Objectivism and Communism:
The Moral End of the Individual

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Introduction

Communism presents itself as the ultimate promise of equality: no classes, no exploitation, no private ownership, no injustice.

But Objectivism strips away the promise and examines the premise.

Communism is not a misunderstood economic experiment. It is the logical endpoint of collectivist morality.

Where socialism claims partial ownership over your life, communism claims total ownership.

It does not merely regulate production. It abolishes the individual as a moral being.

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What Communism Actually Is

At its core, communism is the complete abolition of private property, private production, and individual economic autonomy.

All means of production are owned by the state — or by “the people,” which in practice means a centralized ruling apparatus.

There is no voluntary exchange. No independent ownership. No personal control over the product of your effort.

The defining principle is absolute: the individual exists solely to serve the collective.

This is not a side effect. It is the moral foundation of the system.

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The Abolition of Rights

Objectivism defines rights as moral principles that protect the individual from coercion.

Communism rejects this concept entirely.

There is no right to property. No right to trade. No right to choose one’s work. No right to refuse participation.

Need replaces rights. The collective replaces the individual. Force replaces consent.

This is why communism cannot coexist with freedom. It requires the permanent suspension of rights to function at all.

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Production Under Total Control

Communism treats production as a mechanical process that can be centrally planned.

Objectivism identifies the fatal flaw: production is the result of thought.

As explained in Objectivism and Work, human labor is not interchangeable muscle — it is rational, goal-directed action.

When the state dictates goals, methods, and outcomes, the mind of the producer becomes irrelevant.

Innovation collapses. Responsibility dissolves. Efficiency is replaced by obedience.

What remains is not productivity, but stagnation enforced by power.

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The Psychological Requirement: Obedience

Communism does not merely control behavior. It seeks to reshape the human mind.

Independence is branded as selfishness. Ambition as betrayal. Excellence as inequality.

The ideal citizen is not productive — but compliant.

This psychological dimension is crucial. A system that abolishes individual judgment must destroy individual confidence.

The result is a culture of fear, informants, and moral conformity, not solidarity.

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Why Communism Requires Total Force

Every communist system, without exception, has relied on censorship, police surveillance, forced labor, and violence.

This is not historical coincidence. It is logical necessity.

If individuals do not own their lives, they must be compelled to act.

If production is mandatory, noncompliance becomes a crime.

A system that denies choice must rule by force — continuously.

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Economic Collapse Is a Symptom, Not the Cause

Communism is often criticized for inefficiency, shortages, and poverty.

These are real — but they are consequences, not causes.

The real failure is moral: a system that forbids self-interest forbids motivation.

Without ownership, there is no reason to improve. Without reward, there is no reason to excel.

What collapses first is not the economy, but the incentive to think.

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Communism as the Final Stage of Collectivism

Communism does not emerge suddenly. It is the logical endpoint of collectivist ideas accepted earlier.

First, individual rights are questioned.
Then, property is restricted.
Then, production is regulated.
Finally, ownership is abolished.

This progression is why Objectivism and Socialism must be understood as part of the same moral continuum.

Communism is not an alternative. It is the conclusion.

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The Objectivist Alternative: Capitalism

Objectivism rejects communism completely and unequivocally.

It defends a system where individuals own their lives, their labor, and the product of their effort.

That system is capitalism — not as an economic convenience, but as a moral necessity.

Capitalism recognizes that human progress comes from free minds, voluntary exchange, and earned success — not enforced equality.

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Conclusion

Communism is not a path to justice. It is a declaration that the individual has no moral standing.

It abolishes rights, destroys production, and demands obedience as a virtue.

Objectivism rejects communism at its root, because it rejects the very idea of a human being as an end in himself.

A society worthy of man requires the opposite: reason, individual rights, and freedom — without compromise.