The Byproduct of the Bourgeoisie

The "Free" Syrian Army is as "Free" as the enslaved proletariat

Wed, 15 May 2013 00:04:16 -0700

…Always under the hand of the bourgeois class.

socialdem: thepeoplesrecord: Free Angela & all political...

Sat, 04 May 2013 12:16:06 -0700

thepeoplesrecord:

Free Angela & all political prisoners coming to theaters in many U.S. cities starting April 5.

Here’s the Facebook page (where I got the pictures).

From the IMDB:

A documentary that chronicles the life of young college professor Angela Davis, and how her social activism implicates her in a botched kidnapping attempt that ends with a shootout, four dead, and her name on the FBI’s 10 most wanted list.

Here’s a link to the compelling, exciting trailer.

Can’t wait for the DVD. I missed Angela Davis in Chicago recently…

meryems-blog: (I apologize in advance for the photos, but the...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 22:16:10 -0700

Blood NEVER Lies

meryems-blog:

(I apologize in advance for the photos, but the world have to see them!)

Today 98 years ago (during World War I) the Ottoman Empire started to kill the Christians to clean up their country. In their highest councils Turkish leaders (Talaat Pascha) decided to exterminate every Armenian, Aramean/Assyrian, Greek and other Christians in the country, whether a front-line soldier or pregnant woman, famous professor, high bishop or important businessman.

I remember, when my dad told me, that his great-grandmother was tied to a stake, and was then burnt alive in front of their family.

We were treated like animals. We were tortured. They’ve cut out the babys, from pregnants and thrown them against walls. They’ve beheaded the men and boys,…I could go on but it’s really disgusting just thinking about it.

Everytime, when I see these photos, I start to cry and think: WHY? WHY did they do this, WHY can

We cannot push away tragedy, because it is too painful, and we cannot simply overlook the past, no matter how heartbreaking it may be. We must not allow tragedies to fade, but rather, keep them in mind.

Turkey doesn’t want to admit to what they have done. THEY DENY THEIR OWN HISTORY! But you know what was our biggest achievement? We’ve survived. We won’t give up till the entire world recognize it.

-How would a black man feel if America had said that slavery wasn’t real!

You’ve learned about the Holocaust and Hitler’s name comes up in disgust, why hasn’t this been recognized?

If you could make Kony2012 happen, dear fellow bloggers, you could make the GENOCIDE recognized by the world, too.

Please reblog this post, it will mean the world to me, thank you.

fabulous-trotskyist: vaughnwhiskey: NO MISTER! “Give us the...

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 17:34:50 -0700

fabulous-trotskyist:

vaughnwhiskey:

~~NO MISTER!~~

“Give us the child for 8 years and it will be a Bolshevik forever.” — Lenin

fabulous-trotskyist: National Anthem of the Soviet Union — JAZZ...

Sun, 31 Mar 2013 22:10:18 -0700

fabulous-trotskyist:

National Anthem of the Soviet Union — JAZZ VERSION

By Young Lenin Trio, 1997

This is a really awesome version I love it.

Photo

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 22:00:30 -0700

fabulous-trotskyist: krupskayaclouds: Belarus is not for sale!...

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 11:10:43 -0700

fabulous-trotskyist:

krupskayaclouds:

Belarus is not for sale! Parody of Soviet propaganda.

While of course we should denounce any anti-democratic actions of Lukashenka and his government, we ABSOLUTELY defend the central planning that has allowed the Belarusian people to avoid the same collapses that the rest of Eastern Europe face, and should fight back against any imperialist government or company that tries to “liberalize” Belarus. Belarus is not for sale!

mathemattack: Capitalism.

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 22:36:03 -0700

mathemattack:

Capitalism.

tamburina: Alécio de Andrade ANTIFA!!!!

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 22:35:08 -0700

tamburina:

Alécio de Andrade

ANTIFA!!!!

Photo

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 00:35:20 -0700

Photo

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 23:35:00 -0800

Photo

Sun, 17 Feb 2013 20:01:09 -0800

The Lyrics of Revolution

Sat, 16 Feb 2013 22:27:15 -0800

Lenin come back,
Lenin come back,
It was the bourgeoisie!
They have tainted me
With false conscious reality!

Be the sickle to my hammer and help smash the capitalist hegemony of valentine’s day forever.

Sun, 03 Feb 2013 16:37:52 -0800

fuckyeahmarxismleninism: Via Chicago Teachers Solidarity...

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:59:40 -0800

fuckyeahmarxismleninism:

Via Chicago Teachers Solidarity Campaign

Photo

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 17:37:32 -0800

It is always great to hear when a Tumblr Communist is involved in an actual organization

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 17:19:00 -0800

The Byproduct of the Bourgeoisie: The sad story of the CPUSA

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 17:05:20 -0800

The Byproduct of the Bourgeoisie: The sad story of the CPUSA:

socialism-or-barbarism:

victorovich:

socialism-or-barbarism:

redplebeian:

socialism-or-barbarism:

redplebeian:

socialism-or-barbarism:

redplebeian:

socialism-or-barbarism:

victorovich:

Well today I went to a regional meeting of the CPUSA, and they were discussing their yearly accomplishments and their future goals in the Labor Movement.

Well…

That is one of the saddest meetings of “radicals” I have ever meet. I can not even called them “radicals” with quotes around them. I…

“Their apparent goal for the labor movement is try to create an international union of workers under a capitalist society.” This is part of a minimum program, not the end-goal of the CPUSA’s strategy… It’s one of the many things we need to do in order to lay the ideological and political groundwork needed for future ambitions. I’d suggest not confusing a minimum program with the maximum and actually learning the party’s strategy and reading the party program before skewing its agenda publicly.

I think he is totally right to be critical of the CPUSA’s minimum and maximum programs. What the labor movement needs right now is to end the strategy of corporate/collaborationist unionism, put all their resources into launching new mass unionization drives, reestablish the principles of class struggle unionism, and to do all that promote reform slates overturn all the bankrupt leadership and cut all ties to the Democrats. And the CPUSA’s slavish support for the Democrats and the labor movement’s corrupt and collaborationist officialdom is a barrier to all of that.

I’m not saying it doesn’t deserve criticism, no party is perfect or shouldn’t be critiqued.

What I am saying is that they’ve made a falsehood concerning the party’s program, with the quote I mentioned. That isn’t the maximum program or the goal of the party. We can discuss the merits of the popular front strategy (essentially what the CPUSA is doing) but its current program does not somehow make it non-communist or non-socialist.

The left itself can’t even come up with or decide on a concrete strategy or program itself. It’s incredibly divided and everyone thinks what they’re doing or promoting is the only thing that works or way to go. Everyone is engaging in their own sectarian principles and I’d say that’s more of a barrier than anything.

The CPUSA has had the same basic strategy since the 1960s, which goes far beyond the popular front (which is a terrible idea to begin with) to a full on fusion with the Democrats. It has failed them for 50 years. The American labor movement has had the same basic strategy of capital/labor collaboration, support the Democrats, discourage class struggle and rank and file initiative, since the 1950s and it has been the cause for the long decline of the labor movement. I don’t think its sectarian to point out that the strategy and approach of these two forces has objectively failed them completely and consistently for generations. Left unity is a nice idea in the abstract, but if it means continuing failed policies and strategies then it is pointless.

Actually, no. If you look at its post-WWII history, it started the popular front strategy after Reagan won his election in a landslide in 1984. After this point it started not running national candidates in elections and it was only cemented in the party program itself as of 2001.

It’s also not true that we’re engaged in a “full fusion” with the democrats. The CPUSA actively organized against Rahmn Emanual here in Chicago during the Teacher’s Union Strike. To boil down the entire program to “supporting the democrats” is entirely a falsehood. People are blinded by this one aspect of the party so when they think of it, that’s all that comes to mind. They don’t look at the other things it does.

No, it isn’t sectarian to make that case but my argument was that the left is constantly in-fighting and, regardless of what the CPUSA is doing, the left clearly isn’t focused on unity or making any advances in said areas of obstacles. They’re of course critical but they’ve yet to actually bring about any real solutions or potential solutions to the problems we face. The entire left needs to re-examine itself and prioritize things if it expects to be successful. You speak of the “failure” of the CPUSA’s strategy but no other party or strategy or organization has been “successful” either.

But even in earlier incarnations of the popular front strategy, it still failed the CPUSA. They were so dead set on maintaining uncritical support for FDR at the behest of Moscow that it led them to take incredibly awful positions, not least of which being absurd slogans like “communism is 20th century americanism.” The CPUSA supported the no-strike pledge during WW2 and aided in the de-escalation of the CIO strike wave in ‘37. They supported not just the internment of Japanese Americans, undermined the best chance there ever was to build an American Labor Party in ‘35 and also supported the passage of the Smith Act and its use against the Socialist Workers Party, the CPUSA was supportive of the start of the red-scare that would later foist them.

But thats the history. In the present the support of the Democrats is an issue of absolute importance, it is a big deal. The Democrats have always been the stumbling block for the Left in the US, its its single greatest enemy, the graveyard of all previous social movements and left third parties, and any renewed left will have to build itself independent and even opposed to the Democrats. Again, unity is a nice idea, but to focus on unity means to focus around unity around what. What is it we’re doing? What is it that we’re united around and for? If its for any ties to the Democrats, then its a fools errand. Sure no one else has succeeded yet, but no one else has been at it since 1919 and has made so many gargantuan mistakes

You seem to be, again, missing the point of my last statements. I’m not saying that we should all unite around any specific program. I’m saying you’re entirely ignoring the fact that the entire left has failed by your standards, not just the CPUSA. It being at it since 1919 and making so called “gargantuan” mistakes it entirely beside the point I’m making. The entire left has failed to unite around a common program or strategy. The point isn’t that we should unite around a particular one, the point is we need to be able to in the first place, which we aren’t right now. Again, everyone is engaging in their own sectarian principles and views the other working class and leftist strategies as flawed and the wrong way to go, not solely the CPUSA’s. If our starting point is there, we’re doomed for failure in the first place. Again, before the left can unite around any strategy or idea it needs to be able to unite.

Okay. What is the difference between a the most radical progressive and a radical? One is a radical the other is a progressive. The progressive still views the old system (lets say in this case Capitalism) can be saved or some part of it. While a radical wants a completely new system (socialism/communism/anarchism/so on). Now I know you know this but i am trying to get a point across so bare with me. And historically the entire Left has never been able to unite and create ONE strategy. Look at the Bolsheviks and the Anarchists and so many other examples of division within the leftists. BUT the difference between the entire Left of the Russian Revolution and the Left of the US is that some people who call themselves Leftists (or radicals) still want to have ties with progressives? So what does that make them? I say Radical Progressives.

Now this was originally about the CPUSA and their stance about how they wanted progressive Democrats in office, and how the CPUSA should vote for the Democrats or at least the good ones. You can assert all you want that the working class shall one day rise up and establish a truly free and equal society, but if you keep on voting Democrat, that’s what you are. And to those of you who might claim “Hey! We’re trying to bring them over to our side!“, I’ll believe that when they start voting for you, and not the other way around.

I am crudely critiquing the CPUSA’s tactics. because we all know that if you have the word Communist or Socialist in your name then of course the end game is that. but they way it is carried out will not work. If the assumption is that once we have a large mass of people in unions they will automatically be radicalized.

“but if you keep on voting Democrat, that’s what you are.”

This is so absurd it’s funny. As if voting is the end-all be-all of one’s political, social, and philosophic being. It isn’t. The party and myself as an individual do much more than just voting for Democrats, it’s completely ridiculous to boil down the entire strategy and its material basis on that. This kind of thinking implies somehow that even if in the future a viable and mass supported working class party were to rise to power that we would STILL support the Democrats. No, we believe defeating the far-right is an integral part of the current stage and process in reaching that point.

“If the assumption is that once we have a large mass of people in unions they will automatically be radicalized.”

That isn’t the idea at all. You’re straw-manning here. No one believes that would inherently involve the radicalization of the proletariat. It’s one segment involved in the minimum program under the capitalist system that will lay the ground work for future, more radical struggles. It’s one component of a long-term process and no one is arguing that it automatically leads to them becoming radicalized.

“And historically the entire Left has never been able to unite and create ONE strategy.”

When I say unite I do not mean they’re all ideologically identical, I’m simply saying they act in a unified way, as allies. On some things, we have common ground with the progressives. Of course, on the fundamental questions related to our system we aren’t in agreement with them.(The progressive still views the old system can be saved or some part of it) but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t unite with them on things we share common-ground on simply because they don’t share our radical position on the system as a whole. Much less should we alienate them as many people do! And the same goes for the radical movements, we shouldn’t just reject other radical groups because they don’t share the same idea of the system we want to replace capitalism with. This is what I mean when I talk about unity. And even for that matter, no single group or idea has been successful yet so ultimately EVERY strategy and and idea has “failed” in the sense that you guys have used the word, (at least in modern US history that is, there are other historical instances of course where leftist strategies and ideas have worked/been implemented) not just the CPUSA. I say this because of course one be critical but no one yet has put forth an actual solution and taken it a step further.

I see your argument and I very much well understand the points you are trying to make. It is very unique and understandable for the United States since the Left is fighting with only one leg and one hand tied behind it’s back. I am not disagreeing that the CPUSA could work with Progressives and even Liberals on common ground.
I am just saying from my point of view it is not radical enough. But I respect that argument and understand it especially in the desperate situation the US Leftists are in. But just to be clear I never said that I have the solution for the Leftist movement and have a stack of papers describing detail how the strategy must be carried out.

The Byproduct of the Bourgeoisie: The sad story of the CPUSA

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 15:51:00 -0800

The Byproduct of the Bourgeoisie: The sad story of the CPUSA:

socialism-or-barbarism:

redplebeian:

socialism-or-barbarism:

redplebeian:

socialism-or-barbarism:

redplebeian:

socialism-or-barbarism:

victorovich:

Well today I went to a regional meeting of the CPUSA, and they were discussing their yearly accomplishments and their future goals in the Labor Movement.

Well…

That is one of the saddest meetings of “radicals” I have ever meet. I can not even called them “radicals” with quotes around them. I…

“Their apparent goal for the labor movement is try to create an international union of workers under a capitalist society.” This is part of a minimum program, not the end-goal of the CPUSA’s strategy… It’s one of the many things we need to do in order to lay the ideological and political groundwork needed for future ambitions. I’d suggest not confusing a minimum program with the maximum and actually learning the party’s strategy and reading the party program before skewing its agenda publicly.

I think he is totally right to be critical of the CPUSA’s minimum and maximum programs. What the labor movement needs right now is to end the strategy of corporate/collaborationist unionism, put all their resources into launching new mass unionization drives, reestablish the principles of class struggle unionism, and to do all that promote reform slates overturn all the bankrupt leadership and cut all ties to the Democrats. And the CPUSA’s slavish support for the Democrats and the labor movement’s corrupt and collaborationist officialdom is a barrier to all of that.

I’m not saying it doesn’t deserve criticism, no party is perfect or shouldn’t be critiqued.

What I am saying is that they’ve made a falsehood concerning the party’s program, with the quote I mentioned. That isn’t the maximum program or the goal of the party. We can discuss the merits of the popular front strategy (essentially what the CPUSA is doing) but its current program does not somehow make it non-communist or non-socialist.

The left itself can’t even come up with or decide on a concrete strategy or program itself. It’s incredibly divided and everyone thinks what they’re doing or promoting is the only thing that works or way to go. Everyone is engaging in their own sectarian principles and I’d say that’s more of a barrier than anything.

The CPUSA has had the same basic strategy since the 1960s, which goes far beyond the popular front (which is a terrible idea to begin with) to a full on fusion with the Democrats. It has failed them for 50 years. The American labor movement has had the same basic strategy of capital/labor collaboration, support the Democrats, discourage class struggle and rank and file initiative, since the 1950s and it has been the cause for the long decline of the labor movement. I don’t think its sectarian to point out that the strategy and approach of these two forces has objectively failed them completely and consistently for generations. Left unity is a nice idea in the abstract, but if it means continuing failed policies and strategies then it is pointless.

Actually, no. If you look at its post-WWII history, it started the popular front strategy after Reagan won his election in a landslide in 1984. After this point it started not running national candidates in elections and it was only cemented in the party program itself as of 2001.

It’s also not true that we’re engaged in a “full fusion” with the democrats. The CPUSA actively organized against Rahmn Emanual here in Chicago during the Teacher’s Union Strike. To boil down the entire program to “supporting the democrats” is entirely a falsehood. People are blinded by this one aspect of the party so when they think of it, that’s all that comes to mind. They don’t look at the other things it does.

No, it isn’t sectarian to make that case but my argument was that the left is constantly in-fighting and, regardless of what the CPUSA is doing, the left clearly isn’t focused on unity or making any advances in said areas of obstacles. They’re of course critical but they’ve yet to actually bring about any real solutions or potential solutions to the problems we face. The entire left needs to re-examine itself and prioritize things if it expects to be successful. You speak of the “failure” of the CPUSA’s strategy but no other party or strategy or organization has been “successful” either.

But even in earlier incarnations of the popular front strategy, it still failed the CPUSA. They were so dead set on maintaining uncritical support for FDR at the behest of Moscow that it led them to take incredibly awful positions, not least of which being absurd slogans like “communism is 20th century americanism.” The CPUSA supported the no-strike pledge during WW2 and aided in the de-escalation of the CIO strike wave in ‘37. They supported not just the internment of Japanese Americans, undermined the best chance there ever was to build an American Labor Party in ‘35 and also supported the passage of the Smith Act and its use against the Socialist Workers Party, the CPUSA was supportive of the start of the red-scare that would later foist them.

But thats the history. In the present the support of the Democrats is an issue of absolute importance, it is a big deal. The Democrats have always been the stumbling block for the Left in the US, its its single greatest enemy, the graveyard of all previous social movements and left third parties, and any renewed left will have to build itself independent and even opposed to the Democrats. Again, unity is a nice idea, but to focus on unity means to focus around unity around what. What is it we’re doing? What is it that we’re united around and for? If its for any ties to the Democrats, then its a fools errand. Sure no one else has succeeded yet, but no one else has been at it since 1919 and has made so many gargantuan mistakes

You seem to be, again, missing the point of my last statements. I’m not saying that we should all unite around any specific program. I’m saying you’re entirely ignoring the fact that the entire left has failed by your standards, not just the CPUSA. It being at it since 1919 and making so called “gargantuan” mistakes it entirely beside the point I’m making. The entire left has failed to unite around a common program or strategy. The point isn’t that we should unite around a particular one, the point is we need to be able to in the first place, which we aren’t right now. Again, everyone is engaging in their own sectarian principles and views the other working class and leftist strategies as flawed and the wrong way to go, not solely the CPUSA’s. If our starting point is there, we’re doomed for failure in the first place. Again, before the left can unite around any strategy or idea it needs to be able to unite.

Okay. What is the difference between a the most radical progressive and a radical? One is a radical the other is a progressive. The progressive still views the old system (lets say in this case Capitalism) can be saved or some part of it. While a radical wants a completely new system (socialism/communism/anarchism/so on). Now I know you know this but i am trying to get a point across so bare with me. And historically the entire Left has never been able to unite and create ONE strategy. Look at the Bolsheviks and the Anarchists and so many other examples of division within the leftists. BUT the difference between the entire Left of the Russian Revolution and the Left of the US is that some people who call themselves Leftists (or radicals) still want to have ties with progressives? So what does that make them? I say Radical Progressives.

Now this was originally about the CPUSA and their stance about how they wanted progressive Democrats in office, and how the CPUSA should vote for the Democrats or at least the good ones. You can assert all you want that the working class shall one day rise up and establish a truly free and equal society, but if you keep on voting Democrat, that’s what you are. And to those of you who might claim “Hey! We’re trying to bring them over to our side!“, I’ll believe that when they start voting for you, and not the other way around.

I am crudely critiquing the CPUSA’s tactics. because we all know that if you have the word Communist or Socialist in your name then of course the end game is that. but they way it is carried out will not work. If the assumption is that once we have a large mass of people in unions they will automatically be radicalized.

Socialism or Barbarism!: victorovich: The Byproduct of the Bourgeoisie: The sad story of the...

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 10:26:45 -0800

Socialism or Barbarism!: victorovich: The Byproduct of the Bourgeoisie: The sad story of the...:

victorovich:

The Byproduct of the Bourgeoisie: The sad story of the CPUSA

socialism-or-barbarism:

redplebeian:

socialism-or-barbarism:

victorovich:

Well today I went to a regional meeting of the CPUSA, and they were discussing their yearly…

Still relavint wouldn’t you say? But don’t get me wrong, like any leftist I will agree with you that the left especially in this country is very unorganized and needed to be united and so on. But supporting the democrats isn’t going to help. But either was. I am a member of their youth wing so don’t tell me I don’t know their strategies and so on. But stupid politics like this is going to keep leftist groups from uniting. Some say we need guirella warfare others say we need to support progressives. But I think we can all agree on collaboration and that communism is the only key. But enough rhetoric back to the point. The present tactics of the CPUSA is a complete waste of time in my opinion. And the leadership must be radicalized sooner or later if it wants to get anywhere.