For socialists like myself the big question is when will the majority of American people, or even a large section of the American people, rise up and take on capitalism? It is then our ideas will get a mass echo. Trying to figure this out we refer to as trying to figure out perspectives. That is, what is the perspective for change?
We understand that if the union leaders would only get off their asses and fight they could move their millions of members and from this base move tens of millions more and build a mass movement for change. But they are so much part of capitalism they will not move until they have no choice, that is until they are threatened with loosing control of the working class and the unions and loosing their own positions and perks. This will only happen when there is a spontaneous movement from below, when events involving the masses erupts from below.
This spontaneous movement from below will take place when the capitalist system reaches a point when it can no longer offer a tolerable life for enough people. I was thinking about this the last few days as I was struggling with the heat wave. Usually we think about increasing poverty and unemployment as being the triggers that will spark off the events that will give rise to a mass movement. But in the recent days we have had heat waves all over the country with large numbers of people dying.
At the moment it is expected that people have air conditioning. This is an expectation that people have. But this costs money in electric bills. What will happen when a new 1930's type slump develops and people cannot pay the level of electric bills they do now. How will they afford to stay cool. The truth is that tens of millions will not be able to stay cool. There will be large numbers of deaths from heat and from cold when this happens. US capitalism has built dwellings in locations based on the growth of the past 50 years continuing. But it will not.
So what happens when this point is reached? At some stage a movement of mass proportions will explode on the basis of events which will flow from US capitalism's inability to keep the mass of the population living in a tolerable lifestyle and amongst other things, this means living at a tolerable level of temperature in their homes. At this point tens and tens of millions will be prepared to consider and not only to consider, but to act to achieve an alternative to capitalism. This is when the ideas of democratic socialism can get a mass echo and mass active support. I am looking forward to that.
Some people might think what I write here means that i am looking forward to capitalism making the working class suffer more so they will take up the fight for socialism. This is not the case. But this is probably what will happen. But who is to blame for this if it is what happens? It is of course the union leaders. They will not organize and mobilize their organizations and members to build an alternative to capitalism and the result is that things will most likely have to get much worse for the working class before they conclude that they have to act. If the union leaders would act they could build a movement today which would cut across this suffering that capitalism has in store for the working class.
But a detail. There are thousands of socialists in the country at present. And dozens of different socialist organizations. But they are so divided by their left sectarianism and their ultra leftism that they cut themselves off from the working class movement and any ability to have any influence in it. It will take events of a mass scale to change these people also. In the meantime they should try and take a look at themselves and recognize themselves as part of the problem not part of the solution. Maybe this would help them make some changes which could allow them to play a more positive role.
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