Re: [OPE] capital's roads to recovery?

cmgermer@ufpr.br wrote:
> I would however add a
> second line of debate:
>
> 1) what new perspectives does the present crisis present for the working
> class and for the struggle for socialism?
>

It has presented the parasitic nature of finance capital and brought
back ideas of state ownership and regulation. These progressive
"Keynesian" measures are an advance but they have not revived ideas of
workers' cooperatives or macroeconomic planning.

> 2) Does the present crisis alter in a significant extent the very
> unfavorable relation of forces in which workers and socialists, as well as
> Marxists, have been in the past decades?
>

I do not think so. It alters the political power that finance capital
can exert but has not benefited the labour movement in anyway, because
it is weak in terms of its capacity to organize and of the lack of
concrete proposals and demands address the situation adequately.

> 3) to what extent can the present crisis contribute to a significant
> upsurge of the working class in the class struggle?
>

I think we lack a good theory of this. It seems to me that this is only
likely to occur when there are mass organizations in place and none of
the political forces in power are perceived to be capable to improve the
situation. We are not in that situation. Yet.

> 4) In what way and to what extent can Marxist intellectuals contribute to
> such an upsurge?
>

To the extent that they can popularize a clear analysis of the situation
within popular movements and articulate concrete measures that address
issues pertinent to the working-class (debts, bills, housing, income etc.).

//Dave Z
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Received on Thu Jan 22 16:38:17 2009