Capitalism's day of reckoning approaches

It gives members of the Socialist Party no pleasure in conceding that presently there is no organisation of the working class in this country that can bring revolutionary change. It is becoming increasingly evident that we are living in a world of conflict inseparable from the existing social order. The opponents of Socialism must shut out the thought that revolutionary change is necessary. The supporters of capitalism have nothing to offer mankind beyond the continuous existence of a system of society which totters from crisis to crisis inherent in that very system. Socialism will be possible only when the workers, those who meet the needs of society, decide that they are determined to lay the conditions of mankind on a new foundation. The whole future of humanity rests on the emergence of the working people as the creative force in society. Socialism meets the desire for freedom innate in every human being. With the end of class oppression the state disappears. Parliament has lost much of its prestige but its control over the forces of law and order, the armed forces, education and a, number of other services means that it cannot be ignored. It is possible to forget the fact that the full picture of what is happening is concealed from the public, and even Members of Parliament.

Socialism is the first social system in the history of mankind to be introduced by the conscious action of its collective creators and not, so to speak, behind the backs of the actors in history’s drama. It is no accident that socialist thinkers failed to sketch out in any detail the new socialist society, as distinct from the many seekers of utopia down through the ages. Instead of blueprinting the new society, they study the society in which we now live — capitalist society — the society out of which the new is destined to come — seeking the laws governing its motion. They learned that the class struggle was the lever of social change. They recognised that the workers, out of painful experience, overcoming their divisions and out of necessity, need to take the power from the hands of the capitalist class who now possess it, abolishing the whole state structure that they have developed to serve their interests and forming organs of workers’ power. The many prejudices which are deeply rooted in the past have been fostered and whipped up by the ruling class to divide the workers and pit them against one another and away from their common enemy.

With the release of the capitalist fetters on the productive forces, the planned obsolescence, socialists see the availability of plenty for all. Not only will the revolution itself be profoundly democratic, but with its victory will come almost instantaneous benefits for all. Thanks to the tremendous productive capacity we have created across this land, we will be quickly able to satisfy all the basic needs of everyone. There will be no real shortages that would require some kind of policing to supervise who gets what, and no bureaucrats acquiring special favours that would allow them to become a privileged elite. We would see our wealth as part of mankind’s common heritage, binging its unparalleled natural resources and productivity, to the well-being of humanity. Solidarity in the working class as a whole, coming from below, is an urgent necessity if we are to further the cause of socialism.

Subscribe to the Socialist Standard. Courage and determination is required, but it is also necessary that everything possible be done towards spreading education among as many workers as possible. The greater the knowledge and understanding we possess, the greater will be our confidence in victory over the class enemy.