Socialist Plymouth 400 Years Later

American Thinker.com ^ | December 16, 2020 | Gary Gindler

[Kaslin]

Precisely 400 years ago, on December 16, 1620 (according to the Gregorian calendar, December 26), the ship Mayflower anchored in Plymouth Bay in the New World, and on December 18 (28), daredevils landed on a deserted, cold coast, which is now in the state of Massachusetts. The Plymouth Rock now symbolizes the approximate landing site. The city of the same name still exists, as, in fact, does the country founded by the Puritans: the United States of America.

Landing of the Pilgrims, painted by Charles Lucy

New York Public Library Public Domain Collection

One hundred and two people set off by ship from Plymouth in the Old World, but on the way, one man died and one boy was born. One of the team members also died. Among the travelers were the Puritans, religious dissidents, adventurers, and merchants. All the passengers of the Mayflower were daring and brave people. They can be safely referred to as the pioneers – but not only in the geographical sense.

They were the first to establish socialism in North America.

The word "socialism" had not yet been invented, but we know all the details of the Puritans' socialist epic from the diaries of William Bradford, one of the Plymouth colony leaders for a third of a century. By the time the pilgrims landed, Thomas More's Utopia had already gone through dozens of editions (the English translation of Utopia was published in 1551), and ersatz-socialist ideas were widespread in Europe. As it is known, Utopia's hypothetical state was based on the primitive idea of the monastic community. While still in exile in Holland before sailing to the New World, the Puritans had already begun introducing commune elements. They arrived in the New World with a clear plan for a collective community.

[Jan_Sobieski]

William Bradford, in his book “Plymouth Plantation”, said they tried socialism (or his words to share all possessions), however only 3 or 4 of them actually worked. Everyone else conveniently got ill or incapacitated. As a result they almost starved to death.

[Responsibility2nd]

Every Thanksgiving Rush Limbaugh relates the story of the pilgrims early arrival in America and their attempts to work the colony under socialism. And of course failed. There might be a transcript or an audio or video out there somewhere. If anyone is interested they should see this.

[shotgun]

I can understand that there would be a communal effort to build shelters upon arriving. But after that, each family would have on their iwn to carve out their own existence.

Obviously we’ve had 400 years of history to show us how devastating socialism is. Yet even for these folks one would think that having lived under the rule of elite and all property was subject thereto, that they would have embraced their new found freedom and made their choices accordingly.

[Vermont Lt]

...and they immediately set out to spread small pox to every living creature they found on land.

Actually, the Pilgrims came upon villages that had been wiped out by a plague the year before. The entire continent had been depopulated prior to their arrival.

[Vinnie]

That trip was ill-timed. Arriving in the New World at the start of Winter.