Just finished above list after being sent link to unherd "Twilight of the American Left" on Sunday 2022-07-24T1309 Melbourne Australia time and not reading it till T2251.
Looking forward to careful study of the lot after getting some sleep.
Meanwhile:
1. About 2 decades ago comrades here put forward concept of the "pseudo-left" in opposition to prevailing acceptance of rabidly reactionary politics as having some connection with the left. It didn't take off but I still prefer to not surrender the banner, while having very similar view about what you call "the left". But somewhat stronger - it isn't just antithetical to Marxism but to the much broader working class and other progressive social movements because it is so rabidly reactionary. Will leave debate on terminology and other aspects of your specific analysis till later.
2. I appreciate that you are launching a project for theoretical breakthrough and intend to follow through with concrete analysis of current concrete conditions subsequently (and may have already started doing so in material I will read tomorrow. But it's worth stressing that Marx did not in fact establish any sort of "Marxist" sect outside of the actual struggles of the day, and certainly not in an academic milieu but founded and led the First International and developed all his theoretical work in connection with the concrete struggles of the day (both theoretical and practical). There's a preface to the "Communist Manifesto" which explains that it was called that because the authors were opposed to "Socialism" which was bourgeois by 1847.
3. I look forward to extensive exchange of views after completing study of your material but will not be able to do much more than catch up with the reading for a while because of the urgency of other priorities.
4. In my case the immediate priority is the fascist invasion of Ukraine and the need for a Global People's War Against Fascism. That interrupted work on covid and the need to organize against the situation we are now in. That in turn interrupted an intention to popularize and hopefully continue Maksakovsky's work on "The Capitalist Cycle" which is the only theoretical work I am aware of explaining and developing Marx's uncompleted 19th century economic analysis that shows a real gras. I strongly recommend it to you and your readers.
5. But I probably won't be able to resist throwing in further comments as I read on.
So this is just to extend congratulations before polemics.
Dear Comrade,
Just finished above list after being sent link to unherd "Twilight of the American Left" on Sunday 2022-07-24T1309 Melbourne Australia time and not reading it till T2251.
Looking forward to careful study of the lot after getting some sleep.
Meanwhile:
1. About 2 decades ago comrades here put forward concept of the "pseudo-left" in opposition to prevailing acceptance of rabidly reactionary politics as having some connection with the left. It didn't take off but I still prefer to not surrender the banner, while having very similar view about what you call "the left". But somewhat stronger - it isn't just antithetical to Marxism but to the much broader working class and other progressive social movements because it is so rabidly reactionary. Will leave debate on terminology and other aspects of your specific analysis till later.
2. I appreciate that you are launching a project for theoretical breakthrough and intend to follow through with concrete analysis of current concrete conditions subsequently (and may have already started doing so in material I will read tomorrow. But it's worth stressing that Marx did not in fact establish any sort of "Marxist" sect outside of the actual struggles of the day, and certainly not in an academic milieu but founded and led the First International and developed all his theoretical work in connection with the concrete struggles of the day (both theoretical and practical). There's a preface to the "Communist Manifesto" which explains that it was called that because the authors were opposed to "Socialism" which was bourgeois by 1847.
3. I look forward to extensive exchange of views after completing study of your material but will not be able to do much more than catch up with the reading for a while because of the urgency of other priorities.
4. In my case the immediate priority is the fascist invasion of Ukraine and the need for a Global People's War Against Fascism. That interrupted work on covid and the need to organize against the situation we are now in. That in turn interrupted an intention to popularize and hopefully continue Maksakovsky's work on "The Capitalist Cycle" which is the only theoretical work I am aware of explaining and developing Marx's uncompleted 19th century economic analysis that shows a real gras. I strongly recommend it to you and your readers.
5. But I probably won't be able to resist throwing in further comments as I read on.
So this is just to extend congratulations before polemics.
Arthur Dent
Monday T0105