On Being a Communist

I am reminded of Bertrand Russell’s now classic text (delivered as a speech at a relatively small meeting in South London) entitled ‘On Why I am Not a Christian’. Of course, I am not a Christian either by birth or choice – but I respect the beliefs and opinions of others as long as they are not fascistic, intolerant or pointlessly violent. I could have called this essay ‘On Why I am Not a Capitalist’, or perhaps more to the point ‘On Why I am a Communist’, but I think that in this instance such titles are slightly misleading to the reader as they fall into the trap of allowing the bourgeoisie to set the intellectual agenda. As I reject the bourgeois agenda a priori – I will not ‘confess’ to being a Commuist and I will not ask for forgiveness for being a ‘Red’. I recall rather silly modern Western people who still think the Earth is flat, or think that gravity does not exist. They hold to these opinions as they plummet to their deaths or circumnavigate the globe! I suppose there is a sneeky admiration for those who stick to their guns as circumstance reveals that no guns exist and that there has never been any ammunition to fire!

The Scientific Socialism of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels is far beyond the average human being to currently comprehend. This observation is not intended as an insult, but rather a statement of fact. Those who see more, who understand historical trends and scientific processes, obviously are ahead of the epoch within which they live, and as they ‘see more’ their understanding is far beyond that of the average human being. Having spent around 40 years cognitively aware of Marxism and Leninism, my understanding has grown and grown to the point where I am convinced that what Marx descibes is a ‘natural’ process is applicable to the whole of humanity regardless of opinion, beliefs, ignorance or contemporary trends. This means that all of human society will evolve (and is evolving) toward the state of Socialism, and that there is no real point in resisting this process of nature!

Just as gravity effects everyone (and everything) equally, it is also true that everybody is a ‘Socialist’ and a ‘Communist’ in both theory (generally unrealised) and fact (realised). Those who refer to themselves as ‘Communists’ are either following what they think is a belief system, or they truly understand what Marx and Engels was talking about, which was made relevant to the modern age by Lenin, Stalin amd Mao amongst many others. To say that one is a ‘Communist’ is rather like saying that one is a ‘human being’ and developing a superfluous dogma about it all. Of course, it must not be forgotten that from the (distorted) bourgeois position, to call someone a ‘Communist’ is an insult and a mark of great shame. As I reject this premise, I do not adhere to this nonsense simply because therein lies the path of madness! In times gone by, often those who understood scientific processes were accused of being in league with the devil and quite often tortured and put to death simply because they could ‘see more’ than the average or common viewpoint. Indeed, Communists have been subjected to witch hunts in the not so distant past, and still are in a number of different ways.

So what is my position? I am most definitely, whole-heartedly and completely ‘in love’ with humanity, the universe and everything that exists! I see it as a matter of fact and a statement of the obvious to confirm that I am a ‘Communist’, but not in anyway that conforms to the rather stupid and anti-intellectual bourgeois position. We all suffer under the oppression of the capitalist system outside the Communist countries. As I see this and understand exactly what Marx was saying – I am a ‘Communist’ – but I would add so is every human being who is subject to the dialectical forces of historical materialism! This is a combination of a deep love for existence and a wide wisdom cultivated by continuous learning. All I can say is that my heart is Communist just as my blood is red! We can work together to relieve suffering and make existence a better place for everone and everything!  Revolutions can be slow and gradual affairs, or a sudden rebalancing of historical forces. There is nothing to fear once bourgeois ignorance is exposed and removed. Onward to Revolution!

Adrian Chan-Wyles (30.5.2019) – 52nd Birthday.

General Secretary: Communist Party International Bolshevik (UK)