Luxury Communism, the Siren Song

George Rebane

[This is the transcript of my regular KVMR commentary broadcast on 22 August 2018.]

Among an alarming fraction of today’s younger generation, capitalism has become a dirty word, and communism has lost all of its historical barnacles.  Along with socialism, today communism is viewed by our millennials as a more socially just system, a version of which should replace capitalism as our society’s organizing principle for wealth generation and commerce.  Millennials, also known as Gen Y, are the generation born between the early 80s and the late 90s.  Today they number about 80M in the US, and academically they have tested and demonstrate themselves as not our brightest generation.  (more here)

When they assemble to support politicians like Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Maxine Waters, and Alexandra Ortega-Cortez, they frequently become an unruly and violent mob to express their anger through assaulting university speakers they don’t like to smashing shiny store windows representing the capitalistic wealth of our nation. (more here)

Today there is rising the idea of a ‘fully automated luxury communism’ or FALC that paints a future of humanity living lives of leisure in harmony with communally-owned advanced technology that does all the work and produces all the wealth that is equitably shared by the people.  In that world, no longer is anyone stressed striving to labor in order to own property that makes possible the good life.  Today, organizations such a Plan C are expanding young memberships, inviting these to work for a world “centered on the commons” in which people will ‘naturally’ behave unnaturally as altruists.

Spokespersons such as Aaron Bastani of Novara Media teach listeners that “there is a tendency in capitalism to automate labor, to turn things previously done by humans into automated functions, … in recognition of that, then the only utopian demand can be for the full automation of everything and common ownership of that which is automated.”  Bastani sees FALC achieving something closer to that — “a society with collective control over its own high-tech, work-reducing gadgets. He believes what little work will be necessary in the future, such as optimizing 3D-printers and agricultural robots, will be organized much the way editors currently manage Wikipedia — in a decentralized, non-hierarchical fashion.”  Students of history recognize this as the achievement of the Marxist/Leninist communist ideal in which all humanity lives in unregulated harmony after the then superfluous state has withered away.

But what none of these pied pipers talk about to their eager young audiences is the nature of the path required to get us from here to there.  After listening to the animated exhortations of over-zealous speakers, these audiences, innocent of history, leave such emotional rallies to gather in the streets to proclaim the advent of their new world.  But what none of them realize nor are prepared for is the draconian aftermath that must now come when the exhilaration and excitement of street demonstrations end.  Then must begin the real fight, or as Bastani says, “if you want this, what you need to do is seize the means of production. We need to get automation and make it subordinate to human needs, not the profit motive. It’s about seizing the bakery rather than stealing the bread.”

Then will begin the long civil war required to take what’s not yours and kill those who resist such takings.  The road through the way station of socialism to communism has never been an easy one.  Revolutions such as occurred in Russia, China, Vietnam, Cuba, and many other lands, all took long, slogging years of civil war that spread wholesale misery across the land and took lives of millions, and then in the aftermath of devastated economies and terrorized societies, destroyed the lives of uncounted more millions for decades to come.  And in the end, for some reason not taught in our schools, the halcyon days that Marx and Lenin promised never came to pass in lands and among peoples who abandoned the fundamental rights to personal property, individual security, and shared liberty.

This is the real battle for the hearts and minds of Americans in which we are now engaged.

My name is Rebane, and I also expand on this and related themes on Rebane’s Ruminations where the transcript of this commentary is posted with relevant links, and where such issues are debated extensively.  However, my views are not necessarily shared by KVMR.  Thank you for listening.

Comments

[Bill Tozer]

Re: link to Fully automated luxury communism. The picture of the Jetsons is perfect, save for the fact that George Jetson worked.

My, what a nice picture that lays out. Come, take my hand. Let me take you to the mountain top where you can cast your eyes upon the breathtaking vista and imagine Global Plan C. Look upon the beautiful scenery in your mind’s eye and envision with me the allurement of it all. Is not the Apple pleasing to the eye?
Righttt. Looks good on the drawing board or after firing up a big doobie kicking back in the dormitory solving the problems of the world.

As a youngin’, I was taken to the Magic Kingdom. Not an E ticket ride, but Futureland. The Jetsons, Disney style. Microwave cooking things, self cleaning homes, robots, whatever. And the best part, all that free time on your hands. An easier softer life.

When I was more active doing the investing thing, the projected demographics at the time predicted the Boomers retiring. Get ahead of the curve and invest in RV manufacturers, recreational and leisure activity companies as the life of Riley lay ahead. To the resort we go.

Technology has promised to enrich our lives with “free time” and more free time. We will all be reading books, expanding our minds and horizons. Time for yoga classes, meditation, you name it. For body and soul. Less hours devoted to work, even yard work or house work. Hammock time. Recreation time. Yet, people are more stressed out, more tied to work than ever before, working harder, being more productive, and under the gun of deadlines more to keep their heads above water. Where is the Leisure World the coming new millennia would bring us since the 1950’s?

Of course, we know what happened in Rome. Why buy the cow when the milk is free. As the government grew and began to provide food to the masses, the struggle to eek by was behind them. All that time on their hands. Then they demanded the government to entertain them. Feed Christians to lions. Live entertainment is best. Rioting bands roamed the streets. Then the Fall of Rome.

[Bill Tozer]

This morning I wanted to tune out the noise so listened to Glen Beck on the radio for a few minutes. He talks about other things besides Stormy Glad I did. He summed up where we are today, the Great Divide if you prefer, briefly.

Glenn said that where we are today are is two factions. Those who want to fundamentally change America as we know it, and those who are fighting against fundamentally changing America as we know [her]. We see clearly where the Left is trying to take us and we don’t want to go where fundamentally changing America as we know it is headed. We don’t want to go down that road, no way, no how. My paraphrase.

Good way of putting in it.

[Bonnie McGuire]

The naughty tax makers and tax takers have been working on their magical utopia for a long time. Strange and amazing. If you know any history you'll notice they use, do and follow the same immoral path to the disappointing collapse of civilization.

[Account Deleted]

Right you are, Bonnie. And you'll notice they seem to keep getting elected. Strange how it doesn't matter whether it's a socialistic/communistic dictatorship or a democracy or a republic. The dear leaders stay in power by promising free stuff. The only difference is the speed with which the country comes to ruin. At least with a republic a few sane voices here and there are allowed to take the reins and try to get the country to become great again by actually working and producing things. Trump is sadly an outlier - we'll get back to being the world's welfare office after a while. Our govt's printing presses are the bestest in the whole world.
It's for the children.
What can go wrong?

[rl crabb]

Didn't Trump suggest farming out our wars to private enterprise? Wasn't that a major factor in the fall of the Roman Empire? When your loyalty is dependent on the dollar, you'd better make sure those checks don't bounce.

[scenes]

"Didn't Trump suggest farming out our wars to private enterprise?"

No. The only source appears to be a ginned-up NBC news article mentioning an Erik Prince proposal. Of course, they need to mention that Prince is related to a cabinet secretary, therefore the non-existent thing has a non-existent conflict of interest kind of.

"Wasn't that a major factor in the fall of the Roman Empire? "

No. Mostly it moved capitols. The decline in the West has a thousand causes, but it didn't help that the Romans allowed a spate of mass immigration. There has always been a rhythm of steppe tribes destroying established higher cultures, so it's no great surprise. The Arabs found their own variant on the theme.

"When your loyalty is dependent on the dollar, you'd better make sure those checks don't bounce."

A good reason for society to pay ever-higher police salaries and pensions.

[rl crabb]

You're right, it was Prince. As I recall, hiring Backwater, I mean Blackwater, was a Bush II scheme. Hopefully a lesson learned.

[scenes]

rl@12:03PM

It's interesting to consider that the Roman Legions were essentially all private armies. Erik Prince would have done well in that era.

I don't have any insight into the efficacy of Blackwater (or it's descendants), Wackenhut, etc. It's a pretty broad set of duties that they do and I don't doubt that some are a good idea, some not. I wouldn't paint with such a broad brush.

[Tricky McClean]

Ooga booga! Big icky commies in your bathtub, looking for a free Deluxe Wash. Bread Steelers and bakery mavens raping the flour Garden of Eden! Oh dear Bartholomew, what hast thou rot?!!

[’’’M’’’]

,,,Glenn Beck was just pandering to your ilk BillT with his “two factions” BS

,,,Some people might feel that way but they are the extremists

,,,the Fox blonde helmet head was saying the same thing recently.

The only fundamentalists I see are the right wing nuts here.

[fish]

Posted by: ’’’M’’’ | 23 August 2018 at 02:54 PM

Oh duhsKKKi.....if stupid was a crime you’d get the electric chair.

[Bill Tozer]

Sure, M. And we all join hands and sing Kumbya around the fire circle and then take our poems and letters from our hearts and place them in the flame and watch the smoke carry our spirits up to the Great Spirit in the sky. And the dolphins are saddened that we are killing them with straws stuck in their heads, but they forgive us.

https://m.facebook.com/RowdyConservatives/photos/a.217983685002343/1416506171816749/?type=3&source=54&ref=page_internal

https://m.facebook.com/RowdyConservatives/photos/a.254420818025296/1413816522085714/?type=3&source=54

Oh, I went to my reliable source for keeping up with the times, the Urban Dictorary to see what it says about ‘San Francisco Treat’. Heck, that definition has not changed in decades. Frisco Values. You rock, Dogski.