One year without redstar2000 - an eulogy

[Sentinel]

This is an eulogy, today one year has passed since one of the defining members of this website -- Edward Clark alias redstar2000, 1942-2011 -- passed away in the aftermath of a stroke he suffered a few years before. It will be a bit sentimental, because I'm simply a sentimental guy, and perhaps hard to understand for newer members. But that's just something you will have to deal with I'm afraid.

I grew up in a socialist home, but was apolitical in my teens as well as my early 20s. That was the 1990s and early 2000's, and socialism had just been dealt the worst blow ever -- the USSR for all its failures had been an alternative to capitalism, and now it had just collapsed. Now the neoliberal capitalists were triumphantly declaring their victory and the end of history.

The rest of the (reformist) labour movement was demoralised and for the most part made a sharp rightward turn. It seemed as socialism was no more, at least in the west. In the third world some countries and movements held on, but that was all.

When I became interested in politics again, pretty much the first thing I did was to google Che Guevara. And as our head admin and founder Edelweiss had so cleverly figured out it would work, that lead to me finding RevLeft through his Che-Lives site.

It was what you call a wow-experience for me. There were still vibrant leftist orgs out there, trying to figure out how to reinvent themselves and ride out the crisis. That was what we mostly discussed back then, after all the left was still very weak.

Ed Clark was one of the people most determined to find a solution. He had been a real hardcore commie activist in his youth, and never lost faith in the ultimate victory of the international proletariat. Back then most of us agreed that a proletarian world revolution wasn't going to come about before a distant future, there were estimates like 50 or 100 years at least in the discussions here.

Comrade Clark was convinced that the left had to learn from it's mistakes and formed his theory of 'Marxism without the crap'. This created a lot of animosity from more orthodox leftists, but Ed was not the person who was left speachless. Ever.

Instead his witty comments and clever remarks got him a fan club, even a tendency of it's own if you will, amongst hundreds of youth from all around the world that were posting on this site. I was one of his most ardent 'fans'.

He also polemiced a lot against things such as neo-puritanism, but most of all religion which he held a relentless hatred against due to it's reactionary, misogynist nature but also due to his opinion that only a working class with a scientific mindset can be actually able to self-govern on equal terms.


The legendary avatar of redstar2000, which drove terror in the hearts of many of his adversaries throughout the years

Today, I've developed politically. Via anarchism I arrived at orthodox marxism, or trotskyism if you will, and am now a member of the CWI. I disagree with a lot of Eds teachings now. But had it not been for him, I would nevertheless never be where I am today.

His passion for our cause was one of the things that got me to become a communist on my own right, and his constant encouragement to criticise dogma has left me with a healthy and critical mindset.

I'm convinced, as was Ed, that here is no afterlife. When life ends the lights go out and then that's it. But if we make an impact we do live on, in the minds of our comrades and the future generations.

Now the world political situation has changed totally and we are once again moving into a time of revolutions and counter-revolutions. And this time the systematic crisis of capitalism is incurable, and our time is here.

The world revolution is closing in, maybe it will be my own generation or maybe the next that goes through with it, but now I'm convinced I have the opportunity to see it with my own eyes.

We will conquer! Long live the international working class and it's heroes like Edward Clark!

We won't let you down, you can count on that. Ever onwards towards the final victory!

Let us listen to the Internationale and remember our comrade.

- H

+ YouTube Video

[Os Cangaceiros]

Thanks to him there's only one degree of seperation between me and Che Guevara! (I met Ed, who in turn met Che during the 60's).

But yeah, he was a cool guy. He saw quite a span of left-wing activity over his life. At least he passed away on a high note, 2011, a year in which quite a few interesting political developments took place. I heard that he was optimistic about these things before he died.

[Sentinel]

At least he passed away on a high note, 2011, a year in which quite a few interesting political developments took place. I heard that he was optimistic about these things before he died.

Indeed, that is also one of the things I'm really grateful for.

He had a site where he posted collections of his best discussions on Revleft and other discussion forums. Some of them unfortunately don't work anymore, and as said personally I disagree with a lot nowadays.

But it's definitely worth checking out. A piece of Revleft history, plain and simple. http://rs2kpapers.awardspace.com/

[Le Libérer]

There are several books out that document his work and writing. One of the more well known pieces is "Why the Leninists Will Win".

"We can't simply go out and build a libertarian communist movement. First we should spend a year or two developing a common theory and building trust in each other."

How many times does it still have to be repeated: revolutionary theory comes only from revolutionary practice. Trust come only from mutual experience in common struggle.

"Anyway, we don't have to rush into building a united libertarian organization. It's not as if the Leninists are about to take over. They're always squabbling among themselves, committing one blunder after another, hah, hah."

One thing I've noticed out here: the libertarians all take endless delight in the blunders of the Leninists. Now go back and read the quotations at the beginning of this article: who had the last laugh in Russia?

"We should not publish a mass anarcho-communist newspaper in the Bay Area. It's too much work and besides, there's already a dozen left papers out here."

That is, we should scorn to reach working people with our ideas because we'd have to work hard to do it and, anyway it's not necessary since the Leninists are already reaching people with their ideas. (!)

That is what the libertarians in the Bay Area say; this is what they do: revolutionary psychotherapy, revolutionary computer programming, revolutionary book store, revolutionary radio, revolutionary film-making, revolutionary camping out at Lake Tahoe. revolutionary trips to Europe, and. most importantly, revolutionary study groups.

There may be dozens of these groups. some more serious in their studies than others. But they share a common pattern of social invisibility, They are, by and large, closed to new members as a matter of policy. Thus, even if a new person became interested in our politics and (somehow!) found out that one of these groups existed, they wouldn't be allowed to join. (!)

The reader will not be surprised, then, to learn that nothing is presently being done to build an anarcho-communist movement in the Bay Area. One naturally hopes that this will not always be the case, but it will be as long as the libertarians here resolutely refuse to accept their political responsibilities!

It is nothing but ego-puffing drivel to call oneself an anarchist, anarcho-communist. libertarian socialist. etc. and then sit back and wait for working people "out there" to liberate us. It is nothing but revolutionary nose-picking to sit back and wait for the capitalist class to arrange a convenient crisis and then give up its state power to the working class. It is positively criminal when we, knowing full well the intentions of the Leninists, do nothing except make wise-cracks while they gradually learn enough to take over from the old capitalist class and re-establish class society on a new and much more terrible foundation!

The grim truth of the matter is that when (not if. when) the present form of capitalism in this country is overthrown, the Leninists will win ... unless we overcome our own folly of fragmentation, passivity, and disorganization. The Leninists will win ... unless we develop confidence in our own abilities to organize a mass anarcho-communist movement. The Leninists will win ... unless we ourselves accept the responsibility of fighting to win!

Published in Volume 2, Number 1 of The Red Menace, Summer 1977.

He never lost that idealism.

[Le Libérer]

He was also written about in this book, "Struggle for a Better South: The Southern Student Organizing Committee", 1964

[Sentinel]

He certainly made some valid points in the post #4 article. The libertarian socialist movement has a bit to learn from our organisational methods - it's especially interesting that he realised the paramount importance of a good and well spread newspaper. And this is still valid in the new electronic age, for a number of reasons.

[Le Libérer]

My precious friend I missed so very much!
I have this cap he is wearing with his ashes and other things.

[Raúl Duke]

redstar2000 inspired my politics greatly when I first started here. What I always liked about him was his no-nonsense, no-bs approach to things (at least what I could gleam from his collection of posts). I also liked his anti-Leninism (it puzzles me why there are still some people who genuinely believe that doing the same thing, i.e. repeat of USSR more or less, would lead to different results, i.e. actual communism, rather than being a bit lacking in "socialism" and then collapsing like the first time; no personal offense to Leninists but sincerely this is what I think about Leninism) yet Marxism kind of thing which led me to learn/read more on Marxism and adopt some of its ideas. It's sad that he's no longer around.