34
Richard Wolff interview with Brian Becker on today's socialist program was pretty hot
(lemmygrad.ml)
Lots of great points. Especially at the end.
this post was submitted on 22 Jun 2023
34 points (94.7% liked)
Communism
394 readers
1 users here now
Discussion Community for fellow Marxist-Leninists and other Marxists.
Rules for /c/communism
Rules that visitors must follow to participate. May be used as reasons to report or ban.
- No non-marxists
This subreddit is here to facilitate discussion between marxists.
There are other communities aimed at helping along new communists. This community isn't here to convert naysayers to marxism.
If you are a member of the police, armed forces, or any other part of the repressive state apparatus of capitalist nations, you will be banned.
- No oppressive language
Do not attempt to justify your use of oppressive language.
Doing this will almost assuredly result in a ban. Accept the criticism in a principled manner, edit your post or comment accordingly, and move on, learning from your mistake.
We believe that speech, like everything else, has a class character, and that some speech can be oppressive. This is why speech that is patriarchal, white supremacist, cissupremacist, homophobic, ableist, or otherwise oppressive is banned.
TERF is not a slur.
- No low quality or off-topic posts
Posts that are low-effort or otherwise irrelevant will be removed.
This is not a place to engage in meta-drama or discuss random reactionaries on lemmy or anywhere else.
This includes memes and circlejerking.
This includes most images, such as random books or memorabilia you found.
We ask that amerikan posters refrain from posting about US bourgeois politics. The rest of the world really doesn’t care that much.
- No basic questions about marxism
Posts asking entry-level questions will be removed.
Questions like “What is Maoism?” or “Why do Stalinists believe what they do?” will be removed, as they are not the focus on this forum.
- No sectarianism
Marxists of all tendencies are welcome here.
Refrain from sectarianism, defined here as unprincipled criticism. Posts trash-talking a certain tendency or marxist figure will be removed. Circlejerking, throwing insults around, and other pettiness is unacceptable.
If criticisms must be made, make them in a principled manner, applying Marxist analysis.
The goal of this subreddit is the accretion of theory and knowledge and the promotion of quality discussion and criticism.
Check out ProleWiki for a communist wikipedia.
founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
I wonder if Brian learned anything from this colossal betrayal of trust
Context:
spoiler
linkOn the subject of the 1990s US war on Iraq in relation to the US anti-war movement:
“The US had previously brought in Jesse Jackson to effectively negotiate the release of small groups so they decided to use more high profile “VIP’s” to convince Saddam Hussein to release the remaining hostages. Stephen Thibeault, a US Foreign Service officer in Baghdad at the time explains : Ramsey Clark was another American who was a part of this. I think that the consistent message… of these VIPs to Saddam is that he should release the hostages as a prerequisite for then de-escalating the situation diplomatically. I think that he basically was fooled as, in fact, the hostages were protecting him. How then did Ramsey Clark fool Saddam Hussein? He claimed that the American anti-war movement would surely stop any potential American invasion.
"Mr. Ramsey Clark emphasized that most of the American people don't want war... Noting that there is a wide movement in its ranks against the war, he said that the US government is ignorant of the will of the American people regarding current events in the region in its call to war through the media. He added that the peace movement in the United States will escalate its struggles to prevent war in the Arab Gulf region." - Al Thawra Newspaper; Baghdad November 12, 1990 It is said that Ramsey Clark backed up his claim with a photo of an anti-war rally a few weeks before. Yet, the weekend rally in NYC (the largest one in the country) had no more than a few thousand people present. It could hardly be said that this represented a majority or even a critical mass of Americans. Nonetheless, Ramsey Clark told Saddam Hussein that he could rely on American protestors to stop the US from invading Iraq. Clark’s purpose, as we would come to understand was to serve as a hostage negotiator on behalf of the United States government. In late November, world-renowned Boxer Muhammad Ali was sent to Baghdad for further hostage negotiations, as a way to build credibility with Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi people. Ali, a world famous Muslim, received much respect on his visit. According to ex-CIA officer James Kolb, this was not the first time George HW Bush had requested Muhammad Ali to “use your status as a respected Muslim to enter into a secret dialogue…to try to procure the release of the American hostages”. (Ali had previously been used by the Carter regime to recruit African nations to boycott the 1980 olympics in the USSR.)”
→ “International con-man Brian Becker, another leader in the American anti-war movement, was a part of Muhammad Ali’s visit. His account emphasizes how much the visit was “a threat” to the US government and proved how “negotiations were clearly available as a means to prevent war.” Just because parts of the US government ‘denounced the trip’ does not prove anything at all.
This point is evidenced by a 1995 US Navy paper titled Persian Gulf Hostages: A Case Study in Terrorism, Diplomacy, and Strategy which details the United States hostage policy at the time. It had to maintain the facade of non-negotiation to “be tough on terrorists” while engaging in under the table diplomacy to release said hostages. The paper also details that while the US and UK publicly maintained rhetoric that they would bomb Iraq despite the presence of hostages, this was an empty threat. In essence, the United States needed the hostages released while also saving face. The reality is that these anti-war activists did the work of the US government by taking hard power away from the Iraqi government. This is regardless of whether they were acting on behalf of the US government (although, evidence indicates they likely were). Joseph Wilson notes in the same interview that:
"We were successful in getting one or two hostages out every time, and we would try to load up hostages onto every American who came out. It didn’t make any difference to us. The more, the merrier. If we could get 10 out with [boxer] Muhammad Ali, if they promised us 10 we’d go for 12."
In December, Saddam Hussein let the remaining British and Americans leave Kuwait. We Are The Mighty magazine (affiliated with the US military) praises Muhammad Ali for “freeing the hostages” and notes that he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his actions.
Muhammad Ali (center) and the remaining 15 American hostages leaving Iraq on December 2nd, 1990.
Saddam Hussein gave up the hostages, his insurance against American invasion, based on lies. In January 1991, only six weeks after releasing the American hostages, under the guise of the United Nations Security Council an American-led coalition would begin a horrific bombing campaign and invasion of Iraq.”
'international con man'? Sorry what? This is ad hominem attack or the guy who started the answer coalition against the Iraq war.
Sorry what
If you click on the ">spoiler" I provided context and a link