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Real communism was pretty close to being illegal as it explicitly calls for revolution, in contrast with social democracy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_A

Real communism was pretty close to being illegal as it explicitly calls for revolution, in contrast with social democracy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_Act_trials_of_communist_party_leaders http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_Act_trials_of_communist_p... The "witch-hunt" term needs to go away. The government was lousy with communists and soviet agents. McCarthy was ultimately not very helpful, as the media has found it very easy to use him to make the anti-communists look like the real villains.

cadlin 13y ago
Most Smith Act convictions were overturned by the Supreme Court because people were convicted when they hadn't done anything besides being a member of a political party. That's not the sort of thing that makes anti-communists look good.
pyre 13y ago
| Real communism was pretty close to being illegal | as it explicitly calls for revolution, in contrast | with social democracy. Marx believed that the transition to Communism would go like this: Democracy => Socialism => Communism with each of those transitions being a bloody revolution. The transition to Communism wouldn't necessarily have to be a bloody revolution just because Marx thought that it would be (as evidenced, to him, by the transition from Totalitarianism => Democracy). Also, the term "Communist-sympathizer" could very well have applied to many people at the time that were more in favour of social programs like universal health care. | The "witch-hunt" term needs to go away. This is one of those times that the term witch-hunt is actually useful. Once you are accused of being a Communist-sympathizer, everything you do is under a microscope, and you're guilty until proven innocent. By the time you're accused it's practically a fore-gone conclusion, and no one wants to listen to you. It's an Us vs. Them mentality, and you are accused of being one of Them, and now you have to prove that you're One of Us. Does this sound like something helpful? | the media has found it very easy to use him to | make the anti-communists look like the real villains. This isn't an all-or-nothing proposition. It isn't a case where the 'evil people' are either the anti-communists, or the communists, and that's the end of it. No one things that the USSR was a "worker's paradise," but at the same time, "I'm working against these other bad people," is no excuse for bad behaviour.

cadlin 13y ago

Most Smith Act convictions were overturned by the Supreme Court because people were convicted when they hadn't done anything besides being a member of a political party. That's not the sort of thing that makes anti-communists look good.

pyre 13y ago

| Real communism was pretty close to being illegal | as it explicitly calls for revolution, in contrast | with social democracy. Marx believed that the transition to Communism would go like this: Democracy => Socialism => Communism with each of those transitions being a bloody revolution. The transition to Communism wouldn't necessarily have to be a bloody revolution just because Marx thought that it would be (as evidenced, to him, by the transition from Totalitarianism => Democracy). Also, the term "Communist-sympathizer" could very well have applied to many people at the time that were more in favour of social programs like universal health care. | The "witch-hunt" term needs to go away. This is one of those times that the term witch-hunt is actually useful. Once you are accused of being a Communist-sympathizer, everything you do is under a microscope, and you're guilty until proven innocent. By the time you're accused it's practically a fore-gone conclusion, and no one wants to listen to you. It's an Us vs. Them mentality, and you are accused of being one of Them, and now you have to prove that you're One of Us. Does this sound like something helpful? | the media has found it very easy to use him to | make the anti-communists look like the real villains. This isn't an all-or-nothing proposition. It isn't a case where the 'evil people' are either the anti-communists, or the communists, and that's the end of it. No one things that the USSR was a "worker's paradise," but at the same time, "I'm working against these other bad people," is no excuse for bad behaviour.