Author: The abolitionist

I come from a working-class background. My lost paid job was a teacher, substituting for a number of years before obtaining a permanent position. I obtained my doctorate in 2009. I am an unapologetic critic of capitalism and the way in which various institutions and ideologies reinforce it.

The 2018 West-Virginia Teachers’ Strike and a Socialist Movement

Read this post in English [Utilicé ChatGPT (Inteligencia Artificial)  para traducir la versión en inglés al español.] The social-reformist left like to claim that what they are interested in is class struggle from below--the self-organization of the working class that opposes the power of the class of employers. In a podcast, David Camfield's analysis of … Continue reading The 2018 West-Virginia Teachers’ Strike and a Socialist Movement →

A Case of Silent Indoctrination, Part Four: The Saskatchewan History Curriculum and Its Lack of History of Employers and Employees

This post is a continuation of  previous posts on the Canadian history curriculum.   The background to the post is provided in that first post (see A Case of Silent Indoctrination, Part One: The Manitoba History Curricula and Its Lack of History of Employers and Employees). But just a reminder: the research question is: Does … Continue reading A Case of Silent Indoctrination, Part Four: The Saskatchewan History Curriculum and Its Lack of History of Employers and Employees →

A Short List of the Largest Private Employers in Canada, According to Profit

When belonging to a leftist organization called the Toronto Labour Committee (Ontario, Canada), I worked on, in a minor position, on some statistics related to financial campaign contributions for the Toronto elections. Not being satisfied with this, I proposed that we start trying to develop a class analysis of Toronto. I indicated, though, that I … Continue reading A Short List of the Largest Private Employers in Canada, According to Profit →

Fixed Social Dogmas and the Special Language of the Social-Reformist Left

Michael Perleman refers to the Procrustean dogma that characterizes much of the discussion about the social world in which we currently live. What better characterization of the social-democratic rhetoric of "fairness," "decent work," a "fair wage," "economic justice" and "social justice?" From Michael Perleman, The Invisible Handcuffs of Capitalism: How Market Tyranny Stifles the Economy by … Continue reading Fixed Social Dogmas and the Special Language of the Social-Reformist Left →

Critique of a Social-Reformist Left’s Position in RankandFile.Ca on GM’s Decision to Close the Oshawa auto plant

An article (Buckle Up: GM Declares War on Oshawa)   by Gerard Di Trollo, Dave (or David) Bush and Doug Nesbitt, written for the social-reformist unionist website Rankandfile.ca purports to look critically at GM's decision to close the Oshawa plant. It is far from critical in this regard. The title of their article is GM's … Continue reading Critique of a Social-Reformist Left’s Position in RankandFile.Ca on GM’s Decision to Close the Oshawa auto plant →

Working for an Employer May Be Dangerous to Your Health, Part One

The title is a variation of one of the subsections in chapter two of Jeremy Reiman's The Rich Get Richer … and the Poor Get Prison. In a couple of earlier posts, I pointed out that working for an employer involves needless deaths and injuries (The Issue of Health and Safety in the Workplace Dominated by … Continue reading Working for an Employer May Be Dangerous to Your Health, Part One →

Socialism, What It May Look Like, or Visions of a Better Kind of Society Without Employers, Part Four

Leer este post en español The following is a continuation of previous posts on the possible nature of socialism that excludes the power of employers as a class. In the following, Tony Smith elaborates on the democratic nature of the workplace, which is subject to control not only by the workers at the particular workplace … Continue reading Socialism, What It May Look Like, or Visions of a Better Kind of Society Without Employers, Part Four →

The Poverty of Academic Leftism, Part One

I had a short debate with the academic philosopher Jeff Noonan on his blog. I am pasting it here since there was no further reply to my criticisms on his post. [Jeff's reply] Hi Fred,Thanks for the detailed and thoughtful comments. Some brief replies: [My initial reply]: Some of the above post is dead on, … Continue reading The Poverty of Academic Leftism, Part One →

Management Rights, Part Five: Public Sector Collective Agreement, Ontario

There are some among the left who idealize the public sector. They fail to address how the public sector magically treats workers in the public sector, who are employees, as human beings rather than as things. They have no solution to the problem of the employer-employee relation in general except--nationalization. Such nationalization hardly implies democratization … Continue reading Management Rights, Part Five: Public Sector Collective Agreement, Ontario →