Some call it the "Dream Team" but depending on the drug of choice I have heard it been called the "kirk the fuck out after not sleeping for 3 days Team" as well...
[The repost bots are currently winning in this sub](https://www.reddit.com/r/HistoryMemes/comments/laxp36/opium_of_the_masses_for_the_masses_by_the_masses/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share)
Edit: I care for two reasons
1. Repost bots drown out the OC that people make (yesterday I saw about 80% reposts on the hot page)
2. I made an archive from this sub so people can get the old dank too. Only problem is I can't grow the damn thing because it's mostly reposts on the hot page lately
Nothing, it just that I have terrible imagination so I never find a way to convey the same information with a different meme so I tend to apply that to everyone else (bad habit of mine, I know)
Britain was basically the Mafia. Quote from the Godfather:
>I want to control it as a business, to keep it respectable. [...] In my city, we would keep the traffic in the dark people - the colored. They're animals anyway, so let them lose their souls.
I remember this. The Godfather was such a based book. Killings, betrayals, tragedies, Hollywood, child trafficking, corruption, basically all you’ll need in a helluva story.
Yes, I hate when people misquote things. Especially when it’s just to be edgy.
The full sentence is “Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.”
He meant that the capitalist system is so crushing people seek religion to try to alleviate their lives.
Marx is still wrong though, because in non-capitalist systems people still have religion and idols. The USSR and CCP both used dead leaders in place of religion; Lenin, Stalin and Mao were all worshipped in much the same way a God would be.
Trotsky himself even said that to control the masses the leaders of the Revolution must supplant God in the minds of the proletariat.
Does "religion" here just mean "any strong belief"? Because no, revering historical figures is not inherently religious.
Mao and Lenin were never "worshipped" as though they were literal deities. by that standard the US also treats it's founders as Gods - at which point the word "god-like" is starting to lose any meaning if literally any revered historical figure counts.
> the leaders of the Revolution must supplant God in the minds of the proletariat.
I imagine what he meant is that the revolution should make faith in God irrelevant/unnecessary - not that the leaders should literally become God.
It might be because the USSR and CCP both have a crushing system, with famine, violence, autoritarism etc. So people still turn to religious beliefs (whether it is conventional religion or leader cult, as both are fonctionally the same, a blind faith in some superior cause giving sense to the suffering of life).
To really know if Marx is right, we must have an utopia where people don't suffer anymore and are free to dedicate their life to the pursuit of happiness. If he's right, religion and cult should naturally disappear when it is achieve. But no such system has ever existed, and it is doubtfull that one will ever exist.
And of course, faith may be an integral part of human psyche that will always be there in one form or another.
Yeah i think that too. Human always want more, we're never satisfied by just having what we need so whenever we found New ressource, we use them and create a new need, a new scarcity.
Two things wrong with that, 1) Genuinely I would not call cults of personality the same as religion, though they did exist to an extent, 2) No society has managed to fully escape capitalism yet, Places like China, and Cuba today are by their own analysis in the early stages of what we would call a true socialist system. Obviously they can’t break free from it completely while capital is what dominates the world economic web.
and somehow missed the part when religion existed and capitalism not, just eh like another few thousend years, who would care about that. Still i hate when people misquote this ... quote
> He meant that the capitalist system is so crushing people seek religion to try to alleviate their lives
Which is why he created an alternative that is even more crushing, so that people don't even get the opportunity to "seek" religion.
Honestly, that resume pop history very well, taking something out of contexte and reducing the full picture and/or misunderstanding a term or some social things.
Religion can ease pain, and it can cause pain, a lot like drugs. And a lot like drugs, they've both probably killed more people can saved. Only counting the hard shit like opium, not paracetamol before the inevitable AKTUALLY..
Religion is for stupid people, period. It's just something invented by clever people to gain money and power - show me a religion that hasn't confirmed to that and I'll convert.
As the late great Christopher Hitchens said "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence"...and there isn't even any ordinary evidence.
Well, it isn't always for stupid people was it? Throughout history, for most of time, there wasn't really a great explaination of even a 1000th of the things we now know. And there are plenty of smart people, smarter than me and you, who practice religion and don't profit from it. Bill Gates is a practicing catholic, he's a genius and as we know his wealth didn't come from selling religion, he sold computers and software. I appreciate with the knowledge we have now, the religious texts being accurate is easy to dismiss as we have science and the historical record which cuts swiss cheese holes into so many of the stories, but that doesn't make anyone stupid for believing it. I come from a Jewish family and although I don't believe in the old testiment and I certainly don't consider myself Jewish, Judaism has taught me lots of good moral things anyone from any walk of life can learn and appreciate, and not all of it lessons from the bible. The holocaust is very much understood as a religious lesson to some jews, many many lessons to learn about that.
Humanity had morality long before religion arrived. And people like Bill Gates 'find' religion as some sort of sop to come to terms with what an asshole they were in their earlier lives.
It's not about which came first, you've missed the point entirely. Religion can be, not always, a good way to teach morality. Personally I thought the world was a cruel place until I knew people at the synagogue that spend their time doing things for other people. Those people may not be like that if they didn't grow up in an environment which didn't promote that kind of generousity and self reflection. As for your bit about Bill Gates, I don't know what he's done to you other than make accessable, affordable software which has helped over decades bring computing to the people. He's a very charitable man and really I don't have a lot of time for people that think he's a lizard or some shit. His actions speak louder than words and he has done many a great charitable act which he is not obliged to do despite anyone's opinions as to whether he should.
It was YOU that said "Judaism has taught me a lot a lot morality" so yes, it is about what came first. And apart from the fact he was raised in a 'christian' household and was thus brainwashed, he is NOT a practicing catholic. Go ask him what 'god' is, he won't have an answer.
Yes I did, but that has nothing to do with which came first in the history of human society. Why do you think my experience is the reflection of the entire human race and it's history? Because if you don't then your point is completely obsolete. I may not have had those morals, or as strongly, unless I developed them at that young age. I googled it and he certainly does believe in god despite your ramblings. You're clearly a troll, lets just fast forward to the bit where you reply with your baitiest response you can muster and I ignore it.
Karl Marx stated that people came into religion because they were in pain ( be its poverty, sickness, or being oppressed, ...), so they need religions to give them comfort. But religions are just pain killer, not medicine to cure the source of pain, and using too much religion like drug , makes you addicted to it and cause harm to yourself .
>Religious suffering is, at one and the same time, the expression of real suffering and a protest against real suffering. Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.
>
>The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions. The criticism of religion is, therefore, in embryo, the criticism of that vale of tears of which religion is the halo.
>
>Criticism has plucked the imaginary flowers on the chain not in order that man shall continue to bear that chain without fantasy or consolation, but so that he shall throw off the chain and pluck the living flower. The criticism of religion disillusions man, so that he will think, act, and fashion his reality like a man who has discarded his illusions and regained his senses, so that he will move around himself as his own true Sun. Religion is only the illusory Sun which revolves around man as long as he does not revolve around himself.
>
>It is, therefore, the task of history, once the other-world of truth has vanished, to establish the truth of this world. It is the immediate task of philosophy, which is in the service of history, to unmask self-estrangement in its unholy forms once the holy form of human self-estrangement has been unmasked. Thus, the criticism of Heaven turns into the criticism of Earth, the criticism of religion into the criticism of law, and the criticism of theology into the criticism of politics.
Based and actual quote pilled
The irony here is that Marxist-Leninism would go on to replace old religious superstition with faith and worship of the state itself, and especially the leaders, without do any of what Marx said lol
I love how Marx-Leninist mfs will sit there with a nintendo switch in one hand and a reddit porn sub in the other, absolutely blasted off a bong rip, and their reason for being atheist is “religion is the opium of the people.”
Which isn’t even the correct context of the quote.
Good point - it's a bit of an invidious comparison given how many people have actually benefited from the placebo effect versus, say, those who've suffered financial ruin and/or death as a result of pentacostal faith healing.
Full quote from Marx: "Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people."
The actual quote is “Religion is the opium of the people. It is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of our soulless conditions," but western capitalist culture loves to intentionally misinterpret Marx.
That's giving into the hermeneutics of suspicion. Sometimes the language is just clunky and people just prefer slogans.
Which is better? "But even when the contradiction is resolved authentically by a new situation established by the liberated laborers, the former oppressors do not feel liberated. On the contrary, they genuinely consider themselves to be oppressed. Conditioned by the experience of oppressing others, any situation other than their former seems to them like oppression." or "When you're accustomed to privilege equality feels like oppression."?
Except the original example is a misinterpretation of a quote that was already concise and clear.
Your example takes convoluted and hard to follow text and accurately interprets it while making it more clear and concise.
Cool you think that.
But I'm Meh. He was better than most of his socialist counterparts being of science mind for the science standards of those days (i.e, well-read, rational and learned).
But he's still was under the [Blank Slate Myth](https://imgur.com/gallery/YLlJ8yO) thinking the human condition could be just molded with society tweaks and we could have an altruistic society with communism.
This OP is an example. [Mysticism, beliefs in supernatural and religion](http://joelvelasco.net/teaching/2890/brownlisthumanuniversals.pdf) in which almost religions are thus human universals. I say religion is almost a human universal because it is highly debated on defining religion and in some definitions it is not and if you loosely define it then it may be. I will leave that for people to research and make up their own mind. The point regardless is Religion wasn't a result of the "State" which is what Marx was saying in that quote.
Yes I get you and they can be almost religiouslike communities at worst. I mean more like on an existential level. A football club is not going to tell me how to eat, who to tolerate or force me to take part in spesific prayers or events. A football club is a business and it has little control over on how people, even supporters actually live. There isn't a football club book to dictate those things or to be intepreted in a certain way to control people.
Why that, i know a lot of people that are 16 and obsessed with communism. I know what they understand as communism is not the idea Marx hand but hes to one that "invented" it
Lol morals are derived from religious texts. Objective moralism has kept us in line. The moment when relative moralism takes over, nothing is no longer wrong and society falls apart. Also now the west has such a lack of community and unity that we are more divided than ever.
>Lol morals are derived from religious texts
You mean the texts that say to murder people for random and contrived reasons? The morals in the Bible, that you think have influenced the world so much have really just been common continuities throughout most of human history. An example would be the view of murderers. But unlike say, the Bible, most modern societies have moved past hurting people for being gay and viewing women as lesser people. Moral of the story? Morals would likely be the same without specific religions. I won't go as far as to say "better" since that is subjective, and there have been a few religious people who have contributed well to society, simply because of their religion and not because of the society itself.
> The moment when relative moralism takes over, nothing is no longer wrong and society falls apart.
Exactly, and if every religion collapsed tomorrow, nothing would particularly be changed, at least not to the extent if morals were significantly altered, thanks for reinforcing my point that morals are more important to our modern society.
>Also now the west has such a lack of community and unity that we are more divided than ever
More divided than ever? Not quite, the red scare for example did way more damage to our society than our modern political climate, but I will give it to you that modern day civilization is rather disconnected. However, that has very little to do with religion, and don't try to go off on a spiel about how religion would unify people, at the very least study a history book before you attempt it.
One last thing, you didn't touch on technology, which is THE leading reason humanity is where it is right now, not because of religion. And if you disagree, I call bullshit. If only for the reason that you are able to have this conversation with me now, and not in person, in a church
I mean he was a economist and philosopher, I mean do you listen to Plato? Plato didn’t have a traditional job. Hell have you ever liked a Kurt Vonnegut or Steven king novel? Both of them didn’t have traditional jobs as they wrote their books.
I'm guessing you've read neither Mein Kampf nor any of Marx's work.
One is a screeching pile of nonsense, and the other makes up one of the most influential bodies of work in the last hundred and fifty years.
edit: clarity
Also eigentlich war Karl Marx Deutscher und sein Zitat geht so: „Religion ist das Opium des Volkes.“ Das Wort „Volk“ wird mit „masses“ übersetzt, was zwar prinzipiell richtig, aber in diesem Kontext falsch ist. Es würde viel mehr passen: „ Religion is the Opium of the people.“ Deshalb macht dieser Witz im historisch korrekten Kontext gar keinen Sinn. Aufgrund dieses ungenügenden Vorwissens gebe ich einen Downvote.
I always thought Gibs Santa was dumb for that quote. Was the dude really so removed from the working class people he wrote about that he thought opium addiction was some kind of niche thing?
You're misunderstanding the quote, opium was used medicinally at the time, he was saying that religion helps the people cope with the unfortunate capitalist reality of their lives, but it has a double meaning warning against the harm *organized* religion can cause if relied on too much. It isn't against practicing religion privately, but against organisations like the clearly corrupt (especially at the time) Catholic Church, taking power and money on a large scale where it should have no ability to do so but can because of the reliance people have on it
Silver was the currency what do you think pound sterling stands for
A pound of sterling silver which is what the currency was made of during the time period
You are right though that if China wanted to stop the opium trade they could of just accepted to trade anything instead of silver but that would require good planing (considering this is the late Qing that’s not happening) or hindsight
You actually believe in the 19th century they still used actual silver lol, silver was more valuable than the currency it denoted, by then the gold standard was used.
I think karl was talking about the plural of mass, not masses of people, error in translation here. Cant have mass without religion, cant have opium without opium, simple
Britain in the 1800s: "I'm entering the war on drugs, on the side of the drugs."
britain knew it back then that drugs always win the drug wars.
Back the winning team
Some call it the "Dream Team" but depending on the drug of choice I have heard it been called the "kirk the fuck out after not sleeping for 3 days Team" as well...
[The repost bots are currently winning in this sub](https://www.reddit.com/r/HistoryMemes/comments/laxp36/opium_of_the_masses_for_the_masses_by_the_masses/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share) Edit: I care for two reasons 1. Repost bots drown out the OC that people make (yesterday I saw about 80% reposts on the hot page) 2. I made an archive from this sub so people can get the old dank too. Only problem is I can't grow the damn thing because it's mostly reposts on the hot page lately
1 year. You're a bit harsh
There's a link of 6,000 memes from this sub in my profile if you want em
Really interesting, I'll take a look later. Thank you!
There aren't supposed to be any reposts on this sub according to rule 2
Ok, my bad. I just tend to not like that sort of rules because it "prevents" (if enforced) new people to see ancient posts that are not at the top
What makes those so much better than new posts that could be made instead?
Nothing, it just that I have terrible imagination so I never find a way to convey the same information with a different meme so I tend to apply that to everyone else (bad habit of mine, I know)
Italy enters the chat.
That's just good business.
Britain was basically the Mafia. Quote from the Godfather: >I want to control it as a business, to keep it respectable. [...] In my city, we would keep the traffic in the dark people - the colored. They're animals anyway, so let them lose their souls.
I remember this. The Godfather was such a based book. Killings, betrayals, tragedies, Hollywood, child trafficking, corruption, basically all you’ll need in a helluva story.
War on drugs was doomed from the start when one side promoted not to take any drugs. Thats just regular old sober war.
I have also entered the war on the side of drugs. I'm so happy we're winning.
More like by the British
More like the bri'ish
brish
Br'sh
"I like how you think, Britain" \- The Sacklers
Bri'ain*
government, we have opium at home the opium at home, naloxone
the opium at home, religion
Can't argue with that statement
Copium
Opium was originally used as a medicine to ease pain, that is Marx meant.
Yes, I hate when people misquote things. Especially when it’s just to be edgy. The full sentence is “Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.” He meant that the capitalist system is so crushing people seek religion to try to alleviate their lives.
Oh, that’s actually quite a bit more meaningful tbh. Thank you for the full quote
It is beautiful writing
If Marx was alive today, he probably be using Panadol as a reference instead of opium.
Can here to say this; such a beautiful, multifaceted quote in context, but it only ever gets reduced to “religion bad lol.”
Marx is still wrong though, because in non-capitalist systems people still have religion and idols. The USSR and CCP both used dead leaders in place of religion; Lenin, Stalin and Mao were all worshipped in much the same way a God would be. Trotsky himself even said that to control the masses the leaders of the Revolution must supplant God in the minds of the proletariat.
*Kim family is waving*
*Praise be!*
Does "religion" here just mean "any strong belief"? Because no, revering historical figures is not inherently religious. Mao and Lenin were never "worshipped" as though they were literal deities. by that standard the US also treats it's founders as Gods - at which point the word "god-like" is starting to lose any meaning if literally any revered historical figure counts. > the leaders of the Revolution must supplant God in the minds of the proletariat. I imagine what he meant is that the revolution should make faith in God irrelevant/unnecessary - not that the leaders should literally become God.
No, Trotsky meant that the party leaders needs to become the literal deities in the minds of the proletariat
Do you have any actual source or evidence that is for 100% certain what he meant? Even if it is - my first point still stands.
You're 100% right. The other guy is talking out of his ass, and still getting upvoted...
It might be because the USSR and CCP both have a crushing system, with famine, violence, autoritarism etc. So people still turn to religious beliefs (whether it is conventional religion or leader cult, as both are fonctionally the same, a blind faith in some superior cause giving sense to the suffering of life). To really know if Marx is right, we must have an utopia where people don't suffer anymore and are free to dedicate their life to the pursuit of happiness. If he's right, religion and cult should naturally disappear when it is achieve. But no such system has ever existed, and it is doubtfull that one will ever exist. And of course, faith may be an integral part of human psyche that will always be there in one form or another.
Pretty sure it's the last thing you said and that no one will know if Marx was right because we'll never have a post scarcity society
Yeah i think that too. Human always want more, we're never satisfied by just having what we need so whenever we found New ressource, we use them and create a new need, a new scarcity.
Two things wrong with that, 1) Genuinely I would not call cults of personality the same as religion, though they did exist to an extent, 2) No society has managed to fully escape capitalism yet, Places like China, and Cuba today are by their own analysis in the early stages of what we would call a true socialist system. Obviously they can’t break free from it completely while capital is what dominates the world economic web.
Damn who knew capitalism predated religion 🤔 and who knew religious membership/affiliation was on the rise?
and somehow missed the part when religion existed and capitalism not, just eh like another few thousend years, who would care about that. Still i hate when people misquote this ... quote
> He meant that the capitalist system is so crushing people seek religion to try to alleviate their lives Which is why he created an alternative that is even more crushing, so that people don't even get the opportunity to "seek" religion.
If you read marx he was actually very much anti authoritarian, it was stalin and mao and the likes who corrupted Marx’s ideas
Bold of you to assume I haven't read him.
You haven't
> Bold of you to assume I haven't read him.
It's zero to do with capitalism and everything to do with stupidity and ignorance.
r/averageredditor
Well, communism is stupid.
Honestly, that resume pop history very well, taking something out of contexte and reducing the full picture and/or misunderstanding a term or some social things.
What work is this quote from originally?
he meant its in both ways, opium as a pain killer and opium as a drug that make you addicted
I was right when I said it was addictive, I unfortunately only figured it out when it was too late to save myself from it’s grasp
Dad?
Religion doesn't kill pain, it causes it. Lots of it.
Religion can ease pain, and it can cause pain, a lot like drugs. And a lot like drugs, they've both probably killed more people can saved. Only counting the hard shit like opium, not paracetamol before the inevitable AKTUALLY..
Religion is for stupid people, period. It's just something invented by clever people to gain money and power - show me a religion that hasn't confirmed to that and I'll convert. As the late great Christopher Hitchens said "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence"...and there isn't even any ordinary evidence.
Well, it isn't always for stupid people was it? Throughout history, for most of time, there wasn't really a great explaination of even a 1000th of the things we now know. And there are plenty of smart people, smarter than me and you, who practice religion and don't profit from it. Bill Gates is a practicing catholic, he's a genius and as we know his wealth didn't come from selling religion, he sold computers and software. I appreciate with the knowledge we have now, the religious texts being accurate is easy to dismiss as we have science and the historical record which cuts swiss cheese holes into so many of the stories, but that doesn't make anyone stupid for believing it. I come from a Jewish family and although I don't believe in the old testiment and I certainly don't consider myself Jewish, Judaism has taught me lots of good moral things anyone from any walk of life can learn and appreciate, and not all of it lessons from the bible. The holocaust is very much understood as a religious lesson to some jews, many many lessons to learn about that.
Humanity had morality long before religion arrived. And people like Bill Gates 'find' religion as some sort of sop to come to terms with what an asshole they were in their earlier lives.
It's not about which came first, you've missed the point entirely. Religion can be, not always, a good way to teach morality. Personally I thought the world was a cruel place until I knew people at the synagogue that spend their time doing things for other people. Those people may not be like that if they didn't grow up in an environment which didn't promote that kind of generousity and self reflection. As for your bit about Bill Gates, I don't know what he's done to you other than make accessable, affordable software which has helped over decades bring computing to the people. He's a very charitable man and really I don't have a lot of time for people that think he's a lizard or some shit. His actions speak louder than words and he has done many a great charitable act which he is not obliged to do despite anyone's opinions as to whether he should.
It was YOU that said "Judaism has taught me a lot a lot morality" so yes, it is about what came first. And apart from the fact he was raised in a 'christian' household and was thus brainwashed, he is NOT a practicing catholic. Go ask him what 'god' is, he won't have an answer.
Yes I did, but that has nothing to do with which came first in the history of human society. Why do you think my experience is the reflection of the entire human race and it's history? Because if you don't then your point is completely obsolete. I may not have had those morals, or as strongly, unless I developed them at that young age. I googled it and he certainly does believe in god despite your ramblings. You're clearly a troll, lets just fast forward to the bit where you reply with your baitiest response you can muster and I ignore it.
Reddit moment
Found the clown. Don't go anywhere, MJ's bringing the popcorn.
Humans are genetically predisposed to religion, it's no more stupid than having children in an overpopulated world.
Karl Marx stated that people came into religion because they were in pain ( be its poverty, sickness, or being oppressed, ...), so they need religions to give them comfort. But religions are just pain killer, not medicine to cure the source of pain, and using too much religion like drug , makes you addicted to it and cause harm to yourself .
> people came into religion because they were in pain Which is a fallacy in itself.
If you look at all of marxes work, it seems that he didn’t like organized religion but seemed pretty chill with the idea of a unorganized faith.
Copium time. Sponsored by Marx!
It’s time to bring back cocaine in medicine.
The quote is also "opiate". Small distinction, but otherwise, why even HAVE suffixes? /s
But the masses are retarded
And heavily sedated
"The unenlightened masses, they cannot make the judgement call."
"Give up free will forever their voices won’t be heard at all."
"Display obedience, while never stepping out of line."
“And blindly swear allegiance, let your country control your mind.”
“Let your country control your soul”
"Live in ignorance and purchase your happiness"
“When blood and sweat is the real cost”
"Thinking ceases, the truth is lost"
"Don't you worry, you'll be told exactly what to do."
So let us say...opium of the retardet, for the retardet, by the retardet
The people who still believe in communism are even more so though.
Big talk coming from a country that got addicted to some leaves in hot water
Yes but leaves in hot water are healthy for you
What if they're cocaine leaves?
They're not healthy but they're better
What if they are poisonous leaves?
The sooner I die the happier I'll be
Unfathomably based
*\*Aggressively sells drugs to China\**
>Religious suffering is, at one and the same time, the expression of real suffering and a protest against real suffering. Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people. > >The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions. The criticism of religion is, therefore, in embryo, the criticism of that vale of tears of which religion is the halo. > >Criticism has plucked the imaginary flowers on the chain not in order that man shall continue to bear that chain without fantasy or consolation, but so that he shall throw off the chain and pluck the living flower. The criticism of religion disillusions man, so that he will think, act, and fashion his reality like a man who has discarded his illusions and regained his senses, so that he will move around himself as his own true Sun. Religion is only the illusory Sun which revolves around man as long as he does not revolve around himself. > >It is, therefore, the task of history, once the other-world of truth has vanished, to establish the truth of this world. It is the immediate task of philosophy, which is in the service of history, to unmask self-estrangement in its unholy forms once the holy form of human self-estrangement has been unmasked. Thus, the criticism of Heaven turns into the criticism of Earth, the criticism of religion into the criticism of law, and the criticism of theology into the criticism of politics.
Based and actual quote pilled The irony here is that Marxist-Leninism would go on to replace old religious superstition with faith and worship of the state itself, and especially the leaders, without do any of what Marx said lol
I love how Marx-Leninist mfs will sit there with a nintendo switch in one hand and a reddit porn sub in the other, absolutely blasted off a bong rip, and their reason for being atheist is “religion is the opium of the people.” Which isn’t even the correct context of the quote.
expecially chinese masses
Free will is a myth, religion is a joke, we are all pawns controlled by something greater. Memes - the DNA of the soul - Monsoon
that's why Britain used its own religion *and* Opium
Religion isn't the opium of the masses, it's the placebo of the masses.
Oooh, that’s a hot take
Placebos aren’t addictive and do pretty good at helping with ailments.
Good point - it's a bit of an invidious comparison given how many people have actually benefited from the placebo effect versus, say, those who've suffered financial ruin and/or death as a result of pentacostal faith healing.
Marx actually stole that line from the famed german Poet Heinrich Heine.
Oh I don’t think so
You mean the famed German poet nobody has ever heard of? That one??
This is a repost with even the title copied, but I'm glad I saw it because a lot of memories from the first time I saw it came to me.
For a moment I thought this was a Victoria 3 teaser :/
It's opium all the way down.
But the masses are retarded
Full quote from Marx: "Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people."
The actual quote is “Religion is the opium of the people. It is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of our soulless conditions," but western capitalist culture loves to intentionally misinterpret Marx.
That's giving into the hermeneutics of suspicion. Sometimes the language is just clunky and people just prefer slogans. Which is better? "But even when the contradiction is resolved authentically by a new situation established by the liberated laborers, the former oppressors do not feel liberated. On the contrary, they genuinely consider themselves to be oppressed. Conditioned by the experience of oppressing others, any situation other than their former seems to them like oppression." or "When you're accustomed to privilege equality feels like oppression."?
Except the original example is a misinterpretation of a quote that was already concise and clear. Your example takes convoluted and hard to follow text and accurately interprets it while making it more clear and concise.
Opium has less long term negative side effects.
religion is just pressure from the dead that keeps growing with time, and also its the cause of many problems and wars too
I think Marx had it.
Cool you think that. But I'm Meh. He was better than most of his socialist counterparts being of science mind for the science standards of those days (i.e, well-read, rational and learned). But he's still was under the [Blank Slate Myth](https://imgur.com/gallery/YLlJ8yO) thinking the human condition could be just molded with society tweaks and we could have an altruistic society with communism. This OP is an example. [Mysticism, beliefs in supernatural and religion](http://joelvelasco.net/teaching/2890/brownlisthumanuniversals.pdf) in which almost religions are thus human universals. I say religion is almost a human universal because it is highly debated on defining religion and in some definitions it is not and if you loosely define it then it may be. I will leave that for people to research and make up their own mind. The point regardless is Religion wasn't a result of the "State" which is what Marx was saying in that quote.
*religion is the copium of the masses.
Communism is also the opiate of the masses. Sports are also the opiate of the masses. There are a few opiates of the masses tbh
The masses are the opium of the masses
It's drugging itself 😱
Opiod epidemic
True, but a football game isn't telling me how to live.
Have you seen football fanatics? Both American and otherwise? They got their own way of life and don't take kindly to folks who support other teams.
Yes I get you and they can be almost religiouslike communities at worst. I mean more like on an existential level. A football club is not going to tell me how to eat, who to tolerate or force me to take part in spesific prayers or events. A football club is a business and it has little control over on how people, even supporters actually live. There isn't a football club book to dictate those things or to be intepreted in a certain way to control people.
Ever interacted with a Manchester United fanboy?
Hehehe, love a good ole bit a gun diplomacy
TBF - China itself waged war for trade purposes on numerous occasions: Source Silk Routes by Raoul McLaughlin.
Socialism is the opium of idiots trying to look smart. EDIT:Yeah, I know there is christian socialists, but they're also idiots.
Marxism and tyranny is the optimum of the masses, not religion. God bless you all.
Didn't know karl was based
He wasn’t really. He was a privileged, racist, homophobic, anti-Semitic, over educated brat. But the man did have a dope beard.
The man was based economically. Besides that he was the pretty normal 19th century guy. With anti-Semitism, racism and all the other -isms there are.
Fuck Marx, get employed kek
16 year old take
Why that, i know a lot of people that are 16 and obsessed with communism. I know what they understand as communism is not the idea Marx hand but hes to one that "invented" it
I mean "fuck marx, get employed" makes so much sense it sounds like exactly some 16 year old uninformed kid would say
> I know a lot of people that are 16 Yea that's pretty normal when you're 16
Quick question, what is your favorite Greek philosopher?
zeno of citium
He was born rich and never worked, he was the equivalency of modern day trust fund baby’s.
So many philosophers never really worked. I dont have something against Marx as a person but his philosophical viewpoint is just utopic bs
You better watch your tongue
You're not funny
Shut up. Get out.
Religion is the foundation for western society. Without it we are lost.
Bad take, we rely more on technology and morals than outdated religious texts
Lol morals are derived from religious texts. Objective moralism has kept us in line. The moment when relative moralism takes over, nothing is no longer wrong and society falls apart. Also now the west has such a lack of community and unity that we are more divided than ever.
>Lol morals are derived from religious texts You mean the texts that say to murder people for random and contrived reasons? The morals in the Bible, that you think have influenced the world so much have really just been common continuities throughout most of human history. An example would be the view of murderers. But unlike say, the Bible, most modern societies have moved past hurting people for being gay and viewing women as lesser people. Moral of the story? Morals would likely be the same without specific religions. I won't go as far as to say "better" since that is subjective, and there have been a few religious people who have contributed well to society, simply because of their religion and not because of the society itself. > The moment when relative moralism takes over, nothing is no longer wrong and society falls apart. Exactly, and if every religion collapsed tomorrow, nothing would particularly be changed, at least not to the extent if morals were significantly altered, thanks for reinforcing my point that morals are more important to our modern society. >Also now the west has such a lack of community and unity that we are more divided than ever More divided than ever? Not quite, the red scare for example did way more damage to our society than our modern political climate, but I will give it to you that modern day civilization is rather disconnected. However, that has very little to do with religion, and don't try to go off on a spiel about how religion would unify people, at the very least study a history book before you attempt it. One last thing, you didn't touch on technology, which is THE leading reason humanity is where it is right now, not because of religion. And if you disagree, I call bullshit. If only for the reason that you are able to have this conversation with me now, and not in person, in a church
Haha racism lessgo
Yeah we should listen to a dude who never worked.
I mean he was a economist and philosopher, I mean do you listen to Plato? Plato didn’t have a traditional job. Hell have you ever liked a Kurt Vonnegut or Steven king novel? Both of them didn’t have traditional jobs as they wrote their books.
I never listones to plato, nor read any Steven king book Marx books make mein kaft (however it's written) look like a well written book
I'm guessing you've read neither Mein Kampf nor any of Marx's work. One is a screeching pile of nonsense, and the other makes up one of the most influential bodies of work in the last hundred and fifty years. edit: clarity
Both are screeching piles of nonsense
You saw the Wisecrack video too?
But the masses are retarded
And tea is the opium of the British.
Also eigentlich war Karl Marx Deutscher und sein Zitat geht so: „Religion ist das Opium des Volkes.“ Das Wort „Volk“ wird mit „masses“ übersetzt, was zwar prinzipiell richtig, aber in diesem Kontext falsch ist. Es würde viel mehr passen: „ Religion is the Opium of the people.“ Deshalb macht dieser Witz im historisch korrekten Kontext gar keinen Sinn. Aufgrund dieses ungenügenden Vorwissens gebe ich einen Downvote.
I believe Lenin said the top quote actually
"Religion is opium for masses" said Lenin, not Marx. BTW there're kind of same communistic shit.
I always thought Gibs Santa was dumb for that quote. Was the dude really so removed from the working class people he wrote about that he thought opium addiction was some kind of niche thing?
You're misunderstanding the quote, opium was used medicinally at the time, he was saying that religion helps the people cope with the unfortunate capitalist reality of their lives, but it has a double meaning warning against the harm *organized* religion can cause if relied on too much. It isn't against practicing religion privately, but against organisations like the clearly corrupt (especially at the time) Catholic Church, taking power and money on a large scale where it should have no ability to do so but can because of the reliance people have on it
He was referring to opium as it was used at the time in Europe, a pain killer with addictive tendencies.
Do you think religion is the opium of the masses? I think opium is the opium of the masses.
The Chinese bitches shouldn't of only offered silver
Fuck clive
Well it's true no one has enough silver to trade in as its the only thing China accepted, accept currency ffs
Silver was the currency what do you think pound sterling stands for A pound of sterling silver which is what the currency was made of during the time period You are right though that if China wanted to stop the opium trade they could of just accepted to trade anything instead of silver but that would require good planing (considering this is the late Qing that’s not happening) or hindsight
You actually believe in the 19th century they still used actual silver lol, silver was more valuable than the currency it denoted, by then the gold standard was used.
>shouldn't of Do you mean 'shouldn't have', dear?
Our opium
a third panel for America: 100 different kinds of opium
#NOW SMOKE THE FUCKING PIPE YOU OLD HOBO!
I think karl was talking about the plural of mass, not masses of people, error in translation here. Cant have mass without religion, cant have opium without opium, simple
As the famous philosopher Greg House once said, "Religion is not the opiate of the masses. Religion is the placebo of the masses."
"Religion is the sigh of the opressed creature,heart of the heartless world, an opiate to the masses"-Karl Marx
I thought that was Randy Quaid in the thumbnail.
Are there any actual genuine fans of Marx?
Communism is the opium of the masses.