Joining or starting a party

[goldenboy2421]

hey everyone, well im looking to joining a party but idk which one i should. there is just so many. any ideas? CPUSA?Socialist Party? Socialist Action? anything else? i live in Colorado and i dont think there is a party out here so should i start one? please help, i feel like im the only one in colorado that is socialist, i needs some homies to back me up!!

[graymouser]

hey everyone, well im looking to joining a party but idk which one i should. there is just so many. any ideas? CPUSA?Socialist Party? Socialist Action? anything else? i live in Colorado and i dont think there is a party out here so should i start one? please help, i feel like im the only one in colorado that is socialist, i needs some homies to back me up!!
I don't think we have any comrades in Colorado, but Socialist Action is definitely a better choice than either the CP or the SP. What is it that you are looking for? SA has been prioritizing antiwar work, which would certainly be one way for you to reach out to other like-minded people in your area.

Here's the contact page for SA (http://www.socialistaction.org/contact.htm).

[Comrade Ian]

I don't know anyone in it but the International Socialist Organization has a branch in Denver, contact info is this number here 202-215-3113. We're the largest revolutionary organization in the country and are from a trotskyist background, but our politics are a bit different then most Trotskyist groups. Check out www.socialistworker.org if you want to find out more about us.

[The Idler]

Join a branch, failing that start a branch. Just don't start another party.

[Kassad]

I recommend the Party for Socialism and Liberation: www.PSLweb.org

[Robespierre Richard]

http://raimd.wordpress.com/

[The Garbage Disposal Unit]

Never trust a party you have to "join".
If you want to party, call up yr friends. Tell them to call their friends. Get together the supplies you need, and make suggestions as to what other folk could bring. Sometimes, having a theme will help yr party resonate with people - and the twists folk make on it can be inspiring.
Why, I've "dress in black" get people so excited that they started a riot.

I mean, unless yr idea of a party looks more like a meeting, a parliament (from the french word for talking, as opposed to being - "I am at the party" as opposed to partying).

[wunderbar]

It's a bit old, but still useful anyway: http://www.broadleft.org/us.htm

Read up on as many of the groups as you can and decide what group is most suited to your views. If sectarianism isn't really your thing, you might want to seek out a multi-tendency party, and be aware that some of the groups on that page are NOT parties, such as the IWW.

[Niccolò Rossi]

If sectarianism isn't really your thing, you might want to seek out a multi-tendency party,

Yes, because all organisations that aren't 'multi-tendecy' are sectarian, right? Why can't we all just stop arguing and get along?

:rolleyes:

Nic.

[Q]

If sectarianism isn't really your thing, you might want to seek out a multi-tendency party

Sectarianism has nothing to do with being multi-tendency or not. Likewise (another common misconception) has it specifically to do with the size of the organisation. It has to do with how communists relate to the broader workers movement. More concretely, sects insist on "internal discussion" as a means of facilitating dissent and, consequently, the leading faction (read: the leadership) demand and enforce a monopoly on consensus. On the basis of this monopoly workers are then approached and, as such, only appeals to workers that agree with a whole plethora of ideas, ranging from the nature of the Soviet Union to understanding the finer details of pet theories. Such ideas only appeal to a small section of the working class and therefore is sectarian.

Multi-tendency organisations often insist on the same type of monopoly. But in this case, there is no leading faction or the leading faction desires to keep unity. These organisations are actually less useful even to the working class movement, as they're incapable of taking controversial positions, which could trigger a split after all.

I also suggest this blogpost here (http://www.revleft.com/vb/blog.php?b=1464).

[Gorilla]

hey everyone, well im looking to joining a party but idk which one i should. there is just so many. any ideas? CPUSA?Socialist Party? Socialist Action? anything else? i live in Colorado and i dont think there is a party out here so should i start one? please help, i feel like im the only one in colorado that is socialist, i needs some homies to back me up!!

It kind of matters what your political opinions are, if you have strong views about Stalin/Trotsky or whatever.

If you don't, if you're just interested in learning more about Marxism, cutting your teeth in social action and being around other radicals, ISO might not be a bad choice. I think they are scum, politically, in some important respects. But it's a young, dynamic group that generally gives its members a pretty good background in Marxist theory.