Which Party to Join?

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

I'd like to join a political party, maybe i can do something, but i don't really know where to go or what party to join. Any suggestions? Does this belong in Practice?

[Felicia]

I did a search and found these...

communist party USA (http://www.cpusa.org/)
Libertarian party (http://www.lp.org/)


oh, I found this, Leftist parties of the world (http://www.broadleft.org/leftsoc.htm), it has socialist and communist parties (they're closer to the bottom of the page) :)

[Felicia]

Socialist party USA (http://www.sp-usa.org/)

revolutionary communist party, USA (http://rwor.org/rcp-e.htm)

[stonerboi]

Progressive Labor Party (PLP)

www.revolutionary-communism.tk

Workers World Party (WWP)

www.workers.org

Workers Party USA (WPUSA)

www.workersparty.org

Revolutionary Communist Party (RCP-USA)

www.rwor.org

Communist Voice Organisation (CVO)

www.communistvoice.org

Freedom Road Socialist Organisation (FRSO)

www.frso.org

US Marxist-Leninist Organisation (USMLO)

www.usmlo.org

[Felicia]

look here too:

http://www.che-lives.com/forum/index.php?a...t=ST&f=7&t=6653 (http://www.che-lives.com/forum/index.php?act=ST&f=7&t=6653)

[TXsocialist]

Don't join a party at all - if you do, don't become intrenched in factionalist infighting, please.

I'm in the SPUSA, they're good people, but my primery concern isn't "how to get back at those DeLeonists" or whaever, it's to fight, argue, and recruit for the socialistr cause.

I step back and look at the socialists in America, and I laugh when I see them *****ing over dogmatic BS when their primary concern should be uniting and getting more than a 13 people...

[antieverything]

I would recommend both the SPUSA and the Greens/Green Party USA...note that the Green Party USA is different than the more moderate Green Party of the United States. The platform of the Greens is quite similar to the CPUSA's transition to socialism platform and in some ways more radical. They don't, however, have any Leninist/Stalinist dogma to uphold and are much more decenralized and libertarian and don't espouse the idea "democratic centralism". If you can just ignore the smelly old Wicca ladies and perhaps the dirty looks you recieve for eating meat, the G/GPUSA is a winner! Oh, I almost forgot...the website is http://www.greenparty.org

[Iepilei]

Libertarian parties in the US are just a clever disguise for anarcho-capitalists.

[antieverything]

Yeah, I don't know why she posted the LP...I agree with their social ideas somewhat (legalize homosexuality and drug use) but their economic ideas are pure lunacy..."let's all bow down and worhip the free market" kind of stuff.

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

I would rather not join the green party or the Socialist party, because I'm not a liberal, nor am I a Reformist, however, I am also not a Leninist or a Stalinist.

[antieverything]

Actually, both parties are highly multitendency and include many revolutionary marxists such as yourself. If you actually want to get out and do something, your best bet would be the Greens.

[TXsocialist]

The Green Party is capitalistic, and attracts some socialists(including myself a while back) with their "we have a chance" stuff, but they really do dislike marxists in their party.

The SPUSA is definitely multi-tendency. I'm a Leninist in it, must are your type, those on The Luxemburg side of the isle :)

[il Commy]

Political Resources USA:
http://www.politicalresources.net/usa1.htm

There's a section 'Socialist' and a section 'Communist/marxist'.

[blackemma]

The Green Party is capitalistic, and attracts some socialists(including myself a while back) with their "we have a chance" stuff, but they really do dislike marxists in their party.

Yes, for obvious reasons. Traditionally, Marxism does not place much of an emphasis on environmental issues whereas Greens place it as their major emphasis - socialism being no use if the world is uninhabitable. Also, Greens emphasizes "democratic decentralism" as compared to the "democratic centralism" of Leninist-Marxists. The Greens advocate strong worker control whereas many Leninists, not all but many, advocate Party discipline and Party control of the economy. If you really look at it, the Green platform is influenced much more significantly by anarchism than by Marxism (as can be seen by the endorsement of famous, anarchist-inspired thinkers such as Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn). I'd like to point out that I'm not saying one party is better than another, only that there are significant differences and you'd do well to consider your political tendencies before choosing (e.g., whether you lean towards decentralized, local community control or strong, central government).

Neither party is more revolutionary and both tend to share common views on the important issues: the rescue of the welfare state, the implementation of economic reform, environmental regulations - the Socialist Party USA has even given attention to animal rights recently, so it won't just be the Greens and anarchists who give you dirty looks for eating meat - so it's not so much the end the parties disagree on, but the means to get there. Hope this helps.

[antieverything]

I really suggest that you go over to http://www.greenparty.org and read the platform. It's pretty much "socialism to save the environment" though the word socialism is never used.

Here are some excerts:

Jobs for All: A guaranteed right to job. Full employment through community-based public works and community service jobs programs, federally financed and community controlled.

30-Hour Work Week: A 6-hour day with no cut in pay for the bottom 80% of the pay scale.

Social Dividends: A "second paycheck" for workers enabling them to receive 40 hours pay for 30 hours work. Paid by the government out of progressive taxes so that social productivity gains are shared equitably.

Community Assemblies: Ground political representation in a foundation of participatory, direct democracy: a Community Assembly in every neighborhood, open to all of its residents, acting as a grassroots legislative body, with its own budget for local administration, and the power (in concert with other Citizens Assemblies who share a representative) to monitor, instruct, and recall representatives elected to municipal, state, and federal office.

Average Workers' Pay for Elected Officials: Pay elected officials average workers' salaries so that they understand the needs of average people and stop being an elite of professional politicians with separate class interests.

Support Small Farmers and Break Up Corporate Agribusiness: Create family farms and farm worker cooperatives through a homesteading program and land reform based on acreage limitations and residency requirements.


Periodic Review of Corporate Charters: A public corporate charter review process for each corporation above $20 million in assets every 20 years to see if it is serving the public interest according to social and ecological as well as financial criteria.
Strengthen Anti-Trust Enforcement: Require breakup of any firm with more than 10% market share unless it makes a compelling case every five years in a public regulatory proceeding that it serves the public interest to keep the firm intact.

Democratic Production: Establish the right of citizens to vote on the expansion or phasing out of products and industries, especially in areas of dangerous or toxic production.
Workplace Democracy: Establish the right of workers at every enterprise over 10 employees to elect supervisors and managers and to determine how to organize work.

Worker Control of Worker Assets-Pension Funds and ESOP Shares: Pension funds representing over $5 trillion in deferred wages account for nearly one-third of financial assets in the US. 11 million workers participate in employee stock-option plans (ESOPs). Reform ERISA, labor laws, and ESOP tax provisions to enable workers to democratically control their assets.
Democratic Conversion of Big Business: Mandatory break-up and conversion to democratic worker, consumer, and/or public ownership on a human scale of the largest 500 US industrial and commercial corporations that account for about 10% of employees, 50% of profits, 70% of sales, and 90% of manufacturing assets.

Democratic Conversion of Small and Medium Business: Financial and technical incentives and assistance for voluntary conversion of the 22.5 million small and medium non-farm businesses in the US to worker or consumer cooperatives or democratic public enterprises. Mandate that workers and the community have the first option to buy on preferential terms in cases of plant closures, the sale or merger of significant assets, or the revocation of corporate charters.
Democratic Banking: Mandatory conversion of the 200 largest banks with 80% of all bank assets into democratic publicly-owned community banks. Financial and technical incentives and assistance for voluntary conversion of other privately-owned banks into publicly-owned community banks or consumer-owned credit unions.

Democratize Monetary Policy and the Federal Reserve System: Place a 100% reserve requirement on demand deposits in order to return control of monetary policy from private bankers to elected government. Selection of Federal Reserve officers by our elected representatives, not private bankers. Strengthen the regional development mission of the regional Federal Reserve Banks by directing them to target investments to promote key policy objectives, such as high-wage employment, worker and community ownership, ecological production, and inner city reconstruction.

Maximum Income: Build into the progressive income tax a 100% tax on all income over ten times the minimum wage.

...of course all the other stuff you would expect is there. No, they aren't revolutionary but which groups are out there that are and actually try to promote justice rather than brainwash people and control movements *cough, ISO, WWP cough*

[SonofRage]

Nowadays, the Green Party (www.gp.org) has more of an electoral focus while the Greens/GPUSA (www.greenparty.org) is more focused on activism. Join both! :D

[Saint-Just]

'30-Hour Work Week: A 6-hour day with no cut in pay for the bottom 80% of the pay scale.'

30 Hour week? What do you want your country to turn into? Who needs a 30 hour week, what about a 40 hour minimum.

It is bad practice to werk excessively or to force people to extremely long hours. But in a society where peopel are not so dependant on earnings, a socialist society, few people would feel compelled to over work. However, forcing people to do very few hours would greatly damage the economy and slow down growth.

[Sabocat]

http://www.workers.org/

[antieverything]

Green economics aren't about growth, they're about stopping it.

Holy crap, Son of Rage, I haven't seen you for months...welcome back, man!

[SonofRage]

Originally posted by [email protected] 4 2003, 10:15 AM


Holy crap, Son of Rage, I haven't seen you for months...welcome back, man!
Thanks. I've been very busy being a wage slave so I can have money before I head to graduate school in a few weeks.

[hopeforRedAmerica]

Hey...... why not start ur own party with ur own beliefs..... thats what i would like to do.. u can make up ur own rules and shit.. that would be kool.

[FistFullOfSteel]

that revolutioanry communist party,im a member of that party in sweden :cuba: