Current Events — HabitableZone

Current Events » in reply to More on Zimbabwe

"This kind of thing is not an "aberration" of collectivist ideas.

It's the inevitable result."

Not so much a result, but collectivism is oppressive in se. The reason is simple: In collectivism, the individual is totally subordinated to the collective, which means those in power. Dictionary.com defines the word

col·lec·tiv·ism ( P ) Pronunciation Key (k-lkt-vzm) n.
The principles or system of ownership and control of the means of production and distribution by the people collectively, usually under the supervision of a government.


I think that the word "usually" can be deleted except in the unusual case of voluntary collectivism as practiced in some Israeli kibbutzim. Of course, one can leave the kibbutz at any time. That is what makes it voluntary and exceptional.

The three fundamental rights are life, liberty, and property, and collectivism destroys all three. It destroys the right of property by forbidding private ownership and recompense for services. It destroys the right of liberty by conscripting all labor to work for the collective (state). It destroys the right of life by forbidding dissent and crushing all opposition by brutal force.

That was the way the USSR operated.
That is the way Zimbabwe operates.

That is the way that all collectivist governments have, do, and will operate, because that is the very meaning of collectivism. If they did not destroy the rights of life, liberty, and property, they would not be collectivist.

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