The views and opinions expressed in the commentary are solely those of the author.

The year was 2004. The setting was Moscow. The location was near the old Arbat, close to the city center.

My wife’s friend, “Tanya”, had kindly given us the key to her boyfriend’s recently purchased apartment. Many former state-owned apartment buildings were converted into condominiums and sold to the public at bargain prices.

Given the astronomical hotel prices, we were grateful for a free place to stay! (We later sent Tanya’s friend $100 and a liter of Maker’s Mark.)

The “peak” of Soviet luxury under communist rule

Upon entering, I had the opportunity to experience the “peak of Moscow luxury in 1934.” The apartment consisted of a large room, about 37 square meters, a tiny kitchen and an even tinier bathroom with a toilet, sink and shower cubicle, about the size of a telephone booth. There were six such units on each floor of the five-story building.

Each floor had a sink and a “bathroom” that had a single “crow’s feet” tub at each end. In the middle of the floor was a gathering area with somewhat shabby furniture.

There were stairs at both ends of the floor. There were no elevators. The windows in the apartments were small. The heat was generated by iron pipes on the apartment walls.

An inspiration from experience

Over the past three years, we have seen “Soviet-style” censorship firsthand. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. painfully recounted his experience with it on Saturday when he stopped campaigning and endorsed Donald Trump. This censorship was largely implemented by nameless “techies in their twenties” who often worked without oversight. How these unelected bodies were empowered to determine which social media posts were “politically correct” and which were not is the central point of this discussion.

Let’s assume they all believed in Comrade Stalin and his better way. With this knowledge in mind, we can now complete the picture. First, we need to place these dwellings in a “Russian-like” environment. The boreal zone in northern Minnesota should suffice. Here, a typical Soviet city would be built. We call the city “Vladimirov.” Eventually, there would be other “Vladimirovs” with similar physical characteristics throughout the country.

“Guests” would be welcomed into their communist utopia upon arrival. They would be told they would receive “guaranteed employment, free healthcare, affordable housing, protection against inflation, and ration cards.” The ration cards would provide them with a daily breakfast of “gretchka” (buckwheat) and tea, and a daily lunch of “proletariat soup (cabbage soup) with bread.”

Foodstuffs such as milk, bread, salted fish, sugar, tea, noodles, alcohol and sweets could be purchased in supermarkets throughout the city. Prices were fixed and products were available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Guests would be allowed to purchase consumer goods from clothing and personal care products to household appliances and furniture at Vladimirov GUM. Prices at GUM would be set by the authorities, eliminating concerns about inflation.

“Affordable housing” would be provided to each family in the form of an apartment comparable to the one mentioned above. A “caretaker” would live on each floor, who would ensure that no resident of Vladimirov was exposed to the rhetoric of the “conspiracy theory.”

Self-sufficient utopian city

Every resident would be guaranteed a job. Employees would never have to fear being fired!

Part of the city was to be devoted to agriculture, growing cool climate crops such as cabbage, carrots, potatoes, sugar beets and cauliflower, as well as staple crops such as rye, barley and oats.

The harvests would be used to make homemade products such as freshly baked bread, whiskey, vodka, broga (cranberry wine) and craft beer. Fish would be sourced from local fishermen and salted for long-term consumption. Tobacco would be bought from outside to support Vladimirov’s cigarette factories.

There would be an export product that could become popular in the Upper Midwest, Canada, and Alaska. “Vahleekee” (felt boots) would be made in Vladimirov factories.

Vladimirov’s PRAVDA would be the free newspaper for citizens. Here they could learn about the latest events around the world through a special lens, free from “disinformation” from conspiracy theory rhetoric. Many well-known names and faces would dominate the editorial pages, as is the case with Vladimirov’s own television channel.

Televisions would be installed in the common rooms on each floor. The programming would be limited to earlier Russian and Chinese broadcasts from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, as well as the evening Vladimirov News, and would be free of disinformation.

Residents would have no access to the internet. Mobile phones would be banned.

Electric railway lines would run through Vladimirov, providing free transportation for all residents. The residents of Vladimirov would have access to numerous “canteens” where they could meet other residents.

All workers would be paid in the “Vladimirov” currency, which would be emblazoned with images of Lenin, Stalin, Marx, Mao and other communist legends such as Barack Obama, Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez and Kamala Harris. Residents would work in cigarette factories, distilleries, breweries, clothing and shoe factories, the food industry, hospitality, maintenance and internal security.

Cars and firearms would be banned. Residents could leave the area at any time provided they had a “special pass” from the Vladimirov authorities.

Residents of Vladimirov

Who would these privileged residents be? Obviously those “techies in their twenties” who took it upon themselves to enforce censorship. If they welcomed the idea, why not let them experience it? For them, it should be second nature.

The concept of confidential monitors on the floors of their apartments, making sure there are no conspiracy theories afoot, would provide residents with a sense of security. The comfort of a guaranteed paycheck, a guaranteed meal, free healthcare, affordable goods and inexpensive housing would further reinforce their utopian existence. Can anyone imagine a better end for these secret disciples of Comrade Stalin?

This brings us back to the original question: “Who placed these aspiring young ‘comrades’ in positions that gave them censorship powers?” This raises a second question that becomes more obvious with each passing day.

“Who or what organization controls the Big Tech companies and those who seek to influence world opinion to further their agenda?”

The answers to question two and question one are synonymous.

We do not tolerate comments that contain violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or rude behavior. If a comment is spam, please click the ∨ icon at the bottom right of the comment instead of replying to it. Thank you for working with us to maintain a productive conversation.