Post by RedFlag32 on Mar 2, 2006 19:19:50 GMT
Capitalism and Imperialism
Q: What is capitalism?
A: Most of the people in the world today live under capitalism. In the capitalist system, profit is the only motive for producing goods and services (commodities). A very small percent of the population (the capitalist class) own the means of production (the tools used to create and sell these commodities--factories, farms, stores, etc), while the majority of the population (the working class) has no way to make money other than to sell their labor-power (working). The capitalists don't actually create anything, the workers do, but since they own the means of production they are able to exploit the workers to make a profit for themselves. For example, a worker can make 100 shirts in one day, which the capitalist sells for $10 each, making $1000 for the capitalist, but the worker is only payed $50. So, we see that the worker was exploited for $950. This is how capitalism works, which is why there are so few rich people, while so many are struggling just to get by.
Q: Rich people deserve to be rich because they earned it. They worked hard to become rich, why shouldn't they have more than everyone else?
A: Very few, if any people get rich from "working hard". How many people do you know that worked all of their lives and have little if anything to show for it? Capitalists get rich from exploiting the labor of the workers who DO work hard. The majority of people, the workers, who create ALL wealth, deserve to receive ALL of what they create. Why should a few capitalists be rich and live in mansions, drive fancy cars, and eat expensive food, while so many people around the world don't have a place to stay or even anything to eat?
Q: What about human nature? Aren't people naturally greedy?
A: No one is born greedy. Life in capitalist society creates greed. In their homes children quickly learn to share and to cooperate, if one child has a toy and another child has a toy, they have one toy each; but if they share their toys with each other, they each have two toys to play with. But as they grow older, people are taught to look out only for themselves, to take more than they need so that they can "get ahead." The truth is that the capitalist system thrives off of this greed, people become alienated by fake feelings of "need" to have more, so they work more, and make the capitalists even richer. The truth is we can gain much more by working together than by working against each other.
Q: But don't we have democracy under capitalism?
A: Despite how it may appear, capitalist society is ruled by the capitalists themselves. The "democracy" that exsists isn't democracy at all. The people are allowed to vote for one millionaire or another, both who represent the interests of the capitalist class, and the working class isn't even represented.
Q: What does capitalism have to do with racism, sexism, and homophobia?
A: Racism, sexism, and homophobia have grown out of many historical circumstances, but under capitalism they will never dissappear. The working class outnumber the capitalists by far, and if they unite as one they could easily take over control of society; but racism, sexism, and homophobia help the capitalists stay in power because they keep the working class divided.
Q: What is imperialism?
A: In order to continue functioning, capitalism needs to grow constantly. As the capitalist system grows in "advanced" nations, it can no longer support itself without expanding. This means that new workers, new markets (places to sell commodities), and new natural resources need to be found in order to be exploited. "Advanced" capitalist nations use various methods to aquire these, including colonialism and neocolonialism, unfair "free" trade, puppet governments, and even war. This is imperialism.
Q: Which country is the main imperialist country today?
A: Though there are many imperialist nations, the United States of America is the main imperialist country in the world today.
Marxism
Q: What is Marxism?
A: Marxism is the political practice and social theory based on the works of Karl Marx--a 19th century philosopher, economist, journalist, and revolutionary--along with Friedrich Engels. Marx developed a critique of society which is scientific and revolutionary. The theories of Marxism are based on a scientific method of thought called historical materialism; to be clear there is no one answer to a question--theory is based on a particular set of conditions that are always limited, and so, any theory is necessarily limited. To find out if a theory is correct, Marxists rely on evidence to determine what is real and truthful.
Using historical materialism Marx and Engels examined history, which lead them to explain theories on the class struggle, the basis of people's relations with each other in society through economics, and the form of society that would follow capitalism (The first societies were primitive-communist socities. Primitive communism had developed into slave states. Slave states had developed into feudal societies. Those societies in turn became capitalist states, and these capitalist states will be overthrown by the self-conscious portion of their working-class, creating the conditions for socialism and, ultimately, a higher form of communism than that with which the whole process began). Basically, Marxism is all about pointing out whats wrong and working to change it.
Q: What is Socialism?
A: Socialism is the stage of transition to communism. Under socialism the workers have control of all of the means of production (factories, farms, stores, etc), since they are the ones that actually work them, and goods and services are created to supply the people with what they need, instead of creating them to make a profit for a few capitalists. In socialist society quality education (through college), healthcare, and housing are guaranteed to all, and unemployment, racism, and sexism are done away with. Since all the work that is needed to be done will be done by everyone together, individuals won't have to work as much as they currently do. The people rule socialist society in their own interest, instead of being ruled in the interests of the capitalists. Socialism is not permanent, the foundations of cooperation and equality are created in order to build communism.
Q: How do we achieve socialism?
A: The people must unite! When the oppressed peoples (workers, peasants, youth, "minorities") of the world gain class conciousness and realize that capitalism is only beneficial to the capitalists, and that it will never solve their problems, they will unite and will be able to use their strength to make revolutionary change in society. They will take over the means of production, abolish capitalism, and create a new socialist society.
Q: Will we achieve socialism?
A: Eventually yes, otherwise the human species will not be able to continue on. Capitalism creates more problems than it can solve. While more and more wealth ends up in fewer and fewer hands, more and more people are faced with unemployment and poverty. This cycle continues under capitalism and will never end until capitalism is done away with.
Q: Do people get to choose which job they want under socialism?
A: Of course, with more opportunity than exists now. Under capitalism, people recieve jobs based on the education they can afford, and the people they know. This means people who can't afford a good education and don't know anyone in "high-up" places (most people) generally have a very hard time finding a good job. Under socialism people are provided free education to learn the skills it takes to do the work they are best at.
Q: How does racism, sexism, and homophobia end under socialism?
A: Racism, sexism, and homophobia have been around for along time, and exist because of various historical developments, but they are encouraged and florish under capitalism. Under socialism, ending these problems becomes possible because the bases for their existance are done away with. We struggle against these evils now as a part of the fight to abolish capitalism.
Q: What is Communism?
A: There's a good chance that everything you've ever heard about communism was a lie. No country has ever been communist or even claimed to be. In fact, communism has never yet been acheived anywhere in the world. Under communism people are no longer seperated by class, government no longer exsists as we know of it, and people no longer work for money, rather everyone works so that everyone can receive what they need. Under communism crime will no longer exist as everyone will have what they need, and will be free to grow and develop naturally.
Q: Why are socialism and communism better than democracy?
A: Socialism and communism are not opposites of democracy. Marxists believe in TRUE democracy, not the bourgeois democracy which exists under capitalism. In this bourgeois democracy you only get to choose between millionaires running for election, who act in the interests of the capitalist class, while the working class (the majority of people) aren't even represented. Elections in a capitalist system are almost always decided by who can get the most corporate money. True democracy can only exist under socialism and communism because everyone will have an equal say in society.
Q: Why would people want to work hard under communism? Don't people only work hard to make more?
A: Through the transition stage of socialism into the builing of communism, people will learn to be motivated by working for the common good of everyone. If we all work hard, we all gain--if we don't, we all lose. Under capitalism we fight each other for scraps, under communism we share all.
Q: How can people succeed under communism?
A: Once we reach communism we have all succeeded! Under capitalism, people succeed by having more than other people. Many people consider even having enough food to eat and a place to sleep succeeding. Under socialism, and eventually communism, we all succeed together!
Q: Do individual freedoms exist under communism?
A: Of course! In fact, people will be much more free under communism then they are now. When people no longer have to struggle and commit all of their time and energy to meeting their basic needs they become free to naturally develop; and since the people will make all decisions affecting them, no one will be ruling over them.
Q: Life isn't fair and that's the way it is. How can you change that?
A: Life isn't fair because society is controlled by a small percent of the population. Under capitalism, the majority of people receive a very small percentage of the wealth (even though they created it all!), under communism everyone will be a worker, and they will receive everything they create.
Q: What is so special about the working class?
A: The working class makes up the majority of people in the world. The workers of the world create all the wealth, which now allows very few to be very wealthly, but under socialism and communism will allow us all to enjoy the needs and luxuries of life. Because the working class makes up the majority of people on earth, we have the power to create revolutionary change in society. Finally, since there is no class under the working class, when we takes power We will be able to finally rid society of classes all together!
Q: If socialism and communism are so good, why have I heard so many bad things about them?
A: Think about it. If the capitalists have the most in capitalist society (more than the majority of people), and and if they control every aspect of society (schools, jails, television, radio, newspapers, government), and if socialism and communism meant that they would no longer have the most, but would have to share and be equal with everyone else, wouldn't they use all they control to make socialism and communism look bad so they could keep their positions of power? That is exactly what happened! Years and years of this has lead to many people relating socialism and communism to bad things, without even truly understanding what they are. If you were told chocolate tasted bad and would make you sick when you were young, you would think chocolate was bad, that is until you tasted it!
World Issues - Past and Present
Q: What countries are communist?
A: None. Communism has not yet been achieved, and no country has ever claimed to have achieved it.
Q: Which countries are socialist?
A: China, Vietnam, and Laos have never been socialist, despite the claims of their governments, and in fact, are capitalist. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) is a dynastic military dictatorship, and has never been socialist.
Cuba is a socialist nation -- with public ownership of the means of production and distribution, and completely free healthcare and education -- though unfortunately economic issues (mainly due to the unjust blockade imposed upon it by the United States) have recently forced it to allow a large, and growing private sector in the tourism industry.
Revolutions are going on in underdeveloped countries around the world, with the goal of establishing socialism, and some of them are very close to victory. Although it remains to be seen if they can implement socialism, we must support them as struggles against imperialism.
Q: Are the people free in the socialist countries? Do they have rights? Can they think for themselves and make their own choices?
A: Yes the people are free. In Cuba the people have many rights guaranteed to them which do not exist even in some of the richest capitalist countries (free healthcare, free education through college, housing, food, and jobs for all), of course the exact conditions are different in each country. Generally, no one can become rich while others remain poor, and no one can spread capitalistic propaganda.
The "freedom" we now have under capitalism is not actually freedom at all. Freedom of the press doesn't exist because the media is owned and controlled only by a few corporations. Democracy doesn't exist because politicians need to be millionaires or be funded by millionaires to run for office, and when they are elected they act in the interests of the capitalists. We are robbed of freedom of thought because we are told what shoes and clothes to wear, what soda to drink, what movies to watch, what brand of food to buy, and who to vote for--in fact, every year one trillion dollars is spent on advertising!
Q: Will socialism in my country look like socialism in Cuba?
A: No. Because each country is different and has it's own material conditions, the socialist system will be adapted to them in each country differently, though it will always have the same goal--to create the foundations of cooperation and equality in order to build communism.
Q: Why did socialism fail in the USSR?
A: There are many reasons why the attempt to build socialism failed in the USSR. One reason was that Russia was a backwards country economically speaking, and they hadn't yet fully developed the means of production in a way that the needs of all people could satisfied. Also, too much authority was given to the "leadership" and not enough to the workers--this can never lead to workers taking MORE control over society. When Stalin was able to take control, even MORE authority was granted to his leadership position, and many democratic controls were taken away from the workers, a MAJOR mistake.
Another reason was because of the Cold War (though by that time the USSR was far off the road to socialism). Capitalist countries were able to spend more on the cold war and the Soviet Union tried too hard to compete. Faced with growing outside threats, the USSR placed too much importance on building weapons and not enough on providing for the people. More worker control probably could have corrected problems like these, though it can be very hard for a socialist nation to survive while facing aggression from imperialist bullies. Finally, capitalism was allowed to reappear in the Soviet Union by its "leaders"--it stopped building socialism and started heading on the road back to capitalism long before it 'officially' crumbled.
Q: Why do so many people leave Cuba and go to the United States?
A: Actually, by percentage, few Cubans actually leave Cuba, and there are many issues involved. Firstly, before the Cuban Revolution the United States gave very few Cubans visas to come to the United States, but after the revolution the doors were opened wide. Secondly, the United States has held an unjust trade embargo against Cuba for 40 years (which has been condemed several times in the United Nations by almost every country in the world) which has caused the people of Cuba to suffer. Finally, the United States enacted the 'Cuban Adjustment Act', the only act of its kind anywhere in the world, which grants residency to anyone, no matter if they are a criminal or not, who leaves Cuba and reaches the United States in any fashion. Imagine if the same act applied to all of Latin America! How many people from other countries would leave for the United States? How many people leave places like Mexico and the Dominican Republic now?
Q: Isn't Cuba a dictatorship?
A: No. There is a one party government in Cuba, but that does not mean that democracy doesn't exist there. In fact, there are more differences in the Communist Party in Cuba than there are between the Democrats and Republicans in the United States! The Cuban people are very active in their work places through their unions and in local and national elections, where normal working people are nominated and elected by a vote of 50% of more--in the US you need large amounts of money to run for office, and canidates are often elected by only 20% of the electorate. In Cuba 95% of eligable people vote, in the United States less than 50% do.
Indeed, this "dictatorship" in Cuba is very strange, because everyone calls the president by his first name, like when they see him in the street, the highest government officials play baseball in their short sleeves with the rest of the people, the entire population is armed, everyone knows how to read, decisions are made by common consent, prostitutes are sent to school and taught another occupation, government officials meet with the workers to discuss salaries and production and the people interrupt the prime minister's speeches to criticize certain ministers or officials!
Q: What's the best example of a socialism to date?
A: Although a few attempts have been made, Paris, France probably came closest to establishing socialism as Marx invisioned it (the dictatorship of the proletariat) in 1871.
The Commune was created by an uprising of the people within Paris after France was defeated in the Franco-Prussian War. The war with Prussia was started by Napoleon III ("Louis Bonaparte") in July 1879, and turned out to be a disaster for the French. By September Paris was under attack from the Prussians. The gap between rich and poor in Paris had widened in recent years and now food shortages and continuos Prussian attacks were adding to the unrest among the people. Working people were becoming more open to radical ideas.
The people of Paris wanted to be self-governing, and they wanted a fairer, socialist way of producing and distributing goods and services. The people, joined with many units of the army, begain to rebel. The rebellion spread so fast that the president, and many police, specialists, and administrators of all kinds fled the city.
The Central Committee of the National Guard was now the only effective government in Paris and they immediately gave up their power and arranged elections for a Commune. This Commune (or Communal Council) was made up of 92 skilled workers, doctors, journalists and other "professionals", and a large number of political activists--ranging from reformist republicans to various types of socialists.
The Council members were not "representatives", but rather delegates, meaning that they could be taken out of office immediately if the people no longer wanted them there. Numerous organisations were set up in the localities to meet the needs of the people (eating places, first aid stations). They cooperated with the Commune and thrived. Despite internal differences, they did a good job of mantaining public services for the city of 2 million people. Because of a lack of time (they were able to meet on less than 60 days) they were only able to issue a few decrees. It was decided that no one would have to pay rent (which was raised by many landlords), there would be no more working at night in the hundreds of bakeries, the guillotine would be done away with, pensions would be given to the unmarried companions and children of the National Guards who were killed in active service, that the state pawn shops would return all workmen's tools to them, there would be no interest on debts, and that the payment of debt would be postponed, and that the employees had the right to take over and run a business if it was deserted by its owner. Ordinary workers managed to take on the responsibilities of the administrators and specialists that left with the president. In one are of Paris school materials were provided free, three schools were opened to the public, and an orphanage was established-- in another school children were provided with free clothing and food.
Frederich Engels, who was Marx's closest associate, later said that the lack of a standing army, the self-policing of the localities, and other features showed that the Commune was no longer a "state" in the old repressive sense of the term--it was a transitional form, it was socialist. What could have come from the Paris Commune, no one knows for sure, because after only a week it came under attack by elements of a new army (which included former prisoners of war released by the Prussians) created very quickly in Versailles.
Of course, the Communards made mistakes, for instance Karl Marx found it aggravating that they "lost precious moments" organizing democratic elections rather than instantly finishing off Versailles once and for all. France's national bank, located in Paris and storing billions of francs, was left untouched and unguarded by the Communards. Timidly they asked to borrow money from the bank (which of course they got without any hesitation). The Communards chose not to seize the bank's assets because they were afraid that the world would condemn them if they did. Thus large amounts of money were moved from Paris to Versailles, money that financed the army that crushed the Commune.
Marxists have seen the Commune as a model for, or a prefiguration of, a liberated society, with a political system based on REAL democracy, a society truely ruled by the people.