this post was submitted on 20 Jul 2023
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Tankies is used as shorthand for Marxist Leninists. As far as I know nothing about that ideology supports the use of tanks on civilians. Am I missing something here?
I thought that tankies were just communists who think that Stalin and/or Mao did nothing wrong.
Most Mao and Stalin fans have a more nuanced take on it, if they’ve actually read anything by them. The theory they espouse demands that you look at things so not totalities and take into account several different things when thinking critically of political figures in history. It’s like… one of the major points of dialectics in Marxist theory.
But people see someone defending certain aspects of a person like Stalin and Mao and immediately think “OH THIS PERSON THINKS THEY DID NOTHING WRONG” which is something I’ve only seen in memes, and those memes are mostly making fun of people who think in absolutes like that.
Most Mao and Stalin fans have a more nuanced take on it, if they’ve actually read anything by them. The theory they espouse demands that you look at things so not totalities and take into account several different things when thinking critically of political figures in history. It’s like… one of the major points of dialectics in Marxist theory.
But people see someone defending certain aspects of a person like Stalin and Mao and immediately think “OH THIS PERSON THINKS THEY DID NOTHING WRONG” which is something I’ve only seen in memes, and those memes are mostly making fun of people who think in absolutes like that.
"Tankies" as a term has been creeping from a description of people who think Stalin and Mao should be in charge again toward a description of anyone who believes even a hint of socialism should exist in society. It's basically a right-wing dismissal at this point
If someone uses the word tankie it’s a pretty good sign that they don’t actually understand history or political theory and don’t know what they’re talking about beyond current events and maybe a podcast or two.
Or they are an anarchist and are fully aware of anarchists getting backstabbed by tankies in the past.
🏴 ✊
Yeah it's pretty much taken over by western liberals as a catchall for "more left than me"