The Road To Socialism USA, For Peace, Democracy, and Jobs

[BayCityProgressive]

Thought maybe some would find this an interesting read. It is long, about 78 pages. Basically discusses how communists, socialists, workers, minorities, Democrats, and others can all work together in the US to make it more democratic, and finally develop social and economic justice. I thought it would be okay to post this here since it does advocate working with the Democrats. It is from the Communist Party USA. COngressman Major Owens a year or two when still in office, addressed the party at their convention..the first sitting congressman to do so in 40 yrs.

http://www.cpusa.org/article/view/758

4. Unity Against the Ultra-Right

To chart our path to socialism, it is necessary to estimate what qualitatively different stages the struggle will have to pass through. The Communist Party must examine the relationships among all the existing class and social forces, without exception. That requires knowing the present stage of development of the capitalist economy and social system. In the previous section, we provided a basic estimate of the objective features of the relationships between the class and social forces for progress. We now move to the examination of the political role of the transnational monopolies.

The present period of capitalist development poses a grave danger to democratic rights and civil liberties in the United States. Since the early 1980s, the Republican Party, dominated by its ultra-right wing, has controlled much of the national legislative agenda, while the leadership of the Democratic Party has often ceded ground and initiative.

Ever since the major victories for the working class during the New Deal era of the 1930s, the rich and their paid operatives have worked diligently to chip away at or destroy these concessions to the political power of workers. They have attempted to slow down or restrict many progressive programs that benefited people’s lives and to chip away at every victory for unions, civil rights, and the environment. Now the ultra-right wants to place on the agenda the complete elimination of many of these programs, which they refer to pejoratively as “entitlement” programs. They want a government that has no role except to facilitate the ruthless power of the giant monopoly corporations—the industries, the banks, the chain stores, the brokerage houses, the insurance companies, agribusiness, the pharmaceutical companies, and the arms merchants. Even many of the super-wealthy who are not part of or in support of the ultra-right gain financial rewards from these policies, and either support or mute their opposition to particular ultra-right policies which benefit them.

[BeFree]

1. Lets be perfectly clear

We are talking Commune-ism, or in long form: Community-ism. Not, as some knee-jerkers are liable to jerk themselves into - Soviet style government so badly labeled as Communism.

The people must commune with one another to build a system of government that is socially responsible to the people, eh?

[Unvanguard]

2. We're talking about the CPUSA here -

the party that supported those Soviet-style governments throughout its entire existence, until it split with the Communist Party of the Soviet Union over Gorbachev's reforms.

[BeFree]

3. Well

We do support the democratic party here even though they have.....(long list, too long, but you get the picture)

[Unvanguard]

4. Sure, and if the CPUSA were the only viable alternative to the Republicans

I'd vote for it too.

But it's not.

[Celeborn Skywalker]

5. Good article.

[Unvanguard]

6. The CPUSA's stuff is very well done.

Probably the best on the hard left.

But re-paint as they will, the elephant of their pro-Soviet affiliation remains in the room... and with that, they'll go nowhere.

[BayCityProgressive]

7. well

they have written many articles critical of many of the Soviet laws and actions and have written many times for the need of "Bill of Rights" socialism in the USA. Their members helpded form the ACLU, NOW, AND THE NAACP and Black Radical COngress. So I don't think they are exactly planning a dictatorship here. You could say the same about the Democratic Party..in the past they have supported Jim Crow, Slavery, imperialism, free market capitalism, killing Native Americans, Monroe Doctrine, outlawing political dessent, Vietnam, denying womens right and gay rights....yet we vote for them despite their past. The fact is no society is perfect and any party around long enough is going to have some dark spots. Also, check out the people who lived in the former soviet union. They were MUCH better off then than they are now. Rampant nazism, oligarchy, repression of freedom, huge sex slave trade, unemployment, drug addiciton, no education healthcare housing or food. A clear majority in Russia have stated they would rather have the system of the USSR and Moldova and Belarus have consistently re-elected communists even since the collapse. Looking at things only in black and white will lead to problems in such a complex world.