Classic reprint from the Winter 1986-7 issue of the World Socialist<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The following classic statement of the socialist case at election\n times was issued as a leaflet by the Victoria Local No. 2 of the old \nSocialist Party of Canada at around the time of the First World War.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although not nominating candidates in the pending election, the \nVictoria Local of the Socialist Party of Canada desire to place some of \nthe leading ideas held by the Party before the electors who are giving \nconsideration to the problems confronting us at the present \ntime\u2014problems which we are convinced can only be solved by the abolition\n of the present capitalist system, based on the class ownership of the \nmeans of production, and the substitution therefore of a system of \nsocial ownership and production for use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are two classes in society\u2014the Working Class and the Capitalist\n Class. All other party divisions tend to obscure the real clash of \ncontending interests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All wealth is created by the application of labor to natural \nresources. This being so, how is it that the Working class\u2014the producers\n of all wealth\u2014frequently lack even the barest necessaries of life?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The reason is that the natural resources, i.e., the land, mines, \nfactories and transportation facilities are owned by the Capitalist \nclass, and the worker can only gain access to them when an employer can \nmake a profit out of him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To any student of modern social and industrial conditions, who \ncarefully considers the evidence, it is apparent that our present system\n is rapidly reaching the point when a breakdown is inevitable. The \nCapitalist class who control industry, and, in order to maintain \nthemselves in power, must also control the legislative, judicial and \nadministrative functions of the State, have proved themselves incapable \nof organizing affairs so as to provide all the people with the \nnecessaries essential to maintain life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even in this “Last West,” in periods of frantic “development,” at no \ntime were all employed under conditions fit for human beings and at \nwages sufficient to maintain a moderate standard of comfort for the \nworker, and the family dependent on him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But even were all employed at a “living” wage, the reason for the \nexistence of a Socialist Party would still continue. With the \never-increasing perfection of the machinery of production and the more \nefficient organization of the producers of wealth, the worker of to-day \nis able to produce in a few hours a far larger output than formerly \ncould be in treble the time; but this increased product, instead of \nreducing his hours of labor, thus giving him greater opportunities for \nculture and the pleasure of life, is retained by the owners of the \nmachinery of production and is used to force him to accept an even lower\n standard of life than hitherto. Instead of the larger output made \npossible by the increased productivity of the machine being used to \nraise the workers’ standard of life, it is used to dispense with a \nportion of the labor army, and the growing problem of the unemployed, \nwith all its attendant misery, suffering and degradation, is a ghastly \nwitness of the failure and mismanagement of industry by the Capitalist \nclass. This is the rock on which Capitalism will meet its doom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It has been conclusively proved that a standard of life better than \nthat enjoyed by the best paid artizans is possible with the expenditure \nof less than three hours per day in labor of all able-bodied men, if \nsociety were but organized on a sane basis, and realizing also that the \nsocial evils of to-day, which are the despair of “statesmen,” and \ntowards the solution of which the “reformers” can at best only be \ncompared to the efforts of Mrs. Partington to drive back the waves of \nthe Atlantic with her mop, the Socialist points to the absolute \nnecessity of the means of production being taken over by, and managed in\n the interests of the whole people, instead of in the interests of an \never-decreasing minority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Socialist Party has nothing in common with the person whose whole\n efforts are expended in social reform. Social evils are almost \ninvariably the result of bad economic conditions; the study of Socialism\n will make this clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Capitalist class, who appropriate all the wealth created by the \nWorking class over and above the amount necessary to permit of the \ncontinued existence of the latter, maintains itself in power only by its\n control of the machinery of the State, thus entrenching itself in \npossession of the wealth secured in the exploiting process of modern \nproduction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When the Working class fully realize the utter hopelessness of any \nreal improvement in their condition as long as Capitalism lasts, they \nwill unite under the banner of Socialism to capture the machinery of the\n State, take over the means of production, and manage industry in a \nmanner certain to ensure to all a healthy, happy life, with the fear of \npoverty absolutely abolished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We urge you to study the literature of the movement, educate yourself\n in every phase, and take your place among those who are to-day trying \nto rouse the Working Class from the apathy and ignorance which alone \nstands in the way of their emancipation from the thralldom of wage \nslavery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you are interested, send your name and address to the Secretary, \nVictoria Local, S.P. of C., Room 6, 1406 Broad Street, and we will \narrange to supply you with some of our literature.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Classic reprint from the Winter 1986-7 issue of the World Socialist The following classic statement of the socialist case at election times was issued as a leaflet by the Victoria Local No. 2 of the old Socialist Party of Canada at around the time of the First World War. Although not nominating candidates in the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"magazine_newspaper_sidebar_layout":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2490","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.worldsocialism.org\/wsm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2490","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.worldsocialism.org\/wsm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.worldsocialism.org\/wsm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.worldsocialism.org\/wsm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.worldsocialism.org\/wsm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2490"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.worldsocialism.org\/wsm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2490\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2491,"href":"https:\/\/www.worldsocialism.org\/wsm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2490\/revisions\/2491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.worldsocialism.org\/wsm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2490"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}