I first found the World Socialist Web Site through an internet search about socialism. I had gained an increased interest in current happenings within economics and politics. I had been reading what was available from the “left” main stream media.

The 2008 collapse and bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers investment bank and the bailout of the criminals on Wall Street had radicalizing effect and brought me to the realization that the current system was corrupt, broken and irredeemable. It was pretty clear that reforms made during the New Deal era repealed by the Wall Street gang within the Clinton presidency would never return. The continued financialization of the American economy has taken away hard won liberties and reforms that workers made deep sacrifices for.

It seemed that very few organizations outside of the WSWS had a genuine working class perspective. The other sites that I investigated promoted pressuring the Democratic Party and trade unions. It didn’t appear that these had ever really represented the interests of working people. I thought that bargaining for larger crumbs from the larcenous wealthy was not the way to proceed when workers were those who produced the wealth of society.

For me the articles within the WSWS explaining the economics of the capitalist crisis were critical and they revealed the inimical role of the trade unions and the Democratic Party to workers. In this, the WSWS particularly exposed the fake left organizations supportive of the trade unions like the ISO, and their website the Socialist Worker.

There is a long history of the betrayal of strikes by trade unions in contract after contract—for example, PATCO, Verizon, Caterpillar, Chicago teachers. I have found the WSWS a valuable resource in learning about these worker struggles and the true nature of these pseudo-left organizations.

My initial interaction with WSWS was prompted by their coverage of the Egyptian revolution. At the time I had been reading Leon Trotsky’s History of the Russian Revolution.

The Egyptian workers’ struggle against tyranny was inspirational and the web site’s analysis was unique in its exposure of the pseudo-lefts’ role in undermining them, and also the Obama administration’s support for the repressive Mubarak regime.

Public meetings were held by the youth section of the organization the International Youth and Students for Socialist Equality (IYSSE) across the country. I decided to attend and learn more about the organization. I was pleased and impressed with the high level of discourse and the focus on the real issues and exclusion of diversions like identity politics.

As I have read the WSWS and learned more about Marxism it has become clear that the role of class in society is paramount and that the capitalist system is bankrupt and that international socialist revolution by the working class is the only way to move society forward.