[OPE-L:4248] Re: Logic and illogic in defending Marx

From: Allin Cottrell (cottrell@wfu.edu)
Date: Mon Oct 23 2000 - 21:14:13 EDT


On Sun, 22 Oct 2000, Alejandro Ramos wrote:

> In addition to this, it still strikes me that a learned
> Marxist such Allin remains a defender of a theoretical
> position explicitly devised and presented by his author in
> order to show that Marx was absolutely wrong. But Allin does
> this in the naive belief that he's defending Marx!

Surely the motivation of an author does not provide a criterion
of the correctness of his arguments.  Besides (though you are
more familiar than I with the early literature on Marx) I didn't
think Bortkiewicz was motivated by ideological opposition to
Marxism -- though I gather he was partly motivated by a desire
to set the record straight on what he regarded as some invalid
criticisms of Ricardo on Marx's part (e.g. regarding the role of
Department III in determining the general rate of profit).  

For what it's worth, I don't see my role as "defending Marx" so
much as defending what I see as most important and valid in his
thinking.  

Allin Cottrell.



This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue Oct 31 2000 - 00:00:11 EST