When I say you are a Marxist or a communist I am not saying you belong to the Communist Party or that you agree with all of the atrocities commited by Stalin or Mao. Just that you have beliefs and world view that is consistent with the philosophy of communism laid out by Carl Marx. That's silly many may say. I don't have beliefs in common with Carl Marx. My answer would be with a question. Have you ever read the communist manifesto and if not how do you know you don't have any Marxist beliefs.
The truth is that there are many communist beliefs that have permeated our society and many have these views and not even know it. So how can you know if you have Marxist leanings or not? I have a little test that will let you know one way or another. Just take my short ten question test and you will find out.
Answer yes or no to the following questions.
1) Do you support a heavily graduated progressive income tax?
2) Would you be in favor of the abolition of all inheritance?
3) Do you believe that everyone has a right and an obligation yo have a job?
4) Do you believe in free public education for all children and the abolition of child labor in manufacturing as it existed in the 19th century and the combination of education and industrial production?
5) Do you believe in the cultivation of waist lands improvement of the soil and the increase of the means of production controlled by the state?
6) Do you believe in the centralization of the means of communication and transportation in the hands of the state?
7) Do you believe in the centralization of credit in the banks of the state by means of a national bank with state capital and exclusive monopoly?
8) Are you in favor of the combination of agriculture with manufacturing industries; to obtain a more equable distribution of the populace?
9) Would you support the confiscation of the property of rebels and emigrants?
10) Do you believe in the abolition of property in land and the application of all rents to land to public purposes?
Now how do you asses your test? First count up your yeses. If you have 0-1 yes you have no Marxist leanings. If you have 2-3 yeses you have Marxist leanings. 4-6 yeses you have a basic belief in Marxism. 7-8 yeses and you have a strong belief in Marxism and if you have a 9-10 yeses than you should be a member of the communist party.
Some people might question my test. They may say that my questions were not fair and it does not fairly represent what it truly means to be a marxist, but I have a confession to make. I didn't really write this test Carl Marx did. let me explain. Carl Marx knew that people would not except communism all at once. He believed that most nations would have to be eased into the system. So he out lined ten proposals that people could enact in a country in order to get them more into a communist mind set. I changed the wording a bit and the order but all of these questions were taken from statements made in the communist manifesto.
Here is what the manifesto says:
Of course, in the beginning, this cannot be effected except by means of despotic inroads on the rights of property, and on the conditions of bourgeois production; by means of measures, therefore, which appear economically insufficient and untenable, but which, in the course of the movement, outstrip themselves, necessitate further inroads upon the old social order, and are unavoidable as a means of entirely revolutionizing the mode of production.
These measures will, of course, be different in different countries.
Nevertheless, in most advanced countries, the following will be pretty generally applicable.
1. Abolition of property in land and application of all rents of land to public purposes.
2. A heavy progressive or graduated income tax.
3. Abolition of all rights of inheritance.
4. Confiscation of the property of all emigrants and rebels.
5. Centralization of credit in the banks of the state, by means of a national bank with state capital and an exclusive monopoly.
6. Centralization of the means of communication and transport in the hands of the state.
7. Extension of factories and instruments of production owned by the state; the bringing into cultivation of waste lands, and the improvement of the soil generally in accordance with a common plan.
8. Equal obligation of all to work. Establishment of industrial armies, especially for agriculture.
9. Combination of agriculture with manufacturing industries; gradual abolition of all the distinction between town and country by a more equable distribution of the populace over the country.
10. Free education for all children in public schools. Abolition of children's factory labor in its present form. Combination of education with industrial production, etc.
I don't want to take anything out of context or change what Carl Marx's intentions so I included enough context so you can understand what is being said. I would encourage you to look up and read the entire text. It is one of the most important and influential documents in world history and in my opinion one of the most dangerous.
The early progressives whether they knew it or not followed much of the plan laid out by Carl Marx to move a country more communist (Personally I believe that many of them knew it). They modern progressives are still leading us down this path to communism whether they know it or not.
In this country we have things like high inheritance taxes and a heavily graduated progressive income tax. As well as a ridiculously high gift tax, these are steps that takes us subtilely down a Marxist path. Now though there are some that want us to take a more violent path. In my second installment I will take a look at a group that poses as a civil rights organization but is actually a radical communist organization that seeks a violence to achieve their Marxist dream. I know it seems crazy to say. It sounds conspiratorial but I have evidence to back it up.
I rarely ask this of you, but share this post. We need to get this message out. It is so important for people to know where they stand. And please read the communist manifesto. If you truly believe in what these progressives are selling you than admit it. Let us all be honest in what we believe.