4. Short answer: yes.
Tl:dr answer: Communism can mean one of two things. (1) The “pure,” textbook communism that Karl Marx theorized, which I’ll compress into the idea that societies should aim for perfect economic equality among citizens, and (2) Communism as it was actually practiced by countries like the USSR, China, Cuba, and North Korea. We’ll call that communism-in-practice or simply “communism” because it departed wildly from Marx’s theories even though the ruling parties cited Marx as an influence and in their propaganda.
They’re both bullshit, but for different reasons.
“Pure” communism fails for the simple reason that it will never make any sense to compensate brain surgeons at the same rate as janitors. Otherwise, there won’t be any incentive for brain surgeons to do the difficult mental labor that it takes to become skilled at brain surgery. We don’t want brain surgeons showing up to work and applying the same care and attention to their jobs that janitors apply to cleaning toilets.
Communism-in-practice has always failed because it is, basically, fascism. One-party states led by a cultish figure who is usually far more skilled at propaganda than governing, and totally disrespectful of human rights and dignity. Such regimes spend more energy muzzling the free press, jailing or executing dissenters, and obliterating historical memory than actually helping the people.
