[lit-ideas] Re: Communism versus Nazism
- From: Judith Evans <judithevans001@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 25 Feb 2010 16:28:41 +0000 (GMT)
So we can take it that we're talking about *some* communists (some Stalinists,
perhaps, if we're talking about Nazism/Communism)? Also, now this is about
*some* "Western intellectuals"? (And I suppose *some* Marxists.) I made no
attempt to suggest there were no communists who correspond to the picture you
give - and never addressed the "Western intellectuals" point; and could drop
this now. And I'll drop those aspects, but do have a couple more things to say.
'It is true that there is a more than a trace of Vulgar Marxism in this,
with its reference to "cheating and bullying" - where another kind of
marxism would insist that even in a world without any "cheating and
bullying" inequalities would arise because the means of production were
not in public and common ownership etc. But isn't the point that,
psychologically, many leftists are carrying more than a trace of Vulgar
Marxism?'
not if you accept my contention that even a belief that inequality is founded
on cheating and bullying does not necessarily lead to a belief that *any*
action to overthrow that inequality is justified.
You said
> "A communist takes their theories about society as a
> given.
If they ever
> stopped to consider whether it was wrong that
Stalin killed
> so many
> people, they would simply tell
themselves that it was done
> in the name
> of the
disadvantaged and is, therefore, okay. Those people
> deserved
what
> they got, as they colluded in an unjust social
>
order."
I replied
>
> oh sure, that would be why Khrushchev denounced
Stalin and
> why so many communists left the Party - remaining
communists
> -- in '56.
you say
"This hardly amounts to a sharp
rebuttal: why not leave and denounce earlier? And many other questions
might be asked.
I suggest you ask the other questions, meanwhile I'll speak to these. It's
pretty obvious why Khrushchev felt unable to speak out earlier and why when he
did, he kept it 'in-house', supposedly, anyway. What about people outside? It
seems pretty clear -- from the reaction to the Secret Speech in Eastern Europe
-- that they simply hadn't known much.
forgive the shorthand here:
February 56, Secret Speech, leaked more or less immediately by the KGB to a
Western journalist
October 56, 'Hungarian Revolution'. eventually suppressed, in November,by
Soviet troops.
October-November, the exodus from the CP began.
Judy Evans, Cardiff
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