[PEN-L:9403] Max and the Social Democrats

[Elaine Bernard <HTUP@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Max, I guess some of the difference is over the
issue of the degree to which we need brokers who
are other than us.  To use my favorite sexist
analogy "always a bridegroom but never a bride!"
That is, both the far left (Leninist) and the
center left (social democrats - only in America
do we refer to Liberals as left, so I refuse to
bow to this custom) seem to think that workers
themselves need "others" to lead them.  I'm
a little old fashion, and disagree with both
the Webbs and Lenin who both came to that conclusion.
Rather, I think we need our own people, our own
organization -- including politically.  Clearly,
we need to work in coalition with other groups
but as a labour movement, why I think the issue
of having our own party is important, is because
of how it transforms us.  It gets us as a movement
think about power and governing, not simply lobbying
others for hand outs.

A major problem in this and every other country
is that the S.D. parties, that have much more
flexibility (not a pretty term) to abandone their
base and acquire a new one -- are rapidly abandoning
the unions that have supported them.  I don't think
that the union leadership (which frankly is the same
layer sharing the same ideology as the s.d. leadership
of the parties) does not have the same luxury.  They
and their members are running smack into neo-liberalism
at every turn and are forced to fight in a life or
death battle.

So, while in one period (post-WW2 social contract) the
parties might have been more progressive than the unions
on all sorts of issues (in advance of the unions for
sure on womens rights, social issues, etc) today, it's
the reverse and the unions are being forced to defend
the gains and are increasingly moving into action and
to the left of the parties.

Elaine Bernard