Cardinal Socialism

Cardinal Socialism, also known as Ovan Socialism or Vestric Anarchism, is a form of Libertarian Socialism and Anarchist Communism most common and prominent in Vestrim. Cardinal Socialism is less of a unified doctrine and more a wide array of socialist philosophies united by a common ideological doctrine: the establishment of a "Common-State" through the abolition of hierarchy. Under such a state, they argue, a society would naturally organize itself around the collective ownership of property, and the organization of general democratic forums, taking into account the needs of each member of said society, and the traditional aims of Socialism would be achieved as consequence.

The ideology was influenced heavily by Ovan scholars and Anthropologists during the early 1900's, before it became championed by Farmers Unions and Industrial Socialists, coming to a fever pitch after the first Great War before being violently suppressed. The ideology was mainly seen as a solution to the massive inequality in land distribution, and an escape from the racial oppression of the Ovan Viceroyalty and Commonwealth. Cardinal Socialism would spread like wildfire during the Ovan Civil War through the work of the O.S.V.K.P.

Cardinal Socialism has two general focuses, seen by the two "wings" of its political spectrum, those being property distribution and social reorganization. Industrialist Cardinal's focus mainly on the latter, organizing themselves around the management of industrial workers and oftentimes more urban social strata; The Agrarian Cardinal's focus, however, is more toward the ownership of property.

Etymology

The term was coined in the late 1800's as a derogatory term for supporters of the Ovan Socialist movement, as they were often seen wearing red accessories such as armbands, clothing, kerchiefs, and bandanas; However, the term was picked up by the ideologies supporters and came to be used as a catch-all term for the broad ideals of Ovan Socialism. It would be adopted as the formal ideological title of the Ovan Farmers Union in 1920.

Philosophies

The Social Revolution

Like most radical socialist ideologies, Cardinal Socialism argues for the rapid disestablishment of capitalist society through a social revolution which would bring about necessary structural changes to society. The Revolution, as posited by supporters and founders of the ideology, would facilitate the necessary organization of civil unions, democratic forums meant to replace the functions of the state, and lead to the mass collectivization of property, abolition of the State, and the establishment of a system of universal equality, wherein no party, be it an individual or government, could enforce it's will over any other party.

This procurement has been proposed through several different lenses, the most common being populist violent Revolution wherein a major portion of the population violently overthrows the existing system of management. While this is the most common means toward social change, other methods such as the proposition of Referenda or the usage of a mass General Strike have been proposed and pushed for in other countries.

The Common-State

The core argument of Cardinal Socialism is that the err of society all stems from the ability of one party to exert unequal influence over any other party. In disestablishing this social constant, Cardinal Socialists would create a Common-State, one where all parties are free to engage, negotiate, and associate at their inhibition, and the traditional woes of hierarchy —racism, class, slavery— would dissolve. The focus on how to establish such a state, on the other hand, is focused around two general camps: the Agrarian argument, in that Hierarchy and Partisan strength is based first and foremost on the ownership of property, and the Industrial argument, that instead it stems from the management of means of production.

The Freedom to Enslave

Cardinal Socialism traditionally stems from Abolitionists and Land reformists and much of its ideology revolves primarily around capitalist society's power structure. The Cardinal's are intensely critical of traditional capitalist's idea of "freedom", primarily the freedom to own property, arguing that this "freedom" is born out of an inherent hierarchy, as it requires power, often aggressive, to maintain one's property.

A reoccurring theme in Cardinal Socialism is, thus, the inherent abolition of private property. Private Property, argues Koen Verena, one of the ideologies founders, is born out of inequality.

"One can only "own" property through their ability to enforce their claim to it. In this sense, property is no different than slavery, it is inherently a "Freedom to Enslave"; it is a system where an "object" —land, cattle, or person— may be "claimed" by another without consent of the owned."

Liberal Aristocracy

Another point of contention Cardinal Socialism has with "old society" stems from its almost vitriolic hatred of liberal democracy, an issue of what it calls unjust Representation. Cardinal Socialists, particularly under the Ovan Commonwealth, argue that in a Capitalist, and likewise Partisan, Democracy, representatives campaign based on their ideologies and their agendas, rather than their ability to representing the needs of the people. This stemmed first and foremost from Republican protestors pushing to liberalize the country.

Cardinal Socialists main issue with western, liberal Democracy is the election of "leaders", rather than representatives. Under their own system, they argue, naturally-formed democratic forums would instead be based around instantly recallable Delegates, first encouraging an environment of voting for Meritocratic value, which likewise ensures people choose their Representatives based on their ability to best represent and argue in favor of the interests of their constituents, rather than the other way around.

Antitheism

Perhaps the most openly aggressive concept of the ideology, is its position on Religion and Spiritualism. Cardinal Socialism is inherently Antitheistic and views nature from a Humanist and Atheistic perspective, with most full supporters of the ideology arguing that religion, in any form, is simply another form of social control, this time by a religious, rather than political, elite. To this end almost all the time it is argued that they both should be completely abolished from society.

Political Spectrum

Cardinal Socialism is divided along a general political spectrum, those with more "Industrial" or "Agrarian" leanings. Industrialist Cardinal Socialism focuses more on the liberation of the working people, and argues that the annihilation of hierarchy and "partisan-power" can be achieved through the seizure of the means of production by the common people. Agrarian-leaning Cardinal's on the other hand focus more on the traditional ideology, that the ownership of property itself is the source of hierarchy, and as such should be the focus of revolutionary destruction.

Agrarian leanings are by far the oldest and has historically focused on common-management of land, having been championed primarily by the rural, often native or black, populations of Ovandera; Whereas Industrialism in this sense, having evolved later from the growing class of urban, white gentiles, focuses more on the workplace of modern businesses and factories.

Practices

Economic Party

An Economic Party is defined as "A voluntary collection of democratic forums wherein economic information, resources, and expertise are freely traded, and public needs are met and managed." Successful economic party's have been formed in Ovandera on three different occasions, first being the Ovan Farmers Union in 1913, later the Ovan Communist Party in 1988, and then again in 2009 under the same name. Smaller-scale labor and land unions working under similar systems would spawn throughout Ovan history though, never reaching the same height as the 1913 Farmers Union or O.S.V.K.P. (Ovan Syndicate-Administrative Communist Party).

These party's would all operate on common principles, working as a mixture of trade union and aid-organization, organizing strikes, raids, and transporting goods and aid to its members in need. At the end of the Ovan Civil War, the practices of the Communist Party to that point would be nationalized as the main means of inter-Canton negotiation.

Cardinal Democracy

The term "Cardinal" or "Economic Democracy" was first coined in relation to an Economic Party by Marzell Bär in the early 1900's in his novel The Long March Forward. In it, he attempted to outline how a Cardinal Socialist Democracy would ultimately operate under the pretenses outlined by the ideology. These practices would grow to become the standard administrative tactic of the various Economic Party's throughout history.

In Ovandera today, the process begins at the local level, based around general democratic forums made up of members of any community. These forums are meant to act as a direct assembly for the members of any community, through which they'd manage their local economy and handle local issues. Depending on region, Individual businesses within a community would be organized into industrial cooperatives, either sending representatives to the forum in order to represent their organization as a single economic asset, or having each of their members take part in the forum of their own accord.

This "party" of individuals and economic representatives is what is meant by the Ovan Communist Party or an "Economic Party". The Forums of different communities, and cooperatives within them, may likewise send delegations to a national forum, the Central Party, in order to facilitate agreements and economic actions between them. Local communities likewise form into larger Cantons, defined mainly by geographic region, with these Canton Councils, known as Labor Councils, sending representatives and envoys to the Central Party to negotiate larger-scale operations. Any major decision, different from minor decisions such as day-to-day economic actions, that are made by this central forum would then be ratified via a referendum of the affected communities.

Religion

As mentioned, Cardinal Socialism in almost all of its forms is distinctly antitheistic, with this sentiment being most aggressive amongst the Agrarian Cardinal's within both the current and previous revolutionary unions. Alydian churches and institutions were targeted before the Civil War, with religious monuments and the homes of priests being desecrated and burned during the war by civilians and militiamen alike. Similar events happened during the 1913 Vogelnester Riots, where regions under heavier influence of the Farmers Union saw violence against clergymen and churchgoers. Anti-Religious, and in this case primarily anti-Alydianist sentiment would reach its height during the "Revolutionary Trials" in Mannensdorf, Königsfelde, where almost 200 clergymen, assumed anti-revolutionaries, and "theocratic reactionaries" were tried and executed.

Monetization

Since its implementation in late 2013, one of the most diverse actions taken by the Ovan Cardinals was its action against money, or in some cases lack thereof. Not every commune in post-collective Ovandera has abolished money, using it mainly as a means of international trade. Because of this, many of the more urban and coastal regions of the country, those with more contact in the international community, have retained a formal currency in contrast to more rural regions where it was fully abolished.

Ideological Variants

Mannensdorf Communism

Mannensdorf Communism is an extreme form of Agrarian Cardinalism that seeks to establish a Common-State through the total abolition of all forms of private property in favor of their Common Ownership. Mennensdorf Communism actively originates from Mannensdorf in northern Ovandera, and advocates for a violent and rapid revolution in order to "annihilate the chains of oppression, and transition into egalitarianism through the destruction of old-culture ties." Mannensdorf Communists, as was seen during the Krün Rebellion, argue that a revolution is the only means to secure a proper social-transition, and their ideology on the subject outlines the four points of how one would operate:

1. The organization of the working-class into an economic-party
2. Direct-Action by this new common party, which includes strikes and public takeovers, to dissolve the means of enforcement
3. The Trial of the perpetrators of the old-order by public, revolutionary judiciaries
4. The destruction of old world ties and professions

The Mannensdorf Revolutionary structure in essence argues that once the common people have been organized, they should target the "means of enforcement", in essence neutering the capitalist and political class's ability's to enforce their power. With this dissolved no party would be able to enforce their control over any other, all property would begin to be held in common and be managed by the existing free councils of the workers party; this would leave only the remnants of the "old world order", namely priests and politicians, which would be tried —and if need-be— executed, and their jobs and structures, like churches, estates, and government buildings, dissolved. Each position builds on the former, first with the establishment of the insurrectionary new order and the annihilation of ties to the old in defense against reactionaries. Their new society would follow the general guidelines of Cardinal Socialism, but with particular emphasis on the lack of any form of ownership, this includes personal property or the private management of land, even by local cooperatives. All would be held, traded, and managed in common by the residing community based on the needs of that community.