[Marxism] What's new at Links: Ecological civilisation, Lebowitz Harnecker, Bangladesh, China, Greece, Wounded Knee, climate jobs, Haiti Cuba
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == What's new at Links: Ecological civilisation, Lebowitz Harnecker, Bangladesh, China, Greece, Wounded Knee, climate jobs, Haiti Cuba * * * *For more reliable delivery of new content, please subscribe free to Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal at http://www.feedblitz.com/f/?Sub=343373 * You can also follow Links on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LinksSocialism or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10865397643 Visit and bookmark http://links.org.au and add it to your RSS feed (http://links.org.au/rss.xml). If you would like us to consider an article, please send it to li...@dsp.org.au *Please pass on to anybody you think will be interested in Links. * * * Fred Magdoff: Creating an ecological civilisation http://links.org.au/node/2076 By *Fred Magdoff * /``It is inconceivable that capitalism itself will lead directly to an ecological civilization that provides the basic needs for all people. However, building an ecological civilization that is socially just will not automatically happen in post-capitalist societies. It will occur only through the concerted action and constant vigilance of an engaged population.''/ * Read more http://links.org.au/node/2076 Michael Lebowitz and Marta Harnecker: 21st century socialism -- the strategy of the left and the Latin American experience http://links.org.au/node/2072 December 13, 2010 -- Thessaloniki, Greece -- *Marta Harnecker* and *Michael Lebowitz* were invited by the N. Poulantzas Institute and /Transform/ magazine to present lectures on 21st century socialism: the strategy of the left and the Latin American experience. `Development', capitalism, NGOs and people's movements in Bangladesh: an interview with Anu Muhammad http://links.org.au/node/2075 December 28, 2010 -- *Anu Muhammad* is an eminent Marxist and a renowned academician from Bangladesh. He is currently serving as professor in the Department of Economics in Jahangirnagar University, Savar, Dhaka. He is also general secretary of National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources Power and Ports//and has been involved in various people's movements in Bangladesh. He, along with the committee, played an instrumental role in the success of the Phulbari Movement against Open Pit Mining in Phulbari, Bangladesh. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/2075 China: Workers' strikes -- what did they win? http://links.org.au/node/2074 // By *Boy Lüthje* December 23, 2010 /-/- 2010's auto worker strikes in South China reverberated throughout the country and overseas. As workers in supplier companies for Honda, Toyota and other auto multinationals downed tools, the international business press expressed fear over the rising power of workers in China. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/2074 Greece: PASOK, right wing in deep crisis; support for anti-capitalist left grows http://links.org.au/node/2070 By *Tassos Anastassiadis* and *Andreas Sartzekis* December 2010 -- Not so long ago the defeat of the right-wing candidates in the municipal elections in the two major cities in Greece, Athens and Thessaloniki, would have been followed by scenes of popular enthusiasm in the streets throughout the night. There was nothing like that this time, when the right was defeated in cities where it had ruled for decades! * Read more http://links.org.au/node/2070 United States: 120th anniversary of the massacre at Wounded Knee: The bloody birth of empire http://links.org.au/node/2069 ecember 29, 2010 -- Wounded Knee, December 29, 1890 is full of meaning. Not just for the Miniconjou and Hunkpapa Lakota who were victims and perished in their hundreds, but for the course of imperial America. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/2069 `Climate jobs' and the limits of growth -- latest edition of `One million climate jobs' pamphlet released http://links.org.au/node/2068 Review by *Özlem Onaran* * Read more http://links.org.au/node/2068 Cuban medics in Haiti put the world to shame (UK Independent) http://links.org.au/node/2067 By *Nina Lakhani* December 26, 2010 -- They are the real heroes of the Haitian earthquake disaster, the human catastrophe on America's doorstep which Barack Obama pledged a monumental US humanitarian mission to alleviate. Except these heroes are from [the United States'] arch-enemy Cuba, whose doctors and nurses have put US efforts to shame. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/2067 * * * Links seeks to promote the international exchange of information, experience of struggle, theoretical analysis and views of political strategy and tactics within the
[Marxism] China imports Israel's methods of propaganda and repression
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == China imports Israel's methods of propaganda and repression Jimmy Johnson, The Electronic Intifada, 28 December 2010 http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11703.shtml (EI Illustration) Israeli army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Avi Benayahu recently returned from a trip to China where he met with his Chinese counterparts and other officials. The goal was to deepen Sino-Israeli ties on political, security and military levels. This is only the latest in a burgeoning security relationship between Israel and China that includes drone technology, crowd control training, surveillance, intelligence gathering and more. This raises the question of how China's official support for Palestinian self-determination will coincide with its ongoing procurement of the tools of Palestinian pacification. Similarly, how does it threaten the rights of Uighurs, Tibetans, and others under the control of the Chinese state by bringing Israel's apparatuses of occupation and apartheid? China, in recent years, has faced growing rebellions in Tibet, East Turkestan, and most prominently in the ongoing labor unrest focused in China's south where strikes and protests are occurring at an unprecedented rate. Despite attempts at controlling what information comes and goes, the Chinese government has learned that complete suppression is impossible. Its political relationships with Uighurs, Tibetans and especially workers are different than that of Israel to Palestinians. Tibetans and Uighurs have certain protected statuses and rights both as minorities and as Chinese citizens, and the state, since 2008, has been supportive to a degree of improving workplace conditions and reducing the income gap in favor of the protesting working class. But with the most visible of Uighur and Tibetan activism and resistance focusing on self-determination, China faces a likely insurmountable battle to convince already mobilized populations that they should accept Chinese control. The strong police responses to unrest in 2008 in Tibet and 2009 in East Turkestan, combined with China's long record of authoritarian crackdowns on civil liberties, indicate any demands outside of those deemed acceptable by the state will be met harshly. Sino-Israeli relations were generally distant prior to the 1980s but that decade saw the beginning of significant Israeli arms and technology transfers to China. Early efforts included the 1982 transfer of missile technology and the upgrading of China's tank fleet despite closer political and diplomatic relations being hindered by Cold War and Non-Aligned Movement politics, especially Israel's close military and political relationship with Taiwan. Yet by 1990 Israel was a very major supplier of defense technology to China (Israeli Arms Technology Aids China Los Angeles Times, 13 June 1990). Moreover, a closer relationship was built when Israel proved itself to be a reliable arms supplier during the period after the Tiananmen Square massacre when many international suppliers imposed an arms embargo in response. At the time Israel was selling arms to many repressive regimes including ones restricted by official arms embargoes such as apartheid South Africa. The two nations only established official diplomatic relations in the wake of the 1991 Madrid Conference when the stigma of the oppression of the Palestinians was largely ameliorated by the beginning of public Israeli-Palestinian talks, presented at the time as the the precursor to Palestinian self-determination. Post-Cold War, Israel and China have developed extensive trade and military relations, despite occasional US skepticism and intervention, most notably blocking sales of advanced military systems and hardware over the past two decades. Israel's own Lavi fighter jet project was ended in the mid-1980s but some of the technology developed for it has made its way into China's Jian-10 (Chengdu) jets. The transfer of Lavi technology and Chinese funding of Israeli missile projects accompanied larger sales such as the 1994 sale of around 100 Harpy unmanned aerial vehicles to China. Another aspect of their relationship started during this time too, China's interest in Israel's experience with Palestinian and Lebanese pacification. Since 2004 a large number of Israeli homeland security and pacification systems have been deployed in China. The Israeli company On Track Innovations (OTI) began to deliver smart cards as part of China's national ID card system with some of the same biometric technology it provides to ID systems at major checkpoints in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. Magal Systems, whose detection systems are deployed on Israel's wall in the West Bank, has installed nine perimeter detection
[Marxism] More on global capital's Chinese turn
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Wall Street Warms to China Story By GREGORY ZUCKERMAN Wall Street Journal January 2 2011 Visiting China was considered an indulgence for most financial executives just a few years ago. But when Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s Warren Buffett, J.P. Morgan Chase Co.'s James Dimon, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts Co.'s Henry Kravis and Carlyle Group's David Rubenstein all visited China in recent months, the trips were seen as something else entirely: crucial steps to keep their respective companies growing. China has been important to global economic growth for years, of course. The country likely emerged as the world's second-largest economy in 2010. It is expected to show close to 10% growth in both 2010 and 2011. Until recently, however, China was something of a sideshow for many financial professionals. Global growth was key to China's health, and the country had an impact on many economies. But China didn't seem to matter much to most deal makers and wealth creators. That's all changing. China is opening its markets, slightly loosening the reins on its currency, and is emerging as a key to the future of almost every Wall Street firm. It's also a linchpin of the investment strategies of a growing number of hedge- and private-equity funds. Consider that global initial public offerings of Chinese companies amounted to $104 billion in 2010, according to data-tracker Dealogic, up from $54 billion in 2009. Last year's tally amounts to $126 billion if Hong Kong companies are included, though it includes domestic markets not fully accessible to foreigners. By comparison, less than $34 billion of U.S. IPOs took place in 2010, the second consecutive year that Chinese companies topped U.S. companies in IPO issuance. Bankers that didn't participate in Chinese IPOs risked seeing smaller bonuses. No Chinese investment bank has emerged as a global power, reducing alibis for not establishing a presence in deals available to foreigners. Meanwhile, mergers-and-acquisitions specialists are racing to China to work with companies like China National Offshore Oil Corp., known as Cnooc, and China Petroleum Chemical Corp., or Sinopec, among the biggest deal makers in 2010. Chinese companies completed 3,235 acquisitions valued at nearly $190 billion, or 9% of all global deals in 2010. That was more than any other nation except the U.S. and more than the $162 billion of deals by U.K.-based companies. China also was the second-most frequent target of purchases by foreign companies in 2010, after the U.S. In currency markets, analysts say more traders are laying big bets on whether the yuan will be allowed to appreciate further in 2011. Stock-trading volume on Chinese and Hong Kong exchanges now rivals that of U.S. markets. And some strategists, such as Tobias Levkovich of Citigroup, view the Shanghai market as a leading indicator for U.S. shares. The Chinese economy is expanding so quickly it's helping to offset stagnant growth elsewhere in the world for a growing number of companies. And Chinese demand increasingly drives global commodity prices and shares of commodity providers. That all helps explain why some of the largest investors are boosting wagers on—and against—China. The bulls say power will continue to shift to developing makets from developed countries. They cite China as exhibit A of this trend, arguing there are more opportunities in China and elsewhere in Asia than in the U.S. or Europe. Already, some of the hottest investments over the past year, including rare-earth shares like Molycorp Inc. and Rare Element Resources Ltd., get their mojo from tightening Chinese controls or rising demand in the country. Daniel Arbess, who runs a hedge fund for Perella Weinberg Partners, has been profiting by buying shares of global companies helped by Chinese growth, a strategy he calls Shake Hands With China, and betting against those having a hard time competing with Chinese rivals. Mr. Arbess is focused on companies like Solutia Inc., Apple Inc. and Yum Brands Inc. that are growing quickly in China, as well as those that produce commodities in demand in China. For example, Yum, the owner of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell brands, saw same-store sales rise in each division for the first time since the end of 2008. China enjoyed a 6% gain, while the U.S. and other international locations posted 1% growth. But many investors find it challenging to directly wager on China. Few companies have enough shares outstanding, or trade with sufficient activity, to make larger investors feel comfortable making a substantial investment. A relative lack of financial and regulatory transparency also is a hindrance. A recent incident is a reminder of the need to be wary: China Gas
[Marxism] Chris Hedges: The Left has nowhere to go
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == The Left Has Nowhere to Go http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/the_left_has_nowhere_to_go_20110102/ Posted on Jan 3, 2011 By Chris Hedges Ralph Nader in a CNN poll a few days before the 2008 presidential election had an estimated 3 percent of the electorate, or about 4 million people, behind his candidacy. But once the votes were counted, his support dwindled to a little over 700,000. Nader believes that many of his supporters entered the polling booth and could not bring themselves to challenge the Democrats and Barack Obama. I suspect Nader is right. And this retreat is another example of the lack of nerve we must overcome if we are going to battle back against the corporate state. A vote for Nader or Green Party candidate Cynthia McKinney in 2008 was an act of defiance. A vote for Obama and the Democrats was an act of submission. We cannot afford to be submissive anymore. The more outrageous the Republicans become, the weaker the left becomes, Nader said when I reached him at his home in Connecticut on Sunday. The more outrageous they become, the more the left has to accept the slightly less outrageous corporate Democrats. Nader fears a repeat of the lefts cowardice in the next election, a cowardice that has further empowered the lunatic fringe of the Republican Party, maintained the role of the Democratic Party as a lackey for corporations, and accelerated the reconfiguration of the country into a neo-feudalist state. Either we begin to practice a fierce moral autonomy and rise up in multiple acts of physical defiance that have no discernable short-term benefit, or we accept the inevitability of corporate slavery. The choice is that grim. The age of the practical is over. It is the impractical, those who stand fast around core moral imperatives, figures like Nader or groups such as Veterans for Peace, which organized the recent anti-war rally in Lafayette Park in Washington, which give us hope. If you were one of the millions who backed down in the voting booth in 2008, dont do it again. If you were one of those who thought about joining the Washington protests against the war where 131 of us were arrested and did not, dont fail us next time. The closure of the mechanisms within the power system that once made democratic reform possible means we stand together as the last thin line of defense between a civil society and its disintegration. If we do not engage in open acts of defiance, we will empower a radical right-wing opposition that will replicate the violence and paranoia of the state. To refuse to defy in every way possible the corporate state is to be complicit in our strangulation. The left has nowhere to go, Nader said. Obama knows it. The corporate Democrats know it. There will be criticism by the left of Obama this year and then next year they will all close ranks and say Do you want Mitt Romney? Do you want Sarah Palin? Do you want Newt Gingrich? Its very predictable. There will be a year of criticism and then it will all be muted. They dont understand that even if they do not have any place to go, they ought to fake it. They should fake going somewhere else or staying home to increase the receptivity to their demands. But because they do not make any demands, they are complicit with corporate power. Corporate power makes demands all the time, Nader went on. It pulls on the Democrats and the Republicans in one direction. By having this nowhere-to-go mentality and without insisting on demands as the price of your vote, or energy to get out the vote, they have reduced themselves to a cipher. They vote. The vote totals up. But it means nothing. There is no major difference between a McCain administration, a Bush and an Obama administration. Obama, in fact, is in many ways worse. McCain, like Bush, exposes the naked face of corporate power. Obama, who professes to support core liberal values while carrying out policies that mock these values, mutes and disempowers liberals, progressives and leftists. Environmental and anti-war groups, who plead with Obama to address their issues, are little more than ineffectual supplicants. Obama, like Bush and McCain, funds and backs our unending and unwinnable wars. He does nothing to halt the accumulation of the largest deficits in human history. The drones murder thousands of civilians in Afghanistan and Pakistan, as they did under Bush and would have done under McCain. The private military contractors, along with the predatory banks and investment houses, suck trillions out of the U.S. Treasury as efficiently under Obama. Civil liberties, including habeas corpus, have not been restored. The public option is dead. The continuation of the Bush tax cuts, adding some $900 billion to the deficit, along with the reduction
Re: [Marxism] A 29 year old radical reacts to reflections of a baby boomer
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Fascinating. It looks like this is the webpage for the project and there is a sidebar that has links to articles about it. http://www.workersassembly.ca/ Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Chris Hedges: The Left has nowhere to go
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Interesting observations. Of course Hedges and others who are relative latecomers to all this tend to become more paniced than they should. Moral witnessing is personally gratifying but politically meaningless, and moral suasion has no political impact on a system that has no means of processing moral questions. I think that they pay an even lower political price for arresting a few hundred people now than they have in the past. The article points out that they didn't cover the earlier demonstration and there's no reason to think that they'll cover later ones. To be honest, I suspect that if we had a mass arrest of a thousand or so people, they'd probably cover it by interviewing the various right-wing talking heads on the subject. We need to stop thinking about how the teamasters do things and start thinking about what we can do to them. What we need are the numbers. Mass demonstrations that can leave the illusion of mass civil disobedience aside until there are there's enough of a mass to make it meaningful. The idea of picketing the media, though, is probably worth a try. ML Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Body of ex-aide in Bush administrations found in Delaware landfill
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == http://blogs.star-telegram.com/crime_time/2011/01/body-of-ex-aide-in-bush-administrations-found-in-delaware-landfill.html JANUARY 03, 2011 Body of ex-aide in Bush administrations found in Delaware landfill Police in Delaware say that a former aide in both Bush administrations who had fought to get the Vietnam Veterans Memorial built, was found dead at a landfill in Wilmington, Del. The man was identified as John P. Wheeler III, 66, who was head of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund during the Reagan era. His death has been ruled a homicide, Fox News reported. His body was found after a disposal truck had made pickups in Newark, Del., and police believe it was placed in a trash bin in that city, Fox News reported. Read more: http://blogs.star-telegram.com/crime_time/2011/01/body-of-ex-aide-in-bush-administrations-found-in-delaware-landfill.html#ixzz1A0CmYzRj Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Hackers hit Tunisian websites
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/01/201113111059792596.html Africa Hackers hit Tunisian websites Amid anti-government protests, attack blocks access to stock exchange and ministry of foreign relations. Evan Hill Last Modified: 03 Jan 2011 17:06 GMT Tunisian protesters planned a rare national strike for Monday as protests entered their 18th day [AFP] Online activists have attacked and at least momentarily disabled several Tunisian government websites in the latest act of protest against the country's embattled leadership. As of Monday afternoon, local time, at least eight websites had been affected, including those for the president, prime minister, ministry of industry, ministry of foreign affairs, and the stock exchange. The attack, which began on Sunday night, coincided with a national strike, planned to take place on Monday, that organisers said would be the biggest popular event of its size since Zine El Abidine Ben Ali assumed the presidency. The strike comes on the day that school students return from their holiday. Ben Ali's administration has tightly restricted the flow of information out of Tunisia since widespread protests began on December 17, following 26-year-old Mohamed Bouazizi's suicide attempt. But reports of civil disobedience and police action filtered out on Twitter on Monday, with some users reporting the use of tear gas by security forces. The loosely organised hacker group Anonymous claimed responsibility for the cyber attack, which it called Operation Tunisia, an apparent arm of the group's broader effort - termed Operation Payback - aimed at taking retribution against governments and businesses viewed as hostile to the similarly amorphous document-leaking group WikiLeaks. Operation Tunisia came just days after a similar attack on Zimbabwean government websites;in that case, Anonymous said that it had targeted Robert Mugabe's administration for actions taken by officials to suppress information about the thousands of secret US diplomatic cables that WikiLeaks has released. But on Monday, Anonymous and its followers sought to tie their cyber attack to the ongoing protests and social unrest in Tunisia, not WikiLeaks. In a manifesto reportedly posted on the prime minister's website but later removed, the group said that it was enraged at the Tunisian government's behaviour, and that Ben Ali's administration had unilaterally declared war on free speech, democracy, and even [its] own people. Anonymous is willing to help the Tunisian people in this fight against oppression, the statement said. Cyber attacks will persist until the Tunisian government respects all Tunisian citizens' right to free speech and information and ceases the censoring of the internet. Denial-of-service attack Sami ben Gharbia, a Tunisian exile living in Europe who monitors online censorship in the country, told Al Jazeera that Monday's sabotage was the first time he had seen an international group like Anonymous target a Tunisian website. Gharbia said he had witnessed the hackers planning the denial-of-service attack in a chat room arranged by Anonymous and that it appeared Tunisian users were among those participating. The protests in Tunisia, which have led to three confirmed deaths, have garnered comparatively little attention in the Western media, which closely followed developments in 2009 in Iran when hundreds of thousands of citizens protested presidential election results. Western governments have been similarly reticent about voicing criticism of Ben Ali's government, or its response to the protests. The country is a popular European tourist destination and has been praised by the World Bank for its financial policies. But many within the country say the image of calm and success belies simmering resentments and unemployment rates that reach 25 per cent in certain areas. High-level corruption In private, the US has said that Tunisia's corruption - a contributor to the unemployment driving many to protest - is getting worse. A 2008 diplomatic cable signed by Robert Godec, the US ambassador, and released by WikiLeaks in December describes both low- and high-level corruption in the country that scares away foreign and domestic investors. Whether it's cash, services, land, property, or yes, even your yacht, President Ben Ali's family is rumoured to covet it and reportedly gets what it wants, the cable states. Gharbia said Monday's cyber attack probably will not affect protests on the ground but may serve as a good story to attract the mainstream media and embolden online activists in Tunisia. It might give a sense of solidarity to Tunisian bloggers who have been witnessing censorship for years now, to see such actions targeting the main body of the censorship,
Re: [Marxism] TWO PLAYS: Wallace Shawn's, The Fever and Howard Zinn's, Marx in Soho.
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Bonnie: be sure to clip your text when you send replies to Marxmail. Lou will rest easier on holiday. Les On 1/3/11 2:00 PM, Bonnie Weinstein wrote: Thanks, Peggy. I'll check out your website. In solidarity, [snip oodles of quoted text] Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Critical support to the Winklevosses?
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == I know and and they're sooo GQ. I mean did you see that photo of them rowing that accompanied that NYT article. Not a drop of sweat on their trendy spandex or a hair misplaced. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] When I want to Whistle, I whistle
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == The latest film out of Romania opens on Wednesday at the IFC in New York. Directed by Florin #350;erban, a 35-year-old Columbia University graduate, When I want to Whistle, I whistle shares many of the aspects of his countrys leading-edge film movement. American and European auteurs are strong influences on the movement despite the distinctly Romanian character of genre. In an interview with Manhattan Chronicles, #350;erban stated that New York is the best place to be if you want to watch movies, films from all over the world, from different periods and tendencies, etc. Asked who he counts as major influences, he included Ken Loach. Indeed, one of the strongest recommendations for When I want to Whistle, I whistle is how much it reflects the best work of the British leftist director. Now that Romanias romance with post-Stalinism is long forgotten, it is no surprise that the countrys filmmakers seek inspiration from artists well schooled in the class struggle. full: http://louisproyect.wordpress.com/2011/01/03/when-i-want-to-whistle-i-whistle/ Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Tunisian Youth in Revolt
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == (in the same vein as the post on the anti-government hackers... here is some background to the protest wave) Mohamed Bou'aziz, the young Tunisian who set fire to himself on December 17, is emerging as a symbol of the wider plight of the millions of young Arabs who are struggling to improve their living conditions. Like many across the Arab world, Bou'aziz, who is now being treated for severe burns, discovered that a university degree was insufficient to secure decent employment. He turned to selling fruit for a living, but when the security forces confiscated his vending cart he torched himself - igniting a series of protests across Tunisia. The roots of this Tunisian 'uprising' are to be found in a lethal combination of poverty, unemployment and political repression: three characteristics of most Arab societies. http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2010/12/20101231161958792947.html Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] blog post: radical labor education, part 2
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Full at http://blog.cheapmotelsandahotplate.org/2011/01/04/radical-labor-education-part-2/ While unions are indispensable organizations of the working class, they are not likely to lead a radical social transformation. They face inherent constraints. First, unions may replicate already existing divisions within the working class. Many occupations are segregated by gender. Nearly all coal miners are men. A union of coal miners is unlikely, therefore, to attack gender discrimination. It is more likely that sexism will become deeply rooted in the union itself. The same can be said about racial divisions. Black and white workers may cooperate in a strike and may work side by side, but this does not mean that the union will actively confront the racism that is pervasive in the United States. Second, unions are defensive organizations. In their day-to-day operations, they will be inclined to accept capitalism as a fact of life and try to do the best for their members within its confines. A union may begin with a radical perspective, but over time it is likely to accommodate itself to capitalism and “pragmatically” maneuver within it. In fact, acceptance of capitalism may become the ideology of a labor movement, as is true for most unions in the United States. Not only do U.S. labor leaders accept the system, but they have collaborated with employers to undermine attempts by workers here and abroad to forge radical labor organizations. Despite their limitations, unions, as we have seen in Part I, teach workers many useful things simply because they are collective organizations. In addition, they have sought to actively educate their members through formal programs. These have taken several forms: teaching English to newly-arrived immigrants, training shop stewards, and establishing full-blown college programs and technical training institutes. Radicals have played important roles in union-based education programs, but it can be difficult for them to teach with an independent spirit. Union leaders are interested in practical education, with a focus upon training union officials to better perform their jobs as stewards, negotiators, and contract administrators, and they may not see the need for a liberal education, much less a radical one. They are seldom keen on a critical analysis of the unions themselves, no matter how badly one is needed. . . . Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Obama: Droppin' g's for the Unemployed
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == This is simply the foundation of the Democratic Party. Nothing new to this with Obama and our contemporaries. It's the 19th century approach of the Jacksonian Democrats. The party was founded on white supremacism, combining not only its commitment to the maintenance of African slavery but antebellum appeals to the white (especially the Irish) workers of Northern cities. ML Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] 14 states may target birthright citizenship
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Mon Jan 3, 3:11 pm ET 14 states may target birthright citizenship By Liz Goodwin Arizona state politicians will introduce model legislation this week to encourage states to prevent children of illegal immigrants from being granted citizenship under the 14th Amendment. Lawmakers in at least 14 states have said they are committed to passing the legislation targeting birthright citizenship. Arizona's anti-illegal-immigrant bill, SB-1070, was also based on model legislation that could be easily copied by states, and at least seven states are likely to pass bills similar to the first Arizona immigration overhaul this year, according to one analysis by an immigrants rights group. Arizona state Senator Russell Pearce will unveil the bill Jan. 5 in Washington, D.C., the Arizona Capital Times reports. The paper says lawmakers in Alabama, Arizona, Delaware, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and Utah have said they want to introduce similar legislation this year. Pearce argues that the original intent of the 14th Amendment was to grant citizenship to freed U.S. slaves, and that it was never meant to apply to the children of foreigners. A Phoenix New Times writer, however, argues that lawmakers who originally passed the amendment took into account the cases of children of Chinese immigrants in California as well as children of gypsies when drafting the measure. A 19th-century Supreme Court precedent also backs that interpretation, though no Supreme Court case has yet dealt with the issue of offspring of illegal immigrant parents. The amendment states: All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. [...] http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/14-states-may-target-birthright-citizenship -- - Juan Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Granma letters: youth and revolution
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == From new Cuba blog Cuba's Socialist Renewal http://cubasocialistrenewal.blogspot.com (To sign up as a follower or to receive email updates see the home page) In early 2009, Granma, published by the central committee of the Cuban Communist Party and one of two daily newspapers in Cuba, began publishing letters from readers. Since then the Friday edition, which has 16 pages rather than the usual eight, dedicates two pages to letters and responses from institutions. The Granma letters pages are one of the new institutional spaces that have been created for ongoing discussion and debate. The letters can be grouped into two broad categories: specific complains about corruption, incompetence, poor service etc, and specific proposals, such as the need to crack down on the illegal capture and sale of wild birds or the suggestion by several readers to institute an annual day recognising the contribution of Cuba's internationalist volunteers; and more general criticisms and reflections that contribute to the national debate on the renewal of Cuba's socialist project. Granma receives far more letters that it has the space to publish, so what is published is only a selection. It seems that a genuine effort is made to make this selection representative, judging by the inclusion of letters that express concern or disagreement with policy changes that are being discussed or implemented. One example is the debate over the elimination of the ration book system of subsidised distribution of a quota of basic goods. While most letters are supportive, some are opposed. There are, of course, limits to what is considered fit for publication in Granma: criticism must be constructive, not simply whining, and you cannot express hostility towards the Revolution or its leadership and hope to have your letter published. Within these limitations a wide-ranging and in-depth discussion and debate has evolved, with readers bouncing ideas off each other and introducing new and often controversial topics. The creative, non-dogmatic application of the Marxist method is a striking feature of many contributions. As I wrote in Cuba's Socialist Renewal (p.28), In these commentaries the capacity for critical thinking of the average Cuban citizen — the fruit of the Revolution’s efforts over several generations to forge a new human being capable of contributing to the building of a socialist society — shines through and illuminates the difficult path ahead. The Granma letters below relate to the theme of youth and their participation in the renovation process. The first is a letter from a young Havana University student arguing for the creation of small private businesses to resolve long-standing problems of inefficiency, poor service and low worker motivation in many small-scale service entities. This, together with the conversion of some small-scale production and service entities into cooperatively managed enterprises, is foreshadowed in the Draft Economic and Social Policy Guidelines. Two of the translations are slightly abridged. Link to translation: http://cubasocialistrenewal.blogspot.com/2011/01/granma-letters-youth-and-revolution.html Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] China, Mao and the global neoliberal offensive | Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == Review by *Chris Slee* */The Rise of China and the Demise of the Capitalist World-Economy/* By Minqi Li Monthly Review Press, New York, 2008 January 4, 2011 -- /Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal/ -- Minqi Li's /The Rise of China and the Demise of the Capitalist World-Economy/ deals with a range of topics including the history of the Chinese Revolution, China's role in the world economy today and the future of the world economy. This review will not deal with every aspect of the book, but will focus on Minqi Li's discussion of China's history, economics and politics, and its current role in the world. Full review at http://links.org.au/node/2079 * Subscribe free to Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal at http://www.feedblitz.com/f/?Sub=343373 You can also follow Links on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LinksSocialism Or join the Links Facebook group at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10865397643 Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Brzezenski quoting Stalin
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == I noted with interest that Zbigniew Brzezenski, former National Security Adviser to Carter, is cautioning the Chinese via the NY Times op-ed page today, with a salutary quote form Stalin http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/03/opinion/03brzezinski.html?_r=1hp . The Times thoughtfully embedded the link to the original document, Dizzy With Success:Concerning Questions of the Collective-Farm Movement http://www.dur.ac.uk/a.k.harrington/dizzy.html One wonders if any surviving Neocons will strike back with a passage from Trotsky, or perhaps even Ted Grant. Someone should caution the Times that archaic historical references really belong in a different forum. Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Granma letter: The objective and subjective factors
== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. == From new Cuba blog Cuba's Socialist Renewal http://cubasocialistrenewal.blogspot.com (To sign up as a follower or to receive email updates click on link above) Here is another letter from Granma. In my last post I said that a non-dogmatic application of the Marxist method is a striking feature of many such contributions. This is a good example. Here, the author responds to a previous contribution to the debate which I'll also translate and post so that readers can get a feel for the two poles in this debate. The letter below is representative of what could be called the critical renovationist current within the Cuban Revolution, which represents one pole in the national debate on the future of Cuba's socialist project. It is almost certainly written by a Communist Party member judging by its political clarity, but by no means all party members are part of this current of opinion (see Cuba's Socialist Renewalhttp://solidarityclubs.net/files/sydney/Cuba's%20socialist%20renewal.pdf, p.10). It is interesting to note that the authors of such letters who are Communist Party members rarely identify themselves as such and that their official positions, if any, are only made explicit if this is relevant to the content of their contribution. Granma letter: The objective and subjective factors April 16,2010 Translation: Marce Cameron Spanish: http://www.granma.cubaweb.cu/secciones/cartas-direccion/cart-106.html I write this on the basis of the abundant opinions of compañeros that with the best intentions, and with the logical fear of losing our conquests and our socialism, propose subjective solutions, of proven ineffectiveness during the past 20 years, to objective problems which confront our economy and our socialism. I single out in particular the opinion of F. Hernandez Gonzalez: We are affected more by subjective than objective questions”, published on April 9, in which a direct reference is made to the balance of these factors in the economy. Firstly, I would like to explain that the objective factors are independent of people's consciousness, and the the subjective are inherent in the objective. I remember my political economy university professor stressing that in every moment the objective factors condition the subjective ones, in other words, “man thinks as he lives and does not live as he thinks”. This can be understood better with a practical example of a pharmacy or a workers dining hall that does not work as it should, or with a cadre that doesn't insist that they do what they are supposed to, or with the corrupt inspector who doesn't do his job; if we see these people superficially we see only the subjective factors inherent in each of them, their lack of morality and discipline, and we can form the impression that the solution involves only being demanding and asserting control, but then we would be ignoring the fact that all these people (and above all those that we must call to account) are affected by the same objective factors that condition their behaviour (the salary does not cover all necessities, the high prices, the house in which they live may be crumbling, the kids need shoes for school, etc). In the present conditions we are all prone to fall into these weaknesses, or to not say anything when confronted with them, and those of us who do not feel the same way often swim against the current, and we do so because the objective factors favour precisely the contrary of what we propose and would wish for ourselves. This may not be a problem if this situation had not extended for the past 20 years [of the post-Soviet Special Period]. During all this time things have got worse, the negative phenomena have become more mainstream and people's consciousness has become accustomed to harbouring ideas contrary to the principles of socialism. Egotism has spread like the marabu weed [a thorny tropical shrub that infests vast areas of Cuba's agricultural lands], and every day political work or appeals to conscience lose more force. In other words, the objective factors are imposing themselves for the worse with regard to our social process, and only by confronting them directly will we save our socialism. Only our state can influence these factors, counting on our support. The state must stimulate the productive forces, free itself from excessive responsibilities that it cannot bear [and] eliminate egalitarianism, among other things. None of these things will be able to be achieved solely with slogans and appeals to conscience. We must invigorate our economic model to save our social model. We are not talking about concessions to capitalism. The state must preserve its ownership of the fundamental means of production, the basic premise of socialism, but it must also allow an opening
[Marxism-Thaxis] Helen Thomas: Thrown to the Wolves
Helen Thomas: Thrown to the Wolves At a time of forgiveness, why is Helen Thomas still being ostracized? Danny Schechter 29 Dec 2010 http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2010/12/20101229124751864918.html Helen Thomas, who once occupied a front-row seat in the White House briefing room, has been completely ostracized due to some inelegantly-put remarks about Israel captured on film by provocateurs [EPA] In 1960, I was fixated on emulating the courageous media personalities of the times, from Edward R. Murrow to a distinctive figure I came to admire at presidential press conferences - a wire service reporter named Helen Thomas. In recent years, my faith in the power of dialogue in politics has been severely tested - as, no doubt has hers - in an age where diatribes and deliberate demonization chills debate and exchanges of opposing views. Once you are labeled and stereotyped - especially if you are denounced as an anti-Semite - you are relegated to the fringes, pronounced a hater beyond redemption, and even beyond explanation. As the legendary Helen Thomas soon found out. The rise of a legend As a member in good standing of an activist generation, I saw myself more as an outsider in contrast to Helen’s distinctive credentials as an insider, as a White House bureau chief and later as the dean of the White House Correspondents' Association. Yet, beneath her establishment credentials and status, she was always an outsider too - one of nine children born to a family of Lebanese immigrants in Winchester Kentucky, who despite their Middle East origins were Christians in the Greek Orthodox Church. She became a woman who broke the glass ceiling in the clubby, mostly male, inside-the-beltway world of big egos and self-important media prima donnas. Her origins were more modest. She grew up in an ethnic neighborhood in Detroit. Helen received her bachelor's degree from Wayne State University in 1942, the year I was born. Earlier this year, her alma mater, of which she had taken so much pride in her achievements, canceled the award in her name. A fall from grace The withdrawal of her name from the prominent award was a striking gesture of cowardice and submission to an incident blown out of proportion that instantly turned Helen from a 'she-ro' to a zero. The Simon Wiesenthal Center put her on their top ten list of anti-Semites after angry remarks she made about Israel went viral and exploded into a major story. President Barack Obama who cheerfully brought her a birthday cake, later labeled her remarks as reprehensible. You would think that given all the vicious ad hominems, Godwins and putdowns directed at him, he would be more cautious tossing slurs at others. But no, all politicians pander to deflect criticism whenever the wind of enmity blows their way. Now it was Helen who was being compared to Hitler in the latest furor. Snakes and Foxes Then suddenly last June, I, like everyone in the world of media, was stunned to witness her public fall from grace, partly self-inflicted, perhaps because of the inelegant language used in response to an ambush interview by provocateur father-son Israeli advocates posing as journalists. They were following in the footsteps of the vicious comments by Ann Coulter earlier denouncing Thomas as an old Arab sitting yards from the President as if she were threatening him. She refused to dignify that smear with a response. I didn't know until she told me that she had also been hounded for years by Abe Foxman, a leader of the Anti- Defamation League who demanded she explain 25 questions she asked presidents over the decades. I didn’t answer, she told me, because I don’t respond to junk mail. Bait and switch Helen always stuck to her guns. She was considered the marquise of journalists that presidents respected. She even went to China with Nixon. She has, however, always been polite enough to try to answer questions from strangers without always realizing who she was dealing with in a new world of media hit jobs, where gotcha YouTube videos thrive on spontaneous embarrassing moments, what we used to call bloopers. She had been baited and fell for it. Unaware of how the video could be used, she vented and then regretted doing so. It was too late. That short media snippet triggered millions of hits. Helen later apologized for how she said what she did without retracting the essence of her convictions. But by then, it was too late. Her long career was instantly terminated. The perception became everything; the context nothing. Damage control She tried to be conciliatory, saying, I deeply regret my comments I made last week regarding the Israelis and the Palestinians. They do not reflect my heart-felt belief that peace will come to the Middle East only when all parties recognize the need for mutual respect and tolerance. May that day come soon. Her remarks were derided and dismissed, with the pundits and papers demanding her head. She had no
