Lumelore (She/her)

I’ve read a bit about Marxism-Leninism before because I like to be knowledgeable about different people’s viewpoints and ideologies. I agree that the workers should have ownership of what they produce and that products should be produced based on need and not profits. I also believe that we should flatten society’s hierarchical structure as much as possible since positions of power lead to abuse, however I don’t think it’s feasible to fully flatten it, because criminals still exist and I can’t think of a way prosecution would work without hierarchy. However, I do not believe that all property should be collectively owned and that is a turn off for me. Now that’s not the only thing that turns me off, but it is one of many.

I understand that we share several viewpoints but we also have several views we disagree on and I think that’s okay. I am extremely dubious of Marxism-Leninism because I have seen Marxist-Leninists support authoritarianism and deny genocide, but as long as you don’t, I’m chill. People are allowed to have their own opinions and as long as they aren’t harming anyone, again I’m chill with their existence. Generally I don’t talk about this, but I am Pagan, and with that comes the belief of pluralism which I apply not only to religious beliefs but also politics as well.

So I’m cool with socialism, and I consider myself to be socialist, but I don’t think communism and socialism are the same thing. I believe that communist countries have a communist system, not a socialist system. If they did have a socialist system, then they’d be socialists, not communists.

And what I’m saying about the trade unions is that I’m not against the existence of communist trade unions but I’d like there to be trade unions of other political ideologies as well, such as socialist ones, anarchist ones, etc.

I’d like to exist in a world where borders don’t matter and there aren’t any foreign governments trying to sabotage each other, but that’s not the state of reality today and idk if it will ever be, but I base my position on non-citizens being unable to vote based on the reality of what the world is today and if the world changes, then I’ll probably change my position as well, but I don’t see change like that happening in my lifetime.

I support immigration but allowing non-citizens to vote seems like an easy way for foreign governments to swing elections in their favor.

Yes, I get that the trade unions were their own thing but that doesn’t mean they can’t also be communist.

???

Several things in there I dislike:

Raising hands does not seem like an accurate way vote. Peasants who employed labor couldn’t vote. People could vote even if they weren’t citizens. No mention of being able to vote for non-communists. There are trade-unions and other candidates but it doesn’t mention their political alignment

That’s not even remotely true.

Here is what wikipedia actually says

The number of deaths and the extent of bloodshed in the square itself have been in dispute since the events. The government actively suppressed discussion of casualty figures immediately after the events, and estimates rely heavily on eyewitness testimony, hospital records, and organised efforts by victims’ relatives. As a result, large discrepancies exist among various casualty estimates. Initial estimates ranged from the official figure of a few hundred to several thousand.

When the instance I’m on was still federated with hexbear I did go and check them out to see what they had to say and with my own two eyes I saw people there denying the tiananmen square massacre and claiming that North Korea is a free and prosperous nation. Not to mention that when visiting other instances, such as the one I’m on, many would be extremely rude, which is why they got defederated.

Things like the denial of the tiananmen square massacre or claiming that North Korea is a free and prosperous nation, both of which I have seen with my own two eyes on hexbear.

While I am not an anarchist, generally I am cool with them. Who I am not cool with are Marxist-Leninists, which are authoritarian.

From the wikipedia article on Marxist-Leninists:

In the words of historians Silvio Pons and Robert Service, elections are “generally not competitive, with voters having no choice or only a strictly limited choice”. Generally, when alternative candidates have been allowed to stand for election, they have not been allowed to promote very different political views.

Ok that does seem correct. I’ve just always heard from others that it was the tainanmen square massacre that gave them their name.

I really don’t think they are a left-unity instance considering that they get very upset and unpleasant to talk to if you don’t support authoritarianism or their alternative “facts.”

Like I’m cool with all sorts of different leftist viewpoints and I think it’s necessary that we support each other, but I draw the line at authoritarianism and rewriting history.

As far as I am aware, the primary difference is that tankies are authoritarian. They got their name because they supported the USSR sending tanks into Hungary in 1956. I’ve seen many express positive opinions towards China and North Korea while ignoring or denying things like mass censorship in both countries, China’s concentration camps of Uyghur Muslims or the fact that people and their families risk death if they try to flee North Korea.

I typically add a user note to all tankies I encounter or I just block them.

Edit: I originally incorrectly cited that they got their name because they deny the tiananmen square massacre (which they claim was either peaceful or non-existent). It is still true that they deny it, but it is not the origin of their name.