Communism

From Hobson's Choice

This page is under construction

Ideology based on the writings of Karl Marx (1810-1883). Characterized by a philosophy of history (dialectical materialism) which holds that social change is driven forward by the contradictions of the social relations of production; that the progressive class of proletarian workers is to emerge with the eventual collapse of the bourgeoisie, followed by a violent revolution, a dictatorship of the proletariat, and socialism; and that after the contradictions of bourgeois society have been worked out the state will wither away.

Basic Beliefs

Communism has spawned a number of heterodox variants which do not share this or that tenet; Communist Parties of Western Europe, for example, usually participate in elections and accept that doing so is essential for political influence. The USSR reinstated capitalism in 1920 with the New Economic Program (NEP), and never really established a valid socialist state, yet it was held up as the cornerstone of world Communism.