I have translated texts written by representatives of the Donetsk and Lugansk Communist Parties for about the last four or five years, and a defining aspect of all their activities within Donbass is that of extensive social-care! This involves the collection of finance, food and other material goods (including clothing) – most of which is collected in Russia – which is distributed by ‘Volunteers’ working for the Communist Parties amongst the elderly, the young, the disabled, refugees, the pregnant and those in general need. In other words, the ‘need’ of those human-beings in material distress is met by the Members of the Communist Party because it is right for human-beings to help and assist one another! This attitude is designed to move material wealth and resources from those who possess them, to those who do not, and is closely linked to the Socialist responsibility of ‘redistributing wealth’!
It is only within the predatory capitalist system that wealth and resources congeal within certain areas of society and does not move. Modern religions, of course, as inherent supporters of the capitalist system, amass obscene amounts of wealth (often in contradiction to the foundational teachings of the religions involved), and use this wealth to garner political and cultural influence throughout society, aligning themselves with the ruling classes, whilst investing their vast amounts of wealth (to make more money), and allowing a small trickle of wealth to certain (and carefully) chosen individuals in need to give the false impression that the religious authorities want to ‘relieve’ poverty – when like modern charities – the onus is on perpetuating the very injustices they claim to be alleviating! Poverty and general ‘need’ must be continued to exist if religions are to have a ‘point’ within modern society! This is just one example of how religion supports predatory capitalism whilst implying their opposition to it!
During the era of the Soviet Union (1917-1991), the elderly, the young and the disabled were looked after because it was ‘correct’ for the human need of these groups (and all people in distress) to receive the material and financial resources required to reduce and remove unnecessary psychological and physical suffering. Furthermore, as time progressed and scientific understanding advanced, procedures and caring strategies improved with the changing times. During WWII, over 41 million Soviet men, women and children were killed – whilst tens of millions were maimed and made disabled! Indeed, after the Wars with Japan (1938-1939), Finnish Wars (1939-1940), Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) and the War with Japan in China (1945) – the numbers of men, women and children suffering from psychological and physical disabilities increased dramatically and elicited an appropriate response from the Soviet State! Enhanced care systems were developed to meet this demand!
Of course, the ‘Veterans’ of these wars against the Soviet Union – again, counting in their tens of millions – had to be looked after as they entered elderly-age – quite often in purpose-built care-homes and different types of community support networks, etc. Many Red Army Veterans who are still alive today are in their late 80s, 90s and 100s – but who are reducing in numbers as each year goes by! After the transition to capitalism in 1991, the standard of care throughout Russia dropped significantly, and the resurgence of religion opened-up the existing care-homes to exploitation by religious groups who offered to donate a chair or a table in return for general and unbridled access to the residents! It is common (on the modern Russian internet), for religious groups to link the economic deficiencies of the capitalist system to a general lack of belief in a sky-fairy (and the associated theology)! Such religionists insanely refer to the elderly residents as being ‘brought-up in a godless age’ and that this explains their ‘poverty’ and their habit of ‘sitting in the day-room and watching TV’! This is indicative of the evils associated with religion and exploitation such deluded systems inflict upon humanity in the name of a non-existent god-entity! Of course, these same religionists equate the restoring of capitalism with the restoring of religion in a pozt-1991 Russia, and yet are confused when confronted with the fact that after five-hundred years of uninterrupted capitalism in the West, society has quite naturally evolved into a ‘secular’ orientation with religion very much side-lined and pushed to the periphery! In other words, there is nothing ‘godly’ about exploiting one another for monetary profit!
THE SANGHA KOMMUNE (SSR) 