Should anti-communism make a comeback ?

[Secretary of State Liberal Hack]

Historicaly anti-communism was a strong strain of thought present through almost all democratic parties in the US, Canada and Western Europe but has in recent years been on the downtrend.

Is it times for parties to embrace it given the recent rise of the CPC a major communist power and a growing number of intellectuals sympathetic to that form of governance.

[Leading Political Consultant Ma Anand Sheela]

If opposition to the CCP becomes a major organising principle of Western politics, it'll have very little resemblance to historical anti-communism because the CCP is a very different thing now. And anyway, it's very Atlas (pejorative) to think that that level of fear is something that can or ought to be simply ordained from on high by political parties.

[Secretary of State Liberal Hack]

If opposition to the CCP becomes a major organising principle of Western politics, it'll have very little resemblance to historical anti-communism because the CCP is a very different thing now. And anyway, it's very Atlas (pejorative) to think that that's something that can or ought to be ordained from on high by political parties.

In what sense is it very different from the historical anti-communist fight? There are lot of similarities beyond some superficial differences regarding free market vs centrally planned economics.

 The CPC presents the same offer to the non-western world, an alternative that strikes against them for their historic injustices. As well as attracting a similar kind of domestic sympathizer that views the CPC as having governed better than electoral democracies and views aligning with it as their best way forward. It  might not be as attached to the actual form the goverment takes but neither was the Soviet Union when it came down to it.

It's economic development promises are also not too different from what soviets offered to post colonial countries which was what at that time seemed to be quick-start guide to industrialization and economic prosperity.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

There are many other problems with this thread, but let me just say that the idea that the number of Western "intellectuals" (whatever that means) sympathetic to communism is growing is frankly preposterous.

[Secretary of State Liberal Hack]

There are many other problems with this thread, but let me just say that the idea that the number of Western "intellectuals" (whatever that means) sympathetic to communism is growing is frankly preposterous.

They might not be communists per-say but the number of academic sympathetic to the CCP and hostile to electoral democracy is growing.

[OSR stands with Israel]

Absolutely

[Dr. MB]

I’m not a communist, but I’m an anti-anti-communist. No.

[President Johnson]

Communism is no longer a threat as it was during the Cold War. What anticommunism was then, anti-authoritarianism should be now.

[PSOL]

lol

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

We should be skeptical of and opposed to any utopian ideology that seeks to expand government power for the sake of bringing about that utopia, regardless of its ideological or philosophical origins.

[PSOL]

You cannot “bring back” what is already a fixture in our society.

The fact you go straight for oppression against people who see the facts about the Chinese system is inherently hilarious given you live in Singapore—which is probably the closest system to the Chinese model moreso than Vietnam or Cuba.

We should be skeptical of and opposed to any utopian ideology that seeks to expand government power for the sake of bringing about that utopia, regardless of its ideological or philosophical origins.

Communism is not “utopian” and rests on pointing out common sense market failures in a bid to gain support and rise to power, relying on a central apparatus to bring about change is just one tool in the kit. The notion that this is the best system and that if only there would be less government things would be rosy is far more utopian.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

There are many other problems with this thread, but let me just say that the idea that the number of Western "intellectuals" (whatever that means) sympathetic to communism is growing is frankly preposterous.

Uh, check out Twitter.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

You cannot “bring back” what is already a fixture in our society.

The fact you go straight for oppression against people who see the facts about the Chinese system is inherently hilarious given you live in Singapore—which is probably the closest system to the Chinese model moreso than Vietnam or Cuba.

We should be skeptical of and opposed to any utopian ideology that seeks to expand government power for the sake of bringing about that utopia, regardless of its ideological or philosophical origins.

Communism is not “utopian” and rests on pointing out common sense market failures in a bid to gain support and rise to power, relying on a central apparatus to bring about change is just one tool in the kit. The notion that this is the best system and that if only there would be less government things would be rosy is far more utopian.

I have criticized the utopianism of libertarianism too, its just it is rather rare to hear of a Libertarian dictatorship that has killed 20 million of its own people in the name of enacting the depraved utterances of a 19th century fringe theorist.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

There are many other problems with this thread, but let me just say that the idea that the number of Western "intellectuals" (whatever that means) sympathetic to communism is growing is frankly preposterous.

Uh, check out Twitter.

I don't think there are enough hammer-and-sickle-in-bio randos on United States Twitter to make up for all the old communists who've been dying in France, Italy etc.

[PSOL]

There are many other problems with this thread, but let me just say that the idea that the number of Western "intellectuals" (whatever that means) sympathetic to communism is growing is frankly preposterous.

Uh, check out Twitter.

Twitter is not real life

Also the Italian communist movement stopped the bleeding in the 2010s, they’ve been growing or at the very least stable in membership ever since. Ditto on France, but that’s been an uncontrollable hemorrhage since the Algerian war.

[FT-02 Senator A.F.E. 🇵🇸🤝🇺🇸🤝🇺🇦]

This would imply that anti-communism somehow faded away

[If my soul was made of stone]

There are many other problems with this thread, but let me just say that the idea that the number of Western "intellectuals" (whatever that means) sympathetic to communism is growing is frankly preposterous.

Uh, check out Twitter.

I don't think there are enough hammer-and-sickle-in-bio randos on United States Twitter to make up for all the old communists who've been dying in France, Italy etc.

They're dying in Modena, ER.

[dead0man]

Like with fascism, nearly everyone is anti-Communist, there is no point in expressing one's anti-communism bona fides.  And again like with fascism, people that go out of their way to tell us how "anti" they are, are probably just assholes wanting an excuse to do asshole things.  Using the cover of being against even worse people so their actions can be excused away by other assholes.

[ingemann]

Modern communism is as great a threat to liberal democracies as neo-Nazism is, meaning it’s no threat at all. Most Communist today is a bunch of glorified LARPers, even the more thuggish among them is a threat to a few shop windows and to a few right wing morons not to society.

So the answer to the question is no.

[𝕭𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖆 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖔𝖑𝖆]

There are many other problems with this thread, but let me just say that the idea that the number of Western "intellectuals" (whatever that means) sympathetic to communism is growing is frankly preposterous.

Uh, check out Twitter.

I don't think there are enough hammer-and-sickle-in-bio randos on United States Twitter to make up for all the old communists who've been dying in France, Italy etc.

They're dying in Modena, ER.

So true bestie. Though nowhere in this country are they dying more than in Umbria (Nathan grief level: too strong).

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

The October Revolution and it's consequences have been a disaster for the human race.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

The October Revolution and it's consequences have been a disaster for the human race.

The actual greatest geopolitical disaster of the 20th century was not the collapse of the Soviet Union like Putin famously said, it was the Russian Revolution.

[LAKISYLVANIA]

The parties that literally explicitly are anti-communists are usually the ones that try to look for an enemy or a threat in order to propose authoritarian measures.

Being explicitly anti-communist is literally in all cases, no exceptions, being pro-authoritarian.

Being anticommunist isn't the same as "not being a communist", remember that one. You can be not anti-communist and not communist.

Also, anti-communism usually is the same ideology that try to brand democratic socialists, social democrats and even social liberals or "cultural marxists" as communists.

[LAKISYLVANIA]

Like with fascism, nearly everyone is anti-Communist, there is no point in expressing one's anti-communism bona fides.  And again like with fascism, people that go out of their way to tell us how "anti" they are, are probably just assholes wanting an excuse to do asshole things.  Using the cover of being against even worse people so their actions can be excused away by other assholes.

Surprised to hear that from you, but I agree.

[LAKISYLVANIA]

If opposition to the CCP becomes a major organising principle of Western politics, it'll have very little resemblance to historical anti-communism because the CCP is a very different thing now. And anyway, it's very Atlas (pejorative) to think that that level of fear is something that can or ought to be simply ordained from on high by political parties.

CCP is far from communist. I would describe them more as statist and general authoritarian, using state capitalism, excessive government surveillance and not embracing western kinds of freedom, while economic inequality is usually higher in China than in most western nations.

You cannot “bring back” what is already a fixture in our society.

The fact you go straight for oppression against people who see the facts about the Chinese system is inherently hilarious given you live in Singapore—which is probably the closest system to the Chinese model moreso than Vietnam or Cuba.

We should be skeptical of and opposed to any utopian ideology that seeks to expand government power for the sake of bringing about that utopia, regardless of its ideological or philosophical origins.

Communism is not “utopian” and rests on pointing out common sense market failures in a bid to gain support and rise to power, relying on a central apparatus to bring about change is just one tool in the kit. The notion that this is the best system and that if only there would be less government things would be rosy is far more utopian.

I have criticized the utopianism of libertarianism too, its just it is rather rare to hear of a Libertarian dictatorship that has killed 20 million of its own people in the name of enacting the depraved utterances of a 19th century fringe theorist.

That's because no country has truly been libertarian in the past.