Joanna wrote:
I think it was Marx who said that socialist revolution would not be
possible in the United States until we have solved the race question.
I imagine you are referring to Ireland. Marx never wrote much about
socialism in the U.S.
Obama's election is a first step in that process. There is no question
that class trumped race in this election and this is a good thing. There
is no question that Obama's election is the result of thousands' of
disenfrancised and passive people becoming politically active and this
is a good thing. Obama's avoidance of identity politics and his framing
of issues like security, health, education, and environment as issues
that affect us all is a good thing.
What does "avoidance of identity politics" mean? Calling attention to
the fact that in the U.S. Black people have lower wages, poorer health
and are incarcerated at a higher percentage than their percentage of the
population as a whole? I admit he did a very good job of that.
You work with the world such as it is. It is never pure, but it might
have possibilities. Obama has the makings of a statesman, he has a sense
of history, and this is a good thing. What is possible with his
election, because of what it took to get him elected, is very different
than what would have been possible if McCain had won. If we keep
pushing, speaking out, and engaging with others to make this a better
world, we can make some progress.
What is the alternative?
There are 2 ways at looking at the question of TINA (There is no
alternative.) First, you can accept the objective conditions and not go
off on an ultraleft binge like the sectarian "Marxist-Leninist" groups
for whom it is always 1917. We don't want to go there. Secondly, you can
persist--no matter how unpopular it is--to point out that Obama is
basically a Rockefeller Republican, just like Clinton and Carter. I
advocate that stance.
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