My experience with anarchists since the start of this war has completely destroyed any faith I had in it being any kind of honestly held or principled ideology. It’s simply a set of excuses for liberals to pretend they’re progressives and nothing much more. Jumping from one American imperialist propaganda point to the next seamlessly, from Libya to Xinjiang, Taiwan to Ukraine. It’s just a right wing Libertarian’s idea of what a leftist is.
It doesn’t have much to do with anarchism though. Most of them just sound like “progressive” liberals with run of the mill racist and orientalist perceptions of Russia, China and the rest of the third world that Westerners have.
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I think you’re mistaken and reasoning backwards from the assumption that these are anarchists who re-adopted neoliberalism rather than liberalism who found anarchism to be the most appealing consumer-identity without really challenging most of their existing ideology or assumptions.
I think you’re mistaken in drawing a distinction between anarchists and liberals.
Like all things, there is variance. We know it is unfair to conflate all MLs with “patsoc” or red/brown types. Even if we still disagree with them, let’s have a little bit of charity for the good faith anarchists.
Good faith anarchists shot Lenin. They’re not on our side, and will side with liberals against us.
That’s not to say that they can’t be worked with on limited, real-life, praxis. They’re just not ideological allies.
edited to add: “We believe that the Anarchists are real enemies of Marxism. Accordingly, we also hold that a real struggle must be waged against real enemies.”.
https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/stalin/works/1906/12/x01.htm
Vaush to his audience
Know exactly how the poor fella feels 😞.
Classic anarchist moment.
Sorry I’m bumping an old post but I’d like to understand why the hate for the DSA.
I’m an extreme leftist in most people’s opinions and I like the values of the DSA.
Please be kind.
Hi, Machindo! I think the main split we’re seeing is the old revolution vs. reformism split in socialism. Lenin writes about it a bit in What is to be Done:
We are marching in a compact group along a precipitous and difficult path, firmly holding each other by the hand. We are surrounded on all sides by enemies, and we have to advance almost constantly under their fire. We have combined, by a freely adopted decision, for the purpose of fighting the enemy, and not of retreating into the neighbouring marsh, the inhabitants of which, from the very outset, have reproached us with having separated ourselves into an exclusive group and with having chosen the path of struggle instead of the path of conciliation. And now some among us begin to cry out: Let us go into the marsh! And when we begin to shame them, they retort: What backward people you are! Are you not ashamed to deny us the liberty to invite you to take a better road! Oh, yes, gentlemen! You are free not only to invite us, but to go yourselves wherever you will, even into the marsh. In fact, we think that the marsh is your proper place, and we are prepared to render you every assistance to get there. Only let go of our hands, don’t clutch at us and don’t besmirch the grand word freedom, for we too are “free” to go where we please, free to fight not only against the marsh, but also against those who are turning towards the marsh!
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, What Is to Be Done?.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0-IkmzWbjoatUez9-2vaAvB78afoKNRC
Basically, reformists hold that electoralism, voting, and reform can lead to socialism.
Marxist-leninists hold that an armed struggle (revolution) is required to take power from the capitalists. The reformist-style work leads to being subsumed under the current power structure, and being ineffectual.
Lemme know if there’s anything I can explain more clearly! 😁
I definitely vibe with the Marxism/Leninism but I don’t know how to put it into practice.
I hate the Democratic party and I thought joining the Democratic Socialists of America was a good thing to do. Is the DSA not extreme enough or have they been to complicit with the establishment. My initial question was prompted by the meme which indicated the DSA.
I am so torn as to how to be effective at both the federal and state/local elections.
What is the best thing I can do?
(Side question, the rest of Lemmy, that seems mostly liberal/leftist seems to act like Lemmygrad is too extreme. I think you all are great so I’m confused. Also they call you tankies which seems unfair the way they mean it.)
I hate the Democratic party and I thought joining the Democratic Socialists of America was a good thing to do. Is the DSA not extreme enough or have they been to complicit with the establishment. My initial question was prompted by the meme which indicated the DSA.
My impression of the DSA is that they’re basically a wing of the Democratic party. The DSA members in the House seem to support Dem moves, when it comes down to it, and DSA supports Dem candidates. Is there much difference in the two in their material actions?
I am so torn as to how to be effective at both the federal and state/local elections.
If we need a revolution to fundamentally change the place we’re in, how important are elections really? Is that effort better placed in direct work with the people, in study, or even in physically preparing yourself?
What is the best thing I can do?
I’m really not the best person to answer this, sadly. I think as long as you’re educating yourself and organizing, it’s hard to go wrong. I’m not going to shit on the actual praxis of any tendency - the anarchists with Food not Bombs are rad, and there are DSA chapters that I’m sure are doing good work. Electoralism is a dead end, but there are organizers that work towards specific policy goals to relieve stress on working people, and I think that’s good too.
If you’d like to dig deeper, there’s probably a PSL or CPUSA chapter in your city.
I think as long as you’re centering educating yourself, connecting and organizing with comrades, and trying to meet the needs of the people as they express them, you can’t go wrong.
I’m not in a party, so take my view with a grain of salt, please.
(Side question, the rest of Lemmy, that seems mostly liberal/leftist seems to act like Lemmygrad is too extreme. I think you all are great so I’m confused. Also they call you tankies which seems unfair the way they mean it.).
Revolutionary communism is inimical to capitalist society - the two can’t mix and agree on anything. From this view, the Dems and Republicans are basically playing on the same team (if playing different roles) and the cultural fabric of the U$ is built on lies for profit. Most people who stumble on us here have never seen the views they were raised on challenged to that extent, and it’s very unpleasant to question things you’ve believed to be unassailable.
“Tankie” doesn’t really mean anything, so I don’t mind it too much. 😁.
That was long as shit, and I don’t expect you to read it all.
Tldr: you can’t go wrong educating yourself, and working with people. The video I linked above is from a channel with a bunch of communist audiobooks, I’m happy to share some articles too if you’d like.
“We are fighting better than our fathers did. Our children will fight better than we do, and they will be victorious”
It means so much to me that you wrote all this. It’ll take a couple reads to really internalize it. Thank you.
That’s kind of you to say, thank you!
