'A generous and commendable step'

BY IAN BOLAS

It is no secret that for a long time the socialist left has suffered
through being fragmented into lots of little groups, all of which had appointed
themselves the vanguard, but none of which have demonstrated a capacity
to cohere large numbers of people around them, though some have done better
than others.

The Socialist Alliance is a positive step forward because it has the
potential to allow these differences to be worked out, while maintaining
a unified front on the key issues.

I think the DSP's proposal is a tremendously generous and a commendable
step to take for a party with a long history.

The alliance should be active in as many areas as possible, combining
the resources of all involved. Large numbers of people are looking for
an alternative. I have noticed this among my union's [WA Construction,
Forestry, Mining and Energy Union] membership.

A lot of people used to see left parties as the “lunatic fringe”. I
think they take the alliance more seriously because they can support it
without getting caught up in debates about state capitalism versus degenerate
workers' states and the like, focusing instead on issues that are of real
concern to the mass of people in their daily lives.

[Ian Bolas is a member of the Perth branch of the Socialist Alliance.]

From Green Left Weekly, October 16, 2002.

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From GLW issue 512