Journal of Other Forum Analysis

[benji]

I mean, my point is I hate Lenin because he fumbled one of those world changing moments. Instead of being a statesman, he chose to be power hungry and do a coup. A democratic Russia, controlled by a series of socialist parties in a functioning democracy, could have been an example to the rest of the world and would have eliminated so many bad faith arguments against Marx's ideas. Instead it became an imperialist power that went on to invade and conquer its neighbors. WW2 wouldn't have turned out how it did, the Cold War didn't need to happen, "socialism" didn't need to become a four-letter word in the west. But it all happened the way it did because he chose his own personal power over doing the right thing.

No, Lenin understood Marx and socialism infinitely better than you do. Marx outlines a single party state without democracy that's established by violent seizure of power. Marx literally has no concept of disagreement among the proletariat about anything, you can't have a "functioning democracy" with multiple "socialist" parties. Any opposition parties are treasonous.

edit: Lenin saved the Soviet Union from Marx's ideas by ending socialism in 1921 as he was dying.