Re: [Marxism] liberal forum on the economic crisis+

["Ivan D. Drury" <ivanddrury@xxxxxxxx>]

A. POLLACK SAID:

>Doug Henwood's answer to the question in the forum's title was, "No, we can't 
>refuse the offer" [e.g. the Paulson Plan]. Otherwise the banks would collapse 
>and we'd have another Great Depression. No doubt he would have told Fidel not 
>to expropriate the banks, manufacturers, or landholders for fear of ruining 
>the Cuban economy.

REPLY:

I don't understand how these two points are at all relatable. I heard Henwood 
speak along the same lines on his radio show on Oct 4th and I understood that 
he is addressing the subjective weakness of a working class movement. To 
paraphrase, he said approximately refusing the bailout offhand "is not leftism, 
it's nihilism". His framework was that the immediate outcome of the collapse of 
the US economy would be mass unemployment, poverty, suffering. The question is 
whether crisis automatically equals mass class consciousness raising (as some 
argue) or if we'd see another post-Versailles germany (without even a relevant 
left to split and in-fight).

I was at two recent forums recently - both put on by marxist groups - where a 
similar "in the apocalypse lies the hope" line was coming out. Last night one 
cde propesized the "end of social chauvinism" because the purse strings 
tethering workers consciousness to the imperialist pantleg were being cut by 
the crisis. Wishful thinking? 

And last week, another cde hoped out loud that mineral prices would collapse so 
that the environmentally disasterous tar sands oil operation in northern canada 
would end. While this would be an economic / lifestyle disaster for hundreds of 
thousands (>30k are directly employed at the oil sands sites) of workers who 
would undoubtedly ALL lose their jobs, homes, cars, etc, there could be an 
arguement made that it would be worth it for near universal world benefit of 
the end of the tar sands. However, the idea that a social revolution or an 
automatic rise in consciousness would result is, I think, a mistake and a sign 
of intellectual desperation. It'd be more likely that a rightward swing / 
racist populism would result. In Canada, as in the US, the hard right is better 
organized and prepared for crisis than the revolutionary left. 

Hardly comparable to 1960 in Cuba. The subjective conditions and the 
perspectives for change could not be any more different. 

On Henwood's radio program, a more exact demand than "nationalize the banks" 
was put forward. He (and his guests, Sam Gindin / Leo Panitch) argued for the 
"democratization of finance", framing it in the context of a national utility 
that must be controlled publicly. Another helpful demand (besides the important 
one that's come out of this list to focus on opposing evictions / foreclosures) 
that I've heard in Canada (from David McNally) was for a bailout to bypass the 
banks and go straight to workers through institutions like the Canada Mortgage 
Housing Corporation (CMHC). I don't know if a similar institution exists in the 
US.

The point, I think, is to put forward *alternatives* to the capitalist 
responses to the crisis. It is not good enough to "chant socialism" or to 
sacrifice for the apocalypse of capitalism. I see Henwood as contributing to 
the discussion of alternatives that can be put forward in a discussion and 
crisis that requires constant criticism. While I don't think a wholesale 
"accept the deal / we have no choice" approach is the answer, I also do not 
think a "fuck the bailout!" / "apocalypse now!" approach is the answer either. 
And I suspect Henwood had more to say than you report. I sense more of a 
revolutionary-transitional approach in Henwood than in this report.

AP - why did you not stay and speak in discussion? Seems you had some really 
critical points to raise.

Here's a link to the Henwood program on the current crisis:
http://www.leftbusinessobserver.com/Radio.html#081004

David McNally's comments on the CMHC (which he made at a recent forum in 
Toronto) are available on the Socialist Project site as an audio file:
http://www.socialistproject.ca/inthenews/meltdown4_mcnally.mp3
The rest of the forum is here: http://www.socialistproject.ca/inthenews

-
Ivan



      __________________________________________________________________
Yahoo! Canada Toolbar: Search from anywhere on the web, and bookmark your 
favourite sites. Download it now at
http://ca.toolbar.yahoo.com.

________________________________________________
YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message.
Send list submissions to: Marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Set your options at: 
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40archives.econ.utah.edu