The Argument for American Socialism

Published in The Catalyst 

Ever notice something about the political discourse on the left and right? Something both parties have in common, so disturbing it will shake your very faith in capitalism? Well, let me put it this way: You hear so much about the Middle Class, but nothing about the growing lower class. You hear so much about small business owners, but nothing about small business employees. And worst of all, you hear so much about taxes but nothing about what they pay for.

If the recent events in Wisconsin have taught us anything, it’s that if you push the people, push the people, push the people- they will rebel. We need to start talking about real solutions to our worsening economic crisis.

As the Obama administration’s economic policies of tax-cuts for the rich, incentive-based education, appointment of fraud-committing lobbyists and a massive military budget begin to mirror those of George Bush’s White House, many socialists are using this time to expose the flaws in capitalism run by either party and make and argument for an alternative political system.

While the increasingly loud opposition to Obama is coming more and more from the left, which should not be afraid to admit, as it has in the past, that it is full of socialists, people are beginning to see what it looks like when we beef up capitalism still tremendously void of consumer protections from the free market. I asked my Uncle Paul Fleckenstein, a proud Vermont Marxist how socialists can persuade people that the Obama administration is not, as Glenn Beck attempts to convince us, "moving down the path to socialism", but instead moving further and further away from socialist solutions.

“Socialism is fundamentally about workers, students, and ordinary people gaining control over their own lives and being able to determine the priorities of society. Right now that is about organizing from below and forcing the ruling establishment to begin to address the real needs of people and the environment.” This is something; Paul alleges would promote liberty and democracy. It exists in complete contrast to Washington D.C. now, which is, as Paul points out “run top-to-bottom by the banks, the lobbyists and the corporations”

As history teaches us time and time again, Socialist governments are not invincible to corruption or mismanagement. Too often socialism is hijacked or mishandled by those in power. In Venezuela for instance, president Hugo Chavez has exploited popular Latin American notions of anti-American socialism to bestow himself with an increasingly authoritarian grip on the nation. Chavez has transformed Venezuela into a heavily militarized country and recently proposed a new set of laws to impose penalties for spreading political dissent, something that has angered groups like Amnesty International and left many socialists questioning weather or not Venezuela’s steps towards a more dictatorial government signify an abandonment of true socialistic principals and a move towards a more totalitarian regime. Oppressive governments, like “Stalin's Russia or Mao’s China should not be confused with socialism. As Marx wrote, socialism is about the self-emancipation of the working class”, argues Paul.

     Unfortunately for socialists in America, too much time has to be spent on the defense. Aside from responding to the negative connotations socialism has thanks to Hitler’s “National Socialist Party”, socialists are constantly having to silence the charge that alternate form of government can only lead to communism and of course communism has led only to the death of millions in China and was responsible entirely for fascism in Soviet Russia.  Furthermore, socialists constantly have to defend themselves against a tough pro-capitalist lobby, which often argues that Obama’s moves to give government a bigger steak in large private industries is evidence that ‘socialism’ is furthering the recession. This argument is a distraction from the bigger picture and as Paul states, is “deeply flawed.” The argument ignores the tremendous role de-regulated capitalism played in the worldwide financial meltdown, while giving the socialist little time to propose an alternative to our current system. “The current global economic slump was caused by excess production…too many factories, too much steel, over investment in commercial real estate, too many electronics being made.” Paul argues this system is unsustainable, as we have reached where “it's no longer profitable for capitalists to invest in yet more production.” Capitalists are holding on to their profits, or “just gambl[ing] them in the stock market.” Paul explains, that this causes “layoffs, recession, falling tax revenues, and a whole lot of misery. That's what happens in a system based on profit and endless accumulation.”

     In America, the poor give more to charity per capita than the poor of any nation on earth. They volunteer countless hours to what they know is right. Churches, community centers, schools and everyday Americans fill their days with giving back whatever they have. In socialist countries like Argentina, very few citizens give to charity or work to fight poverty. The majority of NGO’s and volunteer workers in Argentina are America-financed and American-run. Americans don’t want the government to provide for the people of Argentina- we want them to provide for themselves like we provide for ourselves. While this philosophy is both compassionate and rational, the irrefutable problem is that it leaves far too many people behind. The problem with poor Americans pumping their money into charity is that nobody is pumping money into their lives. It does not efficiently spread the wealth. The U.S government rewards the wealthy, which consume in excess and give very little back. The top 2% of the nation owns 50% of the wealth. The top 5% of the nation owns 80% of the wealth. Charity simply leaves too many cracks in the system. We need a government to provide for everyone, to spread the wealth. An efficient and democratic government instituting socialism has the ability to provide for all in a way a capitalist system cannot.  “People are going hungry, without clothes, losing their homes, not able to afford other basic necessities, not because there is actual scarcity, but because it's not profitable for capitalism to provide it.” Paul said.

For now, the ruling powers of America would do anything to squash the possibility for socialism. That is why there has never been a better time to rebel. If we allow their power to grow, we will continue to suffer. Stimulating the economy provides a nice band-aid on the problems we face. But, we need to start thinking about far, far bigger changes. As it stands, the wealthy are exploiting the poor and the government is rewarding them for it (with tax cuts, bailouts and bonuses). The amount of people giving up looking for work is nearly ten times that of how many people are getting a job. Nearly 18%* of Americans have no job and while things may be looking great for Wall Street, corporations are destroying the lives of the poor. “If the decisions over what to produce and how to use it were democratized, and not made by small handful of investors and CEO's based on profit, then there would be a entirely new set of possibilities for green technologies, food production, housing, and so on.” If our government would just consider socialism, we would already be moving in the right direction- for once. You may say, “There is no way they would ever go for that”. I say, “Demanding that they do is what this country is all about”.  With revolutions taking place from Madison to the Middle East, its about time this nation rose up and demanded change. And, real change this time.

*The unemployment rate is falling because it does not include those who give up looking for work, which, every month, far exceeds the number of people who gained a job. The amount of people without a job in the U.S is currently 17.5% according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics.