ed economically by the nation or
empire.

As western civilization has developed, nations and empires have tended
to form more or less permanent alliances. Business corporations likewise
have tended to establish conglomerates which include widely divergent
businesses, some limited to one nation or empire, some international.

Historically, the present-day business community developed out of a
segmented European feudal society as a protest against political
restrictions. Its early key-note was laissez-faire--freedom of
businessmen to make economic policy and accumulate profits. The
practical outcome of laissez-faire economy has been monopoly or finance
capitalism functioning through the sovereign state or empire.

Marxian socialism-communism, organized and developed largely since 1848,
has grown up as a rebellion against monopoly capitalism. At it matured,
after revolutions in Mexico, China, Tsarist Russia and East Europe, it
became an alternative and even a competitive life style. Marxism has
been, at least in theory, cooperative rather than competitive. Its
objective has been not private profit but a higher standard of economic
and social life for exploited masses of the business community and of
the Third World. Capitalism has had as its slogan "Every man for
himself". The slogan of Marxism is "Serve the whole people".

Until 1917 Marxism was a body of social theory and a program of specific
political demands. In the period from 1848 to 1917 Marxism operated
through minority political parties organized in each nation, but linked
together internationally in loose federations, except during the brief
existence of the Communist International from 1919 to 1943.

Beginning with the Russian Revolution of 1917, Marxism became a basic
state doctrine, first in the Soviet Union and subsequently in more than
a dozen other nations of East Europe and Asia. The area of Marxist
influence, as expressed in socialist construction, spread slowly from
1917 to 1943 and rapidly during and immediately after the war of
1936-1945.

Today about a billion human beings live in countries of East Europe and
Asia calling themselves socialist-communist. A second billion human
beings live chiefly in West Europe, the Americas and Australasia calling
themselves capitalist. A third billion, the remaining segment of
mankind, living chiefly in Africa, Asia and Latin America make up the
"Third World," most of which consists of former colonies and
dep