Bhaskar Sunkara, who is a vice chair of the Democratic Socialists of America wrote an op-ed piece for the NYT a while back: Socialism’s Future May Be Its Past
In it, he sets out three possible "destinations" for where we are using the somewhat contrived metaphor of rail stations as an homage to Lenin's return to Russia. "Finland Station" in the quote below represents the leftmost branch that he lays out in the railway of society.
- But there is a third alternative: back to “Finland Station,” with all the lessons of the past. This time, people get to vote. Well, debate and deliberate and then vote — and have faith that people can organize together to chart new destinations for humanity.
Stripped down to its essence, and returned to its roots, socialism is an ideology of radical democracy. In an era when liberties are under attack, it seeks to empower civil society to allow participation in the decisions that affect our lives. A huge state bureaucracy, of course, can be just as alienating and undemocratic as corporate boardrooms, so we need to think hard about the new forms that social ownership could take.
Then, Counter Punch published a response by Alan Jones of Socialist Alternative a couple of days ago: “Finland Station” and the Struggle for Socialism Today
- Bhaskar seems to be unaware of the democratic role of the soviets, while implying there was something fundamentally undemocratic about the Russian Revolution. While appealing for a return to the “Finland station” he insists that things will be different this time around. The key difference, he says, is that “This time, people get to vote. Well, debate and deliberate and then vote”. But the Bolsheviks did “debate and deliberate and then vote,” quite often in fact. If they hadn’t done that, both internally and in the soviets, the October revolution would not have been successful.
I thought it was an interesting exchange, both the pieces themselves, and in the context of where the American left is at right now.
1) Thank you for starting this discussion. 2) Fuck both authors in the neck. Here's why I hate modern socialists: They can't have a discussion that doesn't hinge on (A) nomenclature (B) history (C) semantics so you end up having a historic discussion of the nomenclature of semantics or a semantic discussion of the nomenclature of history or a nomenclatural discussion of the history of semantics and somehow, because the entire body politic of American socialists is so far up their own ass they can no longer see daylight, any discussion as to why a person who isn't already a resident of Eugene, Oregon with a masters in revolutionary politics in mid-century Spain should give the first fuck about any of it is assumed as solved by inspection and it's NOT. PROTIP: "non-Stalinist forms of authoritarian collectivism" is the language of self-parody. That shit doesn't even belong on Tumblr. HOLY FUCKING SHIT. Working examples of American socialism: - Medicare. - Social Security. - The Post Office. - Amtrak. - The TVA. - The FSA. Working examples of global socialism: - Airbus. - Eurail. - Healthcare everywhere in the developed world but the US. - Hanjin. - COSCO. I simply don't understand why the navel-gazing academics of the Left Wing can't look up from their fucking kombucha and acknowledge that small-S socialism is nothing more than government for the people, by the people, and fuckin'A the greatest progress Americans have ever achieved is by banding together and supporting the least among us for the advancement of all. And sweet jesus fucking christ if they'd try speaking in the language of the people who need socialism, in terms of what those people would get out of socialism, they might not be hated and mocked by mutherfuckers like me.Amid this turmoil, some fear a return to Finland Station via the avuncular shrugs of avowedly socialist leaders like Mr. Sanders and Jean-Luc Mélenchon in France. But the threat to democracy today is coming from the right, not the left. Politics seems to present two ways forward, both decidedly non-Stalinist forms of authoritarian collectivism.
But this is not the same as the goal of socialism: a global, classless society which does away with capitalism’s organized apparatus of repression and replaces it with a new political order based on mass democratic organs of working people and the oppressed.
You should absolutely not checkout the r/socialism subreddit. Hey now, don't drag kombucha through the mud. That shit tastes good. If you can get over the smell of feet... ... there is a simile here. I feel it. If they manage to Capitalize (heh) on this moment, and keep any of the people who have started to align with them, it'll be because of this: those new people are coopting the movement. Sunkara's print journal saw subscriptions level off in 2016. You'd have assumed it would have grown during the Bernie movement. He certainly did. But the DSA has grown from 8,000 to 25,000 dues payers since the start of the year. Not a staggering amount, I know. And of a lot of them probably did it as a reaction to Trump. Foul weather supporters, if you will. But here's the thing: those new people? The ones who out number the old guard? Surprise, surprise: they just voted in new leadership. Looking at my twitter feed (the vote literally happened this morning), it looks like the Praxis (I know, the name isn't helping) and Momentum slates won. Which is good, as they're a big part of why I was willing to join DSA last month. Praxis focused on community organizing. The opening line to their preamble was relevant to your semantics/nomenclature/history comment: The core nugget of their platform: Emphasis theirs. Meanwhile, Momentum proposed focusing on HOLY FUCKING SHIT. Working examples of American socialism: Their labor strategy is similarly build-on-what-we-actually-have: ... Our view is that this program should focus on three main strategic “industries”: education, health care, and logistics/distribution. These fields are critical nodes in today’s economy; offer opportunities to both rebuild existing unions and organize the unorganized; and give rank-and-file socialist organizers the chance to build power while living a decent life. Which has merit to my eyes, although they are colored by Teamster United lenses. The only reason TU didn't take control of the Teamsters last year is that they didn't contest Canada at all. They limited their slate to the US. And they won the US. So that gives me hope. Minneapolis just got a $15 minimum wage. Kansas City is voting on the same this Tuesday. So that gives me hope. I just found out that I now have two DSA organizations within 40 minutes of where I sit. A viable candidate for city council is meeting with one of them later this month. To reiterate: I live in fucking Kansas. Sure, the Berkeley of Kansas. But still: Kansas. So that gives me hope. This is shit that gives me hope: the new kids seem to be grabbing the wheel and looking around, not down. Maybe there's not a lot of 'em. But I know there's not a lot of people voting for city council. edited to add linksHere's why I hate modern socialists: They can't have a discussion that doesn't hinge on (A) nomenclature (B) history (C) semantics so you end up having a historic discussion of the nomenclature of semantics or a semantic discussion of the nomenclature of history or a nomenclatural discussion of the history of semantics and somehow, because the entire body politic of American socialists is so far up their own ass they can no longer see daylight, any discussion as to why a person who isn't already a resident of Eugene, Oregon with a masters in revolutionary politics in mid-century Spain should give the first fuck about any of it is assumed as solved by inspection and it's NOT.
can't look up from their fucking kombucha
And sweet jesus fucking christ if they'd try speaking in the language of the people who need socialism, in terms of what those people would get out of socialism, they might not be hated and mocked by mutherfuckers like me.
The Left’s lack of impact is not a messaging problem; it’s a substantive one.
Our National Training Strategy is an attempt to un-pack the ‘secret sauce’ of a wide array of organizing skills and tactics so members develop the skills to pursue their own politics. Poor and working people — particularly people of color — are often treated as external objects of organizing. People all around us are carrying the burden of struggle each day because they must in order to survive. No one is simply waiting for us to reveal the truth of socialism.
A national campaign for Medicare For All is at the heart of this project.
What is the role of a socialist organization in the labor movement today? We argue that the current situation leaves us with one choice: the adoption of a rank-and-file strategy.
Teaser: You're gonna like the book, and you're gonna like the review. I think the Democratic Socialists got a lot of signups because their Facebook profile picture is Bernie Sanders. I follow them because I'm interested, and I don't give them money because of /r/socialism. What you say is deeply, deeply heartening. I shall observe with interest, and hopefully more than that at some point. Because while I really hate my union leadership, I can't deny their tangible impact on my entire industry. By the way, fans of kombucha and politics shouldn't watch either being made. Having had more than a few kombucha mothers chilling in my kitchen I'll stick to tea.
Looking forward to both. We've started accumulating them. Apparently you can make Jerky? Going to the city commissioner candidate meeting will be my first brush with them IRL. We shall see. Honestly? I'm nervous about it. I can be intensely awkward when there isn't something that clicks and gives me a driving focus. At work, that catalyst is conflict. I'm hoping to find one here that scratches the same itch yet is positive.Teaser: You're gonna like the book, and you're gonna like the review.
By the way, fans of kombucha and politics shouldn't watch either being made. Having had more than a few kombucha mothers chilling in my kitchen I'll stick to tea.
What you say is deeply, deeply heartening.
shouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlinkshouldnothaveclickedthatlink I volunteered for Jay Inslee in 2004 back when he was a representative. Went to a couple town hall meetings. There were like twelve of us. He looked around and said "so what aren't I focusing on that I should be?" I said "A livable minimum wage." crickets Lo and behold. Speak your mind, speak your heart, and listen.