Apparent Will to Power in Communist leaders.

In order to build on the thought I must introduce here a very popular narrative used for explaining many cultural phenomenon in society. That is one of the money motive: "they did it for the money". I have seen this used to explain anything from fascism to drug abuse to terrorism. For example one explanation that I hear for people joining Isis is that they give money to recruits. People see this as the source of "evil". You can see the prevalence of this narrative from phrases like, "money is the root of evil" or "it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!" I do not discount the money motive but a much more powerful and obvious motive is there on the surface. That is motive of power and influence. People want to feel important, they want to have influence over others. They want to be better than others and they want to dominate others. This emotion is visible in the gross form in such actions as violence; for example the violence of the Nazis against Jews. Or it can be seen in subtle forms in many people who want to impose their views on others. It is also evident in quorans who want to feel superior by imparting their knowledge on lesser folk. For a person who has felt marginalized throughout their life for reasons like racism, poverty or their own psychological weakness— for example a poor immigrant—violence is the easiest way for then to dominate someone else and feel significant and powerful. But violence is violence and is limted (especially the variety that you see from your french immigrant) in its potential to acquire lasting power. For that your means and end need validation. This is man's mortal weakness; he cannot self validate. He need institutions for that. A random act of violence makes you a criminal or a psychopath. An act of violence validated by an institution makes you a terrorist and/or a martyr. All human cultural institutions serves the added function of being an instrument of validation; be it a Nobel Academy validating scientific achievement or an isis validating violence against unbelievers.

Coming back to the question of communists—we can take the example of China and Mao—we have to examine the cultural institutes that are in play. On the one hand we have traditional institutions of feudalism and casteism that validates the domination of one set of individuals over others. The institution of private property and the institution of servitude and the institution of inheritance no doubt favored few individuals over other. Individuals who benefited form these institutions are the ones traditionally in power. And they have the motivation to stay in that preferential position. One of the many merits of this position is that they have the means to influence more people with that power. At the time of Mao the traditional means to power (feudal authority) was crumbling, against the rising peasant movement. His means to power was gravely threatened . Is such a scenario, the organism in him would be looking to jump ships from the failing traditionalist institution to the one that allows him to maintain power. So it is not surprising that he joined the revolution. Joining the opposing camp is not not only allows him to gain power over the lowly peasants but also him former peers: the landlords and the bourgeoisie. This is most evidenced by the cultural revolution where Mao had the bourgeoisie shamed publicly and had their institutions destroyed, thereby tightening his position against a revival of traditionalist institutions. The organism in Mao took a bold step against traditional institutions and he emerged at the top of the new system.

The wheels have turned one circle and now we have the communists in the role of the oligarchy. Anyone looking for power in China would have to gain validation from the now traditionalist communist or go all out and risk by betting on a competing institution. Only one thing is sure that man carries with him the instinct for both traditionalism and revolution. That is the main force behind evolution.