Sneak Peek: Conversations on Communism, Russia vs. USA, & Drinking Age
Last week, we kicked off the series of Spectrum Street Epistemology conversations in Hungary and Romania.
We’ll be releasing three videos each week, and we’re sharing these with Substack subscribers first! Here is the release schedule for this week with preview links just for you.
Tuesday
Is communism good? The younger Romanians in this video don’t have first-hand experience living in a communist country, but they’ve heard stories from their parents.
In the United States, discussions about communism are often rooted in ideology; in Romania, the conversation becomes more specific. The four participants have different perspectives about communism, but they agree on several pros and cons regarding issues like security (“everyone had a job”) and freedom (“it was hard to leave the country”).
WATCH: “Communism is good”
Wednesday
On a balcony in Debrecen, Hungary, four students consider the claim, “The drinking age in Hungary should be 21.” Like most European countries, Hungary has no restriction on alcohol purchases beginning at age 18.
While only one of the students believes the law should change, everyone in the group agrees that many Hungarians start drinking at 16—or younger. If the current law isn’t being followed, how would raising the drinking age make any difference? One student who disagrees with the claim makes an observation about the drinking age in the United States, and at the end, Peter asks an interesting question about cigarettes and alcohol.
WATCH: “The drinking age in Hungary should be 21”
Thursday
Five people in Budapest discuss the claim, “It is better to be ruled by Russia than the USA.” The group consists of four Hungarians and one American. They bring us a lively conversation that reveals how both countries are viewed.
A gentleman who strongly disagrees with the claim notes that there are “no gulag camps in Alaska.” Another gentleman, remaining neutral throughout, doubts the freedoms associated with the USA. He said, “If you say in public that you don’t agree with your kids being gender-transitioned, you could lose your job. I think that’s a very strong argument against the USA.”
WATCH: “It is better to be ruled by Russia than the USA”
Do any of these conversations inspire you to rethink your views? Let us know what you think in the YouTube comments or on Substack.
A great start to the series. I was shocked that the young Hungarians knew so little about the differences between U.S. democracy versus totalitarianism and how they are actually implemented. Since Hungary was a captive nation under the USSR, I had the expectation the Hungarians would know more than they did. While their parents who experienced life under communism know its dangers, today's youth in many cases apparently do not. It makes me wonder what they are being taught in school. Perhaps Hungarian schools are like American schools where youth are indoctrinated in Marxist ideology starting at a young age. Without a knowledge of history that is as factual and complete as possible, history tends to repeat. I'm concerned that means we will be combating totalitarian regimes, a novel invention in the 1900s, for many years to come. Communism offers a false hope that sounds pleasant and appealing to many. For the actual consequences of communism, I suggest a visit to the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation at victimsofcommunism.org.
I really like the follow up questions at the end of each exercise, particularly the one regarding a loved one.
I was describing these videos to my mom, and while describing the interaction between the young men on the neutral and strongly disagree lines for the claim, "It is better to be ruled by Russia than the USA", she had a lot to say. In the moment, I thought she was providing supporting evidence for why one would not want to live in Russia. After reflecting on the entirety of her response later, I realized she was describing how she saw the young woman version of herself in the young man on the neutral line. She led her response saying she didn't know how bad things could get until she went to Ukraine in the 90s. After describing some of her experiences there (such as empty grocery stores), she started talking about seeing the Berlin Wall coming down on TV and seeing the media's portrayal of different standards of living on both sides. Yet she found herself frozen by an uncertainty of what to believe, until she witnessed the gravity of such a situation herself. That fascinated me, so I went back and rewatched the third video several times. Each time I watched it, I became even more impressed with all the participants. Thank you for sharing!
I was reminded of two other videos while I was thinking about the young man on the neutral line. The first involves Aldous Huxley describing the dictatorship of the future, and how it will likely bypass the rational side of humans by appealing to their subconscious.
Aldous Huxley interviewed by Mike Wallace 1958
https://youtu.be/alasBxZsb40?t=607
The second is an interview with a KGB defector where he talks about a concept known as "ideological subversion".
KGB Defector Yuri Bezmenov interviewed by G. Edward Griffin 1985
https://youtu.be/pOmXiapfCs8?t=49