bureaucratic centralist orgs¶

The reason "bureaucratic centralist orgs" contain some of the most advanced socialists in the country is because:

1) Our movement is woefully underdeveloped, so "advanced" is relative.

2) They are drawn to orgs that falsely proclaim themselves to operate along demcent lines. https://t.co/oGNc00xSTL To be clear, NO fully-fledged organization in the country -- including DSA -- simultaneously upholds democratic centralism and fosters revolutionary political development, which is the ultimate "institutional problem" facing our movement. The importance of democratic centralism has been born out both by every successful revolution and by studying many failures as counterexamples. Resistance to its adoption is an artifact of anticommunist propaganda and unexamined immersion in liberalism. Of course, no level of organizational rigor could ever hope to compensate for a fatal lack of political education or the revolutionary commitment that emerges from it. None of the socialist orgs in this country come close to nurturing that education, let alone requiring it. Something I HAVE noticed is that DSA's Marxist Unity Group is at least engaged in an earnest attempt to remedy that fundamental flaw. Although I have some concerns with the particular political orientation they embody, it seems far and away the most competent programmatic effort. I will not get into specific naming and shaming here, but rest assured that this assessment is not just speculation. It comes from the testimony of current and former members of these organizations that have shared their experiences (including my own experience). I certainly don't think this problem is terminal, nor is it the only problem facing our movement. Although every problem can be ameliorated (if not solved entirely) with education. Notably: chauvinism, sectarianism, lack of revolutionary fervor, and disengagement from the masses. Whether Marxist Unity Group can reshape DSA into an organization capable of leading revolution remains to be seen. But it certainly seems more likely than attempting to form factions to reshape any of the organizations that have specifically regimented themselves against that. A much more practical path to building a cohesive vanguard party in North America is through political education that is not tied to any existing organization, followed by stitching together the most advanced elements from all of them.