====================================================================== Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. ======================================================================
On Sun, 19 Sep 2010 06:38:22 -0400 "Richard Levins" <human...@hsph.harvard.edu> writes: > > > I try to deal with some of ths in the April Monthly Review. Richard's article can be read online at: http://www.monthlyreview.org/100401levins.php Jim Farmelant http://independent.academia.edu/JimFarmelant > > > ========================= > Richard Levins > > >>> Joonas Laine <jjo...@nic.fi> 9/19/2010 3:29 AM >>> > ====================================================================== > Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a > message. > ====================================================================== > > > Joaqu�n Bustelo wrote: > > On 9/18/2010 6:29 PM, danan wrote: > >> Sending 30 000 people to re-education camps, > > I don't subscribe to Marxmail to read CIA lies against Cuba. > > I can understand if people who know what they're talking about are > frustrated because what they consider CIA lies come up all the time. > But > people like me who don't know Cuba stuff so well - and thus can't > tell > which are the lies and which are real problems - are not helped by > replies like this. Of course nobody has any responsibility to > explain > anything in any length, but if I'm ever going to discuss Cuba with > someone who has some criticisms they've read in the press, I won't > have > the confidence to do that unless I know what I'm talking about. > Nothing > is more embarrassing than someone throwing some fact (or "fact") at > you > that you were totally unaware of, and so you're totally unprepared > and > can't say anything against it, apart from the argument that can be > given > in response to *any* criticism: Cuba is the victim of a ruthless > blockade. You lose all credibility if that's all you can say. > > No doubt the argument is true, but I would like to know in more > detail > what I'm defending, especially the more unpleasant things. It's not a > > condition to defend Cuba, but it is a condition of being able to do > that > in public. Feeling ambivalent and private sympathy from the > sidelines is > hardly the best way to do that. > > Many people became totally disillusioned about the Soviet Union > because > they had believed what the CP press wrote about it. What a surprise > then > to find out that some 20 000 Finns were killed there in the 1930s, > many > of whom had fled the Finnish whites after the civil war, or later in > the > 20s and 30s, in search of a better life. Does one respond to that > that > the USSR was a victim of ruthless pressure from the capitalist > world, > isolated etc..? That's true of course, but hardly a sufficient > answer. > I'm not saying anyone's doing that to Cuba on this list, but how can > I > know, if all I have is "Cuba is the victim of a ruthless blockade"? > > I'm so totally fed up with the Finnish communist party newspaper's > Cuba > "reporting", because it's all about the health care and education > all > the time, and nothing else. Not that it's not important, but if > that's > ALL YOU GET, over and over again, year after year, you begin to > wonder > whether they really know anything at all. You just can't trust them > to > talk about the more complicated things as well, so what they write > isn't > worth shit in the long run. The kind of sunshine news they publish > is > good enough for keeping the faithful in line, but no good at all in > trying to educate people to be able to defend Cuba in public. > > I don't share Dan's view on things, but I think it's good he brought > the > questions up. I take it as a chance for us less knowledgeable to > learn > by seeing how the more knowledgeable on the list defeat him by means > of > elaborated and reasoned argument, so that I'll be able to do the > same > sometime in the future. > ____________________________________________________________ Staples® Weekly Ad Computer Clearance! Amazing deals on case paper and HP ink! http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/4c95f29bdb0ae1cd7f0m03vuc
________________________________________________ Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
