Britain's Road to Socialism --
Communism or
Social Democracy?
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Introduction [start -
1.26 min]:
Interestingly, the
Communist Party of Britain (
CPB), while retaining the name 'communist' do not stand for communism. They consistently stand for the
Labour Party - that is, social democracy. That is the essence of their program "the
British Road to Socialism" (
BRS).
Nor are they alone in holding up the
Labour party as the party of the working class (
SWP, et al.)
They support
British Imperialism with a 'workerist' veneer. Except that since 'bomber
Blair' took over the Labour party (and abolished clause IV, invaded
Yugoslavia,
Sierra Leone,
Afghanistan and
Iraq, enforced anti-trade union legislation, etc., etc.,) even the veneer is gone! So it's no wonder the CPB get themselves twisted in a bit of a knot trying to justify their position.
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CPGB-ML vs CPB debate the British Road to Socialism [01.26 min -- 30.02 min]
This interesting debate between an experienced and sophisticated old CPB member
Jim White, and
Harpal Brar, chairman of the CPGB-ML (inter alia), goes a long way to explaining why the CPB's politics are bankrupt, played out and incapable of leading workers anywhere, except deeper into the mire of subjection to capitalist crisis and imperialist war.
It also explains why the CPGB-ML needed to be formed and needs your support!
Further
Reading:
Social Democracy, the
Enemy Within (by Harparl Brar):
http://www.cpgb-ml.org/index
.php?secName=books&subName;=display&bookId;=3
Imperialism and War (by Harpal Brar):
http://www.cpgb-ml.org/index.php?secName=books&subName;=display&bookId;=13
Homepage of the CPGB-ML:
http://www.cpgb-ml.org
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transcript (outline):
JW of CPB [01.26 min]:
Stalin wrote the British Road to Socialism -- there's 'proof' on the internet.
HB of CPGB-ML [01
.45 min]: We have no evidence to support the assertion that Stalin supported the British Road to Socialism.
However, let us assume that he did -- our position remains that the BRS is wrong; that it is not a program of revolution, but one that subjects the communist movement to social democracy.
CPB [03.09 min]: Was the 1929 - 1934
Comintern line of '
Class against Class' correct? Did it undermine the popular front against fascism?
CPB [04.18]: was it wrong to change its line?
CPGB-ML answer [04.21]: No, not once the Hitlerites had come to power. The basis of the correct line is the material conditions; the world situation in which it takes place.
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. [07
.30] (So called
Hitler-Stalin pact).
Market Socialism [08.18]
CPGB-ML [12.05 min]: How can we support as labour party that attacks working people at home and oppressed nations abroad? (Iraq, Afghanistan, Supports Zionist
Israel,
Saudi Arabian regime,
Egyptian regime).
CPB [13.40 min]: What about the traditions of this country? The struggle for parliamentary democracy has resulted in all that the Labour Party has given us: the
Welfare State.
CPGB-ML [16.00 min]: Neither I nor my comrades are telling you these things are not important. But they are not the product of
Social democracy, but the product of
the victories of the Red army after the second world war and the ferment in the working class movement afterwards.
CPB [18.10]:
10 million people vote
Labour, but virtually no-one votes communist!
CPGB-ML [18.18]:
No-one will vote communist until the communists mobilise as communists and stop telling working people that Labour is the party of the working class!
CPB [18.45]: The CPGB-ML doesn't stand in elections; you're a debating society; you're not in the class struggle.
CPGB-ML [19.10 min]: No, we have not.
We are a five year-old party. We don't claim to be the movers and the shakers of the working class movement. But we are a serious party and we have a long term project to build a viable anti-imperialist leadership of the working class movement in
Britain.
CPB [20.30]:
Lenin told communists to affiliate to the Labour party!
CPGB-ML
Answer [21.00 min]
CPGB-ML (HB) [28.35]:
Really, all these arguments of our CPB comrades come down to the following: "Labour is an imperialist party, but it is our party! These are our traditions."
- published: 04 Mar 2011
- views: 8991