The Future of Socialism

The Marxist Project
18 Jun 201914:41
EducationalLearning
32 Likes 10 Comments

TLDRThis video script explores the existential crisis of the left and the need for a reinvention of socialism. It delves into council democracy, a direct and participatory political model that challenges liberal democracy's separation of powers. The script also discusses the potential of computerization to enhance economic planning and accountability in a post-revolutionary society, suggesting that modern technology could address past inefficiencies and create a more responsive and efficient socialist system.

Takeaways
  • 🌟 Socialist experiments from the past are a key reference for modern leftists but also a subject of criticism within radical circles.
  • 🤔 The existential crisis for the left involves reimagining socialism and challenging the liberal and conservative rhetoric that often diverts attention from creating a new vision.
  • 😕 Western democratic systems are seen as flawed by many, including the left, and the rise of neo-fascism and right-wing ideologies reflects a decaying liberal world order.
  • 🛑 The video proposes a reimagined socialist model, focusing on council democracy, which is a variation of Soviet democracy based on direct participation and recallability of representatives.
  • 🏛 Council democracy involves Soviets or councils at various levels of society, from workplaces to neighborhoods, elected with an imperative mandate, meaning representatives must follow the will of their constituents or face recall.
  • 🔄 Council democracy replaces horizontal accountability with vertical accountability, where elected bodies are directly accountable to the public rather than to other branches of government.
  • 🗳️ The script suggests improvements to council democracy by incorporating direct votes and referendums, giving citizens the power to override council decisions and reinforcing the imperative mandate.
  • 💻 The integration of technology, particularly in the form of computer networks and applications, is proposed to facilitate participation in liquid democracy and enhance the democratic process.
  • 🛠️ The script discusses the potential of computerization and automation in economic planning to eliminate human corruption and error, drawing on historical Soviet interest in cybernetics.
  • 🌐 The vision includes a nationwide computer network for economic data, allowing for optimization of production and logistics, which could have reduced inefficiencies in planned economies.
  • 🔄 The future of socialism should be shaped by both learning from the past and incorporating modern technological advancements to create a more effective and participatory system.
Q & A

  • What is the core existential crisis for the left mentioned in the script?

    -The core existential crisis for the left is defining what new socialist projects should look like and outlining a better system conceptually, which is challenging given the time and resources spent engaging with liberal and conservative rhetoric.

  • Why is the script discussing the shortcomings of Western democratic systems?

    -The script discusses the shortcomings of Western democratic systems to highlight the dissatisfaction felt not only by the left but also by emerging reactionary tendencies, suggesting a decaying liberal world order.

  • What is the proposed alternative model for politics, governance, and the economy discussed in the script?

    -The script proposes a variation of Soviet democracy, also known as council democracy, as an alternative model for politics, governance, and the economy, which could work well for larger socio-political entities.

  • What is the principle of an imperative mandate in council democracy?

    -The principle of an imperative mandate in council democracy is that elected delegates are bound by direct instructions from their constituents and must work towards those objectives, with the possibility of immediate recall if they fail to meet the objectives.

  • How does council democracy redefine the democratic process compared to liberal democracies?

    -Council democracy redefines the democratic process by abandoning horizontal accountability and the separation of powers, instead constructing vertical accountability where elected bodies are directly accountable to the people who elected them.

  • What is the significance of the recall power in council democracy?

    -The recall power in council democracy is significant as it allows the public to directly influence the political process by removing elected officials who do not adhere to the imperative mandate, thus ensuring accountability.

  • How does the script suggest improving council democracy further?

    -The script suggests improving council democracy by incorporating direct votes in the form of referendums, which can override council decisions and reinforce the imperative mandate, thus enhancing vertical accountability.

  • What role does technology play in the proposed council democracy system?

    -Technology plays a crucial role in the proposed council democracy system by facilitating frequent participation in liquid democracy through applications and community council centers, thus increasing civic engagement and public input into the political process.

  • What was the vision of cybernetics in the Soviet Union, and how does it relate to modern technology?

    -The vision of cybernetics in the Soviet Union was to automate planning and management processes in the economy using computers, which is related to modern technology as we now have the capability for widespread computerization and data optimization in economic planning.

  • How does the script suggest using modern technology to address past inefficiencies in planned economies?

    -The script suggests using modern technology, such as widespread computerization and data optimization, to address past inefficiencies in planned economies by automating organization and planning processes, thus reducing corruption, error, and improving overall efficiency.

  • What is the script's final call to action for leftists regarding the future of socialism?

    -The script's final call to action for leftists is to reimagine what a post-capitalist society might look like, incorporating modern technological advantages into their theories and visions for the future, and reshaping past policies into effective courses of action.

Outlines
00:00
😐 Socialist Experiments and the Future of Leftist Politics

The script discusses the impact of past socialist experiments on modern leftist ideologies and the ongoing debates about their nature. It highlights the existential crisis within the left, questioning what new socialist projects should look like and the conceptual challenges of outlining a better system. The script also touches on the dissatisfaction with Western democratic systems, the rise of neo-fascism and right-wing ideologies, and the need for the left to present a solid alternative model for politics, governance, and the economy. It introduces the concept of Soviet democracy or council democracy as a potential alternative, explaining its organizational structure and the principle of an imperative mandate.

05:00
🤔 Redefining Democracy and Accountability in Council Democracy

This paragraph delves into the specifics of council democracy, contrasting it with liberal democracies. It explains how council democracy operates on the principle of an imperative mandate, allowing for direct election and recall of representatives, thus creating vertical accountability. The script discusses the restructuring of government and the democratization of not only geographical identities but also workplaces. It also explores the potential for improvement in council democracy through direct voting in referendums, which can override council decisions, and the integration of technology to facilitate greater public participation and accountability in the political process.

10:01
🛠 The Role of Technology in a Post-Capitalist Society

The final paragraph focuses on the potential of technology to transform the economic and political landscape of a post-capitalist society. It discusses the historical interest in cybernetics and the automation of planning and management processes in the Soviet economy, which aimed to eliminate human corruption and error. The script highlights the vision of a nationwide computer network for economic optimization and the potential for modern technology to enable greater civic engagement through liquid democracy. It concludes by emphasizing the importance of incorporating modern technological advancements into the theories and visions of leftist politics to reimagine a future socialist society.

Mindmap
Keywords
💡Socialist Experiments
Socialist experiments refer to historical attempts to implement socialist policies and ideologies on a large scale, such as in the Soviet Union and Mao's China. These experiments are central to the video's theme as they anchor modern leftist thought and are a subject of debate within radical circles. The script discusses the existential crisis for the left in envisioning new socialist projects, contrasting past experiments with the conceptual challenges of creating a better system.
💡Existential Crisis
An existential crisis, in the context of the video, denotes a significant predicament or challenge that the left faces in defining its vision for the future. The script mentions this crisis as a core issue, suggesting that the left struggles with conceptualizing a new socialist model while also engaging with liberal and conservative rhetoric, which can detract from their ability to reimagine their own vision.
💡Democratic Systems
Democratic systems are the form of governance based on the principle of the people having a say in decision-making, often through elected representatives. The script critiques Western democratic systems as leaving much to be desired, felt by both the left and the emerging reactionary tendencies, indicating dissatisfaction with the status quo and the need for alternative models.
💡Neo-Fascism
Neo-fascism is a term used in the script to describe the rise of far-right ideologies and political movements that exhibit fascist characteristics. It is presented as a symptom of the decaying liberal world order, with examples given such as Donald Trump's victory, Brexit, and the emergence of Germany's AFD party, illustrating the global scale of this phenomenon.
💡Council Democracy
Council democracy, also known as Soviet democracy in the script, is a proposed alternative to traditional liberal democracies. It involves the organization of councils in various aspects of life, such as workplaces and neighborhoods, which are directly elected bodies. The script explains that these councils operate under an imperative mandate, meaning delegates are bound by direct instructions from their constituents and can be recalled if they fail to meet objectives, thus redefining the democratic process.
💡Imperative Mandate
An imperative mandate is a principle in council democracy where elected representatives are given direct instructions by their constituents that they must work towards. The script contrasts this with the free mandate of liberal democracies, highlighting that failure to meet the objectives of the imperative mandate can result in the immediate recall of the elected official, thus enhancing direct accountability.
💡Horizontal Accountability
Horizontal accountability refers to the system of checks and balances in liberal democracies, where different branches of government hold each other accountable. The script discusses how council democracy abandons this concept by eliminating the separation of powers, which might seem alarming but is compensated by vertical accountability mechanisms.
💡Vertical Accountability
Vertical accountability is a concept in council democracy where elected bodies are held accountable by the people who directly elected them, rather than by parallel government structures. The script emphasizes this as a key feature of council democracy, providing examples such as the recall power and the public's ability to override council decisions through referendums, thus ensuring a more direct form of democracy.
💡Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which the entire voting population is given the opportunity to vote on a specific proposal or policy. The script suggests that in a council democracy, a referendum could be used to override unpopular decisions made by larger councils, thereby reinforcing the imperative mandate and the public's influence on policy matters.
💡Computerization of Democracy
The computerization of democracy refers to the integration of technology into the democratic process to facilitate greater public participation and organization. The script discusses the potential of using technology, such as applications and community council centers, to remind individuals of voting opportunities and to make the democratic process more accessible and efficient.
💡Cybernetics
Cybernetics, as mentioned in the script, is the study of communication and control in systems, which was of interest to the Soviet Union in the context of automating planning and management processes in the economy. The script describes the vision of a nationwide computer network, called a gas, that would optimize production quotas and account for changes in localized production points, illustrating an early attempt to leverage technology for economic planning.
💡Planned Economy
A planned economy is an economic system where production and distribution are controlled by a central authority, as opposed to market mechanisms. The script acknowledges the inefficiencies and drawbacks of the planned economy model as it existed in the Soviet Union but suggests that with modern technology, such as computerization and automation, many of these issues could be mitigated, leading to a more efficient and less corrupt system.
Highlights

Socialist experiments of the past are a major anchoring point for modern leftists and a subject of serious criticism in radical circles.

There is an existential crisis for the left in envisioning what new socialist projects should look like.

Democratic systems of the West are criticized for leaving much to be desired, a sentiment shared by both the left and the right.

The rise of neo-fascism and right-wing ideology is seen as a symptom of a decaying liberal world order.

The left is presented with the challenge of providing a solid alternative model for politics, governance, and the economy.

The video aims to facilitate a reinvention of what socialism could look like in the future.

Council democracy, a variation of Soviet democracy, is introduced as a potential political model for post-revolutionary societies.

Soviets, or councils, are directly elected bodies that operate under the principle of an imperative mandate.

The imperative mandate creates direct instructions from the constituency that delegates must work towards.

Council democracy abandons horizontal accountability in favor of vertical accountability.

The recall power is a key feature of council democracy, allowing constituents to remove elected officials at any time.

The integration of technology into the political process is suggested to enhance council democracy.

Community Council centers and applications are proposed to facilitate frequent participation in liquid democracy.

The potential of automating economic planning with computers is discussed, drawing on the Soviet experience with cybernetics.

The modern context offers even greater possibilities for the implementation of automated economic planning than in the past.

The left should be actively reimagining what a post-capitalist society might look like, incorporating modern technological advantages.

The future socialist society will be shaped by both past experiences and unique modern innovations.

Transcripts

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Socialism DebateCouncil DemocracyTech IntegrationPolitical ReformEconomic PlanningPublic ParticipationVertical AccountabilityCyberneticsReferendum PowerPost-Capitalist Vision