Communism (Con) versus Capitalism (Pro)

"Communism has never come to power in a country that was not disrupted by war or corruption, or both. " Thus reads the potent rhetoric of the United States' 35th president, John F. Kennedy. Kennedy's powerful sentiments about the nature of Communism were shared by over 190 million people from around the globe during his time in the Oval Office. Years later, after a Cold War that lasted nearly half a century, those opinions on communism have by no means changed. A poll conducted in the United States showed that an insignificant 11% of people even remotely approve of Communism. The question is then raised: "Why? " We will be taking a look at the hazards of communism through two justifications: J.1. Economic downfall J.2. Ideological conflict However, lets first review some definitions: Communism: a way of organizing a society in which the government owns the things that are used to make and transport products (such as land, oil, factories, ships, etc. ) and there is no privately owned property. [Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary] Capitalism: an economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods, by investments that are determined by private decision, and by prices, production, and the distribution of goods that are determined mainly by competition in a free market. [Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary] VALUE: Freedom. Whatever side upholds freedom more ought to win the round. ------------------------------- 1. Economic Downfall a. Lack of Incentive Both my opponent and I currently live in the United States, and are used to a system where we work for a company which pays us in return. However, imagine a society in which you still worked for the same company. .. only you weren't fairly compensated. You received the same compensation for working 9 hours a day in the field as the person who works 6 hours in an office. The idea behind communism is that everyone receives equal benefits. .. but then who would collect trash on the street as opposed to going to medical school? The problem is that every attempted implementation of communism has shown: that no matter how much you try to normalize the workforce, people are ALWAYS receiving unfair amounts of pay for the work they are doing. That takes away any motivation the people had to work. .. all of their money is going to the government anyway. .. and they aren't receiving nearly as many benefits in return. Freedom is certainly NOT being upheld here. b. No government accountability Once again the question is raised, "WHY can't the government figure out a system in which people receive proportionate benefits? " The reason is that in a communist system, the government owns ALL of the power. Thus, the government doesn't have anything to lose by keeping more money for itself, or handing on benefits unfairly. I challenge my opponent to supply this debate with one example of a communist country (not a new communist country) that is not tyrannical and where people are not starving due to them not receiving enough benefits. The reason the poor conditions occur is because there government has no accountability and can do whatever they want. For instance, North Korea recently decided to put their money into their nuclear arsenal instead of feeding the 1 million people who die of starvation there every year. Because the government isn't accountable to anyone, a corrupt government can easily lead to through-the-roof poverty rates and millions of people risking starvation every year. This type of tyrannical activity jeopardizes freedom, as history has effectively shown. This leads me into point 2. 2. Idealogical conflict. Thomas Jefferson once said, "When the people fear the government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty. " This point is very simple: Communism is based on a theory which says the government should be in charge of all; not only does that pose economic problems, but it is truly impossible for freedom to thrive. I once again challenge my opponent to bring up a communist country where freedom has thrived. The fact is, one entity can NOT have that much power in modern culture: it simply does not work. History has proven that a society fares better when people are free to work for whomever they choose, and free to make their own decisions about their property. Before I conclude, I think its important to discuss capitalism shortly. Capitalism is based off the idea of competition, meaning that Capitalists believe the best way to run an economy is to have several corporations constantly competing for the better product. Because each company is trying to get more business, they HAVE to create high-quality products that the people like, otherwise their sales will plummet. With communism, the government has no need to bother with the quality of any of the benefits they give out, since they are the only entity with any power.