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S. Artesian wrote: > > The 2008 election FOR THE BOURGEOISIE was about who could best divert, > prevent, canalize, subdue emerging class struggle; who could best get > silence assent for austerity and impoverishment from the very people being > impoverished. It's Joaquin's attachment to bougeois image, and > myth-making, > to think that it was anything else. > My comment: I generally go along with statements like this which view elections largely in functional terms, where the ruling class get elected the candidate of their choice. But I wonder about what emerging class struggle Artesian is referring to. Granted that it is in the nature of the relationship between the working class and the bourgeoisie that there is a real tendency for class struggle from below to break out. Granted that the clever section of the Bourgeoisie is ever alert to the * possibility* of an outbreak of class struggle and like to head it off. But surely we have had a cowed working class and a collaborationist union leadership at least since the 70s. As a result the clever section of the bourgeoisie has not had a significant role to play in American life for quite some time. We have the arrogant and hopefully terminally stupid section in charge - witness the Tea parties and the health care fiasco. Witness as well the proliferation of wars and the ongoing take over of Haiti right in full view of the world. There is a direct line from the bases in Columbia, to the de facto endorsement of the Honduras coup to now the Marines deploying once more in Port au Prince. I think it was Fred who described this process as being quite ad hoc. Well it is certainly like a train out of control. A crash is coming that is for sure and it may even be soon. Finally to give these thoughts some coherence, I tend to put my money on Obama being President in an effort to shore up America's reputation abroad. It helps to be able to finish a sentence if you want to lead the world's bourgeoisie. Though of course Stinger missiles are more important. regards Gary ________________________________________________ Send list submissions to: [email protected] Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
