As far as the United States is concerned, today’s Left is not only small, it’s also quite confused. Sure, there are debates regarding the conflict being fought in Ukraine and the wisdom of organizing in the Democratic party, but I’m talking about more fundamental questions. Primary among them is the nature of class and how it should be addressed. The basic understanding in Marxism is that there are two classes under capitalism—the bourgeoisie and the working class. This dynamic places the workers in the position where the primary commodity they have to sell in a marketplace of commodities is their labor. This understanding also theoretically provides the worker with the freedom to sell their labor to the highest bidder. In other words, the employer who will pay the best wage and provide the most benefits. Of course, most workers don’t actually have this luxury as individuals; it is only through organizing as a class that they can then (ideally) force the employer class to reach an arrangement most of the workers can agree on. Naturally, any such arrangement will only be agreed to by the employer if it divides the profit derived from the labor of the workers in the employer’s favor. In other words, how much of the labor created by the worker will be stolen by the owners.
This relationship between employers and workers (the bourgeoisie and the working class when writ large) is one of the essential elements of capitalism. The other commonly understood element is the exploitation of the earth and its bounty. The wealth derived from
— source counterpunch.org | Ron Jacobs | Aug 18, 2023