Lardlad95
28th January 2005, 04:39
“Nobody can give you freedom. Nobody can give you equality or justice or anything. If you're a man, you take it.”- El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz (Malcolm X)
What is the meaning of equality? Certainly it is not this bastardized definition that we have come to accept today. Equality has simply become a catchphrase like “liberty” and “freedom”. It is nothing more than a word that is used to appease those who might otherwise realize that their lives are not as equal as they had previously thought. What we have turned equality into is a hollow term that sounds pretty yet means nothing. The establishment, that is those who have established themselves at the top, tell us that as Americans we are all equal. What they mean however is that we are more equal than we once were. In all honesty they are correct. We are at this current moment in a better position than we were before. Of course there is a vast difference from being more equal and attaining equality. A share cropper is by all accounts more equal to his landlord than a slave is to his master, but has this leap from slave to share cropper resulted in equality? What is the difference between shackles of iron and those of poverty? There is only a slight discrepancy in the degree to which these fetters bind and demoralize. Slavery completely destroys any sense of pride and self worth that an individual can have. Share cropping does the same but it allows the individual some sense of pride no matter how small and false. Of course we must leave the past; neither of these institutions exists any longer, at least not in the United States. Instead we have replaced these antiquated systems with wage slavery. Wage slavery is simply another step in society’s progression towards true equality. Wage slavery is a system in which workers sell their labor-power to capitalists in exchange for wages. The reason that the worker does this is because he has this quirky desire to live. The problem with this system as we see it today is that Americans seem to be fixated with this stage in human society. Certainly not because it is equal but because it is adaptable; the capitalist can distort and twist this system until it appears as if it is the greatest achievement of man kind. The worker loves it because in this system he can appear to be equal, he can move about “freely” from job to job and take his life into his own hands. But is this society equal? Or is it simply a masterfully crafted illusion that holds the proletariat in its icy grasp? There were two great movements in American history that helped the capitalist develop this charade, and oddly enough they both came from the left.
During the time of the industrial revolution the United States saw a dramatic shake up in the economic structure of the nation. Robber Barons as they would come to be called were the poster boys for the concept of lassiez-faire capitalism. With practically no government involvement in business these “lords of industry” were able to amass tremendous amounts of wealth through shady business practices, or savvy business practices depending on the point of view. Their new machines were oiled with the blood, tears, and sweat of the workers who they employed. There was literally no end to the injustices that they would commit in order to turn a profit. Working conditions were atrocious, young children were working in factories and mines, and the capitalists were paying the workers relatively nothing. Of course it was not the plight of the worker that urged the United States government to act; to the contrary they were blatantly anti-worker. Instead it was the simple fact that monopolies and trusts were taking over the economy. With only a few companies controlling nearly all of industry the economy was bound for eventual collapse. Monopolies and trusts could not only control the wages that they paid employs but also control prices for the entire industry. In addition they often had a large influence on other industries. J.D. Rockefeller intimidated the rail roads into paying him the prices that he deemed to be “fair”. Seeing just how dangerous these monopolies and trusts could be the government passed the Sherman Antitrust law which forbade the formation of monopolies and trusts. This prevented the concentration of wealth in the hands of the very few, it was still in the hands of the few, just on a smaller scale. Despite this of course the US still operated in a system that was detrimental to workers. Conditions did not improve and neither did wages. This led to the formation of labor organizations and unions. Unions ran into serious trouble in their early days seeing as how they were illegal. The labor organizations on the other hand faired better, particularly the American Federation of Labor which was essential to the promotion of collective bargaining. Political parties would also play a vital role in the struggle for worker’s rights. The populists and later the socialist party made great strides in spreading a leftist message. It is with parties however that we see just where the capitalists were able to begin their illusion of equality.
The labor movement had little success in aiding the plight of the worker going into the twentieth century. However the Great Depression appeared to be the time for the labor movement to come in and take the nation off of the destructive path that capitalism had taken it on. However FDR and his new deal got there first. The New Deal, a grouping of political and economic actions that were designed to alleviate the plight of the working class was nothing more than a bastardized version of the Socialist party platform. The democrats stole the ideas of the labor movement and siphoned off support from the leading labor parties. FDR convinced many labor leaders that he was on their side and was able to effectively silence the labor movement. Now it would appear that any leftist should be happy about these policies being enacted. However by only enacting half of the plan FDR distorted the entire intent of the program. He used social programs to save capitalism, not to promote socialism as they were intended to do. This is how the illusion of equality got its start. It appears as if the government has a true concern for the well being of its citizens. There is a safety net in existence should anyone fall through the cracks. If anyone does fall welfare, unemployment, or social security should save them. However the original intent of these programs was to be an aid until socialism eventually insured that there were no cracks to fall through. Instead they are used to perpetuate the very system that generates the cycle of poverty. The execution of this was brilliant, it eliminated the threat of socialism and it saved capitalism from failure.
The first half of equality fraud involves everything that social reforms have done, namely make the populace feel economically secure. This security bolsters the notion that the “American Dream” in which anyone can make it, actually exists. With a safety net it appears as if it’s even easier for someone to strike it rich. This isn’t so much a matter of equality as it is opportunity. In America the fact that one has the same opportunity as everyone else translates into a sense of equality. If I have the same economic opportunity that everyone else has then I have equality. Perverted social reform translates into increased opportunity in the eyes of most Americans. The fact that the government guarantees workers rights intoxicates wage slaves into believing that the system is fair. These reforms cloud the fact that the system still does not operate in the favor of the worker. What people fail to realize is that these reforms have done nothing to tip the odds in their favor, all they do is guarantee basic rights that workers should have had anyway. They do nothing to promote economic equality, or to even promote equal economic opportunity. Under the current system the top ten percent of the United States population control seventy point nine percent of the wealth. The other ninety percent own about thirty percent of the wealth. In addition the average worker earns five hundred times less than the average CEO. What this system results in is a cycle of destitution that is nearly impossible to escape from. Without the necessary funds it is beyond difficult to make it out of poverty. Of course this is speaking directly to extreme cases. Even still, upward mobility within the United States is not as drastic a change as some would imagine. Most people who are born into the middle class will die there perhaps with a bit more money than their parents did, however it is rarely enough to move them up to a new tax bracket let alone economic class. Despite this people still believe that equality exists in this nation. Perhaps it is because they believe that equality is not simply on an economic level.
While the first component of the equality illusion is economic the other is undoubtedly social. Social equality is something that has existed in many forms through out American history. Each form depended greatly on which group was finally accepted into society. Originally social equality followed the old British standard of white land owning males. The difference was that in America there was more land and there for more white land owners. Thus social equality in colonial America surpassed England on the sheer basis of population. Gradually however society would progress towards “equality” as more and more people were granted the rights they were guaranteed by the constitution. Of course the elite found a way to ensure that some people were a tad bit more equal than others. Grandfather clauses, Jim Crow laws, and number of other things barred blacks from receiving everything that three constitutional amendments guaranteed them. In essence social equality is a concession given to the people by those who are in power. It is never true equality, rather it is what ever the elite believes it can get away with for the time being. For example homosexuals technically have social equality in the United States except they can’t get married and in some areas they can be discriminated against in the work place. It is policies like this that show what social equality means in America. It is really equal treatment for everyone except for the current punching bag, be they gay, Black, Asian, Jewish, or as in most instances the working class.
The modern concept of social equality has is roots in the other great movement in American history, the civil rights movement. Like the labor movement the civil rights movement was born out of a response to a grave injustice. For nearly a century Blacks had been subject to oppression through the Jim Crow laws which legalized racism. However like any oppressed group Blacks would reach a breaking point that resulted in a movement to end institutionalized racism. It began with Brown vs. Board of Education, which effectively ended the practice of “separate but equal” segregation in schools. Within the next ten years a movement would arise that would put an result in better treatment for minorities, women, and other oppressed groups. Various acts and reforms would be passed to guarantee rights and help Blacks get on the same footing as whites. However this attempt at equality would have one key flaw that plagues blacks to this day.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. played in invaluable role in the civil rights movement. His dream of a equal society was nothing short of admirable. However in order to gain social equality one must have economic equality first. Malcolm X, King’s contemporary, proposed a system of Black Nationalism in which blacks were completely separate from whites and totally self-reliant. Granted Malcolm revised his philosophy later in life; however he remained true to the idea that economic equality is essential in achieving social equality. To be fair towards the end of King’s life he worked hard on economic issues, but in my opinion his stance was not radical enough. Laws and resolutions are all well and good but without economic power the laws have little relevancy. What does it matter if I can go into a white store but I can’t buy anything? In order for social equality to occur blacks needed to keep their money within the black community to build up an economic and ensure that social equality could actually occur. Of course there is no true economic equality in America and there fore no social equality; but at least by building up an economic base the black community would wield much more power than it does now. The black community would be able to get a lot more done than they do now. Instead they gained a system of impotent social equality with relatively no economic power. These empty measures result once again in giving people rights that they should have had anyway. There is no equality, just a simple concession of the rights that should have already been granted.
Social equality can not exist as long as there is no economic equality. This is because without economic equality there is no power. Those with the power are the ones who make all of the decisions. The impoverished have little say in the running of the government. Every few years they vote for the people who will determine how their lives will be for the next few years. These people often come from good families; they spend most of their time around the other elite, pretending to know the plight of the working man. They don’t know of any plight, they simply say what the people want to hear. By doing this they get into power and make decisions that benefit the corporations and the special interests, instead of making decisions that benefit workers and schools. They enable this two tier education system and a myriad of other things that perpetuate the current class system. How can they claim to promote social equality when they allow these things to occur? The answer is that there is no social equality, just as there is not economic equality. It is all an illusion made to warp the mind and dull the senses.
In all of these instances we see that equality can not be given. Whenever we allow someone to give us anything we limit the scope of what we receive. This means that the equality we receive is not truly equal. We can not depend on the capitalist to give us our economic equality, just as we can not rely on the bigot to give us our social equality; and even if we were to receive one type of equality, without the other it is not true equality. Even though this is true, we are still tricked into believing that we are equal. They throw us bones that we hungrily lunge for like dogs. We beg and we plead for the petty scraps that they toss at us with contempt; but we have seen it through out history. They do not give us our equality, they do not give us our freedom, and they do not give us our justice. They lie and they distort reality to make it appear as if we have equality. We have no equality in this nation, what we have is a system that keeps us content and gives us a concession every now and again to keep us quiet. But a real man knows that what they throw is not equality, a real man does not take what he is given, he takes what is his.
What is the meaning of equality? Certainly it is not this bastardized definition that we have come to accept today. Equality has simply become a catchphrase like “liberty” and “freedom”. It is nothing more than a word that is used to appease those who might otherwise realize that their lives are not as equal as they had previously thought. What we have turned equality into is a hollow term that sounds pretty yet means nothing. The establishment, that is those who have established themselves at the top, tell us that as Americans we are all equal. What they mean however is that we are more equal than we once were. In all honesty they are correct. We are at this current moment in a better position than we were before. Of course there is a vast difference from being more equal and attaining equality. A share cropper is by all accounts more equal to his landlord than a slave is to his master, but has this leap from slave to share cropper resulted in equality? What is the difference between shackles of iron and those of poverty? There is only a slight discrepancy in the degree to which these fetters bind and demoralize. Slavery completely destroys any sense of pride and self worth that an individual can have. Share cropping does the same but it allows the individual some sense of pride no matter how small and false. Of course we must leave the past; neither of these institutions exists any longer, at least not in the United States. Instead we have replaced these antiquated systems with wage slavery. Wage slavery is simply another step in society’s progression towards true equality. Wage slavery is a system in which workers sell their labor-power to capitalists in exchange for wages. The reason that the worker does this is because he has this quirky desire to live. The problem with this system as we see it today is that Americans seem to be fixated with this stage in human society. Certainly not because it is equal but because it is adaptable; the capitalist can distort and twist this system until it appears as if it is the greatest achievement of man kind. The worker loves it because in this system he can appear to be equal, he can move about “freely” from job to job and take his life into his own hands. But is this society equal? Or is it simply a masterfully crafted illusion that holds the proletariat in its icy grasp? There were two great movements in American history that helped the capitalist develop this charade, and oddly enough they both came from the left.
During the time of the industrial revolution the United States saw a dramatic shake up in the economic structure of the nation. Robber Barons as they would come to be called were the poster boys for the concept of lassiez-faire capitalism. With practically no government involvement in business these “lords of industry” were able to amass tremendous amounts of wealth through shady business practices, or savvy business practices depending on the point of view. Their new machines were oiled with the blood, tears, and sweat of the workers who they employed. There was literally no end to the injustices that they would commit in order to turn a profit. Working conditions were atrocious, young children were working in factories and mines, and the capitalists were paying the workers relatively nothing. Of course it was not the plight of the worker that urged the United States government to act; to the contrary they were blatantly anti-worker. Instead it was the simple fact that monopolies and trusts were taking over the economy. With only a few companies controlling nearly all of industry the economy was bound for eventual collapse. Monopolies and trusts could not only control the wages that they paid employs but also control prices for the entire industry. In addition they often had a large influence on other industries. J.D. Rockefeller intimidated the rail roads into paying him the prices that he deemed to be “fair”. Seeing just how dangerous these monopolies and trusts could be the government passed the Sherman Antitrust law which forbade the formation of monopolies and trusts. This prevented the concentration of wealth in the hands of the very few, it was still in the hands of the few, just on a smaller scale. Despite this of course the US still operated in a system that was detrimental to workers. Conditions did not improve and neither did wages. This led to the formation of labor organizations and unions. Unions ran into serious trouble in their early days seeing as how they were illegal. The labor organizations on the other hand faired better, particularly the American Federation of Labor which was essential to the promotion of collective bargaining. Political parties would also play a vital role in the struggle for worker’s rights. The populists and later the socialist party made great strides in spreading a leftist message. It is with parties however that we see just where the capitalists were able to begin their illusion of equality.
The labor movement had little success in aiding the plight of the worker going into the twentieth century. However the Great Depression appeared to be the time for the labor movement to come in and take the nation off of the destructive path that capitalism had taken it on. However FDR and his new deal got there first. The New Deal, a grouping of political and economic actions that were designed to alleviate the plight of the working class was nothing more than a bastardized version of the Socialist party platform. The democrats stole the ideas of the labor movement and siphoned off support from the leading labor parties. FDR convinced many labor leaders that he was on their side and was able to effectively silence the labor movement. Now it would appear that any leftist should be happy about these policies being enacted. However by only enacting half of the plan FDR distorted the entire intent of the program. He used social programs to save capitalism, not to promote socialism as they were intended to do. This is how the illusion of equality got its start. It appears as if the government has a true concern for the well being of its citizens. There is a safety net in existence should anyone fall through the cracks. If anyone does fall welfare, unemployment, or social security should save them. However the original intent of these programs was to be an aid until socialism eventually insured that there were no cracks to fall through. Instead they are used to perpetuate the very system that generates the cycle of poverty. The execution of this was brilliant, it eliminated the threat of socialism and it saved capitalism from failure.
The first half of equality fraud involves everything that social reforms have done, namely make the populace feel economically secure. This security bolsters the notion that the “American Dream” in which anyone can make it, actually exists. With a safety net it appears as if it’s even easier for someone to strike it rich. This isn’t so much a matter of equality as it is opportunity. In America the fact that one has the same opportunity as everyone else translates into a sense of equality. If I have the same economic opportunity that everyone else has then I have equality. Perverted social reform translates into increased opportunity in the eyes of most Americans. The fact that the government guarantees workers rights intoxicates wage slaves into believing that the system is fair. These reforms cloud the fact that the system still does not operate in the favor of the worker. What people fail to realize is that these reforms have done nothing to tip the odds in their favor, all they do is guarantee basic rights that workers should have had anyway. They do nothing to promote economic equality, or to even promote equal economic opportunity. Under the current system the top ten percent of the United States population control seventy point nine percent of the wealth. The other ninety percent own about thirty percent of the wealth. In addition the average worker earns five hundred times less than the average CEO. What this system results in is a cycle of destitution that is nearly impossible to escape from. Without the necessary funds it is beyond difficult to make it out of poverty. Of course this is speaking directly to extreme cases. Even still, upward mobility within the United States is not as drastic a change as some would imagine. Most people who are born into the middle class will die there perhaps with a bit more money than their parents did, however it is rarely enough to move them up to a new tax bracket let alone economic class. Despite this people still believe that equality exists in this nation. Perhaps it is because they believe that equality is not simply on an economic level.
While the first component of the equality illusion is economic the other is undoubtedly social. Social equality is something that has existed in many forms through out American history. Each form depended greatly on which group was finally accepted into society. Originally social equality followed the old British standard of white land owning males. The difference was that in America there was more land and there for more white land owners. Thus social equality in colonial America surpassed England on the sheer basis of population. Gradually however society would progress towards “equality” as more and more people were granted the rights they were guaranteed by the constitution. Of course the elite found a way to ensure that some people were a tad bit more equal than others. Grandfather clauses, Jim Crow laws, and number of other things barred blacks from receiving everything that three constitutional amendments guaranteed them. In essence social equality is a concession given to the people by those who are in power. It is never true equality, rather it is what ever the elite believes it can get away with for the time being. For example homosexuals technically have social equality in the United States except they can’t get married and in some areas they can be discriminated against in the work place. It is policies like this that show what social equality means in America. It is really equal treatment for everyone except for the current punching bag, be they gay, Black, Asian, Jewish, or as in most instances the working class.
The modern concept of social equality has is roots in the other great movement in American history, the civil rights movement. Like the labor movement the civil rights movement was born out of a response to a grave injustice. For nearly a century Blacks had been subject to oppression through the Jim Crow laws which legalized racism. However like any oppressed group Blacks would reach a breaking point that resulted in a movement to end institutionalized racism. It began with Brown vs. Board of Education, which effectively ended the practice of “separate but equal” segregation in schools. Within the next ten years a movement would arise that would put an result in better treatment for minorities, women, and other oppressed groups. Various acts and reforms would be passed to guarantee rights and help Blacks get on the same footing as whites. However this attempt at equality would have one key flaw that plagues blacks to this day.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. played in invaluable role in the civil rights movement. His dream of a equal society was nothing short of admirable. However in order to gain social equality one must have economic equality first. Malcolm X, King’s contemporary, proposed a system of Black Nationalism in which blacks were completely separate from whites and totally self-reliant. Granted Malcolm revised his philosophy later in life; however he remained true to the idea that economic equality is essential in achieving social equality. To be fair towards the end of King’s life he worked hard on economic issues, but in my opinion his stance was not radical enough. Laws and resolutions are all well and good but without economic power the laws have little relevancy. What does it matter if I can go into a white store but I can’t buy anything? In order for social equality to occur blacks needed to keep their money within the black community to build up an economic and ensure that social equality could actually occur. Of course there is no true economic equality in America and there fore no social equality; but at least by building up an economic base the black community would wield much more power than it does now. The black community would be able to get a lot more done than they do now. Instead they gained a system of impotent social equality with relatively no economic power. These empty measures result once again in giving people rights that they should have had anyway. There is no equality, just a simple concession of the rights that should have already been granted.
Social equality can not exist as long as there is no economic equality. This is because without economic equality there is no power. Those with the power are the ones who make all of the decisions. The impoverished have little say in the running of the government. Every few years they vote for the people who will determine how their lives will be for the next few years. These people often come from good families; they spend most of their time around the other elite, pretending to know the plight of the working man. They don’t know of any plight, they simply say what the people want to hear. By doing this they get into power and make decisions that benefit the corporations and the special interests, instead of making decisions that benefit workers and schools. They enable this two tier education system and a myriad of other things that perpetuate the current class system. How can they claim to promote social equality when they allow these things to occur? The answer is that there is no social equality, just as there is not economic equality. It is all an illusion made to warp the mind and dull the senses.
In all of these instances we see that equality can not be given. Whenever we allow someone to give us anything we limit the scope of what we receive. This means that the equality we receive is not truly equal. We can not depend on the capitalist to give us our economic equality, just as we can not rely on the bigot to give us our social equality; and even if we were to receive one type of equality, without the other it is not true equality. Even though this is true, we are still tricked into believing that we are equal. They throw us bones that we hungrily lunge for like dogs. We beg and we plead for the petty scraps that they toss at us with contempt; but we have seen it through out history. They do not give us our equality, they do not give us our freedom, and they do not give us our justice. They lie and they distort reality to make it appear as if we have equality. We have no equality in this nation, what we have is a system that keeps us content and gives us a concession every now and again to keep us quiet. But a real man knows that what they throw is not equality, a real man does not take what he is given, he takes what is his.