From: Paul Bullock (paulbullock@EBMS-LTD.CO.UK)
Date: Sat May 28 2005 - 13:23:43 EDT
To Paul Z, Can I add that if you look at http://venezuelanalysis.com/articles.php?artno=1426 You will find an interview with Chavez's elder brother - a an avowed marxist - which gives some idea of the discussions that must have been going on between family and friends for years. The brother, I understand , was and is part of the group responsible for the furtherance of land reform, a committee that was given a severe dressing down by the President for its lack of progress at one point (ie threatened with the sack). This is another lesson in the fact that those who call themselves Marxists are in no sense automatically to be considered effective revolutionaries or even considered as such by others , whatever their own subjective view. ( This is particularly the case in academia in my experience) What is important is the deed. You will remember Marx's own quote from Goethe in Vol 1, apart from common sense! On a number of occasions. Lenin pointed out that ther enemies of the working class were forced to call themselves Marxists even to get a hearing, such was the success of Marx's work. So whatever politicians call themselves is not of any immediate importance. Chavez is involved in a form of revolutionary nationalism which is antagonistic to imperialism, and was seen as an enemy very soon by the US... it reminds me of the US Dept of State discussions very shortly after the Cuban revolution, and the famous remark that.. 'Castro may not be a communist but he acts like one........' Cheers Paul B ----- Original Message ----- From: "Paul Bullock" <paulbullock@ebms-ltd.co.uk> To: "OPE-L" <OPE-L@SUS.CSUCHICO.EDU> Sent: Thursday, May 26, 2005 5:16 PM Subject: Re: [OPE-L] Chavez and Marxism > Paul, > > > Chavez has publicly referred to learning from Che - who was undoubtedly a > Marxist - and his period as a government minister, his concept of the new > man etc in speeches. Otherwise his references are to socialism or a new > kind etc, using the odd Trotsky quote, and so on. Any one with the standard > reactionary filling who hears any of this will deduce that Chavist is > 'becoming' a Marxist, by which they will mean that they now oppose him. > > What is important is the underlying class conflict that gives rise to the > use of , or rejection of, expressions. > > Paul B > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Paul Zarembka" <zarembka@BUFFALO.EDU> > To: <OPE-L@SUS.CSUCHICO.EDU> > Sent: Thursday, May 26, 2005 12:33 PM > Subject: [OPE-L] Chavez and Marxism > > > > Michael, > > > > VNews has an article of last Monday at > http://www.vheadline.com/readnews.asp?id=35312. It begins: > > > > "Let me begin by stressing that I believe wholeheartedly in President > Chavez and his Revolution ... but. I fear that by his invocation of > Marxism -- and by the occasional Marxist flavored comments which have > occasionally been made in this journal -- a great historical chance is being > jeopardized ... the chance to create a new kind of post Marxist socialism, > one based on decentralization, worker's cooperatives, and a truly moral and > spiritual, as opposed to coldly rationalist, historical materialist, road to > social justice." > > > > Afterwards there is no evidence offered that Chavez invokes Marxism. Do > you know if he has and what he said? > > > > Paul Z. > > > > ************************************************************************* > > RESEARCH IN POLITICAL ECONOMY, Paul Zarembka, editor, Elsevier Science > > ********************** http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/PZarembka > > > > >
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