Reply #62: And we cannot have a rational discussion about the points you just made [View All]

for as long as people adhere to the myths they were indoctrinated with. It is those myths, and the ideologies that they give rise, that have brought us such disasters such as the Domino Theory which was our justification for getting involved in Vietnam.

A rational person would have looked at the facts. The Vietnamese were nationalists. Ho Chi Minh was the most nationalist of all for he wanted Vietnam to be free from foreign domination, be it French, Japanese, Chinese, or American.

We must de-mythologize the Stalin era to better understand the errors that were made, and to appreciate why his successors wanted to avoid a return to the "bad old days." It was not accident that Stalin and Trotsky both served under Lenin. It was after Lenin's death that Stalin did away with the Soviets, the workers' committees, and abolished collective leadership. For those of you that are concerned about Bush's power grab, it is sobering to recognize that the path of tyranny always begins in small steps, and that once embarked in such a course, only a revolution can reverse course.