by Jake_old » Mon 24 Oct 2005, 07:18:43
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'N')o, thats completely true. Remember, equality for all.
Only the very high leaders had fancy cars and nice houses. Everyone else gets everything just the same. Rank and file, march to the same drum.
We are not born equal though! IMO, some are born lazy, some are born morons, some are born disabled etc..
You couldn't rise through the party by generating vast sums of personal wealth, hell, you couldn't even accumulate wealth.
Its a totally different mind set.
Big manufacturers could rise up through the party. Propagandists, successful military planners, Union leaders(although it had a different meaning in USSR).
There was opportunity, thats why they won the space race

Just not the opportunity for personal protectionism. Many people did have nice houses, if they helped progress the party agenda.
Those who sat on their ass doing nothing lived 10 to an apartment and got what they were given. Sounds familiar.
Now I accept that there was no freedom of personal expression, something which would trouble me greatly. I am truely thankful to live in a free society, which allows me to learn about any ideology i see fit. I would have great fun talking to those Berkley people about this most precious freedom.
I used to think I was a Marxist, but I was young and had a simplistic world view.
I don't like the capitalist system and believe there should be some restrictions on private wealth accumulation.
I don't have the answer to what we should have though. Something in the middle would be good, but workable? Maybe. Thats why meetings like that are very important.
We haven't found the best way of living yet, but we never will if we simply accept the staus quo.