/lit/ - Literature

>>5658490
Guides to Marxist thought and some history of the ussr to start with.

>>5658490
>I want to become communist

God you're a fucking idiot.

Why don't you just read books from various viewpoints and accept the arguments that naturally convince you instead of going in with confirmation bias straight off the bat

>>5658490
Marx and books explaining Marx. And a reminder that 'communism' is just a way too big category to be of use as a defining term.

>>5658510
Because communism has the best end goals of course.

>>5658576
For whom?

>>5658490
Marx - Wages, Labor & Capital: https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/wage-labour/

Stalin - Dialectical and Historical Materialism: http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/stalin/works/1938/09.htm

Engels -The Principles of Communism: https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/11/prin-com.htm

Watch this: http://vimeo.com/24151227

>>5658510

Because he's a Communist.

Communism is the anti-vaccination/GMO paranoia/global warming denialism of economics.

Ignore it and grab an econ 101 textbook.

Just skip straight to postmodernism and you'll treat everything with winking derision earlier.

>>5658779
This man. I've personally been through the edgy socialist teenager phase and I regret it. Learn from my mistakes.

>>5658581
For you.

>>5658779
>>5658811
I'm not a Marxist or a communist but if you try to learn from an Econ 101 textbook why the USSR failed you'll probably come away with some bullshit about "incentivizing work" or something which is a bunch of hogwash.

The idea that "economics disproves socialism" is something only regurgitated by people who have taken exactly one econ class.

>>5658844
How about "people respond to incentives"? That's a complete description of the failure of the USSR. And I think a lot of communists would object to it being labeled communist.

>>5658861
No, it's really not. The failures of the USSR have to do with a totalitarian bureaucracy and a corrupt police state that straight up killed about 1% of its own citizens.

Most historians agree that the USSR had a similar per capita output to the US for most of its existence. You can learn basically nothing about economic organization from the failures of 20th century "communism," only that repressive, totalitarian regimes are bad.

>>5658910
>Most historians agree that the USSR had a similar per capita output to the US for most of its existence.

This is completely delusional. Russia today has the GDP per capita of ~1955 US. And that includes very strong growth since the fall of the USSR.

In '55 the USSR had a GDP per capita less than 1/3 that of the US.

>>5658910
>implying that not all socialist states end up totalitarian
>implying that much power and control would not tempt one single bureaucrat to abuse it.

>>5658490
the mass psychology of fascism

ignore the idiots and shitheads itt

>>5658962
Apologies, I meant growth, not output

>>5658986
You obviously don't know what does totalitarian means and you shouldn't act like you do. Totalitarianism =/= one party dictatorship

Cuba is an example of a socialist state which is far from being totalitarian.

Im not a communist but i have great respect for marx. He hit the nail pretty close on the head about what the problem with the world is. His solution that is communism (which he never really explained mind you ) i do not agree with.

If you want to jump balls deep theres a good new york college professor that put his whole semester on das kapital on youtube

>>5658861
>How about "people respond to incentives"?

The problem with this common argument is it implies the whole "no capitalist incentives = no talent/effort" is part of an inherent psychology with humans, as opposed to being a sociocultural phenomenon.

>>5658910
>i want a system where differences caused by economic power will be eliminated by means of political power
>that means power enough not only to impose itself on the poor, but to victoriously face all the rich together
>since such a structure of political power cannot just float in the air without support and requires money, we will take the wealth of the rich and administrate it directly
>Oh no! Due to the unity of political and economical powers, the ruling class that we put in place to administer social justice became totalitarian!
>this was not how it was intended to be, let's try again somewhere else

It keeps happening.

>>5658861
http://econweb.umd.edu/~murrell/articles/Can%20Neoclassical%20Economics%20Underpin%20the%20Economic%20Reform.pdf
>One study, Koopman (1989b), employs observations on both centrally planned and market economies, thus providing direct comparability. He uses observations for 1960-79 for Soviet republics and a matched sample of Canadian provinces, U.S. states, and Finland, and employs a translog functional form that allows for differences in technology between Soviet and non-Soviet regions. The average level of technical efficiency in Soviet agriculture is estimated at 93 percent, while it is 92 percent for agriculture in the market economies.
>Brada and King (1991) tackle this problem head-on by examining the performance of state and private farms within one country, Poland. They apply a linear programming methodology to county-level data to estimate a single production frontier. Using this frontier as an estimate of best-practice, they find little difference in technical efficiency between state and private farms. The incentive issues on which technical efficiency focuses do not seem to have explanatory power in this context. Interpreting the broader implications of their study, Brada and King conclude that differences in the agricultural performance of capitalist and socialist countries must be explained by features of the environment in which farms operate, rather than in the more narrow incentive effects of ownership.

>>5658986
>being ruled by the oligarchs is much better than being ruled by the politicians

>>5658962

>>5659024
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Committees_for_the_Defense_of_the_Revolution

>The CDR system was formed by Fidel Castro on September 28, 1960, following the 1959 Cuban Revolution, which overthrew the dictator Fulgencio Batista.[1] The slogan of the CDR is, "¡En cada barrio, Revolución!" ("In every neighborhood, Revolution!"). Fidel Castro proclaimed it "a collective system of revolutionary vigilance," established "so that everybody knows who lives on every block, what they do on every block, what relations they have had with the tyranny, in what activities are they involved, and with whom they meet."

>CDR officials have the duty to monitor the activities of every person on their respective blocks. There is an individual file kept on each block resident, some of which reveal the internal dynamics of each household. Even after its 54-year existence, CDR activity remains contentious.

Totally not totalitarian, i mean, that shit was inpisred by the fucking Stasi, you know.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/11/04/406322/-Sunlight-is-the-Best-Medicine-Cuba-and-the-Stasi

This was their main inspiration.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zersetzung

>The Stasi manipulated relations of friendship, love, marriage, and family by anonymous letters, telegrams and telephone calls as well as compromising photos, often altered.[29] In this manner, parents and children were supposed to systematically become strangers to one another.[30] To provoke conflicts and extramarital relations the Stasi put in place targeted seductions by Romeo agents.

>For the Zersetzung of groups, it infiltrated them with official collaborators, sometimes minors.[31] The work of opposition groups was hindered by permanent counter-propositions and discord on the part of official collaborators when making decisions.[32] To sow mistrust within the group, the Stasi made believe that certain members were official collaborators; moreover by spreading rumors and manipulated photos,[33] the Stasi feigned indisretions with official collaborators, or placed members of targeted groups in administrative posts to make believe that this was a reward for the activity of an official collaborator.[16] They even awakened suspicions regarding certain members of the group by assigning privileges, such as housing or a personal car.[16] Moreover the imprisonment of only certain members of the group gave birth to suspicions.

It this is not considered totalitarianism, infiltration of every microcosm of human society by the State, i don't know what it can be.

>>5658861
http://press.princeton.edu/titles/7611.html
>To say that history's greatest economic experiment--Soviet communism--was also its greatest economic failure is to say what many consider obvious. Here, in a startling reinterpretation, Robert Allen argues that the USSR was one of the most successful developing economies of the twentieth century. He reaches this provocative conclusion by recalculating national consumption and using economic, demographic, and computer simulation models to address the "what if" questions central to Soviet history. Moreover, by comparing Soviet performance not only with advanced but with less developed countries, he provides a meaningful context for its evaluation.

>Although the Russian economy began to develop in the late nineteenth century based on wheat exports, modern economic growth proved elusive. But growth was rapid from 1928 to the 1970s--due to successful Five Year Plans. Notwithstanding the horrors of Stalinism, the building of heavy industry accelerated growth during the 1930s and raised living standards, especially for the many peasants who moved to cities. A sudden drop in fertility due to the education of women and their employment outside the home also facilitated growth.

>While highlighting the previously underemphasized achievements of Soviet planning, Farm to Factory also shows, through methodical analysis set in fluid prose, that Stalin's worst excesses--such as the bloody collectivization of agriculture--did little to spur growth. Economic development stagnated after 1970, as vital resources were diverted to the military and as a Soviet leadership lacking in original thought pursued wasteful investments.

>>5658490

The introduction is the easy part, considering the multiplicity of pamphlets available. First, the classical introductions:

Socialism: Utopian and Scientific

http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1880/soc-utop/index.htm

Manifesto of the Communist Party

http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/index.htm

Value, Price and Profit

http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1865/value-price-profit/index.htm

The above will give you a general introduction to Marxism, but it is essential to read more. First, stick to essays and articles and don't be bashful about reading the introductory texts a second time. Once you feel as if you grasp the basics firmly, move on to Das Kapital.

http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1867-c1/index.htm

I recommend you avoid the later developments of Leninism and 20th century trends until you are more intimate with Marx, Engels, and their contemporaries. Almost everything after the death of Engels is hotly debated amongst different schools of Marxist thought.

Avoid identity politics and nationalism like the plagues they are. Feminism is for bourgeois and nationalism is for plebs.

>>5659070
I mean modern Cuba. It's been a long while ever since they've made any "totalitarian" action against the population. If I'm not mistaken, it's been more than 50 years ever since the last assassination comitted by the government and they've already apologised (?) for a bunch of things made during the Cuban Revolution, like firing homosexuals etc. a long time ago. Any tourist that goes there can travel across the entire country as far as I know and without any state officers (differently from North Korea). Even then, they never instituted a true totalitarian state - even though CDR's motto sounds totalitarian-ish. There's even that woman, Yoani, who literally criticizes the state while coming back to it all the time (not sure if she still lives there). The existence of organized opposition to the state actually proves that it's not totalitarian.

>>5659107
>Avoid nationalism

>>5659126

>>5659070
Counter Argument #1 http://www.mediafire.com/download/hcchpgz2lit1y6m/Losurdo_Critique_of_Totalitarianism_(2004).rar

The problem is when people talk about totalitarianism they assume that everything runs perfectly just like how some assume that all or most monarchs had absolute power. Thats how you get odd works like Sheila Fitzpatrick's that condemn the totalitarian Communist State who then goes to show how haphazard their control was much like the Sultan who technically was ruled all but the reality was much different.

Here is a quote from good ole Stalin about it.

"At the Ford plants, for example, which function efficiently, there may be less thieving, nevertheless they function for the benefit of Ford, a capitalist, whereas our enterprises, where thieving takes place sometimes, and things do not always run smoothly, nevertheless function for the benefit of the proletariat. "(Works, volume 7, p. 314).

>>5659125
Vice did an interesting piece on how castro banged hundreds if not thousands of married women because he felt like single women would fall in love with him.

Imagine obama doing that, would kick off the 2nd civil war in no time haha

>>5659175
>"At the Ford plants, for example, which function efficiently, there may be less thieving, nevertheless they function for the benefit of Ford, a capitalist, whereas our enterprises, where thieving takes place sometimes, and things do not always run smoothly, nevertheless function for the benefit of the proletariat. "(Works, volume 7, p. 314).

Actually. Stalin's enterprises were Ford plants.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GAZ

>In May 1929 the Soviet Union signed an agreement with the Ford Motor Company. Under its terms, the Soviets agreed to purchase $13 million worth of automobiles and parts, while Ford agreed to give technical assistance until 1938 to construct an integrated automobile-manufacturing plant at Nizhny Novgorod. Production started on January 1, 1932, and the factory and marque was titled Nizhegorodsky Avtomobilny Zavod, or NAZ, but also displayed the "Ford" sign. GAZ's first vehicle was the medium-priced Ford Model A, sold as the NAZ-A, and a light truck, the Ford Model AA (NAZ-AA).

Soviet industrialization was financed and spurred in part by capitalist money and assistance.

Whatever on is assigned by your government obviously

>>5658490
buckle down and read das kapital along side with David Harvey material.

>>5659186
>Actually. Stalin's enterprises were Ford plants.

They had the equipment but lacked their specific management aspect. Also I have no idea why they would do that in the first.

>>5659186
>Soviet industrialization was financed and spurred in part by capitalist money and assistance.

muh state capitalism
https://archive.org/details/OnStateCapitalismDuringTheTransitionToSocialism

>>5659201
> Also I have no idea why they would do that in the first.

I meant to say I don't know why Ford would agree to something like that.

>>5659242

I assume for the money. That's the law of competition, right? The company that pulls the most dosh expands the fastest and dominates the market. Pish to where it comes from, as long as the deal is good.

captcha: seeking adowlyv

Sounds like a decent Polish novel.

>>5659216
I'm talking about private, western capitalism bro.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnitogorsk

>As a part of preparation for the Soviet Five-Year Plans in 1928 a Soviet delegation arrived in Cleveland, Ohio to discuss with American consulting company Arthur G. McKee a plan to set up in Magnitogorsk a copy of the US Steel steel mill in Gary, Indiana. The contract was four times increased and eventually the new plant had a capacity of over four million tons annually.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZiL

>In 1931 the factory was re-equipped and expanded with the help of the American A.J. Brandt Co., changed its name to Automotive Factory No. 2 Zavod Imeni Stalina (ZIS or ZiS).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dueber-Hampden_Watch_Company

>In 1930 Amtorg Trading Corp of Russia purchased The Dueber-Hampden Watch Company together with all of the manufacturing equipment, parts on hand and work in progress in order to build a factory in Russia. 28 boxcars of machinery left Canton, Ohio together with 21 Dueber Hampden employees to teach the Russians the craft of watchmaking.

This "Amtorg Trading Corporation" lead us to a interesting character of this period...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armand_Hammer

I'm not exactly communist but since I hate the polar opposite of communism I would suggest Rand

She's like the retarded cousin of LaVey

>>5659249
reminder that Henry Ford was sued by his shareholders for attempting to do something other than maximize profit with his business

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge_v._Ford_Motor_Company

>>5659712
Thats why you divide your shares into classes giving yourself most of the votes.

>>5659687
for clarification, it's so disgusting you become communist

>>5658596
This is a good starting point, OP.

>>5658779
Anti-communists are the scientologists of society.

>>5658490
>I want to become communist like you, /lit/.
>Which books should I read?
These on Feuerbach
Critique Gotha
Value Price and Profit
Socialism Utopian & Scientific
Condition of the working class in England
Family, Private Property, The State
Contribution to a Critique

ABC of Communist Anarchism
Wright, Storming Heaven
Time, Work Discipline, Industrial Capitalism
Dubofsky, IWW
Hammond & Hammond, Labourers (Rural, Town, Skilled)
Making of the English Working Class

Capital

>>5658490

Read a biography of Che

>>5658811
This man. I remember my edgy libertarian/conservative/(lel) fascist phase as a teenager. Just accept that youll never put the time and effort to learn political praxis and just vote for ronarino paul and watch fox news.

>>5660159
kek

>>5659070
Dont you talk bout cuba u fukin cheeky cunt. Ill fucking exile you straight to miami u fukin contrarevolucionario.
Also
>using the CBR to prove its totalitarian. You obviously never beeb to cuba

Daily reminder that before Castro took over, Cuba was THE most thriving economy of Latin America, with all development indicators comparable to those of western Europe.

Communism, not even once.

>>5660283
Too bad most Cubans weren't benefiting from the thriving.

>>5660295
just like today's Cuba, but with less thriving.

>ctrl + F
>"economic cal-"
>no results

>>5660295
If Castro did what he promised -- to implement representative democracy with social justice -- maybe Cuba would still be a great power in the south hemisphere.

Instead, he just flushed all its potential down the toilet, only surviving through Cold War by sucking on USSR tits.

>>5660328
Go to bed Mises.

>>5660333
Maybe I should, your mom gets cranky if she has to call me a second time.

>>5660319
>>5660332
>le snickering American military-industrialist complex and forced global cultural hegemony face
But seriously, read a book. Start with The Economic War Against Cuba by Lamrani.

>>5660361
>implying gringo

>>5660344
My mum is deeply fucking disappointed in your cocksmanship.

>>5660361
>le ebin Gramscian concept
>actually taking maymay neo-marxist philosophy seriously

L E L
E
L

>>5660413
theres so much a man can do after every worker had their share

>>5660372
>implying there's a difference between a gringo and a gusano

>>5658844
>I need to have my ideology spoonfed to me
>but basically everything you're saying is BULLSHIT and in the real world no one who isn't stupid disagrees with me
;)

>>5658779
Millions and millions spent on those Freedom-something think thanks for nearly a century and this is the best anti-communists can offer you

>>5660361
>Marxists complaining about forced cultural hegemony
Mein sides

>>5660493
>s-shut up gusano
>there was not enough food for all of us anyways

>>5660485
>theres so much a man can do after every worker had their share
Quality has a quantity all of its own.

restructuring made communism fail, not communism itself

>>5658490
DO NOT FUCKING BE ONE!
Well, I guess, it seems edgy and hip and whatnot, but I lived under communism, you do not want that shit. You just don't

>>5660953
>I lived under communism
omg omg omg I sooo wish I was you.

>>5660283
where did you get that info...?
Cuba was also one of the most violent countries in Latin America. And now there's almost none.
Quality free healthcare, quality public education, 0 illiteracy rates.Cuba has developed plenty in terms of life quality, even though it still is illegaly blocked by the USA.

>>5660967

>>5660953
>i lived under communism
state socialism attempted by slavs (who are bound to up any political system there is) is communism

>>5661792
forgot my meme arrow

>>5658490
http://www.vulgarmaterial.net/blog/2014/06/07/ozymandias-list-of-lists/

Just scroll down until you reach the left-wing ideological reading list. Since you seem to be rather green, I strongly suggest reading some of the other ones as well.

>>5661793
Thank you, you made me remember that arrow is gone and I'm a bit happier

>>5661792
>disrespecting slavs
Those people have a fantastic culture when not ran by a totalitarian shitcunt, it's a pity that totalitarian shitcunts ALWAYS run slav countries

>>5660953
No you didn't. Literally almost every place on the internet that has a discussion of actual existing socialism has some shill who shows up claiming he was there and that nobody who has seen it could possibly support it. This despite communism being very popular in formerly socialist states, especially among that older people who were there to see it and not live a life totally inundated with capitalist propaganda.

>>5661878
I like Slavs, but as you say, they don't into governments very well.

>>5661792
i guess you mean "is not" because it is not and never was named that by anybody except ignorant americans

>>5661964
As I said, for got the mean arrow. I was implying that he was implying that.

>>5661916
Yes I was. And I know that those old fucking people want to suck more and more from the states tits. (although I think their support is based on nostalgia, "those were the good times, because we were young") I hate them too. And it seems that my country is going back in time, the government created a mix of nationalistic kitsch and grandeur and socialism/communism. It's fucking disgusting.

>>5662079
What do you call a weeaboo for America? Besides delusional.

>>5662154
>implying I love 'murica