We hear a great deal of “Democratic Socialism.” Because socialism has been misrepresented and maligned by the media and politicians so long that even many so-called socialists who have not study the subject possess rather vague and misleading conceptions about what socialism actually means. The definition of socialism, as used by ourselves, is the common ownership and democratic control of all the means of production and distribution In all countries, and under whatever form of government, the present system of social production by individual ownership has produced two classes: the propertyless class and the capitalist class. Socialism starts out with the truism that our present system divides society into two classes, the “have all” and the “have nothing” class, and that it is the great mass of the people that do all the useful work who belong to the “have nothing” class. Therefore socialism is class conscious. This does not mean that the socialist must hate every capitalist individually, that some such as the bankers should be singled out for special condemnation while the economic power and political encroachment of all the others should be silently submitted to. It means that while we understand that every individual capitalist is the result of the present system as much as the wage worker, we still must fight the capitalists as a class, because the producers cannot reasonably expect anything but exploitation from the exploiters as a class. We demand the rule of the people, i.e., democracy, a democracy which is founded on economic independence, upon the political and industrial equality of opportunity for all. The control of production by the people as a whole means the highest possible perfection of industry on a large scale and means the extension of its advantages to all the people. And we all deeply feel the disadvantages of the private ownership of the means of production and distribution on a large scale.
Socialism thus far has received the attention only of the oppressed and the lowly. The rich have no reason to wish for a change of the present system. They do not want to hear anything about it. Most people have only a very vague idea even of its basis. Yet Socialism is in the foreground of discussion today. Of course, with people who believe that whatever is will exist forever, and that we have reached the acme of civilisation, and the end of all things in economic progress, with such people it is entirely useless to argue. But surely no educated person believes that the present conditions are the end of all things. That we have not reached the end of our national development is clear. Every new invention and every new political question proves that to us.
Most of us comprehend that our present system stands for “capital,” that decides how much we shall pay for our meat, for our bread, for our sugar, how much for coal and for gasoline, and how much we are to spend for our houses, clothing, shoes, etc. In other words, by deciding how well or how poorly we are to live, these owners of production virtually decide how long or how short a time we are permitted to stay on Earth. And wealth, usually expressed in money, is now the god. Mammon has become the idol of this day. It is through the distribution of a part of this Mammon that the rich man gets his dangerous powers. It is the monopoly of that which all want — some of which all must have — that makes his power so fearful.
Socialism is the child of the industrial revolution. Socialism was impossible in former centuries. The modern development of the means of production — manufacturing in the present large scale — has made socialism possible and necessary. Socialism requires the modern industrial development, i.e., capitalism as a forerunner, which centralizes industry and trade. Socialism recognises that the development of capitalist society substitutes tyrannical monopoly by a minority for individual property of the many. But it does not revolt against recognised facts; it bows to them. It does not propose to return to a romantic past and start communistic colonies — or to arrest the transformation of humanity which is going on before our very eyes. On the contrary, it bends to the laws of progress and evolution.
It is not accurate to talk about the “socialism” of Christ and the early Christians. The early Christians were communists in a similar sense as the monastic monks of the Middle Ages, but they were not socialists. The early Christians depended upon the contributions of the richer members of the community for a living, and upon the Lord for everything else.
Others propose the socialism of the cooperative. Yet they have to work exactly like a capitalist company. The only difference is that the cooperative company will always be at a disadvantage, when compared to the capitalist business enterprise, even when the former has as much capital as the latter. The cooperative undertaking, because it is cooperative, cannot press any surplus value out of its members, and therefore its capital will not grow. On the other hand, it has to spend its main strength fighting strong capitalist concerns, while it is just that fight of competition that fixes the prices of the products.
Socialism is the next stage of civilisation, if civilisation is to survive. If civilization is to survive, we must see to it that civilization does survive. The present system was a step in the evolution of freedom, but only a step. But it has already resulting in making comparatively few the absolute masters of our daily bread. If we are to be a free people, the people must take possession collectively of the social means of production and distribution. And this is socialism.
The Socialist Party are revolutionists. We are revolutionary, not in the vulgar meaning of riots and dynamite, from murderous attacks and conspiracies. We know that one can kill tyrants and scare individuals with bombs and bullets, but one can not develop a new social system in that way, In a country where we have the ballot, we want to convince the majority of the people. As long as we are in the minority, we, of course, have no right to force our opinions upon an unwilling majority. Socialists do not expect success from a smaller or bigger riot, but from a real revolution, from the revolutionising of minds, the only true revolution there is. Therefore, the Socialist Party concentrates its energies on education, agitation, and organisation, the enlightenment of humanity.
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