by Rick Wolff -

Is there an economic recovery underway? Was there one that has now stopped? Will our current recession, partly recovered from, now tumble downward again in a second or "double" dip? Mainstream politicians, journalists, and academics are engaged in hot and heavy debates about recoveries and double dips. Yet the economic reality for most Americans is altogether different.

The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) in Washington produced the graph below that we can use to clarify and correct the confusion about "recovery" and "double dip recessions."

The graph shows that what "recovered" were corporate profits that had fallen from the crisis's beginning in late 2007 until they hit bottom late in 2008. After that, corporate profits "recovered" and rose to mid-2010 lifting the stock market with them. After the EPI graph ends around April 2010, this recovery of corporate profits and stock prices stalled and now threatens to turn down again. A second downturn of corporate profits would be that "double dip recession" feared by politicians, journalists, and academics who revealingly confuse what happens to profits with what happens to the economy.

A better measure of economic conditions is the number of paid jobs provided by the economy. The EPI graph shows that number to have begun its fall early in this Great Recession and to have continued that decline ever since. Jobs disappeared even as hundreds of thousands of young people finished their schooling and newly began looking for work. At the same time, reduced hours and involuntary furloughs deteriorated the qualities of many jobs that were not cut. So too did the widespread decreases in wages and benefits (pensions, medical insurance, holidays, etc.). Job insecurity rose for nearly everyone.

There never was a "recovery" for the mass of Americans. Business had a recovery and now faces a double dip. For the mass of workers, they face no double dip since their economic conditions never recovered. Their risk is that corporations would respond to a double dip in their profits by shifting still more of the costs of this capitalist crisis onto workers.

***
Rick Wolff is a Professor Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst and also a Visiting Professor at the Graduate Program in International Affairs of the New School University in New York. He is the author of New Departures in Marxian Theory (Routledge, 2006) among many other publications. Check out Rick Wolff’s documentary film on the current economic crisis, Capitalism Hits the Fan, at www.capitalismhitsthefan.com. Visit Wolff's Web site at www.rdwolff.com, and order a copy of his new book Capitalism Hits the Fan: The Global Economic Meltdown and What to Do about It.

from MRZine

The Socialist Party USA had an excellent National Organizing Conference (NOC) this year in Madison, Wisconsin. The three-day event featured music, speakers and workshops that offered practical skills to enhance our activism. A little more than 50 people turned up for the event from all over the country. The relatively new South Central Wisconsin local hosted the event and these comrades performed marvelously.

Saturday’s plenary was noteworthy. Radical historian Paul Buhle gave the first speech in which he emphasized the need for radical political movements to take counterculture seriously. He lamented the early worker’s movements cleaving off of the radical bohemian elements in favor of a more workerist approach. Similarly, he tracked the development of the Beat culture as an important part of the general radicalization of the 60s.

Peace activist Cindy Sheehan was the next speaker. The many comrades who donated funds to pay for her plane ticket and housing made Cindy’s speech possible. She discussed the “so-called” anti-war movement and spoke out strongly against the way in which the movement was funneled into the Obama campaign and killed. Cindy spoke passionately about re-imagining the anti-war movement as an anti-capitalist movement that understood the links between economic exploitation and war. She declared herself a revolutionary socialist from the podium. In addition, she announced her intention to run for president in order to challenge the war candidates in 2012. Quite an exciting development for us!

Finally, Dan LaBotz, fresh off his Socialist Party campaigning in Ohio gave a fiery speech about the disappeared. Dan mentioned our disappearing jobs, our disappearing social movements and our disappearing independence from the Democrat party. Instead of capitulation or depression, he shouted “Nunca mas!” (Never again!) while offering inspirational stories about his time on the campaign trail in Ohio. In particular, Dan mentioned a noteworthy conversation with a Pakistani woman who thanked him for speaking out against the US war being carried out against people in her country.

Here are some pictures from the event:

Cindy Sheehan speaks during the plenary:

Madison's own Raging Grannies:

Greg at the Registration Table:

Group Photo!

In a workshop...

Dinner time on Saturday night!

by Cindy Sheehan -

September 27, 2017, Wasilla, AK. - Speaking from the Far-Western White House, President Sarah Palin today declared that combat operations “are over” in Iraq.

“I want to thank the American troops and their families for the heroic roll they have played in freeing Iraq from a violent dictator and in protecting American interests in the Middle East,” President Palin continued. “The troops that are not redeployed in Af-Pak, Korea or Yemen or Columbia, and remain in Iraq will now and forever be known as ‘Enablers’ and Operation New Dawn will now be known as Operation High Noon,” the jubilant President, mother of eight, and grandmother of 12, finished.

“The Palin administration feels confident that this will be one of the final times that ‘end to combat operations' in Iraq will be declared, and this will be a robust withdrawal” a release from the White House press office stated.

Is the above scenario far-fetched? I don’t think so—I have spent all week thinking that the rhetoric around the “end” to the combat mission in Iraq has to be satire from The Onion. I feel that nothing could be so bizarre.

Barack Obama called Iraq the “dumb war” in 2003—as is: “I am not against all wars, I am just against dumb wars,” and from that tiny, lukewarm, and essentially hostile statement, he was called “anti-war.” Indeed, when I found out that Obama had been awarded the Nobel Peace prize in 2009—I accused the Swede (I was in Sweden at the time), who gave me the odd news, of lying, or reading another satire from The Onion.

My son, Casey and at least 4000 more troops have been killed in Iraq since George Bush’s famous Captain Codpiece moment when he flew onto the deck of the Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier near San Diego and declared an “end to major combat” in Iraq. At that point, my son’s division, the First Cavalry’s, imminent deployment to Iraq was canceled (but later rescheduled). I remember the day that happened on May 1st, 2003 Casey called me from Ft. Hood and we I discussed the fact that the war was over.

Now, in a stultifying display of déjà vu, the Obama administration is declaring another end to combat in Iraq seven years, three months, and 18 days after BushCo’s declaration. Not only is this an astounding display of re-framework, many people are going to believe it. I just saw a commentator on MSNBC(GE) telling everyone that President Barack Obama ended the war in Iraq ahead of schedule.

Dozens of Iraqis were killed this past week and I think that they didn’t get the memo about the war being over, either. People are still going to die—soldiers will still be killed because the Iraqis have always seen them as oppressors and occupiers, not saviors.

If the troops aren’t combat troops any more, then let’s take away their guns, tanks, drones, airplanes, helicopters, humvees, bases, body armor, etc and have them live in apartments in Baghdad—and speaking of that, why don’t we de-fortify the Green Zone (that was also just rebranded to “International Zone) if everything is so hunky-dory. Also, the 3rd Armored Cav that is leaving for Iraq from Ft. Hood soon should refuse to go since the war is over!

The 4th Stryker Brigade from Ft. Lewis, Washington returned home a few days ago and they yelled: “We won,” as they left the country. The US has won nothing in Iraq and what we have done to the Iraqi people (and are going to do to them) should be our infinite national shame.

Even when/if the US troop count ever truly equals zero in Iraq—the so-called war will never end for millions of people. Iraq is a hot zone of depleted uranium contamination as Vietnam is still a hot zone for Agent Orange. Empire is the curse that never stops defiling.

Even though this past week has been Bizzarro World, I know what I am going to do. I am going to pretend like the wars are still relevant and the people who are in danger have precious lives that are worth saving.

I only believed the “Mission Accomplished” BS on May 1, 2003 because I so desperately needed to.

Not this time.

Not ever again.

We'll leave Iraq when the last drop of oil and the last nickle is squeezed out of that most unfortunate of countries with some of the richest natural resources--not a second sooner.

check out Cindy Sheehan's Soapbox

by David McReynolds -

What a difference money makes. Today, Saturday the 28th of August, 2010, Glenn Beck rallied on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial with all the majesty of Fox News behind him. Day after day Fox News had trumpeted the event, organizing for it, and if Beck doesn’t get a crowd it will be no fault of those who own Fox News and fund Glenn Beck. (Fox News is one very good reason for an estate tax which would guarantee that no one could buy and own networks, newspapers, and control the media, the way Rupert Murdoch has done). I’ve never met Glenn Beck, I don’t expect to. He is – pretty much in common with all the commentators, whether their views are left or right, – paid to air his views. I suspect that for the right price Beck would happily change those views. (I do agree with Beck’s attacks on Woodrow Wilson, who brought segregation back to the White House, got us involved in the bloody first world war, and who jailed the Socialist Party’s leader, Eugene V. Debs for the crime of speaking out against that war. Irony of ironies, Wilson refused to even consider a pardon for Debs – that remained for the Republican President, Warren G. Harding, who met with Debs in the White House and pardoned him).

Let me, as someone who has had the good luck to be a guest at history’s table, turn back more than half a century to Wednesday, August 28th, 1963 and The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. I was then, at 33, a young radical working for the War Resisters League, which had given Bayard Rustin leave so that he could work in the Civil Rights movement as a special aide to Martin Luther King Jr., and as the primary organizer of the August 28th events.

The media gave the event good coverage after it happened – Life magazine (who can remember the days when Life magazine, a weekly, was a major cultural force?) put Bayard Rustin and A. Philip Randolph on its cover. But there was no advance coverage, no daily drumbeat on the networks. No commentator who could act as the organizer for it. Nor did it take place on Saturday – Bayard knew it had to take place in the middle of the week, when people would need to take time off from their jobs. The event was far more than a weekend outing in the nation’s capitol – it was the largest demonstration of its kind in our history. Much of the background feeling can be seen in the film about Bayard, Brother Outsider, which gives one a sense of how the demonstration was organized with the support of trade unions, church groups, and the civil rights movement in the South.

There was profound fear in Washington DC. John F. Kennedy had tried to get the march called off. The police were put on special alert. The shops of the city were largely closed, the streets empty, as “White Washington” braced for the flood of Blacks and the inevitable rioting. Bayard had enlisted the support of the Guardians, the Black police officers in New York City, who came down in force to provide security.

I don’t remember how I got there – I assume I was one of the many thousands of New Yorkers who took buses down. But I shall never forget our march toward the Lincoln Memorial, as thousands and thousands of citizens, most of them black, but many of us white, chanted “Freedom, Freedom, Freedom” with a cadence all its own. Blacks from the South who had never been in a mass demonstration with whites before. All pouring into the area around the Lincoln Memorial.

I had been to Washington many times before (and many times since). I had been to the “Prayer Pilgramages Bayard had organized, which were a kind of prelude to the great march. I was used to the endless list of speakers at these events, a speaker from each of the sponsoring groups. Usually, after getting to a march, and making sure I’d be one of those counted by the counters, I’d take a break for a hamburger or a drink. This time I was grateful that I stayed and heard King’s I Have a Dream speech, breaking out over the vast assemblage. To compare the majesty of that rolling speech, with the cadence of the Black church and the infinite suffering of Black America, with the commercial hysteria of Glenn Beck is, almost, to make one ashamed of being white.

There was a scene that unfolded before King spoke, as the crowd moved into place. George Lincoln Rockwell, the American Nazi leader (who was later assassinated by one of his followers) had set up a small stand from which to speak, and began to spew hatred of “niggers, kikes, queers, and commies”. I admired Rockwell for his courage, but he was clearly intending to spark a riot. I watched with fascination as young Black men moved in, formed a ring around Rockwell and his supporters, and locking arms, faced outward, toward any of the marchers who might be tempted to make a physical assault on Rockwell. Rockwell and his cohorts found themselves isolated – and protected – by a ring of young Black men.

There was no violence in Washington that day. It was a proud moment for the Civil Rights movement, though terrible things were to come – on September 16th, racists bombed a black church in Birmingham, murdering four children. And in November of that year JFK was murdered. August 28th was a moment of affirmation for the best in America, black and white, young and old. It did not end the struggle for civil rights for Black America – but it was a crucial point in that struggle. I wonder if those who follow Glenn Beck so avidly will, ten years from now, look back to this day, this media-organized event on a Saturday when no one had to take off from work, an event funded by the multi-millionares who stand in the shadows behind Beck, and feel they were part of history, in the way those of us who were there in Washington D.C. in 1963 knew we were on the side of the best America had to offer.

***
David McReynolds is retired, the former chair of War Resisters International, the Socialist Party Presidential candidate in 1980 and 2000. He lives on the Lower East Side of New York with two cats. He can be reached at: dmcreynolds@nyc.rr.com. This column can be reprinted without permission.

Myth #1: Social Security is going broke.

Reality: There is no Social Security crisis. By 2023, Social Security will have a $4.6 trillion surplus (yes, trillion with a 'T'). It can pay out all scheduled benefits for the next quarter-century with no changes whatsoever.1 After 2037, it'll still be able to pay out 75% of scheduled benefits—and again, that's without any changes. The program started preparing for the Baby Boomers' retirement decades ago.2 Anyone who insists Social Security is broke probably wants to break it themselves.

Myth #2: We have to raise the retirement age because people are living longer.

Reality: This is a red-herring to trick you into agreeing to benefit cuts. Retirees are living about the same amount of time as they were in the 1930s. The reason average life expectancy is higher is mostly because many fewer people die as children than they did 70 years ago.3 What's more, what gains there have been are distributed very unevenly—since 1972, life expectancy increased by 6.5 years for workers in the top half of the income brackets, but by less than 2 years for those in the bottom half.4 But those intent on cutting Social Security love this argument because raising the retirement age is the same as an across-the-board benefit cut.

Myth #3: Benefit cuts are the only way to fix Social Security.

Reality: Social Security doesn't need to be fixed. But if we want to strengthen it, here's a better way: Make the rich pay their fair share. If the very rich paid taxes on all of their income, Social Security would be sustainable for decades to come.5 Right now, high earners only pay Social Security taxes on the first $106,000 of their income.6 But conservatives insist benefit cuts are the only way because they want to protect the super-rich from paying their fair share.

Myth #4: The Social Security Trust Fund has been raided and is full of IOUs

Reality: Not even close to true. The Social Security Trust Fund isn't full of IOUs, it's full of U.S. Treasury Bonds. And those bonds are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States.7 The reason Social Security holds only treasury bonds is the same reason many Americans do: The federal government has never missed a single interest payment on its debts. President Bush wanted to put Social Security funds in the stock market—which would have been disastrous—but luckily, he failed. So the trillions of dollars in the Social Security Trust Fund, which are separate from the regular budget, are as safe as can be.

Myth #5: Social Security adds to the deficit

Reality: It's not just wrong—it's impossible! By law, Social Security's funds are separate from the budget, and it must pay its own way. That means that Social Security can't add one penny to the deficit.8

Defeating these myths is the first step to stopping Social Security cuts. Can you share this list now?

Sources:

1."To Deficit Hawks: We the People Know Best on Social Security," New Deal 2.0, June 14, 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=89703&id=22140-15415651-RKDL.ax&t=4

2. "The Straight Facts on Social Security," Economic Opportunity Institute, September 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=89704&id=22140-15415651-RKDL.ax&t=5

3. "Social Security and the Age of Retirement," Center for Economic and Policy Research, June 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=89705&id=22140-15415651-RKDL.ax&t=6

4. "More on raising the retirement age," Washington Post, July 8, 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=89706&id=22140-15415651-RKDL.ax&t=7

5. "Social Security is sustainable," Economic and Policy Institute, May 27, 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=89707&id=22140-15415651-RKDL.ax&t=8

6. "Maximum wage contribution and the amount for a credit in 2010," Social Security Administration, April 23, 2010
http://ssa-custhelp.ssa.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/240

7. "Trust Fund FAQs," Social Security Administration, February 18, 2010
http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/ProgData/fundFAQ.html

8."To Deficit Hawks: We the People Know Best on Social Security," New Deal 2.0, June 14, 2010
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=89703&id=22140-15415651-RKDL.ax&t=9

from Vachon for Senate

by Billy Wharton -

Waiting for the next big social protest movement can be frustrating. Activists may find some solace, if not inspiration, from Andrej Grubacic and Staughton Lynd’s book Wobblies and Zapatistas (2008). In it, the leading voice for a new Anarchist movement and the veteran labor activist argue for an unorthodox mixture of Anarchism and Marxism. The mutual hostility between the two ideological positions, the two authors suggest, is a debilitating legacy of the 20th century. In short, they argue, if radical politics are to experience a re-birth, Marxism and Anarchism will need each other.

Lynd and Grubacic have not cooked up an entirely novel formula. Instead, they draw inspiration from early 20th century radical movements that worked on the edges of Anarchism and Marxism. The two believe that the structural analysis provided by Marxism and the commitment to prefiguring transformation that Anarchism offers can be complimentary parts of a new radical politics – a “Haymarket synthesis.” This means drawing on the historical examples of the IWW and the Haymarket martyrs while also examining a movement closer in historical time still underway in Southern Mexico.

Zapatismo from Below
For Lynd, the Zapatista rebellion in Chiapas, Mexico offers a concrete example of a radical movement that combines the best of Marxism and Anarchism. In the 1970s, orthodox Marxists from Mexico City headed south and encountered the deep history of rural Anarchism and indigenismo practiced by peasants in the region. The resulting synthesis allowed these communities to carry out a mass revolt in 1994 in protest of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

But this rebellion departed from previous radical movements in that it rejected the taking of state power as a goal. Zapatista leader Subcomandante Marcos declared the movement “a political force that does not seek to take power.” Instead, and this is an essential point for Lynd, Marcos “leads by obeying.” This translate into abiding by the will of base communities that are focused on carving out spaces of communal autonomy.

These communities have become experiments in anarchist prefiguration – where people live social change in smaller, often local, contexts before attempting to generalize them. Zapatista activists have engineered democratically controlled schools, housing and food while also mounting non-violent challenges to the encroaching Mexican military. For Lynd, this confirms the notion that Anarchism “has dual power built into it.” Building these community projects provides the community with autonomy from the Mexican state while making solidarity a part of everyday life.

However, the Zapatistas do not understand themselves as an entirely local movement. Instead, Lynd emphasizes the groups’ sharp understanding of the international economic and political moment they are operating in. This structural understanding informed by Marxism allows the group to identify the opportunities and limitations offered by current politics and economics and provide them with the ability to anticipate changes.

This allows the Zapatistas to expand the context in which their local initiatives take place by using tools such as the internet to export them internationally. While early commentators identified this factor as being a part of a “post-modern” revolution, Lynd understands it as being linked to the group’s desire to contribute to the creation of a truly global alternative to neoliberalism. A broader Marxist-informed global analysis is needed for this.

American Examples
Grubacic pushes Lynd to consider how the Zapatista experience relates to previous movements in the US. Not all of the 20th century formations learned the lessons of the Haymarket synthesis that the two wish to propose. This is particularly true of the period of the 60s in the US when militant subjectivities exploded all over the country.

Lynd’s direct experience with the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) offers a counterpoint. Lynd refers to SNCC as “the second coming of the IWW.” By this, he means to indicate that this civil rights group practiced the kind of internal democracy and direct action politics that harkened back to previous struggles. By emphasizing action over analysis, SNCC effectively mobilized thousands of activists who practiced solidarity and grassroots democracy in order to break the back of Southern segregation.

However, SNCC ultimately faced a rapid demise after being repulsed at the 1964 Democratic National Convention. Lynd identifies the group’s refusal to consider a structural analysis or to take a critical look at broader political developments as a fatal weakness. When the author himself offered SNCC leaders a broader analysis of capitalism, they rebuked him for attempting to impose an ideology onto a movement organically connected to the community.

The intense focus on grassroots activism produced dividends as long as the organizing targets were obvious and the civil rights campaign maintained momentum. Yet, once the political context shifted, SNCC was cut loose from its activist moorings and gravitated to a set of Black Power politics which Lynd termed “humanitarian activism” to express its distance from everyday life. The base communities that had once looked to SNCC for leadership now turned away from the new agenda and the group withered.

Recipe for Social Transformation
Through a critical weighing of these successes and failures, Grubacic and Lynd are able to propose some loose principles of what a Haymarket synthesis of Anarchism and Marxism might look like in the 21st century. Such a new movement would certainly create spaces for radical experimentation. Lynd calls this the process of “traveling without a map” – unleashing the anarchist impulse to fashion creative, often ad-hoc, responses to social ills. The two prefer the metaphor of activism as “planting seeds” – some of which perish and others that grow into full bloom.

Such experiments need to share a similar quality. They must, Lynd emphasized, provide a vision for the future that is rooted in daily life. Here the “high-theory” of Marxism needs the “low-theory” of Anarchism to create spaces for concrete acts of resistance. “I do not think,” Lynd argues, “that ordinary persons bleed and die for a vision that they have not experienced.” Libratory politics must express a determination to allow people to experience some of the future their political actions might help carry forward.

The most efficient way to develop such a movement is to practice the political art of accompaniment. Lynd borrows this term from Liberation Theology and uses it to express the desire to march with the poor and oppressed as equals instead of acting as a vanguard force. This does not mean that political movements fetishize or endorse every action carried out by the oppressed, but that as Archbishop Oscar Romero stated, that we “identify with the poor when they demand their rights.” Accompaniment speaks to the need for horizontal relations as opposed to the vertically organized politics that the authors associate with the dictatorships of the 20th century.

Similarly, Lynd, a committed pacifist, suggests that 21st century movements make a commitment to carrying out non-violent change. One of the negative historical experiences that both Anarchism and Marxism share, he argues, is the use of violence to make social change. Lynd uses the historical example of the self-immolation of Quaker activist Norman Morrison in protest of the Vietnam War in 1965 to demonstrate the utility of non-violence. Lynd invites readers to imagine the consequences if Morrison had carried out a violent act against an Administration official. This would have made the official a martyr, the act would have been spun as one of extremism and national determination to continue the war might have hardened. Instead, the anti-war movement picked up steam after Morrison’s death and news of it spread even into North Vietnam. When Lynd visited, the North Vietnamese told him that they were inspired by knowing that at least one American
cared about their loss of Vietnamese lives.

Finally, Lynd cautioned against falling into the trap of viewing social change as an apocalyptic event. There is no single moment where one system ends and another new one begins. This squares well with the notions expressed in the revolutionary transformations underway in Bolivia and Venezuela where participants view themselves as being part of a “process” of socialist transformation that advances at a steady pace. “A transition will,” Lynd proposes, “…express itself in unending creation of self-acting entities that are horizontally linked.”

Fundamentalists Need Not Apply
As political activists in the US face the continuing economic crisis that ensued in 2008 and the looming security and military state created after September 11, 2001, they may draw strength from fashioning their own Haymarket synthesis. Creating a new movement that draws on the best features of Anarchism and Marxism offers an opportunity to re-connect with 20th century radicalism while transforming our society in the present. Wobblies and Zapatistas effectively delivers this message of radical unity. Fundamentalist thinkers on either side of the political ledger need not apply.

***
Billy Wharton is a co-chair of the Socialist Party USA. This article is based on a presentation entitled “Marxist Hijackers and Anarchist Regenerators Unite” made at the 2010 Socialist Party USA National Organizing Conference. He can be reached at whartonbilly(at)gmail.com

by Lawrence Rockwood -

Tom Engelhardt: The American Way of War: How Bush’s War Became Obama’s, (Haymarket Books: Chicago, 2010).

In 1973, America’s seminal military historian Russell F. Weigley published The American Way of War: A History of United States Military Strategy and Policy. In his epic work, Weigley described a transition in the American “national consciousness” on war from a distrust of standing armies and anything short of unconditional victories to the military-industrial complex, military stalemates in Europe, and even potential military defeats in such places as Vietnam. This year, Tom Engelhardt has published a book with the same title, this time describing the “national consciousness” of America’s post-9/11 victimhood hysteria.

In his introduction, Engelhardt describes the post 9-11 military paradigm as “War is increasingly a state of being, not a process with a beginning, an end, and an actual geography,” and a paradigm in which “We all partake.” “In this sense, we live peaceably in a state of war.” In this he is correct about the current “American Military Mind,” although he is mistaken about its date of onset, one that goes back far before 9-11.

Engelhardt was not the first to take on this cowardly hysteria of post-9/11 American victimhood. Ward Churchill, an ethnic studies professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder, within weeks of the 9-11 attacks, described those who died in the attack as "little Eichmanns." However, Churchill’s remarks were sloppy. He made the common mistake of conflating legitimate non-combatant status with a state of innocence. Unlike Eichmann, his global capitalists technocrats were not uniformed combatants, no manner how guilty many of them were of supporting global economic injustice. Churchill’s sloppiness played right into the hands of the proponents of the national hysteria.

A few weeks later, ABC decided not to renew Bill Maher's contract for Politically Incorrect in 2002 after he stated the most obvious truth that “Lobbing cruise missiles from two thousand miles away. That's cowardly. Staying in the airplane when it hits the building. Say what you want about it. Not cowardly. “ It would be almost a decade until someone like Englehardt would take on this cowardly national hysteria.

In 2001, what Englehardt described as a “tiny band of fanatics who planned September 11 essentially lucked out” by creating an event that in the American Mind would be of more importance than the killing of 800,000 noncombatants in Rwanda, the million in Sudan / Congo, the 1.5 million in Cambodia, or even the eleven million in the European Holocaust. Nothing testifies to this than the “The Billion Dollar Gravestone” that is the cost of the museum and memorial being built for the 2976 dead at ground zero in New York City.

He points to the “Global War on Terror’s greatest achievement” “was to turn us into “a Nation of Cowards” by letting an exaggerated threat of terrorism lead us to abandon our rights. He could have placed this national cowardice in a greater historical profile that includes our government’s making war more safe and convenient for its citizens by ending the draft, using mercenaries like Blackwater, and using drones in which no American “kid” is on board to be shot down. This goes back to the old Nixon claim that there would be no American anti-war movement if there was no American draft and if we keep Americans in body bags to a minimum there will be a minimum of interference by the American people in their government’s killing sprees abroad.

Later in the book, Englehardt does fall back into Chomskyite “manufactured consent” school of military – political analysis so dominant in the anti-military discourse of the American left since Vietnam: turning generals like General Stanely A. McChrystal into exceptional bad guys rather than banal functionaries; special operations and counter-insurgency personal are more inhumanly demonic than conventional forces; and the most silly, the Pentagon is behind G.I. Joe doll marketing. As a former counter-intelligence officer, this conflicts with my experience and I find it hard to take the logic of this line very seriously. Americans are NOT involuntary imperialists, we are imperialists by choice. Americans are NOT involuntary barbarians, we are barbarians by choice.

On Feb 9, 2010, Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Fox News claimed that when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, “they killed a million people.” The Soviet Union also invaded Hungary and Czechoslovakia too, why did not a million causalities accrue there? The difference was American policy or, more specifically, one American policy when it comes to the lives of Europeans and another for the lives of those in the Third World. American policy led to one million deaths in Afghanistan before our military ever formally invaded that country. The sad fact is there is no question that we are not going to stop killing after we bring our kids home. The issue on the American Way of War is that the American people prefer to kill the way they killed in the eighties than the more participatory style we have been engaged in over the last decade.

Horace Silver (born September 2, 1928), born Horace Ward Martin Tavares Silva in Norwalk, Connecticut, is an American jazz pianist and composer.

Silver is known for his distinctive humorous and funky playing style and for his pioneering compositional contributions to hard bop. He was influenced by a wide range of musical styles, notably gospel music, African music, and Latin American music and sometimes ventured into the soul jazz genre.

Silver's music has been a major force in modern jazz on at least four counts. He was one of the first pioneers of the style known as Hard Bop, influencing such pianists as Bobby Timmons, Les McCann, and Ramsey Lewis. Second, the instrumentation of his quintet (trumpet, tenor sax, piano, double bass, and drums) served as a model for small jazz groups from the mid-1950s until the late 1960s. Further, Silver's ensembles provided an important training ground for young players, many of whom (such as Donald Byrd, Art Farmer, Blue Mitchell, Woody Shaw, Junior Cook, and Joe Henderson) later led similar groups of their own. Finally, Silver refined the art of composing and arranging for his chosen instrumentation to a level of craftsmanship as yet unsurpassed in jazz.

Silver's talent did not go unnoticed among rock musicians who bore jazz influences, either; Steely Dan sent Silver into the Top 40 in the early 1970s when they crafted their biggest hit single, "Rikki, Don't Lose That Number," off the bass riff that opens "Song for My Father."

As social and cultural upheavals shook the nation during the late 1960s and early 1970s, Silver responded to these changes through music. He commented directly on the new scene through a trio of records called United States of Mind (1970-1972) that featured the spirited vocals of Andy Bey. The composer got deeper into cosmic philosophy as his group, Silver 'N Strings, recorded Silver 'N Strings Play The Music of the Spheres (1979).

by Brandon Collins -

Those who don't listen to WTJU 91.1 fm should tune in more often. So should I. I say "should" the same way I say "I should practice Yoga more often", or "I should read more Tolstoy". For 53 years, WTJU has been bringing Charlottesville eclectic Classical, Jazz, Folk, Rock, Kid's, and Current Events programming in a way that is healthy for our minds. It is healthy because the all volunteer staff has complete freedom to select their programming, and have very specific individual shows to broadcast educational and artistic music.

All of this came under assault recently. Under the banner of increasing revenue, listenership, and student involvement, the new station director, Burr Beard, sold UVA's Office of Public Affairs on the idea that WTJU should make a complete overhaul on how the station is programmed in order to become "more competitive in a commercial market". These changes, we found out rather hastily, would include switching to a mostly "Americana" format, would include playlists, eliminate classical music programming, and eliminate individual shows in favor of generic "block" programming.

The changes originally were slated to take place in a matter of days. News leaked out, and some announcers hit the press. The sudden attention granted the station a "temporary stay of execution", with management claiming they would open up the process to the announcers and the public. Through a series of more leaked information, it became clear that management was not listening to input, and was planning to implement programming changes with the appearance of inclusion to quell dissent.

Simultaneously, some announcers looked for help. One announcer, a former Wobbly, contacted the IWW in Richmond, which then contacted the Socialist Party of Central Virginia, and that's how we got involved. We quickly set to work trying to get the announcers to organize in some fashion. There was no time for a formal organization to be formed, so simply getting an organizing committee together would have to suffice. That took some doing. The announcers were emotionally frazzled, overworked and freaked out, and they had a lot to discuss.

An organizing committee finally formed, and began having all announcer discussions and meetings outside of the ears of management. They decided to stand in solidarity to protect the different genres and unique nature of the station rather than defend their individual turf. Points of unity were discussed, and a plan of action formed. The announcers came up with their own proposal to make changes to increase revenue, listenership, and student involvement without destroying what is best about WTJU- that it is eclectic, diverse, and that the announcers have the freedom to thoughtfully decide what to play. They added to the list of goals protecting the station's mission statement, which specifically states that the station is to be run free from the restraints of commercial competition.

It was determined early on that a highly visible and vocal pressure campaign from the community needed to happen as well. The idea was to make the issue visible everywhere, and to put pressure not only on management, but on their bosses at UVA. It was thought that creating any kind of hassle for UVA administrators could be very effective. Bringing any negative attention to UVA's assault on the arts and academic freedom would also gain us some ground. A solid show of unity could convince the bosses that we were prepared to continue the campaign at all costs.

We did this through e-mail "bombs" and rallying any community members we could find. We had musicians address their audiences at every turn. One recently resigned DJ addressed the large crowd gathered at Fridays after Five. Handbills and fliers went out everywhere. We got around 250 people to attend a community input session with management. It was an inspiring meeting. The community was unanimous in it's support of the announcers. Community speakers were not organizers in this effort, just regular folks who see the importance of retaining one of the last bastions of true art dissemination in the country. After hearing from very prolific and moving speakers, management has not only succumbed to the announcers' demands but are now prepared to be genuine advocates for the unique nature of the station and strong supporters of art for the benefit of all, rather than to compete in a commercial market. WTJU will remain freaky and in the hands of a capable volunteer staff!

The whole campaign came at us fast and furious. As is all too often the case, problems arose that needed a workers (volunteers) union to confront. No such organization existed, though at some point in the past the idea had been raised. From the standpoint of a socialist, being able to assist workers organizing on their own behalf is a victory by itself. The volunteers have managed to remain organized and are actively engaging in promoting their station as is. Even more interesting is that the community understood the need for solidarity, and that the concept of market driven art and education is completely abhorrent to the majority of the people! This too is a victory. I truly believe that if the Socialist Party of Central Virginia had not been known and available, the station I love would have been destroyed.

We have made many contacts since our founding, some of those are IWW folks in Richmond, and we greatly appreciate the advice we were given. We look forward to working with them in the future. Again, another victory, but none of this tastes as sweet, or sounds as beautiful as an activist win for something meaningful and vital to our community- that is weird, educational, and inspiring art from WTJU 91.1 fm.

by the Socialist Party of Kansas -

In this podcast we discuss socialism, revolution, current events, and the history socialism in the US.

Interviews: Billy Wharton- Co-Chair of the Socialist Party USA
David McReynolds- Long Time socialist activist and former presidential candidate



Also listen to the podcast - CLICK HERE

Music:
Intro
Rage Against the Machine- Guerilla Radio
Trace Adkins- Honkey Tonk Badonkadonk
Les Claypool- Red State Girl
The Socialist International

Interludes
Bernd Burnson- The Rope (feat Simon Schimpf)
Plaistow- Mayakovskaya
Outro
Thievery Corporation- The Richest Man in Babylon

by Zelig Stern -

It is likely no surprise to most Americans that the unemployment report for July released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated no improvement for the job situation. With the number of unemployed and underemployed workers remaining high at 16.5%, most people have at least one friend or family member in this category. What may come as a surprise is that while workers are subjected to chronic unemployment and underemployment, corporate profits have been recovering substantially and the ultra rich (those with over a million dollars in investible assets) have more than recovered their losses from the economic crisis. Americans have bought the line that there are no class distinctions in this country, but as the aftermath of the great financial crisis of 2008 plays out, it has become clear that, in the memorable words of Warren Buffet, “There is class warfare, all right... but it is the rich class that's making war, and we're winning.”

While the official unemployment rate remained stagnant at 9.5%, this statistic significantly underestimates the burden of unemployment on working people. First, it should be noted that it excludes both underemployed workers (workers employed part time who wish to be employed full time) and workers who have become discouraged and have stopped looking for work. When these groups are included, the unemployment rate rises to 16.5%. But even this number falls short of capturing the crisis of unemployment this country faces. Of the 14.6 million officially unemployed workers, 6.6 million or 44.9% have been unemployed for over 27 weeks. It is safe to assume that the 1.6 million discouraged workers also fit into this long-term unemployed category. This means that not only are a growing number of workers losing their jobs, but once someone loses their job, they have increasingly low prospects of finding another, (see graph below).

The nation lost 131,000 jobs in July. This is mostly the result of the loss of 142,000 temporary Census Bureau jobs. While the private sector created 71,000 new jobs, this number is insufficient even to keep up with population growth, let alone close the unemployment gap. Excluding the census jobs, government, finance, and business services all had small but significant job losses. Manufacturing, and healthcare showed small but significant increases. Most other sectors, particularly the service sectors remained stagnant.

Despite, or perhaps because of, the bleak picture in employment, corporate profits have risen consistently since hitting a low after the financial crisis in early '08. First quarter reports by the Bureau of Economic Analysis show growth in profits in every sector. As expected, due to government handouts, the financial sector is the site of the highest volume of corporate profits. However, in the first quarter of 2010 the largest sites of profit growth, both absolutely and relatively, have been in manufacturing and “other” - which includes mining, agriculture and assorted non retail services. The slow but steady growth of corporate profits has not come as a result increased output of goods and services.

With unemployment remaining high, stagnating wages, and government austerity, effective demand for the goods and services produced by business has remained low. This prevents businesses from being able to sell much of what they could potentially produce. As a result, most businesses, despite high profits, are in a shaky position, making them risky candidates for loans. This leads financial firms to withhold their cash. In turn, the low demand and unavailability of credit prevents businesses from investing in new equipment and infrastructure because they 1) can't afford it without loans, and 2) couldn't sell the increased product if they were able to afford the investment. Finally, the low level of new investment further decreases effective demand for goods produced in industry. While it is true that in the past half a year these conditions have eased up a little bit, they have not done so enough to explain the rising level of corporate profits.

With the real economy unable to sell more of what it makes, and finance not making loans, where are the new found profits coming from? The answer, in a word, is cut backs. Profits in this post-financial crisis economy are not primarily the result of increased sales, or interest on loans, but rather of saving money through activities like laying off workers and refusing to hire them back in addition to wage and benefit cuts. Finance, the sector seeing the highest profits, cut the most jobs of any sector in the private economy. There has been enough growth in manufacturing that this month they were able to higher back a token number of workers. However, there is no indication that they will come anywhere near pre-crisis levels of employment in the foreseeable future. In short, the economy has shown few signs of regaining its health. Meanwhile, the ultra rich who run the big businesses have found a way to profit even in these dire times; on the backs of the unemployed. It would seem impossible at this juncture to deny the glaring presence of class struggle being waged from above in our society.

The day after the unemployment statistics were released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the New York Times ran a story on the front page highlighting the epidemic of unemployment. In the article they acknowledged the simultaneous rise in corporate profits. That same day, they ran another article on the front page of their business section. The article was titled, “A Class War Over Public Pensions.” In it, the author explained that there is now unfolding a class war, not between workers and bosses, but between public employees with pensions, and private sector workers (who lost their 401(k)s during the crisis) who are paying taxes to pay for these pensions.

While the rich are getting richer because the poor are getting poorer, the New York Times thinks the only class war worth mentioning is between public sector workers and private sector workers. Never mind that the 1 trillion dollar gap estimated to exist between what is owed to pensions and benefits of public employees and what the state will be able to pay could be more than covered one time emergency 15% tax on the ultra rich (see Rick Wolff, The Socialist, October 2010). Never mind that over 15 million Americans are unemployed simply to ensure massive profits for corporations. The New York Times will only recognize class war between the have-nots and the have-less. The Times can print what it likes. We can only take so much. American workers feel class struggle everyday and it is very real, the question is what will we do about it?

The Memphis Socialist Party strongly supports the proposed amendment to Chapter 9 of the City of Memphis Code of Ordinances, which seeks to add language banning discrimination based upon sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. Although the amendment to the non-discrimination ordinance (NDO) is limited in that it attempts to prevent discriminatory hiring and promotion practices only for those who work for the City of Memphis, businesses contracting with the City, or groups using City facilities, our local government must take this opportunity to stand up against the institutional bigotry that infects and divides our communities.

Unfortunately, legislation protecting the basic human rights of the LGBTQ community does not ensure actual equality any more than the decriminalization of LGBTQ relationships and families can ensure their safety and security. The irrational hatred and fear that is characterized by the opposition to the NDO is symptomatic of an unhealthy society; it will not be extinguished by extending job security to LGBTQ City employees, because bigotry is continually reinforced and validated by our economic system that is rooted in oppression, exploitation, and the monetary valuation of human worth. Workers are constantly pitted against each other in a battle for scarce jobs with low wages to do meaningless work that benefits only the capitalist class, who intentionally use race, gender, disability, religion and sexual orientation to maintain divisions between workers and perpetuate our alienation.

We can no longer afford to be complicit in our own exploitation. When we allow people to be stigmatized and discriminated against because of their sexual orientation, gender expression or gender identity, we are legitimizing our own oppression while denying our own humanity. Reforms such as the proposed NDO will continue to be necessary under capitalism, and the Memphis Socialist Party stands in solidarity with the LGBTQ community in the struggle for liberation, lasting equality, and a society where all people can exercise their rights to learn, work, create and love.

by Jim Sanders, SPUSA Queer Commission Chair -

On Wednesday, August 4th, Judge Vaughn Walker issued a 136 page decision declaring Proposition 8, the law that bans same-sex marriage, unconstitutional. This is great news in the long struggle for marriage equality.

From Judge Walker's decision:

"Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license. Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite- sex couples are superior to same-sex couples. Because California has no interest in discriminating against gay men and lesbians, and because Proposition 8 prevents California from fulfilling its constitutional obligation to provide marriages on an equal basis, the court concludes that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional."

In a socialist society, state intervention into, and authorization of, marriage could be made obsolete. Making healthcare and housing available to everyone would end the need for spousal dependence. Marriage would then become a right of personal privilege rather than an economic compulsion. Until such time Socialists need to engage in the struggle to make all equal under the laws of the current state.

While this is a welcome legal victory, there is still much work to be done. It is reprehensible that a law like this could ever be created in the first place. Opponents of same-sex marriage used the same tired local autonomy – “it should be left up to the states” – rhetoric that was used by the confederacy before the civil war, and by many long after. The “Jim Crow” laws were defended in this way. We must fight for equal protection at a federal level.

Ultimately, the arguments must be taken to the people. The law went into effect in California because a scant majority of California voters succumbed to a campaign that trumpeted long accepted prejudices and approved it in a referendum last year.

As socialists, we seek to create a world where, quoting Marx: “The free development of each is the condition for the free development of all.”

by the SPUSA International Commission -

August 9, 2010 - On July 25th, American and South Korean military forces started four days of naval and air exercises in the East Sea/ Sea of Japan. North Korea has said that it is prepared to retaliate, even to the point of using nuclear weapons. It is under these conditions that the people of the Korean Peninsula again face the threat of war from capitalist powers.

Officially, these exercises are a response to the sinking of the South Korean naval vessel Cheonan on March 26th. The South Korean government has claimed that a North Korean submarine carried out the sinking. The American and Japanese governments concurred, while the Chinese and Russian governments agreed with the North Korean assertion that it was not responsible. Others have also expressed their doubts about the claim, including some South Korean assemblypersons. Curiously, the investigative committee's report has not been shared with the legislature.

Under these suspicious circumstances, the American and South Korean governments have sent their navies to the region. More than twenty vessels, including the nuclear-powered USS George Washington, 200 planes and 8,000 troops are engaging in the exercises. Four Japanese officers are also accompanying the flotilla, as a show of support. This flotilla is a display of force intended to induce North Korea to toe the line.

Additionally, the military exercises are intended to demonstrate to China the United States' continuing dominance in the western Pacific. The Chinese government has, for several years, planned to challenge this American sphere of influence. These plans include: building a blue-water navy based around domestically-built aircraft carriers; extending operations out to the First Island Chain (never expressly defined, but generally considered to extend from the south coast of Vietnam to the south coast of Japan, skirting the Philippines along the way); and later extending operations to the Second Island Chain (again undefined, but possibly extending from the Marshall Islands to the Pacific coast of Japan). It is this ambition which threatens the United States' control of the area. Like all capitalist powers, the United States cannot tolerate this damage to its international influence. The markets of America need both their dominion over the world's trade and
continuous supplies of cheap manufactures to distract and pacify the American people into contentment.

If war breaks out on the Korean Peninsula, it will be another conflict far removed from the minds of most Americans. The majority of the country will continue their lives as before, accepting a third war as readily as they accepted the first and second. The ruling capitalist class will use this war to further divide the working class, to further consolidate their political power, and to further entrench the military-industrial complex.

The Socialist Party USA condemns this preparation for war, and stands with all Korean peoples. We call on China, North Korea, South Korea, and – most especially – the United States to cease their preparations for war. We call on Japan to heed its own constitution, wherein Article Nine specifically forbids the use of force to settle international disputes. We call for the closure of all overseas American military bases and the unconditional disarmament of the United States as necessary steps to peace. We look to our comrades in the Japanese Revolutionary Communist League and other to provide leadership in their countries during this time of crisis. Workers of America, stand with the workers of the world – refuse to be dragged into another war!

by Jim Sanders, Co Vice Chair Socialist Party USA -

August 4, 2010 - The recent release by Wikileaks of tens of thousands of previously secret documents from the U.S. war on Afghanistan has revealed in minute detail the ruthless brutality of this occupation. The Socialist Party USA opposed the attack on Afghanistan from the start and we continue to do so. We call for the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Afghanistan, and from Iraq.

The occupation of Afghanistan, and of Iraq, has further bolstered the disturbing trend toward the militarization of U.S. society. Under cover of “the war on terror,” the United States kidnaps its perceived enemies and tortures them. We demand an end to the extraordinary rendition program and the closing of the Guantanamo prison.

As cities and states confront declining revenues, and drastically reduce the provision of essential social services, the military continues to balloon, a bloated monster. We demand an immediate cut of 50% in the military budget, with more cuts to follow soon afterward until the U.S. military budget is no greater than any other country in the world.

The occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq are not mistakes, or overreactions to alleged threats. The United States has engaged in dozens of military actions throughout the world in recent decades. It does so for strategic reasons and to gain control of the valuable natural resources of less industrialized countries. Iraq holds one of the largest oil reserves in the world. Recent news reports indicate that Afghanistan contains huge untapped mineral resources. The Socialist Party USA stands in forthright opposition to U.S. imperialism, and to both the Democratic and Republican parties, which are tightly intertwined with the transnational corporations that benefit from these imperial adventures.

War is endemic to capitalism. For hundreds of years capitalist countries have sought to exert their military power to occupy weaker countries so as to control their natural resources. The United States is just the last in a long line of capitalist imperial powers. The capitalist system's desperate need for financial profit at the expense of human needs and wants requires perpetual expansion. No leader, or group of leaders, dares to try to interrupt the rapacious, destructive growth under capitalism. Only the creation of a society based on the conscious cooperation of production to meet human needs can end war. This is the goal of socialism.

Imperialist wars will only come to an end when democratic socialism has replaced capitalism. The Socialist Party is ready to join with all of those who oppose the occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq in a militant resistance to these wars, but we will do so while making it clear that the anti-war movement can only be effective when it presents an anti-imperialist critique of U.S. foreign policy, and that war is only one symptom of capitalism.

The Haitian Revolution (1791–1804) was a period of brutal conflict in the French colony of Saint-Domingue, leading to the elimination of slavery and the establishment of Haiti as the first republic ruled by people of African ancestry. Although hundreds of rebellions occurred in the New World during the centuries of slavery, only the revolt on Saint-Domingue, which began in 1791, was successful in achieving permanent independence under a new nation. The Haitian Revolution is regarded as a defining moment in the history of Africans in the New World.

Although an independent government was created in Haiti, its society continued to be deeply affected by the patterns established under French colonial rule. The French established a system of minority rule over the illiterate poor by using violence and threats. Because many planters had provided for their mixed-race children by African women by giving them education and (for men) training and entrée into the French military, the mulatto descendants became the elite in Haiti after the revolution. By the time of war, many had used their social capital to acquire wealth and some already owned land. Some had identified more with the French colonists than the slaves, and associated within their own circles. Their domination of politics and economics after the revolution created another two-caste society, as most Haitians were rural subsistence farmers. In addition, the still-new nation's future was literally mortgaged to French banks in the 1820s as it was forced to make massive reparations to French slaveholders in order to receive French recognition and end the nation's political and economic isolation. These payments permanently affected Haiti's economy and wealth.

from Wikipedia

The mascot of the Alvarado Street Bakery (ASB) is an orange and black cat, with a swinging tail and a sly grin. Perhaps his feisty smile is the result of good working conditions. ASB is the worker owned and run cooperative featured in Michael Moore’s recent film Capitalism: A Love Story as an example of economic democracy. ASB is based in Petaluma, California, but ships nationally through their website. In this interview, Joseph Tuck of ASB tells The Socialist about the company’s practices.

The Socialist - Can you describe how your cooperative works? In particular, how are the big decisions made about what is produced and how much and how are the small day-to-day decisions made, how fast and how much people work, breaks, etc.?

Joseph Tuck of the Alvarado Street Bakery - Generally in our worker cooperative all large decisions that impact the cooperative are decided by the worker/members at our quarterly membership meetings. Our by-laws specify these as
(a) approval of new members and membership criteria
(b) approval of by-law changes;
(c) approval of annual business plan;
(d) approval of annual budget;
(e) commitment of resources greater than the amount allowed in the policy adopted from time to time by the membership;
(f) setting of wage policy;
(g) setting of major policies on hiring and firing;
(h) determining product line produced; and
(i) election of the board of directors.
The day-to-day affairs of the cooperative are coordinated through our management structure. My position (I am hired by the board) coordinates departmental managers who do things like scheduling, setting of breaks, line speed, determining the amount of product to be made on a day, etc. We, of course, use worker input in these types of decisions, as they are the experts in their particular discipline.

TS - What do you see as the advantages of this non-traditional way of organizing your company?

ASB - The economic advantages of being a worker cooperative stem from the fact that workers decide the fate of the cooperative and reap the rewards if we do well. This tends to build more trust internally in one another and less of a need for managers for issues such as oversight etc as traditional organizations may have. Workers get that they are the sole benefactor of the company doing well. The transparency in financial statements etc. allow everyone to know and feel like a stakeholder. If we are not doing well everyone one knows it and knows the reasons for the situation. In our group, there is peer pressure for everyone to do their best. Our workers do not tolerate well their co-workers not putting in effort.

TS - What were some of the hurdles you had to overcome in setting up a workers’ co-operative and how did you address them?

ASB - The largest hurdle for us to overcome was the lack of access to capital when we were a young company. Though this is a universal issue for companies starting out, our being a cooperative made it more difficult as there are no guarantors in a cooperative for loans (as there are no real owners in a worker cooperative). We initially resolved this issue by some small personal loans along with years of delayed gratification (sweat equity) in terms of what we paid ourselves. We finally had stand alone financial strength to be considered for a loan without a traditional guarantor. We also structurally evolved in the thirty years we have been in business in ways that helped us continue to grow and prosper. Our initial collective form (and low flat pay for all) needed to evolve to the system we now employ. This was necessary for us to do to stay in business. All changes were not universally agreed upon and in fact, there were some very fractious years during the time of change. It was not easy for the membership to change wage policy or delegate power. However, these changes are the real reasons why we all have prospered as a worker cooperative.

TS - You were featured in Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A Love Story how has that effected your operation.

ASB - The impact of the film on our business was in reality fairly negligible. There are certainly some more customers buying our bread due to the film, but not in such quantities that we see it in our sales numbers. It was great internally and made us all proud of what we represent. It has had more interest put on worker cooperatives in general which for us is a great thing.

TS - Why organic ingredients? How did you balance the desire to provide good food with the motivation to lower costs for your business?

ASB - Organic was part of our original philosophy when we formed the cooperative. We wanted to create a business that did not exploit workers or the environment and provided health to the community. There is always a balance between such goals and, of course, there are trade offs. We found that in our world technology, expertise, and a lack of bureaucracy has allowed us to provide ourselves a good standard of living while providing the community with whole grain organic baked goods at a reasonable price. We are one of the lower priced breads in the whole grain category (including the large companies such as Oroweat).

Visit ASB at www.alvaradostreetbakery.com