Reactionaries, generally-speaking, have a fundamental misunderstanding of how socialism works. The idea is that there needs to be a massive bureaucratic state to impose constant wealth redistribution, essentially acting as a liberal philanthropist who will toss larger scraps down to the masses, all so that the “natural consequences” of “freedom” (inequality) can be undone by a paternalistic guardian figure. This just goes to show how difficult it is for the overwhelming majority of us to think outside a capitalist bubble; this economic system has become as natural to us as the air we breathe and the water we drink.
So what am I getting at? Well, reactionaries think of socialism as anywhere between Scandinavian welfare capitalism to bureaucratic 1984 dictatorship – just never as a system that involves the active democratization of social institutions and resources. Both social democracy and Stalinism operate within the parameters of a capitalist system, as labor is still subordinated to capital and economic decisions are still made autocratically.
Genuine socialism puts the creation of society’s wealth into democratic hands (as opposed to autocratic hands), with the laboring class managing decisions and the capitalist class becoming obsolete. Collective operation necessitates collective control. This cuts off inequality at its source and creates a freer population of people with greater power over their own destinies.
We’ve seen worker cooperatives function in the real world, so this isn’t just some kind of idealistic pipe dream. Capitalists are demonstrably obsolete already, and this fact is made crystal clear even within a wider capitalist economy. Inequality is comparatively non-existent in these cooperative institutions, workers typically feel more fulfilled in their careers, and it positions power in the hands of the people who actually generate society’s wealth.
The “bureaucratic, interfering state” paradigm is actually a product of capitalism – more specifically, a result of its attempts to curb the contradictions and tensions innate to the system as a whole. Welfare reforms and “forced” safety standards in the workplace, for example, are attempts by the state to keep the wheels of capital ever-turning (though this doesn’t mean we should oppose them, as they usually help make life more bearable within the system). A more “human-faced” capitalism, dubbed “socialism” by conservatives and liberals alike, helps to dissolve revolutionary zeal and reposition focus towards reforms and contented feelings – “this is what they/we were fighting for all along!”
As long as workplace organization is understood to be one where workers report to bosses, bosses who appropriate surplus value generated by those workers, then “an active role for the state” will always be necessary to curb inequality. Inequality is made by a system that puts management into autocratic hands, all held in place by a state that imposes private property law that turns us into lords and serfs. It’s also especially damning to capitalism-apologists who claim to be “anti-authoritarian” or “anti-state” – both because economic decisions are imposed on the majority in an authoritarian manner by capitalists and because the entire system requires a state to keep the gears turning, respectively. The “freedom from government is found in capitalism” narrative runs deep, and it’s one of the largest hurdles we socialists will need to traverse to get people on our side.Reforms granted from above work well within a system that already functions from above. But socialism is fundamentally a system that roots itself “from below”, all so that “above” and “below” can cease to exist. Democracy is the surest road to classlessness; we seem to understand this to a degree in the political realm, and it keeps us convinced of our supposed freedoms.
But shouldn’t all levels of society be responsive to the needs of the people involved? Shouldn’t we settle for nothing less than a system that sets human freedom and equality ahead of destructive greed and hierarchy?
How do you explain to someone that u took a screenshot of their snap w ur tits bc u had ur phone in ur bra…
i got denied from an extremely competitively academic university that is very good at football….I was crushed. how did the other kids get in?? I’ve got the APs! The GPA! Three VARSITY SPORTS!! Community Service!!!!! How was i eliminated??!?!?? I can’t believe this . I told people I am GOING to go there…my soul has been crushed by my reach school but I gotta stay strong! can’t let them see my pain *holding the tears in*
