Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Marx and Malleability

[Jim Devine]

Brad writes:
>Or, in other words: "Democracy? We don't need no stinkin' democracy! We 
>directly express the general will!"

That's the perspective of many utopian socialists, Stalinists, and the IMF, 
which sees its policies as Good For Humanity in the Long Run, so that it 
doesn't matter if democracy is scuttled in the "short run."

>I would think that Cromwell was the first to make this mistake, when he 
>dismissed the Long Parliament. Robespierre certainly made it--and then 
>executed both Hebert and Danton when it became clear that their vision of 
>direct expression of the general will was different from his.

Draper is pretty clear that Marx was no fan of either Cromwell or 
Robespierre. Marx was quite critical of Rousseau's idea of the General Will.

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Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] &  http://liberalarts.lmu.edu/~jdevine