Roger,
You said,
It's just that after Marx presented the world with scientific socialism all the
rest quickly faded away or very much marginalized themselves.
So do you equate "scientific socialism with the hard sciences? I mean, are its
hypotheses verifiable like those in physics or chemistry? Aren't they more
like philosophical theories? After all, scientists don't split into warring
camps that interpret scientific theories differently, but Marxists seem to.
There are all these different groups like Trotskyites and Leninites. It's sort
of like all those Protestant sects or the many different kinds of Judaism.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Roger Loran Bailey
(Redacted sender "rogerbailey81@xxxxxxx" for DMARC)
Sent: Monday, June 22, 2015 8:30 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Bernie Sanders & oppositional criticism
I have said before that I am willing to count preMarxian socialists as
socialists. It's just that after Marx presented the world with scientific
socialism all the rest quickly faded away or very much marginalized themselves.
I will even count anarchists as socialists as long as they remain communitarian
anarchists and do not stray into right-wing libertarianism. What I will not
count as socialists are national socialists and other fascists. That is a
complete perversion of the word socialism. It is like a demon worshiper calling
himself a Christian. As for the social democrats, I will count them as
socialists up to a certain point. Even as they betrayed proletarian
internationalism at the opening of World War I they still campaigned for
socialist property relations. As time passed, though, they more and more left
that perspective behind. Nowadays if a social democrat defends bourgeois
property relations and defends the right of the bourgeoisie to exploit labor
then no matter how much he calls himself a socialist he is not a socialist.
Basically, a socialist is one who advocates for collective or public ownership
of the means of production and promotes democratic management of the economy.
If you do not do that you are not a socialist no matter how much you call
yourself one. Similarly, if you are a human and call yourself a hedgehog you
are wrong. You can insist on your hedgehogness as much as you want, but you are
still not a hedgehog. I was not the one who came up with this definition and I
am not the one who decided that humans are not hedgehogs. I have no control
over that. I am reminded of a certain actor. I don't follow actors, so I don't
remember his name, but he was in that television show, Baretta. He insisted on
calling all birds chickens. It could be a chicken or it could be a turkey or a
macaw or an ostrich. To him they were all chickens. He also called all rodents
rats. It could be a hamster or it could be a squirrel or it could be a prairie
dog. To him they were all rats. That is, he just substituted the word rat for
rodent and the word chicken for bird. Guess what? He was wrong. And do you know
what would have been even wronger? If he had started calling elephants rats or
kangaroos chickens. That is, the more things you use a word to describe the
less useful the word becomes. By claiming that my definition of the word
socialism is too narrow you are claiming that the word should have no
usefulness at all. If Bernard Sanders does not advocate the abolition of
capitalism by whatever tactics or strategies he might think would work best
whether he is right or wrong about those strategies and tactics he is not a
socialist no matter how often he calls himself one.
And the same goes for Obama too. The chorus of people who call Obama a
socialist are not just using a broad definition of socialism. They are just
flat out wrong. They are at least as wrong as they would be if they called
Obama a sea turtle. Another thing I am reminded of is a certain televised
debate for the candidates for governor of West Virginia. John Raese said that
he was against Obamacare because he is against socialism. Jessie Johnson, the
Mountain Party candidate, said that it seems to him that Obamacare was
capitalism on steroids because it forces people to buy insurance from private
insurance companies. I was disappointed in Jessie Johnson. What he should have
gone on to say is, and anyone who calls that socialism is either lying to you
or else has not the slightest idea what socialism is, Which are you Mr. Raese,
a liar or an ignoramus? But would you have said that was using a too narrow
definition of socialism. Well, if it is then you may as well call the moon a
socialist. Once the word socialist is used to describe everything then there
will be no word to describe socialism and then what do you call it?
On 6/22/2015 3:50 PM, Miriam Vieni wrote:
OK, put another way, different groups have different definitions of the word,
socialist. You are very precise and you use the Marxist definition and you
believe that, that is the only proper definition.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Roger Loran
Bailey (Redacted sender "rogerbailey81@xxxxxxx" for DMARC)
Sent: Monday, June 22, 2015 2:44 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Bernie Sanders & oppositional criticism
With any word you use it is necessary to define it with a certain degree of
narrowness. Otherwise it means nothing. If a word means everything it means
nothing at all.
On 6/22/2015 11:46 AM, Miriam Vieni wrote:
Your definition of Socialism is narrow. However, to me, the label is
irrelevant Different groups have different analyses of what Sanders'
function is in this election. The far left sees him as not only a
distraction, but a tool of the establishment. I see him as a means to move
the population to the left on a variety of social and economic issues, to
get them to conceptualize their grievances so that eventually, they may take
positive action. The far left has an unfortunate habit of splitting hairs
and of damning anyone who doesn't agree with their particular point of view
as being counter revolutionary. That keeps the left weak and it alienates
people rather than attracting them to work together.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Roger
Loran Bailey (Redacted sender "rogerbailey81@xxxxxxx" for DMARC)
Sent: Monday, June 22, 2015 10:28 AM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Bernie Sanders & oppositional criticism
In the past when I have been asked what I think of Bernard Sanders I have
said that at best he is a social democrat and a right-wing social democrat
at that. I think that Sanders is causing me to revise that opinion himself.
He does not seem to be a social democrat at all and his claims of socialism
have about as much meaning as others' claims that Obama is a socialist.
Sanders is showing every sign of being nothing more than a bourgeois liberal
and not even a left-wing liberal either.
http://socialistaction.org/bernie-sanders-and-oppositional-criticism/
Bernie Sanders & oppositional criticism
Published June 21, 2015. | By Socialist Action.
July 2015 Sanders
By JOE AUCIELLO
“… the oppositional criticism is nothing more than a safety valve for mass
dissatisfaction, a condition of the stability of the social structure.” —
Leon Trotsky in his preface to “The History of the Russian Revolution.”
In early June, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton told a
conference organized by Service Employees International Union members that
she backed the $15-an-hour national minimum wage campaign. She praised the
union activists and supporters “for marching in the streets to get a living
wage” and added, “I want to be your champion. I want to fight with you every
day.”
She didn’t really mean it, of course. Within 24 hours her campaign issued a
clarification explaining that in general Clinton favors higher wages for
low-income workers, but she does not specifically endorse the demand for a
$15 hourly minimum. So, union members and activists heard their hoped-for
message; big business and Democratic Party officials heard the more honest
message.
Clinton’s cautious centrism permits her only a flirtation with leftist
causes, thereby yielding the left-of-center space to another candidate.
Thus, the stage is set for the entrance of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders,
whose campaign website boldly asks: “Ready to Start a Political Revolution?”
Sanders certainly intends to become the voice of “oppositional criticism” in
the 2016 election. Thus far, the efforts of this sometime “socialist,” the
independent in the Senate who typically votes with the Democrats, have been
more successful than those of former Democratic governors Martin O’Malley of
Maryland and Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island.
Sanders has been drawing increasingly large crowds in the primary states for
his campaign events, and in those states his poll levels are sharply rising.
Clearly, Sanders is saying something different—which energizes Democratic
and independent voters. The promise of radical change resonates with many
whose lives have seen little benefit during the tepid years of the Obama
administration.
At this stage in the primaries, the Sanders platform gives a public hearing
to many progressive ideas. Most notably, the Sanders campaign directs a
spotlight on the obscene levels of income inequality in America. Sanders
speaks out for a national, single-payer health care system and pledges to
pursue efforts to create sustainable energy to reduce global warming.
He would remove tuition fees from state colleges and universities. He
supports the $15 minimum wage, argues for breaking up the mega-banks, and
promotes a jobs package that would put people to work by rebuilding the
highways and bridges that are deteriorating throughout America.
These are reforms that, if enacted, would benefit the lives of millions.
No wonder Sanders’ poll numbers have risen dramatically.
Still, Bernie Sanders is hardly an unknown. Given his “socialist-light”
political history and voting record, which is virtually indistinguishable
from that of a typical liberal Democrat and includes support to funding
Israel and the war in Afghanistan, it is fair to ask:
Is Sanders really the voice of dissent? Is he really the figure who can
galvanize the poor, the working class, women, racial minorities, and youth
to lead the political fightback that is so sorely needed?
Though audiences at rallies may be stirred by soaring speeches, high-flown
words accomplish little. What’s more, a geyser of popular rhetoric tends to
erupt every four years around election time.
A socialist writer has noted that while the Democrats proclaim themselves
“as champions of the poor, their ‘soak the rich’ rhetoric is largely a
misrepresentation. They and their Republican counterparts use such rhetoric
only to appeal to voters. Both parties, over the last decade in particular,
have rushed to find tax breaks for the rich and lower the real income of
working people. Today even two-income families are having a difficult time
paying for basic necessities.”
This observation was made 25 years ago. The article, written by Hayden
Perry, was entitled: “Congress approves new budget: Higher taxes and fewer
services,” which certainly has a present-day ring to it. Though it was
published in the November 1990 issue of Socialist Action, it could be
reprinted today with little change.
Bernie Sanders is this year’s model of the token “leftist” who will make
oppositional criticism as a safety valve for mass dissatisfaction. His
commitment to his causes appears real enough, but it goes no further than
the margins of the Democratic Party. Those margins cannot and have never
sustained a popular movement that would give real meaning to democracy.
Some fifteen years ago, Ralph Nader launched his bid as the Green Party
candidate for the president of the United States. Although Socialist Action
gave no support to the Green Party’s electoral campaigns, which only
proposed reforms to capitalism, Nader at least argued with a boldness and
insight thoroughly lacking in Bernie Sanders today. In his 2000 announcement
speech, Nader said that the foundation of his efforts would be “to focus on
active citizenship, to create fresh political movements that will displace
the control of the Democratic and Republican parties, two apparently
distinct political entities that feed at the same corporate trough. They are
in fact simply the two heads of one political duopoly, the DemRep Party.”
How did Bernie Sanders, the socialist who asks if we are ready for
revolution, respond to the Nader campaign? In his political memoir, Nader
explains: “Bernie had told me that while he sympathized and agreed with our
pro-democracy agenda, he could not come out officially for us.
The reason was that his modus vivendi with the House Democrats would be
ruptured and he would lose much of his influence, including a possible
subcommittee chair” (“Crashing the Party,” pp. 125-126). Nader was discreet
enough not to inquire about the actual results of Sanders’
supposed influence.
Little has changed. The fix is still in. The Democratic National Committee
has essentially offered Sanders a simple deal in words approximately like
these: “We’ll let you speak out and give you a place in the six Democratic
primary debates if you affirm your place as a Democrat. You get to say
whatever you want in the state primaries as long as you support whoever we
want in the national election.”
It is not a very good deal, but it is the only one on offer, and though
Sanders will haggle, pushing for more debates, he will accept what he is
given. It’s what Bernie does. In fact, Sanders has built a career as the
fighting socialist who takes a dive for the Democrats.
Sanders does not lead and does not intend to. He follows. His vision of the
future is restricted to what has been made popular in the recent past. The
ideas Sanders offers, the program of his campaign, go no further than the
demands raised by the significant social struggles of the last several
years: the Occupy movement and the environmental movement, especially.
The lesson for activists working for Sanders is quite clear: Do better work
and be more effective by building social protest movements at the grassroots
and national levels. The opportunities are many and varied.
The Ferguson National Response Network is a good source of information for
protest actions taking place in cities all across the United States.
The approximately 100 organizations that attended the United National
Antiwar Coalition conference would eagerly welcome new supporters.
Whether it is 15 Now, Black Lives Matter, local campaigns against nuclear
power plants, struggles for environmental issues, women’s rights, and more,
important causes need the time, energy, and money that is being poured into
the Sanders for President Campaign.
The biggest flaw with Bernie Sanders is not his failure to condemn
capitalism as a system and call for its overturn. It may even be asking too
much to expect Sanders to fight for the structural reform of capitalism, to
demand the nationalization of basic industries, as the British Labor Party
did after World War II, in a platform that won a national election. The
Sanders team will say the times are not right for such bold measures, that
it is enough if Bernie only wants to soften some of the system’s worst
excesses.
But the time has come—in fact, the time is long overdue—to show a new
generation of activists just what the Democratic Party is and why it is
necessary to move past it. Bernie Sanders fails to take that decisive step.
His campaign by its very nature misleads activists by asserting that the
Democratic Party is a fit instrument for the kind of social change that is
needed to transform America.
A socialist who truly merits the term “independent” once said, “Capitalism
rules and exploits the working people through its control of the government.
… And capitalism controls the government through the medium of its class
political parties. … The unconditional break away from capitalist politics
and capitalist parties is the first act of socialist consciousness, and the
first test of socialist seriousness and sincerity” (James P. Cannon,
“Speeches for Socialism,” pp. 339-340, emphasis added).
Sanders has been compared to a “sheep-dog” who herds people into the
Democratic Party. A better analogy might be drawn from the world of sports.
In the preparation for a championship bout, boxers hire sparring partners to
help them train and get into shape for the real match. That opponent is
there to fight but not fight too much. Though putting on a lively show
before losing, the sparring partner should not cause the real boxer any
serious injury, much less draw blood.
This type of dynamic is underway now in the Democratic Party primaries.
Bernie Sanders is primarily a sparring partner for Hillary Clinton.
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