Pogue
18th November 2007, 01:21
We live in the 21st century. The things which most define the 21st century are the all pervasive media, the complete dominance of technology, acute awareness of the damage we're doing to our planet, and the latest religion to hit the masses: Consumerism. In recent years, as it seems to me, people have become less interested in politics. Perhaps I am being nostalgic and romantic when I look back over the 20th century and see it as being a more interesting, enlightening and all together more exciting time to be alive. But in a century which produced Ghandi, Che, Fidel, James Connolly, and other symbols of revolt, one can't help but look back with a certain degree of awe.
Fair play, the 21st century has just begun. But in the UK, at least, although I think the situation would be mirrorer all over the world, all mobilisation and awakening of the masses seems to be firmly stashed beneath the blanket of consumerism.
The dominance and damage of capitalism is more evident now than ever.
Yet we have no May 68, no great protests. At the recent National NHS demonstration in London, there were less than 10,000 protesters. I managed to convince one out of 20 people I asked to join me there.
The Iraq war generated a large demonstration. See how quickly that has died down.
Comrades, is a sense of rebellion, the need for change, dying?
Aplogies for the format of this post so far, but I am finding it hard to put whats in my head into writing.
You see, it annoys me that I seem to be the only person I know who is interested in politics. It annoys me that family and friends dismiss Communist, Anarchist, Socialist thought as being boring, idealistic, childish, in short, aload of bollocks. Because it is the most important thing of our time. Now more than ever do we need change and awareness.
As long as people have their clothes, their cars, their general elections, their monthly subscriptions to World of Warcraft, nothing else matters. I spend alot of my time indoors. I don't want this.
"In a society where all adventure has been abolished, the only adventure left is to abolish the society".
Too true. We live in an age where you're defined by your wealth, your posessions. But wealth is not equal to happiness.
Maybe it's immature and self-denying, but I see most of the worlds problems stemming from capitalism. The reason why people call leftist thought boring, immature, etc. is because they are scared of it. Capitalism, the grand machine, is pure genius. It has got us to a stage where denying it, challenging it, needs not be punished by enforced law, as seen before in history under tyrannical dictatorships, but more to a much more dangerous stage. A stage where it is denied, ignored, belittled and mocked by the very people it seeks to liberate.
We all know of this capitalist, consumerist lifestyle. And no doubt all of you have ecountered the problems which I had put forward here (people mocking leftist ideas).
Which leads us to the question, the question of our responsiblity, as leftist thinkers (and for all us activists, do-ers).
How do we make leftist thought seem realistic, appealing, neccesary?
Well, luckily, I have some solutions.
Make it realistic. Tell people how it applies to them.
Do not use technical terms and political jargon.
I have found that alot of people can be motivated, enticed into political discussion, if they know where to jump in.
I am not saying that the proliteriat is stupid, but alot of people in our consumer society are not interested or familiar with politics, so making it appeal to them specificaly is neccesary.
Engage them at the right times. Don't go into ultra-commie mode, be normal, sensible. Tell them how leftist thought applies to their everyday lifes. Don't just let them dismiss it as rubbish.
These are all smale scale things we must do as leftists in order to get our message out and gain popularity for our ideas.
Now, leftists as a whole.
There is one thing Communists, Socialists and Anarchists (the good ones, the majority, anyway) all have in common.
WE DESIRE THE ABOLITION OF CAPITALISM
I did a report recently, and found that the UK alone has over 20 parties with Socialist or Communist in their name.
Only a few of these parties, the average person would of heard of.
The SWP.
The Respect Party.
The Labour Party.
The first two are both in one, and just today, split. The second, local government aside, are a capitalist, imperialist party.
Comrades, if we all desire the abolition of capitalism, wage slavery, we should not care if we are Marx or Mao or Lenin or Stalin or Trot. That can be decided afterwards. However change comes, be it revolution or reformist, it comes about through unity.
I find it ironic how a movement which talks about mass change and mass unity is 20 times more divided than its polar opposite, the far right, fascism, which, at least in the UK, has but one political party, the BNP.
Everyday we spend arguing in our tight knit groups about stupid, unimpotant aspects of leftist thought, how to implement this or bring about that, arguing with all our intellectual jargon, everday that passes, more people, and the planet, suffer under capitalism, and meanwhile, the BNP gets more votes.
The greatest enemy of leftist thoughts are leftists. Those who are in it for the romance, to be part of something, the underdogs.
In other words, pretentious idiots.
The revolution is on the streets, the revolution is in the party. The left is a joke. A collection of small, in-fighting parties never acheiving anything. Except in Venezuela.
We need to adapt to the 21st century. We have a new and different enemy.
There are not arguments against it comrades.
Pretentious arguing, complicated words, unnecesary arguments and the like in the left are DESTRUCTIVE, PATHETIC and SICKENING.
It's time the left got their heads out their arses, sorted themselves out, and united, for the benefit of the people whom we all claim to be desirous to liberate.
You know it's right, it's simple, and it's neccesary.
To this day I am not affiliated with any leftist group. I am merely of leftist thought.
I am a socialist, a communist, an Anarcho-Communist.
Not a fucking Marxist-Leninst-Revolution-Libertarion-Reformist-Christian-Socially Democratic Communist of the Peoples Workers International Revolutionary Front.
In order to liberate the masses we must first liberate ourselves.
Please don't give me the counter arguments of the need for debate. Marx and Engels got all the theory sorted out for us. Now, we need action.
Fair play, the 21st century has just begun. But in the UK, at least, although I think the situation would be mirrorer all over the world, all mobilisation and awakening of the masses seems to be firmly stashed beneath the blanket of consumerism.
The dominance and damage of capitalism is more evident now than ever.
Yet we have no May 68, no great protests. At the recent National NHS demonstration in London, there were less than 10,000 protesters. I managed to convince one out of 20 people I asked to join me there.
The Iraq war generated a large demonstration. See how quickly that has died down.
Comrades, is a sense of rebellion, the need for change, dying?
Aplogies for the format of this post so far, but I am finding it hard to put whats in my head into writing.
You see, it annoys me that I seem to be the only person I know who is interested in politics. It annoys me that family and friends dismiss Communist, Anarchist, Socialist thought as being boring, idealistic, childish, in short, aload of bollocks. Because it is the most important thing of our time. Now more than ever do we need change and awareness.
As long as people have their clothes, their cars, their general elections, their monthly subscriptions to World of Warcraft, nothing else matters. I spend alot of my time indoors. I don't want this.
"In a society where all adventure has been abolished, the only adventure left is to abolish the society".
Too true. We live in an age where you're defined by your wealth, your posessions. But wealth is not equal to happiness.
Maybe it's immature and self-denying, but I see most of the worlds problems stemming from capitalism. The reason why people call leftist thought boring, immature, etc. is because they are scared of it. Capitalism, the grand machine, is pure genius. It has got us to a stage where denying it, challenging it, needs not be punished by enforced law, as seen before in history under tyrannical dictatorships, but more to a much more dangerous stage. A stage where it is denied, ignored, belittled and mocked by the very people it seeks to liberate.
We all know of this capitalist, consumerist lifestyle. And no doubt all of you have ecountered the problems which I had put forward here (people mocking leftist ideas).
Which leads us to the question, the question of our responsiblity, as leftist thinkers (and for all us activists, do-ers).
How do we make leftist thought seem realistic, appealing, neccesary?
Well, luckily, I have some solutions.
Make it realistic. Tell people how it applies to them.
Do not use technical terms and political jargon.
I have found that alot of people can be motivated, enticed into political discussion, if they know where to jump in.
I am not saying that the proliteriat is stupid, but alot of people in our consumer society are not interested or familiar with politics, so making it appeal to them specificaly is neccesary.
Engage them at the right times. Don't go into ultra-commie mode, be normal, sensible. Tell them how leftist thought applies to their everyday lifes. Don't just let them dismiss it as rubbish.
These are all smale scale things we must do as leftists in order to get our message out and gain popularity for our ideas.
Now, leftists as a whole.
There is one thing Communists, Socialists and Anarchists (the good ones, the majority, anyway) all have in common.
WE DESIRE THE ABOLITION OF CAPITALISM
I did a report recently, and found that the UK alone has over 20 parties with Socialist or Communist in their name.
Only a few of these parties, the average person would of heard of.
The SWP.
The Respect Party.
The Labour Party.
The first two are both in one, and just today, split. The second, local government aside, are a capitalist, imperialist party.
Comrades, if we all desire the abolition of capitalism, wage slavery, we should not care if we are Marx or Mao or Lenin or Stalin or Trot. That can be decided afterwards. However change comes, be it revolution or reformist, it comes about through unity.
I find it ironic how a movement which talks about mass change and mass unity is 20 times more divided than its polar opposite, the far right, fascism, which, at least in the UK, has but one political party, the BNP.
Everyday we spend arguing in our tight knit groups about stupid, unimpotant aspects of leftist thought, how to implement this or bring about that, arguing with all our intellectual jargon, everday that passes, more people, and the planet, suffer under capitalism, and meanwhile, the BNP gets more votes.
The greatest enemy of leftist thoughts are leftists. Those who are in it for the romance, to be part of something, the underdogs.
In other words, pretentious idiots.
The revolution is on the streets, the revolution is in the party. The left is a joke. A collection of small, in-fighting parties never acheiving anything. Except in Venezuela.
We need to adapt to the 21st century. We have a new and different enemy.
There are not arguments against it comrades.
Pretentious arguing, complicated words, unnecesary arguments and the like in the left are DESTRUCTIVE, PATHETIC and SICKENING.
It's time the left got their heads out their arses, sorted themselves out, and united, for the benefit of the people whom we all claim to be desirous to liberate.
You know it's right, it's simple, and it's neccesary.
To this day I am not affiliated with any leftist group. I am merely of leftist thought.
I am a socialist, a communist, an Anarcho-Communist.
Not a fucking Marxist-Leninst-Revolution-Libertarion-Reformist-Christian-Socially Democratic Communist of the Peoples Workers International Revolutionary Front.
In order to liberate the masses we must first liberate ourselves.
Please don't give me the counter arguments of the need for debate. Marx and Engels got all the theory sorted out for us. Now, we need action.