Or perhaps Groucho?

A correspondent recently found and shared this quote from the father of Communism and Socialism:

“Under no pretext should arms and ammunition be surrendered; any attempt to disarm the workers must be frustrated, by force if necessary”

Now, just based on this one quote of Marx, modern American “liberals” (Progressives/regressives) clearly do not channel Karl. For this is clearly completely contrary to the vast majority of Democrats and especially their more extreme elements.

So the answer to our headline question is a resounding “NO.” Whatever they may claim. But he wrote many other things that seem burned into the brains (or at least the skull cavities) of too many today: enemies of liberty, parasites on the human race, people who (assuming they can be considered intelligent) lack reason and common sense. And any sense of proportion.

Surely, dear Karl must have said a few other good things. Surely he loved puppies (or kittens) and maybe (some) children. But looking at his most well-known quotes and his writing, he does not seem to be a very nice man. But he had a wife and seven children, and even some grandchildren.

It is claimed he is one of the most influential men in history, which is a sad commentary on people in general.

Today, while not the only source of inspiration for enemies of liberty, he is certainly the major one. Though people do not want to accept it, his ideas were powerful influences on a lot of people. Among those were Honest Abe Lincoln, Vladimir Lenin, and of course, Adolf Hitler. Directly or indirectly Mr. Marx is responsible for the premature deaths of tens of millions of people.

Can we summarize his philosophy? Individuals have no individual worth: they are simply part of a class, a group without power otherwise. And every person has their place: square pegs in round holes must be modified to fit. But if they do not, they must be trimmed and forced to fit. And if they seek to escape, there are harsher methods of dealing with them. “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need” as defined by the body politic – the people who (despite his words above) have all the guns.

His legacy is an evil one, and one we must (as lovers of liberty) constantly fight. And convince others that, no matter what his motives, his actions – even if mostly limited to writing – are evil.