From Karl Marx to 21st Century Chinese Communism

Since communism started it has evolved from Karl Marx' basic ideas and theory. From the May fourth movement in 1919, until now Chinese communist party has governed the Chinese population. #At the beginning, the party kept strict control over its people. However, over the years, the rules have loosened in order to create a kind of communism that can compete with the global economy of this century. Currently, the Chinese economy is a mix of state run businesses and free market principals.# "After watching China transform from an inward-looking economy to its current role as the factory of the world, Tulloch believes the strong growth prospects are far from over for china, India or any other part of Asia."#

The basic definition of communism is the theory where everyone owns the land. It's goals are to get rid of capitalism and to create a society in which all goods will be owned by all and all economic activities will be planned and controlled by society and where the distribution of goods and services will be made, using the motto, "from each according to his capacity, to each according to his needs."#

Karl Marx' basic ideas were explained in The Communist Manifesto , which was written in 1848.# Here he stated that societies follow patterns that make "long range prediction possible." # For example, societies are supposed to progress from feudalism to capitalism at the point when feudalism slows down the forces of production of goods. According to Marx capitalism couldn't work, because capitalism increased productivity. At the same time, lowering the value of workers wages. Capitalism becomes socialism when the working class can no longer afford to get enough goods to meet their needs.# He believed capitalism would bring employers and workers into conflict. This conflict would cause economic problems where production would end. The consequence of this would be workers organizing to form a political party where capitalism would be replaces by a system of group ownership.# He also believed that government's purpose is to represent the interest of the ruling classes. Because of this, he thought that the class system had to end to have a perfect economic society. # Although his ideals supported a perfect society, the manifesto did not describe how communism would actually work.#

In China, communism became the state economic system after a long struggle for control of the government. Mao Zedong was the first leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CPC). The CPC has governed under the idea that the larger society is greater than the individual.# When the CPC first took power the Chinese economy was extremely poor. The gross nation product for China was one of the worst in the world. The people mostly farmed for a living. Most of the countries wealth belonged to only ten percent of the population.#

Chinese Communism today is probably nothing like the Communist Society that Marx imagined. The Chinese Communist Party has strict controls on party leadership. The leaders of the Communist Party pay very little attention to what its seventy six million members want. During each party meeting the members just agree to what ever the leader's decision may be.# The party makes many mistakes because while making decisions members are not allowed to ask questions. While choosing leaders for the party they do not cast a vote, they simply choose who the leaders like the most.# Mr. Hu Jintao the current Chinese communist party leader is expected to step down from leadership in 2012.# Communist officials are already making deals to as to who the next party leader will be. #

As the current communist leader, Hu Jintao, is as scared of giving a voice to the party as he is giving one to the people of the country. People can not act or speak against the government. For example, the government blocked Facebook, twitter as well as other social networking websites because they have been thought to have started rebellions in other countries, like Iran.#

The economic policies in China have changed in the last thirty years. Some of the changes of the economy are that it is no longer government planned system. They are open to international trade. Since they are open to international