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Dalai Lama on Marxism

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Dalai Lama Espouses Marxism:

http://trueslant.com/abytharakan/2010/05/21/as-dalai-lama-embraces-red-will-marxism-help-where-hollywood-failed/

Comments

mtspace said…
Of course, there are many flavors of Marxism. All of them assume that one belongs to a productive society in which one trades a little liberty for a little corporate (community) care. For most well socialized people one would expect the trade-off to bring a greater sense of well-being.

Those who have grown up in dysfunctional families will, I think, believe that close associations far afield from family might be especially useful. One interesting outcome is that people who do not fit well in their families have other institutions to turn to for help - institutions neither assured to exist nor supported by the notion that the purpose of every institution is to turn a profit.

I see Marxism's motives as being more Christian than capitalism's. Where it comes off the rails is the Bolshevik notion that one may rightly use any means to achieve a desired end.
February 22, 2011 at 11:08 AM
James said…
I have some fairly deep problems with Marxism. For example, the Hegelian dialectic which it espouses (thesis in conflict with antithesis yields synthesis) is a simplistic model for understanding cosmic dynamics. Its implicit atheism and the view that "religion is the opiate of the masses" I totally reject. On the other hand, the liberation theology developed in Latin American countries emphasized the Marxist concern for equality and community. This is, of course, what the Dalai Lama wants to identify with. It's a very risky position for him to take. But then, he's been in a risky position ever since China invaded Tibet.
February 23, 2011 at 10:43 AM
TheGreatDialogue said…
...If I am not mistaken, Marx also urged there to be Free Public education...I think there may be something to be learned from every country that has put into practice Marxist ideas--we can learn much from a pragmatic analysis--maybe "capitalist" nations [economies?] could learn from socialist ones...?
February 24, 2011 at 7:46 AM
James said…
And speaking of Marxism (well, socialism anyway), let's bring this discussion closer to home (Tibet's beautiful, I hear, but I'll likely never get to see it). What insights does your faith provide you for viewing issues such as budget-cutting? How do justice and mercy figure into the conversation? How, for that matter, does walking humbly with God figure in?
February 25, 2011 at 8:29 PM
TheGreatDialogue said…
My belief is that we need to always take the needs of others seriously...sadly, government cannot always provide what is needed, at least not completely...personal giving of resources and time is the only way to combat poverty and disasters, and yet people privately often give too little - scripture talks about God putting in place rulers and government for our benefit, and that seems to me to be true sometimes - but when Jesus spoke about the poor or about others in need, he was asking US to personally be involved...
February 26, 2011 at 7:20 AM
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