If liberalism and economical freedom have passed so many successful tests in many countries for many years, why do communists keep trying?

My Answer on Quora.

This is an excellent question. I believe it comes down to a several factors.

Source: Vanity Fair

1. Most people advocating for Communism have never lived themselves in a communist country. The ‘grass-is-greener-on the other side’ lure is very strong.
2. Communism has an innate appeal in that it promises a heaven-on-Earth. Many people find this attractive. The fact that it cannot deliver this utopia in reality, is downplayed by the passion of its rhetoric. In short it has a romantic appeal that favors emotion over reason.
3. Communism’s central economic planning mantra reverberates with those who struggle with the short term uncertainty that the market economy delivers at times. What they fail to understand is that the market delivers feedback via the mechanism of price at a far more effective rate than the dated information that central planners are forced to rely on. It is for this reason that shortages are all too often a problem in centrally planned economies. Uncertainty is the price we pay for a more efficient system.
4. Communists speaks to a sense of entitlement through its propaganda, by focusing on what we ‘ought to have’ and ‘what is owed to us’.
5. Advocates of Communism consistently shift the goalposts when it is found wanting on the empirical front. We saw this after the Cold War. It denies previous failure by playing up the No True Scotsman fallacy.No True Scotsman
6. It promises vengeance against the other. This appeals to those who gain strength off their perceived Victimhood status. Ultimately this feeds into Nietzsche’s Will to Power.
7. Communism thrives when the populace is ignorant of history. The education system hasn’t helped in this regard which is why there is a chic to Communism in North America. Many people are barely aware of the horrors of Stalin’s Forced Famines/Purges, Mao’s Great Leap Forward, the Chinese Culture Revolution, Cambodia’s Killing Fields, Marxist destruction of the Ethiopian economy and numerous other examples. These evils need to be highlighted but are often downplayed. Each one of them is a function of Far Left social engineering. and failed economic collectivism.Mass killings under communist regimes - Wikipedia
8. Communism can mutate to broaden its appeal. We see this with race, gender and ethnicity replacing class as a key driver for change. Marxists have also been very successful in promoting their agenda in the church via the vehicle of Liberation Theology.They have also hijacked a great deal of the Environmental movement. Communism is hip again – but until it means liberty, count me out, comrade
9. The Gramscian March Through the Institutions has helped further the career of various Marxist apologists and Far Left ideologues in academia, the arts and the government. This has provided platforms of note from which these proponents can attack our Liberal Institutions with legitimacy of status. Why our intellectuals have missed the reality of Marxism and The Left's long march will be hard to stop
10. Communism has a cult like appeal. Some would say it is a secular religion. In terms of belonging to a system greater than oneself, communism hits this notion full on. This seems to be the appeal to millennials in a post-Christian Era.. What My Days as a Marxist Taught Me About Modern Political Cults - Quillette

Karl Marx - Cool dude according to some. Source: Liberty Maniacs.

Additional Reading

1. The Staggering Toll of the Russian Revolution | Yuri N. Maltsev
2. 100 Years of Communism—and 100 Million Dead
3. Why Antonio Gramsci is the Marxist thinker for our times

Why did the NDP lose so many seats?

The NDP is no longer needed as a party. In fact most of the mandate for their existence has been taken over by the Liberal Party and to some extent the BQ. At one time, they filled the function of representing worker interests in the country and could rely on solid support from the unions but as the Liberal Party has drifted leftward under Justin Trudeau the NDP have been crowded out. In fact as far as union interests are concerned the Grits may be a better option. For one they are actually electable nationally.

It also didn’t help the NDP’s chances that there is a third left-of-center party in the equation, the ‘cooler’ Greens, who have been poaching votes from the more fuddy-duddy orange party.

Now it is true that the NDP had a renaissance under Jack Layton, who grew the party to its greatest heights (especially with respect to their success in Quebec) in the noughties, but this was largely a false dawn. It was Layton’s character and personal charm that carried this surge. Once he departed the scene, so did the support, despite the fact that under the helm of Tom Mulcair, the NDP actually had a capable leader.

With Jagmeet Singh, the party has returned to its natural level. What we have seen is not so much a loss of seats by the NDP but a restoration of the typical order which has historically defined the NDP as Canada’s laggard third party.

A golden opportunity was also lost here. https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics...

Despite all of this, the NDP may have added leverage in propping up the minority Grits in key issues, where the the government doesn’t enjoy widespread support. Who knows what favors they will extract for their service?

Since Trump was elected, what exactly does the "conservative" political position stand for these days?

My Answer on Quora.

There is no single conservative position with respect to the day-to-day practice of politics. However there are a number of broader points that virtually all conservatives agree with this. These are:

• The maintenance of individual rights and freedoms
• Respect for the Rule of Law
• A deference toward meritocracy
• Skepticism of radical change
• Checks on government bureaucracy
• Opposition to tyranny
• Support for the Private Ownership of Property.
• Safeguarding of workable tradition
• Transcendent Moral Order (consistent with Natural law)

In the US these all largely guaranteed in the country’s constitution. This however is not necessarily the case elsewhere.

Donald Trump, The GOP, The Canadian Conservative Party, the British Torys, the Australian Liberal Party or any other right or center-right mainstream political party are merely avenues that advance aspects of conservative thinking.

In many a case they are supported by conservatives as the alternatives are worse.

None of these political entities transcend the universal applicability of the powerful notions outlined above.

Thoughts on the Canadian Election

Canadian Election Map 2019 Source: Wikipedia Red-Liberal, Blue-Conservative (Tory), Orange-NDP, Turquoise- Bloc Quebecois - Green (take a guess).

Results: Liberal 157, Conservative 121, Bloc Quebecois 32, NDP 24. Green 3, Independent 1

Justin Trudeau will continue to govern as PM despite the fact that two-thirds of the population wanted someone else. So much for the SNC-Lavalin debacle and the old fashioned notion of ethics. He is a winner by default albeit in a minority government.

The most undeserving part winner though is the NDP, who can make the call on key points despite the fact that their performance at the polls was dismal. More tax-the-rich to appease the masses. Same violin tune. Different year. No thought to the obvious question as to how wealth is generated in the first place.

News Flash...it ain't big government.

The big winner though is the Bloc Quebecois which of course means a return to the days of constitutional blackmail.

My message to the Tories though - is that you blew it. The popular vote counts for nothing if you can’t turn that advantage into seats. The party needs a new leader STAT. Rona Ambrose is the obvious choice. Taking back the 905 area is key. Andrew Scheer simply didn't cut it. Not enough distance between him and the Liberals. Charisma matters when you are up against PM Selfie. Max Bernier could have had a crack at it once upon a time, but his giant hissy fit cost him.

The Greens won an extra seat but In terms of policy they really are not needed. The Liberals own their environmental talking points anyway. If you can't do a decent job as spoilers on the left then exit la gauche.

Climate change will happen regardless of the vaunted plans out there. Although a crop of renewable energy subsidy hogs may grow richer in the process with the rest of Canada footing the bill. If the elites were serious about the problem they would provide more funding for nuclear energy. Enough with this virtue signalling and system of kickbacks.

My heart goes out to Alberta who will be continue to pay the price for the environmental hysteria. Expect the state of the nation to worsen because of it.

With respect though to the country as a whole the Canadian debt will grow as key budget problems are kicked further down the road. Don't even get me started on unfunded liabilities and our poor economic growth. Food Prices are going through the roof while wages are stagnant. If Trudeau went to the supermarket himself, instead of schmoozing with the Trust Fund Generation, he would realize this. I am not holding my breath here.

Yes it will be more of the same. The NDP will drag the Liberals further to the left and future generations will pay the price for our economic folly.

Was there an election? Yes there was. Will we learn anything from it? Not bloody likely.

Sources

Canada’s economy practically grinds to a halt — and nobody saw it coming

Food Prices Just Went Up At All Of Canada's Major Grocery Stores

Canadian household debt-to-income ratio rises in Q2 - BNN Bloomberg

Canadians rack up non-mortgage debt amid rising delinquency rates in Q2: Equifax