******************** 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. *****************************************************************
Their claim is that Syriza aspires to be the social-democratic caretaker of the system rather than its gravedigger and that a victory for the party would deepen the capitalist path in Greece rather than derail it. The Greek Communist Party (KKE) has steadfastly refused any collaboration with Syriza, and its members even refuse to march with other groups during demonstrations and strikes, choosing alternative times and routes so as not to be contaminated by different opinions.
Unsurprisingly, electoral support has dropped for KKE from 9.5 percent in 2004 to 6.1 percent in 2014. It is at 5 percent today. It takes real talent for a left party to continually lose support as wages plummet and unemployment and discontent soar.
The Front of the Greek Anticapitalist Left (Antarsya), currently polling around 1 percent (far less than the 3 percent minimum needed to gain parliamentary representation), is much closer to Syriza than to KKE but they also steadfastly refuse to join forces since, among other differences, Syriza’s platform does not advocate leaving the European Union and the euro. This style of sectarian politics in Greece is certainly not exclusive to it, and many left factions of various stripes throughout Europe and beyond proclaim their opposition to Syriza for similar reasons.
Unfortunately, the political conditions today are far more bleak than when Eduard Bernstein and Rosa Luxemburg were debating reform and revolution more than a century ago. Yet very often, the historical failure of social democracy to achieve socialism is provided as evidence of Syriza’s intrinsic opportunism and inevitable inadequacy.
Regrettably, the political conjuncture in Greece and beyond does not present us with an urgent task of deciding which path to socialism is the best. All political parties (Syriza, KKE, Antarsya, included) are, quite the opposite, largely debating which path is best for restoring jobs, wages, health care, education, and the like. No one is advocating a radical break with the past and the creation of a new society.
full: https://www.jacobinmag.com/2015/01/syriza-greece-election-tina/ _________________________________________________________ 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
