Goals of this Group ------------------- This group is meant to facilitate the discussion of a hypothetical Libertarian Socialist Party that could unify parts of the libertarian-leaning left. It is a brainstorming session. The question asked by the experiment is, "What kind of a party could receive broader support among the left, and also support with the public at large?" What kind of group would cause you to sacrifice your tendency loyalties for the greater goal of achieving communism? I see the development proceeding in several stages that are probably somewhat interrelated, though should receive their own focus: The first thing to settle on would be a list of fundamental principles that the group would share belief in. The list should be adistillation of far-left beliefs. It should have some room for interpretation, but it should be exclusionary--i.e. not believing in the list should exclude you from the party. Next would be agreeing on a provisional definition of communism. There has to be a concrete goal, vagueness just makes it sound like a religion. Capitalism has the power of objectivity--it's real and it feeds you--and we need some of that power. Third would be a discussion about the bylaws or other internal matters to the workings of the organization to ensure it behaves as a democracy and so forth. Any strategies the hypothetical party would undertake would be discussed within the framework of the party itself. Who Is This Group For? ---------------------- Anyone who would like to participate in this discussion is welcome in the Group. It would be good if there was a broad base of far-leftists from anarchist, anarcho-syndicalist, libertarian socialist, council communist, anarcho-communist and similar tendencies, and they are the target of this group. The hypothetical LSP is supposed to be broad based, but not at the expense of some fundamental principles. It is not for everyone. Open Source ----------- The fictional party is Open Source. Members of the group may suggest changes to be incorporated into the details, but such changes should be clearly justified and are open to debate before being "merged" upstream. It's Just My Ideas ------------------------- Yes, it is. That's why it should be OpenSource, to gather lots of ideas. If I thought it was perfect, I wouldn't ask people to modify it. I have some justification for each of the ideas it contains or embodies, though, and I'm happy to share them if anyone asks. Note that all of your posts are also your opinion and ideas. The Parameters of this Discussion --------------------------------- There has to be some frame to the discussion so it doesn't get cluttered and confused, or descend into anarchy. Plenty of useful acronyms are coined below, too. Initially, I will be posting six threads. This thread contains the Developer's Guide (the DG or just Guide), and three others will contain the Statement of Principles (SoP), Communism for the Complete N00b (CCN), and the Organization Bylaws. The one bylaw I'll initially suggest shouldn't be taken too seriously The fifth thread will serve for discussion about this Guide and the frame of the project, the final one for outright criticism of the project itself, its goals, and its general tenor, as in the original thread I posted in the public areas. Detailed and tangential discussion should occur in threads other than the first four. The initial threads should only contain suggested alterations. Discussion of them should occur in their its own thread, though. The initial thread will be a historical record of changes, then, without being cluttered up with debate. Expectation of Abject Failure ----------------------------- I fully expect for this project to not attract much attention, and I expect abject failure. I expect to be the only member of the Group, in fact. Merely commenting about my imminent failure doesn't help anything.
