Action must be taken!

More and more I am liking the notion of a massive strike and refusal to work revolt. Everyday and moment that passes is more time wasted. We want to see the fall of capitalistic systems. Here is just an example I've come up with -

a World Strike Day or International Strike Day, etc. that would take place on 12 / 12 / 12. Workers will strike and refuse to work en masse, in all capitalist nations of the world.

That is just an example date, you could easily adjust it if you prefer something sooner, or want my preparation time and delay it.
I am very serious with what I bring up, and would like to know any person's criticisms.

You mean a general strike

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_strike

Well the fundamental problem I see is that most workers would not comply most likely.
Everyone has families they have to provide for, everyone's definition of the workers is different, if you refer to the Classes below Middle, most are not concerned with Ideology they are more worried about putting food on the table for their families.

The middle class tends to be more open to politics, but they benefit from the current system for the most part.

For the USA alone though most people don't care about politics, which prevents things from changing democratically completely(assuming they'd accept left wing nationalism instead of Dem/Rep.) . This also prevents the strike from working as well since strikes tend to happen usually in times of Crisis. Keep in mind also that the USA has forcefully broke up strikes in the past if it brought harm to the people of the United States...

A massive strike would immediately turn to bloodshed, but even without the authorities triggering it, it'd more than likely happen anyway.


That's what I see that could cause problems, the problems with this are already known though....
We need solutions.

Balkan Beast wrote:everyone's definition of the workers is different

The definition found in the socialist tradition is unambiguous: workers are wage laborers, i.e., individuals forced to sell their labor-power on the market by virtue of possessing no other means to sustain themselves.

if you refer to the Classes below Middle, most are not concerned with Ideology they are more worried about putting food on the table for their families.

Which is precisely why we're materialists, as opposed to idealists. An average proletarian family has neither the time nor desire to research political issues thoroughly. Couple that with the fact the United States is a two-party duopoly, and the media throughout the global north is owned by corporations and therefore solely reflects the interests of the bourgeoisie—thereby preventing radical perspectives from receiving any significant coverage whatsoever—and it's obvious why socialism isn't a potent force in our political culture today. (There are, of course, other reasons why socialism has fallen into disrepute with large segments of society, but they're primarily related to cosmopolitanism and, consequently, irrelevant to the theme of your thread.)

Workers will only begin to search for- and seriously consider- alternatives to capitalism when it becomes clear that the system is no longer capable of providing them and their families with basic necessities, e.g., food, housing, health care, etc. Such a realization usually occurs amidst one of capitalism's periodic crises, which is why those moments are so essential for revolutionary activism. The capitalist mode of production is currently approaching various structural and ecological obstacles which the system is fundamentally incapable of surmounting, so it's absolutely vital that serious revolutionary socialist organizations exist which possess the means to educate and organize (to be somewhat Kautskyan) this mass of workers.

The middle class tends to be more open to politics, but they benefit from the current system for the most part.

The middle class individuals which significantly benefit from capitalism—doctors, certain lawyers, middle managers, the petite bourgeoisie, and so forth—constitute roughly 15-20% of the population. Frankly, they're too numerically insignificant to be concerned with. There are, however, other segments of the middle class who would likely hold a more favorable disposition toward socialism—e.g., public sector employees.

We need solutions.

The solution is to develop organizations which reach out to proletarian communities, providing various services therein. This will have the effect of having people view socialism positively, thereby disarming the bourgeois disinformation disseminated about the ideology.

Inward revolution begets outward revolution.

I am of the opinion that the shift in consciousness, which must come before any mass movement, will be much more difficult than seeing any general strike come to fruition.

Our generation especially has been indoctrinated since childhood to accept the entertainment industry and the culture of consumerism. The most trying task we have will be to awaken those who can and should be fighting for their futures, and doing this by utilizing what they know best (mass media) seems most prudent to me.

We need to gain a foothold in the media, a strong one at that. I cannot see a revolution occurring while the right wing and faux left wing media continue to express their opinions without any stalwart and mass reaching opposition. Right now, all we have is the Occupy Wall Street movement, which is not necessarily cohesive in its political ideology and is losing its momentum as we speak; let's not deny the truth here. Can you imagine if the OWS movement had a major player in the mass media behind it, however?

As Celt said, now is better than ever, because we are experiencing one of Capitalism's inevitable crises. I have covered reaching out to our generation; Celtiberian, the older generations.

The worst time to take action is during positive times in the capitalist system, which you could say was 2002-2007, etc. The best time to take action and get more followers is during the downswing, like now from 2008-present. If the situation gets worse, our opportunity will be greater. If it gets out of these bad times, our chance for change could be lost for a good amount of time.

Occupy Wall Street has been a very miraculous thing, if you dont over analyze it. Look at the whole picture, and how many people have scratched the surface through protest. If things slowly get worse, a world strike / protest day on 12.12.12 or later is very possible.

Griffin wrote:Occupy Wall Street has been a very miraculous thing, if you dont over analyze it. Look at the whole picture, and how many people have scratched the surface through protest. If things slowly get worse, a world strike / protest day on 12.12.12 or later is very possible.

I completely agree that OWS has been miraculous in that it has expanded horizons and awoken many to serious issues; however, I believe that with more cohesion politically and a foothold in mass media, it could become even more. Of this, we should take note.

OWS is more an economic movement than anything else, in America especially. Where the protesters stand united on those issues regarding Wall Street, they are divided when it comes to solutions. Many occupiers are Capitalists, Ron Paulites, etc. They acknowledge that something is wrong, but want to modify what already exists, not overthrow it.

Fascist and reactionary as they are, might the 'community centre' strategy of CasaPound Italia and Het Vlaams Huis be worth trying?

RedSun wrote:Fascist and reactionary as they are, might the 'community centre' strategy of CasaPound Italia and Het Vlaams Hluis be worth trying?

I don't think so. CasaPound is essentially a communal living arrangement, consisting of ideologically like-minded individuals. They occasionally organize concerts, protests, and debates, which do serve to advance their reactionary politics, but only to a limited extent. This sort of political lifestylism may be interesting for students to partake in, but it will do very little, if anything, to spread class consciousness.

I was under the impression that it was used as a base both for community events (for the larger community, not just the fascists) and for meetings of the ideologically like-minded. What if such an organisation was simply more active?

RedSun wrote:What if such an organisation was simply more active?

The institutional framework which I believe will most effectively advance revolutionary socialism consists of adult education facilities and mutual aid societies affiliated with radical political organizations. Reaching out to working class neighborhoods and helping people in meaningful ways will go a long way toward establishing interest in socialism.

Griffin wrote:More and more I am liking the notion of a massive strike and refusal to work revolt. Everyday and moment that passes is more time wasted. We want to see the fall of capitalistic systems. Here is just an example I've come up with -

a World Strike Day or International Strike Day, etc. that would take place on 12 / 12 / 12. Workers will strike and refuse to work en masse, in all capitalist nations of the world.

That is just an example date, you could easily adjust it if you prefer something sooner, or want my preparation time and delay it.
I am very serious with what I bring up, and would like to know any person's criticisms.

Sadly, i think much of the proletariat has entered a lull of complacency in believing that the bourgeois Democratic Party can fulfill their needs and reform capitalism, a theory that time and time a gain has been proven false. Due to inertia, the majority of the working class, as a general term, are unwilling to seek the revolutionary alternative. As a syndicalist, the general strike fills a very important place in my doctrine. However, before mass action, the workers must be reeducated and become class conscious, a step that cannot be forced.

Celtiberian wrote:The institutional framework which I believe will most effectively advance revolutionary socialism consists of adult education facilities and mutual aid societies affiliated with radical political organizations. Reaching out to working class neighborhoods and helping people in meaningful ways will go a long way toward establishing interest in socialism.

I'm not sure if it would belong in another thread, but could you expand upon this? I've been wanting to hear for some time a means of revolutionary action that goes beyond leaflets, protests, and general meaninglessness without resorting to unnecessary guerrilla violence.

RedSun wrote:I'm not sure if it would belong in another thread, but could you expand upon this? I've been wanting to hear for some time a means of revolutionary action that goes beyond leaflets, protests, and general meaninglessness without resorting to unnecessary guerrilla violence.

I too would be happy to expand on this. Hearts and minds win wars, and truthfully, the working class are tired of having propaganda shoved down their throats by mainstream politicians. Developing alternative infrastructure and societal framework will not only go far politically, but will give revolutionary groups a non-ideological role in society. In today's age of government immorality, this grassroots system of direct, undeniable acts of civic benefit will give the revolution the appropriate image of being the "good guys".

RedSun wrote:I'm not sure if it would belong in another thread, but could you expand upon this? I've been wanting to hear for some time a means of revolutionary action that goes beyond leaflets, protests, and general meaninglessness without resorting to unnecessary guerrilla violence.

Once a political organization has amassed a respectable following, it should strive to establish a presence in as many communities as possible. Modest buildings, which could provide the aforementioned educational and mutual aid services, should be rented and administered by local party activists.

With respect to the form of adult education I was alluding to, party members fortunate enough to possess specialized knowledge in certain fields could voluntarily teach classes to workers in the community in whatever subjects they happen to be versed in. (Courses in radical political economy would be especially beneficial, in my opinion.) Mutual aid could be provided to needy proletarian families by establishing food banks, providing self-help services, collecting funds for families struggling through financial hardships, etc.