A Socialist Manifesto by Eric v.d. Luft

A Socialist Manifesto
  by Eric v.d. Luft

"a plan for the post-Bush world"

A 23-point manifesto of nonviolent socialist revolution,
building on the legacy of Thomas Paine's Common Sense
and other important leftist statements of purpose.

Contents:

Prologue
Principles
1. Freedom
2. Nonviolence
3. Democracy
4. Expansion of Suffrage
5. Elimination or Flattening of Hierarchies
6. Global Confederation of Sovereign Nations
7. Universal Access to Due Process
8. Abolition of Torture, Unfair or Cruel Imprisonment, and the Death Penalty
9. Education
10. Enhancement of Civilization
11. Respect for History
12. Regulation of Capitalism
13. Redistribution of Wealth
14. Elimination of Poverty
15. Public Ownership, Management, and Funding of Essential Services
16. Recognition of All People s Natural Human Rights
17. Outlawing Conscription
18. Dismantling of Religious Hegemony and Elimination of Theocracy
19. Stewardship of the Environment
20. Universal Health Care
21. Decriminalization of Marijuana
22. Ownership of One's Own Body
23. Immanuel Kant's Categorical Imperative

"Luft's conception of socialism is far distant from the socialism of the
gulag and the secret police; it is a socialism that free people of good
will could actually live with and flourish under, and it would certainly
be a kinder, more just, and more inspiring social order than we have
presently. This original and thoughtful, albeit problematic, contribution
to the discussion of socialism is well worth the attention of serious
readers. Recommended for high school, public, and academic libraries."
    - David S. Pena in Counterpoise 12, 3 (Summer 2008): 27-28.

Excerpts:

"Foreign military adventurism should become as repugnant in the
general public opinion as the analogous idea of forcing our way into
our neighbor's home in an otherwise peaceful residential area and
dictating how that neighbor ought to live."

"If religion were secure in the truth of its content, then it would
not be afraid to set its content out as an equal competitor in the
marketplace of ideas."