Philisophical Sayings of a Socialist Monk, help

[Lord Ravinous]

This is some great stuff, keep it comin' *bump*

 

[Lord Rasputin]

"All for ourselves and nothing for other people seems, in every age of the world, to have been the vile maxim of the masters of mankind." -- Adam Smith

"It is only in folk tales, children's stories, and the journals of intellectual opinion that power is used wisely and well to destroy evil. The real world teaches very different lessons, and it takes willful and dedicated ignorance to fail to perceive them." -- Noam Chomsky

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." -- Lord John Acton

"The history of progress is written in the blood of men and women who have dared to espouse an unpopular cause, as, for instance, the black man’s right to his body, or woman’s right to her soul." -- Emma Goldman

"In communist society, where nobody has one exclusive sphere of activity but each can become accomplished in any branch he wishes, society regulates the general production and thus makes it possible for me to do one thing today and another tomorrow, to hunt in the morning, fish in the afternoon, rear cattle in the evening, criticize after dinner, just as I have a mind, without ever becoming hunter, fisherman, shepherd or critic." -- Karl Marx and Friedrich Engles

"Idealism is the despot of thought, just as politics is the despot of will." -- Mikhail Bakunin

"Saints should always be judged guilty until they are proved innocent." -- George Orwell, on Gandhi

"I cannot imagine a God who rewards and punishes the objects of his creation [and] is but a reflection of human frailty." -- Albert Einstein

"There is no king who has not had a slave among his ancestors, and no slave who has not had a king among his." -- Helen Keller

Of course, there are plenty of quotes in Marx that support totalitarianism ("vanguard party") and those that make absolutely no sense without some serious further digging ("dialectics"). The list above has anarchists (Chomsky, Bakunin, Goldman, arguably Orwell), socialists (Einstein) and liberals (Acton, Smith) as well as more orthodox Marxists (Marx, Engels, Keller), likely showing my own biases.

 

[Pielorinho]

"If I can't dance a tattoo of flaming monk-feet on the butts of my enemies, I don't want to be part of your revolution." -Emma Goldman, sorta

You may want to look to Kahlil Gibran for inspiration; both The Madman and Sand and Foam have some great quotes in them, full of mysticismy goodness.

From The Madman:

War

One night a feast was held in the palace, and there came a man and prostrated himself before the prince, and all the feasters looked upon him; and they saw that one of his eyes was out and that the empty socket bled. And the prince inquired of him, "What has befallen you?" And the man replied, "O prince, I am by profession a thief, and this night, because there was no moon, I went to rob the money-changer's shop, and as I climbed in through the window I made a mistake and entered the weaver's shop, and in the dark I ran into the weaver's loom and my eye was plucked out. And now, O prince, I ask for justice upon the weaver."

Then the prince sent for the weaver and he came, and it was decreed that one of his eyes should be plucked out.

"O prince," said the weaver, "the decree is just. It is right that one of my eyes be taken. And yet, alas! both are necessary to me in order that I may see the two sides of the cloth that I weave. But I have a neighbor, a cobbler, who has also two eyes, and in his trade both eyes are not necessary."

Then the prince sent for the cobbler. And he came. And they took out one of the cobbler's two eyes.

And justice was satisfied.

From Sand and Foam:

Frogs may bellow louder than bulls, but they cannot drag the plough in the field not turn the wheel of the winepress, and of their skins you cannot make shoes.

I would walk with all those who walk. I would not stand still to watch the procession passing by.

Every dragon gives birth to a St. George who slays it.

Even the most winged spirit cannot escape physical necessity.

Your most radiant garment is of the other person's weaving;
You most savory meal is that which you eat at the other person's table;
Your most comfortable bed is in the other person's house.
Now tell me, how can you separate yourself from the other person?

The difference between the richest man and the poorest is but a day of hunger and an hour of thirst.

If your heart is a volcano how shall you expect flowers to bloom in your hands?

Said a skunk to a tube-rose, "See how swiftly I run, while you cannot walk nor even creep."
Said the tube-rose to the skunk, "Oh, most noble swift runner, please run swiftly!"

He is the true prince who finds his throne in the heart of the dervish.

Generosity is giving more than you can, and pride is taking less than you need.

In truth you owe naught to any man. You owe all to all men.

You may also want to pursue some of Gibran's other works; he was a fairly Communist mystical poet, and although his poetry is clearly middle-Eastern in tone, in a fantasy world you can probably adapt it to being from the Far East.

Daniel

 

[Lord Ravinous]

....those are some of the most realivant quotes to my character that I've seen yet, it's uncanny how much they fit my him, thank you.

 

[fusangite]

Although not specifically communist, a lot of the Tao Te Ching is suitable for this.

 

[Green Knight]

Despite having almost 500 posts, you still forgot that politics aren't allowed here? Expect an email, please.

- Piratecat

 

[Dieter]

I'm not sure GK's last post was a flame or not...it certainly was off-topic at the least.

In reference to my comment of Karl Marx being "Da Man", I'd just like to say is the father of socialism, in which Communism is a economic derivative thereof.

Lighten up.

 

[Lord Ravinous]

Ok, lets get a little bit militant here, jeez. I ain't gonna get into a political debate with you, for the simple fact that I've been busted too many times on here for giving my political opnions that I'm affraid that the Top Dawgs of EN have my name on a post-it on their moniter. But I will tell you to not start no crap on my thread, if you'd actually read what my character's about instead of jumping overboard, you'd see that he belives this is the path to harmony and social tranquility.

I'm actually disappointed that I got this type of response, i've seen alot of mature reactions to posts alot more questionable than mine, I guess you can't win all the time.

Well, anyways, to everyone else that ain't being closed-minded, keep em coming, this is some great stuff, and it's very much appreciated.

 

[Mallus]

Green Knight...

...you do realize that LR asked for some quotes, not a lecture on the atrocities committed by real wold Communist states? And heated politcal debates are frowned upon around here. Besides, if you can imagine a world with elves and dragons, why not one where Marxists exist who don't implement the brutal policies of Stalin or Mao?

Or maybe I don't realize when I'm responding to a troll..

Back on topic, sort of. If you haven't read Gene Wolfe's The Citadel of the Autarch {last Book of the New Sun}, you might want to check it out. It features a section where a POW from a hypercommunist state tells a story to his fellow hospital mates to pass the time. The story is told entirely in political slogans taken from his country's version the The Little Red Book. Its a facinating read, as another character translates these bland Marxist platitudes into a human story.

 

[diaglo]

All your base are belong to US.