I've not been able to keep up with the volume on PEN-L lately due to my own work load. I've been trying to check in now and then just to keep an eye on things, and occasionally read some of the shorter messages. I'm archiving the discussions on France and limiting the working day for later perusal. I did happen to catch this one exchange between Maggie and Karl. I just wanted to thank Karl for putting Maggie in her place. I really appreciated the certainty in Karl's tone, the definitive way he dismisses her thoughts with phrases such as, "nothing significant," and "the real point," which is, as any fool can see, evident with only a "glance." I'm glad Karl is here to point us to the real tasks and decisive issues. Thanks, old man! ... Oh, I'm sorry, was that overly sarcastic? Seriously: did anyone else think Karl's response to Maggie was incredibly condescending, or am I just overly touchy-feely sensitive? I have always thought that the revolutionary movements I've studied had more difficulty dealing with their friends sometimes than with their enemies. That's why I think this sort of thing matters. Just think about how COINTELPRO was able to play on personal relationships in the social movements of the sixties (emphasizing, exaggerating and sometimes even creating difficulties through forgeries, rumors and other sorts of lies). Personally, I think it's possible to disagree with folks without arrogance or condescension. (Not that I always succeed.) And I do apologize for the sarcasm above. I can be arrogant too. I find myself in agreement with Karl sometimes; it was not the content but the tone that bothered me in the message below. Regards to all, Blair >>MAGGIE: Finally, what I was trying to point out is that huge >>movements have been formed and succeeded in just the situations you >>are saying which make organizing difficult. Most unions were formed >>when people were working six days a week, 10-12 hours a day. >> >KARL: There is nothing significant concerning this Maggie. A glance >at the evidence will show that "huge movements have been formed" >under these conditions. However you miss the real point: the >political character of such movements. There have been movements of >the oppressed of one sort or another and there will continue to be >further such movements formed. However what is not so >certain is whether these movements will have a revolutionary socialist >character. The real task ist to assist in promoting the conditions >under which this is made more likely. It is politics not >organisation that is decisivie Maggie. ________________________ Blair Sandler [EMAIL PROTECTED]
