Date: Fri, 30 Aug 1996 08:32:05 +0200 (MET DST)
From: malecki-AT-algonet.se (Robert Malecki)
Subject: The Publabor list..
And interesting debate is developing on the Publabor list over support to
third parties such as Nader and the new "Labor Party" verses the support of
the worser of two evils the Democrats. Sending along a bit of the debate for
our hardened "marxists" on this list...
bob malecki
>
> Malecki mentioned the strategy of voting for progressive
>candidates on the local level, to change things from the ground up. I
>understand that this is what the New Party has been doing, with apparent
>success. They've won most of the elections they've put up cadidates for.
>What they're doing is copying the strategy of the Christian right, who in
>this manner has achieved enormous power over the course of a relatively
>short time.
>
> I don't know anything about the New Party. Does anyone else?
>
> Judy Shelton
Judy,
Are you accusing me of being a religous fundementalist? Coming from a
supporter of the democratic party who's policies are more and more becoming
a bizaar mixture of right wing republican fundementalism (support for the
republican welfare bill) and policies directed at the ever more desperate
middle class (law and order + taxes) along with a good bit of support to the
corporate lobbies in Washinton in doing their bidding, i guess i should take
this synical accusation with a nip of salt.
In fact what i said is that a real workers party should put forth candidates
both on the local and national level on a program which is in poor and
working class people's interests. The candidates should come from a broad
selection of trade unionists, poor and minority groups and if possible half
of the candidates should be women.
The goal naturally should be a labor party which fights in its own name
against both the republican and democratic parties who do not represent the
poor and working class people. Especially the democrats and there claim to
be such a party.
The goal naturally should be state power. Only then will health care,
childcare, care of the sick and the old, full employment, equal pay, shorter
working hours, the envionment, and all the rest become a reality for all and
not just the success story of those out of the upper and middle class.
Finally some statistics on Clinton's Democratic Party and their twin sister
the Republicans. The facts speak for themselves!
******************************************************************
Percentage of children and elderly living in poverty 1984-1987:(3)
******************************************************************
CHILDREN ELDERLY
COUNTRY IN POVERTY IN POVERTY
United States 20.4 10.9
Canada 9.3 2.2
Australia 9.0 4.0
United Kingdom 7.4 5.2
France 4.6 4.5
Netherands 3.8 3.4
Germany 2.8 2.8
Sweden 1.6 4.3
Source: Timothy M. Smeeding, "U.S. Poverty and Income Security Policy in a
Cross National Perspective, October 1991, Luxembourg, October, 1991,
Luxembourg Income Study, working paper 70.
******************************************************************
Percentage of population covered by
public health insurance, 1990(25)
******************************************************************
COUNTRY PERCENT COUNTRY PERCENT
Australia 100 Sweden 100
Canada 100 United Kingdom 100
Denmark 100 Austria 99
Finland 100 France 99
Ireland 100 Switzerland 99
Italy 100 Spain 99
Japan 100 Belgium 98
New Zealand 100 Germany 92
Netherands 100 United States 21
Norway 100
Sources: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (Paris),
Health Data file, 1991: U.S.: National Center for Heath Statistics, Advance
Data, No. 201, June 18, 1991.
******************************************************************
We're Number One in percentage of population without health insurance.
******************************************************************
Percentage of preschool children with full polio, DTP
(diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis), and measles immunizations,
1985--87:(50)
******************************************************************
COUNTRY POLIO DTP MEASLES
------------------------------------------------------------------
Denmark 100.0 94.0(51) 82.0
Belgium 99.0 95.0 90.0
France 97.0 97.0 55.0
------------------------------------------------------------------
Germany 95.0 95.0 50.0
Netherlands 96.9 96.9 92.8
Switzerland(52) 95.0 90.0 60.0
------------------------------------------------------------------
United Kingdom(53) 87.0 87.0 76.0
Norway 80.0 80.0 87.0
Spain 80.0 88.0 83.0
------------------------------------------------------------------
United States 55.3 64.9 60.8
------------------------------------------------------------------
U.S. nonwhite 40.1 48.7 48.8
------------------------------------------------------------------
Sources (for chart and text): Bret C. Williams and C. Arden Miller,
Preventive Health Care for Young Childnen (Arlington, Va.: National Center
for Clinical Infant Programs, 1991), p. 76; Bret C. Williams, "Immunization
Coverage Among Preschool Childnen: The United States and Selected European
Countnes," Pediatrics (Elk Grove Village, 111.: American Academy of
Pediatrics, 1990), p. 1052: various releases and publications of the
American Academy of Pediatrics, Elk Grove Village, Illinois.
##################################################################
Cumulative number of offcially reported AIDS cases and
cumulative rate per 100,000 population, as of 1991:(57)
##################################################################
CUMULATIVE
COUNTRY TOTAL CASES RATE PER 100,000
##################################################################
U.S. nonwhite 93,569 155.7
##################################################################
Malawi 12,074 131.8
Uganda 21,719 120.9
Congo 2,405 107.3
------------------------------------------------------------------
United States 202,843 81.0
------------------------------------------------------------------
Switzerland 1,891 28.0
France 15,534 27.6
Spain 9,1 12 23.2
Canada 5,228 19.7
Australia 2,678 15.8
Italy 9,792 17.0
Denmark 842 16.4
Netherlands 1,799 12.0
------------------------------------------------------------------
Belgium 896 9.0
Germany (unified) 6,708 8.5
New Zealand 274 8.3
United Kingdom 4,758 8.3
Austria 594 7.8
Sweden 587 6.9
Ireland 205 5.9
Norway 220 5.2
Finland 88 1.8
Japan 405 0 3
------------------------------------------------------------------
Sources: World Heath Organization, Global Programme on AIDS (October,
1991); U.S. figures: U.S. Centers for Disease Control "HIV/AIDS
Surveillance," December, 1991, p. 9.
------------------------------------------------------------------
##################################################################
Ratio of average teacher salary to per capita gross domestic
product (GDP), 1988-90(30)
##################################################################
MAXIMUM SALARY STARTING SALARY
(RATIO TO PER (RATIO TO PER
COUNTRY CAPITA GDP) CAPITA GDP)
Switzerland 2.97 1.69
Austria 2.60 0.98
Canada 2.22 1.10
Japan 2.21 0.75
Germany 2.19 1.37
United Kingdom 2.05 0.95
Australia 1.60 1.09
------------------------------------------------------------------
United States 1.58 0.94
------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: American Federation of Teachers.
The above tabells give us a lot to work on and is clear proof that
there is a price on the great American apple pie dream!
I would suggest that a working class party based on the trade
unions and urban poor with a program that clearly state a goal
of a complete redistribution of the wealth in America is
neccessary. Naturally it has to based on the people who in
America get the shitty end of the apple pie stick..This at
least for starters.
There is a furious debate going on at Usenet about the Welfare
reform. These exchanges i have posted to the list. In fact
the present right turn by the Congress is going to have far
reaching Social consequences. History has shown us that the
urban poor in despair go out and start burning down the
ghettoes. My position on this is better to burn the local
bank if you have to burn something!
However it does not solve the problem! So unless the trade
unions and urban poor can come up with a political party that
fights in its interests and its interests alone we are
certainly doomed.
However, if the rage of the urban poor is not directed in a
direction which can attack those responsible for their misery.
There are certainly figures in the wings that will make them in to the next
generation of Brownshirts! In fact this is already happening here in Europe
and Scandinavia..
So obviously we are going to have to address this question
far more seriously then before as trade unionists. Because
the Urban poor section of the population is growing in leaps
and bounds because of downsizing and cuts everywhere.
However we do not need a new bunch of bureaucrats that sit
behind their desks and turn papers screaming "support the worser of to
evils! We need people that can go out and organise amogst the urban
poor,around housing,
childcare,healthcare,pensions and all the rest.
In other words and organisation that is prepared to go all
the way in a redistribution of wealth to the majority of
the people that works in there interests and not in the
interests of the rich and powerful.
Thats the short version..
bob malecki
----------------------------------------------------------------------
--- from list marxism-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu ---
Display software: ArchTracker © Malgosia Askanas, 2000-2005