Date: Sun, 25 Jun 1995 22:48:03 -0400 (EDT)
From: Jim Jaszewski <ab975-AT-main.freenet.hamilton.on.ca>
Subject: Re: The Grand Old Party (Remnant) {was "marxism", "dialectics" and "science"}



On Sat, 24 Jun 1995 marquit-AT-physics.spa.umn.edu wrote:

> Leo Casey is presenting a rather confused and distorted picture of what
> happened in the Canadian CP. If you look at the documents from the last
> CPC convention and the draft documents from this year's convention, it 
> would be clear that the term Stalinist is grossly inappropriate, unless
> you put make no distinction between Stalin and Lenin.

	'Stalinist' may be a term that is a BIT unfair, but it is BECAUSE
your group is the DIRECT descendant of 'Internationalist' groups inside
the 'Stalin group's' sphere of influence, and because of your group's
rather sectarian and narrow approach to other individuals and
organizations that the term Stalinist has stuck. It sticks for a reason... 


 The leadership
> that left the party ended up leaving because the membership rebelled
> against their tactics of expelling the opposition.

	That's not quite the way I saw it at all, though George Hewison
and the others DID try to pull a bit of a fast one (more of a pre-emptive
strike the way I see it), which is something Stalinists are better known
for (if the 'reformers' hadn't acted, I'm sure the 'stalinists' were
preparing a putsch of their own...) If the 'Old Guard' WAS more than half
the Party, it was only because they'd driven out and alienated large
numbers of potential members -- which would be the REAL point to consider
in a 'numbers game'.. 


The strength of their
> following is indicated that they have basically departed from the 
> poltical scene altogether.

	Yes, I've been *VERY* disappointed by the lack of ANY activity on
the part of Hewison and the others... I was really counting on them to
start some kind of process like the CoC...   :<


 As has happened in a number of countries
> where such internal divisions occur, large numbers of people lose
> heart altogether without taking sides and become apolitical in practice.

	Yes, we ALL lose -- and the capitalists are the only REAL
winners...      :<


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   Jim Jaszewski   <jazz-AT-freenet.hamilton.on.ca>

   WWW homepage:   <http://www.freenet.hamilton.on.ca/~ab975/Profile.html>

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