Crusade
4th June 2010, 10:15
Alright, this is for all socialists here in general, since we all supposedly want the same thing (a classless, stateless society), but largely differ on approaches, I figured we should find out where exactly we differ on approach.
I was watching this Malcolm X speech about revolution
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zn0vHMlavTc
and I began reading threads on here about Leninism vs Anarchism. One of the posts that stuck out for me was the part about having the support of the masses. This speech particularly being about a revolution of a minority (socialists are certainly a minority in America), I felt it was appropriate to use this speech to highlight our struggle as a political minority. It's often said by many folks, including me, that we should only use violence in self defense. We should only use force when force is used against us, etc. And morally speaking, I doubt any of us would lose any sleep fighting against the capitalist state (I'd personally sleep better at night knowing I did). But we can't ignore the inescapable reality that, once again, we're a minority. Not only are we a minority, we're a bogeyman minority. The average American, worker or not, has no clue what socialism or communism is. They will certainly side with the capitalist state over us. Our revolution would certainly make enemies of not only the state, but of civilians who THINK they're doing the right thing. Civilians who think we're something we're not and who think they're protecting themselves and their families by defending the state.
This is the part where your heart bleeds and you seek an alternative solution. We have to market ourselves better. Many of you have made threads asking how to help socialism appeal to the masses, how to explain to them what our beliefs are, etc and this is just assuming we're united with those who DO agree with us. But, hypothetically, what if they don't change their mind? What if they don't listen? What would your strategy be then? Are you gonna force them to work in a socialist society? Are you gonna go somewhere else and unite with socialists in some other land? Do you wanna stand your ground here? Will you just work with the system we have and hope the masses change their minds? And when you're answering these questions, also ask yourself what would the capitalist state's strategy be if the majority of its masses wanted socialism? Would they have the same reasoning as you? Would they care whether or not you're just a misguided man fighting for what he thinks is right? Would they answer to the will of the people and surrender power? Do they have a reason to? Does it even matter?
I know I'm asking a lot of questions, but every one of us has to come to terms with our own morality and our will. Our goals aren't utopian preferences. I believe this system is destroying our species and our planet. Even for those of us living in the wealthiest countries of this planet, those of us who are supposed to love capitalism, WE'RE feeling the pinch of it now. What justifications could we possibly have for any sort of surrender being in this position? Is our cause any less genuine if we're in the minority? I'm kind of rambling now so I'll just end it here.
I've asked too many questions for everyone to answer individually so I'll just ask:
How (or) would your strategy change if socialists remained a political minority globally?
I was watching this Malcolm X speech about revolution
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zn0vHMlavTc
and I began reading threads on here about Leninism vs Anarchism. One of the posts that stuck out for me was the part about having the support of the masses. This speech particularly being about a revolution of a minority (socialists are certainly a minority in America), I felt it was appropriate to use this speech to highlight our struggle as a political minority. It's often said by many folks, including me, that we should only use violence in self defense. We should only use force when force is used against us, etc. And morally speaking, I doubt any of us would lose any sleep fighting against the capitalist state (I'd personally sleep better at night knowing I did). But we can't ignore the inescapable reality that, once again, we're a minority. Not only are we a minority, we're a bogeyman minority. The average American, worker or not, has no clue what socialism or communism is. They will certainly side with the capitalist state over us. Our revolution would certainly make enemies of not only the state, but of civilians who THINK they're doing the right thing. Civilians who think we're something we're not and who think they're protecting themselves and their families by defending the state.
This is the part where your heart bleeds and you seek an alternative solution. We have to market ourselves better. Many of you have made threads asking how to help socialism appeal to the masses, how to explain to them what our beliefs are, etc and this is just assuming we're united with those who DO agree with us. But, hypothetically, what if they don't change their mind? What if they don't listen? What would your strategy be then? Are you gonna force them to work in a socialist society? Are you gonna go somewhere else and unite with socialists in some other land? Do you wanna stand your ground here? Will you just work with the system we have and hope the masses change their minds? And when you're answering these questions, also ask yourself what would the capitalist state's strategy be if the majority of its masses wanted socialism? Would they have the same reasoning as you? Would they care whether or not you're just a misguided man fighting for what he thinks is right? Would they answer to the will of the people and surrender power? Do they have a reason to? Does it even matter?
I know I'm asking a lot of questions, but every one of us has to come to terms with our own morality and our will. Our goals aren't utopian preferences. I believe this system is destroying our species and our planet. Even for those of us living in the wealthiest countries of this planet, those of us who are supposed to love capitalism, WE'RE feeling the pinch of it now. What justifications could we possibly have for any sort of surrender being in this position? Is our cause any less genuine if we're in the minority? I'm kind of rambling now so I'll just end it here.
I've asked too many questions for everyone to answer individually so I'll just ask:
How (or) would your strategy change if socialists remained a political minority globally?