- 07 Dec 2004 23:12
#525476
Well all know that "moral outrage" that "conservatives" have towards the Communist development of the USSR, and I share many of the criticisms of Stalinism with them in fact, but there are two major issues with the general line of argument put forward by anti-Soviets: 1) Being the lack of historical perspective and understanding of the general Russian situation, 2) being the lack of acknowledgement of Amerian development.
Here are a few bits of info about early America:
1) By 1790 20% of the population was black, virtually all of these being slaves.
2) In the early American colonies there was forced labor, and centralized allocation of tasks. Those who did not work could be imprisoned and even hanged, and this of course was done.
3) Asside from slavery, indentured servitude was a major factor in early America, into the 1800s all throughout New England. Though slavery was abolished in New England shortly after the Revolution, indentured servitude lasted many years, and was actually deemed to be more cost effective because after the prime years of employment (it lasted to age 28 ) the workers could be discarded.
4) By 1850 60% of America's expoerts were cotton products, meaning that over half of America's exports were the products of slave labor.
5) 86% of cotton was gown on slave plantations
6) By 1850 nearly 40% of the population of the South were slaves.
7) Wages were fixed by local authorities, and children could be taken from families to be made apprentaces of some trademaster if it was deemed that there parents were providing them a proper upbringing.
8 ) In 1860 25% of Southern families owned slaves, and these constituted the wealthies segment of Southern society by far.
These are conditions that existed in some cases only for periods, from the 1500s through to 1865 in America and formed the basis for the American economy. Roughly speaking, we could say that these types of conditions existed over a perior of about 200 years in earnest, as compared to the Soviet conditions of abuse, which lasted from roughly the 1920s through the 1950s, some 30 years.
So we have 30 years of Soviet exploitation vs 200 years of American exploitation.
I agree that the Soviet system was generally corrupt and poor at providing the the people, and an all around bad system in terms of effeciency, but what is being discussed here is actual major exploitation and harm against people done in ways that provided economic benefit for a developing country.
In other words American own economic development is no less troubling that the Soviet development and reflects similar general tendacies for developing economic systems. Certianly to call many of the aspects of Salinism the result of "Communism" is quite silly, as we can see these same exact qualities expressed in many other societies. It actually had less to do with Communism and more to do simply with the same factors that early Americans faced, the need to quickly develop resources.
Here are a few bits of info about early America:
1) By 1790 20% of the population was black, virtually all of these being slaves.
2) In the early American colonies there was forced labor, and centralized allocation of tasks. Those who did not work could be imprisoned and even hanged, and this of course was done.
3) Asside from slavery, indentured servitude was a major factor in early America, into the 1800s all throughout New England. Though slavery was abolished in New England shortly after the Revolution, indentured servitude lasted many years, and was actually deemed to be more cost effective because after the prime years of employment (it lasted to age 28 ) the workers could be discarded.
4) By 1850 60% of America's expoerts were cotton products, meaning that over half of America's exports were the products of slave labor.
5) 86% of cotton was gown on slave plantations
6) By 1850 nearly 40% of the population of the South were slaves.
7) Wages were fixed by local authorities, and children could be taken from families to be made apprentaces of some trademaster if it was deemed that there parents were providing them a proper upbringing.
8 ) In 1860 25% of Southern families owned slaves, and these constituted the wealthies segment of Southern society by far.
These are conditions that existed in some cases only for periods, from the 1500s through to 1865 in America and formed the basis for the American economy. Roughly speaking, we could say that these types of conditions existed over a perior of about 200 years in earnest, as compared to the Soviet conditions of abuse, which lasted from roughly the 1920s through the 1950s, some 30 years.
So we have 30 years of Soviet exploitation vs 200 years of American exploitation.
I agree that the Soviet system was generally corrupt and poor at providing the the people, and an all around bad system in terms of effeciency, but what is being discussed here is actual major exploitation and harm against people done in ways that provided economic benefit for a developing country.
In other words American own economic development is no less troubling that the Soviet development and reflects similar general tendacies for developing economic systems. Certianly to call many of the aspects of Salinism the result of "Communism" is quite silly, as we can see these same exact qualities expressed in many other societies. It actually had less to do with Communism and more to do simply with the same factors that early Americans faced, the need to quickly develop resources.
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