State of the Union, 2023: Anarchy!

President Biden just delivered his annual State of the Union address. It was a peculiar mixture of fantasy and philosophy. Any resemblance to reality was conspicuous by its absence.

His appeal to the opposition Republican Party, the GOP, was a classic example of wishful thinking. As a professional speech writer is responsible for all of the speeches of the president, we can only suggest that Biden fire that incompetent fool. The President merely reads from a teleprompter. That which he read was at best, an embarrassment. At worst, a pack of lies:

‘’To my Republican friends, if we can work together in the last Congress, there is no reason we can’t work together in this new Congress. The people sent us a clear message. Fighting for the sake of fighting, power for the sake of power, conflict for the sake of conflict, gets us nowhere.’’

Reality check, Mr. President, you do not have any Republican friends! Certainly not in the House of Representatives! You certainly did not work with them in the last Congress! You worked against them! The Republicans were in a minority in that Congress, and they fought you tooth and nail! Now they are in a majority, and they are still fighting you! Yet you are right about one thing: you are getting ‘’nowhere’’!

This State of the Union address was possibly the only one, at least in recent memory, to be heckled by the Members of Congress! Those Members were openly booing, calling Biden a liar! They have a point!

Biden said that his ‘’vision for the country’’ is to ‘’restore the soul of the nation, to rebuild the backbone of America, the middle class, to unite the country’’. 

No chance, Mr. President! The ‘’soul of the nation’’, or the ’’backbone of America’’, as you referred to the middle class, has been all but wiped out! The monopoly capitalists have succeeded in driving most small business owners into the ground! They simply cannot compete with the monopolies! And it is the small business owners who comprise the middle class! That is not about to change! The monopolies are becoming ever bigger, ever stronger!

As for your goal to ‘’unite the country’’, that is not about to happen! The fact of the matter is that the country is divided into classes. On the one hand, we have a very small minority of monopoly capitalists, billionaires, referred to as the bourgeoisie, and on the other hand we have the vast majority of working people, mainly composed of hourly employees, referred to as the proletariat. 

As the capitalists pay their hourly employees as little as possible, in order to achieve the greatest possible profit, and their hourly employees are constantly trying to increase their wages, it is clear that their interests are diametrically opposed. That which is in the best interest of one class, is in the worst interest of the other class. There is no way the two classes, capitalists and workers, are about to unite! They are class enemies!

This class conflict recently came to the surface, within the House of Representatives. 

Within the House, there are several Members, all Democrats, who are referred to as ‘’The Squad’’. They have been labelled as ‘’Ultra Left’’, and worse. Possibly all of them have a working class background.

Bear in mind that the expression of ‘’The Squad’’ is not mine. Yet in  my opinion, these Members of The Squad are nothing other than the proletarian headquarters, within the House. It is very likely that they are not aware of this. On the other hand, they recently received a rude awakening, a lesson in class conflict.

One Member of The Squad was just kicked off of her seat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. There followed a number of emotional, passionate speeches, by the Members of The Squad. One of them, who is widely considered to be the unofficial leader of The Squad, stated that since 911, people of colour and Muslim Americans have been targets of racism. She maintains that, even in the House, women of colour have been the target of racism and violence. 

In all fairness to the capitalists, that is not entirely true. In fact, all people of colour, including women and Muslim Americans, have been targets of racism and violence, since long before 911! In the House and outside the House! The members of The Squad are just now becoming aware of this! Progress!

Her response was quite gratifying. As she put it, ‘’My voice will get louder and stronger and my leadership will be celebrated around the world, as it has been’’! Well spoken, young lady! Precisely the sort of thing we need to hear, in Washington and elsewhere! Keep it up!

Now it is up to us, working people, the members of the public, to support her and the other members of The Squad, in every way possible! We can expect them to come under ever more intense pressure! They need our support!

That support includes sending other working class people to Washington, and not just to the capital of the nation. Also to the various state capitals, among other places. Americans can manage this by joining the two mainstream political parties, as card carrying members, and appointing working class candidates to run for office. As I have covered this in a previous article, there is no need to repeat it here.

No doubt, there are a great many people who want nothing to do with the ‘’cesspool of Washington’’. Such an attitude is completely understandable, but mistaken. It is important to keep the ‘’big picture’’ in mind. 

As Lenin stated, the ‘’main thing’’ is to ‘’win over’’ the ‘’vanguard of the proletariat’’. Without this, ‘’not even the first steps towards victory can be made’’.  

This begs the question: How do we win over the vanguard of the proletariat?

The level of awareness of the most advanced strata of the working class, the proletariat, must be raised to that of the level of conscious people, of Marxists, or Communists, if you will. They have got to be made aware of the existence of classes, and of the conflict between the classes. They must further be made aware of the necessity of Revolution, of smashing the existing state apparatus, and setting up another state apparatus, in the form of the Dictatorship of the Proletariat. It is necessary to crush the desperate and determined resistance, of the bourgeoisie, after the Revolution, as they try to restore their ‘’paradise lost’’. 

Working people are not impressed by passionate speeches! They are impressed by action! It is up to intellectuals of all persuasions, and not just Communists, to become involved in that which interests the working class, to  use these as examples, to explain the class conflict involved, of the necessity of overthrowing the billionaires, which is only possible through Revolution, and of the subsequent Dictatorship of the Proletariat. There is no other way of establishing a socialist society!

An example of that which has the attention of the working class, is the State of the Union address. We know this for a fact, because it was aired on prime time! The only reason the capitalists broadcast anything on prime time, is because countless people are expected to watch it!

As that is the case, it is up to us to respect the beliefs of all working people. That includes the beliefs of those who still have faith in the current democratic process! It is clear that many people still follow the lead of such people as Trump and Biden.

For that reason, we must point out the hypocrisy of both mainstream political parties, Democratic and Republican. Both parties serve the same class!

With that in mind, we should participate in all elections, perhaps assisting working people in running for Congress, Senate, Governors of various states, etc. Then, from within Washington, assist The Squad, in exposing the government corruption, as those officials are nothing but the loyal and devoted servants of the capitalists.

Working people must learn, from experience, that the capitalists are completely corrupt, are in charge, and fully intend to remain in charge!

Lenin was not joking when he stated, ‘’The proletariat must train its own politicians, ‘class politicians’’, of a kind in no way inferior to bourgeois politicians’’. (italics by Lenin)

 After all, the fact is that Revolution is impossible without a change in the views of the majority of the working class, a change brought about by the political experience of all of the common people, never by propaganda alone. Hence the need to send working class people to Washington, to join and support The Squad.

Bear in mind that the ‘’Fundamental Law of Revolution’’, as per Lenin, is as follows: ‘’For a Revolution to take place, it is not enough for the exploited and oppressed masses to realize the impossibility of living in the old way, and demand changes; for a Revolution to take place it is essential that the exploiters should not be able to live and rule in the old way. It is only when the ‘lower classes’ do not want to live in the old way and the ‘upper classes’ cannot carry on in the old way that the Revolution can triumph’’. (Italics by Lenin)

Almost all Americans can testify to the fact that it is simply not possible to continue to live, as they are now. Violent crime is common place, with mass shootings, on a regular basis. Drug overdoses are epidemic.  Hunger is a constant companion. Food banks are running out of food. The number of homeless is growing daily. Inflation is sky rocketing. Those who have vehicles, cannot afford to fill their tanks. The country could be facing bankruptcy as early as June. And the response of the government? The politicians are now focused on the 2024 presidential election! This is the very definition of insanity! The country is in a state of crisis, and our leaders are in denial!Of course people are fed up!

A Revolution requires a majority of workers, or at least a majority of advanced, class conscious workers, to recognize that Revolution is necessary, and further, be prepared to die for this. The less advanced workers follow the lead of the more advanced.

It also requires the ruling class, the capitalists, to be going through a governmental crisis, so that the vast majority of workers, those who are normally apathetic, will become politically active. That is precisely the current state of affairs!

The vast majority of working people are now ‘’watching the news’’, or the ‘’Gong show in Washington’’, as so many refer to it. They are paying attention! Who can blame them? Their democratically elected leaders, those whom they are supposed to respect, are now squabbling like kids in a school play ground, but without adult supervision! They are even resorting to name calling!

Yet these are the same people who are in control! At least, they control the tax payer money! They also make the laws! And unless they come to some sort of agreement, the country could go broke! It is difficult to imagine how they can come to any kind of agreement! This is the very definition of a governmental crisis!

There is no time to lose. Now it is up to conscious people, Marxists, Communists, and not just Marxists, to raise the level of awareness of the most advanced strata of the proletariat. The working class must become aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin. Now that we have the Internet, and a cultured working class, thisis not nearly as difficult as it used to be. 

May I suggest that all those who consider themselves to be ‘’on the Left’’, to go onto various web sites, and encourage people to download the Revolutionary works of Marx and Lenin. At least, download the Communist Manifesto. The essential works of Lenin, such as State and Revolution, What Is To Be Done?, Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism, and Left Wing Communism, An Infantile Disorder, can be ordered from the Internet. 

May I further suggest that, once people get their hands on those Revolutionary books, perhaps online discussion groups will be helpful. I expect that a great many people will find these group discussions to be enlightening.

That brings me to a significant group of people, mainly middle class,  those who have a University education, are aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin, and consider themselves to be Social Democrats, or possibly Independent Socialists. Such people tend to think that socialism is a good idea, but simply not possible.

Let me start by stating that I respect your beliefs. May I also suggest that you keep an open mind. It is very likely that your beliefs are influenced by the training you received in University. This is to say that the Universities are careful to teach only the bourgeois distortion of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin. It is only to be expected that those who have taken such University courses, should come to believe that a Socialist Revolution could not possibly succeed.

Yet the fact of the matter is that Revolutions happen, quite spontaneously, as I am sure you are well aware. The French Revolution of 1789 is perhaps most famous, although the Russian Revolution of 1905 also comes to mind. In each case, the common people just rose up, not aware of that which they were doing. I refer to this as an Act of God. 

By contrast, the Russian October Revolution of 1917 was hardly spontaneous. The common people, both workers and peasants, rose up. The difference was that those people knew what they were doing! They were focused! They were class conscious! They lashed out at their class enemies! They overthrew the government of the capitalists! They then smashed the bourgeois state apparatus, and set up the Dictatorship of the Proletariat!

They were class conscious, but only because middle class intellectuals had brought to them the awareness of themselves as a class, complete with their own class interests. Those class interests include the necessity of smashing the existing state apparatus, at the time of the Revolution, and replacing it with a new state apparatus, in the form of the Dictatorship of the Proletariat. In no other way can the resistance of the bourgeoisie be broken! This in turn gave rise to the first Socialist Republic, the Soviet Union. 

Allow me to stress the fact that it was only because the working class was aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin, that the Revolution was successful.

That brings me to our current situation. Assuming the American working class is equally well aware of itself as a class, aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin, then the approaching Revolution has every chance of success. That is hardly the current state of affairs.

That is where you come in. Feel free to ignore the bourgeois distortions of those Revolutionary theories, as are taught in University. Read the true Revolutionary writings of Marx and Lenin, with an open mind. You will find that they are far different from that which is taught in University!

As soon as you have a fine grasp of those theories, bring that awareness to the working class. Now that we have the Internet, such a task is not  terribly difficult. 

The success -or failure!- of the approaching Revolution is, to a large extent, in your hands! We can certainly use you now! Further, after the Revolution, your services will be in great demand! 

The objection may be made, that it is not fair to place this responsibility upon your shoulders. True! It is not fair! Fair has nothing to do with it! It is what it is!

That being said, allow me to state that I am confident that you will rise to the occasion. You have been living under the influence of the bourgeois ideology long enough! I refer to this as Professor Power, and it is every bit as real as the physical force elements of repression. Now is the time to ‘’break the invisible chains’’ which are binding you! Face the fact that all of the science courses, which are taught in University, especially the ‘’Socialist’’ Marxist courses, are a pack of distortions and outright lies!

Rest assured, once you face that fact, you will likely feel a great sense of relief. At least, I did. After all, it is not just the working class that is crushed and exploited by the bourgeoisie! Also the middle class! Now is not the time to get mad! Now is the time to get even!

The best way to do that is by taking part in raising the level of awareness of the working class. Numerous Councils, otherwise known as Soviets, have taken shape, across the country. Discreetly, of course, as the government is only too anxious to destroy such working class organizations. Feel  free to join such Councils.

As well, use the Internet. No doubt there are countless web sites which can be used. Perhaps groups can be formed to study Marxist literature. Try not to attract the attention of the government authorities.

Bear in mind that, under far more difficult circumstances, in Russia, 1917, the common people rose up and overthrew the capitalists. The proletariat was in the minority, and not terribly cultured. The intellectual Marxists, most of whom were middle class, had to use leaflets and the spoken word, in order to raise their level of consciousness. They certainly had no Internet, as we do now! By no means everyone could read! Yet the successful Socialist Revolution took place, because the working class followed the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin. 

If they could do it, then we can do it! Bear in mind that the Revolution will happen, with or without the help of middle class intellectuals. Yet for the Revolution to be successful, to achieve Socialism, the Revolutionary working class will have to follow the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin. There is no other way! 

We will know that the working class is ready for Revolution, that we are getting our message across, when the posters and banners read:

Workers of the World, Unite!

Dictatorship of the Proletariat!

Scientific Socialism!