Part three, Nasser Paydar
Environmental pollution is one of the most fundamental issues facing humanity in the contemporary era. The significance and alarming nature of this phenomenon across various spheres of human life are such that certain deceptive bourgeois circles, groups, and parties sometimes masquerading as leftists raise the false banner of fighting environmental pollution in Western nations; in doing so, they secure a significant share of votes from deluded citizens including the working masses during the course of every so-called parliamentary “election.” Capitalism has polluted every aspect of human life, deeply poisoning it and rendering it unfit for healthy human existence. It has left no body of water anywhere on the globe free from the continuous discharge of lethal industrial effluents or contamination by a host of deadly chemical toxins. Everything produced for human consumption contains alarming levels of toxic and disease-causing substances. The very air humans need to breathe is saturated with lethal chemical compounds. The entirety of clothing manufactured in capitalist production centres and brought to market is rife with harmful substances that cause various cancers and other diseases. At its core, capitalist production is driven solely by the pursuit of profit. In this system, any measure that boosts profit is deemed permissible and even laudable; cutting production costs, minimizing waste, and maximizing the lifespan of goods thereby ensuring they successfully complete their circulation, and distribution cycles are highly effective mechanisms for securing massive, astronomical profits. By lowering production costs, the capitalist enhances their competitive edge in the marketplace, thereby capturing a larger share of the total surplus value generated by the global proletariat. Minimizing waste guarantees a greater volume of goods for a given amount of capital, which in turn drives up profits; similarly, increasing the resistance of food products to bacterial spoilage and maximizing sales volume pave the way for astronomical profits, while protecting fruit crops from pests translates into a larger inventory of goods available for sale and, consequently, the accumulation of vast profits. The mass production of fruits, vegetables, and similar crops yielding vastly greater output for a given capital investment naturally channels a torrent of profits toward the capitalist. Similarly, the use of diverse materials and compounds in textile manufacturing, by drastically slashing production costs, swells this surging river of profits even further. While all these practices are highly efficient mechanisms for profit maximization, they simultaneously serve as lethal weapons and instruments of humanity’s inevitable destruction. Capitalism employs these levers to their full capacity with utter ruthlessness and cruelty sacrificing humanity on the altar of astronomical profits. Capitalists, the owners of massive financial and industrial trusts, and capitalist states worldwide increasingly deploy these mechanisms to drive up surplus value at explosive rates. Indeed, the number of chemical substances linked to various forms of cancer, allergies, and diverse organ disorders utilized by industrial and financial trusts in the agricultural sector to maximize crop yields runs into the hundreds. The sheer volume of harmful substances used by food production and distribution companies to make restaurant meals more palatable and marketable is alarming. To gain a simple picture of the havoc capitalism has wreaked upon humanity specifically regarding the contamination of the environment, food, clothing, and the very air we breathe one need only look at the unchecked, ever-rising global incidence of various cancers. Among the world’s capitalist societies, the Scandinavian nations boast some of the highest standards of healthcare and medical facilities; yet, at the same time, they have the highest rates of cancer.
The system of wage slavery does not limit itself to killing human beings through environmental pollution alone; the capital-driven machinery of human destruction stops at no borders. The relentless destruction of forests and green spaces worldwide; the ceaseless proliferation of gasoline and gas-powered vehicles across all nations; the alarming, unchecked accumulation of industrial waste, contaminated workshop effluents, and toxic gases from diverse manufacturing processes and repeated nuclear tests; the ever-expanding network of nuclear power plants and the continuously rising global production of radioactive material; the devastating wars raging across much of the globe and the daily opening of vast killing fields for the masses in every corner of the earth; the annual generation of millions of tons of nuclear waste and the transformation of parts of the planet into pools of radioactive and nuclear toxins along with a host of similar phenomena have placed the entire living environment and existence of humanity under grave threat.
In recent years, the risk of the Earth’s ozone layer being depleted—or at least becoming increasingly thin has been a hot topic in international scientific circles. Statistics indicate that the damage sustained by this protective layer and its significantly reduced capacity to absorb the sun’s ultraviolet radiation have caused the incidence of fatal skin cancers to increase tenfold between 1935 and 1991, and more than twentyfold by the year 2000. Ozone layer depletion is primarily driven by rising levels of carbon dioxide (CO2), sulphur oxides (SO2), and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). The thinning of the ozone layer, coupled with the melting of massive polar ice masses and global warming, has raised the Specter of catastrophic, widespread changes to the living conditions of organisms. Many researchers believe that within the next thirty years, parts of Northern and Central Europe such as southern Denmark and the northern Netherlands could be submerged underwater. Certain animal and bird species may face extinction or, at the very least, be forced to migrate to other regions. Beyond skin cancer, the global population faces a host of other diseases. All of this represents only a fraction of the foreseeable consequences associated with the thinning of the protective ozone layer. However, the scope of environmental problems plaguing modern humanity is so vast that the painful consequences of damage to the Earth’s ozone layer represent but a tiny fraction of the whole. At present, vast stretches of the globe’s waters are severely polluted by the daily discharge of millions of tons of industrial waste. Marine life including various fish species that provide a significant portion of the global population’s protein faces a dual threat: the animals themselves risk extinction due to water pollution, while simultaneously endangering countless human lives by becoming contaminated, disease-carrying agents. Even a minor accident at any of the world’s major nuclear power plants or the leakage of even the smallest amount of radioactivity from their reactors is enough to pose a grave threat to the lives of tens of thousands of people. The 1986 disaster at Chernobyl in the Soviet Union, as acknowledged by all experts, exposed tens of thousands of people both Russian and non-Russian to the risk of developing various forms of cancer. Prior to that, a deadly leak caused by damage to two small British nuclear reactors had already afflicted hundreds of nearby villagers with the same disease, ultimately claiming their lives a secret that the British bourgeoisie and its governments had kept under wraps, refusing to disclose it, right up until 1987. Alongside these grim events, we witness a daily, staggering rise in air pollution levels across many of the world’s large, densely populated cities. Life in cities such as Tehran and more recently Isfahan, Ahvaz, or even Rome becomes unbearable, particularly during the summer, under the pressure of alarmingly rising levels of carbon oxides, toxic gases, and other pollutants. According to official reports from various international bodies, millions of hectares of the Earth’s forests are destroyed daily; the consequences of this deforestation, in turn, precipitate immense hazards for human life. Furthermore, the profoundly unsanitary living conditions rife with various disease-causing pathogens found across vast regions of the globe constitute a severe scourge that claims the lives of millions of people every day. Were we to pursue this discussion merely by listing the types and general categories of environmental pollution, it would require a great many pages an unnecessary undertaking we shall forgo. The pivotal question remains: where does the true source of all this pollution lie? The answer is simple: the capitalist system is the root cause of all this pollution. This is a reality easily observed by any discerning eye on a daily basis; nevertheless, to grasp it more deeply, we can highlight the following points.
1. Contrary to common belief, it is not the very nature of industry and global industrial development that has caused chemical pollution of seawater, the depletion of the ozone layer, and similar incidents. Conversely, it is the manner in which the capitalist system employs industry and technology that lies at the root and foundation of this catastrophe in contemporary human life. A simple glance at the nature and volume of annual global social production reveals that a vast portion of these goods is essentially superfluous—simply because it bears no relation to the genuine needs of human survival and social well-being. In a world where production is dictated entirely by market demands and the profitability of capital, we inevitably encounter a multitude of products whose manufacture serves no purpose other than the appalling squandering of labour power, the tightening of the yoke of capitalist slavery around humanity’s neck, the deepening immersion of people in corruption and degradation, and the ever-expanding pollution of the Earth’s environment. Just consider the sheer volume of promotional material from global commercial enterprises; reflect on the myriad destructive toys both digital and non-digital produced by the world’s industrial firms, the sole function of which is to ruin the process of child development and painfully erode human character; visualize for a moment the vast quantities of weapons of mass destruction manufactured by the global military-industrial complex; and contemplate hundreds of other examples of such industrial and technical products. At the same time, let us bear in mind the technology, tools, and industrial facilities required to produce this colossal output, and reflect upon the production processes of capitalist corporations and institutions across the globe. If we distinguish between the essential and non-essential components of this production based on humanity’s needs for growth, welfare, education, healthcare, and well-being, we will see that a significant percentage of the world’s total annual social product bears no relation to genuine human needs for livelihood and welfare; on the contrary, it serves as an instrument for the destruction of human life. If we were to eliminate this vast volume of non-essential production along with all the associated infrastructure from the current sphere of labour and output, we would witness a dramatic reduction in the pollution of the human living environment. It must be explicitly stated that this is by no means an argument for denying the necessity or importance of anything required to meet genuine human needs, ensure well-being, or foster human advancement. The discussion concerns only those products that have no place whatsoever within the realm of true human needs and well-being. One might well ask: who or which institution or authority determines these needs, or decides what is essential and what is not? The answer to this question is clearly reiterated throughout this book: the central councils comprising the conscious, free, united, equal, and empowered participation of all members of society are the sole competent authority for determining these needs.
2. Alongside chemical and industrial pollution, the world today faces terrifying levels of microbial and infectious contamination. A large portion of the global population still lives in regions that lack even the most basic sanitary facilities. Diseases such as tuberculosis, typhoid, cholera, and malaria whose complete eradication was a frequent topic of discussion in the early decades of the twentieth century now, in the twenty-first century, continue to threaten lives even in the world’s major industrial hubs, claiming a staggering number of victims annually. Billions of people worldwide still lack access to safe drinking water, and the annual death toll among children from smallpox, measles, scarlet fever, and diphtheria exceeds tens of millions. Of the seven billion people on Earth, more than five billion live in areas with no access to any form of sanitation or sewage systems; indeed, billions among them lack even basic sanitary toilet facilities. All of this is inextricably linked to environmental pollution, and such pollution stems entirely from the rotten relations of capitalism. It is the capitalist mode of production that imposes poverty, misery, and massive environmental pollution upon the masses doing so through the ceaseless conversion of human labour into capital, the brutal exploitation of the workforce, the deepening alienation of workers from their labour and its products, and the total exclusion of people from any role in planning the processes of work and production.
3. The history of capitalism is a history of the most savage, expansionist imperialist wars waged both internationally and in every region of the globe. The infectious consequences of these wars whether chemical or biological cannot be measured by any precise statistical system. No one knows the full extent of the infectious toll these imperialist wars (World War I and II) took on human life, nor the true scale of the carnage resulting from these infectious and environmental hazards. Yet, the entire world witnessed how epidemics of plague and cholera occurring during or in the immediate aftermath of these conflicts completely wiped many inhabited areas off the global demographic map. As for the devastation inflicted upon the human environment by the Iran-Iraq War, the Gulf War, the Yugoslav Wars, the Arab Israeli conflicts, and the perpetual wars across Africa and elsewhere the answer sends a shudder through the body of any human being, provided they are neither a capitalist nor an ideological representative of the capitalist system. Where do wars originate, and how are they imposed upon humanity? The answer is too simple to require deep investigation: wars are instigated by states capitalist states whose very reason for existence is to impose the capitalist order upon the working masses and the downtrodden of the world. The sole objective of these wars is for one faction or another of global capital to secure an ever-larger share of the surplus value generated by the exploitation of the international working class.
4. What is the purpose behind the widespread chemical pollution mentioned earlier, the world’s nuclear and non-nuclear arsenals, and the massive nuclear power plants where even a minor leak from any single one could threaten the lives of millions and what needs and imperatives drive their continued operation? The imperialist expansionism and aggression of capitalist nations coupled with global capital’s drive to maximize labour productivity, drastically slash production costs, generate massive profits, and intensify the gruelling exploitation of the global working class constitute the sole reason for the existence of these arsenals and nuclear facilities.
Socialism eradicates the root causes of all such environmental degradation by abolishing the capitalist mode of production and its associated social relations. Above all, by eliminating wage labour and dismantling the market system, it anchors the entire process of social labour and production in the fulfilment of genuine needs regarding livelihood, well-being, and the equal growth and advancement of all thereby putting an end to the production of superfluous, harmful, and health-endangering goods.
This destroys a significant part of environmental pollution factors. Socialism, by erasing wage labour, also erases the real roots of unsanitary and microbial pollution from people’s lives. Ensuring the health of people and eradicating all diseases by creating a healthy environment is at the top of the goals of socialism. In this system, the goal of production and work is only human. Physical and mental health and guaranteeing the highest standard of life and social welfare of people determine the most basic goal in the planning of production and socialist work. Based on this, putting an end to unsanitary conditions in all different areas, from drinking water and healthy and sufficient nutrition to creating sufficient green space and eliminating all microbial and chemical pollution factors, is in the centre of attention of the Labour and Environment Councils and the National Congress of Socialist Councils.
With the dismantling of capitalism in the world, the production of all kinds of weapons and weapons and harmful chemicals will be put to an end. The presence and absence of all nuclear power plants, even with the highest safety and protection factor, in the new process of production and joint work of humans, whose purpose is only to provide the necessities of life and social welfare of mankind, is the subject of collective discussion and council of citizens.
By abolishing classes, the state, and geographical borders or the nationalist fragmentation of humanity socialism eradicates the root causes of war worldwide, thereby eliminating the environmental consequences associated with such conflicts. Socialism, in its true, triumphant form, can only be realized within an internationalist framework. A socialist society is a global, international community in which the entire population of the Earth constitutes its citizenry, enjoying equal rights in every respect. In this society, there are no classes, states, ethnic or racial groups, or distinct nationalities; none of these divisions exist. Political differences, divergent opinions, and varied perspectives which are natural aspects of human existence, even within the diverse spheres of socialist life, work, and civilization can be readily resolved through unconditional social freedoms, immense intellectual and cultural growth, and the full equality of all citizens; there is no need for destructive wars. Under the socialist organization of labour, the notion of increasing social labour productivity through the chemical contamination of agricultural and livestock products is entirely irrelevant. Here, the aim is not to cut production costs for the sake of market competition or the pursuit of greater profits. The focus is on the human being; any measure that jeopardizes human health, hygiene, or free development is strongly condemned.