Re: World Party of Socialist Revolution

[Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>]

>It's experiences like this that have made me stick with the "sect" form of
>organisation, despite its obvious drawbacks. Those who would persuade us
>otherwise need to suggest a convincing practical alternative.
>Tom O'Lincoln

Speaking for myself, I have already offered an alternative in my "speech
that Jack Barnes should have given." That being said, I am afraid that Tom
and the DSP'ers are not looking for an alternative but a recipe. In other
words, they want a set of prescriptions about how to organize *themselves*.
I am afraid that unless you lose the concept of yourself as a distinct
current, you will never get anywhere. While Jon Anderson's bio of Che
Guevara is deeply flawed, it is worth reading for the material on how the
July 26th movement came together. Put succinctly, it was the organizational
expression of a *mass movement*, as was the Russian social democracy (we
should never lose sight that the Bolsheviks were simply *part* of this
broader movement.) Unless you begin to see the big picture, it will be
impossible to think in terms of what should be done next. Habit, routine
and tradition are intrinsic to organizations of the type that James P.
Cannon inspired. A true revolutionary movement will have to shun these
characteristics like the plague.

I should add however that all forms of socialist organization, even the
sect, are useful. Many people learn about socialist ideas for the first
time from the member of the 'Revolutionary Communist Workers Party' on
their campus or at their workplace. Myself, when I was growing up in the
Catskills in the 1950s, I used to pay close attention to the letters
written to the Republican Watchman, the local newspaper, by one Nathan
Pressman. (The newspaper was editorially Democratic--they were "watching"
the Republicans.) Pressman was a long-time member of the SLP, who would
castigate the capitalist system tirelessly. I can't say I became a
socialist because of his letters, but I did start to think about the system.

Louis Proyect
Marxism mailing list: http://www.marxmail.org



~~~~~~~
PLEASE clip all extraneous text before replying to a message.