A VIEW FROM AMERICA the stereotype of the «average American:t as affluent, of educational and technological development as the keys to the future, of the «new class» of highly educated humane technocrats and administrators (often themselves) as the only hope for the humanization of society. The assertion was made to the effect that the basic structure and character of American society had been transformed through its absorption of liberal reforms, and that thls meant the end of the tradicional role of the proletariat as an agent for revolutionary change - and that in any case most workers had become too pacified and satisfied, and couldn't be counted on to carry it off if their lives depended on it. which they didn't. The vantage point of the new crisis (which was not supposed to be able to happen) has revealed the affluent society and its bulwarks as a myth. Although there have been superficial changes in its operation, the prlmary basis of capitalist society remains the marketplace. The critlcal understanding gained in the Nineteenth Century is still meaningful and relevant today, although lt ls not the last word. The primary character and modus operandi remaln the same, and the reforms have not really satlsfled the vital needs and desires expressed in past revolts. but have only postponed them to a later time and place (and in a sense more clearly defined what constitutes these vital human needs and their satisfaction by demonstrating what they arc not). The truth is that the minimalist perspective of the ldeologues and administrators of reform have never comprehended the full scope of dlssatlsfaction. alienation and hopes of any of us. Reforms, while creating new priviledged bureaucratie strata (convinced of the sufficiency of the reforms because of their new-found functions) have never truly corne near allevlating that which caused the problems in the first place. This is the lesson being learned by the «progressive» employers, who provide their workers wtth comparatively good pay, working conditions, therapy groups, health care and vacations, and allow unionization and even a little self-management, but still find themselves with a restive workforce. In those cases where the much-vaunted reforms have temporarily eftected pacification, it has been through despair and cynicism rather than by satisfaction. We in the United States are partaking of the worldwide crisis and experiencing upheavals, although as yet for the most part not of as far-reaching a scope as elsewhere. American students have rebelled agalnst their unlversities through de21
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTExMDY2NQ==