[Marxism] Fwd: emTerminator Genisys/em and the trajectory of American “independent” filmmaking - World Socialist Web Site
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * The new Terminator installment is directed by Alan Taylor. This has a certain significance, because Taylor has a history as an aspiring independent filmmaker. In 1995, he made a film entitled Palookaville, which I saw at the 1996 San Francisco Film Festival. I wrote about the film, which was loosely inspired by Italian comedies of the 1950s and 1960s, in particular Mario Monicelli’s Big Deal on Madonna Street. “Palookaville is a rare American film, one which deals with ordinary people in a sympathetic, yet not uncritical, fashion—and with some imagination. Alan Taylor’s film follows the lives of three unemployed men [played by William Forsythe, Vincent Gallo and Adam Trese] in Jersey City who take up crime for a variety of reasons.” In a conversation in San Francisco in May 1996, Taylor expressed a sympathy for the “underdogs” in society. He said, “Every authority figure in the film is corrupt and untrustworthy. … This is obviously a film which has a lot of affection and faith in the class of people in which these guys are operating.” He remarked on the characters’ continued and mistaken belief in the American Dream: “That’s all they’re thinking about. It hasn’t gotten to the point where they’re thinking, ‘Well, wait a second, should we be more critical of the whole idea?’ They’re not at that stage.” Moreover, Taylor expressed an antagonistic attitude toward Hollywood, and especially its tendency to divert attention from social problems with violence and bombast: “A lot of the Hollywood movies we see are responses to desperation and fear, economic uncertainty and political uncertainty. Most of them confront that fear by going: Pow! Pow! Pow! It’s a very reassuring thing for an audience to feel that they can get control back that easily.” If Taylor, two decades later, is now contributing to Hollywood’s “Pow! Pow! Pow!,” it is less a personal failing than a reflection of profound socio-cultural problems, including the lack of serious political and historical perspective on the part of a generation of so-called independent directors and writers. full: http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2015/07/08/term-j08.html _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Two articles of note on Greece
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * [Thanks to Art for his message. I am copying next below the full text of Ambrose Evans-Pritchard's very interesting behind-the scenes view of Syriza's leadership, followed by some comments on it by Yves Smith at Naked Capitalism, dayne] Europe is blowing itself apart over Greece - and nobody seems able to stop it Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras never expected to win Sunday's referendum. He is now trapped and hurtling towards Grexit by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, Athens http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/11724924/Europe-is-blowing-itself-apart-over-Greece-and-nobody-can-stop-it.html Like a tragedy from Euripides, the long struggle between Greece and Europe's creditor powers is reaching a cataclysmic end that nobody planned, nobody seems able to escape, and that threatens to shatter the greater European order in the process. Greek premier Alexis Tsipras never expected to win Sunday's referendum on EMU bail-out terms, let alone to preside over a blazing national revolt against foreign control. He called the snap vote with the expectation - and intention - of losing it. The plan was to put up a good fight, accept honourable defeat, and hand over the keys of the Maximos Mansion, leaving it to others to implement the June 25 ultimatum and suffer the opprobrium. This ultimatum came as a shock to the Greek cabinet. They thought they were on the cusp of a deal, bad though it was. Mr Tsipras had already made the decision to acquiesce to austerity demands, recognizing that Syriza had failed to bring about a debtors' cartel of southern EMU states and had seriously misjudged the mood across the eurozone. Instead they were confronted with a text from the creditors that upped the ante, demanding a rise in VAT on tourist hotels from 7pc (de facto) to 23pc at a single stroke. Creditors insisted on further pension cuts of 1pc of GDP by next year and a phase out of welfare assistance (EKAS) for poorer pensioners, even though pensions have already been cut by 44pc. They insisted on fiscal tightening equal to 2pc of GDP in an economy reeling from six years of depression and devastating hysteresis. They offered no debt relief. The Europeans intervened behind the scenes to suppress a report by the International Monetary Fund validating Greece's claim that its debt is unsustainable. The IMF concluded that the country not only needs a 30pc haircut to restore viability, but also €52bn of fresh money to claw its way out of crisis. They rejected Greek plans to work with the OECD on market reforms, and with the International Labour Organisation on collective bargaining laws. They stuck rigidly to their script, refusing to recognise in any way that their own Dickensian prescriptions have been discredited by economists from across the world. They just didn't want us to sign. They had already decided to push us out, said the now-departed finance minister Yanis Varoufakis. So Syriza called the referendum. To their consternation, they won, igniting the great Greek revolt of 2015, the moment when the people finally issued a primal scream, daubed their war paint, and formed the hoplite phalanx. Mr Tsipras is now trapped by his success. The referendum has its own dynamic. People will revolt if he comes back from Brussels with a shoddy compromise, said Costas Lapavitsas, a Syriza MP. Tsipras doesn't want to take the path of Grexit, but I think he realizes that this is now what lies straight ahead of him, he said. What should have been a celebration on Sunday night turned into a wake. Mr Tsipras was depressed, dissecting all the errors that Syriza has made since taking power in January, talking into the early hours. The prime minister was reportedly told that the time had come to choose, either he should seize on the momentum of the 61pc landslide vote, and take the fight to the Eurogroup, or yield to the creditor demands - and give up the volatile Mr Varoufakis in the process as a token of good faith. Everybody knew what a fight would mean. The inner cabinet had discussed the details a week earlier at a tense meeting after the European Central Bank refused to increase liquidity (ELA) to the Greek banking system, forcing Syriza to impose capital controls. It was a triple plan. They would requisition the Bank of Greece and sack the governor under emergency national laws. The estimated €17bn of reserves still stashed away in various branches of the central bank would be seized. They would issue parallel liquidity and California-style IOUs denominated in euros to keep the banking system afloat, backed by an appeal to the European Court of Justice to throw the other side off balance, all the while asserting
[Marxism] getting to know Syriza; Syriza Sinn Fein; Raul Fidel congratulate Tsipras
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * My Greece. The Journey Inside Syriza by Robert Misik Social Europe, July 7 http://www.socialeurope.eu/2015/07/my-greece-the-journey-inside-syriza Days of Decision. While the Greek drama moved towards a decision, I travelled into the interior of the new Greece. Meetings with Alexis Tsipras, his closest aids, local activists, young businessmen, working-class militants and people, who just manage to survive. [long, lots of experiences w/ observations about SYRIZA] What is Syriza? The answer's more complicated than you think Beyond the famous few, who are they? Michael Chessum meets the Syriza grassroots. by Michael Chessum New Statesman, Britain, July 6 http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2015/07/what-syriza-answers-more-complicated-you-think . . . Behind the lazy tropes about Greek laziness and the treasure trove of clichés taken out of posh journalists’ high school classics lessons – the birthplace of democracy, the authentic home of tragedy – most coverage has portrayed the crisis merely in terms of a series of high-level jousting matches between Syriza’s celebrities, Angela Merkel and some EU and IMF bureaucrats from central casting. The reality of the situation in Greece is very different – because Syriza is not like any establishment political party in Europe. It is a relatively new organisation, which in 2007 got just 5 per cent of the vote – but much more importantly, it has real internal democracy and is deeply rooted in the social movements of the past few years. Before they were elected, a large proportion of its politicians were ordinary citizens, who came to politics out of a sense of duty rather than ambition. Despite laboured attempts to portray the leadership of Syriza as lone actors – including by the Greek press – they are perhaps some of the most accountable politicians in Europe. The level of internal democracy in Syriza adds a whole new dimension of tactical intrigue to negotiations with Greece’s creditors. Earlier this week, when Tsipras wrote a series of letters to Greece’s creditors apparently surrendering to the bulk of its conditions, he could be sure not only that the Eurozone would reject the proposal prior to the referendum, but also relatively sure that there was a double-lock against such a substantial retreat – the fact that the party’s base would not allow him to do it. As it was, the letters did not consummate a retreat (at least for the moment), and served to illustrate the intransigence of Schauble and Merkel. These are calculations and dynamics with which Syriza’s activist base is constantly grappling. When I interviewed Petros Markopoulos and George Diakos on Thursday, both activists in Syriza Youth, any questions about internal discord or discussion were secondary to the almighty ground war for the No campaign. But the recent letters, and the negotiation concessions made by the Syriza leadership, have clearly been a subject of discussion. “You have to show the people, not the ones who are already convinced to vote No, but the ones who are afraid and in the middle, that you’re not getting out of the negotiations – that the referendum is a matter of strengthening your position in the negotiations,” says Markopoulos. When I push him on whether the letter was acceptable to activists, he replies that “as a tactical move, it is – but we expect something better than it.” Diakos adds the crucial point: “After the referendum, the atmosphere will be completely different.” The ability of Syriza’s grassroots to influence the more day-to-day business of government is a work in progress, but there are certainly ways in which it has leverage. When Yanis Varoufakis, the now-departed finance minister who is not technically a member of the Party, appointed an adviser who was part of a neo-liberal banking policy in Peru, there was an outcry and the adviser stepped down. A Syriza student activist reminds me that when Yiannis Panousis, a Syriza minister, authorised the police to invade the University of Athens (in Greece, universities are legal asylums and police are usually banned from entering) in order to evict an occupation staged by an anarchist group earlier this year, Syriza Youth called on the minister to resign, although for the moment he remains in post. It is not lost on many activists that the question of how and how much Syriza’s party membership can order its ministers around is really just the latest chapter in a long history of insurgent movements that have found themselves in government. As Markopoulos puts it: “Because we’re new to government, the boundaries between party, government and state are not clear.” As well as spending its first five
[Marxism] Fwd: Yanis Varoufakis: Angela Merkel has a red and a yellow button. One ends the crisis. Which does she push? | Comment is free | The Guardian
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jul/06/yanis-varoufakis-angela-merkel-crisis-global-minotaur-capitalism-europe _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Fwd: Russia’s ruling party copies French homophobic flag in celebration of family values — Meduza. News, reports, interviews, videos from Russia
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * https://meduza.io/en/news/2015/07/08/russia-s-ruling-party-copies-french-homophobic-flag-in-celebration-of-family-values _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Tsipras speaks to European parliament; E'zone financial negotiations; some of difficulties, issues in Greece
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * The Greek Prime Minister’s Speech in the European Parliament by Philip Chrysopoulos The Greek Reporter, July 8 http://greece.greekreporter.com/2015/07/08/the-greek-prime-ministers-speech-in-the-european-parliament Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras spoke to the European Parliament presenting the country’s position on the debt issue and spoke of the five years of austerity Greece went through. “I am here today after the referendum and Greek people’s mandate for a financially viable and socially just agreement. I am at the Temple of Democracy, in the European Parliament,” Tsipras said in the beginning. “The brave decision of the Greek people is not for a rift with Europe but for the return to a Europe of solidarity, equality and social justice. The European Union must be democratic, otherwise it will not survive. It must respect the people’s will in individual countries. “I take full responsibility for what happened in the past five months, but we must admit that the blame for recession goes to the five years of failed austerity measures. Austerity was imposed on other countries too, but Greece’s austerity was harsher than all. Allow me to say that Greece became a guinea pig for harsh austerity programs. “The majority of Greek people believes that it has no choice other than to be freed from such austerity measures. We want an agreement that will have a light at the end of the tunnel. The burden must go to those who can afford to pay and no to low-salaried employees and pensioners, as it was happening for the past five years. The agreement must include growth reforms. Also, the debt haircut must be discussed so that the Greek debt becomes viable. “We are sending a request to the European Stability Mechanism with comprehensive proposals for the benefit of Greece and the Eurozone in general. “The Greek proposals are for debt restructure and growth. The money Greece borrowed in the past five years never went to the Greek people but they went to save European and Greek banks. Since August 2014, Greek people paid 17.5 billion euros out of their own pockets in loan payments without receiving any money from creditors “I don’t support the idea that foreigners are to blame for Greece’s plight. Previous governments steeped in corruption, clientelism and tax evasion contributed to the Greek debt. Memoranda failed because they required harsh reforms while there was corruption and oligarchs and banks were the only ones who benefited from that. “Our proposals are for real reforms that aim to fight oligarchs, monopolies, corruption in television channels that operate without license, tax evaders. We want restructuring of the public sector so that it becomes more efficient. We want to clash with lobbyists and oligarchs in Greece and Europe in general. “The Greek crisis shows the inability of Europe to find a real solution. The Greek crisis is a European problem, not a Greek problem. European history is a history of clashes and compromises. It is a history of unity and not division. We want a united Europe, not a divided Europe. “I am sure we all understand how crucial this moment is and that we must assume our historic responsibility.” Greek Government Rushes to Meet Sunday Deadline for Debt Deal by Philip Chrysopoulos The Greek Reporter, July 8 http://greece.greekreporter.com/2015/07/08/greek-government-rushes-to-meet-sunday-deadline-for-debt-deal The Greek finance ministry team is racing with time to come up with a comprehensive proposal in order to reach an agreement with creditors by Friday. The Greek proposal will be discussed on Saturday’s Eurogroup. On Sunday, there will be a Eurozone summit, followed by a European Union summit where all 28 member states will discuss the Greek debt issue and come to a decision. The EU summit will be held because Greece’s proposal involves a loan from the European Stability Mechanism and not from Eurozone member countries only. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras stated that, “the process will be very quick… our aim is to come to a solution by the end of the week, at the latest.” Tsipras appeared optimistic that there will be an agreement that would be mutually beneficial, viable and socially just. The Greek proposal will be a three-year loan, according to sources within the Greek government. It will be based on the common ground the two sides have reached so far. The Greek government has to propose measures that will be acceptable by creditors and will be voted swiftly in Greek Parliament. Then Eurozone member parliaments have to approve the agreement. The best scenario for Greece would be that Saturday’s Eurogroup will approve the Greek plan of
[Marxism] Does Australia need a SYRIZA?
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Does Australia need a SYRIZA? I cannot predict if the Australian working class will abandon Labor, and create a radical left party akin to SYRIZA, although the portents are there. My task at the moment is to help build Solidarity, a small group of revolutionaries who believe that the emancipation of the working class must be the act of the working class. If you want to be one part of building for the future today, check us out. http://enpassant.com.au/2015/07/08/does-australia-need-a-syriza/ _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Syria Feature: Civilians to Call Themselves “Heritage Sites and Monuments” To Get UN Protection
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Syria Feature: Civilians to Call Themselves “Heritage Sites and Monuments” To Get UN Protection By Scott Lucas July 8, 2015 10:18 http://eaworldview.com/2015/07/syria-feature-civilians-to-call-themselves-heritage-sites-and-monuments-to-get-un-protection/ The pro-opposition Radio Free Syria announces: The Syrian people are set to recategorise themselves collectively as historic heritage sites in the hope that this might spur the UN to take actual action to protect them from Bashar al Assad’s ongoing Nakba [catastrophe]. “Assad’s genocide has gone on for almost five years so far and gets no international attention or concern, but whenever Daesh [Islamic State] destroys a monument it’s all over the news globally,” said a resident of Douma, shouting to be heard over the noise of the latest regime air raids. “So we decided that since the world cares about Syria’s ancient heritage but not about the human beings whose heritage it is, we’d recategorise ourselves. I’m now an Abbasid-era vase and my surviving kids are Greco-Roman monumental arches.” “I’ve redefined myself as an Assyrian temple and my kids are Byzantine-era statuary,” explained a woman in Aleppo formerly known as Raghda. “Self-definition is the only thing that matters, so hopefully now that we’ve defined ourselves as ancient monuments the UN might show some interest and maybe even save some lives like it was established to do.” In Idlib, a Roman amphitheatre formerly known as Khalid said that while he welcomed the new initiative, he and his wife Sara — now a Mesopotamian wall frieze — are dubious of its usefulness. “Assad’s bombed quite a few historic sites, as well as towns, villages and cities full of people and the UN and world said nothing. Maybe if we just recategorized him as Daesh –– not exactly difficult since he’s working with them anyway –– the world would suddenly care and want rid of him?” _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Fwd: The socialist principle - bookforum.com / omnivore
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Multiple links. http://www.bookforum.com/blog/14769 _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] What's new at Links: Resounding 'Oxi' to austerity; Solidarity with Greece from Asia-Pacific, Venezuela; Tsipras speech; Varis Yaroufakis; Georg Lukas; Turkey and HDP; Sinn Fein mayors; ISIS
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * What's new at Links: Resounding 'Oxi' to austerity; Solidarity with Greece from Asia-Pacific, Venezuela; Tsipras speech; Varis Yaroufakis; Georg Lukas; Turkey and HDP; Sinn Fein mayors; ISIS; banks are made of marble * * * Subscribe free to Links - International Journal of Socialist Renewal - at http://www.feedblitz.com/f/?Sub=343373 You can also follow Links on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LinksSocialism or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10865397643 Visit and bookmark http://links.org.au and add it to your RSS feed (http://links.org.au/rss.xml). If you would like us to consider an article, please send it to linkssocial...@gmail.com mailto:linkssocial...@gmail.com *Please pass on to anybody you think will be interested in Links. *Comments welcome on all articles *Return daily for new articles * * * Greece: Astonishing and resounding 'Oxi' (No) to EU austerity http://links.org.au/node/4496 By *Colin Fox* July 5, 2015 -- /Colin Fox/, posted at /Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal/ -- So much for it being a close vote! The Greek people today delivered a resounding blow to the European Central Bank's plan to implement further hardship and austerity on the Greek people. More than 61.3% of Greeks voted No (38.69% voted Yes). This represents a huge success for Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and an extraordinary vindication of the SYRIZA government and its record since January 25th. Despite falling living standards and increased hardship, epitomised by the enforced bank holiday this week which restricted customers to €60 per day, the Greek people have again resoundingly backed their radical left-wing government. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/4496 Greece: Vote #OXI -- Alexis Tsipras' speech at the final rally before 'Greferendum' [English] http://links.org.au/node/4494 Athens -- Greece's Prime Minister *Alexis Tsipras* addressed tens of thousands of people late on July 3, 2015, in the final rally to call for a #OXI (No) vote in the July 5 referendum against the European Union's blackmail and austerity. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/4494 'Your struggle is our struggle': Asia-Pacific left solidarity with the people of Greece and SYRIZA http://links.org.au/node/4493 July 3, 2015 -- Posted at /Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal/ We, the undersigned, stand in solidarity with the people of Greece and the SYRIZA-led government as they prepare for a referendum on July 5, 2015, on whether to accept the continuation of the program of neoliberal austerity or chart a new course free from the debilitating stranglehold of the “troika” — the International Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank, and the European Commission. We support the call of SYRIZA for a no vote as the only option for the people of Greece, especially the working classes, to assert sovereign control over the country's economy and their own future. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/4493 Turkey: As Erdogan manoeuvres to retain power, country faces uncertain future http://links.org.au/node/4499 By *Dave Holmes* July 7, 2015 – /Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal/ -- One month after Turkey’s June 7 parliamentary elections, the country still does not have a government. Ahmet Davutoglu of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) remains caretaker prime minister. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan remains the dominant figure in the AKP and is actively manoeuvring to retain his party’s leading position. The president is supposed to be an impartial figure above party politics but Erdogan pays scant regard to such constitutional niceties. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/4499 Varis Yaroufakis: 'I wear the creditors’ loathing with pride'; New minister 'a change in style, not substance' http://links.org.au/node/4497 By *Varis Yaroufakis*, Greece's former minister of finance July 6, 2015 -- The referendum of July 5, 2015, will stay in history as a unique moment when a small European nation rose up against debt bondage. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/4497 Ireland: Sinn Fein's mayor of Dublin joins those in Belfast, Derry and Cork http://links.org.au/node/4495 July 4, 2015 -- The election of a first-ever Sinn Fein mayor in Dublin has underlined the party’s progress in city councils across the island ahead of the centennial commemorations of the 1916 Easter Rising. * Read more http://links.org.au/node/4495 'US fuelled the rise of ISIS' conspiracy theories a back-handed attack on Syrian uprising http://links.org.au/node/4492 *Michael
Re: [Marxism] Trapped by its own success?
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * I think comrades have to get used to the idea that the Syriza leadership simply reflects the indecision of the masses. This business put forward by some on the left that the workers defied Tsipras by voting no is ludicrous. Syriza vacillated because it is dealing with tremendous challenges that defy facile solutions of the sort from tiny groups that festoon their websites with hammers and sickles. The ordinary Greek probably wanted nothing more than to stay in the eurozone but without the punitive demands of the German capitalist class. Syriza was pushed to the wall and instead of capitulating, it stood up and fought. Our miniature golf Bolsheviks have all the answers, of course. Nationalize the banks, build workers councils, defend the revolution with armed self-defense, etc., in other words all of the policy measures that Eurocommunists would never dream of adopting. We are living in a period when politics is beginning to shift to the left in a number of European nations but the tempo is not fast enough for our ultralefts. They sit in their easy chair and demand that history move much faster. What a joke. On 7/8/15 1:47 PM, Andrew Pollack via Marxism wrote: And if Tsipras is still using the results only as a bargaining chip, that's to be expected. But once again he may surprise us and pull the plug in favor of Grexit. _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Syriza MP: It's Time to Take Over the Banks, now!
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * The transcript of this interview wasn't yet available when i sent the original message. It is now. Here are some excerpts: . . . JAY: Now, you're a member of parliament. You've been writing columns in the Guardian. What are you advocating now? In this moment, what should Syriza's next steps be? LAPAVITSAS: Let's think here about a number of things. The strategy of Syriza before the election, and for most of its time in government, has been to achieve radical change in Greece and a new relationship with the lenders, solving the macroeconomic problems of the country within the Eurozone. The argument was if we negotiate hard, if we use democratic weapons that we've got in our hands, we will achieve a better settlement for the Greek people. This strategy has come to an end.I don't think the lenders will take a step back. I think they'll actually do [inaud.] Syriza needs a new strategy very quickly, and I think the realization will come upon it equally quickly in the coming days and weeks. It's a dead end. I don't think the European Central Bank will provide the country with more liquidity. I don't think the lenders will make a better offer. Syriza will have to face a tough reality in the coming period. And that means making do. Relying on the strength of the Greek people, and only that, to see them in the crisis. JAY: I heard on BBC last night a member of Merkel's party, a right-wing member of Merkel's party--I mean, the whole party's pretty right-wing. But at any rate, a right-wing of a right-wing party. He says it's time for the Greeks to take their lesson. LAPAVITSAS: The Greeks have shown, they've shown yesterday, that they are ready to face up to whatever will come their way from the lenders. The lenders must not forget that. Yes, they will show very clearly the Greek people are ready for it. So that's the first thing to say.Beyond that, there is no liquidity in the country. The economy hardly functions. Syriza can make an attempt to get a better deal with the lenders. If that doesn't come true, Syriza needs to take radical measures quickly. It needs to put the knife in. It needs to sort the problem of the banks out. Banks need to be nationalized and run centrally very quickly. It needs to do something about the mass media. The mass media in this country this week went absolutely crazy, tried to push for the yes vote. Syriza needs to do something about big business. . . . LAPAVITSAS: ...I don't expect the lenders to back down. Because there's very little that's new on the table. The lenders don't respect democracy anyway. And the lenders will find themselves in a very weak political position if they, if they're seen to back down to Greek demands now. The Portuguese might want a better deal then, the Spaniards, and so on. So I don't expect the lenders to show much flexibility now. The Greek government will find it very hard to back down, because the very strong vote for the no creates its own dynamic. No government will be able to renege on that. So draw your own conclusions. We're heading towards major events in Greek and European history. JAY: Just to flesh out some of the things you said in part one of this interview, you had three things, sort of radical measures, the Syriza government should do. It started with nationalizing the banks. Just flesh that out a bit, what does that look like? LAPAVITSAS: Greek banks at the moment have got a majority public ownership, share ownership. But their shares are not common stock. Therefore they haven't got voting rights. So we've got the [inaud.] here, a sham. Whereby the capital in the banks is owned by the public overwhelmingly, but the management is basically private, and the people who run the banks are basically the people who ruined the banks, by and large.These people don't see eye-to-eye with the government. And they're not making it easier for the government to be able to make its own policy. So what we need immediately is intervention, and a normalization of the operations of the banks to the degree to which it can be normalized. Obviously there's very little liquidity, but there's no reason why the banks could not start doing more banking transactions even behind closed doors. There is no reason why the banks could not facilitate some fairly normal economic activity even if there are capital controls and banking controls.So we need to nationalize the banks, effectively, and we need to operate very quickly to start having some banking activity in the economy once again to unblock the markets. . . . LAPAVITSAS: Yeah, cash is a big problem. It's unfortunate. The state and Syriza should have been better prepared. But such is life.
[Marxism] EU Law Analysis: The law of Grexit: What does EU law say about leaving economic and monetary union?
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * http://eulawanalysis.blogspot.ca/2015/06/the-law-of-grexit-what-does-eu-law-say.html -- - Michael A. Lebowitz Professor Emeritus Economics Department Simon Fraser University University Drive Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6 Home: Phone 604-689-9510 Cell: 604-789-4803 _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Trapped by its own success?
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * On 7/8/15 1:23 PM, Marv Gandall via Marxism wrote: The astute Telegraph financial columnist, Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, who has closely followed the unfolding crisis in Greece, says the Syriza leadership never expected to win the referendum and is trapped by its own success. From Tom Walker on PEN-L: One should be cautious about the motives of sources. http://www.politicalresearch.org/1999/04/01/clinton-conspiracism-and-the-continuing-culture-war-what-is-past-is-prologue/#sthash.0tBgoPhE.dpbs AMBROSE EVANS-PRITCHARD The work of British journalist Ambrose Evans-Pritchard is a mix of industrious investigative reporting and irresponsible rumor-mongering. His book, The Secret Life of Bill Clinton: The Unreported Stories, is an example of material that should remain unreported by the general media until it is corroborated with further documentation. A significant number of footnotes track back to rightist anti-Clinton sources, especially to the American Spectator, a neo conservative magazine that ran articles on Clinton with allegations that often lacked adequate corroboration. The Secret Life of Bill Clinton One chapter in The Secret Life of Bill Clinton alleges official misconduct and a cover-up in the death of Vincent Foster, tracing the conspiracy all the way to special prosecutor Kenneth Starr. Other assertions in Evans-Pritchard’s book include the claimed assassination of two teenagers who, Evans-Pritchard says, stumbled across a major drug delivery tied to Clinton. Other deaths attributed to Clinton or his operatives are discussed: “Already, people associated with the case were beginning to die in what amounted to a reign of terror among young people in…Arkansas.” Evans-Pritchard tells the story of one parent who “joined up with a California film producer named Pat Matrisciana to make a documentary on the deaths.” Matrisciana runs Jeremiah Films, which produces hard right Christian apocalyptic videos riddled with conspiracy theories, and made a widely circulated anti-Clinton video,The Clinton Chronicles. Evans-Pritchard uses James Davidson of the rightist newsletter Strategic Investment to introduce the idea that Clinton’s actions mirror those of Nazi totalitarians. In his role as a far right prophet of financial doom, Davidson has written a book, The Story of a One-Term President, which forecasts a vast economic collapse and “bloodbath in US stocks and bonds” under Clinton. Davidson’s in-house “muckraker” for Strategic Investment is Jack Wheeler, described in his bio as a “veteran of six anticommunist guerilla wars [and] anti-Soviet insurgencies, including those in Nicaragua, Angola, Mozambique, Cambodia, and Laos.” Evans-Pritchard cites Davidson’s Strategic Investment several more times, noting that Davidson financed examinations by several handwriting experts of the Foster suicide note. Claims that the suicide note was a forgery were later debunked, and one “expert” was later revealed as having misrepresented his credentials. Hard-right ideologue Joe Farah from the Western Journalism Center is introduced as a dispassionate media ethics expert. According to the 1995 White House memo, Evans-Pritchard was a crucial link in taking hard right conspiracism and publishing it in the Sunday Telegraph of London where it was picked up and reported on by mainstream US media. Another British journalist who played a similar role was William Rees- Mogg of The Times of London. - See more at: http://www.politicalresearch.org/1999/04/01/clinton-conspiracism-and-the-continuing-culture-war-what-is-past-is-prologue/#sthash.0tBgoPhE.dpuf _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Piketty et al to Merkel: austerity has failed; E'zone corruption; IMF bad faith; E. Europe duped
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Austerity Has Failed. An Open Letter to A. Merkel by Thomas Piketty, Jeffrey Sachs, Heiner Flassbeck, Dani Rodrik, Simon Wren-Lewis AnalyzeGreece!, July 7 http://www.analyzegreece.gr/topics/greece-europe/item/276-th-piketty-j-sachs-h-flassbeck-d-rodrik-s-wren-lewis-austerity-has-failed-an-open-letter-to-a-merkel *Five leading economists warn the German chancellor: “History will remember you for your actions this week* The never-ending austerity that Europe is force-feeding the Greek people is simply not working. Now Greece has loudly said no more. As most of the world knew it would, the financial demands made by Europe have crushed the Greek economy, led to mass unemployment, a collapse of the banking system, made the external debt crisis far worse, with the debt problem escalating to an unpayable 175 percent of GDP. The economy now lies broken with tax receipts nose-diving, output and employment depressed, and businesses starved of capital. The humanitarian impact has been colossal—40 percent of children now live in poverty, infant mortality is sky-rocketing and youth unemployment is close to 50 percent. Corruption, tax evasion and bad accounting by previous Greek governments helped create the debt problem. The Greeks have complied with much of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s call for austerity—cut salaries, cut government spending, slashed pensions, privatized and deregulated, and raised taxes. But in recent years the series of so-called adjustment programs inflicted on the likes of Greece has served only to make a Great Depression the likes of which have been unseen in Europe since 1929-1933. The medicine prescribed by the German Finance Ministry and Brussels has bled the patient, not cured the disease. Together we urge Chancellor Merkel and the Troika to consider a course correction, to avoid further disaster and enable Greece to remain in the eurozone. Right now, the Greek government is being asked to put a gun to its head and pull the trigger. Sadly, the bullet will not only kill off Greece’s future in Europe. The collateral damage will kill the Eurozone as a beacon of hope, democracy and prosperity, and could lead to far-reaching economic consequences across the world. In the 1950s, Europe was founded on the forgiveness of past debts, notably Germany’s, which generated a massive contribution to post-war economic growth and peace. Today we need to restructure and reduce Greek debt, give the economy breathing room to recover, and allow Greece to pay off a reduced burden of debt over a long period of time. Now is the time for a humane rethink of the punitive and failed program of austerity of recent years and to agree to a major reduction of Greece’s debts in conjunction with much needed reforms in Greece. To Chancellor Merkel our message is clear; we urge you to take this vital action of leadership for Greece and Germany, and also for the world. History will remember you for your actions this week. We expect and count on you to provide the bold and generous steps towards Greece that will serve Europe for generations to come. Sincerely, Heiner Flassbeck, former State Secretary in the German Federal Ministry of Finance Thomas Piketty, Professor of Economics at the Paris School of Economics Jeffrey D. Sachs, Professor of Sustainable Development, Professor of Health Policy and Management, and Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University Dani Rodrik, Ford Foundation Professor of International Political Economy, Harvard Kennedy School Simon Wren-Lewis, Professor of Economic Policy, Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford Greece Exposes The Flaws Of A Wrong Europe by Mehmet Ugur and Ozlem Onaran Social Europe, July 7 http://www.socialeurope.eu/2015/07/greece-exposes-flaws-wrong-europe The Greek people, their newly-elected government and many Europeans and non-Europeans with a sense of justice, history and solidarity, have been shouting loud: the “Greek problem” is a consequence of neo-liberal economic and financial policies that have become increasingly dysfunctional and dangerous. The problem has been made worse by the ascendance of sheer inter-governmentalism in Europe. Both neo-liberalism and inter-governmentalism are the results of collusion between economic, financial and political elites in Europe, aided by economists, political scientists, lawyers, analysts and journalists with a conservative outlook. The symbiotic relationship between these two has been feeding on the spoils of increasingly unequal wealth accumulation. Their narrative about “Greeks living beyond their means” is nothing but an unashamed distortion of facts about both the present and the
[Marxism] Going into industry
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Recollections of an ex-CP'er in Vivian Gornick's The Romance of American Communism: What can I tell you about the years in industry? They were, for me, slow, imperceptible, pointless death. I spent seventeen years working beside men I never had any intimacy or shared experience with, doing work which numbed my mind and for which I had no physical facility. Its sole purpose was to allow me to grow close to the men and be ready to move when a radically pregnant situation arose. Well, I was never close to the men and no situation arose, at least none I would ever know how to move into. I discovered very quickly I had no talent—repeat none—for organizing, for unionizing, for negotiating. I was slow-witted, clumsy on the uptake, half the time I didn't know what the hell was going on around me. When a real, a natural organizer arose among the men, not only did I see how far away I was from the action, I couldn't even encourage the guy in a radical direction. I'd open my mouth and out would come, I'm sure, I can hardly remember now what I said, some Marxist-Leninist formula The guy would just stare at me, shake his head, and walk away. I know he liked me, but I'm also sure he thought I was retarded. _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Going into industry
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Gladys Scales in A Red Family: Junius, Gladys, and Barbara Scales: The [Communist] Party knew they had talented people and used their talents, yet many stupid things were done with people. One was a period of industrial concentration, where intellectuals and students were taken out of school and put into factory work. They were going to organize the workers. First of all, they stuck out like sore thumbs. You can't take an intellectual and put blue jeans on him and make him look like a worker. The workers didn’t particularly trust him. They weren’t really at ease and neglected their own talents. It was like putting a square peg into a round hole. _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] an Antarsya view on post-referendum Greece; on Syriza and its left
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * OXI vote boosts Greek workers’ confidence by Panos Garganas Socialist Worker, Britain, July 7 http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/art/40890/OXI+vote+boosts+Greek+workers%E2%80%99+confidence People in Greece are elated with the referendum result. They have said no to austerity and showed they are prepared to stand up to the bankers’ pressure. But the political leadership is out of touch with this mood—and ignoring the victory of the No. Leaders of all the political parties have signed a joint statement that starts by saying the result is not a mandate to break with the European Union New finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos was on his way to Brussels with a new proposal for an agreement as Socialist Worker went to press. It is closely based on the one prime minister Alexis Tsipras couldn’t sign two weeks ago. But there will be a revolt if they try to implement any of this. The EU leaders know this well—and are trying to come up with a scheme to release money only as cuts and privatisations are implemented. There’s tremendous pressure to do this before parliament ends for summer. Any of these measures will face stiff opposition. The no vote means people are more confident than before. Everyone in every workplace knows that they will not be alone if they resist cuts, privatisations and sackings. For all the wheeling and dealing in Brussels, that’s what will happen if they go ahead with this new agreement. Workers in Greece defy bankers’ blackmail by Dave Sewell Socialist Worker, July 7 http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/art/40886/Workers+in+Greece+defy+bankers%E2%80%99+blackmail . . . *Debating the way forward* For many Greek workers the struggle isn’t for a slightly less brutal austerity deal. While the banks remained shut and the government drifted closer to bankruptcy, some workers demanded an alternative. Radiologist Christos Arghyris told Socialist Worker, “At work and at the polling station, people want to talk about workers’ control—taking over the hospitals, the banks, everything.” Trainee surgeon Zanneta had a similar experience. She said, “We’re having really political conversations about the EU and the debt—and the need for workers’ control.” Nurse Maria added, “We want free public healthcare. “We want control of our lives and our workplaces. We will have to take to the streets to demand it.” Building on OXI vote can win real change by Alex Callinicos Socialist Worker, Britain, July 7 http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/art/40869/Building+on+OXI+vote+can+win+real+change . . . The Greek masses asserted control of their destiny last Sunday. To make this more than a fleeting moment they will need to continue, and to demand that their government draws the logical consequences of the No victory. This means breaking with the eurozone, taking permanent control of the banks, introducing a new currency, and using the power of the state to keep the economy running. Firms that threaten to lay off workers should be nationalised under workers’ control. These measures are no longer socialist utopia—they are a practical necessity. To implement this programme the No campaigns in neighbourhoods and workplaces must carry on. We’ve seen divisions on the left weaken, as activists from Syriza and the Anticapitalist Front Antarsya worked together around the referendum, and Communist Party voters largely ignored their leaders’ foolish call to abstain. The greater the self-organisation on the ground, the greater the power of the No camp to counter the chaos the EU is trying to inflict, and to overcome the government’s vacillations. By their actions, those in the radical left in Greece have created an unprecedented opportunity. They must seize it and make history. Manoeuvres from above, movements from below: Greece under Tsipras by Gareth Jenkins and Despina Karayianni International Socialism Issue 147, SWP, Britain posted July 6 [article written at end of May] . . . Conclusion There exists, then, a strategy for beating austerity rooted in the way the working class movement has developed, whatever the outcome of the negotiations. The reason for stressing this is to counter the danger of believing that once a deal is signed all possibilities of resistance will be exhausted. This is the flip side of identifying the political hopes of the movement as identical to what Syriza stands for—and so seeing the battle over an alternative strategy as defined by the battle between the leadership and the left inside Syriza. Optimism is replaced by pessimism. No doubt signing the deal will have a negative effect on people’s hopes in Syriza. But that should not determine the strategy of the left. The point
Re: [Marxism] Syriza MP: It's Time to Take Over the Banks, now!
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * The referendum was merely Act 1. The EU leadership and much of the left appear clueless as to what it means that the polarization of Greek society is gathering momentum. The Greek working class stood up, came on stage, and carried the vote, along with help from small farmers and shopkeepers in regions outside the urban centers. Having felt and seen their own power, they will not easily be stuffed back into passivity. Too late for that. They are now beginning to act for themselves. The Greek capitalist class, backed by the EU, united in opposition to a No vote. If the Syriza regime now tries to force an acceptance of more poverty and misery, by agreeing to some new EU austerity plan, in defiance of the vote, and the mobilized class that won it, there will be a demonstration of how an aroused working class takes a fight away from parliament and into the streets and workplaces. And into the Greek army. Is that a certainty? Of course not. Is that a probability? For sure. The splintering or collapse of the Syriza regime, caught now between pressure from below and pressure from above, and/or the collapse of Greek economic relations in the financial sphere, will tend to move events in the same direction, whether or not some new EU plan is accepted by the regime. That is what the left has described in the past as a pre-revolutionary situation, although it would appear that few have a clue now about the direction in which events are tending. Should the Greek general staff, some of whom have political ties to the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party, attempt a military solution, they will bring on revolutionary class warfare. What Greek soldiers do then will be decisive. Hopefully, there are forces in Greece who do see the material reality of what is before their eyes, and are preparing accordingly, inside and outside of the Greek armed forces. T -Original Message- From: Dayne Goodwin via Marxism marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu Sent: Jul 8, 2015 6:06 PM To: Thomas F Barton thomasfbar...@earthlink.net Subject: Re: [Marxism] Syriza MP: It's Time to Take Over the Banks, now! POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * The transcript of this interview wasn't yet available when i sent the original message. It is now. Here are some excerpts: . . . JAY: Now, you're a member of parliament. You've been writing columns in the Guardian. What are you advocating now? In this moment, what should Syriza's next steps be? LAPAVITSAS: Let's think here about a number of things. The strategy of Syriza before the election, and for most of its time in government, has been to achieve radical change in Greece and a new relationship with the lenders, solving the macroeconomic problems of the country within the Eurozone. The argument was if we negotiate hard, if we use democratic weapons that we've got in our hands, we will achieve a better settlement for the Greek people. This strategy has come to an end. _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Fwd: Zoltan Pogatsa: Open Letter to anti-Greek Eastern European bloc
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * http://analyzegreece.gr/topics/greece-europe/item/277-zoltan-pogatsaq-open-letter-to-anti-greek-eastern-european-bloc _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Matthew Hooton and the totalitarians
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Matthew Hooton used to write speeches for the National Party and now works as a political commentator. He's a social-liberal and right-wing on economics (a fairly standard combination in NZ). A few days ago he posted a short comment on a leftish social-democratic blog - one of the most well-read in NZ - that Syriza's economic thinking, if maintained, would lead to totalitarianism. A rather loopy comment given that Greece has already experienced totalitarianism and it was by people with similar economic views to Hooton's own. I did a response to Hooton. Although the context is a NZ one the wider arguments might be of interest to Marxmailers as I briefly deal with right-wing economics and totalitarianism and the fact that the troika bureaucrats are unelected by anybody, let alone having the democratic mandate that Syriza won in the referendum. See: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/07/08/matthew-hooton-and-the-totalitarians/ Phil _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] Trapped by its own success?
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Well I confess that the Telegraph correspondent is closer to my thinking. But there is a piece by Larry Elliott in the Guardian which says almost the exact opposite. He reckons that whatever the outcome Tsirpas comes out of this better. He appears to be reasonable and moderate and willing to do a deal, while Merkel looks like a thug. I read the excerpt from Varoufakis' book on Merkel and the two buttons. Which would she press? One leading to prosperity and the other to a neo-liberal hell. My first comment is that it makes for excellent propaganda in this conjuncture where an anti-austerity politics is coming to the front. Merkel appears confused and hesitant, and that undermines confidence in her as a world leader. My second comment is that this is a classic Keynesian scenario. The solution is simple. Boost demand and all will be well. The failure to boost demand is attributed to personality faults in the leaders, which have led to a crisis of agency. We should note here Galbraith's scathing comments on the personalities of Merkel, Hollande et al. But what (God Forbid) the classical (?) Marxist position is correct, and the crisis is provoked not by personality flaws etc, but by the tendency of the rate of profit to fall? What if there is a structural problem and not an agency problem? Oopsee Daisy! Let me be up front and honest here. I am telling everyone who will listen that they should read Krugman. Of course my treachery, if that is what it is, does not amount to much for very few are listening. But the situation is getting more and more serious. In Greece it is dire, and the suffering of the people is too horrible to contemplate. Here in Australia, the congenital idiots who are in Government and Opposition believe their own stupid propaganda. We are on the brink of a serious national recession, I think, especially if China's share market woes get out of control. In that case recommending Krugman may not be too bad a thing to do. comradely Gary On Wed, Jul 8, 2015 at 10:23 AM, Marv Gandall via Marxism marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu wrote: POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * The astute Telegraph financial columnist, Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, who has closely followed the unfolding crisis in Greece, says the Syriza leadership never expected to win the referendum and is trapped by its own success. It can no longer accede to the punishing demands for greater austerity by the German-led eurozone and the IMF nor does it want to leave the currency union, an impossible contradiction which has revealed itself in the hesitant and confusing political direction of the Tsipras government in its first five months in office. “Mr Tsipras had already made the decision to acquiesce to austerity demands, recognizing that Syriza had failed to bring about a debtors’ cartel of southern EMU states and had seriously misjudged the mood across the eurozone”, E-P writes. A Yes vote which would have mandated that Syriza hand over or share power with a new government to the right prepared to promptly surrender to the creditors’ demands. Now Syriza’s leadership must bear the full responsibility of capitulating against the will of the Greek masses who defiantly rejected that course on Sunday, or must effectively leave the eurozone, E-P reports that the government’s inner cabinet explored in detail and again retreated from the latter option last week prior to the unexpected referendum result. If the Syriza government is finally left with no choice but to reject the ever-escalating austerity demands of the eurozone powers, the only remaining question is whether it will be a chaotic process or one managed in concert with the eurozone powers. Despite the Telegraph columnist’s overwrought contention that that “Syriza has been in utter disarray for 36 hours…events are now spinning out of control…Greece is in turmoil, so is Europe”, Greece’s rupture with the eurozone is not a foregone conclusion. The US, Germany, and their more important allies are nervous and uncertain about the potential social, economic, and geopolitical consequences of a Greek exit. German banks and exporters, in particular, have benefited hugely from the creation of the eurozone, Greece is an important strategic asset for US and NATO military planners, and there are legal impediments to Greece’s formal expulsion from the
Re: [Marxism] Going into industry
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * The thing about the turn to industry was that it was dreamed up by professional revolutionaries/organizers who had absolutely no intention of turning to industry themselves. There was talk of this nonsense in Australia too, but I was never part of the group that took it seriously. But in the IS we had the absolute fetishization of factory sales. Two Battlers sold at factory gates = 300 sold at a rally. What stupid nonsense. comradely Gary On Wed, Jul 8, 2015 at 12:46 PM, Louis Proyect via Marxism marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu wrote: POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Gladys Scales in A Red Family: Junius, Gladys, and Barbara Scales: The [Communist] Party knew they had talented people and used their talents, yet many stupid things were done with people. One was a period of industrial concentration, where intellectuals and students were taken out of school and put into factory work. They were going to organize the workers. First of all, they stuck out like sore thumbs. You can't take an intellectual and put blue jeans on him and make him look like a worker. The workers didn’t particularly trust him. They weren’t really at ease and neglected their own talents. It was like putting a square peg into a round hole. _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/gary.maclennan1%40gmail.com _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Greece should reject the Eurozone’s latest ultimatum; The Financial Attack on Greece, Michael Hudson
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Greece should reject the Eurozone’s latest ultimatum by Jerome Roos ROAR magazine, July 8 http://roarmag.org/2015/07/greece-eurogroup-grexit-ultimatum . . . Given this constellation of forces and the acute economic emergency at home, there seems to be only one sensible thing for Tsipras to do right now: to fly back home and inform his people that he really tried to restart negotiations in good faith but was rebuffed by the creditors, who presented him with yet another ultimatum and yet another disastrous and self-defeating austerity program. This announcement should then immediately be followed by a series of rapid unilateral moves to stave off financial collapse while formally staying within the euro, at least until the government can get the proper preparations in place for a more radical rupture with the single currency. These unilateral moves would include taking over the four systemic banks, issuing an emergency decree to seize the central bank, replacing its governor and taking control of its secret reserves, and immediately starting to issue fresh liquidity (in the form of IOUs and 20 euro bills printed by the Bank of Greece without the ECB’s approval) to keep the economy going. As Ambrose Evans-Pritchard reports, Tsipras rejected this precise course of action after Sunday’s referendum, deeming it too risky and too confrontational. But now that the creditors have taken their financial blackmail to a whole new level and the domestic economic emergency is spinning out of control, it looks like he will soon run out of other options. The choice — rupture or surrender — is still the same, but the circumstances have changed dramatically. Now the streets are full and the banks are empty. This is the time for bold action. Last Sunday, 61% of Greeks said NO to austerity and financial blackmail. Next Sunday, Tsipras should do the same. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Jerome Roos is a PhD researcher in International Political Economy at the European University Institute, and founding editor of ROAR Magazine. The Financial Attack on Greece: Where Do We Go From Here? by Michael Hudson Counterpunch, July 8 http://www.counterpunch.org/2015/07/08/71809 . . . Imposed by the monopoly of inter-governmental financial institutions – the IMF, ECB, U.S. Treasury, and so forth – creditor financial leverage has become the 21st century’s new mode of warfare. It is as devastating as military war in its effect on population: rising suicide rates, shorter lifespans, and emigration of the age-cohort that always have been the major casualties of war, young adults. Instead of being drafted into the army to fight foreign foes, they are driven from their homes to find work abroad. What used to be a rural exodus from the land to the cities from the 17th century onward is now a “debtor exodus” from countries whose governments owe unpayably high sums to creditor governments and to the banks and bondholders on whose behalf they impose their policy. While pushing the world economy into a state of war internationally, high finance also is waging a class war against labor – and ultimately against governments and thus against democracy. The ECB’s policy has been brutal toward Greece this year: “If you do not re-elect a right-wing party or coalition, we will destroy your banking system. If you do not sell off your public domain to buyers we will make life even harder for you.” No wonder Greece’s former Finance Minister Janis Varoufakis called the Troika’s negotiating position “financial terrorism.” Their idea of “negotiation” is surrender. They are unyielding. Official creditor institutions threaten to isolate, sanction and destroy entire economies, including their industry as well as labor. It transforms the 19th-century class war into a purely destructive meltdown. . . . Summary Every nation has a right to defend itself against attack – financial attack just as overt military attack. That is an essential element in the principle of self-determination. Greece, Spain, Portugal, Italy and other debtor countries have been under the same mode of attack that was waged by the IMF and its austerity doctrine that bankrupted Latin America from the 1970s onward. International law needs to be updated to recognize that finance has become the modern-day mode of warfare. Its objectives are the same: acquisition of land, raw materials and monopolies. . . . Current eurozone rules – the Maastricht and Lisbon treaties – aim to block governments from running budget deficits in a way that spend money into the economy to revive employment. The new goal is only to rescue bondholders and banks from making bad loans and even fraudulent
[Marxism] ISO, IDOM: the NO victory and the struggles ahead in Greece
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * The no victory and the struggles ahead by Internationalist Workers Left (DEA), a leading force in the Left Platform w/in Syriza Socialist Worker, U.S., July 7 http://socialistworker.org/2015/07/07/the-no-victory-and-the-struggle-ahead . . . The great victory of workers and the popular masses in the referendum, in the face of the strangulation of the banking system and blackmail of the employers, will lead to critical conflicts in the coming period, starting with the first measure of the relationship of forces: the resumption of negotiations with the creditors this week. WE UNDERSTAND the pressures and dilemmas faced by the government; and in particular the extortion tactics of the creditors with their threats to the banking system. Those threats can only be answered by the nationalization of banks and the establishment of public control, under the direction of the workers in this sector. This is decisive for the functioning of the whole economy. The no vote was an unwavering demand for the reversal of austerity. It is a call for SYRIZA to decisively implement the program of the radical left, taking all economic, political and financial measures necessary. . . . The EU mob seeks revenge against Greece why the European authorities and International Monetary Fund are determined to keep squeezing Greece despite the momentous no vote. by Lee Sustar Socialist Worker, U.S., July 8 http://socialistworker.org/2015/07/08/the-eu-mob-seeks-revenge-in-greece . . . But amid stagnant economic growth in most European countries, successful resistance in Greece could inspire an anti-austerity opposition elsewhere, threatening establishment political parties that are discredited by their support for disastrous measures. At the top of the list is Spain, where the anti-austerity Podemos party has helped to form left-wing governments in some of that country's most important cities. With national elections looming in Spain, Germany is all the more determined to preserve the status quo across Europe--no matter what the cost borne by the people of Greece. That's why the EU, the ECB and the IMF--the institutions, as they're often called--demand that Greece capitulate to their main demands for austerity. They may try to draw Tsipras into negotiations and offer some face-saving concessions. But overall, the institutions will press forward with demands for severe austerity. And if the Greek government's refusal to go along leads to a Grexit from the euro, the European officials will try to make that process as painful as possible--in order to discipline Podemos and other political forces that may consider a similar course. What happens next depends not on deals at the negotiating table, but on the consciousness, organization and struggle of the Greek working class--and on the solidarity that can be built for Greece among working people and the left in other countries. The Greek capitalist class, having once again openly embraced austerity by supporting a yes vote in the July 5 referendum, now stands politically exposed. In these circumstances, the conflicting interests between Greek capital and Greek labor will lead to further sharp conflicts. For example, the nationalization of the banks under workers control and the occupation of factories that close may soon become urgent necessities to keep the Greek economy going. The no vote on July 5 was overwhelming evidence that Greek workers are opposed to enduring further suffering for the sake of creditors. It also marked the beginning of a new phase in the struggle for an alternative. Greek referendum: a slap in the face for the Troika – what next? by Alan Woods Monday, 06 July 2015 In Defense of Marxism (IMT), July 6 http://www.marxist.com/greek-referendum-a-slap-in-the-face-for-the-troika-what-next.htm . . . The beginning of the Greek revolution Syriza is now very popular. If they were to call elections at this moment in time they would increase their vote and be able to govern without the Independent Greek MPs, some of whom joined the Yes camp before the referendum. This shows that the only way forward is to base oneself on the masses, and not rely on manoeuvres and diplomacy at the top. If Tsipras tries to do this, he will be caught like a fly in a spider’s web. The popularity of Syriza would evaporate and the disappointment of the masses would prepare the way for a government of the right. The Syriza leaders will find themselves ground between two huge millstones. On the one hand the European bankers and capitalists will be demanding more cuts and austerity as a condition for releasing any money to the Greek banks. On the other hand, the Greek masses
Re: [Marxism] Going into industry
POSTING RULES NOTES
#1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.
#2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived.
#3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern.
*
For some people it worked quite well, and some stuck it out and did (or are
still doing) for decades.
I mean for goodness' sake if we listed the jobs we've all had just to
survive, and in which we functioned as normal human beings just to get
through the day (including especially thanks to the normal camaraderie with
coworkers), then you can see how long-term patient colonizing was
possible.
I don't regret having done it in a variety of types of workplaces.
On Wed, Jul 8, 2015 at 7:05 PM, Gary MacLennan via Marxism
marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu wrote:
POSTING RULES NOTES
#1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.
#2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived.
#3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern.
*
The thing about the turn to industry was that it was dreamed up by
professional revolutionaries/organizers who had absolutely no intention of
turning to industry themselves.
There was talk of this nonsense in Australia too, but I was never part of
the group that took it seriously.
But in the IS we had the absolute fetishization of factory sales. Two
Battlers sold at factory gates = 300 sold at a rally. What stupid
nonsense.
comradely
Gary
On Wed, Jul 8, 2015 at 12:46 PM, Louis Proyect via Marxism
marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu wrote:
POSTING RULES NOTES
#1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.
#2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived.
#3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern.
*
Gladys Scales in A Red Family: Junius, Gladys, and Barbara Scales:
The [Communist] Party knew they had talented people and used their
talents, yet many stupid things were done with people. One was a period
of
industrial concentration, where intellectuals and students were taken
out
of school and put into factory work. They were going to organize the
workers. First of all, they stuck out like sore thumbs. You can't take an
intellectual and put blue jeans on him and make him look like a worker.
The
workers didn’t particularly trust him. They weren’t really at ease and
neglected their own talents. It was like putting a square peg into a
round
hole.
_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at:
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/gary.maclennan1%40gmail.com
_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at:
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/acpollack2%40gmail.com
_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at:
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Fwd: UI hired lawyers before pulling Salaita offer | News-Gazette.com
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2015-07-08/ui-hired-lawyers-pulling-salaita-offer.html _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] another Antarsya view on post-referendum Greece; Paul Mason on establishment referendum repression
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * [My understanding is that the views of the FI are not necessarily strictly those of its member organization in Greece, OKDE-Spartakos which is part of Antarsya, partly because the FI maintains a friendly working relationship with the ISO of the U.S. which is connected with the DEA (Internationalist Workers Left) which is part of the Red Network and the Left Platform within Syriza. dayne] The victory of the no announces decisive battles against the Troika by Secretariat of the Executive Bureau of the Fourth International (July 7) International Viewpoint, July 8 http://www.internationalviewpoint.org/spip.php?article4113 . . . Whereas Syriza had won 2.2 million votes in January, the no gathered 3.5 million votes, with a turnout one per cent less than in January. Even adding on the voters of ANEL and part of those of the fascist Golden Dawn (which called for a no vote), the polarization around Syriza brought more than 600,000 votes, accentuating the crisis of the Greek representatives of the Troïka, New Democracy (ND), PASOK and To Potami. The crises of PASOK and ND were accentuated, symbolized by the resignation of their leaders within a few days of each other. The hope of the Troïka, echoed by all the media, of seeing a “respectable” government take over quickly went up in smoke. The European leaders have just lost a second round in Greece. Having worn out the traditional parties over five years by an unbearable pressure on the Greek people, they hoped that the arrival of Syriza in January would be a brief interlude of a few weeks before the return of serious people to head Greece. After the retreat by Tsipras at the time of the agreement on February 20, they gambled on a quick surrender, and at the end of June, they counted on a victory of the yes. Merkel and Hollande made the calculation that thanks to the strangulation of the banks, the referendum would bring Tsipras to his knees, forcing him to resign or to submit. As the third round begins, the reasoning is the same: after the shock of their defeat, the European leaders are bouncing back with their usual arrogance. They say that they respect the vote of the Greek people, while announcing that they will not take account of it. They do not intend to change their policies in any way, and for them the cancellation of the debt, or even debt relief, is not a subject to be discussed. There are voices in the camp of the capitalist leaders in favour of accepting at least a partial abandonment of the debt: the International Monetary Fund (IMF) itself recognizes the absurdity of asking Greece to strangle its economy and increase its debt to reimburse the institutions. The US administration is also concerned that pushing Greece out of the euro zone could create both a crisis of the European Union as a whole and a risk of a geostrategic shift on the borders of Europe. But Angela Merkel and the European leaders want to impose a political defeat on the Greek people and their government. Agreeing to cancel a 300 billion euro debt is clearly not an economic problem: the European Central Bank (ECB) is going to create and inject 1,100 billion euros into the European economy by the end of 2016 to counter deflation. It is a political choice, because for them it is out of the question to accept that a people, by its sovereign choice, can refuse to implement the decisions of the European institutions. The proof has just been given to everyone that the European Union and its institutions are not a neutral space or framework. They are political constructions, organized by the capitalists in order to escape from any popular control in the implementation of their interests. This construction will not be reformed. It is illusory to seek to conduct an alternative policy while accepting the sovereignty of these autocratic institutions. Therefore, in the coming days, with a new relationship of forces, the alternative for the Greek government will be the same as in the previous weeks: accept an agreement that continues and worsens the attacks against the population or take another road, that of a radical break. ...The policy of the international institutions was overwhelmingly rejected last Sunday. As a result the mandate from the Greek people is unambiguous: it expresses a radical rejection of an agreement that prolongs unemployment, poverty, the dismantling of social rights and public services. This mandate requires the termination of the payment of the illegitimate and odious debt, a path that, with the nationalization and control of the banking system, gives the Greek people sovereignty over its political, economic and social choices. These are the choices
[Marxism] Local elections in Argentina / Good results for the Left and Workers’ Front
POSTING RULES NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Full text: http://www.leftvoice.org/Good-results-for-the-Left-and-Workers-Front-in-Mayoral-and-Legislative-Elections-in-Buenos-Aires The left grew in its number of votes compared to the primary elections with 3.9% for Luis Zamora (from Self-Determination and Freedom, AyL) and 3.1 % for the FIT (Left and the Workers’ Front) in the election for city Mayor. Both organizations gained seats at the local legislature (AyL won 4% and the FIT won 4.7 %, adding a new FIT legislator to the bench). When asked about about her position on the second round next July 19, Myriam Bregman stated, “We call for people to cast a blank ballot: both candidates, Larreta, and Lousteau have the same political foundation, one which favours big businesses and bosses. Their national leader is Mauricio Macri, presidential candidate for the PRO. In contrast, we are on the opposite side; we fight for workers’, women’s, and youth rights. The Blank ballot will be counted and is the best option to reject both bourgeois candidates and their anti-worker policies”. _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
