this post was submitted on 24 Jul 2023
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How should US citizens vote? (lemmygrad.ml)
submitted 2 years ago by Shinhoshi@lemmygrad.ml to c/asklemmygrad@lemmygrad.ml
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It’s just annoying that there’s no real leftists to vote for in a country where we let money control elections (cf. Citizens United decision). I might have a “vote” but it doesn’t feel like I get any say when the election is between bourgeois parties.

Obviously not voting and voting for the actual fascists are bad options, but just voting for the liberals isn’t great either. What do y’all think?

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[–] sovietsnake@lemmygrad.ml 19 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Liberal "democracy" is not the solution, it just pretends to provide the illusion of choice when in reality you will always be voting for the bourgeoisie. The Marxist solution to electoralism is democratic centralism, where one party (the proletariat embodied as a party) controls the power and voting happens in different levels (municipal, provincial, national) and people vote for the people who are in charge, rather than for a party. The purpose of the party must be to serve the people, not some branding or political façade or being a place to allow the bourgeois/fascists to grow larger.

[–] Shinhoshi@lemmygrad.ml 6 points 2 years ago (1 children)

It's a pretty good con they pulled too. I'm certainly not advocating in favor of the US system.

Out of curiosity, is there any Marxist writing on democratic centralism?

[–] redtea@lemmygrad.ml 7 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I know I keep going on an on about it. But it's just that good. Roland Boer's Socialism with Chinese Characteristics: A Guide for Foreigners goes into Deng's critique of the earlier approach to democratic centralism in China. It's chapter 2, iirc. He discusses the contradictions between democracy and centralism and possible solutions to getting the right balance.