A Better Tomorrow

 We all aspire to freedom. Deep down in the source of our being, we all want to live free in a society where we can thrive, where we can work passionately at something to improve the human condition, and at the same time be able to take care of our children, give them a solid education, have quality medical care and keep a roof over their head in a healthy environment. That’s what we want from life. And with modern technology that is now something we can all truly achieve. Sustainable prosperity for all is within reach. Social evolution is a process of the transformation of humankind toward a just, and future, and is happening. It is time to move to a post-growth society, where working life, the natural environment, our communities, and families, are no longer sacrificed for the sake of capital accumulation and market growth.  Socialists envision a more decentralised human-scale economy and a more egalitarian organisation of society taking shape upon the removal of exploitation and cancerous capitalism.

It’s easy to play on people’s fears and prejudices and to point fingers at certain groups. In the past, it has been ‘the Jews’, ‘the Irish’, ‘the blacks’, ‘the Poles’ or some other easily identifiable target that was blamed for society’s ills. Capitalism, though, thrives on poverty. It’s integral to the system. The increasing concentration of power, ownership and wealth and the mounting impoverishment of the masses is one of capitalism’s greatest contradictions. It’s not some kind of conspiracy to keep the masses in poverty or in fear of falling into it.  It’s built into capitalism. In capitalism, the compulsion to compete, dominate and pursue profit casts long shadows over virtually every social and cultural institution. It can be easy for conspiracy theories to overlook the pervasive unintended consequences of political and social action and assume that all consequences must have been intended. Unpredictability abounds within the capitalist structures. A nefarious power, inimical to human well-being, manipulates the course of human events from behind the scenes, seeking the total control of every human being. Rather than an evil Illuminati, could that power be the profit motive? Our current system of power and domination is built on manipulation and deceit.

A socialist society would eliminate work deemed difficult, dangerous, or tedious through automation or simply through the sacrifice of unnecessary goods (of which there are plenty in capitalism). In addition, work would not be coerced and the jobs which were only necessary to maintain capitalist functionality would be eliminated (banking, investment, accounting, etc.; not to mention the standing army). The amount of work necessary to keep society functioning would be reduced drastically due to the resultant expansion of the labor force and the abandonment of the profit motive. After the dissolution of capitalist production for profit rational production for human need would be instituted and environmentally destructive technologies, that continue to exist merely because they are profitable and heavily invested in, would be abandoned in favor of safer, sustainable technologies. Liberty can only be achieved when all people are free to realize the life they want to live, free from coercion and privation; a society in which one is forced to sell themselves as a commodity, as is the case under capitalism, is a society which is antithetical to the concept of liberty. It is a society where we’re in control of our lives. The system depends on willing acquiescence and obedience by the majority of its subjects. That there are winners and losers in society isn’t primarily a matter of luck or skill. It’s a consequence of market exchange a reflection of how the ruling class captures the state machine, using it to gain more power and more wealth. Opposing this class thus means opposing the state. Socialists say that decision-making should be decentralised and people should be able to participate to the maximum feasible degree in shaping decisions that affect their lives. Top-down, forcible decision-making is likely to be marred by the fallibility of decision-makers. Hierarchical workplaces are disempowering and stultifying and limit the ability of workers to use their knowledge and skills to respond flexibly and efficiently to production and distribution challenges and to meet consumer needs. Socialists are committed to a model of social life rooted in voluntary cooperation and associations of all kinds structured in all ways.