The Washington socialist. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1914-1915, 1915-06-24
CHANGE IN SOCIETY
ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY

AbSOLU Gb1 N6O6SoN"A
That a change In society Is abso-
mtely necessary Is being recognized
today by any number of people. The
power of few great capitalists Is be-
coming so gigantic as to threaten the
system itself. Few people but the most
bigoted are now afraid of the word
Socialism. But the idea of Socialism
is being perverted by oapitalist-mind'
ed people into government ownership
and state Socialism. Such social
ism" would, by the nature of things,
retain the features of wage slavery
and the political government of OPP
preston, Such Socialism" would be
beneficial to many capitalists who
are afforded no protection on the econ
omic field in the present days, when
A simple millionaire counts for little
on the great industrial competitive
field. Government ownership, with
continued class rule and wage slavery,
is the ideal dream Of many capital
ist-minded would-be revoIutionist. II
would be the ideal perfection, indeed.
of political society, supplemented by
centralized economic power. This
would be a middle class Society revo-
luton that would not touch the foun-
dalton of modern society.
A few years ago it very much look
ed as II should the workers Socialist
revolution miscarry, it would be per-
verified into this channel. But in late
years there have sprung into existence
such gigantic social economic forces
that II appears even more plainly that
the political state has outlived its
usefulness in history. The future econ
omic state is looming clearly upon the
social horizon. Even within the capt.
talist world the economic state shows
signs of asserting its supremacy over
the political. The economic masters
are and have ever been, the political
masters. But the modern economic
kings are threatening to override their
own political state. The economic
forces are becoming too gigantic for
political control The political forces
are becoming puny in comparison be-
cause the political state, even though
thoroughly capitalistic, is hampered
in its actions by the conflicting inter
ests of the capitalists of the lower
strata. Hence the political state,
though subservient to capitalism,
stands in the way Of ultra"capitalist
development. Therefore it is that we
witness the spectacle of struggle. in
several instances between the coun-
try's greatest financiers and captains
of industry, on the one hand, and the
political government of the country on
the other 1t is the seIf-assertion with
in capitalism of the future economic
state. 1t is the breaking loose of so
cial economic forces too gigantic to
| be confined in the narrow bounds OF
past ages. The days of the pol
state are numbered 1t has outliv.
| it's usefulness. 1t stands in the way
of progress. The economic state is
the society of the future. But the VIC
tory of the great industrial lords
would mean slavery worse than the
| world has ever experienced. That
would mean the ideal total mastery of
the richest, most powerful, most alb
solute oligarchy the world has yet
known Puny in comparison would
be the power of any other tyrant from
the days of ancient Assyria to those
of modern Russia!
1t is imperative that every worker
with an ounce of red blood in his body
should exert every possible effort to
turn the now raging stream toward In
dustrial Oligarchy into channels under
control of the working-class, leading
onward into the cooperative, all-in-
elusive world of Industrial Democracy
SOCIALISM!