Perfect illustration of Socialism

[galtgulch]

I found this on the Campaign For Liberty website. membership there is now 26 Apr 149394;27Apr 149460, 10PM 149735;

<<<"Perfect illustration of Socialism

Posted by susan3j4 on 04/26/09 11:27 AM

An economics professor at Texas Tech said he had never failed a single

student, but had once failed an entire class.

The class (students) insisted that socialism worked since no one would be

poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer. The professor then

said, "OK, we will have an experiment in this class on socialism.

"All grades will be averaged and everyone will receive the same grade so

no one will fail and no one will receive an A."

After the first test the grades were averaged and everyone got a B. The

students who had studied hard and actually earned an A were upset when the

grades were averaged, while the students who had studied very little were

happy.

But, as the second test rolled around, the students who had studied little

studied even less and the ones who had studied hard decided that since

they couldn't make an A, they also studied less. The second test average

was a D.

No one was happy. When the 3rd test rolled around the average grade was

an F.

The scores never increased as bickering, blame, name calling all resulted

in hard feelings and no one would study for anyone else.

To their great surprise, all failed. The professor told them that

socialism would ultimately fail because the harder people try to succeed,

the greater their reward (capitalism), but when a government takes all the

reward away (socialism) no one will try or succeed.">>>

Edited April 28, 2009 by galtgulch

[Selene]

Excellent post.

Nice and simple.

Yep the Twentieth Century Motor Company - hmmm good thing it does not remind anyone of our stellar big three car makers in Detroit.

Adam

[tjohnson]

To their great surprise, all failed. The professor told them that

socialism would ultimately fail because the harder people try to succeed,

the greater their reward (capitalism), but when a government takes all the

reward away (socialism) no one will try or succeed.">>>

There is more to life than just acquiring wealth. Some people actually get a great feeling of satisfaction by accomplishing their goals - it's a "reward" that comes from within. There is way too much emphasis on grades in our school system and not enough on personal development.

[Selene]

GS:

Yes indeed.

I think grades are barely an indication of anything anymore because there are no standards to grade by.

Good point.

Adam

[Brant Gaede]

To their great surprise, all failed. The professor told them that

socialism would ultimately fail because the harder people try to succeed,

the greater their reward (capitalism), but when a government takes all the

reward away (socialism) no one will try or succeed.">>>

There is more to life than just acquiring wealth. Some people actually get a great feeling of satisfaction by accomplishing their goals - it's a "reward" that comes from within. There is way too much emphasis on grades in our school system and not enough on personal development.

My cat swallowed a long piece of dental floss. It took $3500 and surgery to save its life. No money, goodbye cat.

You can buy a lot of freedom if you have a buck in the bank.

"Grades in our school system"? That's a joke. Why? "Our school system" is a joke. "Personal development"? Learn a trade. Get a job. Join the army. I mean who the fuck doesn't develop? Feed Johnny and watch him grow. Qua "personal development" school's a retardment project, just like prison. School is a prison, you know. Objectively it's prison lite, I suppose, except they are children.

--Brant

[sbeaulieu]

I agree with Adam,

Great example on socialism! I'll have to remember that one if I'm ever teaching again.

~ Shane

[tjohnson]

"Grades in our school system"? That's a joke. Why? "Our school system" is a joke. "Personal development"? Learn a trade. Get a job. Join the army. I mean who the fuck doesn't develop? Feed Johnny and watch him grow. Qua "personal development" school's a retardment project, just like prison. School is a prison, you know. Objectively it's prison lite, I suppose, except they are children.

I pretty much agree with this.

[syrakusos]

I found this on the Campaign For Liberty website. membership there is now 26 Apr 149394;27Apr 149460

An economics professor at Texas Tech said ...

Nice parable, but an urban legend.

http://www.snopes.com/college/exam/socialism.asp

In fact, I am pretty sure than being offered the average grade has been a counter-argument to socialism at least since I was in high school 1964-1967. Considering that The Communist Manifesto was published in 1848, this story might go back to 1849.

Another one popular with libertarians is the men who go out to dinner and split the check.

Also on Snopes (which traces this into and out of National Review and New Republic.).

http://www.snopes.com/business/taxes/howtaxes.asp

Edited April 27, 2009 by Michael E. Marotta

[ginny]

Michael, I love the example of "common grades." I certainly don't miss a lot of things about Europe, but I'll never forget my seventh grade math teacher, Frau Rable. She sat her pupils according to class ranking - that is, the top student sat first row, left-most seat; number 2 was next, etc. Obviously, the seating could and did change from week to week. What I remember about this is that I was only so-so in math; my best friend Doris was a numbers genius. She helped me get A's. With her help, the number one and number two spot was ours and ours alone. Some weeks Doris, some weeks me. Although we fought tooth and nail for first place each week, we helped each other with all assignments and were the bestest of friends. We pushed each other to achieve more than we would have on our own. Also, we were NEVER jealous of the one who won. We were simply determined to have that left-most seat NEXT week.

Whoever in the American school system thinks that bad grades fosters bad esteem is CRAZY!!! Seeing others get better grades can only motivate students to try harder. Trying harder translates into better grades and real self esteem.

Gotta say one thing for those nasty Krauts. They do know how to teach.

Ginny

[Selene]

Ginny:

100% agreement Ginny. Life is competition. I was not physically a great athlete, but as the Great Lawrence Peter Berra stated "Baseball is 90 percent mental. The other half is physical." He has 10 championships. I have a few also.

To excel, to run the race with all you possess and to give 100% effort is the best drug on the planet.

Adam

[sbeaulieu]

There is always one important thing left out in the equation...the teacher.

Teachers make or break students. If they are not in-tune with each student's aptitude and learning approach, the student that's behind will be left behind. Some students have a great knack, others have to work at it. But a great teacher will motivate and push each student to excel. One thing I found very useful was analogies to explain out difficult ideas and theories, creating a common ground to expand from.

~ Shane

[Selene]

Yes - the coach - the DI - the mentor - the scout leader - the Priest - the Rabbi - the Imam.

Critical.

We and I sometimes forget to thank that coach or that drill instructor.

A perfect example is the movies Hoosiers, Glory Road and We Are The Titans, all based on true stories.

Thanks.

Adam

[Alfonso Jones]

I found this on the Campaign For Liberty website. membership there is now 26 Apr 149394;27Apr 149460, 10PM 149735;

<<<"Perfect illustration of Socialism

Posted by susan3j4 on 04/26/09 11:27 AM

An economics professor at Texas Tech said he had never failed a single

student, but had once failed an entire class.

The class (students) insisted that socialism worked since no one would be

poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer. The professor then

said, "OK, we will have an experiment in this class on socialism.

"All grades will be averaged and everyone will receive the same grade so

no one will fail and no one will receive an A."

After the first test the grades were averaged and everyone got a B. The

students who had studied hard and actually earned an A were upset when the

grades were averaged, while the students who had studied very little were

happy.

But, as the second test rolled around, the students who had studied little

studied even less and the ones who had studied hard decided that since

they couldn't make an A, they also studied less. The second test average

was a D.

No one was happy. When the 3rd test rolled around the average grade was

an F.

The scores never increased as bickering, blame, name calling all resulted

in hard feelings and no one would study for anyone else.

To their great surprise, all failed. The professor told them that

socialism would ultimately fail because the harder people try to succeed,

the greater their reward (capitalism), but when a government takes all the

reward away (socialism) no one will try or succeed.">>>

This story has the sound of an urban legend - including in particular the lack of specifics of location, names, etc. when all would have been easy to offer.

In addition, there are serious ethical issues for a professor assigning grades in such a fashion.

Do you have a cite on this story which gives specifics?

In any event, it is an interesting "thought experiment."

Bill P

[Brant Gaede]

I found this on the Campaign For Liberty website. membership there is now 26 Apr 149394;27Apr 149460, 10PM 149735;

<<<"Perfect illustration of Socialism

Posted by susan3j4 on 04/26/09 11:27 AM

An economics professor at Texas Tech said he had never failed a single

student, but had once failed an entire class.

The class (students) insisted that socialism worked since no one would be

poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer. The professor then

said, "OK, we will have an experiment in this class on socialism.

"All grades will be averaged and everyone will receive the same grade so

no one will fail and no one will receive an A."

After the first test the grades were averaged and everyone got a B. The

students who had studied hard and actually earned an A were upset when the

grades were averaged, while the students who had studied very little were

happy.

But, as the second test rolled around, the students who had studied little

studied even less and the ones who had studied hard decided that since

they couldn't make an A, they also studied less. The second test average

was a D.

No one was happy. When the 3rd test rolled around the average grade was

an F.

The scores never increased as bickering, blame, name calling all resulted

in hard feelings and no one would study for anyone else.

To their great surprise, all failed. The professor told them that

socialism would ultimately fail because the harder people try to succeed,

the greater their reward (capitalism), but when a government takes all the

reward away (socialism) no one will try or succeed.">>>

This story has the sound of an urban legend - including in particular the lack of specifics of location, names, etc. when all would have been easy to offer.

In addition, there are serious ethical issues for a professor assigning grades in such a fashion.

Do you have a cite on this story which gives specifics?

In any event, it is an interesting "thought experiment."

Bill P

Any student with any brains would immediaqtely quit such a class. Any prof would be stupid to do an experiment as such. Instead it would be a good idea for a class discussion with references to what happened to the Pilgrims when they came to America and the tragedy of the commons.

--Brant

[Selene]

Ahh correct Brant:

The comune - ist's failure is the important Thanksgiving story that is rarely even heard. Rush reads the true story of Thanksgiving every year.

Adam

[Alfonso Jones]

Any student with any brains would immediaqtely quit such a class. Any prof would be stupid to do an experiment as such. Instead it would be a good idea for a class discussion with references to what happened to the Pilgrims when they came to America and the tragedy of the commons.

--Brant

Brant -

Exactly. The first sentence is of course one of the primary points of the (fictional, I think) story.

Or, they could read the (also fictional) story of the 20th Century Motor Company, if we want to tie this directly back to a reference to Rand.

Bill P

[dougplumb]

My Illustration Of Socialism:

A socialist is someone who taxes a population to put cameras in the bathrooms of little girls and little boys.

This is done not to watch them pee but so that the rest of the population believes that the government officials want to watch children pee.

In reality it is done to humiliate the rest of the population.

Humiliation is done to break the will and spirit of the population so that they can be more easily ruled and robbed.

(There have been cases in the USA where cameras have been placed in the stalls of public schools)

Socialism was brought to us by the Robber Barons who funded Marx. There is nothing wrong with capitalism but people like the Rockefellers took it much further than capitalism. Quigley writes in his famous book "Tragedy & Hope" that John D. blew up (with bombs), bribed or bought off all the cancer clinics in the USA. This was done to further the goals of big pharma.

Today one in three people die of cancer. In the 70's it was 1 in 30. Cancer is a big money maker.

Business and government should be separate entities, just as Rand says. It is an absolute necessity.

Anyone who likes Socialism should read this (from Rense.com)

************

The Communist Takeover Of

America - 45 Declared Goals

From Greg Swank

12-4-2

You are about to read a list of 45 goals that found their way down the halls of our great Capitol back in 1963. As you read this, 39 years later, you should be shocked by the events that have played themselves out. I first ran across this list 3 years ago but was unable to attain a copy and it has bothered me ever since. Recently, Jeff Rense posted it on his site and I would like to thank him for doing so. http://www.rense.com

Communist Goals (1963) Congressional Record--Appendix, pp. A34-A35 January 10, 1963

Current Communist Goals EXTENSION OF REMARKS OF HON. A. S. HERLONG, JR. OF FLORIDA IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Thursday, January 10, 1963 .

Mr. HERLONG. Mr. Speaker, Mrs. Patricia Nordman of De Land, Fla., is an ardent and articulate opponent of communism, and until recently published the De Land Courier, which she dedicated to the purpose of alerting the public to the dangers of communism in America.

At Mrs. Nordman's request, I include in the RECORD, under unanimous consent, the following "Current Communist Goals," which she identifies as an excerpt from "The Naked Communist," by Cleon Skousen:

[From "The Naked Communist," by Cleon Skousen]

1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.

2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.

3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament [by] the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.

4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.

5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.

6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.

7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.

8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.

9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.

10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.

11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)

12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.

13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.

14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.

15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.

16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.

17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks.

18. Gain control of all student newspapers.

19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.

20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policy-making positions.

21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.

22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms."

23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art."

24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press.

25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.

26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy."

27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity, which does not need a "religious crutch."

28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."

29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.

30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man."

31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.

32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.

33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.

34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.

36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.

37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.

38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand [or treat].

39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.

40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.

41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.

42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use ["]united force["] to solve economic, political or social problems.

43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.

44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.

45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction [over domestic problems. Give the World Court jurisdiction] over nations and individuals alike.

Note by Webmaster: The Congressional Record back this far has not be digitized and posted on the Internet.

It will probably be available at your nearest library that is a federal repository. Call them and ask them. Your college library is probably a repository. This is an excellent source of government records. Another source are your Congress Critters. They should be more than happy to help you in this matter. You will find the Ten Planks of the Communist Manifesto interesting at this point.

Webmaster Forest Glen Durland found the document in the library.

Sources are listed below.

Microfilm: California State University at San Jose Clark Library, Government Floor Phone (408)924-2770 Microfilm Call Number: J 11.R5

Congressional Record, Vol. 109 88th Congress, 1st Session Appendix Pages A1-A2842 Jan. 9-May 7, 1963 Reel 12

1963- The Year That Changed America

By Greg Swank

12-4-2

Over the years, I have shared in debates and discussions regarding the current state of affairs in the U.S., and the changing social climate of this great nation. Since the "baby-boomer" generation, society and its culture have become noticeably different than the way it was 50 years ago. From the late 50's to the 70's a series of events took place contributing to the way we are currently living. However, like anything else, there has to be a starting point at which the wheels are put into motion. Sometimes it can be a single event, such as war, but more often, it is a series of events, some intentional, some planned, others unpredictable. There is always a pivotal point when things begin to change. I believe that time was 1963.

For my generation, some of the following will certainly stir old memories. If you born later, this may serve as a brief history lesson into the times your parents traveled through.

By 1963 television was the leading sources of entertainment. The public enjoyed a different type of programming back then. Lessons on life could be viewed weekly on "Leave it to Beaver" or "My Three Sons." There were hero's back then that never drew blood, "The Lone Ranger" and "The Adventures of Superman." Cartoon series evolved, such as, "The Flintstones" and "The Jetsons" without messages of empowering the children, using vulgarities or demeaning parental guidance. Family's could spend a weekend evening watching "Ed Sullivan," "Bonanza" or "Gunsmoke." For those who enjoyed thrill and suspense, we were blessed with "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" and the "Twilight Zone." 'My Favorite Martian," "Ozzie and Harriet," "Donna Reed" and "Sea Hunt" also kept viewers entertained weekly.

Movie theaters were not multiplex units with 15 screens, rather, one single, giant big screen with adequate sound and hard seats without springs. "Tom Jones" had won the Academy award for best picture. "How The West Was Won," "Cleopatra," "Lily of the Fields," "The Great Escape," "The Birds," and "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" were all box office hits.

By years end, "The Beatles" had played for the British Royal Family and were laying the groundwork to conquer the U.S. the following year. Eric Clapton began his journey to fame with Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Jim McCarty and their band, "The Yardbirds." Out on the west coast the surf was beginning to rock'n'roll with "The Beach Boys" and their first song to reach the top ten list, "Surfin' U.S.A."

"Joys of Jell-O" recipes for quivering florescent foodstuff hit the stores. U.S. Postal rates went up to five cents for the first ounce. AT&T introduced touch-tone telephones. The Yankees played in the World Series again; but lost to the Dodgers in four straight. The government and NASA began the Apollo program.

This is just a brief snapshot of some things that were going on back in 1963. Remember?

While some of these events played an important role in the direction of change that affect us today, many of them were lost to much greater, more political events, that I believe put everything into motion.

On January 10, 1963, the House of Representative and later the Senate began reviewing a document entitled "Communist Goals for Taking Over America." It contained an agenda of 45 separate issues that, in hindsight was quite shocking back then and equally shocking today. Here, in part, are some key points listed in that document.

4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.

5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.

8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states.

11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind.

13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.

16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.

23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art."

24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press.

25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.

26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy."

27. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity, which does not need a "religious crutch."

28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."

40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.

44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.

You can see the entire list on this web page - http://www.truthtrek.net/politics/takeover.htm

Now, I am not saying that the U.S. is under some kind of Communist control, but what I do find frightening, is of the 45 issues listed, nearly all of them have come to pass. Remember this was in January 1963.

In 1963 the news media showed women burning their bras as the women's liberation movement took off with the publishing of "The Feminine Mystique" by Betty Friedan. Martin Luther King was jailed in April and civil unrest was being brought to the forefront. On August 28th the media brought us live coverage of the march on Washington and Dr. Kings famous "I had a dream" speech. The Cuban missile crisis found its way in to our homes and our nation was gearing up for conflict.

By September of 1963 we had lost some very influential people, Pope John XXIII, Robert Frost, and country legend Patsy Cline, to name a few. In the early hours of November 22nd we learned of the quiet passing of C.S. Lewis and hours later we were brought to our knees when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated and our nation mourned.

So you see, while long since forgotten, 1963 could very well have been, one of the most important years since our founding fathers provided us with the Constitution of the United States. Which brings me to one final and extremely important decision that was made during this most provocative year.

On June 17, 1963 the U.S. Supreme Court concluded that any Bible reciting or prayer, in public schools, was deemed unconstitutional.

While American's have endured great prosperity over the past 40 years we have also lost our moral compass and direction. In reviewing the research, data supports 1963 as a focal point, demonstrating a downward slope in our moral and social decline through 2001.

Certainly, one would have to agree that all of these events have had a profound impact on the way our current social structure has been changed. Personally, if I had to choose one specific event that has demonstrated the demoralization of our country, it would have to be the decision of the U.S Supreme Court in June of 1963.

But there is always "hope." As always, I welcome your comments and can easily be reached. Thanks for the response to "Daddy, What's Fluoride?" My email is: greg@truthtrek.net

Comment

From Founders' America

foundersamerica@hotmail.com

12-7-2

Jeff...adding a couple of my own numbers:

__ 46. Import anti-white racists from the Third World, via an open-borders policy, then force their integration to divide and conquer white Western civilization in North America.

__ 47. Feminize and disarm both the citizenry and military; especially disarm white males.

Founders' America

P.O. Box 71024 Richmond, Va

23255

Edited May 15, 2009 by Doug Plumb

[Chris Grieb]

Ahh correct Brant:

The comune - ist's failure is the important Thanksgiving story that is rarely even heard. Rush reads the true story of Thanksgiving every year.

Adam

Adam; Wasn't communism also tried at the first year at Jamestown?

The talk about the first Thanksgiving maybe due to the fact that New Englanders have written the history books.

[Selene]

Chris:

I cannot speak for the quality of this source, but since I walked all over Jamestown when I was in Virginia for those last four years and they were doing excavations and restorations of the second site, I had a chance to ask those questions and yes it was communal - istic.

"When US tried Communism [ History of Jamestown: 1607 to 1611 ]

The Himalayan Times ^ | 24 Jan 2005 | Rakesh Wadhwa

Posted on Friday, October 31, 2008 2:15:01 PM by Arthur Wildfire! March

I write this especially for our Maoist brothers. While the US is commonly vilified as the bastion of capitalism, it is little known that the US too has tried communism. It was only when communism failed that property rights and capitalism took hold.

Let us go back into history and see what lessons America learned from its relatively short dalliance with Maoism much before the ‘great leader' himself was born.

The year was 1607. The first 104 settlers had arrived from Europe in Jamestown in the Virginia Tidewater region of the US in May. They found soil which was fertile beyond what they had seen in the lands which they had left. Fruits were abundant. Wild game such as deer and turkey were everywhere. There was no shortage of fish and other seafood. And yet within six months 66 of the original Jamestown, Virginia settlers had died. Only 38 survived.

Another 500 settlers were again sent to settle in Virginia in 1609 and within six months 440 of these too died by starvation and disease. This was called ‘starving time' and one eyewitness described it in English of those times, ‘So great was our famine, that a Savage we slew and buried, the poorer sorte took him up againe and eat him; and so did divers one another boyled and stewed with roots and herbs.'

How could this be? How could there be such death and starvation amidst so much plenty of meat, fruits, and fish. The fault as the witness said lay not in the ‘barrenness and defect of the Countrie' but in the ‘want of providence, industry and government'.

What caused this lack of ‘industrie'? Were the Virginian settlers lazy and indolent? It could not be. People who were sent there were the chosen ones – the very best of men.

The problem was that all the men who were sent were bonded labourers. They had no stake in what they produced. They were bound by contract to put all they produced into a common pool to be used to support their colony as a whole. This was communism in its purest form. Everyone was supposed to work according to ability and take according to need.

As so frequently happens with present day government policies, the results were the opposite of what was intended. Since hard work was not personally beneficial for the settlers they responded by stopping work.

Phillip A. Bruce, a late 19th century US historian, wrote of the Jamestown immigrants, “The settlers did not have even a modified interest in the soil … . Everything produced by them went into the store, in which they had no proprietorship.” The result as Bruce wrote would be what anyone who has any knowledge of human nature would expect, men, even the most energetic, refused to work.

This is what happened in Mao's China and in Soviet Russia on a grand scale. In America a few hundred deaths stopped the communist experiment, in China and Russia, millions had to die before these nations abandoned the principles of Marx, Lenin, and Mao.

Jamestown changed course just two years later in 1611 with arrival of the ‘high marshall' Sir Thomas Dale from the UK. He understood the problem, freed the settlers by abrogating communal ownership. Each man received three acres of land and, other than a lump sum tax of 2 ½ barrels of corn, did not have to contribute anything to the common pool. The colony immediately began to prosper. It prospered because each individual directly benefited by his labour and knew that he would also bear the full consequences of any reduction in output. Private ownership and capitalism worked.

Communism doesn't work because it destroys the reward and work nexus. Communism doesn't work because the absence of property rights heralds the end of all incentive to produce. Communism doesn't work because humans do no wish to sacrifice themselves to the common good.

I do not know or care about the political philosophy of the Maoists. I would, though, like to know what their economic policies are going to be. Do they want to take back Nepal to what America experimented with almost 400 years ago? Nepal lags behind the US in economic development, but is it to be put back by four centuries?."

Adam

[Christopher]

This is an excellent story of classroom socialism!

My girlfriend and I discussed what the silent anti-socialist students would do. We decided that a smart silent student would drop the class, and a passive silent student would simply go along with the crowd not voicing any opinion. In the end, we both agreed that the silent passive students deserved to fail. What more would make it a real-life example than that?