Abolishing the Three Strikes law is not enough

There are numerous organizations who are waging a fierce struggle to overturn the oppressive law of Three Strikes. I commend these organizations and the individuals who these organizations consist of and their collective efforts.

Three strikes is an oppressive law that targets mainly the poor and minorities within U.$. borders. And to be successful in overturning this law would be, without a doubt, one of many steps in the correct direction that must be taken to abolish all forms of oppression. But if it is the ultimate and final goal of these organizations to overturn Three Strikes as a final objective, we must not deceive ourselves. It will surely be a short lived victory and, as history has shown us, rest assured that other oppressive laws and measures will be implemented to replace the Three Strikes law. Reforms as final solutions do not work. And, in fact, when used as such, they can be very damaging and set back the gains that have been achieved through struggle. Reforms should only be used as tactics and methods for the purpose of achieving and furthering a long term objective.

If we want to rid ourselves of a poisonous weed, to cut the weed in half at its base would only result in the appearance of a solution. This is what reforms amount to. They appear as solutions while leaving the conditions for the weed to grow back intact, namely the root. In order to permanently rid ourselves of the weed, we must not only pull the weed at its base but we must, more importantly, abolish the root. In the case of Three Strikes, to abolish the poisonous root entirely, we must attack it at it's roots: capitalism-imperialism.

Capitalism is a social system erected on private property and whose production is based on what is profitable, instead of correctly erecting production on public ownership and basing it according to people's needs, as the socialist model offers. When an extremely small, rich sector of the world's population owns all or most property, land, tools of production and technology, this small sector of the world's population (the bourgeoisie with support from the petit-bourgeoisie and labor aristocracy), they exploit the world's masses and profit from their cheap labor, a labor power which the masses are forced to sell as a commodity far below its value in order to reproduce themselves and continue living.

This results in a world of inequalities. Poverty versus wealth, nations oppressing nations, societies considering of social classes, the "haves" and the "have nots" and every other conflict that stems from this contradiction. These conflicts include wars, hunger, exploitation, inadequate living conditions and education, the absence of medical facilities and medicines, resulting in the deaths of thousands on a daily basis from preventable diseases, etc. The mass majority of the world's population, which suffers from the oppressions of capitalism and its imperialist drive for profits, not only have the right to defend themselves, but have an obligation to humanity to overthrow it.

Three Strikes is just one of the many methods of social control used by the bourgeoisie and its lackeys to preserve their property rights and the status quo. Being that capitalist profit production not only prevents impoverished nations from developing and is the cause of today's inequalities, it is also responsible for creating the conditions (ghettos, barrios, poverty, etc.) where a so-called "criminal consciousness" develops.

The true criminals are the capitalists and their labor aristocratic supporters who impose these living conditions upon us for their financial gain. Abolishing Three Strikes as an ultimate and final goal is not a permanent solution so long as the conditions for crime to develop exist. The solution is to abolish all forms of oppression and poverty and the selfish individualist ideology that flourishes under capitalism. This is achievable by abolishing capitalism itself and by eliminating the foundation it stands on, that being private property.

-- A California Prisoner, May 2004