Genuine socialism is a socio-economic system in which all of the industries and services (stores, restaurants, hospitals, mines, farms, etc.) are socially owned, not privately owned, as in capitalism, or state owned, as in Leninism/Stalinism (i.e., often refered to as "state capitalism" due to its extremem similarity to "pure" capitalism). The industries would serve the needs and wants of everyone, not just the profit interests of the few. In fact, production is carried out exclusively for the needs of everyone, and not for private profit. People will work to improve society and to produce what we need, not to personally enrich themselves or to make the "owner" of the industry rich. Under socialism, no money or system of currency would exist (please see the section on How Goods and Services Will Be Distributed Under Socialsim: Labor Vouchers vs. Free Access; in this section, I'm assuming a system of free access). Instead, people would work according to their abilities, and take according to their needs. Society would be one of free access, where no items were held from those who need them due to lack of ability to pay. We would live in a truly free society, with no political state to control our actions, and none would be needed in a system without the material conditions that breed crime and violence, thus making it "necessary" to pass laws to control our behavior. We would be free from want, with no poverty or unemployment. As a result, crime would virtually vanish altogether, and we will have a society that functions with far less friction then any previous system in existence. We would be free from the violent and disturbed individuals that are bred by a capitalist society, which fosters ruthless competition among people, both within and across nations, and which routinely creates such social tragedies as the David Koresh religious cult incident and the Columbine High School massacre. Education would be free to all, without having to put ourselves into massive debt. The very idea of "financial debt" wouldn't exist anymore. We would still be allowed to have personal property, such as a decent home. Although we would still have vehicles, it has often been stated that we would no longer have a need for seperate cars to the degree that we do today. Instead, superior forms of mass transportation would probably replace cars to a large extent. Because the profit motive would no longer exist, sufficient health care, food, education and recreation would be given to all directly in exchange for their work. No longer would anyone be forced into debt, and no small class of individuals would control the economy and use it for their own personal enrichment. Socialism will be a worldwide system, and government will be based on industry, and not on territory, as it is today. An exact blueprint for how this future society will be run isn't ethically advisable before the system is actually established and the people have the opportunity to vote on it, but the Socialist Labor Party has provided a system known as Socialist Industrial Unionism (SIU), formulated by the great American Marxist of the late 19th and early 20th century, Daniel De Leon. The New Union Party likewise accepts the principles of De Leonism. De Leon's program is quite good and makes a lot of sense, though it hasn't been embraced by the World Socialist Parties, who claim the system creates as many questions as it answers, and that it looks too much like a written in stone blueprint for our future socialist society. It's the main reason why these parties of genuine socialism don't stand united. However, the SIU program is the only viable program for establishing the economic action in which socialism could be peacefully and democratically instituted, and in line with the manner in which industrialised society is currently situtated, I will list the SIU model here (see the section on How To Establish Socialism to see the combination of economic and political action that must be undertaken by the working class to overthrow capitalism and establish socialism peacefully and democratically using the principles of De Leonism). Contrary to certain statements that are often made, the SLP insists that the SIU program is NOT intended as a blueprint to dictate what this future society of socialist cooperation will build, but is simply a logical idea based on how the working class is situated in relation to the tools of production and distribution that the economic infrastructure of our society is based. It may in fact become outdated in the next 50 years or so, in which case it would be democratically modified or even eliminated in favor of a new economic program that would be in line with the future time period in question.
This is how De Leonism is described. we will elect representatives to an industrial council whose sole purpose will be to determine what goods and services society wants, what resources are necessary to supply them and how best to distribute them. This will ultimately ascend into an Industrial Congress, with one based on each continent, that would replace the current political Congress. It's elected officials will be recallable at any time a majority of society deems it necessary, and will have no power to rule or to control society or the economy at large. No "leaders" or politicians will exist, which is considered by socialists to be undemocratic. It will be an industrial democracy rather then a simple political democracy that we have today, the latter being a system that thinly conceals an economic dictatorship. Since we will not be divided into seperate nations, each with their own ruling class vying for control over the world's resources, the cause of modern wars will be eliminated. Diversity will be tolorated as never before, as no one will have the power to gain dominance for a particular group of individuals. No one will have economic control over anyone else, everyone will be free to choose a job that they are suited for and have the talent to perform well, and the media, as it's called today, will be completely free and in control of the public. This is the society of the future, and we have the technology to achieve it now. All we need is to organize to establish it, and this future is ours for the taking.
