Socialism: The Only Practical Alternative to Contemporary Capitalism

11. The Promise of Socialism

169 Chapter 11 The Promise of Socialism Overview It is the aim of the Socialist Labour Party to create a society in which wars will be but evil memories, a society in which poverty will have disappeared, in which freedom will have been made secure, and in which democracy will have become the prevailing order of society for all. In the ideas expressed by the word Socialism, as advocated by Marxian Socialists, are embodied the hopes and dreams of the ages, a society of peace and abundance. The belief of the Socialist Labour Party is that through its program and program alone can Socialism be attained peacefully. Meaning of Socialism Socialism is no longer a pure, innocent ideal. Its appeal has been tarnished by the authoritarian, statist regimes that have ruled in its name. In the name of social equality (which they did not achieve), these regimes abolished formal political equality. To fulfil the promise of political democracy, which is eviscerated by economic inequality, democratic socialists work towards a society characterized by equality, solidarity, and participation. Participation will not be orchestrated from above by a paternalist state, but will occur from below in the workplaces, neighbourhoods, and schools of civil society. This democratic commitment to social pluralism does not negate the need for a democratic state that would ensure the rule of law, protect the environment, and insure a basic level of equity for each citizen. It is predominantly through cooperative, voluntary relationships that people will develop the social bonds that render life meaningful. In these institutions, there will be different roles 170 conforming to the varied talents citizens bring to different pursuits. The subjugation of authoritarian collectivism has little to do with the liberty of democratic socialism. Democratic socialism only promises the possibility of human fulfilment. It cannot guarantee human happiness. Human failure will exist under democratic socialism, but suffering will not be imposed by institutions over which we have no control. We will finally eliminate the gross inequalities engendered by a capitalist social order. No longer will the accident of a child’s class, race, or sex influence his or her life opportunities. The democratic revolutions of the 18th century envisioned a world characterized by “liberty, equality, and fraternity.” The inequalities of power and wealth perpetuated by capitalism frustrated that vision. Democratic socialism proposes nothing less than to complete that long revolution. The dramatic worsening of the world economic crisis over the summer gives us a clear indication that the capitalist system really is on its last legs. The ‘debt crisis’ has demonstrated the literal bankruptcy not only of the banks, but of entire states; and not only the states of weak economies like Greece or Portugal but key countries of the Eurozone and on top of it all, the most powerful economy in the world: the USA. And if the crisis is global, it is also historic. The mountain of debt that has become so visible over the last few years is only the consequence of capitalism trying to postpone or hide the economic crisis which surfaced as far back as the late 1960s and early 70s. And as today’s ‘recession’ reveals its real face as a genuine depression, we should recognise that this is really the same underlying crisis as the one which paralysed production in the 1930s and tipped the world towards imperialist war. A crisis expressing the historical obsolescence of the capitalist system. The difference between today’s depression and that of the 1930s is that capitalism today has run out of choices. In the 1930s, the ruling class was able to offer its own barbaric solution to the crisis: mobilising society for imperialist war and re-dividing the world market. This re-organization created the conditions for launching the ‘boom’ of the 50s and 60s. This was an option at that time, partly 171 because world war did not yet automatically imply the destruction of capitalism itself, and there was still room for new imperialist masters to emerge in the aftermath of the war. But it was an option above all because the working class in those days had tried and failed to make its revolution (after the First World War) and had been plunged into the worst defeat in its history, at the hands of Stalinism, fascism, and democracy. Today world war is only an option in the most abstract theoretical sense. In reality, the road to a global...