From: GERALD LEVY (gerald_a_levy@MSN.COM)
Date: Mon Oct 29 2007 - 10:02:09 EDT
>Thought you might object Jerry. I simply disagree. Understanding the class >content of social theory follows from the perspective of historical >materialism. Hi Ian: In that case you won't object to the following: "The Temporal Single-System Interpretaqtion (TSSI) of Marx is a sub-category of quantitative Marxism which was developed by professional economists and academics. The TSSI is a perspective which represents the isolation of many Marxian economists from the class struggle and the retreat of part of that group into stale, hermeneutic debates amongst themselves. The effect of this is to reinforce their own isolation. The TSSI thus expresses the interests of a segment of a skilled and elite segment of the working class. Like other brands of professional economists, their use of mathematics and specialized knowledge is necessary to receive acceptance and possible career advancement within the universities where they teach. The TSSI is the latest attempt to legitimize the study of Marx and Marxism and hence their own position within the Academy to bourgeois economists and University administrators. As part of this project, it seeks to utilize the exact same analytical tools of professional economists. This is despite the fact that some of those analytical tools were not employed by Marx when analysing the issues in which advocates of the TSSI have become obsessed. This contradiction has not been accepted by proponents of the TSSI because its recognition would lead to the self-dissolution (suicide) of the school. The hermeneutic focus of their debates and their desire to 'reclaim Marx' from alleged non-believers and heretics is an indication of its quasi-religious character and orientation. It is therefore a religious denomentation which has been engaged in debates with other denomenations. Unlike many of those other denomenations, pride of place in the TSSI is given to what they see as the proper repetition of Church doctrine concerning Marx. They consider themselves to be the most faithful of Marxians - indeed, they have claimed that their interpretation is simply "Marx's Marxism". Hence, the TSSI doctrine is similar to the Jesuitical doctrine in the Catholoc Church -- the difference only being that in the TSSI Church the person of Karl Marx is substituted for that of Jesus Christ." One might object that such characterizations -- even if they are a result of an understanding of historical materialism -- do not advance discussions and that was the basic point of my previous post. In solidarity, Jerry
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