More and more workers are realizing that the capitalist system is rotten to the core. They are open to new ideas; looking for an alternative. The road to transforming the society into a socialist system cannot be achieved in 1001 different ways. There is only one way, that’s the way traced out by the history of the working class’s struggle against exploitation.
The right of private property is the right of a few to own and control the means by which all must live, the right of the owners of the means of production to utilise it to exploit the rest of the community in the interest of their personal profit, the right to determine what shall be produced and how, regardless of the misery and wretchedness of those who produce it. In the wake of that principle, that so-called right, came slavery, in which the multitude toiled in chains that a few masters might live in luxury; feudalism, when a handful of nobles feasted and wallowed in idleness on the enforced labour of others; then capitalism, when the masses were herded into factories, to get the wherewithal to live, while the product of their labour was appropriated by the new lords of capital. The right to private property, the right to exploit, the right to rob, the right to over-produce and cause crises, the right to compete, and cause wars. The basic cause of all the ills of present-day society, which is normally attributed to the imperfection of human nature, is, in fact, the lack of rational organisation of human society.
Socialism begins when capitalist society causes so much suffering to the people that they are ready to break with the even tenor of life and rise up against the domination of capital when the ’masses can no longer endure the conditions created by capitalist society. Capitalism leads to the bloodiest anarchy, to the destruction of the few cultural achievements which have been created, to the deepest misery of the masses and their literal enslavement. Socialism is the only way by which the workers can hope to emerge from the want and misery of capitalist society. Socialism assumes a society where the productive forces have grown to such dimensions that it is possible to meet all the needs of society when the bourgeoisie and its state have disappeared along with all class oppression and distinctions. No such society can exist unless the productive forces have attained the level of assuring abundance for all. Today, we have achieved that accomplishment. No longer can socialists be accused of levelling down. One day, the story goes, Baron Rothschild took a walk. Two labourers met him and accosted him thus: “Baron, you are a rich man; we want you to share with us.” Rothschild took out his purse and answered: “Certainly! We can do that business on the spot. The account is easily made. I own 40 millions of florins; there are 40 millions of Germans. Consequently, each German has to receive one florin; here is your share;” and giving one florin to each of the labourers, who looked at their money quite confused, he walked off smiling.
Bourgeois "equality" in fact perpetuates inequality, and attain the distribution of wealth according to the formula "from each according to ability, to each according to work." The goal of socialism is to go beyond to "from each according to ability, to each according to needs." Socialists, if we read their papers and pamphlets, what do we find? They do not intend to introduce division of property; on the contrary, they are for abolishing its division. Slavery has been, abolished, serfdom has been abolished, so the power which capital exercises now will be abolished. Certain left-wingers tell us “the workers are not ready to hear about socialism and revolution. We have to wait. If we start talking about socialism, they will desert us and we will isolate ourselves.” The Socialist Party is perfectly clear on this matter. We must openly and clearly tell them about socialism. This is not book-learning but not to do education about socialist revolution is to cut off the socialist movement from the workers’ movement. The socialist ideal is beautiful, while the reality of the existing capitalist world is ugly. This is precisely why the majority of the people demand the changing of that reality and why it must be changed. In order to change the world we must not divorce ourselves from reality, disregard it or escape from it, nor must we surrender to ugly reality. We must face reality squarely, study and understand it, live and grow in it, fight against the ugly reality and transform it, so that we can gradually realise our idea.
The Socialist Party's case is for the abolition of the right of private property, and instead the common ownership of the means of production, so that all may enjoy the fruit of their labour, and consume it, thus eliminating hunger, poverty, and war. For there is no other way. It is capitalism, economic crisis, and armed conflict – or socialism, freedom, economic planning and peace.
The three essential points of socialism are:
[1] The abolition of the wage system,
[2] The abolition of individual property in the means of production and distribution.
[3] The emancipation of the individual and of society from the political machinery, the State, which helps to maintain economic slavery.
[2] The abolition of individual property in the means of production and distribution.
[3] The emancipation of the individual and of society from the political machinery, the State, which helps to maintain economic slavery.
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