In educated circles in the world nowadays, not only is "capital" a perfectly neutral objective scientific concept now to analyse what is actually happening, which does not immediately signify that the speaker is a card-carrying communist, "working class" is creeping back.
Yesterday I was startled to hear, admittedly on Newsnight, the BBC 2 authoritative late evening tv programme for the political intelligentsia, an authoritative spokesperson from some organisation with an impressive title like "institute for war and peace studies" note that what has happened inKyrgyztan is indeed a little different from say the Ukraine, and Lebanon, in that it is actually a "working class revolution" arising from the extreme poverty of ordinary people. Leaving aside details about whether some of these people are not quite working class in the marxist sense of the word, but possibly are located in more semi-feudal, or semi-peasant position in the means of production, the message as far as the enlightened supporters of capital is concerned is one of well meaning (?) concern. Clearly it is alarming that riots and looting are occuring and unfortunate that people in an out of the way corner of the world are so poor and desperate that a government can be toppled almost overnight.
I understand the (London) Times today is expressing some unease that "authority" may break down in the whole of central Asia and suggesting that Russia and the USA who both have important military basis in this country may want to cooperate very cautiously to stabilize the situation.
[After all if the populist and even working class uprising should spread to Uzbekistan and destabilise that regime, this would reduce the possibility of US authorities routinely handing over suspected islamic terrorists for colourful interrogation methods with which the Putin regime probably has no difference of principle.]
Contradictions. Contradictions. How to put a lid on them?
Chris Burford London
