Author: Gerald Mcisaac

In 1920, the Soviet Union was a Socialist country, and Lenin was the first and founding head of the government. Technically his title was the Chairman of the Council of Peoples Commissars of the Soviet Union.

As head of the Soviet Union, he invited some British workers to the country, so that they might ‘’become acquainted’’ with the Dictatorship of the Proletariat, under Socialism, in the Soviet Union. 

Those visiting workers then requested that he send a letter to the British Government. Lenin responded that it was not appropriate, but that he could, and did, send a letter to the British workers. His advice, to the British workers, is just as valid now, as when it was first written. 

In his letter, Lenin mentioned that he was ‘’not at all surprised’’, to find that several of his guests, working class members of the British delegation, held a standpoint ‘’not of the working class, but of the bourgeoisie, of the exploiting class’’. 

In particular, several of the visiting British workers, those who were under the influence of the bourgeoisie, were concerned with that which the bourgeois press referred to as a ‘’Red Terror’’. The British press claimed that in Russia, there was no freedom of press or assembly. As well, certain political parties and groups were being persecuted, by the dastardly Bolsheviks. (At that time the Communists were referred to as Bolsheviks -GM)

To this, Lenin replied that the ‘’real cause of the Terror is the British imperialists and their ‘allies’, who practiced and are still practicing a ’White Terror’ in Finland and in Hungary, in India and in Ireland, who have been supporting Yudenich, Kolchak, Denizen, Pilsudski and Wrangel’’. (Those were the leaders of the Counter Revolutionary armies which were at war with the Soviet Union -GM)

Lenin went on to state that: ‘’Our ’Red Terror’ is a defence of the working class against the exploiters, the crushing of the resistance from the exploiters with whom the Socialist Revolutionaries, the Mensheviks and an insignificant number of pro Menshevik workers have sided. Freedom of the press and assembly under bourgeois democracy is freedom for the wealthy to conspire against the working people, freedom for the capitalists to bribe and buy up the press. I have explained this in newspaper articles so often that I have derived no pleasure in repeating myself.’’

(The Mensheviks and Socialist Revolutionaries were Counter Revolutionary political parties -GM)

He then went on to mention the names of working class leaders whom had just been arrested, including that of Sylvia Pankhurst, in Britain.

‘’This is the best possible reply the British Government could give to a question that the non Communist British labour ‘leaders’, who are captives to bourgeois prejudices, are afraid even to ask, namely, which class the terror is directed against -the oppressed and exploited, or the oppressors and exploiters? Is it a question of the ‘freedom’ of the capitalists to rob, deceive and dupe the working people, or of the ‘freedom’ of the toilers from the yoke of the capitalists, the speculators and the property owners. Comrade Sylvia Pankhurst represents the interests of hundreds upon hundreds of millions of people that are oppressed by the British and other imperialists. That is why she is subjected to a White Terror, has been deprived of liberty, etc. The labour ‘leaders’ who pursue a non Communist policy are 99 percent representatives of the bourgeoisie, of its deceit, its prejudices.’’ (italics by GM)

That statement of Lenin, is just as true today, as it was in 1920!

The fact of the matter is that this ‘’Red Terror’’, after the Revolution and under Socialism, is merely an expression of the Dictatorship of the Proletariat! Even after the Revolution, classes will continue to exist, and the capitalist class will have to be crushed! Hence the ‘’Red Terror’’!

He went on to point out that there was an ‘’old ulcer’’, which he referred to as the ‘’desertion of the majority of the workers’ parliamentary and trade union leaders to the side of the bourgeoisie’’. As a result of this ‘’desertion’’ of the ‘’working class leaders’’, they ‘’entered into an alliance with the bourgeoisie, against the Revolutionary struggle of the proletariat; they covered up this treachery with sentimental petty bourgeois reformism and pacifist phrases about peaceful evolution, constitutional methods, democracy, etc.’’

Clearly nothing has changed!

The point to be stressed is that Lenin respected the ‘’rank and file’’ working people, those whom had been misled, not only by the capitalists, but also by their own labour leaders. Some of those misled workers were among the British contingent which visited the Soviet Union. 

Now we have a similar situation, in that so many working people, among the ‘’rank and file’’, have also been misled. They believe the lies of their own politicians and labour leaders, who speak for the capitalist class. Those working people are not at fault!

They have been deceived by the politicians and the labour leaders, those who are nothing but devoted servants of the class of monopoly capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie!

The astute reader may well wonder, just what the afore mentioned has to do, with the title of this chapter? The short answer is everything!

The fact is that Lenin respected the beliefs of all working people, and in response to their legitimate questions, drew their attention to the existence of classes!  And to class conflict! So too, we must now draw the attention of working people to the existence of classes! As well as the war between the classes!

As working people are concerned with a possible government default, on ‘’X-Day’’ -as the press has labelled it- so too we must use this crisis to raise their level of awareness. We must refer to this crisis in class terms!

Stress the fact that there are ‘’negotiations’’ going on between the White House staff, and the staff of the Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy. Behind ‘’closed doors’’, of course. Yet both ‘’sides’’ represent the same class! Neither side represents the working class!

The ‘’staffs’’ of both the White House and the Speaker of the House, are agreed that it is necessary to cut spending. They are also agreed that this must not be directed against the military. All ‘’spending cuts’’ must be directed against ‘’social safety net programs’’. There is no mention of raising taxes on the billionaires! This despite the fact that many of those billionaires pay little or no taxes! 

The politicians justify this by saying that they do not want to ‘’raise taxes’’. This statement has no class content! They are careful to avoid class terms! They are determined to not raise taxes on the capitalists!

There is a big difference between taxing the working class, the proletariat, and taxing the capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie!

Instead, the ‘’negotiators’’ for the ‘’two sides’’, the White House and the House of Representatives, are haggling over the particular ‘’social programs’’ to be cut! According to the press, these cuts include ‘’food stamps, student debt relief, renewable energy, Veterans Affairs and medicaid’’. The military is strictly ‘’off limits’’!

It is significant that even the military veterans, those who should be respected and rewarded, for the fact that they served their country, are instead being punished! Their benefits are to be cut!

The plan of the ‘’negotiators’’ is to drastically cut the ‘’social programs’’, to reduce the ‘’safety net’’. This will have the effect of dramatically reducing the living standards of the working class. Ever more hunger, unemployment and homelessness, with medical services denied.

If negotiations should ‘’fail’’, if the ‘’two sides’’ cannot agree on  the amount of additional suffering of the working class, then the country will go into ‘’default’’, possibly on June 1. 

In that case, all government officials agree that ‘’priorities must be established’’. The ‘’first priority’’ is to pay the interest on the national debt! The capitalists must be paid!

The economists are openly speculating on the chances that the senior citizens, those who are on fixed incomes, dependent on their old age pensions, their Social Security checks, may be cut off! For that matter, government workers may not be paid! Even the members of the military may not be paid!

It is clear that the economists are so far removed from reality, that they actually expect workers to continue to work, without getting paid! Not likely! Possibly the officers in the military, those who are of middle class background, may agree to this, as they tend to be so patriotic. But not the enlisted personnel! And certainly not the government workers!

Yet just as Lenin respected the beliefs of all working class people, so too it is up to us, to also respect their beliefs. Further, just as Lenin drew the attention of all working class people, to the existence of classes, and to class conflict, so too we should do the same thing!

Patience is required. After all, it is only natural to expect working people, those whom have been misled all their lives, to believe the lies of the capitalists. Especially as workers are not aware of the existence of classes! The conditions of life, of the proletariat, do not lead to that awareness!

Yet working people are not stupid! Faced with the facts, which are that classes exist, and that the capitalists are concerned only with themselves, then those workers can be expected to become ‘’sweetly reasonable’’. Revolutionary! That is in their best interests!

There is no time to lose! One way or another, through government default or deep cuts to ‘’social safety net programs’’, the suffering of the working people is about to become more intense!

For that reason, there is an urgent need to raise the level of awareness of the working class. Those who are aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin, whether working class or middle class, must become active. 

Feel free to use the internet. Flood social media outlets with political articles, with class content, with calls for Revolution and the subsequent Dictatorship of the Proletariat. The capitalists have to be overthrown and then crushed! 

Allow me to once again stress the importance of using the words of the capitalists, against them! That is certain to persuade the working people of the existence of classes, and of the war between our classes!

I can think of no better way of concluding this article, than by my usual closure. May the airways of social media, as well as the posters and banners of protests proclaim:

Scientific Socialism! 

Workers of the World, Unite!

Dictatorship of the Proletariat! 

In March and April, three banks have failed. Those banks had combined assets of close to $550 Billion. Now in May, the journalists are reporting that three other banks are ‘’teetering on the edge’’, while six or eight others are ‘’moving ever closer to default’’. The journalists have compared this to a ‘’slow motion train wreck’’.

The economists are concerned with ‘’contagion’’, in which other banks could fail, due to a ‘’run on the banks’’. As almost all banks do not have sufficient cash on hand, to cover all deposits, their fears are well grounded. 

Those who draw their money out first, before the banks fail, will be fortunate. The rest will lose all but a quarter million. 

In order to reassure those with considerable money in the banks, the head of the Federal Reserve has just stated that ‘’the U.S. banking system is sound and resilient.’’ He then went on to assure one and all that there is no danger of any financial collapse. 

It is significant that he said this with a ‘’straight face’’. It is entirely possible that he practiced this speech, this bare faced lie, in front of a mirror. Or possibly there was no need to do so. 

As Lenin stated, the capitalists ‘’cannot act contrary to their nature’’. It is their nature to lie. They lie constantly. The joke among the working people, is that: ‘’You can always tell when the capitalists are lying! Their lips are moving!’’

There is certainly some truth to this. The only reason he went to such length to reassure depositors, that the banking system is stable, is because it is on the verge of collapse!

In fact, a few economists are predicting the collapse of possibly four thousand regional banks! Those same economists are predicting that the stock market will lose half its value! Nonsense!

Such starry eyed optimism! As soon as all ‘’regional banks’’ collapse, and depositors lose an estimated ten to twenty trillion dollars, how is it that the stock market can expect to lose a mere half of its value? The stock market is about to lose far more than half!

Within a short time, only the ‘’central banks’, those that are considered to be ‘’Too Big To Fail’’, will remain standing. All ‘’regional banks’’, those that are considered to be ‘’Too Small To Succeed’’, will ‘’go down the tubes’’. 

Bear in mind that the assets of one of the regional banks that just failed, was worth over $300 Billion! Even that is ‘’Too Small To Succeed’’! Clearly, only the banks that have assets of over $1Trillion, qualify as ‘’Too Big To Fail’’!

That which applies to banks, also applies to businesses! Any business with assets of less that $1Trillion, can be considered to be a ‘’small business’’, and as such, is ‘’Too Small To Succeed!’’

As the ‘’regional banks’’ collapse, so too countless ‘’small businesses’’ will also collapse. Those with hundreds, or even thousands of employees, will be unable to pay their work force, as those companies will have no money in the bank! ‘’Too Small To Succeed’’!

Workers are not about to work for free! Without a work force, all the assets in the world, will not save a business from bankruptcy! The Power of the Proletariat!

Within a short time, we can expect only a few, perhaps a half dozen, central banks to be left standing. They will be ‘’propped up’’ with tax payer money. At the same time, we can also expect to see a very few exceptionally large businesses, multi national corporations, to be left standing.

The extreme wealth of the ‘’Chosen Few’’, the ‘’Monopoly Capitalists’’, the ‘’Multi Billionaires’’, the class of people known as the ‘’bourgeoisie’’, will be increased dramatically! A few of them may even achieve their lifelong goal of becoming a ‘’Trillionaire’’!

The ‘’other side of the coin’’, so to speak, is that of ever more wide spread unemployment, homelessness and hunger. A Second Great Depression! Far more severe than the First Great Depression!

The suffering of the common people, the working class, the proletariat, as well as the family farmers, is about to become far more intense! Further, the middle class, the petty bourgeois, is about to become wiped out! They are about to join the ranks of the proletariat!

The economists are correct, when they predict ‘’widespread devastation’’! Unless the capitalists are stopped!

The class struggle is about to become simplified! The petty bourgeois, the middle class, as well as the family farmers, are about to become members of the proletariat! Workers against capitalists!

As I have mentioned in previous articles, those middle class people will bring with them their awareness, of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin, to the working class.

To such people, I can only stress the fact that you have no future under capitalism. You have a bright future under Socialism. 

With that in mind, consider the advice of Lenin, concerning the importance of a proper Communist Party: ‘’It is only under the leadership of such a Party, that the Proletariat is capable of displaying the full might of its Revolutionary onslaught, and of overcoming the inevitable apathy and occasional resistance of that small minority, the labour aristocracy…only then will it be capable of displaying its full might, which, because of the very economic structure of capitalist society, is infinitely greater than its proportion of the population’’.

At the time that Lenin wrote this, in 1920, the proletariat in Russia was in a minority. Now in North America, the proletariat is in the vast majority. Their strength is far greater than they suspect! The only thing lacking is the proper leadership, an American Communist Party. 

Lenin went on to say that: ‘’It is the Communists Parties’ principle task at the present moment to unite the scattered Communist forces, to form a single Communist Party in every country (or to reinforce or renovate the already existing Party) in order to increase tenfold the work of preparing the proletariat for the conquest of political power – political power, moreover, in the form of the Dictatorship of the Proletariat’’. 

It is significant that at the time Lenin wrote this, the ‘’most advanced strata of the proletariat’’, had embraced Soviet power, as well as the Dictatorship of the Proletariat. 

Such is no longer the case. That is no cause for despair on our part. It just means that we have our work cut out for us. It also means that we have got to learn from the mistakes of our Revolutionary ancestors. In this way, we can honour their memory. As I have covered this in previous articles, there is no need to repeat it here.

As for the hard core pessimists, who think that it is ‘’no use’’, that ‘’nothing will change’’, may I suggest that you give yourself an attitude adjustment. Or at least remain silent. Otherwise, the Revolutionary forces, which are about to be unleashed, will treat you like the Counter Revolutionary that you are! Such an experience is guaranteed to be most unpleasant!

Under far more difficult circumstances, Lenin was able to form a Communist Party, and raise the level of awareness of all common people, the proletariat and the peasants. The same is true of other great Revolutionaries. They ‘’blazed the trail’’, so to speak. We have merely to follow in their footsteps, while avoiding their mistakes. Now that we have the internet, it should not be terribly difficult. 

Take inspiration from the following slogans:

Workers of the World, Unite!

Scientific Socialism!

Dictatorship of the Proletariat!

On May 1, it was announced that JP Morgan Chase, a huge bank, one that is ‘’Too Big To Fail’’, had just bought First Republic Bank, immediately before the stock market opened. Now the capitalists can breath a big sigh of relief, as they have just ‘’averted a broader financial crisis’’. Now that one of the ‘’Chosen Few’’ has bought a ‘’regional bank’’, one which collapsed because it was ‘’Too Small To Succeed’’, the capitalists are convinced that they have ‘’contained the contagion’’. 

Fools! We can only marvel of the stupidity of such simple minded souls! They think that just because a ‘’central bank’’, bought up a ‘’regional bank’’, one which ‘’failed’’, then that will prevent a ‘’run’’ on all banks!

Common people are not entirely stupid! They are well aware that the banks have no where near enough money, to cover all deposits! In fact, the banks are short by somewhere between  nine and nineteen Trillion dollars! Only the first quarter million is insured! 

It is just a matter of time, before that sad fact sinks into the thick skulls, of those who have considerable money in the bank. After all, there are numerous small businesses which count on having cash in the bank, in order to pay their bills, as well as make payroll. No doubt, the smarter ones will attempt to draw their money out, before the banks collapse! 

This is bound to give rise to an old fashioned -1929!- run on the banks! The ‘’fortunate few’’, the ‘’early birds’’, will be able to ‘’grab their cash’’, while the ‘’vast majority’’, the ‘’johnny come latelies’’, will be left reciting the old refrain, ‘’if only I’da’’!

As previously mentioned, there is one lonely bourgeois economist, who is giving an honest assessment of the financial situation. This is not to say that he is principled. After all, he is a capitalist. It is simply a fact that he has found that such an approach is profitable, as so many fellow capitalists listen to him. He advises them on the best way to protect their capital, and they pay him for this. 

He expects a financial collapse, as countless regional banks ‘’go down the tubes’’. This will in turn lead to a Second Great Depression. He maintains that this week is ‘’critical’’. He is very likely right about that. 

Bear in mind that First Republic Bank had assets of $233 Billion, on March 31. Yet within a month, it was broke! Even with all those ‘’assets’’, it was still Too Small To Succeed! This now famous bank, which was worth such a fortune, was still ‘’thrown under the bus’’. This is to stress the fact that the middle class is being quickly wiped out!

In fact, all ‘’small businesses’’ are now living on borrowed time! The monopoly capitalists, the billionaires, are about to see to that!

The monopoly capitalists plan a repeat of the Great Depression. After the ‘’crash of 1929’’, the monopoly capitalists did not lose a dime! They made sure that it was the ‘’lower classes’’ that paid the price! 

Now with the banks about to fail, and the country facing default, the billionaires are planning, once again, to place the burden of the Second Great Depression, on those same ‘’lower classes’’, the proletariat and the middle class, the petty bourgeois. 

It is not just the lower strata of the middle class that will be ruined. The ‘’upper middle class’’ strata will also be ruined. Those who own rather sizeable businesses, can expect to face bankruptcy. The billionaires, the members of the monopoly capitalist class of bourgeoisie, will see to that! Only the largest banks and multi national corporations will be left standing! Only those that are Too Big To Fail!

With that in mind, may I suggest, to those ‘’upper middle class’’ people, that you do not have any future under capitalism. On the other hand, you have a bright future under Socialism! 

After the Revolution, there will be an urgent need, for people who have experience, running a business. Such well respected people will be put to work, and paid accordingly. 

That stands in stark contrast to the members of the bourgeoisie, the billionaires, those who do no work, under capitalism. They merely ‘’invest’’ their capital, and demand a ‘’proper rate of return’’, on that capital. They have no marketable skills!

Now to return to the members of the upper strata of the middle class.

No doubt, all such people are well educated, aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin. May I suggest that it is in their best interest to take part in the formation of a true Communist Party, one which calls for the Dictatorship of the Proletariat. 

There is no time to waste. That honest bourgeois economist, predicted financial devastation within ninety days. He was perhaps being optimistic.   

The Covid Pandemic. The country facing default. The banks failing. No doubt the capitalists can now understand what Shakespeare meant, when he wrote in Hamlet, ‘’When sorrows come, they come not single spies but in battalions’’.

Yet the capitalists would appear to be ‘’shouldering their burdens’’ rather well. Faced with financial ruin, an ‘’economic disaster’’, in the form of a Second Great Depression, they have decided upon a course of action that is simplicity itself. They have decided to do absolutely nothing!

In March, Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank went broke. The economists are referring to this as ‘’two of the largest bank failures in American history’’. A third large bank, First Republic, was ‘’on the brink’’, but managed to recover. Temporarily!

Then in April, First Republic was once again ‘’in need of financial assistance’’. For that reason, it was ‘’given a capital infusion’’ of $100 Billion by other banks. The Federal Reserve gave it a $70 Billion ‘’line of credit’’, and other banks donated $30 Billion. Perhaps they thought that this was sufficient to‘’prop it up’’. Indeed, this worked, for one whole week!

At the end of that week, the price of a ‘’share of stock’’ in that bank was selling for $3.51, down from a high of $145. As the capitalists see it, the ‘’stocks were down 97 percent’’. Now the FDIC is preparing to ‘’place it in receivership’’. 

The lesson here, is that trying to ‘’prop up’’ a bank that is failing, is like ‘’pouring water into a dry well’’! It does not do a ‘’world of good’’!

Now the capitalists are ‘’expressing concern’’ that the ‘’investors’’, those who ‘’play the stock market’’, may be ‘’getting jittery’’. They are afraid of a ‘’panic’’, a ‘’run on the banks’’, as those with money in those banks, attempt to draw that money out, before the bank fails. Their fears are well grounded! The banks do not have enough money to cover the deposits!

As the economists so politely state, ‘’it is not clear that the central banks can contain the international banking crisis’’. 

News flash! This banking crisis is not limited to America! It is international! So how can the central banks possibly contain an ‘’international banking crisis’’?

But within the country, the ‘’central banks’’, the ‘’chosen few’’, those which are classified as ‘’Too Big To Fail’’, will not be allowed to fail! Even if they cannot ‘’contain the crisis’’! They will be supported, with tax payer money!

On the other hand, as the capitalists phrase it, ‘’there are doubts over the viability of thousands of regional banks’’.

This is their stilted way of saying that ‘’thousands of regional banks’’, which they consider to be ‘’Too Small To Succeed’’, are about to be ‘’thrown under the bus’’, about to go broke!  

This is not something they advertise! Yet the Treasury Secretary, while testifying before a Congressional Committee, ‘’let slip’’ that ‘’community bank customers’’, those with over $250 thousand in those banks, were ‘’not necessarily protected’’. Bear in mind that those deposits total $19 Trillion!

With that in mind, many economists, in the finest tradition of belly crawling, are assuring investors that ‘’all is well’’. The banking industry is absolutely not ‘’teetering on the brink of collapse’’. Although even they are forced to admit, in the interest of ‘’covering all the bases’’, that the ‘’ultimate outcome is difficult to predict’’.

By contrast, one of the more honest economists, has no doubts about the ‘’ultimate outcome’’. He expects a ‘’panic’’, a ‘’run on the banks’’, a ‘’repeat of the stock market crash of 1929’’. He thinks that the ‘’coming week’’, the first week of May, will be ‘’critical’’. He also says that, ‘’ninety days from now, the stock market will look vastly different’’.

Bear in mind that this economist is by no means ‘’Left leaning’’. No one has ever accused him of being a Communist! He is devoted to capitalism, right to the very core of his being. His one and only concern is with making a profit. For that reason, he has made a business of giving advice to other capitalists, concerning the best way to invest their capital.

As I write this, the journalists are reporting that they expect the FDIC to ‘’place the First Republic Bank in receivership’’, on Sunday, preferably ‘’before the Asian markets open’’.

In conclusion, I can only stress that which Lenin pointed out, in Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism: ‘’Crises of every kind -economic crises more frequently, but not only these- in their turn increase very considerably the tendency towards concentration and monopoly’’.

Now that the capitalists are faced with a ‘’perfect storm’’ of crises, and not ‘’merely’’ financial, the monopolies are about to become far more complete. Thousands of ‘’regional banks’’ are about to ‘’go bust’’. The very few ‘’central banks’’ will be left standing. Financial pillars!

Along with the ‘’regional banks’’, almost all small businesses are about to ‘’bite the dust’’. 

Middle class people, take note! You are about to join the ranks of the proletariat! Very soon!

No doubt, the intellectuals among that class will soon become active, raising the level of awareness of the proletariat. As I have covered that in a previous article, there is no need to repeat it. Equally without doubt, they will take part in the creation of a true Communist Party, one which calls for the Dictatorship of the Proletariat. 

I mention this out of a sense of urgency. We are on the brink of Depression. As well, we are also on the brink of Revolution. No one can predict just when it will break out. Now it is up to us to prepare. With that in mind, may I suggest that the slogans should include:

Dictatorship of the Proletariat!

Workers of the World, Unite!

Scientific Socialism!

The title of this chapter may seem to be rather strange, but I have deliberately chosen it, as it correctly expresses the concern of numerous journalists. Many of them are well respected, considered to be among the finest in their profession, even though ‘’Left Leaning’’. Their presentations, concerning the ‘’debt crisis’’, accurately states the facts. At the same time, their analysis is frequently in direct contradiction to those facts! 

Yet this is characteristic, of the rather strange behaviour of middle class journalists. As Lenin pointed out, middle class people, those whom are technically referred to as ‘’petty bourgeois’’, are members of the most patriotic class. Their position in society leads to this patrIotism! It is clearly painful for them, to even consider the possibility that their elected leaders, in Washington, would deliberately allow the country to default! They consider this to be nothing less than an act of treason! 

For the sake of those who are not familiar with American politics, perhaps a little background is in order. 

In American bourgeois politics, there are basically two political parties, Democrats and Republicans. The president, Joe Biden, is currently a Democrat, and the Democrats control the 100 member Senate, by the slimmest of margins. 

On the other hand, the Republicans control the 435 Member House of Representatives, also by a razor thin margin, of 221-211.

This is significant, as the Republican Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, can afford to ‘’lose’’ only four votes, in order to get a bill passed, by the House. 

Yet the American government is close to ‘’default’’, which is to say that they have no money to pay their bills. They have reached their ‘’debt ceiling’’. They cannot go any deeper into debt, without the approval of the House, as by law, the House controls the money.

In fact, the government ‘’reached the debt ceiling in January’’, according to the economists, and has since ‘’resorted to extraordinary measures’’, other wise known as ‘’creative book keeping’’, in order to pay the bills. Such book keeping is commonly referred to as fraud.

Still, the economists are pointing out that the default cannot be avoided, and may happen as soon as early June. Unless, of course, the government is allowed to ‘’increase the debt ceiling’’, so that they will be allowed to borrow more money. As the House controls the money, it is up to the House to act. Or not!

So now it is up to the Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, to gather enough votes, within his own Party, to raise the debt ceiling. Otherwise, he will be blamed for the American default.

With possibly a mere five weeks remaining, before the country is unable to pay its bills, it is up to Kevin McCarthy, as Speaker of the House, to come up with a bill to increase that debt ceiling. In fact, he made a supreme effort, and did just that, on April 26. 

That bill is widely seen to be DOA, Dead On Arrival. It has absolutely no chance of being signed into law. Both the Senate and President Biden have vowed to kill the bill.

Some of the finest of the bourgeois journalists, who make a career of covering Washington politics, are reporting that the Republican Members of Congress are deeply divided.

In particular, they have identified no less than eight Members of Congress, whom they refer to as the ‘’Five Families’’. This is their less than subtle way of comparing them to the Mobsters, of New York City. 

Be that as it may, it is clear that the journalists have a very low opinion of those Members. They think that those particular Members are placing their own personal concerns above the interests of the country. 

In this, the journalists are absolutely correct!   

For some time, there was speculation that the Republican House Members could not possibly agree to any bill, which involved raising the debt ceiling. Yet over a period of several days, and in the process of ‘’tense negotiations’’, McCarthy managed to get together just enough votes, to get such a bill passed. 

The critics point out that in order to get that support, McCarthy had to make numerous concessions. Up until the moment the bill was sent to the ‘’House Floor’’, to be voted on, changes were being made. 

These changes are significant, as the ‘’spending bill’’, that which ‘’raises the debt ceiling’’, is tied in with that which is  referred to as ‘’dramatic cuts to the social safety net and its safety infrastructure’’.

That is putting it politely! 

In terms of the ‘’social safety net’’, it will ‘’end critical food assistance’’, so that the hungry will not receive food stamps. Also, there will be dramatic cuts to Medicaid, with so many people being deprived of medical coverage. Others will have to pay a great deal more. There will be no housing assistance, for those who need it most. The number of homeless people is expected to sky rocket. The promise of President Biden, to forgive student loans, will be cancelled. Those with student loans will be forced to continue making payments. There will be cuts to early childhood education, as well as cuts to Veterans Affairs. There will be no support for that which is referred to as ‘’Green Energy’’. There will be far fewer people in the IRS. In fact, it is anticipated that ‘’countless people will lose their jobs’’, and not just in the IRS! 

As concerns the ‘’safety infrastructure’’, there will be far fewer rail safety inspections, as well as fewer air traffic controllers. Both air and rail travel are about to become far more dangerous! 

Certain journalists are referring to this as a ‘’symbolic victory for McCarthy’’. They are of the opinion that it will ‘’give him leverage, in order to negotiate with Biden’’. Nonsense! Such is hardly the case! Negotiation is out of the question! The two are deadlocked!

McCarthy was forced to include all of those demands, in order to secure sufficient votes to get the bill through the House. If he ‘’negotiates away’’ even one demand, then the Member who insisted on that demand, will change his vote, and then the revised bill will not pass the House!

On the other hand, Biden can not possibly agree to any of those demands, because it would cost him the next presidential election! Not that the bill will ever get to his desk, because it first has to be passed by the Senate! Not about to happen! Especially as the Democrats are just as deeply divided as the Republicans!

One journalist, in particular, described this in rather dramatic terms. She is of the opinion that the Republican Members of Congress, are using the ‘’threat’’ of ‘’driving the country into default’’, for their own purposes, that they are ‘’holding the American economy hostage’’. As she stated, now that McCarthy has finally brought the bill to the floor of the House, the ‘’ransom demands’’ have finally been announced: Massive cuts to social and safety programs!

In support of this bill, a great many of the more ‘’Right wing’’ economists are predicting that the ‘’debt ceiling can be breached with only minimal impact.’’

In fact, that ‘’minimal impact’’ would include a dramatic increase to the suffering of the ‘’common people’’, the working class, the proletariat! Yet that is of no concern to the monopoly capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie! 

In all fairness, we have to admit that they have a point! It all depends upon your class outlook! The members of the capitalist class, the billionaires, care not in the slightest, about the members of the working class!

Naturally, the opinion of the more honest, ‘’Left leaning’’ economists, which is to the effect that ‘’breaching the national debt’’, could well lead to ‘’economic disaster’’, is largely ignored. 

In fact, it is fast approaching! Neither Biden nor McCarthy is in any position to negotiate!

This is to stress the fact that the ruling class, in this case the monopoly capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie, have come to a state of crisis. They ‘’can no longer rule in the old way’’. It is also a fact that the ‘’lower classes’’, in this case the working class, and the -soon to be ruined!- middle class, are supremely well aware that they can ‘’no longer live in the old way’’. This is the very definition of a ‘’Revolutionary situation’’, as per Lenin, in Left Wing Communism, An Infantile Disorder. 

Yet that in no way changes the fact that the working class, the proletariat, is still not aware of itself as a class, with its own class interests. It is still less aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin. Through no fault of its own, I might add. After all, those Revolutionary theories are only mentioned in university. 

My point is that the creation of a true Communist Party, one which calls for the Dictatorship of the Proletariat, is urgent. Only such a Communist Party can provide the proletariat with the awareness, the direction, which it so desperately needs.

For now, as always, the working class is struggling. Yet this struggle is not focused! How can it be focused? They are not aware that the capitalists are the enemy! They are not aware that the state apparatus must be smashed, and replaced, with the Dictatorship of the Proletariat! They are not aware of the need for Revolution!

In a previous article, I compared this class struggle to two boxers, one of whom is blindfolded. Of course the capitalists are supremely class conscious, focused on squeezing as much money from the working class as possible. By contrast, the working class is not aware of itself as a class, that the capitalists are the class enemy. For that reason, the working class can be compared to the boxer who is blind folded, swinging wildly, striking out in all directions. For that reason, I say: remove the blind fold! Raise the level of awareness of the working class! Allow the working class to focus their anger, to strike out at their class enemies, the capitalists!

Of course that comparison is an over simplification. Yet it serves to make the point. It is absolutely necessary that the working class become aware of themselves as a class, aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin, aware of the necessity of smashing the existing state apparatus, aware of the necessity of replacing it with the Dictatorship of the Proletariat. Then, and only then, can the Socialist Revolution be successful. 

With that in mind, we can only hope that those who are taking part in this Revolutionary Movement, will take advantage of the internet, and either download or buy the Revolutionary works of Marx and Lenin. As I have covered this in a previous article, there is no need to repeat it here.

Then perhaps a few working class intellectuals, can take part in the creation of a true Communist Party. It is very likely that a number of  middle class intellectuals will join in. As their world comes ‘’crashing down’’, as ever more middle class people become impoverished, the smarter ones will realize that they have ‘’no future’’ under capitalism. 

The Revolution is bound to happen, and soon. At that point, one of two things will happen. Either the state apparatus is smashed, and replaced with the Dictatorship of the Proletariat, and we will embrace Socialism. Or a different group of people  will take over the current state apparatus, and set themselves up as the new rulers. More capitalism!

That choice is in the hands of the Revolutionaries.

But now to return to the current situation. 

It is significant that the journalists are focused on the ‘’political infighting’’ which is taking place in Washington, mainly within the two parties. There is a reason for this!

As Lenin pointed out, in State and Revolution, ‘’Take any parliamentary country, from America to Switzerland, from France to Norway and so forth -in these countries the actual work of the ‘state’ is done behind the scenes and is carried on by the departments, the government offices and the General Staffs. Parliament itself is given up to talk for the general purpose of fooling the ‘common people’’’. 

While the journalists are focused on the politicians, who are making speeches, the actual ‘’work of state’’ is being done ‘’behind the scenes’’. These speeches are nothing more than a ‘’smoke screen’’, a ‘’diversion’’, a ‘’decoy’’, a ‘’red herring’’, to put it in popular terms. 

The journalists have ‘’taken the bait’’, are focused on the speeches of the politicians, are speculating on the possibility  of the unthinkable, a government default…while the people in charge, working ‘’behind the scenes’’, have already decided on that default!

The fact of the matter is that ‘’someone’’, who is working ‘’behind the scenes’’, has been very busy, ‘’pulling the strings’’ of various politicians. These politicians are mere ‘’puppets’’, who ‘’dance to his tune’’. He writes the speeches, and the politicians recite them!

That certain ‘’someone’’, is very likely the individual who is focused on becoming president, once again. Whatever the expense! If that means sending the country into default, then so be it! He can then come to the rescue, like a knight in shining armour, riding on a white horse!

It has, very likely, already been decided, that the country will go into default, and that will result in ‘’widespread economic devastation’’. President Biden will then get the blame, and theRepublican presidential nominee, Donald Trump, will easily win the next presidential election. Or so they think! That is their plan!

The journalists, in turn, are also ‘’dancing to his tune’’, whether they know it or not. They are dutifully reporting on the speeches of the politicians. In this way, they too, are doing their part in ‘’fooling the common people’’. 

Yet it is clear that the crisis in capitalism is coming to a conclusion. Marx and Engels had a few words to say on the subject, in the Communist Manifesto: ‘’In times when the class struggle nears the decisive hour, the process of dissolution going on within the ruling class, in fact within the whole range of old society, assumes such a violent, glaring character, that a small section of the ruling class cuts itself adrift, and joins the Revolutionary class, the class that holds the future in its hands. Just as, therefore, at an earlier period, a section of the nobility went over to the bourgeoisie, so now a portion of the bourgeoisie goes over to the proletariat, and in particular, a portion of the bourgeois ideologists, who have raised themselves to the level of comprehending theoretically the historical movement as a whole.’’

No doubt those ‘’bourgeois ideologist’’ will be a most valuable addition to the Revolutionary Movement, especially those who are theoreticians. Equally without doubt, they will assist the working class intellectuals in creating that which is so urgently needed, an American Communist Party, Dictatorship of the Proletariat. ACP, DP.