In the most recent election in North Korea (August 2003 if I'm not mistaken), the only party allowed to run was the Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland. Similarly, in Cuba, only members of the Communist Party are allowed to run. Here in the US, we have hundreds if not thousands of third parties. Also, to describe the Democrats and Republicans as having 'almost identical views' is ridiculous.
How ignorant, actually 3 different parties were allowed to run: Korean Workers Party, DFRF, and Korean social democracy party.
And republicans and democrats don't hold similar views? Hmmmm...they both support capitalism, they both support the imperialist wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, both parties voted for the patriot act, both parties take billions from corporations...how are they different other than petty, small social issues like prayer in school/gay marriage etc?
I'd say Republicans are far right-wing, democrats are moderate right-wing.
Religion actually grows fastest when libertarian philosophy reins (separation btwn church and state).
Really? So the crusades, the witch hunts, the fascist war against the Spanish republic, Nazi Germany, and other places where religion thrived they were led by "libertarian" entities?
I'd like to hear where religious ideas are rampant and what libertarian state you speak of?
if you speak of capitalist societies, than libertarian is not the right word. The reason religion is a widespread disease is because the bourgeoisie in each capitalist country has the resources to publicate the "word of god", for political and economic purposes. "God" and "being saved" have been used for political and economic purposes since the beginning of the fclass system, and it hasn't stopped.
So if I walked into Red Square in 1943 and yelled 'down with Stalin in the next free election' I'd be fine? I wouldn't be throw in a gulag or have a friendly visit from the NKVD and one of its pistols?
You might've gotten a knock on the door or harrassed by soviet citizens. The Soviet Union was being invaded, any public counter-revolutionary statements were seen as pro-Fascist ones.
But you certainly would not have been sent to the "gulags". The gulags were reserved for murderers, rapists, and people who worked for the nazi's after the war. You would've gotten the same treatment as a black man in 1950's Ameirca would've gotten, just without the whole lynching part. Or the same treatment a communist in the 1950's would've gotten, you would've been blacklisted and maybe lose your job.
if you read the pravda (communist party newspaper) from the times of Stalin you would see that letters written critically of Stalin's policies were publicized (this was the state-run newspaper mind you) and quite common,with responses from communist party members.
Public ownership of the 'people's resources' is horribly inefficient.
Really? Then you explain to me how the Soviet Union/Russia went from a country 100 years behind the western powers in 1924, to second in the world in industrial power? How the life expectancy of an average Soviet citizen went from 40 in the czarist times, to 73 when Stalin died in 1953? Why Russia's life expectancy for a male today is 58, far less than it was when Stalin was in power (hence why the majority of Russians look back at the Stalin era with great love and nostalgia about how much better life was).
I do not understand, if capitalism was so much more efficient, then why did it take America/Britain 150 years to do what the USSR did in 30, the former inflicted far more suffering amongst its working class too, far far more.
