[BulletBobCo]

Welcome to Free Republic.

[cardinal4]

I would wonder why so many vote for the commies here in the US. There is more commie sympathy here in the US than most would admit. But you already knew that..

[deadeyedawg]

Because idiots want cradle-to-grave security and care and don't want to have to THINK for themselves.

[SMARTY]

"... some people, by virtue of having been socialized under statist conditions, are not attracted to the responsibility that comes with the idea of freedom."

I have read that the Russian brand of Communism was a trade off for the old Tsarist system. Peasants were of course accustomed to the 'paternalism' of the Tsarist rule, oppressive and humiliating as it was...it took care of them. Communism was the same resignation of one's will to a larger higher authority, no questions asked. It was going to all be worked out for you, all decisions made for you and all problems solved by someone else. Russians gained nothing lost nothing and learned nothing. Now that a free market system is being attempted, of course, people fall through the cracks. Until the thing is stabilized, and even after, people will still fall through the cracks. All Capitalist systems have it and always will. This is the chink in our armor and the place Liberals perpetually jab to force their more total and radical socialist plans on us. Stupid. y Gasset said ..."Communism, now there is a piece of moral extravagance." He was right!

[Tijeras_Slim]

Because of rage at their own inability to master their destiny, they really want to crush the achievement of others under the guise of fairness and equality.

[R. Scott]

Communist like our own Democrats, offer something for nothing. The ignorant sometime believe such a thing is possible.

[Dog Gone]

It will likely take a full generation for the communist countries to adjust to freedom. But it will happen.

[tahiti]

"By taking away from us the responsibility of our actions, and prolonging the dependency stage of life, the democratic interventionist state limits our ability to be happy."

"democratic interventionist state" has brought us to point where private property in this country is declared "public places" then you cannot even smoke a cigerette in the now declared "public place."

"...at the same time they ask for their own wishes to be satisfied by others and for their own mistakes to be paid by others."

Sounds alot like Social Security, Medicaid, American with Disabilities Act, FDIC, FDA, FHA, SBA, Pension Guaranty Fund, WIC, Food Stamps, and the list goes on.

And to think we spent billions and billions of dollars during the "cold war" years, for decades, to fight communism and it now exists, without objection by virtually anyone in this country, enacted and approved by both democrats and republicans.

[Tarkin]

Hmmm, with Czechs the situation is a bit different. You see in most post-communist countries the communist parties have no real power, but the "social-democrats" (who are usually just ex-communists, that say that they changed their views) do. These "social-democratic" parties now of course say that they favor "social market economy" and that they don't want the return of communism (the ex-communists are now ruling in Poland, Hungary and Romania). You have to nevertheless remember that many people would actually welcome the return of realsoc (mostly old people who were members of the communist party, who hate church, the United States etc. but also many people who had a guaranteed job during communism and are now jobless) and they usually vote for ex-communists (who usually get at least 20% of the vote, during the last election in Poland post-communists got over 40% of the vote and that in an overwhelmingly Catholic country). In the Czech Republic, however, the commies didn't change their banners and their party is called Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia and they still say that communism was great and that they would love to see it back in the their country. On the other hand the social-democratic party consists mostly of members of the former anticommunist opposition (which is not the case in other eastern European countries). So it is no surprise that people who would like the return of communism in the Czech Republic don't vote for former anticommunists but rather for hardcore commies. Also remember that communism in the Czech Republic wasn't probably as bad as in other eastern European countries and the country was much richer than f.ex. Poland or Hungary (remember that Czechoslovakia was rather undamaged during WW II and that prior to it, it was one of the richest countries in Europe).

[libertylover]

People vote communist, and its first cousin liberalism, because they think you can get something for nothing.

[auboy]

Read later bump.

[Frumious Bandersnatch]

Vote for communists = "One man, one vote...once."

[Dumb_Ox]

Most people in Western countries were born relatively rich. They went to school until they were 18 without needing to work; after that, they possibly went to college and graduate school, thanks to government money.

One shouldn't ignore that it is the increasingly tech-savvy American employment market which requires such in-depth schooling. Paradoxically, such job training usually precludes early experience with industries much more complex than young people experience in service and retail summer jobs.

[A CA Guy]

I think all the abuse of illegal drugs in those coutries lead to their mental problems and willingness to put up with bad government.

[hosepipe]

[ Why do people vote for Communists? ]

Easy question to answer.... ENVY.... pure and simple..
Democracy and socialism which is a symptom of democracy..
Run on..... ENVY...

ENVY trumps competition in socialism.. and be advised communism "IS" socialism.. and ENVY is the heart and brains of it..

[TSchmereL]

This question is not asked often enough.

[Incorrigible]

bump