The Solution to Poverty

[AustinSanders]

[Cleita]

1. What a great kid. Maybe he will be the future progressive President that will make it happen.

That video is heartbreaking in many ways but also gives me hope if there are more of his generation out there.

Welcome to DU to you as well, AustinSanders!

[Buzz505]

2. A very smart 16 yo

Alex, right on!!

[maddiemom]

3. Very impressive young man! Loved that he outright identified as as Socialist.

Socialism is not very well understood in this country, and used as a scare word. Too much misidentified as the same as Communism as we sadly came to know it through Soviet Russia.

[Cleita]

4. Totalitarianism, which was what was really practiced in the Soviet Union, can rear

its ugly head in any political or economic system. It wasn't the communist philosophy that was at fault but the dictators who ran everything and frankly they weren't very communist. They took everything for themselves, having luxurious lifestyles and luxury goods the ordinary working class Russian had to do without.

[celticnachos]

5. The Bolsheviks wanted a democratic Soviet Union.

It wasn't until 1924 once Stalin took power that the Soviet Union went from revolution to counter-revolution. The conditions for Russia back then were not appropriate for socialism to fully enact, that is why Lenin suggested authoritarian power to allocate resources. The idea was to have an international revolution to socialism, not only in Russia, but around the world. Soviet internationalism also allows for the availability of more resources that can be used for the necessities of the peoples. Stalin didn't support the other revolutions occurring (socialism in one country), some of them failed, the USSR shouldn't take the blame in it's entirety.

[Cleita]

6. Revolutions are hard and often don't end up with the changes people, who

fought them, desired.

Welcome to DU celticnachos!

What an informative first post. I look forward to more of them from you.

[Rhiannon12866]

7. That's very true, Egypt, for example.

[drynberg]

8. I Agree Austin, however...

The powersthatbe will not surrender their hold because of a starving group of kids, nor after listening to a socialist tell what needs to happen. I doesn't work that way. We are engaged in a struggle, with foes mighty and very connected. I believe we need to prioritize our list of stuff that needs to change and start at the top of the list. This isn't Egypt, and most Americans will not jump behind the barricades. My advise for you is for you to join with other like minded true progressives and change something that is terrible, then move on to the next issue. Keep your sense of indignation, as we need you and all of us that believe in changing terrible conditions. Vamos!