Remembering the billions of victims of communism.
[Update a while later]
In a timely interview, thoughts on America’s decline and history, by Professor Paul Rahe.
9 thoughts on “A Tragic Anniversary”
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Remembering the billions of victims of communism.
[Update a while later]
In a timely interview, thoughts on America’s decline and history, by Professor Paul Rahe.
Comments are closed.
“While the influence of communist ideology has declined greatly since its mid-twentieth century peak, it is far from dead.”
Has it? It looks to me that it has never been more powerful, especially in the West.
As per China becoming an economic power, by the CCP merging state-sponsored capital and a degree of mercantile autonomy. We in the US didn’t just ignore it while it happened, as Prof. Rahe suggests, we encouraged it aggressively as national policy in the 90’s and 00’s. The idea of an emergent and rising Chinese middle class becoming the great social moderator was very much the accepted theory of the time. One that was totally ignorant of Chinese culture and history as Prof. Rahe also points out.
The idea of an emergent and rising Chinese middle class becoming the great social moderator was very much the accepted theory of the time. One that was totally ignorant of Chinese culture and history as Prof. Rahe also points out.
My take though is that it’ll be right in the end. There’s not a lot of need for heavy-handed, clueless authoritarians when you have a powerful middle class.
Like in Iran? Or the Russian Federation?
Like in Iran? Or the Russian Federation?
Like what? They have something of a middle class, but it’s nascent. My take is that if it were much bigger in both countries, we wouldn’t be having invasions of Ukraine or Iran’s shenanigans.
My point is it takes more than wealth to form a meaningful republic. I think the better historical examples are those of nascent self-rule going back to the Greek city-states, the Roman Republic, the agrarian colonies of North America. In other words it takes money, but more than money.
I think it was summed up nicely during the HK protests right before the CCP crackdown. There was a news video of an elderly woman sweeping the streets more angry with the protesters than the government. When your society values order over freedom, that’s the difference. Wealth won’t change that. Putting it into cultural context: If you believe in the beneficence of Papa Xi. Don’t laugh, this is the basis of his legitimacy. It is taken very seriously in China. For reason.
That may explain why China is in the process of destroying their middle class. Actually all classes above the absolute lowest, the million/billionaires will either be out of the country, in jail or bankrupt or more likely the latter two in another year.
I believe the goal of the CCP is to keep the population affluent enough to remain docile, but not so affluent that they can use their ‘disposable’ income to travel broadly, or to educate with ‘foreign ideology’ that would lead to questioning the status quo. The rise of domestic universities in China dedicated to world-class STEM and NO ‘liberal arts’ teaching is coming. Here in the US we should expect Chinese foreign student enrollments in our Universities to dwindle over time.