A chara, I saw this while looking through 'History Ireland' yesterday, I thought it might interest you: http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3138/j.ctt2tv4ph#
Spot on. Had a good discussion on a similar topic with a fellow Socialist last night, I'm getting better at expressing myself on this topic. It's good to actually have face-to-face discussions with people about these things.
Yeah i'm a left wing nationalist in the Marxist-Leninist sense i guess. I hate the face that many far left Communists and of course Anarchists completely piss on National Liberation movements like the PIRA, INLA, ANC, PLO, etc. Those movements where inspired by both Socialism and left wing nationalism. Although Pearse was a nationalist many of his ideas for Ireland after the revolution where Socialist in nature. And National Liberation movements have been alot more successful lately then left Communists and Anarchists. Connolly was a Marxism but much like Lenin he adopted Marxism to Ireland's material conditions of the time. He knew he had to have the volunteers on their side but Connolly was interested in spreading the revolution to Britain and countries in Africa. He was both a internationalist and a left wing nationalist
That's a good way of putting it. I think much the same way, I just sometimes struggle to express it. As well as being a Socialist, I consider myself a left-wing nationalist (in the tradition of Pearse, Sands and others like them). I watched a documentary on Connolly today, one of the speakers said that although he (Connolly) was a Marxist, he felt that Marx's analysis failed to address all the problems that existed in Ireland, and thus he tried to address them himself. This is where 'Labour in Irish History' etc came from.
On the issue on Irish sovereignty in international Communism Ireland would be no different then other countries. They would retain their full autonomy as that is the only way any country can live in peace. We must respect each other's autonomy while recognizing our differences and celebrating our different cultures. I just see a Irish 32 country Socialist Republic as the prairie spark that will set the fire as Mao would have said. If the Socialist revolution goes off in a fully industrialized Capitalist economy like Ireland that would certainly change things in the west and throughout the world. As a example I think if the Spartacus uprising had succeeded in Germany which was a advanced Capitalist country at the time or even the near revolution in France during 1968 had succeeded 20th century Socialism would have looked alot different.
That's a good way of looking at it. I'm inclined to agree with you, but I was also asking your opinion of where an internationalist Socialist world leaves the issue of Irish sovereignty? Sorry, I'm not great at explaining my questions!
Well you don't hear much about it in the Canadian history books that's for sure. We are also the only place that had a rebellion of it's own connected to the United Irishmen rebellion. Here's a article on it and yeah i know it's wiki http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Irish_Uprising As for the question of a United Irish Socialist Republic i more or less go by Connolly and also Lenin's view on left wing nationalism that these Socialist countries will only be the start of it and the tide will turn pretty quickly especially if a advanced Capitalist country goes Socialist. The conditions that exist now in the world favor Communism more then ever the only thing lacking is the will. If a advanced Capitalist nation such as Ireland had a Socialist revolution i could easily see it spreading to Britain and the rest of the west as well as the rest of the world.
That's amazing, surprised I've never herd of that story before. A bunch of Irish people rebelling against their British masters - always good to hear about! I wanted to ask you something, by the way, going back to the start of this conversation. Where do you stand on the 'national question' in Ireland, and I suppose on the issue of national sovereignty on the whole? Where do you see an Irish Socialist Republic fitting in an international context (in terms of an end goal)?
Hmm well here is some quick reading on a early Anarchist or Primitive Communist society that was in the same general part of the island as i grew up in. http://anarchysecessionsubsistence.b...rless-men.html . That is pretty damn spot on from the stories I've heard from many of the older guys and from what can be looked up easily in the history books. My dad knew the stories well and so did my grandpa plus my history teacher who was kind of a Socialist told us about them as well. Here is one of the founded and best known of them http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/kerrivan_peter_4E.html . They where basically made up of Irish escaping the Royal navy or the equally brutal conditions on the plantations. I'll try to dig up some recent stuff when i get the time.
Interesting. Can you recommend any further reading on the Irish in Newfoundland? Also, I've been a bit more politically active on the left in Galway of late, I'm pretty sure I've met your friend at this stage
