Well… I’m not a fan of communism so in my opinion of course will differ. Nevertheless I think it was net negative especially because of personal freedoms (or lack there of), censorship, police brutality etc., but I totally agree that it was far better than Nazi occupation. Of course it was. It was peace time finally after all. History isn’t black and white so there were some good things from PRL (polish acronym for People’s Republic of Poland). Free education, healthcare and mass construction of public housing were some of the good ones that to this day make our lives in Poland better (the prefabricated housing especially in my opinion) but I think it could have been done without all the atrocities inflicted by the puppet government if only Poland was independent after the war and not under the de facto Soviet occupation.
Well, I am a communist, so I tend to weigh communist perspectives more heavily. It’s important to recognize that much of the opposition to the socialist system came from nationalists and far-right groups, which caused civil strife.
That’s understandable. By the way in my opinion much of the anti-sentiment towards communism in Polish society today comes from all the bad stuff the PRL government did so maybe if that didn’t happen the outlook on it today would be different. For example as a strong free speech advocate I think it’s a shame that today in Poland “promoting communism” is prohibited by law (it’s not even a normal legislation but it’s enshrined in the constitution). I personally think that shouldn’t be the case.
That’s fair, and as you point out the reaction against the socialist system is being used more for political gain by the Polish ruling class. There are other Polish users on this site, so I won’t pretend to be an expert on the PRL, but I do think you can seek out their perspectives as well if you’d like, though I’m sure you have other ways to do so given that you’re Polish yourself.
Well… I’m not a fan of communism so in my opinion of course will differ. Nevertheless I think it was net negative especially because of personal freedoms (or lack there of), censorship, police brutality etc., but I totally agree that it was far better than Nazi occupation. Of course it was. It was peace time finally after all. History isn’t black and white so there were some good things from PRL (polish acronym for People’s Republic of Poland). Free education, healthcare and mass construction of public housing were some of the good ones that to this day make our lives in Poland better (the prefabricated housing especially in my opinion) but I think it could have been done without all the atrocities inflicted by the puppet government if only Poland was independent after the war and not under the de facto Soviet occupation.
If you have an open mind and have ~3 minutes, I can recommend this short clip from a Michael Parenti lecture
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSpVB_XXXBQ
Further “reading” if you’re interested:
Well, I am a communist, so I tend to weigh communist perspectives more heavily. It’s important to recognize that much of the opposition to the socialist system came from nationalists and far-right groups, which caused civil strife.
That’s understandable. By the way in my opinion much of the anti-sentiment towards communism in Polish society today comes from all the bad stuff the PRL government did so maybe if that didn’t happen the outlook on it today would be different. For example as a strong free speech advocate I think it’s a shame that today in Poland “promoting communism” is prohibited by law (it’s not even a normal legislation but it’s enshrined in the constitution). I personally think that shouldn’t be the case.
That’s fair, and as you point out the reaction against the socialist system is being used more for political gain by the Polish ruling class. There are other Polish users on this site, so I won’t pretend to be an expert on the PRL, but I do think you can seek out their perspectives as well if you’d like, though I’m sure you have other ways to do so given that you’re Polish yourself.
Thanks for the discussion. Have a good day my friend :)
You too!