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Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 2:23 am
by Van
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/07/05/m ... ainstream/

"Sales of Das Kapital, Marx’s masterpiece of political economy, have soared ever since 2008, as have those of The Communist Manifesto and the Grundrisse (or, to give it its English title, Outlines of the Critique of Political Economy). Their sales rose as British workers bailed out the banks to keep the degraded system going and the snouts of the rich firmly in their troughs while the rest of us struggle in debt, job insecurity or worse."

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 2:27 am
by gendoikari87
about damn time. Lets NOT hit the snooze button again.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 10:20 am
by JinxRemoving
I actually have been cleaning up lately-- it's available on Kindle for about a buck, as well as TONS of the classic philosophy/sociology canon: John Stuart Mill, Bertrand Russell, Alexis de Toqueville, Max Weber. For 14 bucks I replaced a lot of what I have in paper, and even added Mao's little red book for the hell of it. I didn't want to love it, but I am unabashedly smitten with my reader. If only it had a backlight, like that bastard Nook from Barnes and Noblesoft...

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 10:47 am
by the comedian
Too many people overlook Engle's Scientific Socialism, which is too bad because IMHO Freidrich was the better writer of the two ( Karl was much more of an idea man ).
Read it if you can find a copy.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 12:12 pm
by Progurt
Also useful, "Anarcho-Syndicalism: Theory and Practice" by Rudolf Rocker, and "The Conquest of Bread" by Petyr Kropotkin.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 3:17 pm
by the comedian
Progurt wrote:Also useful, "Anarcho-Syndicalism: Theory and Practice" by Rudolf Rocker, and "The Conquest of Bread" by Petyr Kropotkin.
Adding the Rocker book to my reading list ( a very long list ).
I see a lot more willingness among young radicals today to study all ideas and come up with actual practical solutions to people's everyday concerns rather than freeze drying themselves into a moribund ideology. I hope they stick with it.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 3:27 pm
by KVoimakas
The State and Revolution was always a favorite of mine.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 3:47 pm
by Fukshot
Savoring the irony of measuring the current strength of Marxism by commercial success.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 4:16 pm
by gendoikari87
Fukshot wrote:Savoring the irony of measuring the current strength of Marxism by commercial success.
In Kapitalistan you play by the rules of the kapitalists.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 5:11 pm
by Progurt
Fukshot wrote:Savoring the irony of measuring the current strength of Marxism by commercial success.
Most Marxist/socialist/anarchist literature can be obtained for free from Amazon. You just have to look for them a bit. They're kindle only, but you can get a free kindle app for your computer. Example, the eBook of the "Communist Manifesto".

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 5:49 pm
by Elmo
Fukshot wrote:Savoring the irony of measuring the current strength of Marxism by commercial success.
Entrepreneurial minds are spinning. "How can I get a piece of this?"

Look for Marx and Engels bobbleheads. Collect 'em all!

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 8:04 pm
by Van
larrymod wrote:
Fukshot wrote:Savoring the irony of measuring the current strength of Marxism by commercial success.
Entrepreneurial minds are spinning. "How can I get a piece of this?"

Look for Marx and Engels bobbleheads. Collect 'em all!
That's the reason I refuse to wear a "Che" t-shirt. He'd roll over in his grave if he knew how his visage is being commodified.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 8:06 pm
by Van
Fukshot wrote:Savoring the irony of measuring the current strength of Marxism by commercial success.
"The capitalists will buy from us the rope they'll use to hang themselves."--attributed to Lenin

Actually, there's no evidence Lenin said this. But if he didn't, he should have.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 9:41 pm
by Fukshot
Van wrote:
Fukshot wrote:Savoring the irony of measuring the current strength of Marxism by commercial success.
"The capitalists will buy from us the rope they'll use to hang themselves."--attributed to Lenin

Actually, there's no evidence Lenin said this. But if he didn't, he should have.
Oooh! Never heard that one. Scribbling it down so I can misplace the paper (because that's what I do with all of the things I write down to remember). Still not as good as last-king-last-priest when it comes to hanging allusions.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2012 9:43 pm
by gendoikari87
I thought the quote was something more like "the capitalist will sell you the rope to hang him with".

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2012 1:16 am
by Elmo
gendoikari87 wrote:I thought the quote was something more like "the capitalist will sell you the rope to hang him with".
That's how I've heard it.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2012 11:48 am
by Van
gendoikari87 wrote:I thought the quote was something more like "the capitalist will sell you the rope to hang him with".
Yeah, something like that. Like I said, it's apocryphal.

Re: Marxism Dead? I Think Not...

Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2012 12:01 pm
by the comedian
Van wrote:
gendoikari87 wrote:I thought the quote was something more like "the capitalist will sell you the rope to hang him with".
Yeah, something like that. Like I said, it's apocryphal.
I think it was in reference to the fact that the German Empire was helping the Bolsheviks topple Kerensky's regime. When criticized by other party members for this seemingly hypocritical maneuver, Lenin made his famous quote.
In other words, it did not matter if Lenin was being sent to Russia to take her out of the war- if a capitalist regime wanted to sow the seeds of destruction of another through revolution, so be it. The aim of the Bolsheviks was to incite revolution throughout Europe and America. Germany's capitalists would be destroyed by the same revolution they visited upon Russia.
Or it had to do something with American investors... I forget.