Date: Tue, 20 Jan 1998 20:59:55 +0000
From: vladimir bilenkin <achekhov-AT-unity.ncsu.edu>
Subject: M-G: Vladimir B's ration 1/19/98


To: Doug, Malgosia, Juan, and ALL.

Doug:

I cannot explain your odd reaction to my previous posting
other than by some sort of repressed guilty conscience.
Once you imputed me a design on life.  This time you twisted 
my words into a malicious intent to represent you as fat cat!
All I meant to say was that you and a number of other 
middle-class marxists in m1 were "seasoned" (experienced, 
knowing who is who and how the System operates) people who either knew
or could easily find out, if they wanted, whose
money stand behind the Spoon's operation.  I recall, for instance, how
once you graciously offered me your help in 
finding more information about a shadowy "foundation" behind
a right-wing project on "Russian postmodernism."   This is
what I meant by "seasoned." And nothing else.
 Sorry, if it's a misnomer.  Yes, I also think that you,
among other, let say, "moderate" marxist intellectuals of 
M1 was responsible for encouraging the Spoons's increasing
intervention into the *political* direction of the list and
its eventual reduction to a purely intellectual, academic
enterprise. But I don't want to dwell on this upteenth time.

Let me also drive your "uncivilised" back home.  "Uncivilised,"
in my understanding, is not to keep nagging me, in a manner
of a bad court lawyer, with my interest in Russian Benjamin.
To be "uncivilised," and perhaps unenlightened, is to assume 
1) that Benjamin is what your alter ego, postmodernists think he is, and
2) that Russian workers are too dumb to understand in him
what is worth understanding.

To ease your "guilty conscience" a bit, I want to let you
know that we use some of your materials in propaganda in
Russia.  And since I know that at your heart you *are* a
civilised fellow, I'm confident you won't take us to court
for the infringement of your copyright.
*******************
Malgosia:

1. NGO=non-governmental organization.
2. I apologize for assuming that the Spoons's function has
been  providing us only with technical assistance.  What an
abomination to be thought of as blue-collar personel!
*******************
Juan:
I know these thoughts.  They come to one as *naturally*
as money appear to be the value of things.  Or as naturally,
as the old Hegelianism reappears in the form of the modernization
theory: we only think we're building socialism,
while the cunning world spirit knows better.  The question,
however, is not why socialism in the East has been defeated,
but why the working classes in the West have failed to defeat
the 'mature' capitalism.  To drive this question closer to
your territory: Wouldn't the fate of the Portuguese revolution
have been very different if the workers of France, England and Germany
had come out politically and economically in its defense?
************
To all:

I'm looking for an advice and technical help in establishing
a discussion list for Russian communists. The language is
Russian only.  Presently, there is only one outlet of
this kind.  It's based in Russia, unmoderated--which 
under the circumstances means plagued by Black Hundredths
types--and very dangerous, since it's not a gopher type.
One actually types in one's message into the page which
means that not only the content but also the whereabouts 
of the contributor go directly into the archives of the 
Russian FBI.  I need a gopher-type list, customized for
cyrillic, based in the West, i.e. reasonably secure, and 
reasonably priced.  If you have any suggestions, please, contact me
privately at the address above.

Vladimir


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