From the Continent: How Many Communists in Eastern Europe?

Not long ago the scion of an old ruling family of Northern Europe, a man very active in cultural affairs, told me about his meeting with a high-ranking Soviet official who had wished to see him about some matter of common interest. Talk soon turned to politics. The conversation became more and more frank, and more and more amicable, until the Russian finally told the prince: “Your ancestors exploited the masses in the name of an almighty God, but we do much better: We exploit the people in their own name!”

Experiences like this raise the rather important question: How many convinced Communists are there in the “Communist world”? In the various countries of Eastern Europe, the Communist regime has now lasted from forty to seventy years. This means that two or three generations have gone through Communist-dominated schools. How strong is the impact of the media as well as of education on the minds of the people?

EK

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Erik von Kuehnelt-Leddihn

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Not long ago the scion of an old ruling family of Northern Europe, a man very active in cultural affairs, told me about his meeting with a high-ranking Soviet official who had wished to see him about some matter of common interest. Talk soon turned to politics. The conversation became more and more frank, and more and more amicable, until the Russian finally told the prince: “Your ancestors exploited the masses in the name of an almighty God, but we do much better: We exploit the people in their own name!”

Experiences like this raise the rather important question: How many convinced Communists are there in the “Communist world”? In the various countries of Eastern Europe, the Communist regime has now lasted from forty to seventy years. This means that two or three generations have gone through Communist-dominated schools. How strong is the impact of the media as well as of education on the minds of the people?