By Timothy V. Gatto
Featured Writer
Dandelion Salad
liberalpro.blogspot.com
Oct. 5, 2010
When I attended the One Nation Rally on October 2, I was gratified that the public has become so aware of the corporate control that has gripped both political parties. The graft, the campaign financing using practices such as “bundling” donations, the offers of employment at lobbying firms should a politician retire or lose his or her seat and the many “perks” offered to members of Congress like hunting trips, vacations and country club memberships just to name a few. As I mentioned before, it was gratifying because I have been writing about this for the last five years and it has only become an issue that the bulk of people know about for the last two years.
Many of my articles were printed at the bottom of the page on the many sites that carry my work. I guess that when I started writing about corporate control of our republic, that issue wasn’t very sexy or thrilling. Still, it was to me and I’m glad I never quit writing about it.
I’ve been thinking of late about how to break free of the influence of that the corporations have on American politics. I believe that one must understand the complexities that plague this issue. Corporations have picked up First Amendment rights and are considered “people” by the courts. Even though this stemmed from a clerk’s erroneous notations on a railroad right of way court case in the 1890’s, the ruling has stuck. We are now at a position where most politicians don’t want to upset the applecart and risk the big corporate donations, perks and graft to dry up. This includes both major political parties in the U.S.
After witnessing the One Nation Rally this week-end, I had my “Eureka!” moment. As I gazed from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and looked at the crowd, I saw all the Union representatives in different colored union member’s shirts. I said to myself, this is your answer. When you think about what I’m about to propose, in my mind it’s really a no-brainer. I’ll bet that there are readers that are reading these words right now that know what I’m about to propose.
Since the corporations control the government (and I mean exactly that) it really makes no sense that the labor unions of this nationshould support the Democratic Party. Ask yourself this simple question; why should unions support a political party that is in the control of corporate interests that the unions were designed to thwart in the first place? How can the unions get better pay and benefits for its workers when the political party they support is controlled by management? This isn’t rocket scientist stuff, folks, it’s just a simple question with a simple answer…they shouldn’t. Especially when you consider that many corporations are trans-national corporations that could care less about the plight of the American worker! It is utter nonsense to support a political party that is in bed with the management of corporate entities that the unions must deal with in the support of their workers. Does that make any sense?
Therefore I am proposing that the unions themselves start thinking about starting a labor party in the United States. This labor party could exist with the network that unions have already established. This party would eschew corporate funding and exist from the dues of union workers and the general public that is tired of the corporate control that exists over the Democratic Party today. Progressives, Socialists, Liberals and people that just want a stake in honest government could contribute to this American Labor Party. When circumstances dictate, the Labor Party could work in a coalition with the Democrats to achieve shared goals.
I have often proposed that this nation needs more than just two major political parties. It’s ludicrous to imagine that the plight of the many can be addressed by only two political parties that are nothing more than two-sides of the same coin, forgetting the rhetoric they use to divide us, sadly, that is what they are. Where’s “The Change” that Obama promised us? The only change we received was from one corporate political party to the other.
I’m sending this article to every union I can find. Union members should broach this subject with their delegates. It may be too late to do anything during this election, so hold your nose and vote for the Democrat not of your choice. It’s been decades since we got to vote for anyone except the lesser of two evils. We are sophisticated enough to change that. We owe it to our kids. We need to end these foreign wars, stop outsourcing American jobs and make sure that the 80% of American workers share more than 7% of the wealth of this great nation.
It’s not enough to yell out of your windows that “We are sick and tired and we are not going to take it anymore!” We need a plan. You have just seen it.
Contact Tim at: timgatto@hotmail.com. Read Tim’s Complicity to Contemptand Kimchee Days or Stoned Cold Warriors from Oliver Arts and Open Press.
see
The One Nation Rally. Time to Up the Ante By Timothy V. Gatto + The Molotov: In The Red
VOTE… OR REVOLT? By Gary Corseri
Let’s Have a Real Protest, Not a Democratic Pep Rally, on October 2nd by Glen Ford
A Fist in the System Oct. 2, 2010 By Timothy V. Gatto
Dandelion Salad 
People are always quick to scream anarchy, but it is actually true democracy (that overly worn out word), whereas, the structure of a political party destroys any pretense at democracy . I have voted Green; however, there candidates have tended to be as mediocre as the major political parties. More voices like Bernie Sanders need to be in Congress. And, no, we don’t need total continuity of government, that only institutionalizes the corruption. Continuity of government can be translated as no change.
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A model exists to obtain worker control at the point of production without forming political parties. The model is Syndicalism, and it has a few variations in the world depending on culture and history. Anarcho-syndicalism is one of the main variants. The North American homegrown variety is the IWW (Industrial Workers of the World.) I’m a member, and the union is experiencing a resurgence. The website is http://www.iww.org. The most successful historical practice of this philosophy was in Spain during the civil war, when anarchists and syndicalists (the CNT-FAI) self-governed large areas of the country, only to be crushed from the right by Franco’s fascists, and from the left by Stalinists. It has also worked very well in Argentina, where workers occupied their own closed factories during that country’s financial meltdown (see Naomi Klein’s movie “The Take”), kept producing the goods, obtaining raw materials from other workers cooperatives, and feeding their families. Political parties always attract people who crave power and recognition. Cooperatives use direct action to rid themselves of capitalism and the bosses. This precludes ideological struggles as its all about economic power. It’s worth looking into. Anarchists are Socialists without the State.
Great suggestion. Here’s the film The Take on this post:
Syndicalism has proven to be a substitute for individual ventures but is not a substitute for a national political structure. As Gordon notes Franco killed this model, so how viable is this model without a cooperative or at least non interfering government.
This model also ignores national problems such as taxation, defense spending, the environment, the legal framework, the financial system. I can not see Syndicalism as anything but a framework for small to medium organizations under a overarching governance that they would have no control over and be subject to … for good or ill …
i agree with shaine . its about independents . but it has to be alot of them running . if i have to vote 3rd party i will. but i will take an independent any day of the week over the 3rd party . and the dems and repubs are not even an option .
Independents are one off events. As soon as they are out of office the same old special interests take over once again …
To get real, durable change there must be the continuity and cooperation of many office holders, over time.
BTW; There ain’t no power like the power of the people!
Recent events show that the power of the people can be highjacked to serve the interests of the oligarchy … The Third Reich also had the power of the people …
I don’t believe that’s true. Labor already has the infrastructure to morph into a political party. If you would have seen the labor turnout at the One Nation march, you would have been astounded. The current President of he AFL-CIO is already floating the idea. I’m a Socialist, the Green Party just doesn’t do it for me.
Labor is attached at the hip of the Democratic Party. I would love to see Labor start a separate, independent political party. I just don’t see that happening any time soon. The need for a viable 3rd party is now and the best time to start is now …The Green Party is viable NOW … not years from now, if they are given the proper support …
Please describe to me why the Green Party can not fit the socialist bill. Certainly anything smacking of the word socialism will not be accepted by the American people any time soon. What I see is that once again is the left forming a circular firing squad over semantics …
Political parties will never work! Any political party. Independents have to rule, the people (with proper safeguards so that that corporations cannot not subvert them) need the right of referendum and initiative.
What you are describing is political chaos … And what happens out of chaos are mobs and gangsters … and big money will call the shots even more so than now …
I appreciate your distrust of political parties … this is a healthy survival instinct … but you go too far … Those that organize will prevail … those that don’t will be the prey …
We already have a party and it is already in the field … The Green Party … The left needs to gather all its constituency, not just labor. Under the Green banner environmentalists, labor, anti war, women’s, minority’s and LGBT rights orgs and on and on …
Gatto can’t see the forest for the trees … That is that labor will probably be the last of the left to break away because of their deep financial and political ties with the Democrats … Waiting for labor is a waste of precious time …