Hi! I am a stranger on this instance, I have read a lot of warnings about the “tankie triad”, but wanted to see for myself and keep an open mind.
I watched this video, and it made me want to take a deep dive into socialism/communism, with as much objectivity as I can. https://youtu.be/BeRjTtKFlVM
I understand how capitalism works, and I have doubts that it is a sustainable system for society long term, but social democracy has been a good way of keeping capitalism in-check in Norway. So even if capitalism is not ideal, it is in theory possible to tax the rich more and keep the whole thing going in the future. I also understand the exploitation and the extraction of surplus value, rent seeking etc.
Other capitalist countries such as the US is currently struggling with basic human needs. And that is “the shining beacon of capitalism”.
In Norway it has for a long time been common to use the US as an example of what not to do.
What I am interested in learning is how society would operate and function under socialism / communism. More about the differences. Preferably from less dry sources than The Capital from Marx. Where can I learn more? Preferably a bit entertaining.
It is important to me that it is historically accurate and factually correct.
Look forward to your replies 😊
First off, it’s fantastic to see that you’re willing to learn! That’s great, it’s really commendable. Consider making an account on Lemmy.ml, Hexbear.net, Lemmygrad.ml, or even Lemm.ee, so you can see more of what the so-called “tankies” are actually saying, rather than having them blocked from view on Lemmy.world.
As for answering your questions, I want to speak on Norway first. Norway, and the western countries in general, are “Imperialist” by Marxist standards. Norway essentially bribes its proletariat with a portion of the spoils it reaps from hyper-exploiting the Global South, through methods such as IMF loans and outsourcing production. Norway keeps Capitalism temporarily in check simply for its own workers, but acts parasitically towards the Global South.
Of course, the United States, despite being worse for its workers, is by far the largest and worst Empire, it’s just that the spoils of Imperialism are divied up even more lopsided, where the 1% earn unfathomable sums off of it.
When looking at Socialism and how it functions, look to “AES” countries, or “Actually Existing Socialism.” These include Cuba, Vietnam, the PRC, Laos, DPRK, the former USSR, etc. Right off the bat, alarm bells are probably ringing for you, but keep 2 things in mind:
You are not immune to propaganda. The Red Scare and Anticommunism in the West is deeply penatrating, and likely clouds much of how you see these countries.
A system being Socialist does not make it a wonderland Utopia, they still exist in the real world and face real problems, both internal and external.
In Marxist terms, Socialism is where Public Ownership is the Principle aspect of the economy. Large firms and key industries being publicly owned means that the Public Sector is the one with power over the economy. The PRC, for example, has its large firms and key industries overwhelmingly publicly owned, while the private sector is dominated by cooperatives, sole proprietorships, and small firms. This is because Marx believed you had to develop out of small ownership, not simply make it illegal, hence why you’ll see Socialists talk about the Productive Forces all the time. Norway, as an example, has the large firms in the Private Sector, and the Public Sector is in service of the Private.
That’s a quick overview! I skipped over so much because it’s really a vast topic that unfortunately does require reading. I keep an introductory Marxist-Leninist Reading List I designed to be easy to get into and not be quite so dry. This is the best path to get a firm understanding of theory, and is what @[email protected] tagged me here for (thanks, comrade!).
Alternatively, I will recommend reading just the first section for now, made up of Principles of Communism, followed by Blackshirts and Reds, and Dr. Michael Parenti’s 1986 Lecture. Afterwards, Blowback is an excellent podcast talking about US Imperialism, and frequently touches on sympathetic portrayals of Socialist movements. You won’t be a theory expert, but those will help drive interest in theory in general. I’d also read Dessalines’ Crash Course Socialism if you go this route!
Feel free to ask me any questions if you have any about Marxism, Marxism-Leninism, etc, and I’ll do my best! 🫡
You are right about the alarm bells. I am skeptical about PRC actually being socialist, I have seen it as a authoritarian capitalist country with a veneer of communism with close to no freedom of speech when it comes to criticism of the party / government.
I know that my views are biased due to my upbringing and the culture I live in.
However, you did say that it can be socialist and still face real issues.
I am critical of the censorship, surveillance, and treatment of the Uyghurs.
But I will try to keep an open mind, and get to know China more. I think that is a good country for me to learn more about. I think the view on publicly owned large firms is interesting. In Norway some of our largest firms are mainly or heavily owned by the government or smaller regions of Norway. For instance Equinor is about 70% publicly owned.
I’ll read about the other countries as well, and I’ll try to remember your point about it not being perfect wonderland, even if socialist.
To anyone reading this, please don’t do a whataboutism here. I can both be critical of the treatment of Uyghurs and the censorship of Tiananmen square massacre AND Guantanamo Bay, US prisoners being treated as slave workers, human rights abuses, immigrants being sent to CECOT, warcrimes, Palestine genocide etc. just so that there is no confusion here.
When it comes to Norway, I agree that it benefits from current capitalist world order, and think your arguments here is valid.
I appreciate your openness.
For starters, if the PRC appears to you to be a “Capitalist country,” then what do you believe its economy is structured as, and what would it instead have to look like in order for it to be Socialist, in your mind? I believe the China that exists in your head likely isn’t really what it looks like in real life, and your idea of Socialism likely isn’t the same as Marx’s. That’s not really a personal failing on your part, just what I believe is a lack of investigation on the subjects, ie with time and clear intention you’ll better be able to understand what Marxists are talking about when we talk about China.
I’ll address your claims about China, in order.
Censorship - it is indeed true that the government controls the speech of Capitalists and maintains that control. This is something Marx also advocated for. The truth is that the Proletariat quote frequently does criticize government decisions, and the government will frequently concede, such as during the major COVID years where widespread backlash led the CPC to relax control, despite it leading to an increase in cases. The fact is, without control of the speech of Capitalists, Capitalists flood media with messaging friendly to them with their power over media.
Surveilance - generally overplayed in western media, and western surveilance is often worse.
The Uyghurs - complicated subject. I recommend starting with the UN report, along with China’s response. Then, read The Xinjiang Atrocity Propaganda Blitz to learn more about why Western Media focuses so heavily on this issue and distorts it. There’s also this extensive list of resources debunking common mythologizations of the treatment of Uyghur peoples in Xinjiang.
Tian’anmen, or the “June 4th Incident” - The CPC’s stance, and most Marxists in general, on Tian’anmen is that hundreds of protestors and PLA officers were killed in Beijing that day as the PLA advanced towards the square, but that the square itself was evacuated peacefully, which matches leaked US cables and the CPC’s official stance on what it calls the “June 4th incident”. This is a rejection of the commonly reported story in western media, such as BBC, of 10,000 people being killed on the square itself, which originated from a British diplomat’s cable. Said diplomat was later confirmed to have evacuated well before.
I reiterate, the CPC’s stance isn’t that the massacre didn’t happen, but that Western nations intentionally sensationalize the quantity of deaths and the character of the events. This is also why Western Nations don’t frequently report on the South Korean Gwang-Ju massacre that occured around the same era, where the South Korean millitary murdered thousands of High School and College students protesting against Chun Do-Hwan’s dictatorship. All of what I said is backed up by the Wikipedia page for Tian’anmen Square Protests and Massacre, such as Alan Donald revising his estimate from 10,000 to the low thousands yet BBC continuing to report the 10,000 figure:
You mention that the CPC censors events like these that report on a clearly mythologized version of events. Quite right, they do, because they don’t want foreign governments trying to destabilize China so that they can take advantage and plunder their industry freely. The alternative is to just let western media do as it likes, and be subject to yet another US-sponsered coup.
All in all, though, I applaud you for being open. Norway has a public sector, indeed, but unlike China the Public Sector supports the Private, and controls key industries. Norway in general essentially hitches a ride on NATO and takes advantage of the situation while worker rights backslide and safety nets erode.
Any questions, feel free to let me know!
Oh, I have so many questions 😄 This is super interesting.
It seems to me upon further reading that PRC is a market socialist country, is that a correct assumption?
I read about Huawei and was surprised that it is at least supposedly owned by its 167 000 employees. Considering the size of that company that is really interesting.
There is other stuff I’d like to know more about.
Without being able to openly speak about systemic problems I can’t see that PRC has found a solution that I see as good enough. To me an ideal situation would both be socialist/communist and democratically governed.
I realize that I have enormous gaps of knowledge about PRC and how the country works. But I really appreciate the time you are taking to explain this stuff to me. Thank you.
The PRC is sometimes described as a Socialist Market Economy. Rather than Market Socialism, which is made up of competing worker cooperatives, a Socialist Market Economy has markets to a degree but is more traditionally Marxist in that it focuses on public ownership of large firms, and lets the smaller ones compete into the size ripe for public ownership. Huawei is a part of the cooperative sector, which makes up a minority of the economy.
Time for your questions!
Taiwan is ruled by the remnants of the Nationalists that governed China during the Civil War. It’s a bit like if the Confederacy ran to Cuba and maintained itself as the legitimate ruler of the US, all while being propped up by, say, Britain millitarily. I recommend this resource if you want to check out an explicitly pro-PRC stance on it. For what it’s worth, polling in Taiwan largely favors the status quo, not independence nor folding into the PRC.
A big topic. I recommend checking this FAQ, in particular this essay is quite informative. I also recommend this Chinese State Media on the national makeup of the NPC, broken down by various metrics like age and ethnicity.
Term limits are removed, primarily so that Xi Jinping can continue to lead the CPC. This is spun as anti-democratic, but Xi could be deposed if it was democratically demanded, in reality he’s still the leader because he’s overwhelmingly popular. Especially because under him, the PRC has seen growth in the public sector and cooperative sector, and vast poverty elimination campaigns. I recommend reading The Metamorphosis of Yuangudui to see what poverty elimination looks like in reality.
The Winnie the Pooh bits are more popular in the West, as they are racially targeted. Ever wonder why Westerners find it funny to depict a Chinese man as a yellow bear? Hate speech isn’t protected as much in China. There is legitimate criticism of Xi and the party, and there is stuff overblown by Western Media in order to undermine the character of the government.
Overall, it’s worth noting that over 95% of Chinese citizens approve their government. The study itself even acknowledged censorship and propaganda, yet found that the dramatic uplifting in material conditions was the real driver of public opinion. In reality, China is democratic, just in a different model from Western Countries, and in a manner Western Media takes advantage of to portray China as an outright dictatorship despite more Chinese Citizens feeling they have democratic control than US citizens.
I’ll leave you with 2 graphics on why Chinese citizens overwhelmingly support their government (and then I have to go to sleep, haha}:
Let me know if you have any more questions, but at this point I recommend digging into the stuff I recommended earlier (like my Marxist-Leninist reading list ), as it will make a lot of these articles make more sense as they assume to some degree familiarity with Marxism-Leninism (the CPC’s guiding ideology). Thanks for listening!