From: "commie00" <commie00-AT-yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: SV: AUT: Cobas/SUD
Date: Sat, 30 Mar 2002 06:41:20 -0500


hey steve and all

> I think Harald is right about the
> dangers of what he calls "counter-cultural unionism", and this could be
> fruitfully explored.

i've been thinking a lot about this phrase the last day or so, as well, and
am curious about it. i'd really like to hear more of haralds thoughts on
this.

i certainly don't advocate "counter-cultural unionism", at least not in the
way that i think harald means it. but on the other hand, i think
"counter-cultures" are very important to the communist movement (i've argued
here before that i think the global diy hardcore-punk scene, and other
scenes like it, have inherent revolutionary content and potential).

i many ways, i think this phrase "counter-culture" is problematic
post-1960s-70s, and we need to be careful how we use it. that is: on the one
hand it can be used as a pejoritive which implies seperation from the bulk
of the working class, obsession with lifestyle at the expense of practical
action/theory, etc.; and on the other hand, it can be understood as an
aspect of the dialectical process for overcoming capitalism.

it seems to me that any "counter-cultre" that exists right now will likely
exhibit both of these traits at any given moment. but this does not mean
that a counter-culture should be abandoned or rejected, only that we need to
understand that counter-cultures are useful only to the extint that those
within it are working to realize the later definition / understanding, while
overcoming the former.

etc.



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