Marx and Satan- by Richard Wurmbrand

As the Olympics unfolded, and now people who went to Beijing are returning, I can't help but THANK GOD I live in the United States of America! Hearing the stories of strict control, curfews, and complete domination by the government makes it so apparent to me how incredibly spoiled I am. A coworker went over to Beijing with her son, who was participating in the opening ceremony's marching band, and all she could say about the trip was it was "interesting". Apparently the students were told they would be on the Olympic grounds, and instead, they arrived, were shuttled onto large tour buses, and taken to an outlying city where they were unable to "play tourist". In fact, they were not allowed off the hotel grounds until the day of the show, all taxis were banned from picking up ANY hotel guests, and the kids were expected to rehearse their routines from sun up to sun down the entire week before the big day. Not one break, no time off, and no sight-seeing allowed. How disappointing for students who had this once in a life time experience dampened.
My brother- in-law told me today about how because construction was halted to make Beijing less polluted then it normally is for it's inhabitants, one company built giant reflective screens around their construction site that was incomplete- and projected computer-generated images of a finished building, complete with fake people walking about inside, to give passer-bys the "right" feeling of beauty and wealth. Disgusting.
Our visit to Vietnam last year was another example of Communism in all it's glory. The corruption, bribery, and citizen's fear was evident every where. Of course we had a wonderful time seeing our families- but the moment the plane landed in Los Angeles and I had my feet firmly planted on American soil, the kids and I couldn't help but do a happy dance, much to the enjoyment of our customs personnel.
Long winded way of saying- America rocks despite our annoyances. Sure, we don't like how everything is done, we don't agree with all the choices that are being made with tax dollars, but educate yourself on what is important to you, go vote, have a voice that actually counts and doesn't just whine to coworkers, and be thankful that you CAN. And if you have a spare moment, pick up a copy of "Marx and Satan" by Richard Wurmbrand. It is a fantastic book, written very well and extremely easy to read, and gives the reader some background on what was the start of Marxism and Communism. We first picked it up years ago when dealing with some other issues, but with China on my mind, it was good to have a resource and remember what theories and principles communism practices. The book itself is an examination of the life and works of Karl Marx, and doesn't speak specifically to communism in it's form today, but by reviewing the history- and the motivating beliefs of Communism's founders, we might finally be able to see it for what it is- under all the fluff, communism hurts, damages and kills the dreams and lives of human beings all over the world. Praise God for the freedoms we enjoy, and may they never be taken away from us.