American Socialist Voter

American Socialist Voter is so named for the educational purpose of self-empowerment for the individualistic and stylistic theory of socialist writers such as Max Stirner et al for the "true" Socialist or finding today's "socialist center" leaning Voter.

An area of controversy within the greater movement is the inclusion of extreme elements from socialism's left and right spectrum e.g. National Socialists and some Communists. This website serves as an educational platform for actual organizations and movements. Where hard lines of divide are drawn elsewhere, they are not drawn here for the purpose of opening the discussion. As both far factors have been part of the national media's fascination continues so does the misinformation and confusion of what socialism and its' totality stands for in the broad sense of the word.

Also allowed for example purposes is a limited outside Marxism, non-Marxian, or another author for academic purpose and study within the total view of social positions (dignity) not social class (materialism), by that of authors like Karl Mannheim with sociology of knowledge with the understanding of individual circumstance (culture, history, faith, morals, etc.) and societal economics (family and means) relative to other individuals to measure degrees and bridges of interaction.

To learn about freedoms, rights, dignity, ability, diversity, and likewise many more conceptual opinions in order to promote socialism's center (i.e. democratic socialism) to Right-wing (i.e. social democracy), respectively to America Socialist Voters who are ready, willing, and wanting to learn more about finer details to allow for independent judgment. We place all three factions as an example split of our modern day - the heirs of the Socialist Party of America - side by side into this one website for comparison so you can track how they improve for you the American Socialist Voter. We at American Socialist Voter will help check posted facts, stories, videos, and/or all media readily available for public consumption.

Linked here to other "so called" socialists, there is no direct line from one to the other socialists per se except their own words from published websites. This non-partisan website's educational public outreach will strive to bring the latest in academic citation to further public knowledge about socialism in America today as socialism is in flux within several organizations. ASV will not subtract any one organization or grouping from the greater socialist picture due to feelings or non-academic works. Every point here will be taken across the board with all to ensure a main tenet of being social, equality.

American Socialist Voter willingly offers socialists (Left, Center, or Right) a "Votership." There isn't a membership or club required here. We are not to ever be a 'party,' 'political action committee,' 'tendency,' 'caucus,' 'faction.' American Socialist Voter serves the purpose of socialism's true hope for unity wanting to revive past successes, not failures.

Our pledge of unity is to only join one "socialism."

Some theories/philosophies of several Greats of the topics:

• Immanuel Kant
• John Locke
• Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach

American Socialist Voter is to serve as an educational public service. The forum, chat, and email are interactive in that comrades of socialism in general can send in their own facts with citations to be added for public viewing.

American Socialist Voter main focus is towards an open truth for the unity of socialism.

American Socialist Voter realizes that personal conflict and regional limited controls have nothing to do with the business or theory of socialism or "Socialists." Our leading example of poor socialism here is that such pettiness must end here and now. Take the pledge!

The modern 21st century of American socialism started with the disbanding of the Socialist Party of America after the 1972 presidential campaigns had divided camps of new and emerging ideologies of the past Cultural Revolution with an on going war in Vietnam. Those three 'players' are known still by their same names, Democratic Socialist of America (known as DSA), Socialist Party of the United States of America (SP-USA), and the Social Democrats USA (SDUSA). All are heirs to the Socialist Party of America legacy and have been the driving forces behind many schools of thought. Other political grouping, parties, political action committees using the words, "Socialist" or "Socialism" fail to mention they are falsely misleading readers into 'communist skips of thought.'

The DSA became a PAC, political action committee working with the Democrat Party after the Vietnam War while the SP-USA keeping the democratic socialist wording and theme of revolution, militant, action, activism to crowd protest. The SDUSA became more of a think tank, retaining their 'party' status, for many years afterward with some appointments to national offices during the 1980's. Since the breakup of the Socialist Party of America there has not been any major success at national elections. On local and state levels there have been a few, but the factionalism has taken its toll. Many America Socialist Voters or those leaning to vote Socialist are now without a party and would like to see the reemergence of the past goals modernized to fit today's needs of the people.

It is important to note that each of the three still claim the namesake and at times have bitter infighting among factions. American Socialist Voter is not the place to continue factionalism but to look forward and share - being sociable - for researching means and ability to regain the glory of last centuries 6% of the American vote for some old die hard rascal named Eugene Debs and to greatly improve socialism's likability irregardless of extreme America right-wing propagandized pejoration of the word "Socialist."   

• revolution verses counter-revolution
• democratic socialist verses social democrats verses democratic centralist
• reform verses militant action
• lessons from Kronstadt 1921 and what could or should happen in the USA
• military force verses police force or civil action (i.e. voting)
• China had Maoism and Vietnam had independence, both now have capital and trade
• Russia became once more in 1991 under Boris Yeltsin and Russia has capital investments
• binary economics, are they the next great social theory?

What is Socialism? 

Socialism

-noun

Origin: 
1830–40; social + -ism 

"socialism." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 03 Jul. 2009. <Dictionary.comhttp://dictionary.reference.com/browse/socialism>.

From the formal academic theory above in numbers one and two we notice clearly that socialism is not communism as placed in number three where "in Marxist theory" has been added to help define the materialism and egoism that was later to come and helped to define the revolts of Europe from 1848 up through the twentieth century.

Throughout the growing different movements there will be many an "-ism" as each leader or author takes their perspective forward. Some for a greater cause or hope and others for personal gain which turn into cults of personality i.e. Jim Jones, Leon Trotsky, Pol Pot to name a few. 

America Socialism in the broad sense of the word has many variants. From the farthest left of the political spectrum it can be known as Anarchism (libertarian socialism) to the Hard Left as Communism (democratic centralism) then more to the right Socialism which today has a moderate-left and a soft-right (respectively, democratic socialism followed by social democracy). 

The breakdown

Anarchism (libertarian socialism) This being the far point on the Left it is void of any substance except to say that people are without structure, state, property, or anything we know today or for that matter all of history.

• Bakuninism 
• Goldman

Communism (democratic centralism) Authoritarian collectivism associated with the terms used by its different Followers e.g.

Marxism Stalinism

Leninism Maoism

Trotskyism Pol Pot

 

Socialism (democratic socialism / social democracy) At the turn of the 20th century in the USA these two different terms once meant the same thing interchangeably. The reason for this was the language differences between the transposition of Germanic and Latin based grammar. After 1973's three way split of the Socialist spectrum it has come to mean socialism's Left and Right wings.

Early 20th century leaders or those influencing American socialism:

Upton Sinclair Leo Panith

Michael Lerner Fabian Society

Eugene V. Debs Frank P. Zeidler

 

Late 20th century leaders or those influencing American socialism:

Donald F. Busky (reference section) Max Shachtman

Michael Harrington Hal Draper

Norman Thomas David McReynolds

 

Democratic Socialists are divided within there work as to an agreement to either integrate within the Democratic Party as a caucus or has their own third party option.

• Democratic Socialists of America - Political Action Committee
• Socialist Party of the United States of America - Political Party
  

 Social Democrats have long been a think tank working within both or for the Democratic and Republican Parties. For a short time many Social Democrats were working within the SP-USA as the Fist & Rose Tendency; however, the SP-USA starting in 2005 expelling or suspending all of its manifesto signers et al.

• Social Democrats USA - Socialist Party of America

Commonwealth of State Parties or Organizations in part defined by:

• social gospel
• social market economy
• progressivism
  •  Great Society
  • Democracy

 Early 21st century leaders or those influencing American socialism:

SDUSA - SPA  Gabriel McCloskey-Ross Jamie Johnston David Hacker Richard D'Loss

SP-USA Greg Pason Eric Chester Steve Sears Marc Luzietti Peter Diamondstone Matt Erard Susan Dorazio David Schaich

DSA Frank Llewellyn Dwight Welch Andrew Hammer Dan Frankot

 

Not Communist

The question as to who might be a potential Socialist is also helped by what they are not. Socialists are not communist, but can be communitarian and sociocratic and are socially independent and free. In theory socialist varying ideologies differ i.e. from the condition that private property is held in common ownership except that of more important means of production, a very important difference allowing for the safety of personal belongings such as a home for the smallest unit - family - defending socialism. Just as socialists (center-left) are not communists (hard-left Marxian) they are not National Socialists (Nazis) or what is sometimes known as Fascist which under the theory of Social Darwinism leaves no extraneous concerns for the weaker part of society.

Empathy

Socialists have always had great concerns for those persons without a voice and for the weakness, the causes thereof which lets people fall through those cracks in society. These three types often associated with being social (communism, socialism, Nazism) are what many think about when they hear about or read the happening over the last century; however, this is not the case and the lacking of knowledge and red lumping can be found in many textbooks of limits.

Ancient History

That which is the founding of modern western civilization from city states of Italy and Greece. Two well know cities are Rome and Athens for their republic and democracy respectively. Neither are socialism and in the modern era are either liberal or conservative. Socialism is a working theory based in center psychology understand of the species-being and has a slow progressive stance.

Fight for Actual Freedom

Socialists reject the undefined Marxian idea of "dictatorship of the proletariat" from the near age of monarchy. Socialism is by free association and only works from the ground upwards. Any attempt to push from the top down has lead to factionalism and a weakening of any historical movement to date.

Psychology of Central-left Progressive

The smallest unit of socialism - being the family - working under psychological concept from Maslow's hierarchy of needs has greater wants to obtain each level in reaching self-awareness. This also reflects directly back to early writings naming this unit to be the "Proletariat" which directly translates to progeny being a very pro-life stance on gaining power through the masses and not the banishment or death thereof the people. Being human and educating from understanding is what makes us "Social" and is in part part of our social contract.

Modern Difference Between Socialists and Communists

For a Socialist, our realism is not in a Marxism-Leninism (former Soviet Union 1934) demand of revolutionary conformity or Stalinism (1948), but within the daily lives of our combined societal betterment for family as a whole. Socialism is based on association through finding commonality, not force or violent acts. Even following the Maoist or Pol-Pot events of history we can see the destruction of malformations claiming to be socialistic when in fact they were not and later proclaimed to be, a wolf in sheep's clothing, communists. Not one communistic front has ever protected life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness which are American values based on some socialistic gospel text from early settlers seeking safety.