What You Should Know About Communism
This is part of a book nearly 50 years old that I was able to obtain a copy of and parts of it unfortunately are still relavant now.
What You Should Know About COMMUNISM and Why
by William Henry Chamberlin
Why Study Communism?
Communism is more than a theory. It is a fighting force that deeply affects the life of every one of us.
U.S. citizens pay billions of dollars in taxes each year, 60 percent of which go to support immense armaments. Expansion of U.S. Armed Forces has led to the first peacetime draft in the history of the nation, calling hundreds of thousands of young Americans into the Armed Services. These measures are needed to protect the country and the Free World from the threat of communism, and they will continue in force as long as the Cold War — the conflict between the Free World and the Communist World — lasts.
You owe it to yourself to learn all you can about communism. If you do — and a careful reading of this book will give you a good start — you will be helping to safeguard your freedom, the freedom of your country and of the other free countries of the world. This book will not limit its analysis of communism to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, although as the first Communist power, as the dominant Communist power in today's world, and as the one about which most is known, the Soviet Union will be
emphasized.
Two Giants of Communism
Since November 7, 1917, when a group of Communist revolutionaries violently seized power in tsarist Russia, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics has been the center of world Communist power. Using economic and political techniques radically different from those of the Western democracies, the Soviet Union has, in almost 50 years since the Bolshevik Revolution, forged a strong economic system. Today that system provides the base upon which Soviet leaders draw in attempting to spread communism throughout the world. In the last 10 years, Soviet military might has been built to a position second only to that of the U.S. — a very close second indeed, according to some experts.
China — the China now led by Mao Tse-tung — is another Communist giant. With Soviet help, Mao's Chinese Communists seized power through civil war in 1949. Today more than 700,000,000 Chinese live under their rule.
Each of these two giants of communism, the Soviet Union and Communist China, possesses its own "satellites" — countries whose foreign and domestic policies they largely control. The U.S.S.R.'s influence over Hungary, Romania, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, East Germany, and Poland is strong. Yugoslavia and Albania, although Communist, have shown greater independence of Soviet authority.
Red China has also extended its control into neighboring states, among them Tibet, incorporated as a Chinese "autonomous region" in 1951, and North Vietnam and North Korea, both now under Chinese-influenced Communist regimes. Albania, in southern Europe, has also aligned itself with Red China. Cuba, 90 miles off the Florida coast of the U.S., has come under the dictatorship of Communist Fidel Castro. It looks to both Red China and the U.S.S.R. for economic help, and is getting it.
The Threat to the Free World
Free people everywhere must be alert to the dangers of communism and be prepared to combat them intelligently, without fear. If in our decisions we are motivated by fear, we could make dangerous piecemeal surrenders, or act rashly and perhaps end up using communism's own tactics.
What has the Soviet Union been doing that arouses the concern of the United States and many non-Communist nations? Already nearly a third of the human race has been brought, against its will, under the Communist yoke. By word and action, Soviet leaders have made clear their determination to destroy our form of society and to put Communist governments everywhere. Would they start a war to do this? The Soviets have often boasted of the destructive power at their command. When Nikita Khrushchev was the Soviet premier, he told leaders of non-Communist nations how cities like Rome, Athens, and London could be reduced to ashes by his country's missiles. But the U.S. government has made its position
clear: it will retaliate. Thus American military might has so far deterred the Soviets from seizing West Berlin, and the Communist Chinese from invading Taiwan, outpost of the free Chinese.
Soviet leaders are thoroughly committed to Communist doctrine and to the spread of communism
throughout the world. Along with propaganda, they rattle their rockets and flex their atomic muscles to frighten nations into doing their bidding. These military threats are supplemented by other threats. During his visit to the United States in 1961, Khrushchev was asked by reporters what he meant when he said, "We will bury you." He replied he did not mean burial by bombs, but burial by political and economic victory. He said that the Soviet Union, by 1980, will outproduce us in all kinds of goods, and will thus become a shining example of the success of communism. The propaganda effect will be so tremendous, he thought, that nation after nation will be converted to communism.
Meanwhile, Kremlin leaders are not sitting back and waiting for the example of Soviet "progress" to take effect. Like Lenin, Stalin, and Khrushchev before them, they are working to promote communism. Everywhere — and especially in the underdeveloped nations of Asia, Africa, and South America — Soviet agents and local Communists are working to unseat existing governments. Soviet policy has long been to capitalize on the anticolonial feelings of the peoples of the new nations in order to bring to bear anti-Western, Communist influences in their governments. The Soviet leaders thus hope to win the emerging nations to their side in the Cold War, and eventually to establish communism in them.
Seven Tests of Freedom
The menace of communism to our freedom is not new. Since 1917, when the Communists overthrew the first Russian democratic government (then only eight months old) and set up a Communist dictatorship, strong voices from the democracies have warned the world of the danger. One of the most eloquent voices raised in opposition to communism was that of Winston Churchill, prime minister of Great Britain during World War II. He set down these seven tests of man's freedom under government:
1. Is there the right to free expression of opinion, to opposition and criticism of the existing
government?
2. Have the people the right to vote out a government of which they disapprove, and are
constitutional means provided by which they can make their will known?
3. Are there independent courts of justice free from executive control, and free from threats of mob violence and association with any particular political party?
4. Will these courts administer well-established laws which are associated in the human
mind with the broad principles of decency and justice?
5. Will there be equal justice for poor as well as for rich, for individuals as well as for
government officials?
6. Will the rights of the individual be exalted?
7. Is the ordinary citizen free from the fear that a secret police organization under the control of a single political party will pack him off without fair or open trial?
In other words, the chief tests of freedom are whether citizens are permitted to think, speak, act, and work freely. In the chapters that follow you will see how communism denies those freedoms and rights we take for granted, and which we must ever be on the alert to defend and protect.
Democracy's Challenge
This is a book about communism — not about democracy. When living conditions in a Communist country are described, the reader should not assume that there are no short- comings in the standard of living in many non-Communist countries. For example, the description of housing shortages in the Soviet Union should not be taken to mean that housing is adequate in every democratic country. On the other hand, when it comes to the important "living condition" of freedom for the individual, there can be no dispute that the citizen of a democracy has rights denied the person living under communism. That story, What You Should Know about Democracy — and Why, is told in a companion book
Why study communism? A look at the front page of your daily newspaper will give you the answer: because communism affects your daily life — your present and your future; because upon a firm understanding of communism, its nature and its history, depends the fate of all mankind.
The Communist System
The governments of the world today fall into three broad groups: democratic, authoritarian, totalitarian. Within each group there are variations in the degree of power exercised by the government over the people.
The word democracy comes from two Greek words: demos, meaning "people," and krator, meaning "ruler." A democratic government is a government by consent of the people. The people have the right to vote — to replace their leaders at elections. They have freedom to criticize the government openly and to disagree with its policies without fear of punishment.
An authoritarian government is one that is dominated by a single leader or a dictatorial group (the authority). It usually permits private ownership of property, but restricts freedom of political action, including freedom of expression.
A totalitarian government is one which exercises total control. This includes control of property, education, and the means of communication — newspapers, books, magazines, radio, TV, theater, motion pictures, and other forms of art. Even the job each person holds is controlled by the government.
The line between authoritarianism and totalitarianism is sometimes thin. Both are dictatorships of one person or a ruling group that cannot be changed by the orderly process of voting by the people. Neither system gives the people the opportunity for a peaceful change of government, or permits individuals to campaign or agitate for a change.
A Totalitarian System
The Communist system is the most totalitarian system in existence today. It exercises complete control over the lives of the people. When the Communists seized power in the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, they immediately set about tightening their grip on all phases of life in the newly proclaimed Soviet Republic.
The basis of Communist organization was and is the proposition that the Communist Party, which controls the state, knows what is "best" for the people and acts as the "vanguard" of the people. Communists use state power to control not only an individual's political life, but his economic and social life as well.
Communism is all-embracing — it is a dogmatic belief, a form of political organization, a form of government, an economic system, a system of control over the individual, and a world-wide conspiracy.
1. Communism is a dogmatic belief. According to the Communists, their system is destined to take control of the entire world. The dedicated Communist is certain that his system is the "wave of the future." To bring the day of communism's triumph nearer, he will use any means — treachery, falsification, or violence — to advance his cause. As a disciplined agent of the Communist movement, he is expected to follow the Party's orders rigidly and carry them out un-questioningly. The Party line, or policy, may change from time to time as to method, but the goal of communism — world domination — remains unchanged.
2. Communism is a form of political organization. The Communist Party controls all political life in Communist countries. Party membership is closely regulated to ensure obedience to top Party leaders. Of the total Soviet population of over 226,000,000, some 11,000,000 are Party members. A candidate for membership is accepted only after Party leaders have checked his background and are satisfied that he is loyal to the regime. A member is expected to see that Party orders are obeyed in all his daily contacts — at work, at home, in the schools, anywhere. It is his duty to report any breach of Party discipline by his fellow workers, friends, or family members.
In the Soviet Union, Party organization is parallel to that of the government on national and local levels. At the top is the first secretary of the Party. He is in charge of the Party Presidium (before 1952 known as the Political Bureau, or Politbureau), a small group of members —11 in 1964 — who determine Party policy. The Presidium directs the Central Committee (319 members in 1964), which, in theory, handles Party affairs between meetings of the Party Congress (held every four years). The 22nd Party Congress met in
1961 and had 4,813 delegates. The first secretary also has charge of the Secretariat, which controls the choice of Party secretaries (or leaders) all the way down to the local Party groups, called "cells."
3. Communism is a form of government. On the surface, a government in a Communist state is like any other government. It carries out administrative, judicial, and legislative functions. Communist government is basically different from democratic government, however, in that it serves merely as a "rubber stamp" for decisions that have already been made by Party leaders. This applies to all laws, appointments, and actions of the various government agencies. Important officials are Party members, subject to Party discipline.
At present, the highest official of the Soviet government is Aleksei N. Kosygin. He is chairman of the Council of Ministers, which directs the various ministries (government departments), such as foreign affairs, economy, transportation, and others. In reality, however, he is subordinate in authority to Leonid I. Brezhnev, first secretary of the Party. Former Soviet Premier Khrushchev held both of these top posts — in government and Party — himself.
Nominally, the highest lawmaking body is the Supreme Soviet of the U.S.S.R., which has almost 1,500 members, called "deputies," and two chambers: the Council (or Soviet) of the Union, and the Council of Nationalities. Membership in the Council of the Union is based on population. Deputies in the Council of Nationalities are selected on a geographical basis from the various republics that make up the U.S.S.R., and from smaller areas. The Supreme Soviet elects the premier and the Svipreme Court. However, since all actions of the Supreme Soviet require prior Party approval, it is merely a rubber stamp for Party policy.
"Elections" in Communist countries offer voters only one "choice." For example, candidates for the Supreme Soviet and the local Soviets, or legislative bodies, are nominated at meetings of trade unions, schools, and collective farms, under Party supervision. Party officials direct the choice of one nominee for each office, so his election is assured.
The Soviet magazine U.S.S.R. (March, 1962) expressed the official point of view on
elections this way:
Since the interests of the people and the Communist Party are one and the same, and
since there are no antagonistic groups or classes, there is no reason for several candidates
to appear on the ballot.
That's what it said!
4. Communism is an economic system. In the Soviet Union, the state has complete control of
the economy. For all industries and for agriculture, the government sets production quotas.
Despite some relaxation of controls since Stalin's death, the Soviet wage earner is still largely a pawn of the state. It is the government that determines the number of people to be trained for specific jobs or professions, assigns work, sets wages, and approves promotions. A worker may quit if he gives two weeks' notice. He pays a stiff price, however, for quitting.
He loses many social-security benefits, and his accident and health insurance is restored only after he has worked at his new job for six months. There are, to be sure, trade unions in the U.S.S.R. But the function of the Soviet trade unions — unlike those in free countries — is mainly to enforce production quotas, and to serve as a disciplinary arm of the Party and government. The management metes out penalties for tardiness and absenteeism. No strikes are permitted. Quotas and prices of most consumer goods are fixed by the government.
Economic policies vary somewhat from one Communist nation to another. In Yugoslavia, for
example, farmers are no longer forced to give up their land and join government-run
collective farms. The same is true in Poland, a Soviet satellite, where most of the peasants
own the land they work. In Poland there are also independent craftsmen, such as shoemakers,
tailors, and barbers. However, industry is 90 per cent owned and operated by the state.
5. Communism is a system of control over the individual. In addition to controlling political and economic life, Communist governments make special efforts to mold people's thinking.
The Central Committee of the Soviet Communist Party has a special section called
AGITPROP (Agitation and Propaganda), which has been set up to indoctrinate the
people. Through the use of all channels of communication — newspapers, magazines, books,
radio, TV, motion pictures, posters, literature, art, music, the theatre, the schools, Communist Party local groups — this agency carries on propaganda to support current government drives. These drives may take various forms, such as anti-U.S. campaigns, crusades against religion, or pressure for increased production.
6. Communism is a world-wide conspiracy. Soviet Russia extends its influence through a
network of 91 Communist parties throughout the world, including the United States. In
countries where the Communist Party has been declared illegal, it operates underground.
Until recently, all of these parties received instructions from Moscow as to their programs of action. They sent delegates to international Communist Party meetings or congresses, held
every two years. At the October, 1961 Party Congress in Moscow, there were delegates from
Communist parties in 83 countries. Today some Communist parties (in North Vietnam, North
Korea, and Albania) owe their allegiance to the Communist leaders of China.
The work of the various Communist parties is supplemented by the activities of Soviet or
Communist Chinese agents, whose tasks may include recruiting local supporters, getting
control of political organizations, provoking disturbances and riots, or working quietly to
influence elections. When the political climate is favorable, these agents may incite an armed uprising, leading to the overthrow of a local government and its replacement by a Communist regime.
Such, then, is the nature of communism — a system that suppresses and intimidates the
individual, instills in people a fear of saying or doing anything that might displease Party
leaders, keeps its leaders in power by means of dictatorship, and is committed to spreading
itself throughout the world.
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