It does not mean our daily lives are democratically directed or that the proletariat as a class have any meaningful say in what direction our lives take in the broader scheme of things. Actually, in the 26 County Irish state constitutionally that term of office for a government can be legally as long as seven years, though this is never enacted by any incumbent.
In Britain in real terms, and where no written constitution exists, there is a two or possibly three-party system though in recent years more political parties have entered the race but the reality is it is still a two or three horse race. In the 26 County’s we have a system of voting called ‘the single transferable vote’ whereas in Britain the even less democratic ‘first past the post’ system of electing still exists. In real terms in Britain, it is going to be either the Labour or Conservative Party with perhaps the Liberal Democrats helping out one party or the other to form a coalition. In the 26 County’s it is usually a coalition of either Fianna Fail and perhaps Labour, or Fine Gael with Labour and the Greens forming a coalition, either way one of the ‘civil war’ (the pro and anti-treaty sides in the Irish Civil War 1922-23) parties are the senior and deciding party in such a set up. Today a revitalised and certainly unrecognisable Sinn Fein have entered the former cosy little set up, with the two old enemies Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, burying their differences and forming an unholy alliance to keep Sinn Fein out of government. Sinn Fein are promising the world as do most of these would-be stooges of the rich and powerful while in opposition and, as per usual, the government parties are going all out to tell us why the policies of Sinn Fein are unrealistic and will never work. There is nothing new in this verbal bullshit and to that all I can say is, without having much faith in Sinn Fein, they have not yet been given a chance to implement their policies.
One major promise of Sinn Fein is to introduce over a two-term period a ‘fully costed single tiered nationalised health service’ based loosely on the one operated in the United Kingdom (UK). The question is whether the real government, the rich and the powerful occupants of the 26-County state, will allow such a service to be introduced? I doubt it but will give Sinn Fein the benefit simply because things cannot be any worse regarding health provision of service (not to be confused with level of health care) in the 26-County’s. What perhaps Sinn Fein are not taking into account is when the Labour Government of Clement Attlee brought in the National Health Service (NHS) in 1948 they did so on the back of the Second World War and people demanded better. Today the wealthy are slowly clawing back the NHS into their private hands, though various governments deny this charge.
It is very important to differentiate between politics and economics, many think they are the same, they are not, courting couple yes, husband and wife no. Yes, governments have budgets to manage the fiscal purse, public money, a minority factor in the general scheme of any capitalist economy, as most of the money belongs to private wealthy individuals and companies belonging to them. In the 26-County state such people as Denis O’Brien, the Collinson brothers, Michael O’Leary to name three and the rest of their business-class have larger private bank accounts collectively than the rest of the population combined, most of which is banked outside the state collecting huge interest on their base capital. Ignoring these people’s personal wealth and take the value of their gross capital, buildings and means of production therein (push pull economics), along with the annual profits made by these companies their wealth is astronomical. Banking outside the state is beneficial to these bandits so these great patriots do not have to pay tax towards goods and services for the benefit of all, such things as health, housing, education and a decent standard of living for everybody. Elected governments are pretty powerless to do anything about these people’s tax avoidance as this, unlike illegal tax evasion, is perfectly legal. In Ireland the 26-County state loses up to and beyond 22% of revenue through tax avoidance by the wealthy. When the 26-County state has an open and shut case to collect tax from huge companies like Apple they simply refuse to do so. Why? Because they know these people are larger and more powerful, certainly economically, than the elected government and the Dail administration wish to remain friends with these conglomerates! Or they give us some tale about these firms bringing employment, shit paid, but nevertheless employment! Eventually the European Commission intervened in the case of Apple forcing the government to take the money, upwards of €13 billion! These brigands are often referred to as ‘the ruling-class’ in society and the clue is in the word, ‘ruling’. Whoever sits in government in the Dail, or any parliament, these people will still be in charge, certainly economically, and economics will always trump politics in a ‘liberal democracy.’
So, in a ‘liberal democracy’ we get the vote every four to five years and elect a party to govern the affairs of the wealthy. We can then all take ourselves back to work for these very same wealthy people and absolutely nothing changes, exploitation for profit continues as do redundancies when these wealthy people have no further use for us. Never mind though, we can still bluff ourselves we are really in charge because we get the vote! Karl Marx once stated, rightly so, “All forms of the state have democracy for their truth, and for that reason are false to the extent that they are not democracy”. Marx continued; “The executive of the modern state is nothing but a committee for managing the common affairs of the whole bourgeoisie”. Put simply, the government sitting in Dail Eireann or any other parliament are simply agents to ensure the well-being and economic stability of the capitalist-class, the exploiters of labour, and this democracy charade is perhaps the biggest work of fiction since the Bible. Perhaps a comparison can be made with a ball of clay? Imagine a huge ball of clay which represents the global proletariat in today’s post-modern world. The governments of the planets liberal democracies represent the Potters who, through their policies, mould the clay into a shape in this case worker who produces products the international capitalist-class demand. The shape of this once ball of clay must be suitably adjusted to produce the needs of the ‘market’ which the bourgeoisie, or capitalist-class, profit from. Former coal miners or steel workers who had worked most of their lives down the pit or in the steel works coking a blast furnace, with the closure of their industries, are remoulded to work in the new small post-industrial units. Occasionally the working-class do not wish to be ‘moulded’ into the shape the potters are trying so they go on strike, switching off the kilns. If this strike continues for too long, costing the capitalist economy money, the government on behalf of the wealthy send out the police with batons to chastise the workers. This analysis may sound a little ‘Heath Robinson,’ or over complicated, but it is nevertheless correct. We are all pieces of clay to be manipulated and moulded into a shape of benefit to the minority capitalist-class!
What then is a ‘plutocracy’? A plutocracy is when the wealthy are in charge, usually unelected, as a class. They are the government. Examples of ancient such ‘plutocracies’ would be the city states of Athens, ironically credited with being the originators of democracy, Carthage and Rome. More recent examples would be Mussolini’s fascist Italy and Pinochet’s Chile. Are our so-called ‘liberal democracies’ really ‘plutocracies’ disguised as democratic systems? After all, in the workplace owned by the wealthy there are no democratic structures in place. Perhaps only socialism and the overthrow of the capitalist system would provide such democratic structures in the workplace (please do not use the former USSR as an opposition argument). In truth the only democratic structure in the workplace is the election, where applicable, of the trade union representative, or ‘shop steward.’ These representatives of the employees are voted into their positions, or out of them, every year or sometimes longer but never in excess of five years. We do not elect the boss, or even the chargehand. Many of the wealthy owners of the means of production, having got wealthy out of the wealth created by the workers labour-power, tell their employees; ‘this is not a democracy’ so get back to work or ‘collect your cards’! If it is not a democracy it must then be a plutocracy?
Are our ‘liberal democracies’ really ‘plutocracies’? I would suggest they are because irrespective of who we vote into government, the wealthy or ruling-class remain static and still rule. Even in totalitarian evil regimes like Nazi Germany the wealthy were still in power, many were members of the Nazi party. The Nazis were funded by Germany’s wealthy, Theisen, Krupps Armaments and steel producers, Siemens electronics, Hugo Boss fashion designers who designed the uniforms of the SA then the SS, and many other mega rich exploiters of labour. So, once again a plutocracy, which the Nazis made no secret of, providing it was the wealthy of Germany and not Jewish business! Trade unions were closed down and were replaced by the Nazi ran ‘Labour Front’ which in real terms was controlled by the Nazi Party and the bosses.
If the wealthy feel in any way threatened by the policies of a party in government or opposition, they will first of all, as was the case with both Michael Foot and Jeremy Corbyn of the British Labour Party, discredit them via their media. If that does not work and such a person becomes Prime Minister (as Jeremy Corbyn almost did in 2017), they will economically undermine that person’s credentials and governments policies. If that doesn’t work, as was the case in Chile, they will liquidate that person, dissolve the government, and put their own person in to governmental power. The elected Salvador Allende was shot dead in Chile and General Augusto Pinochet put in charge and the policies beneficial to exploitation continued. As Karl Marx said over a century ago “the bourgeoisie force the proletariat to take dangerous, low-paying jobs, in order to survive,” this is as true today as it was in the days of Marx, and Engels. Workers are forced into jobs they hate and pay low wages or lose their benefits. The question remains, do we live in a ‘democracy’ even a liberal one, or a ‘plutocracy’? Who holds real power, the government or the wealthy?
To briefly summarise, in a ‘liberal democracy’ we elect a party or parties to government who all usually go back on their election pledges. Once in office they set about governing for the benefit of the wealthy, the affairs of the wealthy and a few crumbs left over for the majority of the electorate, the working-class. A ‘plutocracy’ is government by the wealthy, for the wealthy and only the wealthy. It is they as a class who actually govern, or misgovern, and not representatives of that class as is the case in a ‘liberal democracy’. This is why many more far-sighted people see governments in ‘liberal democracies’ as “stooges” of the wealthy. The differences between the two systems are minimal to say the least! Is it worth going out to vote? Yes, it is the only democratic right we have, even if it is pretty meaningless, but nevertheless do exercise it. Perhaps modern liberal democracies could be described as; plutocracy with liberal democratic impressions and forms, they are dressed up to look and feel like democracies? Finally, to quote Ken Livingstone “if voting changed anything, they’d abolish it!!” How very true that quote may well prove to be.
One major promise of Sinn Fein is to introduce over a two-term period a ‘fully costed single tiered nationalised health service’ based loosely on the one operated in the United Kingdom (UK). The question is whether the real government, the rich and the powerful occupants of the 26-County state, will allow such a service to be introduced? I doubt it but will give Sinn Fein the benefit simply because things cannot be any worse regarding health provision of service (not to be confused with level of health care) in the 26-County’s. What perhaps Sinn Fein are not taking into account is when the Labour Government of Clement Attlee brought in the National Health Service (NHS) in 1948 they did so on the back of the Second World War and people demanded better. Today the wealthy are slowly clawing back the NHS into their private hands, though various governments deny this charge.
It is very important to differentiate between politics and economics, many think they are the same, they are not, courting couple yes, husband and wife no. Yes, governments have budgets to manage the fiscal purse, public money, a minority factor in the general scheme of any capitalist economy, as most of the money belongs to private wealthy individuals and companies belonging to them. In the 26-County state such people as Denis O’Brien, the Collinson brothers, Michael O’Leary to name three and the rest of their business-class have larger private bank accounts collectively than the rest of the population combined, most of which is banked outside the state collecting huge interest on their base capital. Ignoring these people’s personal wealth and take the value of their gross capital, buildings and means of production therein (push pull economics), along with the annual profits made by these companies their wealth is astronomical. Banking outside the state is beneficial to these bandits so these great patriots do not have to pay tax towards goods and services for the benefit of all, such things as health, housing, education and a decent standard of living for everybody. Elected governments are pretty powerless to do anything about these people’s tax avoidance as this, unlike illegal tax evasion, is perfectly legal. In Ireland the 26-County state loses up to and beyond 22% of revenue through tax avoidance by the wealthy. When the 26-County state has an open and shut case to collect tax from huge companies like Apple they simply refuse to do so. Why? Because they know these people are larger and more powerful, certainly economically, than the elected government and the Dail administration wish to remain friends with these conglomerates! Or they give us some tale about these firms bringing employment, shit paid, but nevertheless employment! Eventually the European Commission intervened in the case of Apple forcing the government to take the money, upwards of €13 billion! These brigands are often referred to as ‘the ruling-class’ in society and the clue is in the word, ‘ruling’. Whoever sits in government in the Dail, or any parliament, these people will still be in charge, certainly economically, and economics will always trump politics in a ‘liberal democracy.’
So, in a ‘liberal democracy’ we get the vote every four to five years and elect a party to govern the affairs of the wealthy. We can then all take ourselves back to work for these very same wealthy people and absolutely nothing changes, exploitation for profit continues as do redundancies when these wealthy people have no further use for us. Never mind though, we can still bluff ourselves we are really in charge because we get the vote! Karl Marx once stated, rightly so, “All forms of the state have democracy for their truth, and for that reason are false to the extent that they are not democracy”. Marx continued; “The executive of the modern state is nothing but a committee for managing the common affairs of the whole bourgeoisie”. Put simply, the government sitting in Dail Eireann or any other parliament are simply agents to ensure the well-being and economic stability of the capitalist-class, the exploiters of labour, and this democracy charade is perhaps the biggest work of fiction since the Bible. Perhaps a comparison can be made with a ball of clay? Imagine a huge ball of clay which represents the global proletariat in today’s post-modern world. The governments of the planets liberal democracies represent the Potters who, through their policies, mould the clay into a shape in this case worker who produces products the international capitalist-class demand. The shape of this once ball of clay must be suitably adjusted to produce the needs of the ‘market’ which the bourgeoisie, or capitalist-class, profit from. Former coal miners or steel workers who had worked most of their lives down the pit or in the steel works coking a blast furnace, with the closure of their industries, are remoulded to work in the new small post-industrial units. Occasionally the working-class do not wish to be ‘moulded’ into the shape the potters are trying so they go on strike, switching off the kilns. If this strike continues for too long, costing the capitalist economy money, the government on behalf of the wealthy send out the police with batons to chastise the workers. This analysis may sound a little ‘Heath Robinson,’ or over complicated, but it is nevertheless correct. We are all pieces of clay to be manipulated and moulded into a shape of benefit to the minority capitalist-class!
What then is a ‘plutocracy’? A plutocracy is when the wealthy are in charge, usually unelected, as a class. They are the government. Examples of ancient such ‘plutocracies’ would be the city states of Athens, ironically credited with being the originators of democracy, Carthage and Rome. More recent examples would be Mussolini’s fascist Italy and Pinochet’s Chile. Are our so-called ‘liberal democracies’ really ‘plutocracies’ disguised as democratic systems? After all, in the workplace owned by the wealthy there are no democratic structures in place. Perhaps only socialism and the overthrow of the capitalist system would provide such democratic structures in the workplace (please do not use the former USSR as an opposition argument). In truth the only democratic structure in the workplace is the election, where applicable, of the trade union representative, or ‘shop steward.’ These representatives of the employees are voted into their positions, or out of them, every year or sometimes longer but never in excess of five years. We do not elect the boss, or even the chargehand. Many of the wealthy owners of the means of production, having got wealthy out of the wealth created by the workers labour-power, tell their employees; ‘this is not a democracy’ so get back to work or ‘collect your cards’! If it is not a democracy it must then be a plutocracy?
Are our ‘liberal democracies’ really ‘plutocracies’? I would suggest they are because irrespective of who we vote into government, the wealthy or ruling-class remain static and still rule. Even in totalitarian evil regimes like Nazi Germany the wealthy were still in power, many were members of the Nazi party. The Nazis were funded by Germany’s wealthy, Theisen, Krupps Armaments and steel producers, Siemens electronics, Hugo Boss fashion designers who designed the uniforms of the SA then the SS, and many other mega rich exploiters of labour. So, once again a plutocracy, which the Nazis made no secret of, providing it was the wealthy of Germany and not Jewish business! Trade unions were closed down and were replaced by the Nazi ran ‘Labour Front’ which in real terms was controlled by the Nazi Party and the bosses.
If the wealthy feel in any way threatened by the policies of a party in government or opposition, they will first of all, as was the case with both Michael Foot and Jeremy Corbyn of the British Labour Party, discredit them via their media. If that does not work and such a person becomes Prime Minister (as Jeremy Corbyn almost did in 2017), they will economically undermine that person’s credentials and governments policies. If that doesn’t work, as was the case in Chile, they will liquidate that person, dissolve the government, and put their own person in to governmental power. The elected Salvador Allende was shot dead in Chile and General Augusto Pinochet put in charge and the policies beneficial to exploitation continued. As Karl Marx said over a century ago “the bourgeoisie force the proletariat to take dangerous, low-paying jobs, in order to survive,” this is as true today as it was in the days of Marx, and Engels. Workers are forced into jobs they hate and pay low wages or lose their benefits. The question remains, do we live in a ‘democracy’ even a liberal one, or a ‘plutocracy’? Who holds real power, the government or the wealthy?
To briefly summarise, in a ‘liberal democracy’ we elect a party or parties to government who all usually go back on their election pledges. Once in office they set about governing for the benefit of the wealthy, the affairs of the wealthy and a few crumbs left over for the majority of the electorate, the working-class. A ‘plutocracy’ is government by the wealthy, for the wealthy and only the wealthy. It is they as a class who actually govern, or misgovern, and not representatives of that class as is the case in a ‘liberal democracy’. This is why many more far-sighted people see governments in ‘liberal democracies’ as “stooges” of the wealthy. The differences between the two systems are minimal to say the least! Is it worth going out to vote? Yes, it is the only democratic right we have, even if it is pretty meaningless, but nevertheless do exercise it. Perhaps modern liberal democracies could be described as; plutocracy with liberal democratic impressions and forms, they are dressed up to look and feel like democracies? Finally, to quote Ken Livingstone “if voting changed anything, they’d abolish it!!” How very true that quote may well prove to be.
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| Caoimhin O’Muraile is Independent Socialist Republican and Marxist. |
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