[Marxism] PASS IT ON---When Our Turn Comes' launch debut single 'Climate Strike' | Green Left Weekly

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

https://www.greenleft.org.au/video/when-our-turn-comes-launch-debut-single-climate-strike

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
https://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

Re: [Marxism] venezuela --- 'a model of socialism for the 21st century'

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Jgreen has responded to me by once again misunderstanding what I wrote. 
Rather than jump into an extensive exchange of  'he said, I said' 
quotations--- of interest, I assume. to a small set of site readers, 
let's go directly to the central issues.
    1. I believe that the Bolivarian Revolution (and what remains of it 
at this critical stage) must be defended against US imperialism, its 
allies and the Venezuelan oligarchy. Do you? If not, what is your 
proposal for revolutionaries?
    2. I believe that the Bolivarian Revolution has been deformed by a 
combination of capitalist and statist elements within the Chavist 
coalition (and that its disastrous economic policies reflect not simply 
mistakes but vested interests) but that it retains the (very) critical 
support of commune activists and the organised working classes, and I 
identify with their position. Do you not?


    As far as your unique reading of what I wrote, let two examples 
suffice:


So let's read what you wrote in 2016, that is, during Maduro's 
presidency, in thearticle titled "What Is Socialism for the 
Twenty-First Century?"


Consider the subsection labelled "The Key Link". It begins:

"So, let us explain what socialism for the twenty-first century is. 
There are lessons
to be learned from the experiences of the twentieth century, and the 
Bolivarian
Constitution of Venezuela adopted in 1999, reflects many of those 
lessons.
Are there lessons to be learned from the experiences of the twentieth 
century?
And do you reject the idea that they might be reflect in the Bolivarian 
Constitution?
(Incidentally, I should point out that the article in question was first 
published as a booklet in Cuba [as part of our programme there on 
socialism for the 21st century], and you would understand its meaning 
especially by reading it in that context.)

.

And in 2012, you wrote that:

"...The society we want to build is one that recognizes that 'the free 
development
of each is the condition for the free development of all.' How can we 
ensure,
though, that our communal, social productivity is directed to the free 
development
of *all* rather than used to satisfy the private goals of caitalists, 
groups of
indiiduals, or state bureaucrats? A second side of what President 
Chavez of

Venezuela called on his 'Alo Presidente' program in January 2007 the
'elementary triangle of socialism' concerns the distribution of the 
means of
production. 'Social ownership of the means of production' is that 
second side. Of
course, it is essential to understand that social ownership is not the 
same as state

ownership. Social ownership implies a profound democracy -- one in which
people function as subjects, both as producers and as members of 
society, in

determining the use of the results of our social labor."

This is from the introduction, entitled "New Wings for Socialism", of 
your book
"Contradictions of Real of Real Socialism: The Conductor and the 
Conducted", p.

19. Now, isn't the term "new wings" another way of referring to models?
As indicated in the poem from Brecht ['songs for children, Ulm 1592] 
with which that introduction begins, the reference to 'wings' is to the 
tailor who tries to fly 'with things that looked like wings' and is 
crushed. At the end of that introduction. I indicate that the book ['The 
Contradictions of "Real Socialism"] is 'about that attempt in the 
twentieth century to build an alternative to capitalism, an alternative 
that relied upon things that looked like wings and crashed.'
    Both of of these examples relate to lessons we need to learn from 
the experience of 'real socialism'.

   michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
https://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] What’s going on in Venezuela? Chronicle of a Failed Intervention | Venezuelanalysis.com

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

https://venezuelanalysis.com/video/14395

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
https://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] venezuela --- 'a model of socialism for the 21st century'

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

J Green described my view of Venezuela and socialism as follows:

"This is
the same Lebowitz who talks about about how Venezuela is a model of 
socialism

for the 21st century and lauds its democracy as an alternative to the "real
socialism" of the Soviet model. ("What Is Socialism for the Twenty-First
Century?",
https://monthlyreview.org/2016/10/01/what-is-socialism-for-the-twenty-first-century
/)."
    This is simply an idiotic distortion. Green should try reading. I 
have never described Venezuela as a model of socialism; rather, I have 
stressed that there has been a struggle for socialism within it. In an 
interview in a Serbian paper in 2012 on the prospects for Chavez's 4th 
election [reprinted in Links and Venezuelanalysis-- 
venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/7417], I noted the development of communal 
councils and continued:


This is a process that has been described by Chavez as one of creating 
the cells of a new socialist state. As well, there is a process of 
development of workers’ councils. Here again it is a process of 
transforming people, of creating the conditions in which they are able 
to develop all their capacities. In particular, the Bolivarian 
Revolution has been creating people with a sense of dignity and pride.


These are very important achievements. But they don’t happen smoothly, 
and it is important to recognise there are many contradictions within 
/Chavism/. There are three groups and tendencies within /Chavism/. One 
can be found at the base with the social movements, the communities and 
portions of the working class. Another is composed of those individuals 
and groups that have risen with Chavez but, having enriched themselves 
through their positions and through the continuation of corruption and 
clientalism, now think the revolution should be over – and it is for 
them. (They are often referred to as the “boli-bourgeoisie”.) A third 
group is committed to continuing the revolution but doing so entirely 
from the top down; its perspective is one of ordering the advance of 
socialism, and it does not want to leave decisions at the bottom.


While Chavez himself is very vocal about the theoretical importance of 
building at the base and allowing people to develop their capacities 
through their own protagonism, he is impatient and often supports those 
who don’t have the same orientation.


So, what will happen in Chavez’s next term of office? That depends on 
class struggle within the Chavez camp. It would be a struggle which 
revolves around Chavez’s party (the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, 
PSUV), which contains all these elements but in which the top-down 
orientation has dominated and at the same time dispirited many people at 
the base.


    As for not bothering to meet with the 'critical chavistas' or PSOL 
leaders, I assume Fred Fuente's interest was in exploring what was 
happening at the base rather than meeting [in the limited time 
available] leaders with no followers whose positions are well-known.


 michael



--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
https://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

Re: [Marxism] Venezuela: despite the crisis, Chavez's legacy endures (Green Left Weekly)

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Re Fred Fuentes' Green Left Weekly article, John Reimann wrote

'I am guessing that the reporter didn't just go to Venezuela on their own
but that they were shown around, so the question is: "Who is it that showed
them around?" That little detail is left out, but I would bet it wasn't the
socialist opposition, for instance the Party for Socialism and Freedom
there. In fact, I would bet it was people associated with the PSUV, that is
to say, Maduro supporters.'

    As it happens, Fred lived in Venezuela for a number of years [eg., 
worked with me at Centro Internacional Miranda], had many links with 
working class organisations, worked with Marea Socialista and with trade 
union leaders like Stalin Perez. He had no need to be 'shown around' as 
he has had continuing contacts with militants, has organised periodic 
tours from Australia and had a list of trade union and commune militants 
he was planning to contact this time. I haven't heard who he succeeded 
in seeing and interviewing when there [and really look forward to more 
articles in GLW] but I'm guessing it wasn't the 'party for socialism and 
freedom' [which was so opposed to Chavez that it joined in a front with 
the CTV. the CIA labour fed] or the 'Critical Chavistas' who [including 
Gonzalo Gomez, Aporrea editor] met with Guaido, the CIA handpuppet, in 
early february. BTW, anyone who knows anything about PSUV knows there is 
a big difference between its leadership and the base.

        michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
https://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

Re: [Marxism] ISO (and Mike Gonzalez) on Venezuela

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

In his support of Mike Gonzalez' obiter dicta, John Reinmann has 
pontificated on the communal councils in Venezuela as follows:

when I was in Venezuela in 2005. At
that time, you could see that the community meetings were not centers of
mobilization for the working class. If the one I attended was any example
(and I believe it was), they were gatherings where different elements got
together to compete for the fruits of power.



Chris refers to the community councils. According to several people, these
were always a means of the Chavez regime exerting its influence on the
communities, and if the one that I attended was any example, it certainly
wasn't a venue for workers to exert their power.


Frankly, anyone who spent any time going around to communal councils 
there would recognise this as so much crap. What was obvious was the 
pride and sense of power that members of those councils had when talking 
about the projects and collective work they had engaged in. [You can see 
this these days from activists in the communes-- which you can read 
about in venezuelanalysis, glw and links.] As for John's observations 
when he visited as a tourist in 2005, it is worth noting that the law on 
communal councils [which greatly stimulated this as a national project] 
was not until 2006. There were, of course, earlier local initiatives 
[especially based on land committees]. One notable council [which became 
the model for the national law] was in the city of Cumana in the state 
of Sucre; the people who had taken the lead in organising and developing 
it for a few years came from the Liga Socialista [and one of the key 
people explained, we decidcd to focus upon the community because we 
concluded that we'd been trying to organise the wrong working class].

    michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
https://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] Aggression Against Venezuela Reaches a New Level of Intensity | Venezuelanalysis.com

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

https://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/14262
From the Bolivar and Zamora Revolutionary Current:

It is necessary to accelerate and deepen the preparations for the 
integral defense of the territory in which the whole country is 
involved, as indicated by the doctrine bequeathed by Commander Chávez. 
In this aspect, the deepening and strengthening of the work of the 
Bolivarian National Militia is central. The Bolivar and 
Zamora Revolutionary Current is promoting the Hugo Chavez Popular 
Defense Brigades, mainly in Tachira, Apure and Barinas states, as a 
contribution for the social territorial organization in the 
defense against fascism and imperialism. We call on all the patriot 
people to join these tasks that are inescapable today.


--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
https://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] raoul peck

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Note that Pirate Bay has his film, Lumumba.
    michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

Re: [Marxism] reference to the Port Huron Statement

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*



On 11/10/2017 1:45 PM, Glenn Kissack wrote:

  I'm sure that somewhere on line there is the real Port Huron Statement (and 
maybe even the original draft, which would allow those interested to get a 
sense of the changes collectively made in Port Huron).

Is this it?

http://www.sds-1960s.org/PortHuronStatement-draft.htm


That looks like the original draft. The statement passed at Port Huron 
seems to be: 
http://www.progressivefox.com/misc_documents/PortHuronStatement.pdf


--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] reference to the Port Huron Statement

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Anthony Boynton, in his comment upon the recent elections, pointed to 
SDS at its beginning and provided a link to the Port Huron Statement. 
Linkers Beware: that is not the Port Huron statement. It excludes, among 
other sections (the omissions suggested by a tiny elipse) the Economy 
(confession: I co-chaired this workshop with Robb Burlage), Colonial 
Revolution, Anti-Communism, Discrimination, Industrialization of the 
World, etc. I'm sure that somewhere on line there is the real Port Huron 
Statement (and maybe even the original draft, which would allow those 
interested to get a sense of the changes collectively made in Port Huron).

    michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] Venezuela's Former Opposition Leader Slams Opposition's Failure at Polls

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

"They failed in their proposal for insurrection - what do I mean when I 
say insurrection well you remember the speech on the 3rd of July in 
Chacao. The four key phrases used then were - national uprising, 
upsurging rebellion, zero hour and general strike. That's a proposal for 
insurrection. The insurrection failed, they failed at these past 
election and on top of that they don't like dialogue. So if you don't 
want to vote, you're bad at insurrection, and you don't wan't to 
dialogue, what do you want - collective suicide?"



 Venezuela's Former MUD Leader Slams Opposition's Failure at Polls

*venezuelanalysis.com*/analysis/13452 


‎10‎/‎19‎/‎2017

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] People are radicalizing the Bolivarian Revolution | MR Online

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Apropos recent posts on the crisis in Venezuela:

"The other thing I’d like to emphasize, which I hope to speak to more as 
we go on, is that all of the grassroots organizing and mobilizing that 
the Bolivarian Revolution has been known for over the years is very much 
alive and kicking right now. This was never of interest to the 
mainstream media, but even the alternative media has been rather remiss 
in its coverage, and far too often it is as if the people, communities, 
and movements that are doing a tremendous amount of inspiring work on 
the ground are invisible."


**
https://mronline.org/2017/09/01/people-are-radicalizing-the-bolivarian-revolution/ 




--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] re Venezuelan Constituent Assembly

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Pretty disappointed in Joaquin Bustelo's confused ramble. Rather than 
reciting from an interview with an unknown university expert, he would 
learn a bit from the fine interviews that Fred Fuentes has been 
conducting for Green Left Weekly recently and what has been appearing on 
Links. Cf, eg,:


Steve Ellner 
https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/venezuela-trump-talks-military-options-maduro-constituent-assembly 

Maria Helena Ramirez Hernandez 
https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/venezuela-revolutionary-sex-and-gender-diversity-alliance-constituent-assembly 
**
Stalin Perez Borges 
https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/venezuela-socialist-trade-unionist-constituent-assembly-terror-attack-military-base


One of these follows.
 michael


 Venezuela’s Revolutionary Sex and Gender Diversity Alliance: 'The
 Constituent Assembly has been a huge boost to the spirit of Chavistas'


Activists from Venezuela’s Revolutionary Sex and Gender Diversity Alliance.
Tuesday, August 15, 2017

There has been a lot of media focus on Venezuela’s recently inaugurated 
National Constituent Assembly (ANC). However, little attention has been 
paid to the response it has generated among grassroots organisations or 
the variety of proposals being discussed in communities in terms of 
potential constitutional changes.


The ANC was put forward by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro as a 
means towards a peaceful and democratic solution to months of political 
turmoil in the country. It will have plenipotentiary powers to deal with 
the current economic and political crisis, and will discuss proposals to 
reform the constitution, though any official amendments will have to be 
put to a referendum.


*Maria Helena Ramirez Hernandez, *an activist with the Revolutionary Sex 
and Gender Diversity Alliance (ASGDRe) and student at the Bolivarian 
University of Venezuela, spoke with /Green Left Weekly/’s *Federico 
Fuentes *about what the July 30 vote for the ANC meant for grassroots 
/Chavistas/ – supporters of the pro-poor Bolivarian Revolution initiated 
by late socialist leader Hugo Chavez – and the kinds of constitutional 
changes that the ASGDRe are putting forward for debate.


***

*Could you tell us a bit about the importance of the July 30 vote for 
the National Constituent Assembly (ANC) - what happened on the day, the 
significance of the voter turnout and the impact it has had on the 
political situation in Venezuela since.*


The importance of the July 30 elections went beyond the event itself 
because, in the minds of Venezuelans, it represented a critical turning 
point: It was an opportunity for the people to express themselves in an 
election on two very different proposals.


One proposal was to support terrorism as a means to overthrow the 
government; the other was to choose representatives from grassroots 
organisations across the country to a National Constituent Assembly to 
discuss and approve the decisions needed to solve the problems we need 
to solve.


It turned out that 8,089,320 people chose to vote for the solutions to 
be thought up, deliberated upon, taken and made reality through the ANC.


So what was important was deciding, with the support of the people, that 
we as a society were going to move forward with solving all the things 
that need to be solved.


For example: how to overcome the threat of terrorism; how to make even 
more efficient decisions regarding the control of prices of goods and 
food; establish a new strong base for building a non-oil dependent 
economy; establish the basis for the recognition of a more diverse 
society where, for example, gay marriage is included and women have the 
right to decide over their own bodies (safe abortion).


On that day, July 30, a nationwide movement of supporters went out to 
vote. Having more than 8 million people vote for a proposal sounds like 
an easy task, but it's not, especially if people don't really believe in 
the proposal or support it.


It is important to say that most of the country got the chance to vote 
in peace, but in some states, opposition terrorist groups were out 
trying to physically stop people from vote. They closed down streets, 
threaten to kill voters and burnt down some polling stations, among 
other violent street actions.


In Altamira, an area in the east of Caracas, they practically didn't 
allow anyone to vote as they took over that area. When the police went 
to settle down the 

Re: [Marxism] venezuelan election for the Constituent Assembly

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*



On 7/30/2017 10:00 PM, Gary MacLennan wrote:

Michael,

If you can find the time for an extended piece on the Venezuelan 
situation that would be deeply appreciated.  I was dismayed to note 
that the radical/progressive Radio Station Novara Media out of London 
is to arrange a debate on Venezuela - for and against. That to me 
means that the counter revolutionary forces in Venezuela have been 
very successful in their self presentation.

Gary,
Unfortunately, I'm not in a position these days to pursue this but 
think that recent pieces by Steve Ellner (who is there) and George 
Ciccariello-Maher (both available at the Socialist Project website) are 
quite useful (as was Claudio Katz's commentary on the Left in Vzla, 
available on Links. Certainly, the counter-revolutionary forces in the 
country and outside have been quite successful in presenting their 
narrative as the truth. Consider how the declared 7 million voters in 
the opposition-organised consultation has been accepted as truth by the 
capitalist media despite the absence of monitoring, the ability to vote 
multiple times (as recorded on video), the questionable math in terms of 
how many people could vote at the limited number of tables in the time 
period--- and the inability to verify results given the rapid 
destruction of the voting records; compare that to the dismissal of 
yesterday's announcement of over 8 million votes in the election of 
members of the Constituent Assembly-- despite the fact that this 
election took place via electronic machines (where multiple voting was 
prevented) and the official system provides a paper counterpart for each 
vote. The opposition has cried fraud for every election carried out this 
way and their narrative has been accepted unquestionably this time. The 
answers to this internally are for the Venezuelan people to provide. But 
a counter-narrative externally is for those of us who part company with 
the capitalist media to provide, and venezuelanalysis is a good place to 
start for information.

in solidarity,
  michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] venezuelan election for the Constituent Assembly

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Initial reports from the Electoral Commission is that over 8 million [or 
41% of the electorate] voted.

  michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] re Soviet Economic Model

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Impossible not to respond to Andrew Stewart's query:
"Does anyone have a decent, understandable brief that explains the operation
of the Soviet economy at its best moment (what that is probably is going to
be a whole other debate)?"

Here was my entry: "Contradictions of 'Real Socialism': the Conductor 
and the Conducted", published by Monthly Review Press in 2012 (with a 
Cuban edition in 2015 and revised Spanish translations forthcoming in 
Chile, Ecuador and Spain) and reviewed nicely by Louis at

http://www.counterpunch.org/2012/10/03/the-contradictions-of-real-socialism/

Contents and cover blurbs:

Preface
Introduction: New Wings for Socialism
Overture: The Conductor and the Conducted
Ch.1. The Shortage Economy
Ch.2. The Social Contract
Ch.3. The Nature and Reproduction of Vanguard Relations of Production
Ch.4. Contested Reproduction within ‘Real Socialism’
Ch.5. The Conductor and the Battle of Ideas in the Soviet Union
Ch.6. From Moral Economy to Political Economy
Ch.7. Towards a Society of Associated Conductors
Ch.8. Goodbye to Vanguard Marxism

Cover Blurbs:

The profound understanding in this new book of why 20th century attempts 
at constructing socialism failed must be an essential element in the 
socialist renewal emerging amid the first great capitalist crisis of the 
21st century.--Leo Panitch, Editor, The Socialist Register


Lebowitz shows, theoretically and historically, that the socialism 
practiced in the Soviet Union and Central Europe was doomed.There is a 
lot to learn here--Marty Hart-Landsberg


One doesn’t have to agree with all the theses presented in Michael 
Lebowitz’s last book in order to acknowledge that this is a major 
contribution to the international debate on the Socialism of the 21th 
Century--Michael Löwy


What would Marx have thought had he lived to see the Soviet Union? 
Nobody has interpreted Marx to greater advantage to answer this question 
than renowned Marxist scholar Michael Lebowitz, who explains in /The 
Contradictions of ‘Real Socialism’/ why Marx would not have been 
pleased!-- Robin Hahnel


 THE WELL WRITTEN BOOK WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT SOCIALISM DID NOT DIE 
WITH THE FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL--Francois Houtart


 "Where fresh insights are rare, indeed, Michael Lebowitz provides a 
bundle of them. While no one will (or perhaps should) agree with 
everything here, the book provides rich material for badly-needed 
discussion."--Paul Buhle, author of MARXISM IN THE UNITED STATES


A riveting exploration of what can be learned from the first attempts to 
create socialist systems, specifically the period from 1950 through the 
1980s. Required reading.--Fred Magdoff



-

Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] re Soviet Economic Model

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Impossible not to respond to Andrew Stewart's query:
"Does anyone have a decent, understandable brief that explains the operation
of the Soviet economy at its best moment (what that is probably is going to
be a whole other debate)?"

Here was my entry: "Contradictions of 'Real Socialism': the Conductor 
and the Conducted", published by Monthly Review Press in 2012 (with a 
Cuban edition in 2015 and revised Spanish translations forthcoming in 
Chile, Ecuador and Spain) and reviewed nicely by Louis at

http://www.counterpunch.org/2012/10/03/the-contradictions-of-real-socialism/

Contents and cover blurbs:

Preface
Introduction: New Wings for Socialism

Overture: The Conductor and the Conducted

Ch.1. The Shortage Economy

Ch.2. The Social Contract

Ch.3. The Nature and Reproduction of Vanguard Relations of Production

Ch.4. Contested Reproduction within ‘Real Socialism’

Ch.5. The Conductor and the Battle of Ideas in the Soviet Union

Ch.6. From Moral Economy to Political Economy

Ch.7. Towards a Society of Associated Conductors
Ch.8. Goodbye to Vanguard Marxism

Cover Blurbs:

The profound understanding in this new book of why 20th century attempts 
at constructing socialism failed must be an essential element in the 
socialist renewal emerging amid the first great capitalist crisis of the 
21st century.


Leo Panitch, Editor, The Socialist Register

 Lebowitz shows, theoretically and historically, that the socialism 
practiced in the Soviet Union and Central Europe was doomed.There is a 
lot to learn here.


Marty Hart-Landsberg

 One doesn’t have to agree with all the theses presented in Michael 
Lebowitz’s last book in order to acknowledge that this is a major 
contribution to the international debate on the Socialism of the 21th 
Century


Michael Löwy

What would Marx have thought had he lived to see the Soviet Union? 
Nobody has interpreted Marx to greater advantage to answer this question 
than renowned Marxist scholar Michael Lebowitz, who explains in /The 
Contradictions of ‘Real Socialism’/ why Marx would not have been pleased!


 Robin Hahnel

 THE WELL WRITTEN BOOK WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT SOCIALISM DID NOT DIE 
WITH THE FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL


Francois Houtart

 "Where fresh insights are rare, indeed, Michael Lebowitz provides a 
bundle of them. While no one will (or perhaps should) agree with 
everything here, the book provides rich material for badly-needed 
discussion."

Paul Buhle, author of MARXISM IN THE UNITED STATES

A riveting exploration of what can be learned from the first attempts to 
create socialist systems, specifically the period from 1950 through the 
1980s. Required reading.


Fred Magdoff






-- - Michael A. Lebowitz Professor Emeritus 
Economics Department Simon Fraser University  University Drive 
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6 Home: Phone 604-689-9510 Cell: 604-789-4803

_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

Re: [Marxism] discussion of my book by Zoom group

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Walter Daum posted the following comment in relation to the group which 
is reading and discussing my Contradictions of "Real Socialism": the 
Conductor and the Conducted (Monthly Review Press, 2012):


As I see it, Marx’s orchestra metaphor was meant to describe labor under 
capitalism, and I guess (because I’m still reading) that Lebowitz 
applies it also to labor under “real socialism.” Those are both 
exploitative class societies. But things would not be the same under 
Marx’s proposed society of associated producers (communism), where all 
share the decision-making powers of the conductor even though at any 
moment they may assign the leadership task to one person. If that is 
“protagonistic democracy,” then I think that’s what Marx advocated.


I have two basic problems with Lebowitz’s take. 1) If he believes that 
for Marx an imposed authority (conductor vs. conducted) applies even 
under communism, I don’t see where he finds that in Marx’s work. 2) Nor 
do I see how the desired protagonistic democracy can be attributed to 
Chavez’s Venezuela, where the first step towards communism – the 
overthrow of capitalist power – had not been taken.


Firstly, note that Marx used the metaphor about the necessity of the 
conductor for /every/ socially combined labour process on a large scale 
and, further, described as the "special work" of the conductor "to 
secure a harmonious cooperation of the activities of individuals". I 
talk a bit further in Ch. 8 in my subsequent book, The Socialist 
Imperative (Monthly Review Press, 2015) about how this conception in 
practice in "real socialism" can produce at best "consultative 
participation" which provides an opportunity to improve the plan of the 
conductor.  In contrast, if he reads further in Contradictions, he'll 
come across Chapter 7, "Toward a Society of Associated Conductors".
With respect to Walter's second point, he should read what I've 
written about Venezuela, starting with Build it Now: Socialism for the 
21st Century (Monthly Review Press [again], 2006) where he'll see that I 
have identified the existence of germs of protagonistic democracy there  
(eg., communal councils, communes, workers control in state industries 
and recovered factories) with no illusion that the struggle to nurture 
these would be necessarily successful (despite Chavez's hopes); there 
are no guarantees when it comes to class struggle. The communal council 
and commune experiences have been mixed because of competing tendencies 
and streams of top-down and bottom-up; and, despite Chavez's assertion 
that without workers control there is no socialism, from what I saw when 
there those exciting new shoots of worker management were effectively 
stomped out  by a motley cast of actors including statist conductors, 
corrupt bureaucrats and economistic Chavist trade unions (cf the Alcasa 
story). But the struggle continues.

in solidarity,
 michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] Make No Mistake: There is a media blockade against Venezuela

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Make No Mistake: There is a media blockade against Venezuela 



*Make No Mistake: There is a media blockade against Venezuela***

By *Rachael Boothroyd Rojas – Venezuelanalysis.com *, April 23rd 2017

Venezuela is in flames. Or at least parts of it is.

Since April 4th, opposition militants have been carrying out targeted 
acts of violence, vandalism and arson, as well as deliberately clashing 
with security forces in an attempt to plunge the country into total 
chaos and forcefully remove the elected socialist government. It is the 
continuation of an 18 year effort to topple the Bolivarian revolution by 
any means necessary — although you may have seen it miraculously recast 
in the mainstream media as “promoting a return to democracy” in the country.


A catalogue of the violence over the last 18 days is shocking – schools 
have been ransacked, a Supreme Court building has been torched, an air 
force base attacked, while public transport, health and veterinary 
facilities have been destroyed. At least 23 people have been left dead, 
with many more injured. In one of the most shocking cases of right-wing 
violence, at around 10pm on April 20th, women, children and over 50 
newborn babies had to be evacuated by the government from a public 
maternity hospital which came under attack from opposition gangs.


Anywhere else in the western world, this would have given way to 
horrified international and national calls for an end to the violence, 
and for the swift prosecution of those responsible – making it all the 
more scandalous that these incidents have at best been ignored, and at 
worst totally misrepresented by the international press. Instead, those 
tasked with providing the public with unbiased reporting on 
international affairs have opted to uncritically parrot the Venezuelan 
opposition’s claims that the elected government is violently repressing 
peaceful protests, and holding it responsible for all deaths in 
connection with the demonstrations so far.


This narrative cannot be described as even a remotely accurate 
interpretation of the facts, and so it is important to set the record 
straight.


·   To date, three people (two protesters and one bystander) have 
been killed by state security personnel, who were promptly arrested and 
in two cases indicted.


·   A further five people have been directly killed by opposition 
protesters, while one person has died as an indirect result of the 
opposition roadblocks in Caracas (Ricarda Gonzalez, 89, who suffered 
from a CVA and was prevented from getting to a hospital).


·   Five people have been shot in separate incidents near protests 
but under unclear circumstances. One of these victims was shot by an 
alleged opposition supporter from a high rise building, although the 
perpetrator’s political affiliation is yet to be confirmed.


·   Nine protesters appear to have died as a result of their own 
actions (at least nine were electrocuted in the recent looting of a bakery).


A cursory look at the reality reveals that the government is clearly not 
responsible for the majority of these deaths. However, to paraphrase a 
remark recently made by Venezuelan author Jose Roberto Duque, the “truth 
has suddenly become useless”.


The media has failed to go into too much detail surrounding the exact 
circumstances of these deaths; precisely because the truth presents a 
serious obstacle to their narrative that all these people were killed 
during pro-democracy peaceful protests at the repressive hands of the 
authoritarian regime. This narrative isn’t just overly simplistic; it 
distorts the reality on the ground and misinforms international audiences.


Take this deliberately misleading paragraph from an article written by 
Nicholas Casey, the New York Time’s latest propaganda writer for the 
opposition.


“Protesters demanding elections and a return to democratic rule jammed 
the streets of Caracas and other Venezuelan cities on Wednesday. 
National Guard troops and government-aligned militias beat crowds back 
with tear gas, rubber bullets and other weapons, and at least three 
people were killed, according to human rights groups and news reports.” 



Casey opted to omit the fact that none of those three deaths has so far 
been attributed to security forces, and one of the victims was an army 
sergeant killed by protesters themselves. Moreover, those on the 
receiving end of the “tear gas and rubber bullets” are not quite the 
“peaceful protesters” he so disingenuously implies. 

Re: [Marxism] re Story circulating re Venezuela

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Yes, my understanding is that by Venezuelan standards and in contrast to 
the advance publicity, the 'mother of all marches' fizzled (except in 
the external media)./m


On 4/21/2017 3:59 PM, Gary MacLennan wrote:
Did the Day of the Right just simply fizzle out?  Workers armed is 
something of a disincentive I suspect 


comradely

Gary

On Sat, Apr 22, 2017 at 4:47 AM, michael a. lebowitz via Marxism 
<marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu <mailto:marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu>> wrote:


 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.
*

Ken H wrote:

According to news accounts, Citgo, the Venezuelan oil company
donated $500,000.00 to the Trump inauguration fund.
It this story is true and if the bribe had led to loosening of
sanctions against Venezuela, we might have to accept that it was a
good use of Venezuelan money.
ken h
--
--No question about the accuracy of that citgo donation but the
story gets a bit murkier with the report of an additional 2/3s of
a million donated by a well-connected figure [Habboush] and the
subsequent access to the Trump government for talking about
dropping sanctions on Vzla:

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/excess-trump-inauguration-cash-pairs-with-

<http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/excess-trump-inauguration-cash-pairs-with->
donor-access-926017091769.

 -
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510 
Cell: 604-789-4803 


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
<http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm>
Set your options at:
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/gary.maclennan1%40gmail.com
<http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/gary.maclennan1%40gmail.com>




--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] re Story circulating re Venezuela

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Ken H wrote:

According to news accounts, Citgo, the Venezuelan oil company donated 
$500,000.00 to the Trump inauguration fund.
It this story is true and if the bribe had led to loosening of sanctions 
against Venezuela, we might have to accept that it was a good use of 
Venezuelan money.

ken h
--
--No question about the accuracy of that citgo donation but the story 
gets a bit murkier with the report of an additional 2/3s of a million 
donated by a well-connected figure [Habboush] and the subsequent access 
to the Trump government for talking about dropping sanctions on Vzla: 
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/excess-trump-inauguration-cash-pairs-with- 
donor-access-926017091769.


 
-

Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] Maduro: It is not time of traitors, ... ... and- UN response [machine translation!]

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*



Maduro: No es tiempo de traidores, es tiempo de lealtad practicada 
 



El presidente de la República llamó a la definición de posiciones 
políticas, diciendo que o se está “con la...


Policy 

·

·


   Maduro: It is not time for traitors, is time of loyalty practiced

The President of the Republic called for the definition of political 
positions, saying that either you are "to the motherland" or you are 
"with the betrayal of the fatherland". He also stressed that approved 
resources to ensure that every soldier has a rifle.


·

·It announced that it would issue a constitutional message to the 
national armed forces.


the Minister Godfather Lopez words of support given on behalf of the 
Bolivarian national armed forces


aspiring to "unite various avenues and highways of the great Caracas, 
with the people in peace".





President Nicolas Maduro said the leaders of the political opposition, 
and to all those who criticize his Government, which will not yield to 
their pressure



Mature: "it is not time of traitors, it time of treason, it time of 
faltering"


*Caracas.-*During the main event to celebrate the seventh anniversary of 
the national Bolivarian militia (MNB), the President of the Republic 
Nicolas Maduro called to stay loyal to the Bolivarian revolution and the 
ideals by the founder and leader of the chavista movement, the deceased 
President Hugo Chávez Frías.



*"Is not a time of traitors, is not a time of betrayal, is not a time of 
faltering. "That each who will define if we are with the motherland or 
are with the treason, if we are with the historic village of Bolivar or 
we are with those who kneel to imperial power factors", said, 
*accompanied by the Defense Minister, General in Chief Vladimir Padrino 
Lopez, of the general commander of the MNB, César Vega Gonzalez and a 
large group of members of his Cabinet , in addition to the first lady.


*"Is not a time of hesitation, it's revolution time. It is not time of 
treason, wakati practiced loyalty, loyalty of heart with the humble of 
the Earth,"added *immediately the first national President in the event 
that leads this Monday on the occasion of the seventh anniversary of the 
MNB.


To this very day the directive of the National Assembly (AN) - 
opposition-majority, announced that it would issue a constitutional 
message to the national armed forces. 



The activity develops in the Miraflores Palace in Caracas.

*Thanks to the Minister of Defense*

*Minutes earlier thanked you "with humility, loyalty and commitment" 
Minister Godfather Lopez words of support given on behalf of the 
Bolivarian national armed forces 
(possibility). 
"Paid love with love, loyalty with loyalty pays, general in Chief" he 
told him.*


He said the leaders of the political opposition, and to all those who 
criticize his Government which will not yield to their pressure, "I have 
not bullied or me intimidarán ever. To those who live in the plot, the 
conspiracy know it".


*In defense of the revolution*

All the followers of the ruling party, but especially members of the 
militia authorized them to go out and defend the Bolivarian revolution 
if somehow the political opposition or "betrayal" came to power, such as 
in the reported facts from 11 to 13 April 2002.


*"If they come as the 11, we will leave as the 13. I agree and it should 
be. If someday you see or dawn with news that the betrayal and the far 
right have tried to impose some form of coup out as 13 to take total 
power of the Republic. Insurrection in all popular, military forces 
which has the homeland. Do not hesitate a second", released.*


However, he urged that "there is no more an April 11", but "an April 13 
permanent, of loyalty, of union, of work, of harmony, of national harmony".


*A rifle for every militiaman*

It was reported that *to the Minister of Defense approved plans to 
expand this year the MNB to 500 thousand militiamen, ensuring that each 
one of them has "with all its equipment and guarantee the possibility a 
rifle for every militiaman, a rifle for every Member." Resources are 
approved".*


He noted that this military component must be integrated by farmers, 
University students, by working, oil, transport, education class.


In 

[Marxism] further on Vzla's CLAPs and reporting

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

https://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/12856

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] re article, Venezuela: Military Trafficking Food as Country Goes Hungry

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Manuel Barrera  asked about the article, 'Venezuela: Military 
Trafficking Food as Country Goes Hungry', asking, 'Hello, anyone 
following this crisis? I'd like to read analyses from revolutionaries if 
possible.'
The article has received enormous exposure, and I suggest you 
listen to the podcast below with the author, Hannah Dreier, to decide 
how much credibility to assign to  it, which is basically anecdotal 
(much of which could have been written years ago and likely was). 
Unfortunately, I haven't kept up enough since leaving Venezuela in 2011 
(focusing instead more on Cuba) to comment. Certainly, the situation is 
critical there (the culmination of many years of deep corruption and 
idiotic economic policies)-- added to which has been the horror of the 
party and, of course, the collapse of oil prices--- but if you want to 
get a better sense of what is happening there, a good way to keep up is 
with venezuelanalysis.com or by reading aporrea.org [and using google 
translator if you don't read Spanish], Certainly, one thing that foreign 
tourist/correspondents don't pick up is what is happening with the 
movements from below, particularly the commune movement (on which the 
best outside commentators are Dario Azzellini and George 
Cicariello-Maher, of recent fame). Here's a relatively recent piece by a 
friend active in the commune movement, critical of aspects of the 
government's CLAP initiative (which I was delighted to see and argued 
for years ago as a way to bypass the market and build new relations): 
https://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/12784 .

See the National Review's appreciation of Dreier:
http://www.nationalreview.com/media/qa/qa-hannah-dreier-0
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/443395/podcast-hannah-dreier-ap-correspondent-venezuela-hosted-jay-nordlinger
michael
ps. for some background, see the article by Marta Harnecker: 
http://links.org.au/venezuela-economic-warfare-government-errors


--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] The Commitment to Fidel's Ideas that Cubans are signing-- hasta siempre

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

*REVOLUTION *

/Is the sense of the historic moment;/
/is to change all which must be changed/
/is complete equality and liberty/
/is to be treated and to treat others as human beings/
/is to emancipate ourselves by ourselves and with our own efforts/
/is to challenge dominant powerful forces within the social and national 
scope and realm;/

/is to defend values in which we believe at the price of any sacrifice;/
/is modesty, unselfishness, altruism, solidarity and heroism;/
/is to fight with audacity, intelligence and realism;/
/is to never lie nor violate ethical principles;/
/is the profound conviction that exists no force in the world capable of 
confounding truth and ideas/

//
REVOLUTION
/is unity, is independence, is to fight for our dreams of justice for 
Cuba and for the world/
/which is the base of our patriotism, our socialism and our 
internationalism./


--
WHILE I AM IN CUBA, PLEASE cc mlebo...@gmail.com FOR PERSONAL MAIL AS THAT 
OFTEN IS EASIER TO DOWNLOAD
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6

in Havana:
calle 2, #209 ent linea y 11, #53
Vedado
home: 7 832 8189
cell: 5 476 0553

_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] Dario Azzellini on Venezuelan developments

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Dario Azzellini:

What's up in Venezuela: Parlamentary coup? Chavista rank storm 
National

Assembly.

Very complex and complicated situation in Venezuela. We hear the recall
referendum is called off? The National Assembly and its opposition majority
wat to impeach Maduro? On monday Chavista rank and file stormed the 
National

Assembly in order to prevent the right wing majority to impeach President
Maduro. Huge mobilizations to overthrow Maduro and against took place 
during
the past days. Friday a strike called by the opposition failed, not even 
the
notoriously anti-government chamber of commerce supported the strike. 
What is

happening in Venezuela?

The National Electoral Council (CNE) of Venezuela suspended t the next step
of the signature collection for the Recall Referendum against Maduro. At
least five regional courts had suspended the regional processes because 
more

than a third of the signatures collected in the first round (where the
opposition had to reach 1% of the electorate in each state) were false. So
the next step of the referendum was called off and several opposition 
leaders

were suspended from travelling to the exterior while the investigation for
fraud against them is happening. Let's analyze what is happening on the 
legal

and the political level.

Contrary to all complaints from right and left I think that the 
procedure to

stop the referendum can be justified in line with the law and constitution.
That it is legal does not mean it is politically convenient or right. I 
think

in fact it is a political mistake to postpone or prevent the recall
referendum from happening. An "impeachment", that means that the parliament
induces a juridical process against the president and takes him/her out of
office (as it happened in Brazil, Paraguay and Honduras) does not exist in
Venezuela. Therefore all declarations by the opposition that are picked up
and repeated by the international media, are total nonsense and illegal.

If we look at the details I dare to express that the opposition has the
result she wanted and the government keeps stepping into traps the 
opposition

is setting up.
Since the recall referendum signature collection started it seems likely 
that

the opposition is not interested in having a recall referendum and taking
over the government. They cannot change the Oil prices and will not want to
be in a position to be blamed for the crisis and the incapacity to solve it
just 2 years before presidential elections. They want to win the next
presidential elections.
Why did the opposition start the process of collecting the signatures so 
late

that it was already very improbable to have it happening in 2016 (if the
recall referendum happens in 2017 the time to the next elections is so 
short
that by law - if Maduro loses - the Vice President takes over until the 
next

regular elections)? It could have started the recollection in January and
made sure the referendum can happen in 2016.

The opposition needed only 1% of the electorate's signatures in the first
round (some 120.000 signatures) but presented 2.5 million signatures. That
delayed the time to proof the signatures unnecessarily. Moreover more 
than a

third of the signatures were false. Since the recollection is based on the
elections registrations lists and is counterchecked with personal ID, 
30% of

false signatures cannot be a human mistake but indicate an organized and
systematic fraud perpetrated by the referendum organizers. Beyond the fact
that only one out of the 3 big currents of the opposition party MUD
officially supported the referendum (the others did not even sign!), 
most of

the opposition did not support nor ever believe in the referendum.

Is this dilettantish behavior of the opposition making it as easy as 
possible
to stop the referendum because of legal reasons due to the deeply 
divided and

competing opposition or is it intentional to create conditions under which
the Maduro government and the courts can argue that the referendum does not
fulfil the legal base... even if the government and courts are legally 
right,

it appears internationally as a "new attempt by Maduro to eliminate
democracy". But it is also politically wrong to postpone or stop the recall
referendum. The possibility of a recall referendum is an important and
innovative element of Venezuelan democracy. Chávez himself won a recall
referendum overwhelmingly. Maduro will for sure not achieve the same 
result,

but it is also not certain that he will lose even if he and the government
are highly unpopular.

Said that, it has to be underlined that the Maduro government has not been
convincing in solving the 

[Marxism] Nelson Valdes and that ubiquitous misinterpretation of Marx

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

In his thoughtful Counterpunch comment on the 'updating' of the Cuban 
model, Nelson Valdes writes:


'Karl Marx in /_The Critique of the Gotha Program 
_ 
/said that “Right can never be higher than the economic structure of 
society and its cultural development conditioned thereby.” In other 
words, if Cuba is to move into the logic that capacity to purchase 
should be a significant mechanism to obtain things, how “fair” is that 
when some people have a head start because they have foreign exchange 
from abroad in their pockets while others do not? Is it that efficiency 
is to be measured by profitability, cost of production or something 
else? Is it that the social wage [services provided without citizens 
direct payment] will be reduced and the stress will be on personal 
income? Is the piece rate how work and income will be established? These 
are some of the questions concerning Cubans today. The newer policies 
and the expected outcomes could very well demolish the /highly 
integrated/ /and unique/ nation state that was created after 1959.'
Nelson doubtless knows that this quotation is consistently repeated 
in Cuba as a theoretical guideline for its 'updated' model. 
Unfortunately, Cuban direction interprets that quote from Marx in the 
same way as the Soviets, the Chinese and the Vietnamese leadership et al 
have--- that the further development of productive forces [by all means 
necessary?] is the necessary condition for the advancement of socialism. 
So, wait. The problem with this interpretation, though,is that it 
asserts that 'the economic structure of society' is identical with 
productive forces--- rather than referring to the relations of 
production of a sociey! In fact, it is the latter which corresponds to 
Marx's argument in the Gotha Critique [see my discussion in The 
Socialist Imperative: from Gotha to Now, published in 2015 by Monthly 
Review], and it is the failure to understand this that historically has 
led to that deadend that Che warned about. And. of course, to a working 
class with neither the strength nor the will to resist the restoration 
of capitalism.

 michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] Along the Malecón: New State Department program targets Cuban youth

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

http://alongthemalecon.blogspot.com/2016/03/new-state-department-program-targets.html 







   Friday, March 25, 2016


 New State Department program targets Cuban youth



Just three days after Barack Obama left Cuba, the State Department today 
announced a $753,989 community internship program targeting "young 
emerging leaders from Cuban civil society."
Non-profit organizations and educational institutions are invited to 
submit proposals. The deadline is May 20. The first awards are expected 
to be given in late July or early August.
The State Department's Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs plans to 
manage the program, aimed at financing two- to four-month professional 
development programs "which will fuel the participants’ development of 
action plans for nongovernmental community activities in Cuba."

The announcement states:
"Cuban civil society is not formed into well-established organizations 
that would typically be found in a society with a strong democratic 
tradition. Through participation in the program, participants will 
develop a set of leadership tools and skills to manage and grow civil 
society organizations that will actively support democratic principles 
in Cuba."

The announcement is below:

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The United States Department of State’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere 
Affairs (WHA) announces a Notification of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to 
support the Community Internship Program for Cuban Youth. Subject to the 
availability of funds, WHA intends to issue an award in an amount not to 
exceed $753,989 in FY2015 Economic Support Funds for a project period of 
three years. The anticipated start date for this activity is August 2016 
and WHA intends to support one award as a result of this NOFO.



WHA invites U.S. nonprofit organizations and U.S. educational 
institutions to submit proposals for the Community Internship Program 
for Cuban Youth, which will support the participation of young emerging 
leaders from Cuban civil society in a two- to four-month professional 
development program. The program will include specialized training and 
an internship with a nonprofit organization in the United States, which 
will fuel the participants’ development of action plans for 
nongovernmental community activities in Cuba. Cuban civil society is not 
formed into well-established organizations that would typically be found 
in a society with a strong democratic tradition. Through participation 
in the program, participants will develop a set of leadership tools and 
skills to manage and grow civil society organizations that will actively 
support democratic principles in Cuba.


WHA reserves the right to fund any or none of the applications submitted 
and reserves the right to reduce, revise, or increase proposal budgets 
in accordance with the needs of the program and the availability of 
funds. The authority for this NOFO is found in the Foreign Assistance 
Act of 1961, as amended. The CFDA Number for this funding opportunity is 
19.750.


This NOFO consists of this cover letter plus the following sections:

I. Funding Opportunity Description
II. Award Information
III. Eligibility information
IV. Agency Contacts

The complete solicitation package includes the mandatory Proposal 
Submission Instructions, which includes Application and Submission 
Instructions and Application Review Information.


Eligible organizations interested in submitting an application should 
read this NOFO thoroughly to understand the project sought, the 
application submission requirements and evaluation process.


This funding opportunity is posted on Grants.gov and may be amended. See 
the Application and Submission Instructions for further details. 
Potential applicants should regularly check the website to ensure they 
have the latest information pertaining to this NOFO.


Any questions concerning this NOFO should be submitted in writing via 
email to the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at whagra...@state.gov 
by May 6, 2016 [Subject line “Community Internship Program for Cuban 
Youth” and your organization name]. Responses to questions will be made 
available to all potential applicants through an amendment to this NOFO 
and posted on Grants.gov.


Francisco L. Palmieri
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary
Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs
U.S. Department of State

I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

BACKGROUND

U.S. foreign assistance for Cuba seeks to empower Cubans to freely 
determine their own future by increasing human capacity, promoting 
community level engagement, and expanding civil society networks. Since 
1996, the 

[Marxism] What the Venezuelan election results mean

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*




 Forwarded Message 
Subject: 	What Could Venezuela’s Opposition Do With a Simple, 3/5, or 
2/3 Majority?

Date:   Mon, 7 Dec 2015 13:18:05 -0800
From:   michael a. lebowitz 
To: ml >> me 


The official count last night was 99 definite seats for the opposition 
with outstanding results for 22 seats as yet not irreversible but I did 
hear mention of 105 opposition seats more recently. Here below is what 
that means once the new National Assembly takes office next month (note 
that the existing assembly has the power to act in the interim)./michael


venezuelablog.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F134693710504%2Fwhat-could-venezuelas-opposition-do-with-a
venezuelablog.tumblr.com 
 




 What Could Venezuela’s Opposition Do With a Simple, 3/5, or 2/3 Majority?


*Geoff Ramsey*

While polls in recent weeks have led many analysts to expect Venezuela’s 
opposition to gain a majority of the 167 seats in the 2015-2020 National 
Assembly, the exact nature of this majority could vary widely. The 
Venezuelan Constitution requires different thresholds of votes in order 
for the National Assembly to pass certain measures. These thresholds can 
be grouped into three categories: those requiring a simple majority, 
those requiring a “qualified majority” of three-fifths of the Assembly, 
and those requiring an absolute two-thirds majority.


With a *simple majority *of more than 50 percent of the National 
Assembly (84 members), the opposition can:


 * Issue a vote of no confidence in the Vice President and cabinet
   Ministers
 * Investigate and question public officials
 * Have a deciding role in the national budget and debt debates
 * Approve an amnesty law
 * Select the members of the Supreme Court of Justice
 * Approve laws on health, justice and basic goods
 * Name ambassadors
 * Convene national referendums on matters of special importance and
   amendments to the Constitution (with National Assembly approval)
 * Attribute to states or municipalities certain issues that currently
   fall under national competence
 * Authorize the President to leave the country (for 5 days)
 * Elect the President of the National Assembly, and its two Vice
   Presidents
 * Indict congressmen

With a *qualified majority* of 3/5 of the National Assembly (101 
members), the opposition can:


 * Decide that a vote of no confidence in the Vice President or cabinet
   Ministers should lead to their dismissal, and subsequently dismiss them
 * Authorize presidential decrees allowing expanded executive authority
   (so-called “enabling laws” or “leyes habilitantes”
 * Appoint members of the National Electoral Council (CNE)
 * Remove members of the CNE, provided it is backed by a ruling by the
   Supreme Court

With an *absolute majority* of 2/3 the National Assembly (112 members), 
the opposition can:


 * Remove Supreme Court justices in cases of gross misconduct
 * Subject any bills under discussion in the National Assembly to
   approval by referendum
 * Convene a National Constituent Assembly, as well as a recall
   referendum for President Maduro
 * Submit international treaties, conventions or agreements to referendums
 * Pass and modify any draft organic law  (laws which determine the
   fundamental political principles of a government)



--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803




_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] You can watch the Lapavitsas exit talk directly [along with others]

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vTTUcaYEWs
_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] The moderator's note

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

What the moderator has done by unsubbing Creegan for his posts is also 
to exclude the possibility of reading thoughtful responses such as that 
of Michael Karadjis. The effect is to turn the list into one of singing 
to the choirmaster.

michael
_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] brilliant speech---Zoe Konstantopoulou [speaker of parliament, who appointed the debt commission]: Nο to ultimatums, Nο to the Memoranda of servitude

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*




http://www.analyzegreece.gr/topics/greece-europe/item/288-zoe-konstantopoulou-n-to-ultimatums-n-to-the-memoranda-of-servitude


 Zoe Konstantopoulou: Nο to ultimatums, Nο to the Memoranda of servitude



_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] Syntagma Sq., July 15, 2015. And now?

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Here are some videos from yesterday in Syntagma Square, sent to me by a 
friend in the Red Network. Aside from the difficulties that we all 
recognise, this statement from the Red Network (cited in Lee Sustar's 
piece included in a recent Marxmail post) cannot be dismissed by all who 
pinned their hearts and hopes to Syriza:


The Red Network, an alliance of socialist organizations that is a main
part of the Left Platform, declared in the text of a leaflet
distributed during the strikes and protests on Wednesday:

This new Memorandum essentially and practically overthrows the
government led by SYRIZA: programmatically, but also politically,
since it transforms SYRIZA into an austerity government with an
increasingly pro-austerity composition (more so after the removal of
left-wing cabinet ministers and the potential openings to the
austerity camp).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpsOVKJPuVQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMwzD4S4Zog

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGziZ5rQ1cM

michael
_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] re Gindin

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Marv Gandall wrote:
Gindin was research director of the Canadian Auto Workers for many 
years and then assistant to union presidents Bob White and Buzz 
Hargrove. I don’t believe he’s had had any “grassroots” union 
experience as a local activist or organizer. He studied and taught 
economics and worked as a researcher for the Manitoba NDP before 
joining the CAW, and, of course, has been closely connected with Leo 
Panitch and the York University political science department since his 
retirement.


This leaves out Sam's constant involvement in organising left groups 
within unions besides CAW, his centrality to the efforts of the 
Socialist Project and to the Greater Toronto Workers Assembly and to 
ongoing attempts to build a pan-Canadian socialist party. He also has 
been a supporter of LeftRoots in the US. He has a very deep, 
long-standing personal relation with Leo Panitch.

michael

_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] Marty Hart-Landsberg, 'Lessons from a Defeat in Europe'

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

https://economicfront.wordpress.com/2015/07/13/lessons-from-a-defeat-in-europe/

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] 'negotiations' live

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

http://www.theguardian.com/business/live/2015/jul/12/greek-debt-crisis-eu-leaders-meeting-cancelled-no-deal-live#block-55a29374e4b07fc6a121fc21

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] EU Law Analysis: The law of Grexit: What does EU law say about leaving economic and monetary union?

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

http://eulawanalysis.blogspot.ca/2015/06/the-law-of-grexit-what-does-eu-law-say.html

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] I think it's the Greeks, Angela!

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*


**





--




_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] documentaries about marx and marxism

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Glen Kissack asked about documentaries re Marxism. Here are some 
pedagogical videos by Marta Harnecker that are being used for political 
formation for organising in several Latin American countries and include 
discussion questions for each subtopic. [She has dubbed these into 
English as some people found English subtitles a problem.] They aren't 
exactly what the grad student was looking for but they may be useful for 
her/him and any others:

http://videosmeplaen.wordpress.com/pedagogical-audiovisual/to-understand-capitalism/
http://videosmeplaen.wordpress.com/pedagogical-audiovisual/our-socialism-neither-a-replica-neither-a-copy/
http://videosmeplaen.wordpress.com/pedagogical-audiovisual/instruments-for-doing-politics/ 
[The text of this one was published on Links.]

in solidarity,
michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

[Marxism] [SUSPICIOUS MESSAGE] Histmat and the primacy of productive forces. WAS Stalinist-Trotskyist bromance

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*


On 05/11/2014 6:41 AM, Andrew Pollack wrote:
Actually Trotsky was focused on the contradiction between the forces 
and relations of production (and associated norms of distribution), 
i.e. how the inadequacy of the former hamstrung efforts to move beyond 
bourgeois forms of the latter

Re-read the paragraphs cited (which are at:
http://secure-web.cisco.com/1T8fTAHyq5pV9brQIPkCoAZn95na5mki9nA_Eh_KQcJAzZjEZKE80xKsnEMJJbKx5NFoz7geXnQFbN03U_uvlLZgfhOYwttetL6wf2Be4522DKlvL7p4SLzHvXPEthZZvNTkh0qnf97fegmLZDLtS89VjWr6H_cR2_MuaQDLrBUG5U1IhXt1wBvNerlkHuLP05Ujq_CPWkqiG5jKO3y3XEw/http%3A%2F%2Fwww.marxists.org%2Farchive%2Ftrotsky%2F1936%2Frevbet%2Fch09.htm
 )
That contradiction was also the main one pointed out by Mandel.


Hi Andrew,
Too busy to enter at this time the Good Trotsky, Bad Stalin swamp, 
and my brief comment was, of course, peripheral to Louis' interest in 
Ukrainian matters which started the thread. My point was very simple: 
both Stalinists and Trotskyists shared the Histmat perspective which 
focused upon primacy of the growth of [presumably neutral-- unlike those 
Marx stressed in Capital] productive forces as opposed to the character 
of the relations of production. As Marx knew, productive forces do not 
drop from the sky.
I'm in the process of completing a new book for Monthly Review 
Press ['The Socialist Imperative: From Gotha to Now'] in which I touch 
upon these matters. Here, eg, is a brief somewhat related passage from 
one of the chapters:


In the Histmat formula, subordination of the old relation of 
distribution focuses upon the development of the productive forces in 
socialism. Rather than talk explicitly about the character of the 
relations of production, that standard interpretation follows Lenin’s 
insistence in /State and Revolution/ that “an enormous development of 
productive forces” in the socialist stage is the prerequisite for the 
new relation of distribution. Until the labor of people has become “so 
productive that they will voluntarily work /according to their 
ability/,” the “socialist principle” of equivalent exchange must be 
safeguarded by the state and, indeed, requires “the /strictest/ control 
by society /and by the state/ of the measure of labour and the measure 
of consumption” (Lenin, 1965: 112-16).


Apparent here is the law of Histmat specific to socialism (Soc-law): 
/the law of necessary correspondence between the level of productive 
forces and the relation of distribution/. Those who cite this law, too, 
can draw upon Marx’s statement in the /Critique/ that “Right can never 
be higher than the economic structure of society and its cultural 
development conditioned thereby” because they misinterpret “economic 
structure” to mean the level of productive forces rather than the 
relations of production (Marx, 1962: 24).[1] #_ftn1 The relations of 
production themselves? Conjured away. They are the missing term, the 
vanishing moment; and, accordingly, we are left with two inferences from 
Soc-law: (a) if distribution relations go beyond what the productive 
forces justify, there will be disaster and (b) reliance upon the 
existing distribution relations is essential for the development of the 
productive forces.





[1] #_ftnref1 As one of many examples of this use of this sentence, 
see Francisco Soberon[then President of the Central Bank of Cuba] in 
December 2005 (Soberon, 2005).



And now, after that commercial break, back to the book!
in solidarity,
michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

Re: [Marxism] Stalinist-Trotskyist bromance

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

  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.
*

Louis wrote:

From The Revolution Betrayed:

'The Soviet Union is a contradictory society halfway between capitalism 
and socialism, in which: (a) the productive forces are still far from 
adequate to give the state property a socialist character'


On this matter, they clearly shared a focus on the primacy of the 
productive forces--- in contrast, eg, to an emphasis upon the relations 
of production.

michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803


_
Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

Re: [Marxism] Socialism and democracy

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

==
Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.
==


Louis wrote:.
'Keep in mind that toward the end of his life, Chavez had moved away 
from the notion of building socialism entirely. His model was less and 
less based on what are commonly referred to as communist states but 
Western European social democracies'

Your evidence?
michael

--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803



Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

Re: [Marxism] Socialism and democracy

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

==
Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.
==


Louis,
I am afraid that you are going from bad to worse! At least, your 
first version credited Chavez with once wanting to build socialism. If 
you want some evidence that he was far far away from moving away from 
this notion toward the end of his life, I suggest that you look at the 
document compiled from his 3-hour cabinet meeting on 20 October 2012: 
Golpe de Timon 
[http://www.aporrea.org/media/2012/12/golpe-de-timon.pdf]. It is only in 
Spanish at this point [although Monthly Review may be considering an 
English translation] but you read Spanish. In particular, pay attention 
to his insistence there, 'Comuna o Nada'.
As for your 'fairly astute' source [Greg Grandin] on Chavez being 
little more than a New Deal wannabe, I was there at the time of his 
Nation article [October 2007] and shortly after was asked by Chavez to 
be the adviser to the newly appointed minister of the economy. Very 
simply, the article demonstrates massive ignorance; of course, having 
the Nation tell its readers that Chavez was a good guy and 'one of us' 
certainly would have been welcomed in Miraflores.

michael
On 10/6/2014 1:37 PM, Louis Proyect wrote:

On 10/6/14 3:57 PM, michael a. lebowitz via Marxism wrote:

Louis wrote:.
'Keep in mind that toward the end of his life, Chavez had moved away
from the notion of building socialism entirely. His model was less and
less based on what are commonly referred to as communist states but
Western European social democracies'
Your evidence?
 michael


I probably should have written something more along the lines that 
Hugo Chavez never aspired to much more than a New Deal, which would 
have been reason enough to support him in a time when austerity is the 
norm. This piece by Greg Grandin is fairly astute:


http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/2673



--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803



Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com

Re: [Marxism] Socialism and democracy

[michael a. lebowitz via Marxism]

==
Rule #1: YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.
==


Louis,
I am afraid that you are going from bad to worse! At least, your 
first version credited Chavez with once wanting to build socialism. If 
you want some evidence that he was far far away from moving away from 
this notion toward the end of his life, I suggest that you look at the 
document compiled from his 3-hour cabinet meeting on 20 October 2012: 
Golpe de Timon 
[http://www.aporrea.org/media/2012/12/golpe-de-timon.pdf]. It is only in 
Spanish at this point [although Monthly Review may be considering an 
English translation] but you read Spanish. In particular, pay attention 
to his insistence there, 'Comuna o Nada'.
As for your 'fairly astute' source [Greg Grandin] on Chavez being 
little more than a New Deal wannabe, I was there at the time of his 
Nation article [October 2007] and shortly after was asked by Chavez to 
be the adviser to the newly appointed minister of the economy. Very 
simply, the article demonstrates massive ignorance; of course, having 
the Nation tell its readers that Chavez was a good guy and 'one of us' 
certainly would have been welcomed in Miraflores.

michael
On 10/6/2014 1:37 PM, Louis Proyect wrote:

On 10/6/14 3:57 PM, michael a. lebowitz via Marxism wrote:

Louis wrote:.
'Keep in mind that toward the end of his life, Chavez had moved away
from the notion of building socialism entirely. His model was less and
less based on what are commonly referred to as communist states but
Western European social democracies'
Your evidence?
 michael


I probably should have written something more along the lines that 
Hugo Chavez never aspired to much more than a New Deal, which would 
have been reason enough to support him in a time when austerity is the 
norm. This piece by Greg Grandin is fairly astute:


http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/2673



--
-
Michael A. Lebowitz
Professor Emeritus
Economics Department
Simon Fraser University
 University Drive
Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6
Home:   Phone 604-689-9510
Cell: 604-789-4803



Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu
Set your options at: 
http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com