- Update : A commentator (‘Jesse’, Fri 05 Feb 10 (03:48pm)) on Andrew Bolt’s blog complains about another commentator’s (‘sasha of sydney’, Fri 05 Feb 10 (02:11pm)) linking to a previous blog entry (Robert Manne’s open letter to Andrew Bolt, July 3, 2006): “A link to a blog so far left that marxists think they’re a bit extreme? THAT is your counter argument? Why is it that reds quote other reds to try and prove that reds are right?” Take that, Spartacist League of Australia!
1. Communist Party of Australia (CPA)
[guilty of] a particularly wretched example of … abject defence of the capitalist order
The January 27 edition of The Guardian notes that the Adelaide CPA is on the campaign trail, with State Secretary Bob Briton as the endorsed candidate for the western suburbs electorate of Lee. The poll is to take place on March 20. “[M]embers are confident their work will lift the profile of the CPA in the area considerably”.
2. Communist Party of Australia (Marxist-Leninist) (CPA-ML)
The February edition of Vanguard contains Duncan B’s reflections on ‘Joseph Stalin on Party Organisation’ (PDF). According to B, among the six features Uncle Joseph identified as being key to those of a Party organised on Leninist lines is ‘The Party as the highest form of class organisation of the proletariat’… which I think means that the CPA-ML will be directing their preferences to HEMP in future.
3. Freedom Socialist Party (FSP)
fake-revolutionary
Um… “For parties, receptions, banquets, weddings, meetings and seminars… Solidarity Salon, 580 Sydney Road, Brunswick. A welcoming shop front meeting space that can comfortably accommodate organising meetings, planning days, training sessions, public meetings, movie nights or cultural events for up to 50 people, depending on your format.”
4. Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP)
triumphant purveyors of historical falsehood and political cowardice
The always-outrageous (and sometimes disgusting) Van Thanh Rudd has thrown down the gauntlet to other communists with well-known relatives in the Australian political establishment by donning a white sheet with holes in it and standing outside the Australian Open. In other words, “Kevin Rudd’s nephew proved [Andrew Bolt’s] point when he stood outside the Rod Laver Area on Australia Day in his badly sewn Ku Klux Klan outfit… And so Australians generally are now being monstered in the Indian press as racists of the KKK kind, while at home we still refuse to discuss street violence – and the rise of the ethnic gangs behind some of the worst of it.”
Or something.
In other news, if you’d like to know more about Uncle Hugo’s plans for a first second third fourth fifth International, a ‘Direct Action Forum’ on ‘The Venezuelan revolution & the call for a new Socialist International’ is taking place at 6:30pm on Thursday, February 25 @ the ‘Direct Action Centre’ (aka the Trades Hall Basement).
5. Democratic Socialist Perspective Socialist Alliance (SA)
postures as a fighting alternative to the no-struggle ACTU union tops but in reality acts to buttress the Laborite political obstacles to waging class battle
“Formerly the Democratic Socialist Party. Leninist, but not Stalinist and not Trotskyist, the DSP is enthusiastic about Cuba and Third World revolutions”; it is now also better known as the Socialist Alliance. “Public transport activist” Margarita Windisch has thrown her hat into the ring for the February 13 Altona by-election. Windisch is one of seven candidates expected to lose to Labor anointed Jill Hennessy. Unusually, Hennessy is a law-talking gal.
6. Socialist Alternative (SAlt)
cheerleaders for capitalist counterrevolution
When they’re not cheering on capitalist counterrevolution or looking over their shoulders for Kiwi anarchists and/or English football hooligans, SAlt are busy embiggening revolutionary socialism. Otherwise… um… someone or other has established a Facebook group for those who dislike SAlt; former SAlt member Alistair Hullett died last week; former SAlt member Jeff Sparrow is referenced in the article referenced below ‘No criticism of Labor as Australia rejects Tamil refugees’ by Mike Head (January 20, 2010).
7. Socialist Equality Party (SEP)
an organization of dubious political bandits
Mike Head reckons Inquest evidence shows Rudd government policies caused refugee deaths (February 2, 2010). In 2007, the SEP stood Will Marshall for Melbourne. He got 418 votes. Will Will stand again in 2010?
8. Socialist Party (SP)
another left Laborite obstacle to workers revolution
In a madcap attempt to undermine the stranglehold bourgeois art and culture maintains over the hearts and minds of angry proletarian yoof, the Socialist Party is calling on the Victorian State government to Scrap all anti-graffiti laws! (February 1, 2010). In an ominous sign of the repression to come, Comments are closed.
9. Solidarity
reformist opponents of revolutionary Marxism… crawling to the ALP
A member of the iSt, Solidarity are “for workers’ power and international socialism”. Beyond that, er…
10. Trotskyist Platform (TP)
a casualty of the retrogression of consciousness following the counterrevolutionary destruction of the Soviet Union
Sadly, there’s been no news from the Platform since July 2009. Instead, here’s a piece! of! spray! from! Australasian Spartacist, No. 192, Spring 2005: Editor Defects, “Trotskyist Platform”: Opportunism in Action! As an added! bonus! see! Sukant Chandan’s FRIENDS! OF! CHINA! blog.
See also : ManLiftingBanner.
Interesting perspectives. By denigrating socialist ideas of anti-capitalism, are you then promoting capitalism? Surely not…
One of socialism’s viewpoints is the notion of criticism and self-criticism. It would show the readers of this blog that you have a balanced perspective of the various left groups, instead of just a purely biased one, if you posted a similar thread on the various anarchist groupings and sub groupings in this country, and what you consider their various strengths and weaknesses. Might be an interesting read…
Hey,
I’m starting a new socialist blog called Rosa’s Ghost. I was hoping you might add it to your links page. It would be a great help. Thanks in advance.
http://rosasghost.wordpress.com/
redxanth,
I assume you’re referring to the statements in italics which appear beneath each party’s name. For example: “[guilty of] a particularly wretched example of … abject defence of the capitalist order”; “fake-revolutionary”; “triumphant purveyors of historical falsehood and political cowardice”.
To clarify: these are all quotes, taken from various issues of Australasian Spartacist. I use them, not because I agree with them, but because I find their histrionic tone amusing.
For the record, “[guilty of] a particularly wretched example of … abject defence of the capitalist order” is extracted from Capitalist Rulers Fleece Working People, Financial Crisis: Bankruptcy of Capitalism, Those Who Labour Must Rule! (Australasian Spartacist, No. 203, Summer 2008/09); “fake-revolutionary” from Oppose Howard/Latham’s Reactionary “Family Values”!, Single Mothers Hit By Capitalist Austerity, Bigotry, Unleash Union Power! For Free, 24-Hour Childcare! Permanency, Full Entitlements for Casual Workers!, Australasian Spartacist, No. 188, Spring 2004; “triumphant purveyors of historical falsehood and political cowardice” from Labor Government Demands Sacrifice from Workers, Recession Australia: Unemployment, Racism, Militarism, For a Revolutionary, Internationalist Workers Party!, Workers Vanguard, No. 939, July 3, 2009.
C’mon @ndy what the fuck is the point of this? Yes there still exists a handle full of socialist groups with relatively stable membership numbers (though often high turn-over) and a variety of political behaviours. So fucking what? This isn’t even a political critique of Leninism, just a list. Surely there is a real argument in the class about revolutionary organisation – my own preference being the communist position that rejects any kind of vanguard leadership in favour of bodies of struggle created in struggle – but this entry adds nothing to it.
It is just fucking sad.
I hope you still come to A Spectre is Haunting… Communism, Hope and the Future.
rebel love
Dave
“This isn’t even a political critique of Leninism, just a list.”
Precisely. This is because it’s not intended to be a political critique of Leninism, but a list. A list with the — to me — ludicrous-sounding title ‘Dirty (Filthy) Lousy Rotten Stinking Commies : February 2010’, of ten existent ‘communist’ groups, each accompanied (with the exception of the ‘Communist Party of Australia (Marxist-Leninist) (CPA-ML)’, for which I could find none) by a slanderous attack by the Spartacist League, and including not only not one not two but three examples of similarly hysterically-overwrought US anti-Communist agitprop film from the 1950s, but references to the CPA-ML’s desire to get high; the “disgusting” Van Thanh Rudd (a slur made in one of the pieces regarding his recent stunt to which I link); Andrew Fucking Bolt; the Socialist Party’s “madcap” proposal to stop The Kids from getting arrested for making Art without a license; and a clip from a Dutch communist straight edge band from the early 1990s a number of whose releases I actually own.
Why is is that readers such as yourself are seemingly incapable of understanding that I’m taking the piss, not only out of Leninist pretensions, but anti-Communist thought? That such posts should not be taken seriously, as a political critique of Leninism, or as anything else?
To put it another way.
Here’s a clip from YouTube.
One response would be to denounce it for its failure to appreciate the contribution Walter Benjamin made to understanding modern art and the function of film within it.
On the other hand…
Either because I am an idiot or the joke wasn’t that funny…
I’m not aware of these lists and updates on the far Left in Australia anywhere on the web that is accessible, at least for me. The fact that they are not buried under impenetrable theoretical discussions adds to their accessibility and usefulness.
I like this entry. It is useful for this information to exist and does actually take effort to compile. I also find the format it is delivered in (as well as the subject) highly amusing.
Congratulations on obliterating the line between earnestness and self-parody.
Enjoy when you can, and endure when you must. ~ Goethe
So Lumpen, is there not a debate to be had about organisation in the class or is it not sad that what is possibly the most prominent anarchist web presence in Australia presents a not very funny list of a few zombie-Marxist groups in lieu of presenting the actually very rich insights anarchism has about questions of organisation, struggle and class?
commie kisses
Dave
Dave,
A few things.
1.
You’re objecting to one post. The post is categorised as belonging to ‘Trot Guide’. These posts are, generally, concerned with leftist trainspotting, a hobby indulged in by perhaps many hundreds or a few thousand others, and best exemplified by the Leftist Trainspotters site and list.
It is semi-serious in intention, and not intended to provide a forum for polemics, for which there are countless other arenas.
There are currently 129 posts under the ‘Trot Guide’ heading, from a total of 2,374. That’s a little over 5%.
From December 2009 to this date, there have been 6 ‘Trot Guide’ posts (including the above). The remainder have concerned Robert Service’s new biography on Trotsky (and the response of the Trotskyist press to it), various developments on the far left in Australia (including the DSP’s dissolution into the SA), the UK (feuding within the SWP) and elsewhere, and a brief examination of the Victorian Labor College (among other things).
Obviously, these posts, and others belonging to the ‘Trot Guide’, do not constitute a critique of Leninism or a serious attempt to address the question of working class organisation.
2.
Notwithstanding the above, and irrespective of the fact that it is not my intention to do so, it’s not correct to state that my blog does not contain a critique — or rather, a series of references to other’s critiques — of Leninism, and of Marxism more generally.
For example, over the same period (December 2009–), I’ve re-posted two substantial essays on very similar subjects: ‘Which Anarchism? Which Autonomism? Between Anarchism and Autonomist Marxism’ by Heather Gautney (WorkingUSA, Vol.12, No.3, September 2009) and ‘Through a Glass Darkly: Alain Badiou’s critique of anarchism’ by Benjamin Noys (Anarchist Studies, Vol.16, No.2, 2008).
These are not critiques of Leninism per se, but they certainly address, in part, the question of class, class consciousness, and (political) organisation.
3.
With regards the question of producing a critique of Leninism in particular — as opposed to, say, a list of “zombie-Marxist groups” — the closest I’ve come to doing so — which is to say, the closest I’ve come to doing so on my blog — is probably ‘Anarchy: Against Capital, Against the State’ (June 23, 2007). The central problem with that text is that it is directed specifically at and intended to be a reply to ‘Is there anything radical about anarchism?’ (Socialist Alternative, No.117, June 2007) by Mick Armstrong. Given that it appears on my blog, it also suffers from including within it (what you might consider) some poor quality jokes.
Of course, the other reason I’ve not produced a critique of Leninism is because it’s been done before, many times over. Of these efforts, I’ve referred to several on my blog, and almost all — with the possible exception of Ron Tabor’s ‘A Look At Leninism’ (1988) — may easily be found online, and consist of texts to which I’ve linked repeatedly. Secondly, I’m not aware of there having been any extensive renovations to Leninism of late. To the extent that there has — and here I’m referring to Zizek’s reinvocation — I’ve taken note of them. Otherwise, my interest in a critique of Leninism overlaps, necessarily, with an interest in modern, 20th century history, and that of the left and Western workers’ movements in particular, and so references to Marx, Lenin and various other Great Men of History may be found throughout my blog.
Some relevant examples:
The Ideological Evolution of Horst Mahler: The Far Left-Extreme Right Synthesis
The Long Strange Posthumous Life of Leon Trotsky
Anti-Fascism, Anti-German, Anti-Semitism, Anti-Zionism…
‘Co-opting the Counter Culture: Troy Southgate and the National Revolutionary Faction’ by Graham D. Macklin
Anarchism & Marxism Part 666
We Are Family
Marxism: Last Gasp of the Bourgeoisie?
Comrade Loulou and the Fun Factory
Resistance is Utile: Critchley responds to Zizek (Harper’s Review, May 2008) & Don’t know what i want, But i know how to get it
Blame Canada? Limonov & National Bolshevism
4.
Finally, yes, ‘slackbastard’ is possibly the most prominent anarchist web presence in Australia — although that’s not saying much, and is in some ways despite my best efforts. It’s also almost entirely the work of one person, and is ignored by the vast majority of my comrades. Nevertheless, if someone, anarchist or not, wants to discuss questions of organisation, struggle and class on my blog, they’re welcome to do so, and I usually respond in some detail, if I think the matter warrants it. (See, for example, ‘Anarchism and Aboriginal sovereignty’.)
Otherwise, I recommend Richard Gombin’s work on ‘modern leftism’, and Ken Knabb’s ‘The Joy of Revolution’. (Poumista is also extremely valuable in terms of documenting anarchist and leftist history, as is The Daily Bleed, Wilson’s Almanac, and Robert Graham’s blog.)
5.
Go easy: I’m just a suburban boy.
I’m with Lumpen –
“I like this entry. It is useful for this information to exist and does actually take effort to compile. I also find the format it is delivered in (as well as the subject) highly amusing.”
Of course anarchist half baked critiques of Marxism-Leninism add to the amusement no end.
As to point 10. in the original post, don’t rely on the net, put your $10 in an envelope.
Trotskyist Platform, No. 12, August 2009–January 2010 has just been delivered by the postie.
Another great looking issue with full colour cover and weighing in at 108 pages, yeah you anarchist scenesters you read right – 108 pages.
I’m still asking the question, my non-leninist comrade… where’s the anarchist group analysis? anyone can nitpick… still curious… I agree with a lot of the libertarian philosophy, yet disbelieve in the possibility of its mainstream success whilst organised monopoly capitalism controls the world. Love to read a libertarian analysis of its own movement for a change… especially in my own city/country.
Anarchist group analysis?
Yeah: probably not a bad idea actually.
Otherwise, I have actually made a list — and checked it twice — of anarchist group activity in Australia (and titled it ‘Attack of the Anarchoids from Neptune!’).
I might update it at some point (if I could be arsed).
Otherwise, anarchy.org.au had a guide to anarchist groups in Oceania, although it’s down for the time being. A year ago I cast a weary eye over the absolutely tiny anarchist press.
I provided some footnotes to the history of anarchism in Australia that Bob James wrote for the International Encyclopedia of Revolution and Protest in May of last year (Anarchism, Australia, Bob James) and have otherwise noted the passing of a number of anarchists of late, including Andrew Giles-Peters and Peter McGregor (with honourable mentions to Pip Starr and Jeff Riley).
Note that “This video contains an audio track that has not been authorised by WMG. The audio has been disabled” — which kinda encapsulates everything that’s wrong with the world I think.
Beyond this, to be most productive/useful, any further disco on the state of contemporary anarchism in Australia requires the participation of other anarchists, and as I’ve already noted, my blog is ignored by the vast majority of my comrades. Well, at least in the sense that there is very little disco on it… which is not necessarily a bad thing, but still.
Otherwise, a new zine is being published in Melbourne called Melbourne Black, the Fantin Reading Group is meeting fortnightly, Barricade is re-opening on February 13, and no doubt there are other things going on of which I’m unaware (or will discuss in upcoming posts).
See also : Moar anarchy in the ‘hood (August 28, 2009).
Some good news…
For a bloody foreigner’s perspective on local rad.pol activism, see:
I seem to remember Chekov Feeney writing a similar account some years back, but buggered if I can find it now. In the meantime:
Pretty much what Andy said.
Your argument seems to be either/or. Yes, there is a debate to be had about organisation in the class. I don’t find anything sad about this post in particular or this series. It’s possible that it appeals directly to my prejudices and sense of humour. The Sparts calling the SEP “an organization of dubious political bandits” is really funny to me, especially the way it was constructed.
The leap you make is when you say “in lieu of”. I can’t see why he shouldn’t indulge his interests in a forum that he has constructed even if you assume that the anarchist insights have not been presented elsewhere. In other words, I think it’s possible to don the red anorak to do some trainspotting, as well as debate about “organisation in the class.” Now, I’m not really certain what you mean by that exactly, but it seems possible that both could be done.
There have been attempts at constructing online forums for these debates, btw. They didn’t really work out. (I’m thinking of AABB.) Maybe I’ll share my thoughts on this later.
a lot of photo about monuments of Vladimir Lenin in the world
the music is : ” Lenin is always with you ”
Lenin is always alive,
Lenin is always with you!
In sorrow, hope and joy,
Lenin is with you in your spring!
In every happy day,
Lenin is within you and within me!
It was twenty years ago today…
Paul Norton
Larvatus Prodeo
December 2, 2009
…that the 29th National Congress of the Communist Party of Australia decided that the CPA should cease functioning as a political party. This event occurred in the midst of the regime changes which were sweeping Eastern Europe at the time, ranging from the orderly reforming of communism out of existence in Hungary and Slovenia to the forcible overthrow of the ultra-Stalinist Ceaucescu dictatorship in Romania. Writing in Australian Left Review about the CPA’s historic decision, Mike Ticher noted that…
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The British Tories are much more sensible that the socialist rabble –
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/lord-tebbit-jostled-by-a-chinese-dragon-1907710.html