Socialism is probably one of the most misunderstood terms in human history. One of the most widely held assumptions in regards to socialism is that it is a Left Wing ideology… It is not — and here’s why:
In their present state, despite their illusory pretensions about acting in the interests of workers, the left wingers wait in the political wings of capitalism, ready to pounce on any opportunity for the continuation of capitalism on the basis of their own control.
The Left wing, by definition, is part of capitalism; socialism is a wholly different system, the basic tenets of which are completely irreconcilable with those of capitalism. While leftists may have the best of intentions, their approach in regards to the problems of capitalism always lead to capitalism’s continued existence.
The left-wing is just as necessary as the right-wing to keep the bird of capitalism flying.
Leftists are Reformists, and thus will never truly oppose capitalism; Socialists are Revolutionaries, and thus will always oppose capitalism, and by extension, reformists. Reforms will never lead to socialism, and they are largely futile in the long term, as was summed up by William Morris over a century ago:
The palliatives over which many worthy people are busying themselves now are useless because they are but unorganised partial revolts against a vast, wide-spreading, grasping organisation which will, with the unconscious instinct of a plant, meet every attempt at bettering the conditions of the people with an attack on a fresh side.
