Apartheid-era South Africa or post-Stalin USSR: which was more oppressive?

[Tooting Carmen]

Needless competition that trivializes the suffering of the victims.

It is a perfectly legitimate debate that seeks to cut across the pieties of both Left and Right.

[Learning_Genetics]

I heard that the USSR was not so bad in the Brezhnev years but it was still tough.

[armenianbodyhair]

It is a perfectly legitimate debate that seeks to cut across the pieties of both Left and Right.

No it's not. Both were obviously very oppressive and if oppression is not the way you want to go neither should be emulated. It's only a valid debate if you favor oppression

[Tooting Carmen]

No it's not. Both were obviously very oppressive and if oppression is not the way you want to go neither should be emulated. It's only a valid debate if you favor oppression

But the point is that, just as there are different degrees of democracy (Sweden and Colombia are both technically 'democracies', but that doesn't mean they are anything alike), so there are different degrees of dictatorship. OK, let me put it to you another way: do you think that Jordan and Saudi Arabia are as bad as one another, just because both are absolute monarchies? No, of course not. Saudi Arabia is FAR more oppressive in its policies and behaviour than is Jordan.

[armenianbodyhair]

But the point is that, just as there are different degrees of democracy (Sweden and Colombia are both technically 'democracies', but that doesn't mean they are anything alike), so there are different degrees of dictatorship. OK, let me put it to you another way: do you think that Jordan and Saudi Arabia are as bad as one another, just because both are absolute monarchies? No, of course not. Saudi Arabia is FAR more oppressive in its policies and behaviour than is Jordan.

I think it's a far better investment of time and energy to evaluate the worth of detriment of individual policies or programs within those systems and why they exist rather than which system is better or worse as a whole because the latter is subjective and ultimately meaningless.

[Tooting Carmen]

bump

[Tooting Carmen]

Given how, in another thread, people were extolling an all-White town in South Africa, I thought I would revive this thread.

[Tooting Carmen]

bump

[Tooting Carmen]

bump

[Profileid]

Hmm, hard to say, but i think its the apartheid south Africa was more oppressive. Shame we still have it in the middle east *cough*Israel*cough*

but it's good tho.
They're keeping those brown arab subhumans down.