How do we rule? Direct and representative democracy and revolutionary power

Doug Enaa Greene poses the question: How do we rule? Direct and representative democracy and revolutionary power.

Revolutionary change does not just happen at the factory level, but throughout all of society. If we don't have a process or a way to mediate that change, we may as well give up on communism.

So what I am ultimately saying is that we will need leadership and representation after the revolution. It will need to be accountable, encourage mass debate, input and transparency to the extent possible, create a more democratic society than capitalism but be able to make decisions that can lead the whole of society on the road to communism.

However, this does not mean that the various forms of representation be considered set in stone, but are open to development and change in order to better serve the people.

None of this is meant to say that there isn't a danger of substitutionalism, usurpation and the many varied problems of representation in general. Those problems exist. Yet that is part of the danger and opportunity of power and communist politics. We cannot simply come up with a formal solution that overcomes this danger.

Direct democracy in and of itself is not the answer, since it can be manipulated and cannot make changes to a complex society as a whole. Societal transformation by its very nature is mediated. And we can only come up with solutions in the concrete, in the living moments of struggle, which are tried and tested. These are problems we cannot walk around, but we need to struggle through.

I believe that if we are willing to do so, we can build a revolution that lasts and leads to the flourishing of communism.

Emphasis Mine

We have a complex interplay between a Leninist party and the socialist government. Party members have the intellectual training, practical experience, and confidence to lead a socialist government at all levels.

However, the great majority of the people will still have a Capitalist mind-set after a revolution. Changing a mind-set takes time and effort. People want quick and easy solutions.

Unfortunately, the creation of a Communist society requires the re-orientation of people's thinking and actions. This takes time. There is no recipe for doing this, only general directions.