SOCIALIST PARTY IN TURMOIL

AND IT'S ALL MELVIN LITTLE'S FAULT!

Dear Comrades, Friends, and Fellow Travelers,

There's factionalism going on inside the Socialist Party.

  In October, I attended the 2003 SPUSA National Convention in Chicago as one of the Delegagtes from the Socialist Party of North Carolina.

  I voted against running a presidential campaign for a variety of reasons like the financial expenses, the danger of giving the appearance of being spoilers in regard to the the broader left, and the simple fact that the party is way too divided to unite behind one candidate.

  Former Iowa City Councilwoman Karen Kubby would have been possibly the only person that could unite the party.

  Everyone else (from Walt Brown and Don Doumakes that represents the sanity wing of the party to Eric Chester and Lisa Weltman who are sectarian kooks).

  In 2004, the main objective for the LEFT (which include my tiny little party) should be the electoral defeat of George W. Bush.

  This is not a question of voting for the lesser evil, but a position of voting against the greater evil.  I am disappointed with the ultra left revolutionists that wants to derail our party.

  If this keeps up, we will see the end of the Socialist Party.

  Hunter Gray is correct in his analogy of the SP, "factionalism in the SPUSA; manure smells."

Peace & Vegetable Rights,
Melvin Little

"Laugh, laugh; I nearly went to Ethiopia!   Second class of course."
(Alexi Sayle - "The Young Ones" - Epidsode - BOMB - 1982)

It looks like the news it out. From www.politics1.com:

SOCIALIST PARTY IN TURMOIL

Last fall, the Socialist Party-USA nominated retired Oregon State Senator Walt Brown as its Presidential nominee for 2004. Brown -- a former Democrat -- was the most mainstream of the democratic socialists contenders in last year's nomination fight. More strident Marxists in the party opposed Brown, but were not able to block him. Now, months later, a vocal faction in the party is trying to force Brown from the ticket because of his views on the abortion issue. The SP-USA platform is solidly pro-choice, and without exceptions. Brown, it turns out, personally supports the ban on partial birth abortions. Contentious emails are flying between the party's various leaders and factions. Some demand that Brown quit the ticket. Others support Brown, noting that he is running on the party's platform -- so he is de facto fine with them on the issue. One group of activists in the party are calling for a mail referendum by party members to decide Brown's fate. "I would quit SP USA today if members were not calling for Brown's resignation, and for a referendum to achieve that if he doesn't voluntarily resign," wrote SP-USA labor activist Tanya Smith. "I would really be stunned if a handful of people could overturn a convention decision. You say you'd resign if this doesn't happen - but consider that others will resign if it does happen, because they are committed to a democratic process. Time that should be used for getting ballot access is being lost," retorted 2000 SP-USA Presidential David McReynolds.