Date: Fri, 13 Jun 1997 14:31:53 -0400 (EDT)
From: Andrew Wayne Austin <aaustin-AT-utkux.utcc.utk.edu>
Subject: Re: M-I: state capitalism (fwd)


Lew,

You continue to ignore the wealth of quotes I have supplied from Marx and
Engels' writings. This is a common tactic you use. You used this selective
blindness tactic before in the discussion over whether bourgeois relations
persisted into socialist society. In fact, both matters we have discussed
then and now are to be found in the same places in the text. As I stated
before, this does not involve interpretation, just reading the text. I
also note Lenin's argument in *The State and Revolution* as being
representative of Marx and Engels' argument regarding the two phase
transition to socialism. While it is true that Lenin elevates the concept
of the dictatorship of the proletariat to a level not represented in Marx
and Engels's text (he makes it the central organizing principle--although
it is there in Marx and Engels' work, and given Lenin's political task of
actually carrying out a revolution reordering of emphasis is justifiable),
his understanding of their arguments was far superior than the economistic
hand-sitting of Plekhanov and the Mensheviks (where, by the way, the state
capitalist argument ultimately originates). I really don't know what I can
do about this, Lew, this selective blindness of yours. But your purposeful
ignorance of the facts certainly doesn't make me dishonest. So I will
leave you to your convenient rationalizations on the matter. 

Worker movements were organized and coordinated by a lot of different
organizations. I was identifying the lightening rod of the movement at
that time. I think if you take a look at the Communist International
during this time, read the Proceedings of the Second Congress, take an
accounting of who all was there and the hegemony of the Communist Party
worldwide you will see that, in fact, the Comintern was the powerful
organizing entity. During the Second (or Socialist) International prior to
1914, the First Congress had very little influence over the member
parties. During the Second Congress (1920), however, the Communist
International, the member parties worked together to coordinate a program
for world communist revolution. The Comintern was founded in 1919, just
prior to the Second Congress at a time when the world was in turmoil. From
out of this turmoil, the Comintern coordinated worldwide revolutionary
communist activities. I don't see how anybody who has looked at this
period might accuse another of overestimating the influence of the
Bolsheviks at this time (but, as I already mentioned, there was
considerable socialist activity that took place outside the scope of the
Comintern.)

Andrew Austin



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