Communism, Nazism and Colonial Atrocities
CAT 2006 Slot 1 · VARC · Medium · Reading Comprehension
Passage / data set
Fifteen years after communism was officially pronounced dead, its spectre seems once again to be haunting Europe. Last month, the Council of Europe's parliamentary assembly voted to condemn the "crimes of totalitarian communist regimes," linking them with Nazism... Goran Lindblad, the conservative Swedish MP behind the resolution, wants to go further... He explained "different elements of communist ideology such as equality or social justice still seduce many" and "a sort of nostalgia for communism is still alive."
The fashionable attempt to equate communism and Nazism is in reality a moral and historical nonsense. Despite the cruelties of the Stalin terror, there was no Soviet Treblinka or Sobibor, no extermination camps built to murder millions... For all its brutalities and failures, communism in the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and elsewhere delivered rapid industrialization, mass education, job security, and huge advances in social and gender equality.
It would be easier to take the Council of Europe's condemnation of communist state crimes seriously if it had also seen fit to denounce the far bloodier record of European colonialism... This was a system of racist despotism, which dominated the globe in Stalin's time. And while there is precious little connection between the ideas of fascism and communism, there is an intimate link between colonialism and Nazism...
Question 1 of 5
Among all the apprehensions that Mr. Goran Lindblad expresses against communism, which one gets admitted, although indirectly, by the author?
- A.
There is nostalgia for communist ideology even if communism has been abandoned by most European nations.
- B.
Notions of social justice inherent in communist ideology appeal to critics of existing systems.
- C.
Communist regimes were totalitarian and marked by brutalities and large scale violence.
- D.
The existing economic order is wrongly viewed as imperialistic by proponents of communism.
- E.
Communist ideology is faulted because communist regimes resulted in economic failures.
Communist regimes were totalitarian and marked by brutalities and large scale violence.
Explanation
The author acknowledges "cruelties of the Stalin terror" and "brutalities and failures", thus admitting that communist regimes were marked by brutalities.
Question 2 of 5
What, according to the author, is the real reason for a renewed attack against communism?
- A.
Disguising the unintended consequences of the current economic order such as social injustice and environmental crisis.
- B.
Idealising the existing ideology of global capitalism.
- C.
Making communism a generic representative of all historical atrocities, especially those perpetrated by the European imperialists.
- D.
Communism still survives, in bits and pieces, in the minds and hearts of people.
- E.
Renewal of some communist regimes has led to the apprehension that communist nations might overtake the capitalists.
Idealising the existing ideology of global capitalism.
Explanation
The author states in the last paragraph that the enthusiasm for attacking communism reflects a determination to prove there is no alternative to the new global capitalist order.
Question 3 of 5
The author cites examples of atrocities perpetrated by European colonial regimes in order to
- A.
compare the atrocities committed by colonial regimes with those of communist regimes.
- B.
prove that the atrocities committed by colonial regimes were more than those of communist regimes.
- C.
prove that, ideologically, communism was much better than colonialism and Nazism.
- D.
neutralise the arguments of Mr. Lindblad and to point out that the atrocities committed by colonial regimes were more than those of communist regimes.
- E.
neutralise the arguments of Mr. Lindblad and to argue that one needs to go beyond and look at the motives of these regimes.
neutralise the arguments of Mr. Lindblad and to argue that one needs to go beyond and look at the motives of these regimes.
Explanation
The author exposes the hypocrisy of selectively condemning communism while ignoring colonial atrocities, prompting a deeper examination of political motives behind global capitalism.
Question 4 of 5
Why, according to the author, is Nazism closer to colonialism than it is to communism?
- A.
Both colonialism and Nazism were examples of tyranny of one race over another.
- B.
The genocides committed by the colonial and the Nazi regimes were of similar magnitude.
- C.
Several ideas of the Nazi regime were directly imported from colonial regimes.
- D.
Both colonialism and Nazism are based on the principles of imperialism.
- E.
While communism was never limited to Europe, both the Nazis and the colonialists originated in Europe.
Both colonialism and Nazism were examples of tyranny of one race over another.
Explanation
The author points out that colonialism was a system of racist despotism and genocide against specific native peoples, providing ideas and methods directly inherited by Nazism.
Question 5 of 5
Which of the following cannot be inferred as a compelling reason for the silence of the Council of Europe on colonial atrocities?
- A.
The Council of Europe being dominated by erstwhile colonialists.
- B.
Generating support for condemning communist ideology.
- C.
Unwillingness to antagonize allies by raking up an embarrassing past.
- D.
Greater value seemingly placed on European lives.
- E.
Portraying both communism and Nazism as ideologies to be condemned.
Greater value seemingly placed on European lives.
Explanation
The author sarcastically remarks "Presumably, European lives count for more", which is a critical observation by the author rather than an actual internal reason guiding the Council of Europe.
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