New contribution

Here is a new contribution to the debate on “What is Socialism?”

It is a piece from an Anarchist perspective by Jason Brannigan:

Anarchists also want to build a world based on direct democracy and workers control of production. This means abolishing the state and not replacing it with any other centralised or hierarchical political body, but with a system of federation and delegation where delegates are directly elected and immediately recallable.

Contribution

Here is a new contribution to the debate on “What is Socialism?”

What is Socialism? by Ciarán Ó Brolcháin:

Socialism, to me, is the democratic control by the working class of the means of producing wealth, and of its distribution and exchange too... So how do the working class gain this control? Through a socialist party being elected to government? Through one big union? Through a vanguard party? Through workers’ councils? Through armed struggle?

Videos

Bernadette McAliskey on Socialism
"Socialism is very simple. Socialism is a doctrine, an ideology, a thought that asks a simple question: How, how can one human being amass great quantities of wealth from the labour of thousands?"



The Socialism of Pádraic Ó Conaire
A short piece (in Irish, with subtitles) on the socialism of writer Pádraic Ó Conaire (1882-1928) with reference to the contemporary Catholic Church's view of socialism.



And if you know of any other good videos on YouTube or the like that are relevant to the debate, please add a link in the comments section.

Contributions

Here are articles that have been contributed so far to the upcoming debate on “What is Socialism?”

They say this is Anarchism by Ciaran Cunningham:

Connolly’s well quoted advice on the pointlessness of hoisting the green flag over Dublin castle without establishing a Socialist republic is a fantastic and accurate warning against the limitations of nationalism in general... [But] If we were to hoist the red flag over our cities tomorrow, without the rejection of hierarchy we would probably be better off under capitalism.

Also recommended as a response to the piece above and as being relevant to Latin America today is the 1966 pamphlet Two Souls of Socialism by Hal Draper:

Instead of the bold way of mass action from below, it is always safer and more prudent to find the “good” ruler who will Do the People Good. The pattern of emancipation-from-above goes all the way back in the history of civilization, and had to show up in socialism too. But it is only in the framework of the modern socialist movement that liberation from below could become even a realistic aspiration; within socialism it has come to the fore, but only by fits and starts. The history of socialism can be read as a continual but largely unsuccessful effort to free itself from the old tradition, the tradition of emancipation-from-above.

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Also sumbitted to the debate was A statistical comparison of Socialism and Capitalism, based on the UN Human Development Report, by Liam Ó Ruairc along with a more succinct 2004 letter to the Irish News on the same subject:

As a system, capitalism does not work for the vast majority of the world’s population; it fails to provide for their basic needs.
Of the 4.4 billion people in developing countries, nearly three fifth lack basic sanitation. A third have no access to clean water. A quarter do not have adequate housing. A fifth no access to health services...

A common objection is that capitalism might not be good, however there are no alternatives. Socialism does and did not work, the fact that countries in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union abandoned it and adopted capitalism proves it.
However, the UN’s Human Development Reports show the achievements and successes of socialism.

“What is Socialism?”

The next meeting of the James Connolly Debating Society
will take place on Thursday 31st May 2007 at 7.30pm
in the Felons’ Club, Falls Road, Belfast.

The theme of this debate will be the question of “What is Socialism?”