Re: [OPE] Marx: 'The Possibility of Non-Violent Revolution'

Jerry: **I don't accept in the case of Cuba the proposition you take for granted. What bureaucratic privileges and (personal) wealth are you referring to? Special access to Cuban cigars?**   To start with, Castro monopolizes negative liberties. He and those who think like him are the only one who can express their thoughts without fear of being punished, either being jailed or lacking basic services and licenses granted by the state.   This last one has become the usual way Chávez government punishes those Venezuelans that do not share the values of Bolivarian revolution. Since the Chavista representative Luís Tascón published on-line a list with the names and IDs of those who voted against Chávez on 2004 in the referendum to decide his continuity as president, this list has been used by bureaucrats to decide who can obtain a passport, a renovation of ID card and any kind of licenses.   In a state like Cuba, which regulates almost any dimension of public and private lives, this discriminatory use of state institutions has an important impact upon the well-being of those who oppose Castro.   But in the situation of lack of almost any kind of mechanisms of accountability in Cuba, how can you trust Jerry that the advantages Castro takes confine themselves to having Cuban cigars?   Do you really think that the life of Castro is as modest as those of the majority of Cuban people? Don’t you think that you are being too ingenuous? Don’t you think that this position seems to rests upon an act of faith?   Regards,A. Agafonow ________________________________ De: GERALD LEVY <gerald_a_levy@msn.com> Para: Outline on Political Economy mailing list <ope@lists.csuchico.edu> Enviado: lunes, 12 de enero, 2009 14:28:36 Asunto: RE: [OPE] Marx: 'The Possibility of Non-Violent Revolution' I asked: Has there ever been a ruling class in history which has voluntarily surrendered their privileged position and wealth?   AA did not answer the question, but instead asked another one:   > Has there ever been a socialist revolution in history which has voluntarily surrendered the bureaucraticprivileges and wealth of a minority of revolutionaries?   Hi Alejandro:   I don't accept in the case of Cuba the proposition you take for granted. What bureaucratic privileges and (personal) wealth are you referring to? Special access to Cuban cigars?    The everyday violence of  capitalism, which I cited Luxemburg as speaking about, is absent in Cuba. The everyday violence, rather, is caused by the embargo against Cuba by the US. And, of course, ongoing conspiracies by the CIA and old, bitter men in Miami.   In solidarity, Jerry

_______________________________________________
ope mailing list
ope@lists.csuchico.edu
https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/ope
Received on Wed Jan 14 04:51:34 2009