"Russian" questions

[Louis N Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Fri, 31 May 1996, Adam Rose wrote:
>
> I just think that the basic idea of Marxism, the self emancipation of the
> working class, is eventually incompatible with a "workers state" analysis.
> I say this because states like the GDR were created by the Red Army, Mao's
> China by intellectuals leading a peasant army. In neither case were these
> "workers states" created by the working class.

(clip)

> On this, the centrality of the working class, I am an incurable dogmatist.

Louis: I am relieved to discover that Adam believes in the centrality of
the working-class. All the rest of us believe in the centrality of the
petty-bourgeoisie.

As to the question of getting the "Russian question" correct, I would like
to present a section from the founding statement of Solidarity, a
loosely-organized group in the United States that includes "state
capitalists" and individuals with other perspectives.

------------------------------------------------------------------

(From Solidarity founding statement, 1986)
"There is another, more subtle error which has exacerbated the
tendency toward splintering of the revolutionary left.  We
believe that it is a mistake today to organize revolutionary
groups around precise theories of the Russian revolution.  We
want to be clear about what this means.

Precision, clarity and rigor are the highest of virtues in
developing theory and historical analysis; however, lines of
political demarcation do not flow in a mechanical and linear way
>from differences of theoretical interpretation.  Such an approach
leads to unnecessary hothoused debates on issues where long-term
discussion would be more in order.  It also contributes to the
dynamics of factionalism and splits, which in any case have been
too high owing to our history of misassessing the political
realities of our own society.

(clip)

Theoretically, some of us view these states as post-capitalist
societies whose transition toward socialism is blocked by
bureaucratic ruling castes and the pressures of imperialism.
Others of us regard the bureaucracies as ruling classes,
exploiting the working class in a new way, in a social formation
which is a rival to capitalism but is no less reactionary.
Others of us regard them as essentially a new form of capitalism
itself, state capitalism; while still others do not have a firmly
held theory or regard all existing theoretical explanations as
inadequate.

(clip)

We also hold a variety of theoretical views on the nature of, for
example, the Nicaraguan revolution, which will not prevent us
>from extending solidarity to it.  We agree, at least, that no
viable analysis of that revolution or others like it can be made
by simply pretending it is a re-make of the Russian Revolution of
1917 in miniature."





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