B. For the assignment of science under the service of general prosperity
Science, by its level of development today, suffocates in the limits of the capitalistic socio-economic system. Its own development impels us to the need of the abolition of capitalistic productive relations. Because, everyday, science reassures that knowledge, so in natural sciences as in technology that applies them, is enough, so as the biggest problems of social life can be solved. How today can there be secured a good living standard for all the people of the world that will always develop through new progress of science? How can workers work less hours so as to enjoy and develop science’s admirable achievements?
So the main presupposition, for science to gain the role that it deserves in society, is that, in the position of the development of economic and political authority of the few that serves today, there must be the elevation of material and mental level of people, and criterion for their development, instead of the development of profit, must be the general prosperity. In a few words, it is the replacement of today’s social reality by new reality, the socialistic. Only, in this way, science may reveal its huge abilities for development of human life and the utilisation of every borderland of development and application. Not accidental is the fact that even the sworn enemies of socialism are forced to recognise the raised educational level of workers of former socialistic countries and high level of their universities.
So, the benefit of all those, who today lack or watch the most ‘’useful things’’ of knowledge remain unasked, the benefit, that is, of workers, university tutors, students, people’s, is to join with the fight for a social reality which will need science, more than every other achievement of human civilisation. They must go against the monopolistic plans for the marginalising and debasement of our Higher Education, for its complete obeisance to foreign benefits, and join up in a powerful socio-political alliance for radical changes. Changes in the level of authority and economy are needed, so as to be directed by people and for the people. Because in an economy, in which criterion of economic development will not be the maximization of profit, but the maximization of social progress, there are no redundant scientists or unnecessary sciences.
There are hundreds of things, about which their contribution is precious and necessary.
If we try to enhance our people’s health we have to man all the county Health Centers with basic specialties, and ensure doctors even in the last village, develop preventative medicine. So, we need more doctors, school doctors and work doctors, in general a sequence of specialties that today’s capitalistic development marginalises, whereas civil propaganda ruminates the arguments about their supposed inflation.
If we want to protect our country from seismic destruction, we need more engineers to take on the protection of all the buildings in areas of large population (factories and big enterprises, schools, youth recreation rooms)
If we want an organised change of towns- monsters to human ones - we need more specialists in the area of country and town planning.
If we want our education to truly educate and not misshape the youth, tutors that were in the list are not enough.
If we want to utilise our country’ s mineral wealth we have to establish more schools for mineralogists and not discuss the change of the object of their graduates.
Generally, if we seek the utilisation of all the productive forces of our country, we need a crowd of educated technicians to take on the development and application of technology in production.
As for the untended social sciences, they must, at last, become genuinely social and obtain the most important role through their cooperation with the other sciences, to secure a progressive social control of the entire social activity.
In a few words, only inside the economy organised and planned, on the basis of people’s benefit, today’s fake, mutant image of social needs which capitalism creates, depending on its benefits, can obtain its right dimension. When the nightmare of unemployment stops shadowing people’s dreams then the criterion for choosing studies will be the real interest, and personal inclinations which are the basic presupposition of creativity. The interest for science and not obtainment of better conditions to find any job will be the motive to follow higher studies. So, the system of insertion in Universities will not any more seem as the major problem of our education and the concerns of society will become the content and aim of education.
The finance of university research will embrace all sectors. Security of financing will stop from being a concern of backstage plots and ‘’business spirit’’ and tutors, from salesmen with a specialty in marketing and public relations as the system wants them to be, will be able to devote themselves to their science and its transmission to the students.
Scientists’ working hours, that today, with the bigger and bigger increase of productivity, instead of being reduced, are redoubled, by removal of the utilisation of spiritual labor in unbelievable matters, will be in its right basis, securing for everybody the right of relaxation and creative utilisation of their free time. Finally, problems which come from social and economic demands and, on the other hand, from interior development of science can be reconciled and combined only in an organised - for people’s benefit- economy. And we have no reason to be afraid of the possibility of not managing to go on by ourselves out of the system of the imperialistic dependence. Our country has productive forces and mainly the basic one, an experienced and – with a raised educational level- labour, a numerous and capable scientific labour.
It, also, demands participation of people in science through the qualitative and quantitative expansion of a unified basic education, for everybody, in twelve years. In addition, demands a high-level professional education in Public Professional Schools, for all those specialties that do not presuppose university education or cannot be acquired directly through production. Only in this way, science can be free and open to people, not only being inspired by their needs, but utilising their skills. Because, with the development of skills of human labour and not with the class choice of a few ‘’skillful’’ people, achievements of science can be multiplied and society can progress. Science’s history proved that the greater and more creative periods of its advancement were those, when class barriers perished and, when in scientific attempts, not only educated, but also people of practical work took part. The period that came before French Revolution and, in a more complete notion, the period which began with the October Revolution, were the most brilliant of history of science.
Under these conditions, science not only can be freely developed but can, also, develop the mental and cultural level of our people in a higher level, and help in the reinstatement of the human as a social human. Because science has the characteristic of settling down as a club consciousness of society and excusing it from superstitions and anti-social behaviours, helping it to shape a scientific apprehension of reality. On the contrary, nowadays, at the same time when science and technology are deified, non-rationalism, mysticism and religious fervor, several forms of obscurantism and charlatanism, are in the peak of their glory.
To conclude, socioeconomic needs set the growth rate and quality, and the university ones, as well. Ultimately, only those social forces which are interested in social progress and truth – the only ambition and aim of science -, that is the working class and its allies, can truly release its most ‘’useful’’, transforming, and unfailing abilities. So, the fight for reformation of our Higher Education can be directly linked with the fight for social transformation
- Main presupposition of liberation of science
So the main presupposition, for science to gain the role that it deserves in society, is that, in the position of the development of economic and political authority of the few that serves today, there must be the elevation of material and mental level of people, and criterion for their development, instead of the development of profit, must be the general prosperity. In a few words, it is the replacement of today’s social reality by new reality, the socialistic. Only, in this way, science may reveal its huge abilities for development of human life and the utilisation of every borderland of development and application. Not accidental is the fact that even the sworn enemies of socialism are forced to recognise the raised educational level of workers of former socialistic countries and high level of their universities.
So, the benefit of all those, who today lack or watch the most ‘’useful things’’ of knowledge remain unasked, the benefit, that is, of workers, university tutors, students, people’s, is to join with the fight for a social reality which will need science, more than every other achievement of human civilisation. They must go against the monopolistic plans for the marginalising and debasement of our Higher Education, for its complete obeisance to foreign benefits, and join up in a powerful socio-political alliance for radical changes. Changes in the level of authority and economy are needed, so as to be directed by people and for the people. Because in an economy, in which criterion of economic development will not be the maximization of profit, but the maximization of social progress, there are no redundant scientists or unnecessary sciences.
There are hundreds of things, about which their contribution is precious and necessary.
If we try to enhance our people’s health we have to man all the county Health Centers with basic specialties, and ensure doctors even in the last village, develop preventative medicine. So, we need more doctors, school doctors and work doctors, in general a sequence of specialties that today’s capitalistic development marginalises, whereas civil propaganda ruminates the arguments about their supposed inflation.
If we want to protect our country from seismic destruction, we need more engineers to take on the protection of all the buildings in areas of large population (factories and big enterprises, schools, youth recreation rooms)
If we want an organised change of towns- monsters to human ones - we need more specialists in the area of country and town planning.
If we want our education to truly educate and not misshape the youth, tutors that were in the list are not enough.
If we want to utilise our country’ s mineral wealth we have to establish more schools for mineralogists and not discuss the change of the object of their graduates.
Generally, if we seek the utilisation of all the productive forces of our country, we need a crowd of educated technicians to take on the development and application of technology in production.
As for the untended social sciences, they must, at last, become genuinely social and obtain the most important role through their cooperation with the other sciences, to secure a progressive social control of the entire social activity.
In a few words, only inside the economy organised and planned, on the basis of people’s benefit, today’s fake, mutant image of social needs which capitalism creates, depending on its benefits, can obtain its right dimension. When the nightmare of unemployment stops shadowing people’s dreams then the criterion for choosing studies will be the real interest, and personal inclinations which are the basic presupposition of creativity. The interest for science and not obtainment of better conditions to find any job will be the motive to follow higher studies. So, the system of insertion in Universities will not any more seem as the major problem of our education and the concerns of society will become the content and aim of education.
The finance of university research will embrace all sectors. Security of financing will stop from being a concern of backstage plots and ‘’business spirit’’ and tutors, from salesmen with a specialty in marketing and public relations as the system wants them to be, will be able to devote themselves to their science and its transmission to the students.
Scientists’ working hours, that today, with the bigger and bigger increase of productivity, instead of being reduced, are redoubled, by removal of the utilisation of spiritual labor in unbelievable matters, will be in its right basis, securing for everybody the right of relaxation and creative utilisation of their free time. Finally, problems which come from social and economic demands and, on the other hand, from interior development of science can be reconciled and combined only in an organised - for people’s benefit- economy. And we have no reason to be afraid of the possibility of not managing to go on by ourselves out of the system of the imperialistic dependence. Our country has productive forces and mainly the basic one, an experienced and – with a raised educational level- labour, a numerous and capable scientific labour.
- For a creative utilization of science
It, also, demands participation of people in science through the qualitative and quantitative expansion of a unified basic education, for everybody, in twelve years. In addition, demands a high-level professional education in Public Professional Schools, for all those specialties that do not presuppose university education or cannot be acquired directly through production. Only in this way, science can be free and open to people, not only being inspired by their needs, but utilising their skills. Because, with the development of skills of human labour and not with the class choice of a few ‘’skillful’’ people, achievements of science can be multiplied and society can progress. Science’s history proved that the greater and more creative periods of its advancement were those, when class barriers perished and, when in scientific attempts, not only educated, but also people of practical work took part. The period that came before French Revolution and, in a more complete notion, the period which began with the October Revolution, were the most brilliant of history of science.
Under these conditions, science not only can be freely developed but can, also, develop the mental and cultural level of our people in a higher level, and help in the reinstatement of the human as a social human. Because science has the characteristic of settling down as a club consciousness of society and excusing it from superstitions and anti-social behaviours, helping it to shape a scientific apprehension of reality. On the contrary, nowadays, at the same time when science and technology are deified, non-rationalism, mysticism and religious fervor, several forms of obscurantism and charlatanism, are in the peak of their glory.
To conclude, socioeconomic needs set the growth rate and quality, and the university ones, as well. Ultimately, only those social forces which are interested in social progress and truth – the only ambition and aim of science -, that is the working class and its allies, can truly release its most ‘’useful’’, transforming, and unfailing abilities. So, the fight for reformation of our Higher Education can be directly linked with the fight for social transformation
e-mail:cpg@int.kke.gr