You have probably heard all of those terms above and more. Most of you here have at least some level of class consciousness so I am here to clarify some things and propose some terms that we can all unite behind to get more people to gain class consciousness. In my opinion, the working class gaining class consciousness on a massive scale is priority #1 if we want to have any chance at changing things in a meaningful way. So here it goes:
Our society is broken down into two major classes: the working class and the capital class.
What makes someone working class vs capital class?
Working class – A person who makes their ends meet through selling their labor. Examples would include: service workers, medical care workers, teachers, construction workers, plumbers, electricians, etc. working class members HAVE to have a job in our current economic system or they risk homelessness.
Capital class – a person who makes their ends meet through owning ‘assets’. Examples would include: landlords, business owners, shareholders. These people do NOT have to work to make ends meet as the nature of them kist ‘owning’ enough shit makes them money.
Why are these class distinctions important?
The working class provides labor which is the life force that makes the world go round. Any achievement mankind has ever had has been as a result of someone’s labor. On the contrary, owning something isn’t a job and creates zero value. So if owning something creates zero value, then how does the capital class build their wealth? They build it through taking the wealth generated by the working class. It is a parasitic relationship between the two classes, with the working class subsidizing the capital class. The capital class NEEDS the working class to exist while the working class doesn’t need the capital class. It’s why communism and socialism are terrifying to them, as those systems eliminate their parasitic existence.
What is class war?
As the capital class needs the working class to survive, the more they exploit them, the more wealth they can obtain. Giving benefits to the capital class actively harms the working class, and vice versa. In a capitalist society money buys power and power decides, so the capital class uses their wealth to obtain as much power as they can so they can write the laws in favor of their own class at the expense of the working class.
Currently the working class has virtually zero representation in all of American politics while the capital class has it all. This is why the standard of living for a working class citizen has just been on a perpetual steady decline for decades, no matter who is in office and the capital class has never been richer. They divide and conquer the working class through owning all the power and media and feed us shit to keep us divided based on our gender, race, sexual orientation, whatever, anything to focus the attention away from their own class.
Sounds like the capital class holds all the cards, what can I do to help as a working class citizen?
Educate and help us unite! You are helping already by just reading through this post. Use the new knowledge you obtained to help spread class consciousness to other working class people. Words have power and ideas spread, otherwise the capital class wouldn’t spend billion on trying to control the narrative. If we can get the working class to identify who the root of the problem is and gain class solidarity, it might lead to things like unionization and strikes.
Why ‘capital’ class and not elite, ruler, 1%, ‘the rich’, capitalist, or owner class
Some of those terms are better than others, but most of them don’t identify what separates the working class from them and doesn’t identify the root of the problem. The root of the problem isn’t that that they are rich or rule, the problem is that they are obtain those riches and power through merrily owning things. Capitalist or owner class are ok alternatives, but in my experience I have had more success raising class consciousness using the term ‘capital’ class instead.
Tl;dr : if you care about the working class, I HIGHLY advise reading through my post but if you must have a summary:
There is no war but class war.