The Labour party in the UK

[Die Neue Zeit]

http://www.cpgb.org.uk/worker/782/letters.php

Shock-horror

Despite Mike Macnair’s attempt to defend the politics of “bourgeois workers’ party” and apply it to Democratic-like parties such as New Labour, David Miliband’s recent article in The Guardian already talks about the attempt to liquidate Labour as an actual party by means of “open primaries” (August 7):

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/aug/07/david-miliband-labour-primaries

If there is no room whatsoever for “halfway house” parties, why then does Die Linke exist? Yes, there is room for a “bourgeois workers’ party”. It isn’t social-corporatist Labour, though.

More important, however, there is room for a proletarian party that is not necessarily a communist party (as discussed in a past letter of mine), but nevertheless meets the key criteria which “bourgeois workers’ parties” do not meet: “formation of the proletariat into a class [for itself], overthrow of the bourgeois supremacy, conquest of political power by the proletariat”. This is the approach that Dave Craig takes, comparable to the Lassalleans, Eisenachers and even the short-lived USPD (not the split-happy, ultra-left KPD), which was praised by a Die Linke official.

There is even room for a “communitarian populist front” controlled by that party, inspired by the Paris Commune’s political measures and key economic measures (including - shock-horror - “producer cooperatives with state aid”).

Jacob Richter
email

P.S. - Since the past letter isn't available once more on the CPGB website:

http://www.revleft.com/vb/why-uk-needs-t109546/index.html?p=1451343

[Olerud]

Labour has became a mess this past year with the expense scandal, Brown's lack of charisma and the turn to the right progressively over the past twenty years. It also appears that The Conservatives will win the elections :(

[AntifaAustralia]

Dont know, BLP is pretty a disgustingly centre left party, of course peoople like you would be displeased! LOL, what are the more radical leftists there? is the Communist party of britain popular?

You fellas have the BNP fascists in office, there has to be some sort of socialist anti-nationalist anti-conservative uprising there? or is the Unite against fascism group the only non-political organisation against them brain fucked nazi lovers?

[Revy]

Dont know, BLP is pretty a disgustingly centre left party, of course peoople like you would be displeased!

Is this sarcasm or what?


LOL, what are the more radical leftists there?here's a list. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_political_parties_in_the_United_Kingdom#Mi nor_far_left_political_parties_in_the_United_Kingd om)


is the Communist party of britain popular?No.


You fellas have the BNP fascists in office, there has to be some sort of socialist anti-nationalist anti-conservative uprising there?
The BNP fascists have 2 seats in the European Parliament. They do not control the United Kingdom.



or is the Unite against fascism group the only non-political organisation against them brain fucked nazi lovers?I am sure it's not the only one.

[Eat the Rich]

The Labour Party, just like most if not all of the parties of the "Socialist" International in Europe, made an accute right turn in the 90s. Is that a coincidence? No, it was a result of the objective material conditions of that period. Conditions of a historic defeat for the Labour movement.

Just like those parties moved to the right, they can move to the left due to the objective conditions and Labour is no exception. This might create a strong centrist current, that can make the work of Marxists in the Labour Party worthwile. Of course this is just a perspective.

[h0m0revolutionary]

CPGB's support for Labour in elections is a throwback from their Stalinist heritage, they should be ashamed of themselves.

The main premise recently was that the Euro Elections reavealed a swing away from Social Democracyt right accorss Europe and terefore, a manourve by the right to do away with workers parties right accross Europe (as defined by those with Union links and working class bases)

Social Democratic parties did indeed recieve a kicking, but CPGB's analysis was alarmist and hyperbolic and they should apologise for it.

[Revy]

I am sure the CPGB would have supported a Socialist Alliance type of coalition, but they felt No2EU was too nationalist, opportunist, xenophobic, etc, that Labour actually seemed like a more palatable alternative. I found the argument to vote Labour unconvincing, though, and "bourgeois workers' party" sounded too much like a contradiction.

[Q]

The whole theoretisation thing strikes me. Mike Macnairs main critique at the Bolsheviks he made in his book Revolutionary Strategy is that while the Bolsheviks had little choice in the matters of the civil war, it was the overtheoretisation of it that became the error.

Just like voting on Labour might be a good thing in their opinion under certain circumstances, they overtheorise the whole excercise, with their redefinition of the bourgeois workers party, and thusly make an error.

[h0m0revolutionary]

they overtheorise the whole excercise, with their redefinition of the bourgeois workers party, and thusly make an error.

There's very much that tendancy within them and as a consequence they come up with ideas that mark them as acutely bizarre. Like fascism, 'fighting ghosts' - the BNP are not fascist line :/

[Pogue]

Their views on the Labour Party are simply insane...

[Olerud]

The Cpgb (Pcc) is a group of around 50 people at the most is it not ? if thtas the group being discussed.

[h0m0revolutionary]

The Cpgb (Pcc) is a group of around 50 people at the most is it not ? if thtas the group being discussed.

they have 20 people at most.

[Olerud]

they have 20 people at most.
Who cares who they support then ? Twenty votes doesn't make a difference at all.

[h0m0revolutionary]

Who cares who they support then ? Twenty votes doesn't make a difference at all.

Two reasons primarily

1) They have a paper which (in combination with hits online) gets read by about 30,000 people a week

2) It isn't sufficient to ignore the bad elements of the left, they're a roadblock to revolution, because the best thing the left can do to facilitate a successful challenge to capitalism is have a consensus on how that challenge is arrived at and offer a comprehensive programme to the class to get them on side.

If we allow left groups with shit politics to go unchallenged, their ideas permeate into the struggle and it's to our detriment. We still havn't for example, shook of the shackles of Stalinism and until we learn to challenge the rouge elements of the left who offer no concrete challenge to capitalism, we'll suffer a divided and docile left, incapable of anything other than propaganda.

[The Idler]

The Labour Party have been a party of social democracy rather than workers since their inception. Proper socialist parties have workers representatives on workers wages and shouldn't be easily seduced by charisma.

There are at least three distinct anti-fascist organisations in the UK; Searchlight (basically a state puppet), Unite Against Fascism (SWP extremely broad front which won't even exclude conservatives) and Antifa.

The Weekly Worker paper of the CPGB(PCC) has a massive circulation (I heard it peaked recently at 55,000). There are many left parties (and even electoral blocs such as No2EU, Respect Renewal and Green Left?) trying to win office by electoral means. The CPGB don't try to build a party, I think on a matter of principle as to the current conditions for a new Marxist party.

[Die Neue Zeit]

Two reasons primarily

1) They have a paper which (in combination with hits online) gets read by about 30,000 people a week

2) It isn't sufficient to ignore the bad elements of the left, they're a roadblock to revolution, because the best thing the left can do to facilitate a successful challenge to capitalism is have a consensus on how that challenge is arrived at and offer a comprehensive programme to the class to get them on side.

If we allow left groups with shit politics to go unchallenged, their ideas permeate into the struggle and it's to our detriment. We still havn't for example, shook of the shackles of Stalinism and until we learn to challenge the rouge elements of the left who offer no concrete challenge to capitalism, we'll suffer a divided and docile left, incapable of anything other than propaganda.

You would have made an excellent "neo-Kautskyist." :(

[Tzadikim]

The Labour Party, in its present state, is less than useless. I'd advise against entryism in an effort to clean it up, however; better to found competitor Parties grounded in genuine socialist doctrine, to reveal the bankruptcy of its politics to the people. The same ought to be done in the United States against the Democratic Party: set aside your grievances, and agree on the goal - revolutionary socialism - and the means to it - socialist revolution.

[h0m0revolutionary]

You would have made an excellent "neo-Kautskyist." :(

Used to be one ;)

Didn't take haha.

[Die Neue Zeit]

So, with the announced cuts, how can one defend the idea of voting Labour?

[Olerud]

So, with the announced cuts, how can one defend the idea of voting Labour?
You can't really. It's just routine for most people to vote labour.