New Communist Manifesto

[Alexenator]

I've been a member of the RevLeft forum for a while now and haven't posted anything yet - for a reason - so I decided to embark upon something some of you will probably frown upon and has most likely been done before. I decided to write my own communist manifesto and upload it to the internet. It's taken me about two months so I'd like your feedback.

Download Link: mediafire.com/download.php?mmx0nzmz5zn

[Revy]

Just a word of advice, a lot of people don't like to download files because of virus concerns, you might want to use Google Docs in the future.

I've copied and pasted it:





NEW MANIFESTO OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY

July - September 2009



PROLOGUE
The time has come for a new Communist Manifesto; reflecting upon present day’s social structure, not the monarchs’ tyranny throughout the lands, but the tyranny of the multi-national corporations, the rich and the media. This publication will illustrate the aim of present day Communist parties and their ideals, goals and ambitions and primarily to make you aware of the secrets of modern society and the Capitalist system.

I. PROLETARIANS AND THE BOURGEOISIE
The Proletarian of today’s society greatly outnumbers the Bourgeoisie of society. The Proletarians slave away in horrible conditions with uncertain futures that lie ahead of them only to support the oppressive, exploitive Bourgeoisie. The Bourgeoisie of modern society is heard of, but almost never seen, as if they were too good for the Proletarians, or simply afraid of their impending fates after years of exploitation of the Proletarians.

II. CORPORATIONS AND WAR-PROFITEERING
It is likely that you slave away for a large corporation. Corporations fund Capitalism – a successor to the nearly-eradicated Imperialist System – and Capitalism funds war and war, in turn, creates death, destruction and misery for other workers of the world. Your work for the corporations and buying their products reaps death and chaos and funds their overseas methods of worker abuse – causing you to lose your job at your own hands.

III. ON THE “COMMUNIST” NATIONS OF THE COLD WAR
The reason the “Communist” regimes of the Cold War ended in ultimate failure and revolt was that democracy was not put in operation; rather the states were ruled by ruthless dictators who betrayed the common people and generally oppressed them with the use of secret police organisations, spy agencies, forced labour and harsh restrictions on society. These “Communist” states actually followed the ideas of State Capitalism and Socialism. The Soviet Union itself was destined to fail from the beginning; Karl Marx specified that Communism would only work in a country which was mainly industrial; The Russian Empire was mainly agricultural. And many, if not all, of the Eastern Bloc’s “Communist” regimes were put in power by the aggressive Soviet Union and they followed Stalin’s example on how to oppress people. The Communist Parties of this new age must instil full democracy – democracy that does not threaten the peace of Communist society and try to dismantle it or recreate the Capitalist system or an oppressive Fascist government.

IV. THE RIGHTS OF THE WORKERS UNDER A COMMUNIST SOCIETY
Under a new Communist system, everyone will be equal and the class struggle will be ended as the corporations are wiped out and ownership of the means of production is entrusted by first the government and – after the Socialist Period – the common people. There will be neither bosses nor any filthy rich to exploit and take advantage of the Proletarians and society will be at the peaceful state it should have always been.

V. THE MEDIA AS A TOOL OF BRAINWASHING, SELF-HATRED AND DISCRIMINATION
Advertising has been around ever since the time of the Pharaohs when messages promoting products and services were etched onto papyrus papers. It is only in the last few centuries that advertising became a problem. Corporate, governmental and religious propaganda started to appear almost as soon as the printing press itself was invented. After the Holy Bible was mass produced around the year 1455, many more people could be subjected to Christianity’s self-hatred and brainwashing. Telling people that they are all weak in the eyes of God makes people hate themselves and fear a non-existent being. The Pope is God’s representative on Earth and, as a result, was feared by the common folk. Such a coincidence is that the Church started raising taxes around that time, as the law in Medieval Europe stated. Kings, Queens and Emperors were supposedly chosen by God to lead their respective nations but these leaders were installed by Catholic wars of aggression and the Pope, who conveniently gained much wealth from the peasants of the time. Non-existent beings and oppression on a continental scale is an old barbaric thing, yet we still have Kings, Queens and Emperors today and they must be removed by force, never to regain their power again. In this modern time many advertisements have been found to contain subliminal messages, often containing ‘trigger words’ such as ‘sex and ‘kill’. The mass media of today works in conjunction with governments and corporations to help voice their heartless opinions and brainwashing you to believe you need to drink a certain drink, dress a certain way and think the way they think.

VI. THE REVOLUTION
A Communist Revolution against the Bourgeoisie should ideally be spontaneous in all nations; world revolution. This would later eliminate trade and Bourgeoisie oppression in other nations. There are three stages of a Communist Revolution:


Rebellion – the violent overthrow of the Capitalist governments and the Bourgeoisie. The beginning of the end of the Class Struggle. Usually followed by a war in which the future of the nation or the world hangs in the balance.
The Socialist Period – the intermittent period when the newly installed government starts taking control of the corporations and the Means of Production (i.e. the soil and the shovel, the mines and factories) from the Bourgeoisie and Capitalists and giving it to the workers.
The Communist Period – the final peaceful stage when control of the corporations and the Means of Production has been given to the workers and profits are shared equally to the workers based on need. The Communist Regimes of the Cold War were never actually Communist – the governments had followed Stalin’s ideas of oppression and were consumed by greed for wealth and power and so kept the means of production for themselves, not giving it to the workers or establishing peace and equality for that matter.

EPILOGUE
Based on the ideas shown above I hope you follow the ideas of the Communist Parties around the world – to establish peace and equality in a world brought to the brink of destruction by Capitalism and Imperialism’s wars of aggression and inequality, wars of greed for wealth and power.

[red cat]

Better call it the TROT MANIFESTO !:laugh:

[Alexenator]

screw you -.-
then wtf are you, eh red_cat?
also, red_cat, you are a tool

[OneNamedNameLess]

The Proletarian of today’s society greatly outnumbers the Bourgeoisie of society. The Proletarians slave away in horrible conditions with uncertain futures that lie ahead of them only to support the oppressive, exploitive Bourgeoisie. The Bourgeoisie of modern society is heard of, but almost never seen, as if they were too good for the Proletarians, or simply afraid of their impending fates after years of exploitation of the Proletarians.


The wording and everything will just make people laugh. It made me chuckle. As if they were too good for the proletarians? Come on. Surely you can do better than that?

[Fictional]

screw you -.-
then wtf are you, eh red_cat?
also, red_cat, you are a tool
Isn't that a derogatory term used to insult homosexual people?

[New Tet]

How does this list of silly statements improve on the original Manifesto?

[Revy]

Isn't that a derogatory term used to insult homosexual people?

no.... (http://onlineslangdictionary.com/definition+of/tool)

[anti-authoritarian]

Serious question - what precisely is so 'new' about this 'manifesto'?

[red cat]

Serious question - what precisely is so 'new' about this 'manifesto'?

Its explicitly counter-revolutionary contents.;)

[anti-authoritarian]

Its explicitly counter-revolutionary contents.;)
Trot bashing aside... :tongue_smilie:

Where's the original thought? If you wanted to paraphrase the original manifesto in modern terms I would have expected a bit more quantity and quality after two months of work. Sorry :bored:

[willdw79]

There is a lot that needs to be worked on.

1. You start off with "reflecting upon present day’s social structure". I think that starting point is an insufficient basis for a "New Manifesto". The Old Manifesto has some explanations for how we got to this point.

2. You say "The Bourgeoisie of modern society is heard of, but almost never seen, as if they were too good for the Proletarians, or simply afraid of their impending fates after years of exploitation of the Proletarians", but its not true. The bourgeoisie are all around. They are the owners, and they are here no doubt.

3. You say "Corporations fund Capitalism", but this is not clear. Perhaps corporations fund the the capitalists OR corporations exploit people under a system of capitalism, regardless, this has been sufficiently and clearly explained in the old manifesto.

There are several more issues like that I will just skip over.

4. In the section you call "VI. THE REVOLUTION" you outline three stages. I don't think there is a need for stages and I believe that history has taught us in Cuba, Algeria, Vietnam, Chile, USSR, China, North Korea, Venezuela, and soon Nepal. that communism may not be achieved through socialist policy making. It has tried many times, in the next fight, we should fight directly for (moneyless) communism. I believe that if you maintain most of the original framework of the old manifesto, this is your best bet for a new and improved manifesto.

[Q]

Its explicitly counter-revolutionary contents.;)
Stop trolling. Consider this a verbal warning.

As for the OP: I'm not too sure what the general goal is what you want to achieve here. The original manifesto was written with a "merger formula" in mind (or at least it was considered as such in those days until Lenin at least), meaning a merger between the socialists and the proletarians was the immediate goal of the movement.

You certainly broke with that logic in your manifesto, so I was wondering what the logic then was? Just a "wishlist"? Also, words like "ideally" signify an unscientific approach, another deviation from the original manifesto. You also seems to follow in what would pre-1914 have been known as the "left strategy" of the spontaneous revolution via a general strike, besides in the title nowhere is the need for a revolutionary party even mentioned, let alone explained (for this reason alone it is not a "trot manifesto" in the least).

These are just some first impressions, but while the effort to "rethink" is commendable, I can't say I'm very impressed. You seem very new to the scene, simply summing up some ideas in your own incomplete way.

Edit:
As a sidenote, your avatar is already used by Holden Caulfield, a well established user on the board. For a moment I totally mixed you up ;)

[willdw79]

Stop trolling. Consider this a verbal warning.

As for the OP: I'm not too sure what the general goal is what you want to achieve here. The original manifesto was written with a "merger formula" in mind (or at least it was considered as such in those days until Lenin at least), meaning a merger between the socialists and the proletarians was the immediate goal of the movement.

You certainly broke with that logic in your manifesto, so I was wondering what the logic then was? Just a "wishlist"? Also, words like "ideally" signify an unscientific approach, another deviation from the original manifesto. You also seems to follow in what would pre-1914 have been known as the "left strategy" of the spontaneous revolution via a general strike, besides in the title nowhere is the need for a revolutionary party even mentioned, let alone explained (for this reason alone it is not a "trot manifesto" in the least).

These are just some first impressions, but while the effort to "rethink" is commendable, I can't say I'm very impressed. You seem very new to the scene, simply summing up some ideas in your own incomplete way.


I think your criticism is unduly harsh and in a sense counter-revolutionary.

People are trying to figure things out using different processes. Maybe dude likes to write and receive feedback in order to crystallize his ideas.

Anyway, even if he doesn't care about your sarcasm and condescending tone, comments like yours may make other people think that revolutionary understanding is too difficult a process to go through for both mental and social reasons i.e. being berated.

[Q]

I think your criticism is unduly harsh and in a sense counter-revolutionary.

People are trying to figure things out using different processes. Maybe dude likes to write and receive feedback in order to crystallize his ideas.

Anyway, even if he doesn't care about your sarcasm and condescending tone, comments like yours may make other people think that revolutionary understanding is too difficult a process to go through for both mental and social reasons i.e. being berated.
I'm being "harsh" (I didn't use any sarcasm or condescending tone in my previous post, rather a frank first impression, I guess that is a matter of perspective) because I want people to defend their ideas or rethink them. There's nothing "counter-revolutionary" about that. A discussion doesn't have to be a pillow fight.

[Sam_b]

I think your criticism is unduly harsh and in a sense counter-revolutionary.

What utter nonsense.

There's absolutely no point in diluting, paraphrasing and compressing such a work as the manifesto as it cheapens its understanding.

[willdw79]

To Q: I am not trying to get on your case or anything its just the way we say things effects not only the person we say it to, but the person who hears it and all the people they tell.

Let me give you specific examples "Just a "wishlist"?", "I can't say I'm very impressed", and "simply summing up some ideas in your own incomplete way". To me these types of phrases are nonconstructive, why use them. They express a point of view, which is the feedback he asked for, but I just think that we know other ways of saying things to comrades.

We talk about being comrades, we want to make a new life, and we want to change society. If this is the case, it appears that you are going to be fairly dominant after the change.

A communist has to be a good teacher. I see that you disagree with my point of view, but I commend you for the content of your comment, it's just the framing, it's unnecessary.

I mean this criticism in the most constructive and respectful way. From reading some of your posts, you have well-developed ideas. Alexenator is trying, and you should give him credit for that.

He said "I've been a member of the RevLeft forum for a while now and haven't posted anything yet - for a reason - so I decided to embark upon something some of you will probably frown upon and has most likely been done before. I decided to write my own communist manifesto and upload it to the internet."

Cmon Q, you are a real revolutionary right, that's fuckin great what he did. If he came into your meeting place, in person with this paper in his hand, wouldn't you speak kindly to him maybe try to teach a little bit more constructively? Of course ideologically and organanizationally, it can be improved, but the point is, he is trying to connect with other revolutionaries.

That's why I said it is counter-revolutionary. These types of interactions along with much worse interactions with right-wing elements highlight our moral highground. We do care about people. We are communists who fight for the entire proletariat, our class. You must internalize this if you want to be a successful revolutionary. Otherwise, you are up here, and everyone else is down there!

As far as the "pillow fight" thing you are saying to me... what is that? It should not be any kind of fight. We are not class enemies, maybe it has something to do with the internet, but I just can't believe that a person who is trying to write a manifesto and asks for feedback from "Rev Left" should be in a fight (with pillows or anything else).

Anyway, it was not only your comment that I disliked, it was New Tet too, he said, "How does this list of silly statements improve on the original Manifesto". Cmon man, what part of being a revolutionary is that?

Then others: "Better call it the TROT MANIFESTO !", AND "I would have expected a bit more quantity and quality after two months of work. Sorry".

I hope you can catch my drift, I am trying to honestly point out a weakness that we (on the left) often share that could/should be one of our attractive characteristics.

Before I could even respond Sam b says of my post, "What utter nonsense." You can put all of the emotive language you want i.e. "utter nonsense", but you cannot show that what I am saying is nonsense, because it is not. The web has seems to have the effect of making people lose track of their humanity.

[Muzk]

Deleted for the sake of it



BTW thanks for de repping me, I had just passed the 10 rep line again. Now I'm down to 4 -_-

[New Tet]

^



Btw, you're probably a commie kiddy like most of us here, it's funny to try and rewrite a document done by a bunch of wise people

I may be mentally sophomoric but at 52 I've learned, at the very least, not to presume to re-invent the wheel.

There is no need to write or re-write the Manifesto when all of its lofty objectives are yet to be accomplished.

The next "Manifesto" to shake the Earth will be a declaration of principles at the founding of a free and democratic republic of emancipated labor.

What we need a is new Declaration of Independence (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declaration_of_Independence)not another Manifesto.

[Muzk]

I may be mentally sophomoric but at 52 I've learned, at the very least, not to presume to re-invent the wheel.

There is no need to write or re-write the Manifesto when all of its lofty objectives are yet to be accomplished.

The next "Manifesto" to shake the Earth will be a declaration of principles at the founding of a free and democratic republic of emancipated labor.

What we need a is new Declaration of Independence (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declaration_of_Independence)not another Manifesto.


Didn't mean you but the starter of this thread :(

Anways, my reply wasn't that good after all


I decided to write my own communist manifesto and upload it to the internet.

[New Tet]

Didn't mean you but the starter of this thread :(

Anways, my reply wasn't that good after all

And how does that change the fact that I'm mentally sophomoric?

[Muzk]

I give up, you can have my children



http://www.nhocnepal.org/big-family.jpg

[red cat]

Stop trolling. Consider this a verbal warning.



You know what is the problem with you guys?
You just hate it when we call a spade a spade.
I mean.. just look at your stupid point of view. You glorify a person who betrayed a revolution and lived off the bribes provided by capitalists during his last years.
And the so called "revolutionaries" belonging to your tendency have never actually contributed towards a revolution.

And you openly and illogically slander the great socialist reconstruction, purposefully confuse the counter revolution with the continuation of Stalin's policies, oppose the trial of corrupt party leaders. In other words, you try to ensure that no revolution ever takes place in the future. But unfortunately for you, the masses are wise enough to differentiate revolutionary ideas from your bullshit propaganda like in this Trot Mainfesto, whereby you try to revise the basic teachings of Marxism; by learning, discussing and PRACTICING Marxism with those who presently martyr themselves to build up liberated zones and construct peoples' soviets in the Philippines, Turkey, India , Peru etc.

And as for your "warning", I dont give a shit about it. Ban me or do whatever you would like to... I will always find out other ways to communicate with genuine leftists here.

[Bankotsu]

V. THE MEDIA AS A TOOL OF BRAINWASHING, SELF-HATRED AND DISCRIMINATION
In this modern time many advertisements have been found to contain subliminal messages, often containing ‘trigger words’ such as ‘sex and ‘kill’. The mass media of today works in conjunction with governments and corporations to help voice their heartless opinions and brainwashing you to believe you need to drink a certain drink, dress a certain way and think the way they think.I agree with you on this point on corporations using mass media to brainwash us into a materialist and blind consumerist society.

See:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-Dimensional_Man
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-consumerism

What programs do you have in mind to resolve this problem and put society back on the proper path?

Some interesting campaigns in Venezuela:


Venezuela to Transfer Private Media Concessions to Community Media
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/4678

Community Media: The Thriving Voice of the Venezuelan People
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/4678


Moving Beyond Representation: Participatory Democracy and Communal Councils in Venezuela
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/4766

A New Model With Rough Edges: Venezuela’s Community Councils
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/4512

[Alexenator]

I actually have no clue what this should be called. Maybe an interpretation of the original Manifesto, I don't really know. But that's the catchiest name and first one that popped into my head. And as for calling red_cat a tool, I just meant something to insult him.

[New Tet]

You know what is the problem with you guys?
You just hate it when we call a spade a spade.

I thought that's what "you guys" were trying to do?


I mean.. just look at your stupid point of view. You glorify a person who betrayed a revolution and lived off the bribes provided by capitalists during his last years.

Presumably Trotsky, right? What would you call the multitude of retouched official Soviet-era photos that removed the image of Trotsky? An accident?


And the so called "revolutionaries" belonging to your tendency have never actually contributed towards a revolution.

And, one supposes, you are someone who has "actually contributed" towards a revolution?


And you openly and illogically slander the great socialist reconstruction, purposefully confuse the counter revolution with the continuation of Stalin's policies, oppose the trial of corrupt party leaders. In other words, you try to ensure that no revolution ever takes place in the future.

Anyone who actually believes he can "ensure that no revolution ever takes place in the future" is tilting at windmills (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tilting_at_windmills).



But unfortunately for you, the masses are wise enough to differentiate revolutionary ideas from your bullshit propaganda like in this Trot Mainfesto, whereby you try to revise the basic teachings of Marxism; by learning, discussing and PRACTICING Marxism with those who presently martyr themselves to build up liberated zones and construct peoples' soviets in the Philippines, Turkey, India , Peru etc.

And here I thought I sounded religious!


And as for your "warning", I dont give a shit about it. Ban me or do whatever you would like to... I will always find out other ways to communicate with genuine leftists here.

And "you guys" will always find ways to ban you. It's all a matter of dialectics.

[red cat]

Presumably Trotsky, right? What would you call the multitude of retouched official Soviet-era photos that removed the image of Trotsky? An accident?

No, aesthetics.



And, one supposes, you are someone who has "actually contributed" towards a revolution?


Really nothing worth mentioning... I add but a few drops of water, no not even that; only some H2O molecules, to the mighty ocean.



No comments on the rest of New Tet's post.

[Q]

Please don't feed trolls and keep on topic. Any further offtopic posts will be trashed.