Dear Cde Dominic
In re-entering this informative and politically enriching discussion, I would like to point out that much as it is essential to refer to Marxist classics in order to unpack the subject matter, such reference might not be conclusive unless we at the same time put on our "Marxist tools of analysis" and analyse the objective conditions we find ourselves in at this political conjuncture. The Alliance's state of affairs was adversely affected post 1994 (this is not to say things were smooth sailing before then) and the illnesses that befell the Alliance are not automatically cured post Polokwane. According to Masondo, the current political conjuncture dictates that the issue of SACP's independence is accentuated. I fully concur with his analysis. Dominic correctly refers us to Lenin's 1917 polemic and celebrated piece of writing titled "State and Revolution" in order to demystify the concept "State". I, however, feel that we also need to take cognisance of Lenin's another polemic titled "Left-wing Communism: an infantile disorder" penned in 1920. This will help our discussion a great deal. My emphasis is on the chapter that deals with the question "Should we participate in Bourgeois Parliaments?" Lenin warned the German "Lefts" of mistaking their desire, their politico-ideological attitude, for objective reality (my emphasis) and proclaims this as a "most dangerous mistake for revolutionaries to make". It is telling that the Bolsheviks took part in the elections to the Constituent Assembly, which was the Russian bourgeois parliament in September-November 1917 both before the victory of the Soviet Republic and even after such victory. In the long and short of it, Lenin accentuated the importance of using both the Parliamentary and extra parliamentary tactics. Yes, Cde Dominic, what is being proposed by David is the "mode of entry" into the Bourgeois State but a thorough perusal of Lenin's "Leftwing Communism: an infantile disorder" coupled with proper analysis of the objective conditions will show that the proposal is not tantamount to "revisionism or vulgarisation of Marxism-Leninism". The "mode of entry" concept is not arbitrarily and loosely thrown around but its formulation arises from the on-going discussion of "SACP vs State power" (initiated by YCL in 2005), a debate whose relevance is not diminished by the Post Polokwane trajectory. Phumlani Dlamini ________________________________ From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Dominic Tweedie Sent: 18 August 2009 06:24 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [YCLSA Discussion] Re: POLITICAL NOTES PRESENTED BY CDE MASONDO Dear Cde Morgan, You have not quoted or drawn out any argument from the second part of the Communist Manifesto (Proletarians and Communists). You have only asked us to read the whole thing. Let me demonstrate what I mean about quoting and drawing out an argument, using the first page of the first part of Chapter 2 of Lenin's 1917 "The State and Revolution" (see below). You will see that Lenin starts with "the first work of mature Marxism" (written immediately before the Manifesto), and then quickly moves to the Manifesto itself, in order to make the point, using the Manifesto in particular, that the State that we want is "the proletariat organized as the ruling class". The state that we have now is the bourgeoisie organised as the ruling class. What you and David are proposing is a "mode of entry" into the bourgeois state. It sounds like a Kama Sutra position, but whatever it is, it is not revolution. Read what Lenin has to say about it, please, comrade, and then don't forget what the very same Manifesto says almost at its last end: "The Communists disdain to conceal their views and aims. They openly declare that their ends can be attained only by the forcible overthrow of all existing social conditions." Here's Lenin: 1. The Eve of Revolution The first works of mature Marxism - The Poverty of Philosophy and the Communist Manifesto - appeared just on the eve of the revolution of 1848. For this reason, in addition to presenting the general principles of Marxism, they reflect to a certain degree the concrete revolutionary situation of the time. It will, therefore, be more expedient, perhaps, to examine what the authors of these works said about the state immediately before they drew conclusions from the experience of the years 1848-51. In The Poverty of Philosophy, Marx wrote: "The working class, in the course of development, will substitute for the old bourgeois society an association which will preclude classes and their antagonism, and there will be no more political power groups, since the political power is precisely the official expression of class antagonism in bourgeois society." (p.182, German edition, 1885)[1] It is instructive to compare this general exposition of the idea of the state disappearing after the abolition of classes with the exposition contained in the Communist Manifesto, written by Marx and Engels a few months later--in November 1847, to be exact: "... In depicting the most general phases of the development of the proletariat, we traced the more or less veiled civil war, raging within existing society up to the point where that war breaks out into open revolution, and where the violent overthrow of the bourgeoisie lays the foundation for the sway of the proletariat.... "... We have seen above that the first step in the revolution by the working class is to raise the proletariat to the position of the ruling class to win the battle of democracy. "The proletariat will use its political supremacy to wrest, by degree, all capital from the bourgeoisie, to centralize all instruments of production in the hands of the state, i.e., of the proletariat organized as the ruling class; and to increase the total productive forces as rapidly as possible." (pp.31 and 37, seventh German edition, 1906)[2] Here we have a formulation of one of the most remarkable and most important ideas of Marxism on the subject of the state, namely, the idea of the "dictatorship of the proletariat" (as Marx and Engels began to call it after the Paris Commune); and, also, a highly interesting definition of the state, which is also one of the "forgotten words" of Marxism: "the state, i.e., the proletariat organized as the ruling class." This definition of the state has never been explained in the prevailing propaganda and agitation literature of the official Social-Democratic parties. More than that, it has been deliberately ignored, for it is absolutely irreconcilable with reformism, and is a slap in the face for the common opportunist prejudices and philistine illusions about the "peaceful development of democracy". The proletariat needs the state - this is repeated by all the opportunists, social-chauvinists and Kautskyites, who assure us that this is what Marx taught. But they "forget" to add that, in the first place, according to Marx, the proletariat needs only a state which is withering away, i.e., a state so constituted that it begins to wither away immediately, and cannot but wither away. And, secondly, the working people need a "state, i.e., the proletariat organized as the ruling class". The state is a special organization of force: it is an organization of violence for the suppression of some class. What class must the proletariat suppress? Naturally, only the exploiting class, i.e., the bourgeoisie. The working people need the state only to suppress the resistance of the exploiters, and only the proletariat can direct this suppression, can carry it out. For the proletariat is the only class that is consistently revolutionary, the only class that can unite all the working and exploited people in the struggle against the bourgeoisie, in completely removing it. VC morgan phaahla wrote: Comrades, In relation to the discussion, let's read chapter 2 of Communist Manifesto on Proletarians and Communists, and develop a position on this issue. Here is the link, http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/ch02 .htm So far there is no dissenting view, except VC's only point of difference. Otherwise he must give in, by the force of circumstances, to be part of the whole. Kindest regards Morgan Phaahla "Sometimes, if you wear suits for too long, it changes your ideology." - Joe Slovo --- On Tue, 8/18/09, Dominic Tweedie <[email protected]> <mailto:[email protected]> wrote: From: Dominic Tweedie <[email protected]> <mailto:[email protected]> Subject: [YCLSA Discussion] Re: POLITICAL NOTES PRESENTED BY CDE MASONDO To: [email protected] Date: Tuesday, August 18, 2009, 4:42 AM Comrade Mduduzi, What is difficult is that you are trying to hold a bourgeois concept of the State and a revolutionary understanding of it in your head at one and the same time. Unfortunately, if you cannot see the difference, you will tend to fall to the bourgeois side. I'm sorry to be so blunt about this but when you write "Much as the state is according to Lenin "an organ of oppression", it can be progressive if policies taken in parliament are pro poor," you must know that you are doing something terrible. Because if people do not know better, they can think from what you have written that Lenin thought that Parliament "can be progressive if policies taken in parliament are pro poor," whereas nothing could be further from the truth. I think the best remedy for you and for others is to read Lenin's "The State and Revolution <http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1917/staterev/index.htm> ". It is very direct and quite easy to read and it is relevant. In Chapter 3, section 3, "Abolition of Parliamentarism" Lenin quotes Marx as calling bourgeois parliamentarism a "pigsty". In struggle, VC Mduduzi H Vilakazi wrote: Cadres, The debate is too difficult for some of us. It needs the highest level of analysis and some basic background of the alliance. I would be happy to start at the beginning of the debate. Cde David raised some sharp discussions on the independence of the party within the reconfigured alliance. Put differently, he questioned the big brother approach where the ANC remains the only vehicle to state power. This approach questions the hegemony of one party over the others within the alliance. Set aside these structures, you have all of these structures operating their own constitutions that guide their everyday organizational activities. They hold their different conferences which translates into different resolutions. It therefore becomes imperative that activities of the structures of the various organisations in the alliance will be measured by their separate resolutions. The fact that one alliance partner is interested in discussions and decisions of the other alliance partners does not mean these structures becomes one. they still remain separate. For this reason, I concur with comrade Masondo that the resolutions of the Party shall independently find expression in activities of the state. This can only happen when the reconfiguration will clearly mean that the Party will in its own right recall its members who functions contrary to the resolutions, traditions and ideology of the Party. This will save the Party from having members who deliberately side with the bourgeoisie (other than tactical) on policies of the state and hide with democratic centralism. Much as the state is according to Lenin "an organ of oppression", it can be progressive if policies taken in parliament are pro poor. This will not come as a silver platter, it needs some strategic "mode of entry" different from the one where the ANC holds the power of members of the Party with regards to caucus, recalling and deployment. I agree with the views of Phaahla and Masondo on moving forward. Marxism cannot remain dogma. The current situation needs current analysis that will provide current solutions to current problems. 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