Over 100 million dead directly due to Communism in the 20th Century.
In the Soviet Union, the cry of "Death to the kulaks!" resulted in over 7 million dead. The kulaks weren't the only ones to die, though.
Thankfully the Soviet Union doesn't exist anymore. Here's some of their worthless currency which I have as a souvenir of their fate:
click to enlarge
Do you wonder why I don't think Edward Snowden is a traitor? Do you wonder why Orwellian government surveillance of citizens is so wrong? Have you ever seen The Lives of Others, a German film about a Stasi agent who spies on a writer? Do you remember the Berlin Wall, built not to keep others out but to keep East German citizens in? Do you remember the night in 1989 when it came down?
Thankfully the German Democratic Republic doesn't exist anymore. Here's some of their worthless currency which I have as a souvenir of their fate:
Do you remember the Solidarity labor movement in Poland? Do you remember the declaration of martial law by General Jaruzelski?
Thankfully the communist government in Poland doesn't exist anymore. Here's some of their worthless currency which I have as a souvenir of their fate:
We're not done with Communism yet, however:
I don't have currency from North Korea or Cuba, but let's not forget them, either.
Setting aside the people imprisoned, "reeducated", etc., how many people did Communism kill last century? Just look at the numbers for Stalin and Mao--just those two--and marvel.
So on this date I honor the hundred-plus million people who died because of a sick and perverted ideology. May we never forget.
Update: BTW, with the exception of the Polish note, all of those shown are about the size of Monopoly money. Just sayin'.
I do remember. I have some Soviet money too, sent to me by a penpal long ago, but mostly I've got stamps.
ReplyDeleteIn 1989 I was an exchange student in Denmark, so it was all going on right next door. My host dad was German. We watched a lot of news together, but it was hard for me to understand events very deeply (esp. since I wasn't any too clear on the exact arrangement in Berlin). I was just turning 16. And now I make my kids watch youtube videos that explain the Berlin Wall!
Thank you for this post.
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