They're going to explain all of that by “dialectical materialism — by, “it was not created by any god”, or by, “it stands in no need of a 'universal spirit'”!

Without interruptions and not being pressured by time, I was able to get deeply involved as I read and reread. I'd ponder over passages and argue with the philosophy. I felt really good about understanding what they were saying and finding the weaknesses and the “contradictions.”

I doubt that Joe really wrote the book himself. He was too busy looking over his shoulder and liquidating enemies, real or imaginary. Whoever did author the book provided me with much needed and appreciated education.

Looking for the justification for the expansionist policy of Communism (world revolutions, Communist imperialism, or why the world, according to them, has to be Communistic) was another part of the research project. The following passages provided answers:

“ ........ the rise of the new productive forces and of the relations of production ....... takes place, not as a result of deliberate and conscious activity of man, but spontaneously, unconsciously, independently of the will of man.” (3)

I asked myself, “But what about the revolutions? They are certainly not unconscious acts, independent of man's will.”

The author must have asked himself the same question because, very shortly, this appeared:

“Up to a certain point, the development of the productive forces and changes in the realm of the relations of production proceed spontaneously and independently of the will of men. But, that is only up to a certain moment, until the new and developing productive forces have reached a proper state of maturity. After the new productive forces have matured, the existing relations of production and their upholders – the ruling class – become that 'insuperable' obstacle which can only be removed by the conscious action of the new classes, by forcible acts of these classes, by revolution.” (4)

So change is independent of man's will — except at the most crucial point in the theory when spontaneity breaks down and so does the theory.

I certainly can't be accused of taking portions out of context. I studied that book thoroughly. It contained not only Stalin's views, but was liberally supplied with quotes from Lenin, Marx, and others involved with the Communist ideology. I have read other related material as well, but this was the book I had in prison and the one which answered questions I had at the time and confirmed some beliefs I had regarding Communism.

In fact, I now feel that a study of Marx and Lenin should be a prerequisite for becoming a candidate for any seat in government — state or federal. I'm convinced that many of our elected representatives have not done their homework in this most important area and do not really know or understand the ideology of those men with whom they're dealing.

By the time I got home, I'd forgotten some of the finer points I'd covered in “Problems Of Leninism,” so, twice several years ago and again just recently, I simply went to a college library and borrowed that very edition. Kwong would have been most surprised and enlightened if he'd been able to see me do that. He was the one who told me about the “burning” of books in the United States.

There was another book which meant as much to me in a different way. I believe I was supposed to see in it the “supression of the masses by the capitalists.” Instead I found it to be thoroughly delightful and a tremendous relief from the almost totally political material I'd been reading. It was “Pickwick Papers” by Dickens.

I read that book many times, and I laughed until I shook and the tears ran down my cheeks. In my circumstances I was ripe to notice even the slightest hint of humor. I can recall most of the major characters clearly, but the irrepressible Sam Weller was my favoriet.

I caught the guard staring at me through the peep hole, so I held the book in front of his face. I think he believed that for some reason the book (he probably didn't know what it was) had made me sad. I didn't want him to see how much I was enjoying it, lest they take it away from me.

When I finally got home one of the first purchases I made for my library was “Pickwick Papers.”

Those books and pamphlets may seem like a lot of reading matter, but they couldn't begin to fill eight months in the hospital and one year and two months in solitary confinement. The more than sixteen wakeful hours in almost every day created a lot of vacuum. These blanks would have hung much heavier if it hadn't been for people like Bronco.

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