Whats wrong with communism?

[tkdhkdmaster]

I'm an american and I love my freedom. But wouldnt we live in a better place if everyone was somewhat controlled. The wealth of the 5% of world who has 95% of the money would be spread amongst everyone. That would make the entire world middle class if not better. Why not even eliminate currency. If everyone is forced to do a decent job, they can get paid what they need and then some. They could get paid their food and housing, and everyone would be able to get some kind of ration of wants, like television and stuff. Would the world be so bad if communism were set into place?

[T3hR34p3r]

Humans are by nature flawed. They can't work without receiving compensation, it's just not in them.

[thedotmaster]

There will always be those who are naturally a hard worker, and those who are naturally lazy. When the hard workers get the same as the lazy people, the hard workers start to get jealous. Therefore it falls apart.
It doesn't fit human nature.
Capitalism does but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Capitalism is good as long as it does not exploit others to an extent that they cannot choose a better deal, and as long it never comes to the point where you have to work for the company or you and your family will die.
That is what it is like now in the 3rd world - that should change, but it won't because we love our cheap goods.

[OneArrow]

Humans are by nature flawed. They can't work without receiving compensation, it's just not in them.

Not a flaw, a feature. ;]

We seek out what we need. If that happens to be emotional or spiritual fulfillment, that may very well mean working "for free," but we are still doing what we need to survive. If it means putting food on our plates, though, you can be damned sure that functioning on a more physical level will take precedence over altruism in most cases.

I love and hate capitalism. It's a game to me, a game of skill as opposed to chance. One that rewards drive, cunning, awareness, intelligence, and often, some degree of brutality and sadomasochism. Few see fit to temper this with a sense of fair play and compassion, however, and that's the point where I become disenchanted with the whole thing. Strategic weaknesses (not unlike flawed code for some) are there waiting to be exploited for the opportunities they create and the doors they unlock, but not human beings.

By the same token, I love and hate communism. On the smaller scale, I see the potential for it working quite well. I love going on vacation with my friends for a long weekend, for example: we typically share the same house for several days, and everyone does what they're good at (cooking, hacking the LAN together, etc.), does their share of it, and everyone enjoys the rewards (a kick-ass dinner, a LAN party, whatever). For all I know, the world may function more smoothly if everyone was of the same mind, and did their share. But I know for a fact that doesn't work for everyone. I can't count the number of times where someone else has profited from my work, because I didn't want the group (and by extension, myself) to fail. Equality in the group dynamic just doesn't exist everywhere.

[renegta0]

It doesn't work and it never has, that's why...

[thedotmaster]

It doesn't work and it never has, that's why...

Why write that when there are 2 perfectly decent responses above you, written in far more detail with explanations?

[beast9]

I don't think that a greater level of control is necessary for communism. I also think it's pretty speculative to state that "it doesn't work and it never will."

That said, I think communism really holds back progress. It encourages stability - which is good, but not innovation or improvement. When you look at communist nations that have made enormous progress - such as the Soviet Union (going from the hand cart to the nuclear bomb or whatever that quote is) - the reason they made so much progress was because they were still competing against other countries (ie. the US).

In Guns, Germs and Steel Jared Diamond claims that the reason that Europe was so much more advanced than China despite the two regions having similar resources was that Europe was made up of many competing nations, while China unified very early on and had no need to keep improving.

[OneArrow]

It's ironic, when you think about it. We often see traits associated with capitalism (territorial aggression, aggression, competition) as being negative, but they are entirely natural. Why ignore who we are? At the same time, though, humans are social creatures, capable of pooling their talents together into this bizzare little Voltron-esque gestalt, that can somehow achieve results greater than the lot of them working individually toward the same end. Both systems seem to have it right, just as much as they seem to have it completely wrong.

[number1officefan]

Nothing is wrong with communism , although the books 1984 and Animal Farm really depict why it can never be achieved. Communism , is what i think a Utopia is. Equality for All , a perfect government , and no poor. Don't we all want that? But i think there is a difference between what the US and most of the world have labeled communism , and what it actually is. after all a lot of countries fought the "commies" . So why not make them look bad, if we were at war with them once" right? anyway i think communism would work. But not in America , i love my country and i support it , but people are to greedy for a government like communism. But Capitalism is just incredibly immoral. Think about a factory. All the workers from 9-5 working on their machines, and the boss that sits in his office and watches them. answers a few phone calls , some email. but the machine workers are working so much harder. This is what we call the bourgeoisie (the boss) and the workers are the proletariat. anyway im not sure where to go from here now.

In the Immortal words of Karl Marx - A specter is haunting Europe , the specter of communism...

- New to this site
Alex

[thedotmaster]

It's not achievable though due to human nature.