Ulhas:> And what is Imperialism in the first place?<
"Imperialism," as Marxists use that term, refers to a social system of international domination, of most countries by others. (Unlike in other perspectives, it is not simply a policy, a decision by government officials.) Originally applied to the ancient Romans, Egyptians, etc., one hundred years ago several Marxists (Lenin, Luxemburg, Bukharin, etc.) applied the term to capitalism, likening it to the empires of old.
Later, some Marxists decided that imperialism could only be capitalist, so it wasn't okay to refer to "Soviet imperialism" unless it was decided that the Soviet Union was capitalist. Obviously, there is no final word on what the "true" Marxist perspective is on this issue. But it should be remembered that Marxism has involved large elements of debate. When it becomes a dogma, it's in the process of ossifying or even dying.
Lenin dubbed "imperialism" to be the "highest stage of capitalism." (I interpret "stage" as referring to a specific type of social system associated with capitalist imperialism.) Unfortunately for him, there have two or three "stages" of capitalism -- and one or two stages of capitalist imperialism -- since he wrote. Of course, it's hard to figure out some times when one "stage" begins and another ends.
JD
