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Veovis
23rd July 2011, 02:06
Good tidings! How are things in the world of the radical left? :D

I came to this board because after only one short year of experiencing the capitalist labor model first hand, I want to see it completely undone and remade into a more humane image. I used to consider myself a moderate leftist (not like it matters, in this country people think you're the spawn of Stalin if you advocate universal healthcare) but more and more I want to see some sort of upheaval; a completely new system if you will.

I ruined my life by going to school. Here I was thinking I was making myself a better person and investing in my future, but now I have $80,000 in student loan debt and have practically disqualified myself from ever owning a home or having children (I'm gay, so I'd have to adopt and that costs $$$!). I was unaware that bankruptcy could not discharge student loans and now I'm stuck with them no matter what. If I default, my mother would have to pay because she cosigned. I think any system which punishes people for seeking self-improvement is absolutely evil and needs to be destroyed.

As far as the specifics of left wing politics, things are nebulous with me. I read the Communist Manifesto many years ago (which I ironically bought at Wal-Mart because it was the only bookseller in my hometown), and I also read a part of the autobiography of Dolores Ibárruri. Other than that, it's mostly been scattered articles on the Internet. I identify strongly with the labor movement and believe that organizing workers is one of the most powerful tools of the left. If it weren't for financial limitations, I would have gone to Madison in February to raise hell along with everyone else in Wisconsin! Unfortunately, I could only join them in spirit. I was also semi-active in republican circles when I was in Spain, and wrote my undergraduate thesis on the topic of Spanish republicanism. I was very proud of that work! :)

So that should do it for now. I'll be around reading things, but if my activity on other forums is any indication, I'll probably only post once and a while when I have something valuable to say. In the meantime, keep up the good fight, everyone!

Impulse97
23rd July 2011, 03:00
Welcome! Check out MIA if you ever need to know anything about Marxism.

(http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/11/prin-com.htm)Marxists Internet Archive (http://www.marxists.org/)

The Principles of Communism by Engels 1847 (http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/11/prin-com.htm)

The Militia and Militarism by Rosa Luxembourg 1899 (http://www.marxists.org/archive/luxemburg/1899/02/26.htm)

The Mass Strike, The Political Parties and The Trade Unions by Rosa Luxembourg 1906 (http://www.marxists.org/archive/luxemburg/1906/mass-strike/index.htm)

On Authority by Engels 1872 (http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1872/10/authority.htm)

Toward a New Beginning - On Another Road - The Alternative to the Micro Sect by Hal Draper 1971 (http://www.marxistsfr.org/archive/draper/1971/alt/alt.htm)

The State and Revolution by V.I. Lenin (http://www.marx2mao.com/Lenin/SR17.html#c1)

ellipsis
23rd July 2011, 06:34
welcome, hope you find answers to any questions you may have!

Landsharks eat metal
24th July 2011, 00:29
Welcome! You seem like you could have a lot to add. Definitely post whenever you feel like you have something to say. I started off as a lurker, but I post a lot more than before.

Veovis
24th July 2011, 01:35
Thank you! Looking at your location I'm guessing you're the only radical within 50 miles! I grew up just north of you in Lebanon county, and the place was saturated with Amish and Confederate nationalists who forgot what side of the Mason-Dixon line they were on. ;)

Landsharks eat metal
24th July 2011, 02:12
Thanks you! Looking at your location I'm guessing you're the only radical within 50 miles! I grew up just north of you in Lebanon county, and the place was saturated with Amish and Confederate nationalists who forgot what side of the Mason-Dixon line they were on. ;)
You're right; that's been my experience exactly. So many racists where I am :(

Impulse97
24th July 2011, 04:54
Tell me about it. It's like some fucked up fad by me to be 'redneck' and 'country'. And by this I mean, fly confederate flags and be racists assholes.

Die Rote Fahne
24th July 2011, 06:50
Read some Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht *Cough cough*

Veovis
27th July 2011, 02:51
Tell me about it. It's like some fucked up fad by me to be 'redneck' and 'country'. And by this I mean, fly confederate flags and be racists assholes.

Let's not forget Santorum! My proudest moment was helping to vote that mother-licker out of office. Unfortunately the people who voted him in still live there.

Landsharks eat metal
27th July 2011, 22:12
I always hated Santorum, even though I wasn't old enough to vote. I would always see his signs in people's yards and at the fair and have such a strong urge to vandalize them with Sharpies, so much, that I started just calling him Sharpie for short. I never had a marker with me, though.

Comrade J
28th July 2011, 00:34
Welcome Veovis! What a great, articulate intro post - hope you stick around.

There are indeed a lot of workers on this forum, but you'll also find that a great deal are High School and College students who are still finding their feet in politics. Some find the whole thing to be a game in a sense, a means to rebel against what is considered 'normality' and perhaps court controversy in some ways - you will see what I mean just by browsing Chit-Chat and seeing some of the moronic threads in there. However I'm not saying this is the case for all of them, or even most of them; there are a lot of teenagers who are in fact genuinely committed to their own branch of far-left ideology, and will no doubt stick around for years to come.

Personally I am an Autonomist Marxist, and would therefore include students, the unemployed etc. as the same class as workers. Also I don't believe that parties and unions are the right way for a workers' revolution to occur - they have often failed in the past, plus a lot of the writings on Autonomism come from more recent publications, especially Italian Marxists in the 60s and 70s. I would really recommend that you read some works by Antoni Negri, particularly 'Empire' which is available free online (Amazon or wherever will give you a sense of what it is about).

When you say you want to see capitalism 'remodelled' into a more humane image, what do you mean by that? The drive to accumulate wealth and exploit others to do so is absolutely intrinsic to capitalism, it must be completely destroyed as opposed to being remodelled.

Whilst I am not an Anarchist myself, there is obviously a great deal of crossover and so I always recommend The Anarchist FAQ (http://infoshop.org/page/AnAnarchistFAQ) to new members, especially sections C and D. Hopefully that will push you in the right direction away from being a moderate leftist ;)

Pilkington
28th July 2011, 13:03
Hello veovis, and welcome.

Veovis
29th July 2011, 07:30
When you say you want to see capitalism 'remodelled' into a more humane image, what do you mean by that? The drive to accumulate wealth and exploit others to do so is absolutely intrinsic to capitalism, it must be completely destroyed as opposed to being remodelled.

Sorry, I should have been more clear. I meant "remodelled" in the same sense that downtown Hiroshima was "remodelled" by the USAF. A rather insensitive image, but you get my point!