Hashtag Just Girly Things #4: Communism the musical.
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Hashtag Just Girly Things #4: Communism the musical. - Video
Germany's chancellor, Angela Merkel, at the Berlin Wall memorial. Photograph: Kay Nietfeld/dpa/Corbis
Marx and Engels proclaimed in 1848 that a spectre was haunting Europe the spectre of communism.
As it turned out, the spectre did eventually materialise, in the form of Soviet communism, which spread after the second world war to eastern Europe. The Berlin Wall was built 16 years later, in 1961, to put a stop to the way East Germans were voting about communism with their feet.
There have been celebrations recently to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the fall of the wall in November 1989. That fall was followed in 1991 by the collapse of the Soviet Union itself, a Soviet Union about which President Putin appears to harbour nostalgic feelings.
After those events there was an inevitable burst of triumphalism in the west. Some of us feared that, with the disappearance of the communist threat, some of the worst instincts of casino capitalism would be evinced; and so they were.
I myself had what I thought was a bright idea of writing a book called The Spectre of Capitalism. I hoped the catchy title would make my fortune indeed, make me a capitalist but it has to be said that sales fell woefully short of anything written by Marx.
Now the governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, has followed Marx with a declaration last week that a spectre is now haunting Europe the spectre of economic stagnation.
This phrase received about as much attention as that book of mine. It was uttered during the presentation of the monetary policy committees quarterly inflation report, and people were much more interested in the outlook for interest rates: the story remains that rates went outside after the financial crash, and will continue to remain outside for some time.
But, as the Bank is keen to emphasise, the outlook for the British economy is a lot better than that for Europe in general: it may be the slowest recovery in centuries, but our economy is now on the mend. However, there is a still a long way to go to make up the ground lost after Chancellor Osbornes woefully misjudged decision to abort the 2010 recovery he inherited with a needlessly deflationary and (literally) counterproductive fiscal policy.
Which brings us back to the spectre haunting Europe. Carney was not referring to David Cameron, but it intrigues me that when the prime minister and a legion of others go on about the need for reform in Europe, they are barking up the wrong tree. As Llewellyn Consulting points out in its current bulletin, the universal chant when the subject of the eurozones plight comes up is that what is needed is more structural reform.
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The spectre of communism? Europe should fear the spectre of austerity
Its easy to be pessimistic about the future of liberty. Yet sometimes freedom advances with extraordinary speed. Like 25 years ago in Europe.
As 1989 dawned communism had ruled what was the Russian Empire reborn for seven decades. The system failed to fulfill its promise of human liberation, but survived with the backing of secret police, gulags, and the Red Army.
Then in an instant it all was swept away. On November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall was open. One of the most dramatic symbols of human tyranny was gone.
Tens of thousands of East Germans were imprisoned for Republikflucht, or attempting to flee the East German paradise. Some 1000 people died trying to escape East Germany, about 200 from Berlin.
As 1989 dawned there was obvious unrest in what Ronald Reagan had called the Evil Empire. Hope was rising, but no one could forget that previous popular demands for freedom always had been crushed by Soviet tanks.
In 1989 Hungary led the way. Plans were made for multiparty elections. The Communist Party dissolved. When the new leadership tore down Hungarys wall with the West the Iron Curtain had a huge hole.
Polands communist regime made a deal with a revived Solidarity Union and held free elections. The liberal tide rose in Czechoslovakia, sweeping away the hardline leadership installed to squelch the Prague Spring of 1968.
The East German regime remained tough. Frustrated East Germans began escaping through Hungary, with its open border.
Protests spread, causing the communist leadership to temporize. On November 4 a million people gathered in East Berlin.
On November 9 visibly struggling Politburo member Guenter Schabowski declared that East Germans would be free to travel to the West immediately. Border guards desperately sought guidance as tens of thousands of people gathered demanding to be let through. Just before midnight the security forces stood aside.
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When Liberty Knocked Down the Berlin Wall
Published November 15, 2014
In this photo taken Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014, puppet designer and film maker Miroslav Trejtnar prepares a map for animations of his movie 'What to tell to kids?" in a studio in Prague, Czech Republic. The Velvet Revolution that kicked off in Prague 25 years ago Monday, Nov. 17, was a seminal event in the collapse of communism. But how do you explain it to young children who have only known democracy? Renowned puppet designer Miroslav Trejtnar and filmmaker Tatana Markova teamed up to present the Velvet Revolution in a 30-minute movie that tells the story of more than a dozen children of the revolution - now parents - through the magic of animation. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)(The Associated Press)
In this photo taken Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014, Alzbeta Berankova takes a photo for animations for the movie 'What to tell to kids?" in a studio in Prague, Czech Republic. The Velvet Revolution that kicked off in Prague 25 years ago Monday, Nov. 17, was a seminal event in the collapse of communism. But how do you explain it to young children who have only known democracy? Renowned puppet designer Miroslav Trejtnar and filmmaker Tatana Markova teamed up to present the Velvet Revolution in a 30-minute movie that tells the story of more than a dozen children of the revolution - now parents - through the magic of animation. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)(The Associated Press)
In this photo taken Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014, puppet designer and film maker Miroslav Trejtnar prepares a map for animations of his movie 'What to tell to kids?" in a studio in Prague, Czech Republic. The Velvet Revolution that kicked off in Prague 25 years ago Monday, Nov. 17, was a seminal event in the collapse of communism. But how do you explain it to young children who have only known democracy? Renowned puppet designer Miroslav Trejtnar and filmmaker Tatana Markova teamed up to present the Velvet Revolution in a 30-minute movie that tells the story of more than a dozen children of the revolution - now parents - through the magic of animation. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)(The Associated Press)
PRAGUE The Velvet Revolution that kicked off in Prague 25 years ago Monday was a seminal event in the collapse of communism. Try explaining that to children who have only known democracy.
That's the challenge tackled by two veterans of the uprising as the massive student protests faded ever further into the past. They wanted to capture the excitement of the rallies, the brutality of police beatings and the surreal repression of a nation that Vaclav Havel later president dubbed "Absurdistan."
So renowned puppet designer Miroslav Trejtnar and filmmaker Tatana Markova teamed up to present the Velvet Revolution in a 30-minute movie that tells the story of more than a dozen children of the revolution now parents through the magic of animation.
"The parents are telling their children why they joined the demonstration, why they wanted a change," Trejtnar said. "It's about a turning point that they didn't experience."
"We used animation to present it in a form familiar to them," said Markova, "so the story becomes lively for them."
In the movie, the parents choose a toy a small human figure or animal and tell their own story by moving it on a big map of Prague. The toys are then animated to play out the drama of the events that toppled communism in Czechoslovakia.
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Former students, now parents, use animated toys to explain 1989 Velvet Revolution to children
Oppose FEMA camps, communism or Agenda 21 Labled potential terrorists #39; by U.S. government
Oppose FEMA camps, communism or Agenda 21 Labled #39;potential terrorists #39; by U.S. government Learn more: ...
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Oppose FEMA camps, communism or Agenda 21 Labled potential terrorists' by U.S. government - Video