De Leonism?

[OneBrickOneVoice]

De Leonism sounds interesting however I don't understand two things.

1. Why are De Leonists so critical of Democratic socialist when De Leonists try to get in power through an election just like democ socialists?

2. How is the party run if not by democratic centralism? Also why don't De Leonists parties not want to be vanguard parties?

If there are any De Leonists on this forum It'd be nice if you could awnser this for me. Thanks.

[Amusing Scrotum]

Answers from the wikipedia page on De Leonism (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Leonism):


Originally posted by LeftyHenry+--> (LeftyHenry)1. Why are De Leonists so critical of Democratic socialist when De Leonists try to get in power through an election just like democ socialists?[/b]

"....De Leonism also lies outside the Democratic Socialist and Social Democratic tradition. Daniel De Leon and other De Leonist writers have issued frequent polemics against democratic socialist movements, especially the United States Socialist Party, and consider them to be "reformist" or "bourgeois socialist." De Leonists have traditionally refrained from any activity or alliances viewed by them as trying to reform capitalism, such as social justice movements, preferring instead to concentrate solely on the twin tasks of building support for a De Leonist political party and organizing Socialist Industrial Unions."

Basically, the aim of the De Leonists is to transform the social structure of society once in power. And, although that has similarities with early social-democracy, it's very different to modern day social-democracy....or even post-WWI social-democracy for that matter.

Indeed, I imagine that, from a De Leonist perspective, you're not quite framing the question in the correct way. That is, unlike traditional social-democracy which aims to just win an election; the De Leonists would contend that Party power would be backed up by Labour Power. That is, the Revolutionary Unions would act as, well, the militant wing of the class....and they would remove the capitalists instead of relying on Parliament to make laws.


LeftyHenry
2. How is the party run if not by democratic centralism? Also why don't De Leonists parties not want to be vanguard parties?

"The highly decentralized and democratic nature of the proposed De Leonist government is in contrast to the democratic centralism of Marxism-Leninism and what they see as the dictatorial nature of the Soviet Union. De Leonists believe their proposed system of government, not the vanguardism of Marxism-Leninism, is the true representation of what Karl Marx meant by a "dictatorship of the proletariat"."

Given the historical era in which De Leonism emerged, I'd speculate that this translates as them, the De Leonists, wanting a certain amount of Free Press, if not total Free Press, the toleration of factions, workers management instead of specialist management and so on and so forth.