The Patriot Post® · Communism: Ignorance Isn't Bliss

As the 100th anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution, responsible for unleashing one of the bloodiest and most oppressive epochs in world history, is upon us, a disturbing survey recently released by the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation shows that a majority of Millennials favor socialism and communism over capitalism. The survey notes that 58% of Millennials would rather be living under some form of collectivist system than the free market-based system of capitalism.

Marion Smith, executive director of the Victims of Communism, states, “Millennials now make up the largest generation in America, and we’re seeing some deeply worrisome trends. Millennials are increasingly turning away from capitalism and toward socialism and even communism as a viable alternative.” Maybe even more troubling, the survey shows that nearly one in five Millennials view Josef Stalin as a “hero.” Out on a limb, but perhaps that’s because their public school education didn’t include the fact that Stalin killed tens of millions of his own citizens.

Indeed, what are American kids being taught in school? If the idealization of communism isn’t an indictment against America’s poor educational standards, specifically relating to historical events, then we don’t know what is. Should we be surprised that a growing number of college students support restrictions to free speech rights?

Much of the problem may lie with the fact that most Millennials have never truly experienced tyrannically oppressive and murderous government. Nor do they appreciate the very real dangers and threats posed by communist powers during the Cold War. Too often leftist teachers and professors fill students’ minds with the flawed notions of “fairness” of equal outcome rather than the justice of equal opportunity. Historian Sean McMeekin warns, “Today’s Western socialist, dreaming of a world where private property and inequality are outlawed, where rational economic development is planned by far-seeing intellectuals, should be careful what they wish for. They may just get it.”

Factors for increasing numbers of Millennials disillusioned with capitalism may be due to the fact that a majority (53%) feel burdened by the economy, as it has been widely speculated that the Millennial generation will actually fare worse than their parents economically. A generation growing up with high levels of debt and lower earning power while being taught that they’re victims of “The System” will naturally seek to change it, rather than change themselves.