American society is very strange. The culture is the culture of the ruling class, as it is in so many capitalist countries. Marxism tells us that under capitalism, the culture of a nation is the culture of the ruling class that is then adopted by everyone else. It’s not true in every case, but it’s true in the US. On the other hand, the ruling class here has been very smart. One of their Cold War anti-Communist shibboleths was that there is no class war in the US, or anywhere on Earth for that matter. However, Marxism tells correctly that class war is continuous under capitalism. Mao pointed out that it even goes on under Communism, hence the need for continuous or regular Cultural Revolutions to weed out the capitalist roaders. Mao is actually 100 The transition under Deng starting in 1978 is an example. Deng was one of those who Mao said was a capitalist roader, and he took over the party. The result has been higher economic growth (8 Hence most Americans simply believe that class war does not even exist in the United States! It’s breathtaking but it’s true. Hence the ruling classes are free to wage as savage a class war as they wish, and anyone who points out the elephant in the room is derided as a “Communist.” The ruling class calls those who open their eyes enough to see on this issue to be “waging class war.” The truth is that the ruling classes are waging class war all the time! In the US, they have the upper middle class as allies – those making over $75,000/yr. So the ruling classes are allowed to wage class war all they want to in the US, but you’re a Commie if you point it out, and if any class other than the rich tries to wage their own class war (as is their right – every class has the right to wage class war in pursuit of its interests), then they are accused of “waging class war” and basically called Commies.
What’s the solution other than to, say, murder people like Lloyd Blankfein in cold blood?
Know my Name
Seize the assets of anyone who was instrumental in the Neoconservative movement and use it to pay off the debt.
Dear Robert
In a way, it is true that there is no class war in the US because war presupposes fighting by two sides. In the US, there is virtually no fighting by the poorest 80% against the richest 20%. There is mainly acquiescence by the 80%. As long as so many ordinary Americans worry more about latte-drinking, opera-watching, Volvo-driving college professors than about grossly overpaid business executives and rapacious financiers, so long there won’t be much of a class war in the US.
There was class war in communist countries too, but it was between the party and the rest. Differences in wealth in commie countries may have been quyite modest, but there were enormous differences in power, so the war wasn’t so much about wealth as about power.
Regards. James