Hi Komrades! Actually "communist" does mean living in communes which is a corruption of communities. The interpretation varies somewhat, some communities are supposed to share "wives" as well as property. I don't think what happened in the old soviet union had much to do with this sort of "communism". Communism has been practiced for thousands of years, but these communities do not last long and often the people starve or are murdered by their leader. People who trade and hold property are far more successful and live prosperous and full lives. All our communities contain a balance between public property and private property in usage. I share the road outside my home with all comers and it is publicly owned. My home is my castle. It and all its contents are mine. I bought them. However I sometimes share a bus with other strangers when I go out. The bus is owned by the bus company but it is used communally. The money in my pocket is only mine until I spend it, it is a shared resource. If I put my money in the bank it becomes a ledger entry and the cash is drawn by someone else. The cash is not mine. We have some buildings in public use, like a library and state houses. Communism does not work and never has or will. However our society is driven almost entirely by money. We all want it, we all spend it. People buy things because they are "valuable", they make something to sell to make more money to make more things to make more money. They persuade the buyer that their lives will be enhanced if they buy this thing or that this thing will make you more money. Where does the buck (dollar) stop? Who decides? Most trade goes on without any control or direction. The capitalist machine is self directing, it has no governor. If trees make money they will be cut down and sold until there are no more trees. The bison made money and were killed until there were no more bison. Oil will be extracted until there is none left. The Romans were the same until they ran out of everything and starved. (Actually this was accelerated by an asteroid impact or volcanic explosion or both). We do need a governor, a director. And we have one, the Government. All previous civilisations have collapsed, usually as a result of a natural catastrophe. I think we will be the same. The cause will probably be something no-one expects. None of us is clever enough to run our civilisation. It just carries on all by itself. That is why the command economy fails - always. Meanwhile - back to photography. Can people send pictures of "my town", sort of random snaps of buildings, shops, offices, streets, people, and "my home". I do sometimes. I have a rather strange picture to put up next time. I've been meaning to take it for some time. Not quite right yet, so I'll have another go soon. Chris. -----Original Message----- From: owner-photoforum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:owner-photoforum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Shyrell Melara Sent: 19 December 2004 21:01 To: List for Photo/Imaging Educators - Professionals - Students Subject: Re: PF Exhibits on 18 DEC 04 : trevor cunningham <tr_cunningham@xxxxxxxxx> >Don Roberts - As They Passed >Dead commies, I can't find the word communist in the comment. Am I looking wrong? I see the word 'communal' which means they lived like a small community, like 'hippies'. But I can't find where they were referred to as communists... only immigrants. ((Since they were communal, most things were owned by the society.)) >you are a true patriot. Nice feel to the shot, but the background >distracts from the image. Shyrell For the Quality You Deserve! "Melara Family Photography" http://shyrellmelara.tripod.com
