Re: [Marxism] Interesting comment from a veteran

["Gary MacLennan" <gary.maclennan@xxxxxxxxx>]

I found Lou's review of No End in Sight spot on in its attention to the
underlying ethical question.   Many critiques of the Vietnam war also took
the same path "We can't win" or "it was a mistake" etc.  These criticisms
leave themselves open to the Rambo critique "That we didn't try hard enough"
when the Right revives and tries to make a comeback.

Having said that I wanted to talk briefly about a book I picked up yesterday
for a dollar.  It was J. A. Froude's Reign of Elizabeth the First published
in 1909. Dipping into it I found this about Essex' proposals for a solution
to the Irish problem. In 1573 he petitioned the Queen for

"power to build castles and forts, to plant towns and incorporate them by
charters, power to make laws necessary for his government, power to levy war
upon the Irish., to assemble forces, to spoil, besiege, rase or destroy the
towns and castles of Irish outlaws, to annoy them by fire and sword, or any
manner of death, to take to his use the goods and chattels of traitors,
pirates and felons, with all shipwrecks that should happen within the circle
of his grant...power to make slaves and to chain to ships and galleys all or
or any such of the Irishry or Scots Irish as should be condemned of treason,
for the better furtherance of his enterprise." (In Froude, Everyman,  1930
ed p53).

Essex was given permission, but his expedition was a disaster. Though
eventually others were to come who would succeed. Still Essex' request to
his queen is an intersting prototype of the imperial mentality and worth
bearing in mind when he hear praise of the British or any other Empire.

regards

Gary
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