Saturday, November 03, 2007

Q: Are you a communist or a capitalist?

Ans: Both. By both, I do not mean I am a half communist and a half capitalist. I am a complete communist and a complete capitalist.

Generally, we see communism and capitalism as two parallel non-intersecting lines or theories. So, if you are a communist, you will not be a capitalist and vice-versa. Or, we draw a line intersecting both these lines showing that our thought pattern is semi-communist and semi-capitalist. But, I see communism and capitalism, not as two parallel lines, but as two lines starting from the base of a triangle and meeting at its apex. At this apex, you are the perfect communist and the perfect capitalist.

I believe, at this point, communism and capitalism mean the same thing. Let me elaborate. Imagine, you are on the line of capitalism. A capitalist thinks in terms of profit for his own self. Only, a smart capitalist would realize that all that he is gathering for his own self is so that he can be eventually happy in life. Everything that you want in life finally boils down to happiness. And an even smarter capitalist would realize that he gets more and more happiness when he shares what he has with others, that is, a capitalist would be a true capitalist if he is a communist!

Lets take this idea the other way around. Imagine that you are on the communist path and you want to share what you have with others. But to share what you have with others, you need to first have something with you. A smart communist would realize that he would be able to give maximum to others when he has maximum (anything -- tangible or intangible) with his own self. So, a true communist would be the one who would try to maximize what he himself has, that is, he would be a capitalist!

Most communist governments are trying to give others without gathering anything for the individual. But, you cant give more than you have. And since the focus is not on have, most communist governments in this world are a failure today except for those who force their ideologies on people. And when you force your ideas on people, it is no longer communism. It is what I call pseudo-communism, a false belief that you are communist.

Most capitalistic governments are comparatively more successful because you can have more than you give. But, the moment you lose your focus from give, you are forgetting the bigger picture from your mind - that what you truly want is happiness and all that you are gathering is just a means to achieve that happiness. And hence, I call this behavior of only having and not giving as pseudo-capitalism, a false belief that you are capitalist.

I do not claim to have reached the apex of the triangle. But, my attempt is to climb up the slope and minimize the gap between communism and capitalism within myself. I wish to gain a lot for myself, and then, share it with others. In other words, I call myself a capitocommunist!