Sing a song of capitalism

The December 1994 issue of the Socialist Standard

In Glasgow and Edinburgh pubs on a Saturday evening you may hear some workers, under the influence of a couple of drinks, giving voice to sentimental patriotic songs. "Scotland I Adore Thee" and "Hail, Caledonia" may be aired until the bartender or some other music lover puts a stop to the proceedings.

But what is the truth behind all this patriotic drivel? According to the BBC2 programme Whose Country is it Anyway? (26 October) Scotland, like every other country, is owned by a handful of people:

"Sixty per cent of the land in Scotland, with a population of over 5 million is owned by only 1,500 people."

So next Saturday evening when you feel moved to imitate Kenneth McKellar with a version of "My Granny's Hielan' Hovel", remember who really owns Scotland - the capitalist class.

You may well "Belong to Glasgow", but Glasgow like every city in the world belongs to them.

SOCIALISM NOW !

Socialism maintains that there can be no fundamental change in the living conditions of the people while a minority holds economic power in the natural resources and in the right to exploit the majority for personal gain. Socialists insist that the basis of exploitation — the use of men and women for individual profit and power — lie in the capitalist system. Reforms do not remove the villain of the piece from the scene of action. A true socialist society must be change from a capitalist system of ownership, exploitation and control to one of common ownership, administration and control of the affairs by all men and women who produce its wealth. Socialists do not want bloody revolution. Revolution means change. There have been revolutions in art, industry and social relations which have not caused bloodshed. One of the most widespread misconceptions about socialism is that it is a doctrine of nationalisation and state ownership, where a bureaucracy controls everything – like it was in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. This myth was also believed and encouraged by many who call themselves Marxists who called countries like Russia and Poland ‘socialist’ simply on the grounds that their economies were owned by the government.

The socialist movement has always aimed to take the means of production and distribution out of the hands of individuals and to transfer them to the ownership of the people as a whole, so that they can be used for the common good. Social ownership is production to meet the people’s needs instead of production for private profit. Social ownership means an end to the chaos and wasteful competition of production for profit and the development of new productive resources to provide what people really want. Socialism does not mean the levelling down of living standards. Nor does it bring bureaucracy and tyranny. On the contrary, socialism draws more and more people into planning and making their own future, and frees their creative energies for great economic, social and cultural advances. The scientific and technical knowledge we already possess, when given free rein for the benefit of all, can bring a far higher standard of living than we have today. But in order to build socialism, the dominant position of the rich must be ended. Political power must be taken from the hands of the capitalist minority, and firmly grasped by the majority of the people, the working class. The change to socialism, therefore, means that the industrial enterprises must be taken over by the people, and production organised and planned not for profit but for use. Socialism will be possible only when the workers, those who meet the needs of society, decide that they are determined to lay down the foundations of a whole new future of humanity. The class struggle is important and cannot be avoided because it marks the road towards the class-less society. With the end of class oppression the state disappears.

Parliament may have 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. The seeds of the socialist society are growing right in the soil of capitalist society itself. Poverty, unemployment, industrial crises and wars are not the product of the machinations of politicians but the rotten fruits of the capitalist system. They are the stink weeds of the capitalist system. They smell to high heaven. Conditions make the workers learn the lessons of socialism and conditions compel the masses to strive for a better social system. Conditions have been the workers’ best teacher, and conditions have shaken the faith in the system. The apologists of every social system that has passed into history have always sought to justify its continuance by saying: “It’s the best yet.” Doubtless the patricians of the doomed Roman Empire used that limping argument, also the feudal lords, and now the whitewashers of capitalism. But human progress continues only by mankind looking forward – not back. Socialism will be the order of society but totally depends on what the working class does. Its struggle for socialism cannot be postponed.

Brazil Destroys It's Resources!

The New York Times (October 18) reported on on the worst drought in Brazil's history. Huge reservoirs are depleted and water rationing is in place in Rio, Sao Paulo and other cities. Experts are looking at the rapid deforestation in South America as the culprit. Cutting down forests releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and increases global warming. Forests also absorb more solar energy than grasslands and release vast amounts of water vapour driving the rainfall amounts. Each fully grown tree releases one thousand litres of water a day and the entire Amazon rain forest sends up twenty billion tons a day, more water than the mighty river itself. But these staggering figures and the common sense they should engender are ignored in the race for profits and the need to keep up with the competition that is the crazy mantra of the capitalist mode of production. Brazil must destroy its resources or be left behind. Sooner or later, the world's ninety-nine per cent will take over! John Ayers

Capitalism's Real Bank Crisis

Food bank use in Scotland has increased to record levels, with more than 60,000 referrals over a six-month period, according to a charity. Delays in receiving benefits was the most common reason cited for financial hardship.

Capitalism's Economic Law

Under slave society the source of profit was easy to see: the slaves worked while the slave owners led a life of luxury on the products of their toil. Under feudalism the source of profit was also easily seen. The serf worked for so many days on his own land and for so many days on the land of the landlord. Under capitalism the source of profit is hidden by the wage workers receive. It appears that the workers receive the full return on their day’s labour. The complicated nature of modern capitalist society clouds the issue. The capitalist class and its hired lackeys spread erroneous ideas as to the source of profit.

One illusion spread by them is that money itself the source of profit. This reflects itself in the expression, “money makes money”. This is not strictly true. If we, for example, were to heap a pile of sovereigns and silver in a room, it would remain the same amount for hundreds of years. Another more popular and more insidious idea spread by the boss is that machines are the source of profit. If, again, we were to put machines and a large quantity of raw material into a factory, it would not make a profit if it remained there until doomsday.

The real source of capitalist profits lies in the unpaid labour time of the workers — that portion of the working day over and above tie time it takes the worker to produce value equal to the value of the necessities of life. The worker under capitalism has only one thing to sell in order to live: his or her labour power, or ability to work. Unlike the tradesman or artisan of feudal society, (such as the boot-maker, weaver, etc) the worker of capitalism has no tools, nor could he compete with capitalism. So he is reduced to selling the one commodity he has: his labour power.

Labour power, like all other commodities, has a certain price. But price is only a monetary expression of value. It may go up or down a bit, depending on supply and demand. The one thing common to all commodities is that they are the product of human labour. The necessities of life, the food we eat, the clothes we wear, the trains in which we travel, the house in which we live, even money itself, are the products of human labour. As human labour is the one thing common to all commodities, it is this and only this that can serve as a measure of value. So we can say that full value of a commodity is determined by the amount of socially necessary labour spent in its production.

The capitalist buys the machines and raw material necessary to start production. Then he buys the commodity labour power and puts it to work. While this labour power is being used it creates a value greater than its own, greater than the value of food, clothing and shelter necessary to reproduce itself.

It could be that in about the first four hours of work the worker earns the necessities of life; that is, he produces value equals to these things. But he does not stop working. If he did, the boss would not make a profit. The worker must keep working right up to tile knock-off bell. It is this additional time of labour, this section of the working day for which the worker receives no remittance, that supplies the capitalist with his profit. Division of the working day — surplus value Therefore, in a working day of eight hours, the worker labours, say, for four hours to supply himself with the necessities of life and for the remaining four hours he labours for the enrichment of the boss.

This is the source of capitalist profit. It is this fact of the unpaid section of the working day that the boss hides from the working people by all the devious means at his disposal. He denies it when it suits him to and when he can no longer deny it he distorts it. He hires his intellectual stooges from academia for the purpose of refuting these facts and covering up his profits.

Lengthening of the working day is an obvious way the capitalist sees to increase his surplus is to lengthen the working day. Supposing the working day was increased to 10 hours, it would still take, say, four hours to produce the necessities of life, but instead the boss receiving four hours surplus labour (as at present) he would receive six hours. This is why the shipping companies and their spokesmen are such good advocates of the 44-hour week. They would revert to an even longer working week if the organised strength of trade unions did not stand in their way.

Reducing necessary labour time Another way they can increase their profits is by reducing the necessary labour time (that section of the working day in which the worker produces the necessities of life). Supposing they reduced the necessary time from four hours to two hours, that would give them six hours surplus labour time of value without increasing the length of the working day. They can achieve this reduction by the introduction of techniques, machines, etc, that speed up the process of work — by automation.

The favourite method of reducing the necessary labour time is that of speed-up. This drastically reduces the necessary part of the working day, as it does not take the workers as long to produce goods to the value of the necessities of life and again increases the surplus value for the boss.

Throughout the 19th century there raged what Marx called “a protracted civil war” — the hours struggle between labour and capital. It still exists today. The capitalist buys the labour power of the workers at as low a price (wages) as he can. He reasons that by working his employees for as many hours as are physically possible, he will make the most profitable use of this labour power. On the other hand, the worker who has sold his labour power is interested in short hours. The drive for maximum profits completely obsesses the employing class. They cannot under any circumstances be content with a good profit, nor a high profit nor a record profit.

It must be the maximum profit. This is the fundamental law that governs all their behaviour. Driven on blindly by that dynamic law, they are prepared to deal ruthlessly with anything or anybody standing in the way of their maximum profits.

Telling People All They require To Exist

In 1995 the then Conservative government of Ontario gutted the provinces welfare system. The social services minister claimed that a single person could exist on a food budget of $90.21. He even included a list of what could be bought for that amount but forgot things like butter for the bread and sauce for the pasta, among other wonders. Since then, inflation has risen forty-five percent but when a social worker recently tried to buy the same list, he found this 'welfare diet' had spiked one hundred and seven per cent to $189.91. The Conservatives were ousted and the governing Liberals have spent a decade of yearly rate increases but have failed, obviously to get back to pre-1995 levels. In fact, since the Liberals began increases welfare rates have increased just thirty-one per cent, below even the official inflation rate. You can cut this any way you like but there is only one way to solve this - and many other inequality problems – free access for all to all goods and services available. John Ayers.

Agitate! Educate! Organise!

What are we out for? Nothing less than a social revolution, a complete transformation of human society.  That is no little thing. It is about the biggest job that anybody have ever set their minds to. And what are our means - people like ourselves. The emancipation of the working class must be the work of the working-class themselves. There is no other way. It is in that of building up a class-conscious Socialist Party that we bend our efforts towards. Agitate! Educate! Organise! Are we, as is sometimes alleged, too purist, too sectarian or too intolerant? Are we too antagonistic, not to enemies, but to would-be comrades? Do we seek to distance people rather than to win them over? These are searching questions to which it may be worthwhile to give some consideration. In things doubtful, liberty of thought; in things essential, unity; and in all things, charity. Our task is to disarm hostility and to bring together all potential comrades into a united harmonious Socialist Party.

Capitalism is where the people are herded into factories and offices to get the wherewithal to live, while the product of their labour is appropriated by the industrial barons and the lords of capital who possess the right to exploit, the right to rob, the right to over-produce and cause crises, the right to compete, and cause wars. This is the cause of all social ills, and the answer is the abolition of private property, and instead the common ownership of the means of production, so that all may enjoy the fruit of their labour. We want to see society changed. We want to see it transformed from a thing of wars and recessions, to a real brotherhood of man. Sociaists work for the improvement of the conditions of the people. Our understanding of society and history teaches us that improvement can only be attained by changing basic social relations, by a shift in ownership and control from the few to the many, an all-embracing socialization of the means of production and distribution.

Capitalism having enormously developed the productive processes on a social basis, has reached the stage when, because of the private ownership of those processes, the system has become a fetter on production itself. The day has passed for patching up the capitalist system; it must go. Because only a small section of the population controls production and is not answerable to the rest of the community and because this section is competing within its own ranks and with similar classes abroad, it means either the excruciating suffering of repeated slumps or the ultimate threat of total annihilation for the whole world. Our answer to this threat of total annihilation is socialism. Substituting a programme of reforms within capitalist society for the abolition of capitalism and the establishment of socialism is surrender and political suicide. This is betrayal of the socialist objective harking back to the Second International. Reformists put forward utopian demands for the reconstruction of the capitalist economic system in order that the replacement of the capitalist mode of production will be unnecessary and capitalist society itself can be saved. Socialism does not involve re-distribution and any sharing out of the means of production and exchange. It is the socialisation of the whole economy. Today we face the choice between “a revolutionary reconstitution of society” or “the common ruin of the contending classes.”

The essence of the capitalist system is the ownership and control of the materials and tools of production and distribution by a small class whose legal title to the lands, forests, mines, railroads, quarries, mills, factories, and other industrial and commercial utilities and plants gives them control over the lives of the working masses. The workers subsist in a new form of slavery, wherein labor power is paid for by wages, and the bare chance to live depends upon employment by some capitalist master. Employment depends upon the production by the worker of a margin of value over and above what he receives for his labour power. The capitalist master has no liability on account of the wage-worker, except that of payment for labour-power on a time or piece basis. Capitalism has nothing to offer the large majority but uncertainty for tomorrow, unemployment, environmental disasters, poverty and war.

Capitalism knows no national boundaries and encompasses all the world’s countries and peoples. The ruling class of the different states fight for control and hegemony to exploit countries, people and resources all over the globe. The struggle of the working class is also international, even if the working class of each country first must do away with their own bourgeoisie. The working class is the only revolutionary class under capitalism. It is the historical task of the working class to put an end to capitalist exploitation and oppression.

Capitalism inevitably produces exploitation and poverty, war, poisonous environmental pollution, and waste of human and natural resources, none of which can be consistently eliminated without the socialist transformation of society. Like all the other political parties which exist the Socialist Party is the political party of a definite class. It is the political party of the working class and works in its interests as opposed to others which are parties of the rich and which work for the continuation of capitalist exploitation and wage-slavery. The goal is to overthrow the dictatorship of the ruling class and establish socialism, thus ending the exploitation of man by man.

Trying To Outdo The Leftish Party

At "The Word on the Street" book fair that SPC members attended on September 27, the so-called communist party were handing out literature, most of which was about what they would do if elected. Some of these pearls of wisdom were – raise the minimum wage to $20 per hour; employment benefits to be at ninety per cent of previous earnings for all workers; nationalize banking and insurance; reverse privatization of all programs and services: no new fighter jets; cut the military budget by seventy-five per cent; progressive tax reform based on ability to pay; double the corporate tax rate; invest heavily to create jobs by expanding renewable energy and conservation programs. There were many other proposals but this should be enough to show anyone where the CP stand. So, if elected, there would still be money, wages, taxes corporations, banks, military etc. All of which are a part of a private property-based society. So the CP are trying to outdo the leftish New Democratic Party and are vying to run capitalism. Nowhere do they advocate changing the economic base of society where the majority control the tools of production and run a system in the interests of all. John Ayers.

Socialism is just the beginning

We live in a world rife with misery and oppression in various forms. Hunger, poverty, unemployment, racial and sexual discrimination, and many forms of repression, from the restriction of the most basic democratic rights like freedom of speech and association to hideous barbarism like torture and genocide, are still the lot of the majority of the people of the world. Now even the existence of the human species has been put at risk by the rapacious demands made upon the planet’s resources.  Far from lessening with the progress of science and technology, the various forms of misery endured by the masses are growing and the gulf between the rich and the poor, between the powerful and the dispossessed, is steadily widening. Ever since the first class societies, the exploited have aspired to a better life where the living conditions of all would be in keeping with society’s ability to use the wealth of nature. They have yearned for a society where all injustice would be banished forever, a society with no trace of corruption, a society in which the weak would no longer be oppressed by the strong, a society in which one class would no longer be exploited by another. Humanity has reached a turning point in its history. The dreams of the past have become real possibilities for a future that can already be foreseen, because the material conditions necessary for achieving them are growing steadily. Only a socialist revolution can put an end to the capitalist relations of exploitation that are now the fundamental obstacle to further progress for mankind. This is the meaning of the struggle for a society of abundance, of justice and of freedom.

Capitalists have only one reason for existence – to accumulate more and more capital. They are therefore always looking for ways to increase the productivity of labour. Capitalists seek to increase the productivity of workers. They impose speed-ups and compulsory overtime. They multiply their attacks on the democratic rights of working people and continually try to control their organizations and even to destroy them.  The State is controlled entirely by, and in the service of, the capitalist class. It results in a very keen competition among capitalists themselves; many are reduced to bankruptcy, while a minority get richer and richer. Capitalism has created the very conditions for its own destruction. The spread of capitalist production has resulted in the growth of the size, cohesion, and revolt of the working class, the only thoroughly revolutionary class. With the abolition of capitalist exploitation, the workers are the only class that has everything to gain and nothing to lose but its chains. The working class cannot free itself without freeing all of humanity at the same time, because the ultimate goal of its struggle is not to replace the power of one class with that of another but rather to abolish all classes. This is the only way to put an end to all the social divisions and inequalities that have characterized class societies thus far. Capitalism, undermined by its own contradictions, will inevitably be overthrown, just as all previous systems of class exploitation, including slavery and feudalism, have been. The working class has the mission of carrying this task out to its ultimate conclusion: the abolition of class society.

The development of productive forces is fundamental to the emergence of socialism. It will permit a steady reduction in the human work needed to produce goods. Socialist society is based on the free association of all individuals who work together to produce the goods necessary for their collective well-being. All will work according to their capacities and their needs will be fully satisfied. Thus, individuals will no longer be governed by the division of labour and all opposition between city and countryside and between manual and intellectual work will be eliminated. The abolition of classes will also mean the elimination of the roots of women’s oppression at last. Only socialism and the expropriation of the capitalists and the socialization of the means of production will lead directly to the abolition of society divided into classes with opposing interests. The abolition of classes will in turn lead to the withering away of the State, and its extinction. The State is not, and can never be, anything other than the instrument of dictatorship of one class over others.

The fundamental interests of the workers are the same throughout the world. The socialist revolution is inseparable from a world revolution. Socialism itself is only possible in a world totally rid of capitalist exploitation. After we have overthrown the socialism will mean the rule of the people. It will put an end to the exploitation of man by man. It will bring freedom to all those oppressed by capital and open up a new period of history for all peoples. Gone will be the anarchy of capitalist production. Gone, too, its resultant economic crises which today bring so much misery to workers. The enormous waste of capitalism will be abolished. There will be no more billions in profits squandered by the bourgeoisie. There will be no more destruction of goods and productive forces as there is today in times of crisis. We will also have socialist relations of production to replace the capitalist organisation of labour. The repressive system of bosses and supervisors who today control the workers, will be wiped out. Workers will participate in the running of their work-places and factories by electing the administration and drawing up coordinated plans via local, regional and worldwide advisory committees. Socialism represents an enormous historical advance over capitalism. It is the future of humanity, a radically new society where classes and the state will have been completely eliminated. The state is simply an instrument by which one class dominates another. It became a necessity when society split into classes. Just as the ancient slave state served the slave owners to suppress the countless slave rebellions, so too the modern capitalist state is a tool of the bourgeoisie to maintain its dictatorship over the working class. No longer will there be capitalists siphoning profits and no more destruction of the productive forces.

Socialism is not an end to human development but just the beginning – the beginning of a further development of production, the people’s well-being and all facets of human society.

You Win Some, You Lose Some

Discussing the Trans Pacific Partnership, Tony Burman (Toronto Star, Oct. 10) reports the World Bank as stating that the number of people living in extreme poverty world wide has dropped below ten per cent for the first time, but added that 900 million still live on less than $2 a day. On the other hand, UNICEF reported that in the world's most affluent countries the number of minors living in poverty has increased to 76 million. You win some, you lose some in capitalism's casino economy. John Ayers.

Modest Goals

As an example of what nations are doing, developing nations are being called to address their contributions to climate change. In addition, Barack Obama has announced a plan to reduce carbon emissions from power industries by 32% from 2005 levels by 2030. China expects emissions to peak by 2030 and expects plans to be in place by 2017 for emission reductions. These are only goals and are very modest and subject to all kinds of opposition and trimming, so do not hold your breath! John Ayers.

The cause of socialism

ABOLISH WAGE SLAVERY

Working people are waging and will continue to wage struggles on many issues, including wages, health, industrial accidents, social services, unemployment, political rights, etc. These struggles put them in direct opposition to various sectors of the ruling class– this or that capitalist, manager, government minister, municipal politician or whatever. Workers know very well who their immediate enemy is and where their immediate interests lie in such conflicts. It is not the job of the Socialist Party to substitute itself for the peoples’ protests. Its role is to point out what all these struggles have in common, to point out that the cause of these problems and the misery that workers have to endure under capitalism is one and the same, to identify the class enemy hiding behind each specific, individual enemy and to indicate the only path that will enable us to solve these problems once and for all. In opposition to those who promise “socialist” reforms as a way of eliminating the exploitation of man by man, the Socialist Party puts forward the revolutionary struggle, the overthrow of the bourgeoisie and the establishment of the socialism. We defend the slogan, “The emancipation of the workers will be accomplished by the workers themselves”. This is how we carry out our tasks associalists; not as reformists, but as conscious revolutionaries who go against the tide – against the nationalists divisions between immigrant workers and indigenous workers maintained by the ruling class; against the idea that capitalism can be gradually improved until it becomes a society free from exploitation. These are the ideas that we sow and cultivate. Experience has proven that unless our ideas triumph in the working-class movement, socialist revolution is impossible.

The aspiration of Marx and Engels was a society based upon free association of completely free men and women, where no separation between ‘private and common interest’ existed: a society where ‘everyone could give himself a complete education in whatever domain he fancied’. For ‘man’s activity becomes an adverse force which subjugates him, instead of his being its master’ when there is ‘a division of labour’; everyone must then have a profession, that is a ‘determined, exclusive sphere of activity’ he has not chosen and in which ‘he is forced to remain if he does not want to lose his means of existence’. In their socialist society, on the contrary, a man would be given ‘the possibility to do this today and that tomorrow, to hunt in the morning, to go fishing in the afternoon, to do cattle breeding in the evening, to criticise after dinner’, as he chose (‘The German Ideology’.) It is clear that there is not the slightest relation between their vision and the conception of Lenin’s Soviet Union. The future world of Marx and Engels is a world where will be no exploiters or oppressors, no landlords and capitalists nor will there be any oppressed and exploited people, or any of the darkness, ignorance and backwardness resulting from the system of exploitation. In such a society the production of both material and moral values will develop and flourish mightily and will meet the varied needs of all its members. Today, our task is constantly to advance the cause of socialism so as to make it a reality as soon as possible. It is the greatest cause in human history, for it will eliminate exploitation and classes once and for all, emancipate mankind and bring humanity into a world of happiness such as it has never known before.

The aim and purpose of the Socialist Party is to replace the world capitalist economy by world socialism which will abolish the class division of society, i.e., simultaneously with the abolition of anarchy in production, it will abolish all forms of exploitation and oppression of man by man. Society will no longer consist of antagonistic classes in conflict with each other, but will present a united commonwealth of labour. For the first time in its history mankind will take its fate into its own hands. Instead of destroying innumerable human lives and incalculable wealth in struggles between classes and nations, mankind will devote all its energy to the struggle against the forces of nature, to the development and strengthening of its own collective might. After abolishing private ownership of the means of production and converting these means into social property, socialism will replace the global market, competitive and blind processes of social production, by consciously organised and planned production for the purpose of satisfying rapidly growing social needs. With the abolition of competition and anarchy in production, devastating crises and still more devastating wars will disappear. Instead of colossal waste of productive forces and spasmodic development of society-there will be a planned utilisation of all material resources and a painless economic development on the basis of unrestricted, smooth and rapid development of productive forces.

The abolition of private property and the disappearance of classes will do away with the exploitation of man by man. Work will cease to be toiling for the benefit of a class enemy: instead of being merely a means of livelihood it will become a necessity of life: want and economic inequality, the misery of enslaved classes, and a wretched standard of life generally will disappear; the hierarchy created in the division of labour system will be abolished together with the antagonism between mental and manual labour; and the last vestige of the social inequality of the sexes will be removed. At the same time, the organs of class domination, and the State in the first place, will disappear also. The State, being the embodiment of class domination, will die out in so far as classes die out, and with it all measures of coercion will expire.

The development of the productive forces of world socialism will make it possible to raise the well-being of the whole of humanity and to reduce to a minimum the time devoted to material production and, consequently, will enable culture to flourish as never before in history. This new culture of a humanity that is united for the first time in history, and has abolished all State boundaries, will, unlike capitalist culture, be based upon clear and transparent human relationships. Hence, it will bury forever all mysticism, religion, prejudice and superstition and will give a powerful impetus to the development of all-conquering, scientific knowledge. In socialism no social restrictions will be imposed upon the growth of the forces of production. Private ownership in the means of production, the selfish lust for profits, the artificial retention of the masses in a state of ignorance, poverty-which retards technical progress in capitalist society, and unproductive expenditures will have no place in a Communist society. The most expedient utilisation of the forces of nature and of the natural conditions of production in the various parts of the world, the removal of the antagonism between town and country, that under capitalism results from the low technical level of agriculture and its systematic lagging behind industry; the closest possible co-operation between science and technique, the utmost encouragement of research work and the practical application of its results on the widest possible social scale; planned organisation of scientific work; the application of the most perfect methods of statistical accounting and, planned regulation of economy; the rapid growth of social needs, which-is the most powerful internal driving force of the whole system-all these will secure the maximum productivity of social labour, which in turn will release human energy for the powerful development of science and art.

“From each according to his abilities to each according to his needs!”

Our Economy?

There is another climate change conference coming up in December in Paris. Some countries appear to be getting more serious. Perhaps they see that eventually it will cut seriously into profits, especially when half the world is under water! However, there are still plenty of idiots trying to deny the science. The New York Times (Oct.11) contains an article entitled, "Stuff Happens, Like Climate Change". In it they quote Republican presidential candidate, Marco Rubio, "We're not going to destroy our economy the way the left-wing government that we are under now wants to do." Meanwhile, Governor Christie said about George Schulz (Reagan's secretary of State who now proposes that Republicans start to come to terms with climate change), "Listen, everybody makes mistakes once in a while." Hurricane Sandy caused $36 billion in damage in Christie's state! John Ayers.

A Continuous Grind

So now it is back to school and for parents it means dipping deeper into their pockets, especially if the kids want whatever is considered 'cool', hence expensive. A Fraser Institute paper said, "Between lunches, clothes, extra-curricular activities, and birthday parties, parents are likely to spend $3,000 to $4,500 a year. Furthermore, fifty per cent of secondary students will end up asking their parents for additional support because they've run out of money. 

Another example of how life is getting harder for every one under capitalism. 

John Ayers.

Slaves to the Left

The absence of a viable socialist movement today is an indisputable and depressing fact. This is hardly a profound observation. It has been noted by many others. Those who do acknowledge the problem have offered differing explanations. Some blame sectarianism. Dozens of other explanations abound. Obviously, history has not unfolded as Marx envisioned. The absence of a strong socialist political party has driven some on the Left to delude themselves into pursuing a strategy that envisages capturing the Labour Party and transforming it. Suffice it to say, those who advocate such a strategy are hard-pressed to provide one shred of evidence of the Labour Party’s receptivity to a socialist agenda. Such a strategy is an exercise in futility. The bulk of the Labour Party MPs do not even seem willing to defend what’s left of the welfare state. The trade union movement affiliated to the Labour Party is also an embarrassment. The TUC slavishly accept the capitalist labour laws that severely constrain and restrict overall union activity. They have essentially capitulated and proved themselves to be incapable of defending the interests of working people. To say this is not to argue that all work within the unions should be abandoned, that need is undeniable.

Nationalistic jingoism, xenophobia, racism, and sexism are well entrenched and permeates all facets of daily life. Appealing for human decency and compassion has clearly been inadequate. People who feel increasingly alienated and disempowered go on the defensive and often into denial. Socialists face a most difficult situation for the problems are many and the solutions so far unknown. Unable to chart a path out of isolation, socialists expend much of their time and energy in tried and trusted activities. Unfortunately, this is further evidence of their impotent state rather than its vitality. Each year activists stage “mass” demonstrations and rallies. While they have some worth, they usually attract only the faithful and have become little more than media events. Moreover, such protests are now incorporated into the legal bureaucracy with the use of police permits and the like and has become almost institutionalised. The lack of unity for the socialist goal has prompted the establishment of numerous organisations of varying forms – loose federations, flexible networks, etc.– without any clear solution to the problem. Socialist unity remains elusive. There are no ready-made answers to the complex questions facing socialists today. At the same time, the lack of such answers is no excuse to throw in the towel. Regardless of the weaknesses, the day-to-day struggle continues, whether it be in the trade unions, civil rights, environmental campaigning or what have you. Socialists must look beyond the immediate situation and be willing to outline a vision of a future society. The issues must be about how goods are produce and distributed, who owns the means of production and how work is organised and administered. Socialists must question the very way we spend our lives in a never ending and environmentally destructive process of expanding production and consumption. Overcoming scarcity, i.e., meeting people’s elementary material needs for food, clothing, shelter, etc., is obviously necessary. A more insidious problem, however, is the mindless consumerism and the ever-expanding creation of “needs”. The fact is that the planet cannot possibly sustain this toxic wasteful lifestyle on a global scale. Besides being ecologically unfeasible, the unrelenting drive for increased growth and production is threatening to permanently subvert the struggle for human liberation itself. A technological faith in expanding production has become synonymous with “progress” and “freedom” is equated with the right to consume. All this turns people themselves even more into commodities, reduced even more into yet another expendable raw material.

Our socialism should be not only democratic, non-exploitative, egalitarian, and internationalist but one that thoroughly replaces the limitless growth model of capitalism. We must keep the ideal alive and struggle to make it a reality to triumph over the present-day insanity and avoid the path of barbarism or collective self-annihilation.

Our Enemy is Capitalism

Capitalism remains the enemy of humanity, it cannot be reformed and the only solution is to build a new social system. Socialism cannot be anything but global. All attempts to make socialism national have failed, because the economy is global and there cannot be a socio-economic solution of the problems within the narrow borders of a country. In this era of nationalist movements who believe that everything can be solved in the own country, the Socialist Party says there is only solution at the global economy level which is socialism. It is not possible to build socialism city by city or government department by government department. The revolutionary heart of the socialist critique lies in the refusal to accept that what is will always be. Marx showed that change was inherent in the very fabric of society. Leftists are well known for putting the world to rights while downing a pint. The Socialist Party does not believe that the world is on the verge of revolution but it does not mean that we consider revolution as a far off dream. The present inactivity of our fellow workers cannot change the facts which Marx exposed, namely the contradictions inherent in capitalism’s very existence: A handful of capitalists still get rich at the expense of the rest of us – those who work for wages who bear the misery of unemployment caused by capitalism’s constant search for profits. So we are not misled by surface appearances - the nature of the system has not changed. The possibilities for change is ever-present. There is massive cynicism and distrust of the system, its inability to provide basic services, its determination to charge us for the necessities of life and to impose unaccountable bureaucracies to rule our lives. The problem is, what course of action can offer a solution? Things never stay the same: opportunities will arise to assert the working class’ interests – peacefully if possible, by force if necessary. There is no socialism but democratic socialism.

We live in a world dominated by capitalism, a system which allows a small minority of capitalists to oppress and exploit the great majority of humankind. It is capitalism that brings about great inequalities in living standards with more poor people now in the world than ever before, starts murderous wars to steal the resources of less developed countries and causes the growing devastation of our natural environment. Either we get rid of this outmoded and increasingly decrepit system or it will devastate humanity. The hour is late and urgent action is necessary. The only viable way forward is to achieve socialism, a classless and stateless society on a world scale where people do not oppress and exploit each other and where we live in harmony with our natural environment. To create such a world it is necessary to overthrow the rule of capitalism and this can be done only through a social revolution.  The working class must depose the capitalist ruling class and establish socialism, a system of real, popular democracy. People know that capitalism is no good but few can see a way forward to a better type of society. To achieve this aim we are spreading knowledge of the revolutionary outlook of socialism. It is through political action that we reach out to people with our revolutionary message.  Socialism and the classless society is just as necessary as ever and just as vital an idea as ever. And it is still necessary to organize into political parties to wage the struggle for socialism. Ours is a revolutionary party. It isn’t just trying to improve capitalism. It aims to organise the workers so that they can collectively transform society.

Crime and Poverty

Scotland's criminal justice system punishes poorer people and makes it difficult for them to escape poverty, according to an academicstudy by University of Edinburgh researchers. Report author Prof Lesley McAra said: "Our findings highlight a very destructive dynamic - poverty increases the risks of violence. Contact with juvenile justice system increases the risks associated with poverty. As a result, contact with the very agencies meant to stop offending is inadvertently reproducing the conditions in which violence can flourish."

It found children from deprived backgrounds were twice as likely to face police action than better off children who commit the same crime. Living in poverty also increased the likelihood of violence among both boys and girls. Poorer young people were also about five times more likely to be placed on statutory supervision than their better-off counterparts. They found that a history of being in trouble with the police was the strongest predictor of whether a young person was not in education, employment or training by age 18.

Household poverty was identified as an exacerbating factor that increased the likelihood of young people offending. This was the case even when a range of other risk factors have been taken into account, the researchers said. They found that people who lived in extreme poverty were much more likely to be the victims - and perpetrators - of crime. Girls from poorer backgrounds were twice as likely as girls from more affluent households to be involved in violent crime, the authors said. This was the case even after other factors - such as truancy, substance abuse and poor parental supervision - were taken into account.

 Another study by Applied Quantitative Methods Network (AQMeN) Research Centre - also based at the University of Edinburgh's Law School - suggested that victims experiencing the most crime continued to be within the most deprived communities. Half of the communities with the highest crime rates were found in the top 20% of areas with the highest levels of chronic health problems, the report showed. A third of the communities with the highest rates of crime were in the top 20% of areas with the highest levels of unemployment.

Lead researcher Prof Susan McVie said: "The findings are important as they suggest that crime tends to be highly concentrated amongst poor people and within poor neighbourhoods, and this has not changed despite crime being at its lowest level for decades.”

There Is Only One Enemy

Posters calling for the formation of a white students' union at the University of Toronto have been removed after student union reps called them "triggering". The poster featured the pictures of two blond white guys staring into the sky flanked by the CN Tower. They directed people to a web site supporting students for a western civilization. A post on the site calls multiculturalism an undemocratically imposed immigration culture policy that is rapidly reducing white people to minorities, and calls for a students' union that promotes white people's interests. This is just another incident of racism and emphasizes to all who can see clearly that a society based on private property interests will always turn people against each other until they realize they only have one enemy – the economic system that creates racism and other divisions. How else can the one per cent rule the ninety-nine per cent? John Ayers.

The Message

Grosvenor Cinema in Glasgow was due to screen  the Oscar-nominated The Message, on behalf of the Islamic Society of Britain. But it pulled the screening after an anonymous petition with 94 signatories – largely from Scotland but also from people registered in Nigeria and Saudi Arabia – criticised the film as being “inappropriate and disrespectful” to Islam. Complaints against the film on the petition included the “inappropriate material such as music and dancing” as well as supposed historical inaccuracies and non-Muslim actors portrayed some of the prophet’s closest companions.

The ISB called for the cinema to overturn its decision taken after such a “small number of objections” and said: “These protestors demonstrate the worst elements of our community, as they are imposing their beliefs on others.” The ISB said it “has worked for decades to promote the rights of people to make Islam relevant to British society” before adding: “We will not be bullied by these people and challenge them to make themselves known. We are also appealing for the Grosvenor to stick to the original agreement and show the film.”

SNP MSP Humza Yousaf was “appalled” the cinema had caved in to “a few narrow-minded imbeciles”.

The National Secular Society (NSS), has condemned pulling the screening as “contributing to the climate of censorship”. Stephen Evans, a campaign manager for the NSS, said: “Incidents like this have a real effect on free speech. The limits on what is deemed to be acceptable are constantly shrinking and there is a real fear of causing offence.” The NSS has written to the cinema urging it to think again. “This is an Oscar-nominated film from the 1970s. This shows you how regressive this incident is. Too often people capitulate to the reactionaries; it’s dangerous.” In the letter the NSS said it was “surprised and extremely disappointed to see a cinema capitulate to reactionaries who wish to deny freedom of expression, and we are keen to learn the rationale behind your decision”.

                                             

We need change

It is often argued that no matter how desirable socialism may be, it could never be made to work, because, whatever changes are made in the form of society, human nature will always remain fundamentally the same: there must always be rulers and ruled, rich and poor, employers and employed. This argument springs from ignorance. The study of history, and the observation of primitive communities still living in the world, prove that in the earliest kind of society not only were the land and the tools (what are called the means of production) regarded as the common property of the tribe, but everyone shared in the common tasks of production. Because of the low level of technique such communities were necessarily rudimentary, but because there was common ownership, and therefore no classes, they are correctly described as “primitive communism.” Gradually, however, as mankind achieved greater mastery over the forces of nature through increased society the exploitation of the vast majority by a small privileged section, and the class struggles resulting from that, were unavoidable because of the low technical and productive development. Now, however, capitalist society has led to such a tremendous improvement in technique and to such a vast increase in the productive forces that there is no longer any need for the division of society into classes. Moreover, by explaining how the capitalist class exploits the working class, socialists are able to show that the very existence of the capitalist class, instead of helping forward the development of the productive forces, is now increasingly hindering such development. It follows, then, that the next step forward in the development of human society can only be taken by the working class. By taking this step, the socialist revolution the working class, being itself the great majority of the people, will end the exploitation of man by man.

 Capitalist society is a society divided into two main classes: the capitalists, (or bourgeoisie); and the working class, (or proletariat.) The former own the land, the factories and the machines, and all the means by which wealth is produced (the means of production), and are therefore the ruling class, though they do no productive work themselves. The latter though they do all the real productive work of society, own neither the means of production nor the wealth they create; and, therefore, are forced to sell to the capitalists their ability to work and produce. Numerically, the capitalists are an insignificant minority, while the workers constitute the vast majority of the people. Capitalism is not based on plenty. Though it has developed, for the first time in history, the possibility of providing enough for everybody, it has always condemned a great part of the people to live in poverty and insecurity. This is because the capitalist class, who decide what is to be produced, base their decisions not on what people need but upon how much profit they will make when the goods are sold in the market. Capitalist society is not a peaceful, international society, but, on the contrary, nationalist in a narrow, selfish way. Just as within each capitalist country the various capitalists and groups of capitalists compete with each other in order to sell their goods at a greater profit, so capitalist countries as a whole enter into competition with other capitalist countries. This competition inevitably leads to wars: on the one hand to enslave more backward countries; and on the other, to re-divide the countries which have been enslaved between the different capitalist countries. Such wars are not in the interests of the working class, but only of the capitalists. Because capitalism is a class society, in which the small class of capitalists exploits the great majority of the people—not only the manual workers, but also the professional and technical workers and the small farmers it is necessary for the capitalists to impose their will upon the people. It does this, partly by filling all the key posts in the armed forces, the Civil Service and all legal institutions (that is, in the State) with members of its own class; partly through its control of the media and so on, by which public opinion is influenced. Thus, while in a capitalist democracy it is true that the majority of the people have the opportunity of taking part every few years in the election of the Government and of the local authorities, and in addition have won a number of democratic rights such as the right to organise in trade unions and political parties, freedom of the press, etc., nevertheless the real power of the State remains in the hands of the capitalists. The strength of this power has been shown in fascist countries, where the capitalists, threatened by the growing strength of the working class, were able to sweep away all the people’s democratic rights. Under capitalism human society is condemned to a series of bitter struggles; class against class, nation against nation, and individual against individual. Inevitably, therefore, the great majority of the people, instead of being inspired by a common social purpose, are forced to struggle for their own individual and selfish interests. Moreover, since capitalism condemns the majority of people to poverty or insecurity, there is a continual waste of human talent and ability.

The first and fundamental contrast between socialist and capitalist society is that under socialism all the means of production—the land, factories and mines—are owned in common. Thus the exploitation of one class by another is ended. Instead of one small class being able to live on the labour of the majority of the people, everybody is obliged to undertake some form of productive or administrative work on behalf of society as a whole. In socialism, production is organised to meet the needs of the people and not to provide profit for a single class. It will, therefore be possible to plan production; and so to increase enormously the amount produced.  With the ending of exploitation people’s attitude to work will change; instead of being merely a means of living it will become a necessary part of a new kind of social living. Similarly their attitude to property will change, family life will take on a new significance, etc.; and with these changes a new code of morality will develop.