Special Post about a Conversation Two Weeks Ago

There was a conversation with the young owner of one of our apartments two weeks ago that is still bothering me.  He is in his twenties and has lived only under capitalism.  His father has talked to him about communism, and it is obvious from the conversation that the father is nostalgic for the old days and that the son is questioning whether things were better then.  Among the statements he made:  Back then, everyone had a job, but no one had to work.  They just went to their jobs where there was no pressure, but they got good pay.  A person could earn enough in three years to buy a new car.  Czechoslavakia was something better--not communism/not capitalism.  Life was good because both the US and Russia favored us in attempts to make us their ally.

He made it sound like the old days were like it is in today's social democracies in Scandinavia except that people didn't have to work.  That's not true. I was in Czechoslavakia (as well as Hungary, Yugoslavia, and East Germany) during the communism.  I also read reports that coincided with what I saw.  First, the fact that no one had to work meant that service was terrible everywhere with customers having to wait in lines while employees stood nearby ignoring them.  It meant that construction was shoddy (as evidenced by the buildings falling apart today that were built then).  Second, the person who made enough money to buy a car in three years probably had to be on a waiting list to get that car at least that many years; cars could not be bought on demand, because there was always a waiting list for years--not just to get a car, but to get a telephone and other items.  And saving enough in three years to buy a car was partially due to the car being a Jugo (considered the worst and cheapest car ever made) and also due to the fact that there were few other goods available to spend money on causing people to end up with lots of savings.  (Back in those days, one had to be on the watch for available items and rush and wait in lines in hopes they wouldn't run out.  You could go into supermarkets filled with shelves, but individual items placed half a meter a part [10 meters of shelving to display 20 bottles of catsup, for instance, IF they had catsup in stock].)  Third, he didn't mention the other negatives:  Every building or block had paid snitches to tell the government what people were doing that might be questionable.  Hotels had a woman sitting at the end of the hallway on every floor to make sure that no one could go to another person's room or sneak someone up the back stairs into their room.  Only high officials had passports that would allow them to travel internationally, and even they had to get permission for trips.  Vacations had to be within the country and possibly to neighboring countries that had communist governments.

Anyway, I have read other stories recently of people within the former Eastern Block becoming nostalgic for the old days.  This conversation, especially since it was from a young person who knows no better, has really remained on my mind.  I try to be a realist.  I have my own ideas of what is wrong with today's governments--democracies, monarchies, dictatorships, etc.  No where is perfect.  But it would be sad to see countries where people have achieved so many personal rights try to turn the clock back.