What's to be done?

by Joe - WSM '1st of May' (pers cap) Fri Mar 11, 2005 19:49

I think if you start off talking of 'left unity' in electoral terms then you have already decided to exclude the anarchists and other libertarians who don't see the Dail as the way forwards. Beyond this the problem with the left is not that it is disunited but that it has failed and not just failed but created monstrous dictatorships in its failures. Uniting those who still see something positive in these dictatorships with those who see them as the reason communism failed it building on sand.

Incidentally on the level of the anarchist movement I am of the opinion that the existing organisations could unite if that was what their members wanted.

Anyway of some interest might be the statement the WSM prepared for the last serious discussion there was of left unity some years back.

by hs - sp Fri Mar 11, 2005 20:11

would be a great idea, though I think you'd be better off setting it up yourself and taking contributions from party members and independents, that way you'd leave out the editorial problems and disagreements. Left party's in ireland at the moment don't have resources to set up weekly newspapers and what resources that are there are used to put forward the party position, the sp for example has 12 pages a month. The biggest problem though is distribution.

by bobcat Sat Mar 12, 2005 04:04

I think that the first thing you would need to do would be to establish some sort of guidelines to give direction and therefore unity to any leftist coalition. The principles of the Peoples' Global Action forum could be a good place to start off from.

Unfortunatly left wing coalitions do not have a very good history, all you need to do is look at the example of the Spanish civil war. I'm not saying that what happened arose from socialist beliefs per se but its failure shows how different hues of socialism can tear each other apart and not the real enemy.

Joe's comment shows that these divisions are still very real in the realm of left wing politics today. Perhaps the terms 'left wing', 'socialist' and the like are far too broad, the differences between the WSM and the SWP are big enough to put them on completely different ends of a scale. Maybe it is impossible to unite the left because it was never meant to be whole, the divisions are fundamental and very real. Here's hoping though...

by Paddy - Independent Sat Mar 12, 2005 16:04

I apologise, in framing the idea around elections I realise that I showed a lack of sensitivity towards the anarchist position. I understand and respect the anarchist view, although I am of the opinion that we must engage with the existing structures in order to overcome them.

This does not mean uncritically engaging, or foolishly believing that we can turn the structures of the present system to our own ends. Rather, I am swayed by the idea, which emerged from a grassroots movement in Brazil and reached me via a Noam Chomsky interview, that we have to work towards "expanding the floor of the cage". This is what I think we all can do, and the anarchists in their own way while still participating in a broad left coalition of forces. It entails engaging with the present structures, but always pushing them, to be more accountable, democratic and responsive, until they give and are replaced by a new order.

As to the second commentator, I certaibly take your point that setting up the proposed paper independently would be a lot easier. However, the initial idea I had was that if the broad left could work together on a paper, with all of the arguments and problems, then this would prepare them better to co-operate in larger projects down the road.

As for the third comment. I know that we ignore the lessons of history at our peril, but nonetheless I believe that failures in the past do not necessarily guarantee failures in our time. With regradr to the episode of the Spanish civil war, I belive the failings there owed an awful lot to the malign influence to the Soviet Union.

I think, perhaps rather optimistacly, that our generation, on a global as well as a national scale, are better equiped than any of our predecessors to bring about genuine revolutionary change. I think in some respects we have inherited the failings of those who went before us. For example the tendency of some to be excessively doctrinaire (anarchist, trotskyite, leninist, stalinist etc.).

I, personally, reject any grand narrative as such. Rather, I believe we can gain important insights from each of the revolutionary traditions. I always liked the idea Bruce Lee applied to martial arts, which resulted in him being the most effective martial artist of his time, that you take the best from each system and work with it. We should, in this day and age, have the confidence to do just that.

Anyhow, I ramble too much, Thanks again for the comments and please keep them coming. I am genuinely interested in getting the views of as many peoople, of different persausions, as possible-Paddy

by barra Sat Mar 12, 2005 18:49 aranu21 at hotmail dot com wicklow

I disagree with your statement the party's/groups/indiviuals put in as much energy into tearing strips out of each other as they do attacking their real enemies. In reality the left is only puting up a pitiful resistance against the powers that reign and are negligible as a policial power or influence on mainstrean opinion/action. Of course disputes are further weaking the left and its a double edged sword one side questionable the other repelling people who are politically concious and want to get involved but find this bitching severely off puting.

I am opposed to parliamentary democracy and in favour of direct democracy for the simply reason that i have faith in humanity. people working collectively and respecting each others skills accomplish more than their bureaucratic masters and their sub servants. I still support the green party/ independents(?) because even if it is a failed system of democracy (deMOCKcrazy) it is better to have some sort of representation as a from of compromising vanguard rather than another F.F. Td. I am a hypocrite for this statement as i do not vote.

Your idea of a left weekly newspaper is on the money or infomation how to......up to ta people

by Brian Tue Mar 15, 2005 02:21

I was thinking that myself a while ago.( http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=65364 )
A newspaper and a combined party conference say .To be honest i am now more wary of the motivation of even the small parties.They can see like everybody else that this atomised atmosphere is not going to get anywhere yet it dosent bother the leadership of those groups very much as far as i can see.Hence i have become a conspiracy theorist!!lol..good luck anyhow.