"A socialist government takes the side of working people, and stands with everyone assaulted by racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia, and bigotry of any kind".
What a steaming pile. On Aug 5, 4:29 pm, "\"Lone Wolf\"" <[email protected]> wrote: > Why Obama is no socialist > > by Steven Strauss > > Obama's no socialist. Socialism is a not-for-profit economic system > under workers' control, whose purpose is to meet the needs of the > majority of people. Everyone shares the abundance they produce. > Decisions are made democratically, through genuine participation from > the producers. > > The new U.S. president would be the first to agree this is not what he > stands for. In this time of economic crisis, Obama's job is to rescue > the profit system. He calls for "more competitive" U.S. corporations. > In other words, autoworkers and others should give up even more of > their pensions, wages, health insurance and retiree benefits, in order > to be "competitive" with anti-union, low-wage companies at home and > abroad. > > Obama's economists find billions of taxpayer's dollars to bail out the > bankers and brokers, but have no plan to provide universal employment > and retirement security. His healthcare plan is the same as today's — > profit-based for the welfare of insurance companies. He is silent on > the racist U.S. justice system, and on Mumia Abu-Jamal, the radical > Black journalist framed for murder during the Reagan era. > > Obama wants to leave 50,000 U.S. troops in oil-rich Iraq and expand > military operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan. > > What socialism is not. Socialist-haters and skeptics typically > proclaim that: • Socialism is big government — by definition > inefficient and invasive. • Socialism's aim is to "redistribute" the > wealth, by stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. • Socialism > leads to widespread loss of democracy and personal liberty. • > Socialism is impossible because it's against "me-first" human nature. > > This is not what socialists stand for. > > The big government myth. Capitalist politicians, whether Republican or > Democrat, have no problem with "big government." Their trillion-dollar > war budgets and bank bailouts are as big as it gets. > > The real question isn't size. It's whose side is the government on? > > A socialist government takes the side of working people, and stands > with everyone assaulted by racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia, and > bigotry of any kind. > > A socialist government's job is to create full employment by building > excellent schools and hospitals, safe and efficient public > transportation, affordable and comfortable housing, and inventive > cultural and recreational facilities. In a socialist society, there > would be no corporations destroying the environment for profit. Labor > saving technology would reduce the workday, not the standard of > living. > > A socialist government, because it does not depend on profit to exist, > would never turn off anybody's gas and electricity, tolerate > homelessness and hunger, or deny medical care for lack of insurance. > > This advanced way of life has not yet been realized anywhere > > Redistribution of wealth. All social wealth is created by working > people. But capitalists own the giant factories, mines, farms, banks, > and transportation and communication systems. So after wageworkers > produce cars, food, buildings, and computers, owners take possession > of them, sell the products on the market, and pocket the income. > > The owners and CEOs then pay workers as little as they can get away > with. What they call their legitimate profit is produced entirely by > the workers. > > According to the AFL-CIO, Bank of America's "CEO Kenneth Lewis > collected nearly $10 million in 2008, more than 400 times the average > amount a bank teller is paid each year." Socialists call for returning > this stolen wealth to the producers. > > Thus, it is the capitalist class that "redistributes" the wealth, away > from those who produced it, to the parasites who didn't. > > The question of liberty. Capitalism is built on the denial of liberty > to the majority of human beings — working people. This begins in the > workplace itself, where wage earners are told what to do by a > management they never voted for, and which certainly does not > represent their interests. > > This profit-driven economic dictatorship is the reason bosses have > employed barely-paid six-year-olds to work nearly 20 hours a day. It's > why we have forced overtime, speedup, and poverty wages for women, > people of color and immigrants. It's why bosses dump their toxic > wastes in rivers and lakes, just so many toilet bowls to them. > > In a socialist economy, the working class will determine, from the > workplace on up, what needs to be produced and how to fairly > distribute it. Economic plans will be proposed, debated, carried out, > critiqued, and improved. > > This is economic democracy. Had it been in place, the levees in New > Orleans would have been repaired long before Hurricane Katrina hit! > > It was in place in the early days of the Russian Revolution, when > workers' councils (soviets) made decisions about working conditions. > Cuba has one of the world's most advanced healthcare systems precisely > because the Cuban majority demand that their medical needs be met, and > no private healthcare profiteers can stand in the way. > > Is human nature innately selfish? Capitalist apologists say that > socialism can't work because it flies in the face of human nature. > People are inherently greedy, selfish, and downright nasty. > > To think that human beings are biologically incapable of creating a > world without wars, poverty, and bigotry must make one wonder where > such genes came from. Perhaps we are all mutants, since > anthropologists have long pointed out that the earliest of human > societies were communal, generally peaceful, and shared all they had. > > Try asking yourself this question: Am I basically hungry for money, > self-indulgent, and insensitive to the suffering of others? Or do I > want friendship, loving relationships, and to contribute to the common > good? > > Money lust and egotism appear normal only in the world of big > business. Outside that, U.S. workers are exceptionally generous, > giving what little they have to a variety of "good causes." People > march to raise funds for cancer and AIDS. Neighbors help each other > through earthquakes, hurricanes and tornadoes. > > This is called solidarity. And that's what is inherent in human > nature, emerging spontaneously every day, everywhere. Socialism > thrives on it. As pioneer socialist feminist Clara Fraser said in the > dedication of her book Revolution She Wrote, "the act of fighting > injustice is full of hope and joy when it is viewed as a slice of an > innate historical tradition, an ancient reaching out for universal > human fulfillment." > > Americans display solidarity with each stand against U.S. wars. > Solidarity built the unions, and fueled victories in the civil rights, > feminist, and gay rights movements. > > Imagine a world where all children can discover and develop their > talents, where free and critical thinking is applauded, where all the > sick receive humane care, where the planet and all its inhabitants are > not choked, but thrive. > > That's what socialists stand for. And what we fight for. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. 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