we're Still in The 21st century, Right?

A man, a Navy soldier, gave his nephew a suspicious look after a joke had been made and said, "Wait...are you really? You're not. Okay, 'cause I'd have a problem with you if you were a Communist."

(go ahead and give yourself a moment of silence and a puzzled expression. that's what I did.)

I didn't say anything, but it struck me as odd. Who talks about Communists these days, 2009, as if it's a secret conspiracy group from the 1950's? The only people who are still nervous when you mention the word "Communism" are the much older generation, now dying off at ripe ages of 80 - 90 yrs old, and we want to be gentle to the elderly so we refrain from saying the dreaded C-word in their presence. This Navy soldier was young, early 40's maybe late 30's young. What was he worried about Communists for?

Frankly, my grandfather quite liked the idea of Communism. Not exactly the way Karl Marx planned it out, and he certainly disagreed with the Soviet Union's attempt to make a Marxist society work, but the basic concept of having no social classes and all people laboring equally for all people's equal benefit, under a single benevolent ruler, appealed to him. It would be a plausible Utopia if our base human natures didn't keep getting in the way. We get power-hungry, greedy, and corrupt. Not to mention lazy and consumed in our own selfish endeavors.
My grandfather believed that the Second Coming (oh no, religion! run! hide!) would bring about a society with striking resemblance to Communism.

Now you see the concept of Communism I've grown up with: it's a paradisaical idea and simply can't work for people as we are now. We know it doesn't work because there are those who tried it and it failed. Pretty miserably. And now we've moved on. *shrug* No big deal.

So what was this Navy guy's issue?

Granted, I'm overwhelmingly under-informed in this issue. I was not around in the Cold War. I wasn't constantly terrorized by my government and local leaders that "the Commies are gonna nuke us." I haven't read Karl Marx's Manifesto. (Unless excerpts count. Do excerpts count? Yes? No. I thought not...) So who am I to question any man's opinions of Communists? Especially this man, a soldier in the United States Navy?

The more I think about it, though, the more I wonder if this man is not against the actual idea of Communism (as a social theory), but rather against a vicious and sadistic stereotype that has been tied to the title "Communist," a stereotype that I'm unaware of in my uneducated state. Maybe he thinks that Communists vandalize street signs, or leave used chewing gum on the sidewalks, or beat puppies...with kittens (I wish that line were mine; I'm borrowing it from some comedian whose name is now lost to me but I'd know his face if I saw it on Youtube). Call me innocent, naive, and sheltered, but a Communist sounds like a person who's trying to think of better alternatives to their current situation.

It's possible he's judging a stereotype. Stereotypes are wrong. Only lazy ignorant people with an uncanny love for potato salad judge people by stereotypes. (Wait...didn't you just...?) And it's wrong.

I was under the impression that we were no longer overly concerned with Communism because the Cold War is over. And besides, we now have just as much (if not more) ability (and motive) to nuke ourselves as any social party out there. And we're pretty settled into our little Capitalism idea at this point, so I don't see Socialists or Communists getting much influence in that way...so why be hatin'?

Are Communists a problem? Is Communism threatening your way of life? I'm leaning towards "No" on both these questions... Let me know if I'm mistaken. It's possible I missed a memo.