It seems that in every blog "argument" I enter with a conservative or Republican individual, I am inevitably identified as a "communist," a "pinko commie," or an "Obamunist." Now, I learned early on in my political blogging career that insults hurled in comment sections are often the product of an inflated sense of bravado enhanced by the protection that anonymity ensures. But really, folks. Communist? Pinko? Obamunist? All you are succeeding in doing is identifying yourself as woefully ignorant about political theory.
Let's begin with a basic lesson in Communism. MSN's Encyclopedia Encarta defines communism as:
A theory and system of social and political organization that was a major force in world politics for much of the 20th century. As a political movement, communism sought to overthrow capitalism through a workers' revolution and establish a system in which property is owned by the community as a whole rather than by individuals. In theory, communism would create a classless society of abundance and freedom, in which all people enjoy equal social and economic status. In practice, communist regimes have taken the form of coercive, authoritarian governments that cared little for the plight of the working class and sought above all else to preserve their own hold on power.
Now, seeing as how Merriam-Webster defines a communist as "an adherent or advocate of a Communist government, party, or movement," I think we can agree that anyone who supports capitalism and individual property ownership is not a communist. Barack Obama, who supports capitalism and the ability for people to climb the class ladder based on their own individual hard word and success. His economic plan offers plenty of assistance to those who wants to improve their own skill sets through education and training, and thus advance in their jobs. You can find details on his entire economic plan here, on his own Web site.
People who support Obama generally support Obama's economic plan (and as a recent ABC News poll indicates, 57% of those surveyed believe Obama has a stronger understanding of the American economy than McCain). Therefore, I feel it is a safe assumption that Obama's supporters are capitalists, not communists.
Calling us "communists" for supporting Barack Obama is more or less on par with calling us "smelly," "doo doo heads," "fatties," or "dumb dumbs." It reveals that you know so little about government that you are forced to regurgitate fear-mongering GOP talking points from more than a half century ago.
It's not that I'm offended by being called a communist--in fact, I find it amusing how eager and willing these people are to proclaim their ignorance so publicly. It's that they expect people to take them seriously in political discussions when they don't even care enough to research the party line before they recite it.
So for your sake and not mine, Republicans, please stop calling me a communist. All you succeed in doing is making a complete and utter fool of yourselves.