Posted by Member,Correspondence Committee, PFANS on October 16, 2009 at 22:19:52:
In Reply to: posted by David Searles on October 16, 2009 at 00:56:39:
Excuse this quik, unedited reply....
Dave, Have you seen Michael Moore's "Capitalism: A Love Story'? You should. I thought of you right away.
The growing calls for more honest appraisals of Capitalism and more questions about the meaning of democracy and capitalism do seem to make me question your conclusion that its pointless to discuss this economic system's 'mechanics' (I take it you mean 'how the system works'), that conclusion might be a bit premature. Never in my lifetime have I seen such questioning & discussions taking place on such a grand scale. Socialism & Capitalism even MENTIONED in polite company! And you think its time to not talk about them? Wow, but I don't agree. Its a perfect time.
It may not be necessary for people to intellectally understand the fine points of its mechanics to see that Capitalism is not 'for the people', you can get that from just being a decent & compassionate human being! Hey, even Moore's Catholic priests declared Capitalism EVIL AT ITS CORE. But understanding that as a SYSTEM it works in unison to control, shape, design and perpetuate BELIEF IN IT, dependence on it, acceptance of it...just as Feudalism did before it...helps to clarify what you, Dave, may no longer believe: that a system based in profit is at odds with Democracy, with human freedom & dignity & fulfillment.
Therefore while 'worker-control' is not a bad idea to start with, hell, its a GREAT idea! But in fact, eventually -without social & cooperative ownership and an end to the market-system, wages, etc EVENTUALLY--'worker-control' is a temporary step. To be truly liberating, we must keep pushing ahead til eventually reaching the goal of replacing Capitalism with (whatever name you give it) a civic & economic society freed from profit, competition, wages and exploitation.
Even some Chief Justice once said " You can have Capitalism or Democracy, you can't have both". And Billionaire Warren Buffet has said "There's class war alright, and our class is winning. And it shouldn't be". Wonder what Moore's next movie might be about?
The organizing of a class-conscious, ecological, spiritual and philosophic new party? Who knows.
Dave, you may not place a priority on democracy, some don't. You may not place a priority on cooperation, some don't. You may not feel Capitalism needs to be replaced but can co=exist peacefully with Democracy. But I don't.
As I see it, HOW we get to real democracy (definition: participation in decision-making where we live, where we work) may not be known. It may be by 'incremental tries & disappoinments' like your ideas about "Worker Control inside Capitalism". But eventually, MY belief is either Capitalism is replaced by Democracy (I call it democratic socialism, call it anything you want) or we get a state of illusion, deceit, self-deception, maybe buoyed by drugs?... By Prison, Legalized Murder & torture?.... But I'd say, thru a society the likes of which we can only imagine.
So, maybe it'll come bit by bit,(not as you seem to have envisioned & dismissed: a SUDDEN CHANGE..boom!which I HOPE will not be the case!!!! I'd dismiss that idea too) but after all the "quasi-human & civil rights" gambits have been tried,[for example"Worker
control banging up against the MARKETPLACE!!" WHO'D WIN??]....and after they've failed to do the job, I still think REAL Democracy will have to be the goal of all of us now. The goal, the target. Missing the mark is better than not trying to hit it, of course. A call for "Worker Control" is good because it points out what'should be' or what 'could be'. But if you don't know what the target is, call it as a target, its hard to judge whether you're getting close.
So as far as I'm concerned, the "Wizard of Oz of Capitalist Privatized Ownership" just has to go...granted, at some point & in some way which we cannot know for certain. But,in my view, go it must!
CorrComm,PFANS