Rants & Reasons

Sheri Berman’s recent article in Dissent is a terrific primer on the history of left politics in the 20^th century and a thoughtful assessment of the direction of left politics in the near future.

Berman casts the 20^th Century debate as one between those who think capitalism should be replaced (Democratic Socialists) and those who think capitalism should be managed (Social Democrats)

And the Social Democrats have won. Much of Western Europe is governed by social democratic principles and, prior to the right wing’s coming to power, the United States was a highly regulated, free market system that aspired to provide basic necessities for nearly all citizens.

Why did social democracy achieve victory over democratic socialism? Because after World War II, social democracy succeeded in combining economic growth, well-functioning democracy, and social stability.

“Without the amazing economic results generated by the operations of relatively free markets, the dramatic improvements of mass living standards throughout the West would not have been possible. Without the social protections and limits on markets imposed by states, in turn, the benefits of capitalism would never have been distributed so widely, and economic, political and social stability would have been infinitely more difficult to achieve.”

By contrast, the socialists wanted to get rid of capitalism and transform society by ridding it of the exploitation inherent in an economic class system. But in the face of the success of social democracy, they ultimately made themselves ineffective, lacking any practical program for achieving their aims.

And what about the present?

“One of the great ironies of the twentieth century is that the very success of this social democratic compromise made it seem routine; we forget how new and controversial it actually was. As a result, by the end of the twentieth century the West had begun to gradually abandon this compromise, moving in a more neoliberal direction, freeing markets and economic activity from some of the oversight and restrictions that had characterized the postwar settlement. The challenge to the left today is to recover the principles underlying this settlement and to generate from them initiatives that address today’s new problems and opportunities….American leftists must try to do what the Scandinavians have done: develop a program that promotes growth and social solidarity together, rather than forcing a choice between them.”

This seems quite right

But Berman goes on to say that the left has lost optimism and historical vision.

“ Despite current disillusionment with capitalism, this is precisely the situation the left finds itself in today, given the loss of its vision of a postcapitalist society. Many of its parties win elections, but few inspire much hope or offer more than a kinder, gentler version of a generic centrist platform. Given the left’s past, this is astonishing. The left has traditionally been driven by the conviction that a better world was possible and that its job was to bring this world into being. Somehow this conviction has been lost.

I think this is right but it is crucial how we understand the idea of transformation.

The old left was animated by the idea that if we transformed the economic system we could invent a new human being, less selfish and greedy than the human being constructed by capitalism. But this idea of inventing a new being through a political process was dangerous. Politics cannot drive moral transformation—at best it can gently encourage it.

Social democracy was successful because it did not try to invent a new being. It aligned its vision with the public’s desire for consumer goods. Its political agenda was aligned with the moral motives of citizens who were seeking stability and prosperity. By contrast, any political movement that conflicts with the moral framework of those it aspires to govern will either turn violent or be marginalized.  

Socialism faces a hurdle. Most people have moral identities that are not formed around beliefs rooted in class conflict and do not depend on class solidarity. This has been and will always be the Achilles heel of genuinely socialist movements. The vague, poorly conceptualized alternatives to capitalism on offer from socialists are unlikely to garner mass support. Democratic socialism will likely remain a pipe dream.

Berman is right that the left needs a vision. But it must be a vision rooted in moral ideals that are already at least latently lived by the public. Regaining political momentum requires changing hearts and minds as much as it requires finding new social and economic institutions.