Nationalist Ideals into Life!

Prof. Vladimir Herasymchuk

1. Why do not all Ukrainian people adopt and strongly believe in the "Nationalist Ideals" of President Kuchma and company?

Very often from the mouths of these "nationalist enlightened" ultra-patriots of Ukraine is the lament that the Ukrainian people have lost their patriotism. They blame first of all the left political forces for this. This is an absolute covered falsehood! Communists always supported and defend the national feelings and self-determination. The historical fact is this... that Ukraine only gained its own statehood in 1917 and that was only due to the Bolsheviks... and in 1922 it became a member of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. It must be pointed out that Ukraine had more rights and greater prestige than it has today under the tutelage of USA. Our land never knew such robbery even though it was occupied by Fascist Germany during World War II.

Why have then a majority of Ukrainian people categorically thrown out this "Ukrainian Nationalist ideology"? It is because this "ideology" is meant to wreck the development and richness of our development of industry and its culture. This is not happening today. As a matter of course, we are becoming an economic, political and cultural entity of American imperialism. When the country is ruled by a Mafia and so-called nationalistic ideals, this makes a sheer mockery of any "Ukrainian nationalist feelings". When this process is under the heavy hands of nationalists, the understanding of nationality (based on raw nationalism) becomes foreign and not understood by the people.

Can anyone argue with these thoughts? If you really do want to argue, then ask about these so-called "Ukrainian nationalistic feelings" the over 1,500,000 unemployed Ukrainians! The present "Ukrainian nationalist leaders" should also ask these "working girls" from Ukraine, the 700-800 thousand strong who are now "working" in countries of Europe as prostitutes. Why? Ukraine is now (according to the UNO) the biggest exporter of prostitution in Europe!!! Is this not also a product of "Ukrainian nationalist ideals"? These reactionary so-called "ideals" the Ukrainian people in their majority shall never adopt!

2. Why did not the Ukrainian people adopt the "Ukrainian nationalist ideals" in the past?

The Ukrainian people many times in their long history fought and chased the Ukrainian bourgeoisie and nationalists out of the country. A perfect example was during the Civil War, after the Soviet October i917 revolution. Of course the present falsifiers tell us that the counterrevolution was drowned in blood and defeated by the mixing in of Russian soldiers (Moskali). Another falsehood! The workers and peasants of Ukraine even at that time saw as to who was who in that struggle and they helped the Bolsheviks to get rid of these nationalists and their foreign interventionists.

If you do not believe this, here is just one statement made by one of the leaders of the Ukrainian bourgeois government at the time of the civil war - Volodomir Vinnichenko who, among many written statements said the following: "The Bolsheviks worked and helped only the masses, and that is why the Ukrainian people believed only in them; they had courage, dedication and enthusiasm for joint cooperation with their Slavic brothers and sisters to build a better life - socialism. We, on the other hand, did not have the trust and dedication of our people...

So... even right after the October revolution the Ukrainian people threw out this "nationalism" and all of its leaders who served foreign interventionists - such as Grushevsky, Vinnichenko, killer Petlura, Skoropadsky and others.

The Bolsheviks showed all people the possible future of socialism in the economic, cultural and national fields and the necessary ideals of internationalism and cooperation with other peasants and workers.

Ukrainian workers and peasants helped to defeat the counterrevolution and the mass economic reconstruction started not only in the Ukraine, but in all of the Soviet republics. The struggle was hard, with both internal and external enemies who had to be defeated, while at the same to go on fulfilling the 5-year plans to bring the country into productivity.

The nationalist propaganda before and now of these present pseudo-democrats was that the Russians purposely instigated the Famine of 1933. Another falsehood is perpetrated! These were very hard times for all of the Soviet people, not only Ukrainians. Bad weather, sabotage plus all of the counterrevolutionary activities. Everyone suffered, including first of all the dedicated Bolsheviks who fought and died of hunger, so that Ukraine would be rid of these traitorous nationalists. But... unfortunately not one of the present Ukrainian leaders ever mentions these known facts.

Ukraine became one of the most highly developed countries, not only in the Soviet Union, but in Europe.

As is known, this territory until 1939 was occupied by capitalist Poland. It was in a fact a colony of Poland. In 1924 in this region of Volyn (Western Ukraine) all Ukrainian schools were closed and only Polish was the language of government bodies. In 1937 of 1,732 schools in the Volyn region only 2 were Ukrainian schools plus two private schools. Of 2,634 teachers there were only 447 Ukrainians in this 100% Ukrainian region! Even in 1939 there were over 316,000 people who could not read or write.

In 1939, only one month after this Volyn region was liberated and joined to Ukraine proper, there were established 907 schools all teaching the Ukrainian language.

Newspapers, magazines began to be published and the Soviet government sent in 1,800 highly qualified teachers and professors to this region alone, in order to bring up the knowledge and culture to the standards of the other parts of Ukraine.

Does this compare to the German occupation and their nationalist henchmen that murdered their own people? Why do not the present -patriots make all of these facts known to the young generation who absolutely do not know the former history of their own country?

These "nationalist ideals" of Kuchma and his entourage were-born far across the ocean, which are foreign to the Ukrainian people. We are for an ideal which promotes progress, economic growth, flowering of culture and brotherhood amongst all of the people. This ideal can ONLY be guaranteed by Socialism and Communism!

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