Adam and Eve. No clothes, no house, one apple between them and they thought they were in paradise. from Ideological Commentary 13, September 1984.
THE WORKERS OWN NOTHING. WHAT, NOTHING? YES, NOTHING. WHAT, NOTHING? WELL, HARDLY ANYTHING. The Socialist Party of Great Britain tell us the working class own no part of the world’s wealth. Clause Number Two of their Declaration of Principles defines the workers as “those who produce but do not posses.” In the Head Office of… read more »
(This is an edited version of the letter that was sent, with alterations intended to improve its clarity.) Dear ______, Far from not having much idea what s.i. is all about, you are raising some of the crucial issues. I would like to reply more promptly but do not find these things can be handled… read more »
The Socialist Standard of September 1981 tells us why capitalism survives: The capitalist social system continues in existence, not because it is efficient or beneficial or controllable. The very opposite is true: it exists because, in spite of the facts of experience, the people under it will it to continue. – p. 162 The official… read more »
The Americans seem to have halted the deterioration of their inner cities; New York had been a particularly troublesome case. But whether they have managed to cure the trouble, or only to suppress the symptoms, remains to be seen. They still have tension between white and black (as we have in Britain also). Previous waves… read more »
“A censorship-free social environment would not be a social environment at all, it would be a maniac’s nightmare.” Sir Edmund Leach, quoted by M. I. Finley in TLS July 1977. from Ideological Commentary 12, August 1984.
OEDIPUS, ALL IS FORGIVEN; COME HOME – MOTHER. OVER MY DEAD BODY – FATHER. Following the classical pattern of rebellion against the father-figure some of the more enterprising people with serious interest in psycho-analysis are questioning the bases of Freud’s work. When starting on psycho-analysis Freud found a surprisingly high number of his female patients… read more »
By one standard definition the poor are those who have to work for a living. In a socialist society everybody would have to work for a living. So, if you sincerely want to be poor… from Ideological Commentary 12, August 1984.
Does the government control society? Not: Can Mrs. Thatcher beat the miners? but: Does any government control any society? In one sense, yes: decisions are made by the government with which the society complies. Examples of this are the exact rate at which taxation shall be levied and the precise date on which a new… read more »
A main theme of systematic ideology is that the major ideologies form a determinate series, in the sense that the people who move along the range develop the successive ideologies in a predictable order. But in doing this they do not abandon the earlier ones; these are, so to speak, carried along with them so… read more »