On 22 Jan 2025 at 8:12, sartesian via groups.io wrote: > > RKOB has posted links to a number of articles claiming victories for > the oppressed that > are enshrined in the rubble and debris of imperial adventures. Just > another example of > what happens when ideology is more important than reality. > _._,_._,_ > Actually, it's an example of the bankruptcy of the theory of permanent revolution. This theory is so irrelevant to the actual situation in Gaza that those who follow it are left with no coherent standard to judge what is going on. And so, even the current disaster can be proclaimed a victory.
Supposedly the theory of permanent revolution is the alternative to giving in to bourgeois or reactionary forces in the name of various democratic movements or the fight for the right to self-determination. It puts forward that unless the movement goes on to socialsm or a workers' state or a socialist federation of the entire MENA region, it will give rise to nothing. And yet here we see that it doesn't prevent some of its followers from hailing the devastation of Gaza as a great victory. During the Arab Spring, the theory of permanent revolution gave rise to various Trotskyist groups either imagining that the struggle in various countries would move on towards the establishment of workers' states, or, when they realized that it wouldn't do this, abandoning the movement or even denouncing it. (This is discussed in, for example, "Dreams of immediate socialist revolution" in the article "Against left-wing doubts about the democratic movement" (1)), Thus the theory of permanent revolution provided no help in understanding what was going on in the Arab Spring. It led either to euphoria over the struggle at various moments, or to denigrating it. Ditto for the Palestinian movement. Does the theory of permanent revolution give any realistic assessment about what is going on? Not at all. The establishment of revolutionary workers' regimes or a socialist federation of the Middle East are not imminent. So to avoid denouncing the movement, one has to put aside "permanent revolution".for a time. But having done that, what standard is left for Trotskyists to judge what is going on? The vacuum in standards is such that one can even declare that the Gaza war is a victory for Hamas, and even do that before it's clear that the ceasefire will even hold. (1) See https://www.communistvoice.org/46cLeftWingDoubts.html -- Joseph Green -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#34798): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/34798 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/110749212/21656 -=-=- 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. #4 Do not exceed five posts a day. -=-=- Group Owner: marxmail+ow...@groups.io Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/13617172/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [arch...@mail-archive.com] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
