Re: Socialism 2.0

“Men fight and lose the battle, and the thing they fought for comes about in spite of their defeat, and then it turns out not to be what they meant, and other men have to fight for what they meant under another name.”

- William Morris

Equality is the shared goal of social democracy, socialism and communism. Socialists have pursued this goal since at least 1817 (not 1867, as some may erroneously claim), or perhaps even earlier, perhaps during the 6^th Century, under the proto-socialist, Mazdak. As a believer in liberal and social-democratic ideals, I feel it only appropriate that I should correct some of the misconceptions surrounding socialism, as propounded by the opponents of the left. Socialism is chiefly concerned with the establishment of a more equal state. In order to do so, all forms of oppression, class distinction and societal division must be brought to an end. Some socialists, or their less radical counterparts, social-democrats, have sought to bring about this change through legal and political institutions, in the social-democratic tradition of Bernstein, whereas others, including the Marxists, Bolsheviks and their misguided intellectual descendants, have attempted to bring about this change through violent, revolutionary means. In other words, there were attempts at “change from above” and “change from below”. Neither has been entirely successful to date.

Again, someone has made the foolish claim as to suggest that the USSR, and its remaining successor states, North Korea, the PRC and Cuba, embody everything that socialism has to offer to the world. Allow me to make, very, very clear once again that there has never been a socialist state established for a prolonged period of one year or more, as far as our recent history is concerned. It has been claimed by some (most notably the Trotskyists) that Russia was a socialist society in the first few months following the October Revolution in 1917. That may be true, considering how private property was abolished (to a certain degree), the franchise was provided to all, marriage and divorce were made readily available autonomous of the Church, and the general democratisation of factories, the armed forces, and (purportedly) society took place. However, any notion of popular equality existing in this initial Soviet government was brought crashing down when, on 19 January 1918, the Bolsheviks forcefully closed down the Constituent Assembly, the democratic voice of the people. The following decades of war communism under Trotsky, totalitarian terror under Stalin, and excessive bureaucratisation under Khrushchev and Brezhnev illustrate the abandonment of socialist and communist ideals by the Soviet government and hence, its successors.

According to Marxist theory, Russia, China, Korea and Cuba should not have been able to advance into socialism, as they had yet to experience capitalism in its full throes. I have been told, quite legitimately, that these states have done worse for the socialist cause than any conservative “bourgeois” movement, but that is simply because they were not socialist, nor even capable of becoming socialist in the first place! Instead of destroying class divisions, these societies prolonged old class divisions, persecuting and murdering those members of the old upper and middle classes, replacing them with an inefficient and corrupt bureaucracy which would lord over and oppress the common people. Where is the equality in that?

Those causes outlined in BT’s catalyst for this response, including the advocacy of LGBT rights, the condemnation of the Israeli occupation of Palestine, and the conservation of our natural environment for future use by our descendants are not deviations from the socialist movement; they lie at the very heart of it. Each and every one of those causes is concerned with the establishment of equality in society, in ending the discrimination inherent in capitalist superstructures, defeating the oppression of an entire people by another, and preserving the natural beauties of our world so that future generations can enjoy them freely and equally. What is so inherently wrong and un-socialist about those ideas? Those who consider socialism to be exclusively the terrorist, revolutionary drive towards the abolition of private property and the establishment of a totalitarian state obviously have no understanding of the single ideal which motivates all socialists, social-democrats and communists: equality.

There will always be those who misinterpret, or take to an inappropriate degree, the beliefs of a particular school of thought. Those who defend the Stalinist regimes of today are completely ignorant of their imperialist and oppressive natures. Those who support the Libyan rebels and yet condemn the foreign intervention are also misguided in their beliefs. We would all love to believe that popular revolutions, like those that took place in Egypt and Tunisia will succeed throughout the Middle East, and cast down the strongmen who have, for so long, been propped up by the US Government. But the fact of the matter is that many of these dictators are incredibly stubborn, and have well-established coercive machineries, in the form of secret police forces and powerful armies, in the Soviet tradition. Hence, it is only natural that the Libyan people would require foreign aid in order to topple that murderous madman, Qaddafi, who has so entrenched himself into his regime. We can only wish them the best of fortune in their attempts to be free of his bloody tyranny. If the great powers of capitalism want to aid in the liberation of the Libyan people, then socialists should invite them to do so, for in doing so, they will only be furthering the socialist cause of equality.

Then there is the case of Marrickville Council… I can’t say that I believe their course of action to be logical. It isn’t. BT’s right about what he says of the council. They have done little for the cause, and have served only to depreciate themselves in the eyes of the people. But at least they’re trying. The Israeli occupation of Palestine has returned to the attention of the media, and that is a small success in itself, I suppose.

Regardless of the failures of socialism in the past, socialists, social-democrats and communists will continue to fight for the rights of the disenfranchised, whoever they may be, including the working class, women, LGBT, ethnic minorities and the rest of humanity. For that, they have my undying respect. The working class has learned to cope, somewhat, with the yoke of capital, thanks to the progress made by egalitarian parties in providing for equal rights and responsibilities. Take all of the anti-discrimination acts which have been legislated in our own society, they are shining examples of egalitarianism in practice. But, should the growing income disparities and discrimination in contemporary societies continue to increase, capitalism may find its days numbered. Marx may yet be proved correct. I won’t speculate about the course of social progress, but I will continue to defend socialism, liberalism and social-democracy. Perhaps it’s time for men to take up the fight under a different name? It might do them well to dispel the cloud of misunderstanding surrounding the terms “socialism” and “communism”.

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Also, before I go, anybody who thinks that egalitarianism “belongs in books” has, quite blatantly, either a very limited understanding of human history, or no understanding of what egalitarianism is. Quite simply, egalitarianism is the belief that there should be equality, or at least, a more equal society. Every single revolution that has taken place in our history has had egalitarianism at its core. It has been put into practice countless times, in the promises of revolutionaries everywhere. From “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” to “Peace, bread, land”, from “Liberté, égalité, fraternité” to “Freedom, Justice, Democracy” in Libya today, these were and are all egalitarian movements. Egalitarianism does not only belong in books containing our grandest and most memorable moments in history, it belongs in the hearts of every disenfranchised human being, waiting to burst forth into the world as it has so many times in the past, and push humanity even closer to its noble goal of equality.

By the way, until somebody blogs something in favour of egalitarianism, liberalism, socialism or the like, it’s still 1 v 3. And you’re on, bastards.

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Another thing, if you want something nice and apolitical to read, then I suggest a little blog called “Happiness Equals Bracket”. The bloggers recently organised a very successful combined school prefect charity event for the Australian Red Cross’ Japanese and Pacific Disaster Appeal, and I’m proud to say that I took part! They did a splendid job, and raised over $5000 for the appeal. I’ve got to say though, for an event I wasn’t exactly looking forward to (because I was only informed of it at the last second, thanks to some miscreants who caused the disabling of my facebook account), I really enjoyed it, and I’ve learned how to make origami cranes again!!! So, feel free to read their inspirational stories and make sure to spread the happiness! =)

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Suggested Readings:

An interesting post-Marxist critique of capitalism, known as The Communist Manifesto of the 21st Century:

http://www.angelfire.com/cantina/negri/HAREMI_printable.pdf

Happiness Equals Bracket =)

http://happinessequalsbracket.blogspot.com/