From the ear-wax eating liberal..."Communism Works!" (must be a Bernie Sanders/Alan Grayson protege) http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nake...osshairs-again-with-communism-works-line.html
How does communism not work? Just because you don't like something doesn't mean it doesn't work. No type of government works perfectly. If communism was a failure, half the worlds population wouldn't be living under it.
Communism is an extreme political system just like Fascism is an extreme political system. Democracy, Socialism, Capitalism are related but entirely different systems. This thread is certainly off to a confusing start. Just for clarification sake because I don't care what some guy said.... In a way, communism is an extreme form of socialism. Many countries have dominant socialist political parties but very few are truly communist. In fact, most countries - including staunch capitalist bastions like the U.S. and U.K. - have government programs that borrow from socialist principles. "Socialism" is sometimes used interchangeably with "communism" but the two philosophies have some stark differences. Most notably, while communism is a political system, socialism is primarily an economic system that can exist in various forms under a wide range of political systems. http://www.diffen.com/difference/Communism_vs_Socialism
Cuba doesn't seem to be thriving, the Soviet Union crumbled, Venezuela is in a freefall, China's system has only benefited a select few and even that has only been after some Capitalism was introduced. Can you give us an example where Communism flourished?
But we aren't discussing the merits of Democracy, are we? The OP was in regards to Communism & you jumped in to defend it. Now, back to the subject...
OK, then explain your first 2 posts... See my previous answer... Now, show me where Communism is thriving.
Crumbling economies & failed empires are a bit more than "faults", wouldn't you agree? Now, show me where Communism is thriving. (if you can).
Name any system that hasn't failed or an empire that hasn't fallen. They all fail eventually. We , for example, don't even live in a Democracy anymore. We live in a Oligarchy. Democracy has already failed in this country. There are just certain people too dumb to notice.
I believe the worlds largest economy is a communist country right now. China has the largest growing middle class in the world's history. The largest GDP output since the industrial revolution, and the largest growing industrial sector in recorded history. Doesn't sound very "crumbly" to me.
It isn't fair to say that half he world's population is living under communism when that population is living in only one country (China). The number of communist countries has dwindled which indicates that communism is a failure. Even China adopted a form of capitalism called "state capitalism" in order to survive and flourish. During the reign of the Soviet Union, there were communist countries throughout Eastern Europe, Asia, and Africa. Communist countries in the twentieth century included Afghanistan, Albania, Angola, Benin, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Congo, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Ethiopia, Hungary, Mongolia, Mozambique, Poland, Romania, Somalia, South Yemen, Soviet Union, and Yugoslavia. Today, there are only five communist countries in the world. 1. China Grant Faint/Photodisc/Getty Images Mao Zedong took control over China in 1949 and proclaimed China as the People's Republic of China, a communist country. China has remained consistently communist since 1949 although economic reforms have been in place for several years. China has been called "Red China" due to the communist party's control over the country. 2. Cuba Source: CIA World Factbook, 2007 A revolution in 1959 led to the taking over of the Cuban government by Fidel Castro. By 1961, Cuba became a fully communist country and developed close ties to the Soviet Union. 3. Laos Source: CIA World Factbook, 2007 Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, became a communist country in 1975 following a revolution that was supported by Vietnam and the Soviet Union. 4. North Korea Source: CIA World Factbook, 2007 Korea, which was captured by Japan in World War II, was divided following the war into a Soviet north and American south. Despite being led by the USSR beginning in 1945, North Korea did not become a communist country until 1948. 5. Vietnam Source: CIA World Factbook, 2007 Vietnam was partitioned at a 1954 conference that followed the First Indochina War. While the partition was supposed to be temporary, North Vietnam became communist and supported by the Soviet Union while South Vietnam was democratic and supported by the United States. Following two decades of war, the two parts of Vietnam were unified and in 1976, Vietnam as a unified country became a communist country.
You asked.... India 2014 Elections: Communists Thriving In One Remote Corner Of Subcontinent As Marxism Wanes Globally By Palash Ghosh on April 10 2014 1:45 PM Voters in Agartala, Tripura Reuters The tiny northeastern Indian state of Tripura is voting for parliamentary candidates in the country’s general election – but what makes this province of less than 4 million people who primarily engage in rice production so unique is that it has been dominated by Communists for more than 60 years.
So we're redefining communism, David, to make it fit your argument? And fair or not, half the population is still half the population.
You realize that their successes only happened after a great deal of Capitalism was introduced, right. Once people were given the right to own property & own their own businesses, the economy began to flourish. But you knew that, right?