(This is the second part of a report about a recent study group in Los Angeles. Part one can be found by clicking here.)
"I've been reading a lot about hunter-gatherer societies," said Mark. "I'm sure we can live without money. But I don't know how we'd make the transition. everyone wouldn't be ready all at once. It seems like there would be chaos." "There is already so much chaos in many places around the world," Laurie responded. "We are in the midst of a growing environmental crisis and a profound crisis of global capitalism. Increasingly, the masses of people can't live in the old way. If you think about it, the rulers in many
places can't rule in the old way, either.
"And then regional wars will expand into world war. The system itself is creating chaos. The work we do now is to prepare the workingclass to take power and create a new social order under those chaotic conditions."
"Hard times bring out the best and the worst in us," said Mark. "Look at Hurricane Katrina."
"I'm always thinking about ways to get away from money," said Tony. "We have to find ways to practically and symbolically chip away at it, and call it out for its evil."
Joanna chimed in: "Do you know that EBT (food stamp program) is run through Bank of America? That is evil. But I'm stuck in my head about what would take the place of money. Credits, work-points – it's hard to get away from it." "More of my consumption is based on sharing," Taylor offered, returning to Tony's point.
Mark summarized the discussion with a question: "so how do we replace money with consensus values?"
This profound question reveals a contradictionamong our group members.
Many of us try to live our daily lives according to essentially communist values. On one hand, our own experiences – and those of others – help to convince us that communism could work.
On the other hand, these very valuable discussions tend to divert us from a question that sharply divides us: Can there be a "convergence of collective spirit and values" that leads to communism through a peaceful evolution? Or must it develop through revolutionary class struggle?
The Party members in this study group need to be bolder in taking this question on.

One World, One Working Class
"Without money, we'd have to cooperate and build consensus globally. But that would be hard, if not impossible, if there are too many people," Mark commented.
He wasn't referring to "over-population" but to the fact that the examples we have of societies without money generally involve villages of no more than a thousand people. We can easily imagine how the workers in a factory could develop the shared values and relationships that would enable them to make and carry out decisions collectively. But how would this work
world-wide?
"The whole system of dividing the world into peoples and nations, of globalization and technology, grew up together with the inherent logic of capitalism, cheap-oil democracy," Mark continued. This system has alienated us from each other and from the earth itself.
We all like the idea of being more closely in tune with the places where we live. Where does our water come from? How can we feed ourselves locally? At the same time, we want to be more closely connected with the masses around the world. We want bioregionalism without racism, nationalism, or a narrowly local worldview.
"We need a wider vision of what brings dignity to people," Tony suggested.
"With the spread of communist consciousness, I see humanity developing all around," declared Araceli.
That's why we need to build one International Communist Workers' Party, now and in the future.
since the meeting described here, three of us took part in a rally in the LA garment district in communist solidarity with Bangladeshi garment workers. Also, after a discussion of the Red Flag articles on Bangladesh, some of us planned an August "International Social and Fundraiser" for ICWP's international work.