Posted on 07/02/2021 3:42:06 AM PDT by Kaslin
I must confess something: Socialism poses a grave threat to the U.S.
I, a first-generation American born to socialism survivors, take no pleasure in admitting this. I’m not an alarmist nor do I want to stoke fear. But I must be honest about the precarious situation we find ourselves in today.
By now, socialism should have gone into the ash heap of history. Sadly, its pernicious ideas still linger and have clung onto many of our institutions.
Yesterday marked the centennial of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s creation. Largely absent from the coverage here stateside, unsurprisingly, was highlighting the millions of victims who died in this time. Instead, Chairman Xi was the “star” in all of this. Revolting. Similarly, Axios unveiled a new poll showing growing disdain for capitalism—even among Republicans. Scary.
It’s disconcerting to hear this. But fear not: socialism can be stamped out here in America. Don’t believe me? Here are three effective ways to help usher in its demise.
Make Anti-Socialism Bipartisan Again
After Democrats narrowly retained control of the House of Representatives last year, Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) lashed out at her colleagues, remarking “...we need to not ever use the words 'socialist' or 'socialism' ever again. Because while people think it doesn't matter, it does matter. And we lost good members because of it.”
Conservatives can’t simply preach an anti-socialist message to the choir. We must export the message to the masses. Yes, it’ll be challenging to engage our political opponents but we must. Why? Let’s briefly look at history.
Did you know many 20th-century Democratic lawmakers were avowed anti-communists and anti-socialists?
President Harry S. Truman famously pledged to help nations resist communism through the “Truman Doctrine.” President John F. Kennedy continued policies of containment and said in 1952 the communist threat is "an enemy, power[full], unrelenting and implacable who seeks to dominate the world by subversion and conspiracy."
Were you aware many chairmen of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) were Democrats?
Senator Henry “Scoop” Jackson (D-WA) and Rep. Charles Vanik (D-OH) also sponsored a namesake amendment to the Trade Act of 1974 making trade with non-market economies (i.e. the Soviet Union) conditional on respect for human rights and permitting emigration.
Where are the anti-communist Democrats of today? They’re greatly needed in this fight.
Listen to Survivors, Not Opportunists
It’s important to lean on living survivors and elevate their stories to understand the dangers associated with collectivism.
Americans learned about Nazism’s horrors hearing directly from Holocaust survivors. Listening to stories about survival and death pulled heartstrings and inspired Americans to etch the words “Never Again” in their minds.
Why wasn’t the same strategy employed to combat socialism? It should have been replicated immediately following the USSR’s collapse. But better late than never.
To ensure effectiveness, individuals enlisted to speak should have some proximity to the horrors. It isn’t enough to have political influencers decry “socialism sucks.” That message, especially delivered by opportunists, won’t resonate with our peers en masse.
Instead, let survivors speak for themselves and help broadcast their testimonials. There are plenty of credible perspectives available from individuals who lived in the Soviet Union, Mao’s China, Pol Pot’s Cambodia, Castro’s Cuba, and even present-day Venezuela.
It’s imperative to give them a platform to share their stories.
Change Starts in Schools
Not only should survivors address audiences young and old, socialism’s crimes should be accurately taught in schools.
Communism should be equally reviled like National Socialism. Why isn’t this the case already? Unfortunately, many schools and institutions of higher learning purposely obfuscate the truth and whitewash its crimes.
It doesn’t help when self-described communists like Riverside Community College Professor Asatair Bair praise murderous Soviet dictator Josef Stalin. And he isn’t alone.
In response, several states have passed legislation to teach the evils of communism and socialism. Florida became one of the first states to reform their curriculum. A similar bill is currently moving through the Arizona state legislature. Going forward, this effort should be replicated in other states.
In addition to teaching socialism’s horrors and incorporating survivor input, the following books should be recommended for reading: Bloodlands by Timothy Snyder, Witness by Whittaker Chambers, Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys, Stalin’s Secret Agents by M. Stanton Evans, Fear No Evil by Natan Sharansky, and The Black Book of Communism, among many available titles.
Conclusion
35 years ago this January, my parents settled here as political refugees after fleeing Soviet-occupied Lithuania.
Today, they are shocked to see many of their fellow Americans embrace policies that engulfed and destroyed their homeland last century. They also worry about seeing iconic American institutions destroyed by central planning domestically, and an ever powerful CCP and entities like it rising globally.
The opportunity to educate our peers and political opponents, however, shouldn’t be squandered. To truly stamp out socialism in America, it’ll take a concerted effort by everyone—right and left.
Invest in and support organizations like Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, Young America’s Foundation, Free Cuba Foundation, and similar American-based educational outfits. Support amending school curriculum to teach the horrors of communism and socialism. Elevate survivors and their stories.
It’s time to get to work. Will you join me?
Get rid of Demonrats
PERIOD!!!!!!
Change Starts in Schools
Uh … no.
Change starts with ELIMINATING public education. “Fixing” schools to defeat socialism is like taking an aspirin to treat a brain tumor.
When communism is described as low IQ, it doesn’t simply mean communism is stupid.
It means the ideology of communism is founded exclusively on false and incoherent premises, and further that communists themselves do not understand the reason they support this low IQ ideology.
We have heard these recommendations all our lives. It’s almost like they’re stringing us along.
And after decades and decades of the same things, it’s much worse; half of the USA is way too far gone into the Frankfurt School nonsense.
The only political solution is county-by-county secession.
No. State by state. If counties want to secede from a state let them.
I don't share the author's optimism that pointing out past Democratic examples will sway modern Democrats.
This new breed is as virulently anti-history as the Maoists purging the Chinese "four olds". Everything must be destroyed. The slate must be wiped completely clean so we can build our NuPerfectAmerica (tm). They loathe historical examples on principle.
Whatever works best, but yes, secession seems to the best option available out of a number of bad ones including slavery and war.
I am amazed that “conservatives” seem to think these socialist freaks can be reasoned with or persuaded, when they can’t even grasp something as elementary as males and female.
There is no common ground to maintain the nation any more. What one side touts as the ultimate good, the other sees as the most abject evil.
Because in the war between communism and national socialism, communism won and national socialism lost.
Ayn Rand had some up close familiarity with communism. Why not recommend Atlas Shrugged?
For brevity, the part about Twentieth Century Motor and the Starnes heirs.
https://theexplanationproject.fandom.com/wiki/The_Story_of_the_Twentieth_Century_Motor_Company_(told_by_Jeff_Allen,_the_tramp_on_Dagny%27s_train)
“Where are the anti-communist Democrats of today?”
There aren’t any.
L
“let survivors speak for themselves and help broadcast their testimonials. There are plenty of credible perspectives available from individuals who lived in the Soviet Union, Mao’s China, Pol Pot’s Cambodia, Castro’s Cuba, and even present-day Venezuela.
It’s imperative to give them a platform to share their stories. “
This can be very effective especially with children and young people and naïve or poorly educated adults.
Where there ever any after communism started?
“Get rid of Demonrats“
... and most of the Republicans as well.
Most of today’s Republicans are like democrats of 30 years ago: Socialist to the core, but politically afraid to say so; they wanna be re-elected for the next 40 years and make billions like the democrat politicians too!
“Where there ever any after communism started?”
I’m old enough to remember Scoop Jackson and Zell Miller. Neither could be elected as a Democrat today.
L
Change starts with ELIMINATING public education.
No the fix is to ban teachers unions and the Department of Education. There are not enough private schools to absorb the hoards of already indoctranated little sh!ts out there and even if there was, all they would do is contaminate the private schools.
Woodrow Wilson was an anti-communism democrat. He even put communists and anarchists into a concentration camp.
Were you aware many chairmen of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) were Democrats?
True. So LEFTYs always say, “Joe McCarthy and the HUAC” when talking about anti-communist efforts even though Joe was a senator. They never ever mention a name associated with HUAC.
State-by-State works for me
I believe it has to do with Communism’s total lack of understanding human nature, and how communism is incompatible with it.
For example, the Soviets were trying to idealize the concept of “The New Soviet Man”, who had no self interest, but only the interest of the collective. And denying this basic human nature trait demonstrates the utter failure that communism is.
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