The current revolutionary situation in America may well have most people confused, and for good reason. It is confusing. With that in mind, may I suggest giving serious consideration to that which Lenin advised, when faced with a similar situation.
In various writings, Lenin consistently stressed the importance of the key link. In one of his most important writings, that of What Is To Be Done?, he said: ”Every question ‘runs in a vicious circle’ because political life as a whole is an endless chain consisting of an infinite number of links. The whole art of politics lies in finding and taking as firm a grip as we can of the link that is least likely to be struck from our hands, the one that is most important at the given moment, the one that most of all guarantees its possessor the possession of the whole chain.”
That was written at a time of revolutionary motion, similar to that which we are experiencing today. His advice is as valid today as when it was first written.
In my opinion, the key link in the chain today is preparations for the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat. It is the Proletariat which has to be trained to exercise Dictatorship over the bourgeoisie.
Preparations for that dictatorship involve raising the level of awareness of the working class, the proletariat. They have to be made aware of the existence of classes and the irreconcilability of the interests of those classes. They also have to be made aware of their duty to exercise dictatorship over that class of human parasites, the bourgeoisie. A little training in that respect should prove most valuable.
For the benefit of those who are just now becoming politically active -welcome, my brothers and sisters, my comrades- I will mention that the scientific name for the working class is the proletariat, and the scientific name for the monopoly capitalists is the bourgeoisie. They are also referred to as imperialists, as the age of monopoly capitalism is the age of imperialism.
I am sure all of you are aware of the scientific meaning of the word dictatorship, so I will not bore you with that which you already know. Suffice it to say that after the revolution, the capitalists will be separated from their wealth as well as their power. They will be held accountable for their crimes and not be allowed to hide behind an army of lawyers. They will be denied any and all democratic rights. The proletariat, the working class, will have the exclusive right to democracy. There is no other way to prevent the bourgeoisie from returning to power.
As an aside, I will mention that all workers must learn the correct scientific terms, as otherwise, the capitalists will use our ignorance against us.
The recent spate of shootings, mass murders in the country, are seen by the bourgeoisie as an opportunity. They do not see it as the tragedy that it is. In particular, they see it as an opportunity to divert the revolutionary movement. They are now blaming these acts of violence, this senseless slaughter of civilians, on video games. As if video games drive people to murder!
No, the problem is one of capitalism, and capitalism in its highest, most rotten form, monopoly capitalism, which is imperialism. The imperialists, the bourgeoisie, are completely reactionary, which is to say that there is nothing progressive about them. They can, and do, go to any lengths to preserve their wealth and power. As for those who are skeptical, consider the various wars in which the country is involved. The capitalists always have money for war, but they cannot afford to feed their own people.
The fact is that in the richest country of the world, people are going hungry. Seniors are suffering and dying because they cannot afford the medication they so desperately need. Children are neglected and abused because their parents are forced to work two and even three jobs, in an effort to make ends meet. People are forced to live on the street because they cannot afford to pay rent. There are various slums in the cities, filled with the homeless and unemployed.
It is also a fact that immigrants, people who are as desperate as they are poor, seeking a better way of life, are being arrested and thrown into prison. Children are being separated from their parents, and the children are being placed in prison. We are not allowed to see the suffering of these children, as cameras are not allowed inside those prisons. We are only allowed to hear those poor infants crying for their mothers.
These are the same people whom Trump has referred to as thieves, killers and rapists! As if infants are capable of rape and murder!
Then consider the fact that the president has referred to a major American city as a slum! As if it is the fault of the people who are forced to live in poverty!
Now consider the fact that the capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie, have more money than they can ever hope to spend, and it is not enough. They want more, and they are further determined to not pay any taxes. It is the bourgeoisie that is the problem.
It is to be stressed that the problem is not one of video games. Nor is the problem that of Trump. Impeaching him and removing Trump from office will not change the fact that the bourgeoisie are in charge. To replace him with one of the couple dozen Democratic candidates, the so called ”20-20 contenders”, those who are currently plugging up the airways with their drivel, will change nothing. The bourgeoisie will remain in charge. Such a change of face will merely replace Trump with another figurehead.
Now there are a great many young people -young from my rather ancient viewpoint- who are very fond of video games and object to the fact that the capitalists are blaming the video games on these senseless acts of mass murder. As they are rather worked up, I can only suggest that Leftist people suggest to these people, those who are fond of video games, that they take action. By that I mean that they should also join the two mainstream political parties, Democratic and Republican. That way, as party bosses, they will have a great deal to say about the candidates to run for any and all political offices, and that includes the presidency.
The point is that we should take advantage of all forms of discontent, and use this against the bourgeoisie. Those who join the two parties will gain valuable training and experience in the class struggle, in the sense that such training will be put to good use after the revolution, in exercising dictatorship over the bourgeoisie. The reason they have for joining the two parties is secondary. It is the raising of their level of awareness and the training they receive, in the class struggle, which is the main thing.
They can join such people as the students, who are mainly concerned with tuition. The seniors, who are very concerned with the cost of medication and their pensions. The workers, who are quite concerned with the minimum wage. Together, they can and will learn from each other. With some helpful input from Leftist people, they will soon learn that the problem is the bourgeoisie, and the solution lies in the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat.
No doubt there are those who think I am expecting too much from working people. To such people I can only respond that the working class is not to be underestimated.
There are a great many talented people within the working class. Most of them may not be aware of this yet, as they have never had an opportunity to exercise those talents. But now that so many working people are ”waking up”, as they phrase it, those talents will no doubt be revealed.
As I have mentioned in previous articles, the approaching revolution can be successful only if it follows the revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin. That requires workers to be familiar with the fundamentals of Marxism, and I have covered that before, so there is no need to go into it again.
Now we want as many Americans to join the two mainstream political parties as possible, especially those who display discontent. If that discontent is based on video games, so be it. We also want those who are defending our democratic rights to join the two parties, including those who are defending our right to bear arms and our right to free speech. Any other differences we have with those people we can hash out later.
Also in the news, the revolutionary upheaval in Hong Kong is instructive. The people there are resorting to different tactics, referred to as ”hit and run”, which is an excellent idea. They have also closed down the major airport, which is quite an accomplishment. As yet they are not strong enough to challenge the police in open combat, so they are hitting in one place, running to another, and then another. Strangely, they have yet to start opening fire hydrants, which will reduce the water pressure, strictly limiting the use of water cannons. I am surprised they have yet to hit upon that tactic.
As such revolutionary motion tends to spread, it is entirely possible that similar revolts are taking place in other parts of China. The Chinese government may simply be keeping that well hidden.
Back on the home front, we can safely say that the only people who have proven themselves capable of organizing a nation wide march and protest, are the students and the women, and many of them are involved in various causes. The only way in which the capitalists, the bourgeoisie, can be overthrown, is by uniting in one common front, and not just by students and women. Men of the working class and the middle class, the petty bourgeois, will have to unite with those people, with the goal of overthrowing the bourgeoisie, and establishing the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat.
No one wants a lengthy civil war, so the seizure of power is critical. Technically, this is referred to as an insurrection, and ideally, it should be quick and bloodless. Power should be seized within a day or two. The idea of keeping the plans for the insurrection a secret is not practical, as the bourgeoisie are masters of electronic eaves dropping. Of course, there is also no shortage of paid informers. They are a natural byproduct of capitalism.
With that in mind, upon the day which is appointed as the ”day of insurrection”, millions of working people should march, across the country, seizing key installations, including military bases, such as the Pentagon, government headquarters, such as the White House and Capitol Hill, communications centres and the stock exchange, such as are located in New York City, air ports, bridges, railroad stations and sea ports. Perhaps a ”dress rehearsal” should be carried out, just to make sure there are no glitches in the system.
Without doubt, the ruling class of capitalists in Hong Kong is also well informed, and yet the revolutionaries were able to shut down the major airport. We can learn from them.
Similar tactics in America should also prove to be most helpful. The politicians and members of the Trump administration should be harassed and humiliated, allowed no peace. Banners and posters should contain class content. Videos should be produced and placed on the internet, explaining the class struggle. The buildings which are the location for the 20-20 debates should be occupied, just as the main airport in Hong Kong was occupied. We should strive for as much mainstream press coverage as possible, as a means of carrying our message. We can and must raise the level of awareness of millions of people.
At the same time, there is an urgent need for a true American Communist Party, one which advocates for the Dictatorship Of the Proletariat. The membership in that Party must be rather few, limited to true Marxists. It is up to such people to provide the true leadership, as otherwise the revolution will only succeed in replacing one group of rulers with another.
As for those who are current or former members of the petty bourgeois, aware of the class struggle, serious students of Marxism, may I suggest that along with knowledge and education comes responsibility, if only on a moral level. The proletariat is counting on you, true Marxist intellectuals, to take the bull by the horns. Form an American Communist Party, Dictatorship Of Proletariat.
As ever more Americans become card carrying members of the two mainstream political parties, they will become more politically active and their level of awareness will rise. These advanced workers will also receive valuable training, which well serve them well after the revolution.
Gerald McIsaac Science Project 