There are two central issues which cannot be ignored if we wish to be serious:
First: Internationalism has always been at the center of any group that claims to be socialist. That is why we cannot dismiss the international policies of DSA so easily, and it is undeniable that DSA's policies in effect defend Putin. In doing so, they are complicit with fascism. That was seen in the delegation DSA sent to the pro-Putin "International anti-Fascist Conference" in Porto Alegre. That conference was not anti-fascist at all. It was pro-Putin, as I pointed out in my article on it. And since Putin is a central nexus for ethno-nationalists, all sorts of bigots, and actual fascists, that means that the conference was complicit with fascism, and DSA is part of the crowd. A minority can almost always control the majority if that minority is motivated, well organized and clear on its goals while the majority is not. Whether the ultra left Putinized caucuses represent the views of the majority or not I do not know, although my experience is that at least as far as Putin and Russia they do. And in any case, I have not seen the the more pragmatic wing show any real stomach for a political struggle over these issues. Second: I don't know how many of those who commented on this subject read the actual article. However, the key point is this one: *'**The “revolutionary” left inside DSA is opposed, to a degree, by the more pragmatic wing. However, there is one issue upon which they both fully agree – and upon which the entire Democratic Party agrees: That is support for the bureaucracy that controls the unions. That bureaucracy rests on the alienation that the great majority of the membership feels towards their organizations – the unions – themselves. The key question is when, where and through what dynamics will an independent movement of the working class develop? At this point, it seems most likely that such a movement will develop largely outside the unions, but it is impossible for it not to sweep into its ranks a large layer of union members.'* None of those who commented on my post commented on this issue - DSA's pro-union bureaucracy policy. Try as they might, DSA (or any socialist group) cannot organize within the working class without having a policy regarding the unions. DSA's policy can be understood by the fact that the bureaucracy has its lower level representatives - the union staffers - in the local chapters' labor committees (and probably elsewhere) and there is no raging debate with those staffers. That can only mean one thing: DSA accepts the policies of the union bureaucracy. Silence means assent, after all. John Reimann -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#42428): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/42428 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/120140354/21656 -=-=- 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: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/13617172/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
