By Alexander G. Markovsky
Socialism is like an infectious disease—one that societies must endure in order to build immunity. As Alexander Solzhenitsyn once observed, “For us in Russia, socialism is a dead dog, while for many in the West, it is still a living lion.”
This “dead dog,” once expelled from Russia, found new life in the United States, where it has regained vitality, emerging as a “living lion” within the Democratic Party.
The Party has undergone an ideological transformation into a Marxist social democratic entity, attempting to persuade the electorate that this time it is different – this time, socialism is democratic.
This democratic socialism is not a new form of socialism; it is an alternative strategy for dismantling capitalism and implementing socialism.
Moreover, it is not a modern invention either; it was unearthed from the “landfill of history” known as the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) and retains a distinct Russian accent.
In 1903 the Party was having the Second Party Congress to adopt the platform of transition from capitalism to socialism.
The leaders of the Party, Julius Martov and Pavel Axelrod, aimed at a peaceful regime change via democratic process. After gaining power, they would use the authority of government bureaucracy to destroy capitalism by overburdening it with taxation and regulations.
A radical faction led by Vladimir Lenin rejected this approach and demanded a revolutionary tactic with the imposition of the dictatorship of the proletariat. Evidently, neither faction had illusions that this unnatural social organization could be implemented on a voluntary basis.
In the end, the party split into Bolsheviks, who championed a radical revolution, and the Mensheviks, who sought to gain power by exploiting the vulnerabilities within the democratic process.
The Bolsheviks ultimately won, became the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and eventually liquidated their comrades in arms in accordance with Marxist comradeship ritual.
A century later, we discovered that the demise of Menshevism was not irrevocable. The ideas of Martov and Axelrod did not die. In one of the most dramatic reversals of history, they acquired a new life and malignancy within the Democratic Party.
Not surprisingly, both Parties share the word “democratic” and Marxist ideology, the centerpiece of which is economic equality.
The concept of economic equality has been widely misunderstood or deliberately misconstrued. If the untutored proponents of economic equality took a moment to study human history, they might discover that the only true instance of economic equality occurred during the era of primitive communism.
Ten thousand years ago, before the advent of farming, people were forced to obtain food collectively. Everything that was produced was immediately consumed. There was no property and no wealth, which ensured economic equality in a state of poverty. This is the only circumstance in which true economic equality has ever existed—or can exist.
The idea of equality in wealth is intrinsically self-contradictory — an oxymoron shrouded in utopian dreams. By its very nature, wealth rejects uniformity; it thrives on distinction, accumulation, and inequality. In this light, socialism aims to replace inequality in wealth with equality in poverty.
In reality, it is not merely a matter of redistributing wealth, as most of us have led to believe; the ultimate objective of socialism is the destruction of wealth as the only way economic equality can be achieved in industrial society. Thus, socialism reveals its authentic nature as a Philosophy of Poverty.
Therefore, when the opponents of socialism offer Cuba, Venezuela, and the Soviet Union as evidence that socialism “doesn’t work”, they are mistaken – socialism works, and it works as intended. The purpose of socialism is not wealth creation; the purpose of socialism, as we already stated, is economic equality.
It is no coincidence that the Democratic Party has chosen New York City to launch its direct attack on capitalism. With the fundamental components of socialism firmly in place – a welfare state, high taxation, and extensive government regulations – New York City is an ideal setting for the establishment of a wholly socialist government. Should this endeavor prove successful, the Party will proceed to enforce socialism throughout the state and beyond.
The current American political environment is conducive to the spread of socialism. Numerous warning signs are evident.
The most concerning element of the increasing pro-socialist sentiment is the intellectual stagnation present in America’s political dialogue. American political thinking about socialism is trailing behind that of the Russians or Chinese.
Neither education, nor upbringing, nor life experiences equip Americans to grasp the magnitude of the socialists’ assault on American institutions.
Consequently, the electorate often elects individuals who are demonstrably unqualified and have failed to possess even a basic understanding of history, economics, or critical thought. A few have even earned notoriety for inconceivable stupidity.
Many of them, aware of self-worthlessness, adopt Marxism and can hardly contain their awe and envy at the American enterprise and question its moral validity.
We must be mindful that every ism — communism, socialism, fascism, and the like — has its supporters and beneficiaries. Those who envision themselves on the receiving end, have every reason to think they will be better off with socialism.
In the absence of an ideological counterweight, coupled with sufficient funding and enough persuasion embellished with demagoguery and lies, millions of Americans can be swayed to embrace socialism.
For the remainder of us, it is crucial to remember that once socialism takes root, it cannot be defeated. Eventually, it will self-destruct after depleting the nation’s wealth.
But if history is any guide, its lifespan is approximately 70 years, and our great-grandchildren will be digging their way out of poverty.
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Alexander G. Markovsky, is a Soviet émigré who earned a Ph.D. in economics and political science from the University of Marxism–Leninism and an MS in structural engineering from Moscow and Kharkov universities. He is a senior fellow at the London Center for Policy Research, a think tank that examines national security, energy, risk analysis, and other public policy issues. He is the author of two politically charged books, “Anatomy of a Bolshevik” and “Liberal Bolshevism: America Did Not Defeat Communism, She Adopted It.” Mr. Markovsky has published more than 400 articles on American Thinker, The Hill, Newsmax, and American Infrastructure, covering a variety of topics such as socialism, foreign policy, the war in Ukraine, problems with American Infrastructure, and many others. He is the owner and CEO of Litwin Management Services, LLC. He can be reached at alexander.g.markovsky@gmail.com
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