and societies of the sort [[Karl Marx]] called "primitive communist" are 'communist-like' examples of how communist planning might work, from a small to large scale. As far as the idea that prices rise and fall, communists would say that prices simply reflect necessary homogenous congealed labor time, and claim that absent innovations in [[production]], prices generally remain stable relative to one another.

Critics of communism would respond that since communist prices do not reflect the scarcity of the raw materials or the consumer demand for the products, one could easily end up with a [[Stakhanovite]] drive to build as many skyscrapers as possible, with a consequent blotting out of the sky with empty buildings, and a shortage of steel and other resources that might have been very useful if market prices had allowed them to be redirected elsewhere.

==="Human nature"===
[[Objectivism|Objectivist]]s and other critics of communism (such as laissez-faire capitalists) see self-interested behavior as a [[moral]] [[ideal]]. They claim that communism removes [[incentive]]s necessary for human [[productivity]]. Indeed, they argue that workers have to be rewarded with currency according to their immediate contribution to production. They thus reject a gift economic view of work with respect to incentive, which is less immediate and more collective-based. Their view on "[[human nature]]" is, therefore, not shared by Communists, who take the view that self-interest is a function of the material conditions of society. Communists claim that if the material conditions change so that competition and greed would no longer be necessary, mass behavior would change accordingly.

Communists have a disdain for the concept of 'human nature' or an invariable 'human condition' which exists throughout all human beings. They usually take the view that it is the material conditions which surround a person, such as their environment, that shapes a persons character. Also, according to them, the 'nature' of human beings is not determined by an underlying, constant condition which is present in all humans, but instead by the social and economic factors which surround them.

Critics point out that 'human nature' is at least in part influenced by genetic factors, which make some characteristics of human nature indeed partly invariable. Some also point to the [[chimpanzee]]s and other [[primate]]s, which can also engage in selfish and greedy behaviour. The rebuttal to this criticism given by Communists is that natural selection favours the collective in the survival struggle, rather than the individual. This would constitute an "evolutionary incentive" for gift economics.

Communists believe, however, that once capitalism has been destroyed, and socialism has been established, selfish desires and greed will recede from the forefront of societal conditioning. They foresee a society where the desire for personal gain is interconnected with the atmosphere of mutual assistance and co-operation, making self-interest and the interests of the collective one and the same. An assertion that is of course rejected by Capitalists as far-fetched.

===Violence===

If capitalism is to be overthrown in a revolution, then a socialist revolution could be costly in terms of human lives. Communist revolutionaries argue that the violent or non-violent character of a revolution is not determined solely by the revolutionaries, but also, or even primarily, by the owners of the means of production who have a stake in capitalism, and the government tied to the ruling classes. Critics of communism, however, point out that the revolutionary way is by definition opposed to [[democracy]].

==The Future of Communism ==

As with all attempts to foresee the future, it is difficult to tell with any degree of confidence what is in store for communism. And, of course, any prediction depends on which "communism" we are talking about (the social system, the ideology, or the political movement).

As a political movement, made up of parties and individuals that consider themselves communist, communism is tied up practically and ideologically with the labor movement and the anti-globalization movement. The tide of the communist movement can generally be gauged by the success of the labor and [[anti-globalization movement]]s.

Outside of the industrialized core of developed nations, the communist movement takes on legal and extra-legal dimensions. There are several dozen guerrilla groups in the world which identify themselves as communist in one form or another. In places like [[Peru]], the [[Philippines]], [[Nepal]], and [[Southeast Asia]], the success of communism can be gauged by the success of guerrilla wars. In countries with strong Communist Parties, such as [[India]] and [[Russia]], the success of communism can be gauged by the success of those political parties.

As far as "communist states" are concerned, there are five countries still ruled by Communist Parties formally belonging to the Marxist-Leninist tradition: the [[People's Republic of China]], [[Cuba]], [[North Korea]], [[Laos]] and [[Vietnam]]. However, the experiences of these five states have starkly diverged, especially since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. On the one hand, Cuba and North Korea were hit hard by the lack of Soviet economic assistance, trade and military support. On the other hand, the world's other three remaining communist states (all in East Asia) were far less dependent on Soviet subsidies (and in China's case, not at all, given the [[Sino-Soviet Split]]) at the time of the collapse of the [[Warsaw Pact]].

Following the lead of China under [[Deng Xiaoping]] whose encouragement in rhetoric and policy of wealth creation was neatly summarized by his exhortation "poverty is not socialism, to get rich is glorious"[http://www.washtimes.com/commentary/20030806-092219-3953r.htm], Vietnam and Laos have moved away from Soviet-style centralized planning, in favour of a private market economy that (at least in China's case) is very difficult to distinguish from outright capitalism. China has been particularly aggressive in its pursuit of "[[socialism with Chinese characteristics]]," even to the point of admitting entrepreneurs to the Communist Party. Therefore, China today is generally regarded as being capitalist de facto, with just a little higher degree of government control than is seen in conventional capitalist countries. Many Marxists also regard the other four remaining "communist states" as being state-capitalist rather than socialist.

=== Writing "Communism" or "communism" ===

According to the [[1996]] third edition of ''[[Fowler's Modern English Usage]]'', ''communism'' and derived words are written with the [[lowercase]] "c" except when they refer to a political party of that name, a member of that party, or a government led by such a party, in which case the word "Communist" is written with the [[uppercase]] "C".

==Related topics==

* [[Anarchism]]
* [[Anti-communism]]
* [[The Black Book of Communism]]
* [[Communist state]]
* [[Communist party]]
* [[Council communism]]
* [[De Leonism]]
* [[Eurocommunism]]
* [[Festa de l'Unità]]
* [[Free Software]]
* [[gift economy|Gift economy]]
* [[Juche]]
* [[Left communism]]
* [[Leninism]]
* [[Libertarian socialism]]
* [[Maoism]]
* [[Marxism]]
* [[Political models]]
* [[Post-Communism]]
* [[Situationism]]
* [[Socialism]]
* [[Stalinism]]
* [[Syndicalism]]
* [[Trotskyism]]

=== Personalia ===

* [[Antonio Gramsci]]
* [[Daniel De Leon]]
* [[Fidel Castro]], [[Che Guevara]]
* [[Ho Chi Minh]]
* [[Karl Marx]], [[Friedrich Engels]]
* [[List of socialists]]
* [[List of Trotskyists]]
* [[Mao Zedong]]
* [[Mikhail Bakunin]], [[Peter Kropotkin]] (libertarian socialism)
* [[Rosa Luxemburg]]
* [[Salvador Allende]]
* [[Vladimir Lenin]], [[Leon Trotsky]], [[Joseph Stalin]]

==Further reading==
* Rodney Carlisle and James H. Lide, ''Complete Idiot's Guide to Communism'', [http://www.idiotsguides.com/ Alpha Books], March, 2002, trade paperback, 362 pages, ISBN 0028643143
* Francois and Deborah Furet, ''Passing of an Illusion: The Idea of Communism in the Twentieth Century'', University of Chicago Press, 1999, hardcover, 506 pages, ISBN 0226273407

==External links==

===Online resources for original Marxist literature===
*[http://www.marxists.org Marxists Internet Archive]
*[http://www.marxist.net Marxist.net]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1845/theses/theses.htm?title= Theses on Feuerbach]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/11/prin-com.htm?title= Principles of Communism]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/index.htm?title= The Communist Manifesto]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1871/civil-war-france/index.htm?title= The Civil War in France]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1880/soc-utop/index.htm?title= Socialism: Utopian and Scientific]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/deleon/works/1896/960126.htm Reform or Revolution?]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1901/witbd/index.htm?title= What is to be Done?]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1904/onestep/index.htm?title= One Step Forward, Two Steps Back]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1905/two-tact/index.htm?title= Two Tactics of Social-Democracy in the Democratic Revolution]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1908/mec/index.htm?title= Materialism and Empirio-Criticism]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1914/self-det/index.htm?title= The Right of Nations to Self-Determination]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1916/imp-hsc/index.htm?title= Imperialism, The Highest Stage of Capitalism]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1917/staterev/index.htm?title= The State and Revolution]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1916/miliprog/index.htm?title= The Military Programme of the Proletarian Revolution]
*[http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1917/tasks/index.htm?title= The Tasks of the Proletariat In Our Revolution]
*[http://www.gegenstandpunkt.com/english/en_index.html Communism is not exactly dead!]
* [http://samvak.tripod.com/pp61.html Economic and social roots of Communism]

===Communist Parties===
Communist parties are too numerous and diverse to list here. See [[List of Communist parties]].

=== Internet Forums ===
*[http://www.che-lives.com/ Che-Lives] - a Web site dedicated to Che Guevara, aswell as featuring the internet's largest communistic [http://www.revolutionaryleft.com forum]. It also harbors a few [[socialist]]s.

=== Opposing Views ===
*[http://directory.google.com/Top/Society/Politics/Socialism/Opposing_Views/ Google Directory collection of critical articles]
*[http://www.cato.org/research/articles/wilkinson-050201.html Capitalism and Human Nature] a Cato institute article, from a Capitalist point of view.


{{Wikiquote|Communism}}

[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Political theories]]
<!-- The below are interlanguage links. -->
[[ar:&#1588;&#1610;&#1608;&#1593;&#1610;&#1577;]]
[[ca:Comunisme]]
[[cs:Komunismus]]
[[da:Kommunisme]]
[[de:Kommunismus]]
[[es:Comunismo]]
[[eo:Komunismo]]
[[et:Kommunism]]
[[fi:Kommunismi]]
[[fr:Communisme]]
[[gl:Comunismo]]
[[he:&#1511;&#1493;&#1502;&#1493;&#1504;&#1497;&#1494;&#1501;]]
[[id:Komunisme]]
[[it:Comunismo]]
[[ja:&#20849;&#29987;&#20027;&#32681;]]
[[ko:&#44277;&#49328;&#51452;&#51032;]]
[[lt:Komunizmas]]
[[zh-min-nan:Ki&#333;ng-s&aacute;n-ch&uacute;-g&#299;]]
[[ms:Komunisme]]
[[nl:Communisme]]
[[no:Kommunisme]]
[[pl:Komunizm]]
[[pt:Comunismo]]
[[ru:&#1050;&#1086;&#1084;&#1084;&#1091;&#1085;&#1080;&#1079;&#1084;]]
[[simple:Communism]]
[[sk:Komunizmus]]
[[sr:&#1050;&#1086;&#1084;&#1091;&#1085;&#1080;&#1079;&#1072;&#1084;]]
[[sv:Kommunism]]
[[tr:Komünizm]]
[[zh:&#20849;&#20135;&#20027;&#20041;]]

Revision as of 20:47, 10 April 2005

Wikipedia is Communism!
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Communism&oldid=12134266"