The Red Chinese government needs to be destroyed at all costs. I pray daily for the oppressed people living under the boot of that regime.

Communism is the most corrupt system of government ever.

Really? Not.. naked despotism?

To be clear, not trying to say communist governments are not corrupt. Just that... premodern governmental systems were surely more so.

the problem with the communist party is that political repression in the US means nobody will admit to their membership...

I mean nobody wants to be discriminated...

@Thucy:
"To be clear, not trying to say communist governments are not corrupt. Just that... premodern governmental systems were surely more so."
It depends on your definition of "corrupt". I mean, if a despot says, "I control the weapons; pay me tribute and kneel before me or I will destroy you," he's telling the truth, whereas when a Communist government says, "I represent the best interests of the proletariat; entrust your property to me for wiser management and kneel before me or be labelled an enemy of the people and destroyed," they're being pretty disingenuous.

@Gunfighter,
"Communism is the most corrupt system of government ever."
I know a couple sub-Saharan "democratic republics" that would beg to differ.

"Communism is the most corrupt system of government ever."

I know of a couple of men whose last names are Roosevelt and Wilson that would probably tell you that free market allows for a lot more corruption than most would think.

Corruption, or dictatorship, isn't necessary evil. Tito springs to mind. You may also have an evil democracy, or ochlocracy - the masses are not necessary well-intentioned all of the time.

"As a nation, we began by declaring that "all men are created equal." We now practically read it, "all men are created equal except negroes." When the Know-nothings get control, it will read, "all men are created equal except negroes and foreigners and Catholics." When it comes to this, I shall prefer emigrating to some country where they make no pretense of loving liberty--to Russia, for instance, where despotism can be taken pure, and without the base alloy of hypocrisy." -Lincoln

What about Western "democracies", then? If you agree with Lincoln that what counts is hypocrisy rather than concrete outcomes.

And that point about hypocrisy aside, what about the ruler who says:

"I am God - I will rule you because I must rule you."

You can substitute "I am God" for "I was given the right to rule by God", the moral implication is similar.

What is that supposed to mean?

It means that despotism can be just as facetious if not more so than modern rationales for dictatorship.

And I guess, hecks, that I took the word "corrupt" to mean "illegitimate".

"I consider myself a Democratic Socialist in that I'd support the nationalization of certain vital industries that I think should be managed in the interest of public good rather than profit. Health, mass transit, the postal service, and utilities, for example.

Communism loses points with me in a couple areas, namely the post-Leninist dismissal of national self-determination paving the way for militaristic expansion of the state, and the designation of a vanguard party as the representative of the proletariat, which allows for a single-party system and eliminates free dissent. Add to that the doctrine that nationalization should apply to all property rather than only to vital services, and Communism in practice ends up looking less like what Marx proposed and more like what the New York Times dubbed "red fascism".

Hecks is my hero......spot on !!

So your a socialist?

I'm a Democratic Socialist

Nigee just changed political parties for the third time today. First it was excluded, then it was Republican, and now it's Democratic Socialist. How does that one work?

republican
1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of a republic.
2. Favoring a republic as the best form of government.

Nigee - National Socialist...

So you're a Nationalist Republican Socialist?

"republican
1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of a republic.
2. Favoring a republic as the best form of government."

... and in fact, the terms "democratic" and "republican" are not diametrically opposed, which is why the four presidents from Thomas Jefferson from John Quincy Adams all ran under the Democratic-Republican party.

@ Synapse -
"Nigee - National Socialist..."

GODWINNED!

I've stood for local govt 5 times, have been elected 3 times.
I have a picture of me standing outside the Town Hall with all other Councillors, I'm the one wearing the ANC t-shirt, it was the early-90s so relevant.

This is confusing. I asked a very simple question.

But simple answers are so much less interesting.

Sbyvl, are you aware of the political current in the United States that became known as "McCarthyism", the method it was famous for and the consequences it had for American society?
I think that explains the surprised responses to your question...

I will certainly agree with the statement above, and for those reasons listed communism, for the most part, has failed in the past most notably in Soviet Russia. The Chinese are now communist in name alone due to the fact that their previously communist system was failing. Yet, I say communism has only failed for the most because if we look at Cuba we can see that currently (and I say currently, not 10 or 20 or more years ago) they are doing quite well for themselves both economically and socially. They have developed one of the world's most sustainable agricultural system and poverty is very low. Of course Cuba is a very small nation and it is difficult to compare it to those very large nations such as the US, Russia, and China. But just because communism has failed in the past, does not mean the system itself is no viable. In fact we have yet to see anything like a true Marxist communism. And that is just the thing, a true communist system cannot be imposed upon a population from the top. It is an organic, reactionary occurrence of the oppressed poor and working classes uniting and rising up against their oppressors.

Capitalist production, therefore, develops technology, and the combining together of various processes into a social whole, only by sapping the original sources of all wealth -- the soil and the labourer.
-Karl Marx

@redhouse: McCarthy had good intents at first, but then he went crazy.

For the record, my previous posts on this thread were partial trolling, partial seriousness.

Trolling aside, communism is quite evil and wrong in every sense of both words. I vehemently oppose it and its less extreme cousins (eg. socialism)

Let me ask you this: What is intrinsically evil about communism, or socialism?