> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-lbo-talk at lists.panix.com
> [mailto:owner-lbo-talk at lists.panix.com]On Behalf Of rc-am
>i have no idea how one would go about distinguishing nathan's 'neither/nor'
> position from the 'fix it' one. what i do read instead, is an impassioned
> plea for maintaining some mythical coalition upon which to advance a
> programme of reforms in time for the next US elections.
> i think nathan has
> already offered us a glimpse of such a strategy: policy conferences and
> workshops for various NGO and labour reps attached to the WTO (we might
> enoble this by calling it 'the coalition' creatively setting forth the
> basis of a new society); and the exclusion of those darned negative types
> who refuse to play by the rules we have all agreed to at such conferences
> because, after all, we are represented (oh, let's call them 'anarchists').
Um, Angela- this is kind of complete bullshit and ad hominen, and this is getting to be the problem with this list that real debate degenerates into insults and caricatures of peoples's positions. I've done plenty of activism with anarchists and even been arrested with them and went out of my way to distinguish between anarchists as a group (many of whom did outstanding work in Seattle) and the specific subset of window-breakers in Seattle who I had criticism of in this particular situation.
Post after post, we've had folks trying to exclude established labor folks from any credit for their work in Seattle, with Cockburn/St. Clair accusing them of "stealing" the demo, while frankly most labor folks have been quite generous in sharing credit and admiring the work of the non-violent activists in the streets.
The exclusions are almost all coming from the anarchist direction, with enemies lists being drawn up and ad hominen attacks at the fore.
Why the Left wants to find enemies everywhere and mold allies into those enemies, I don't know. It's an odd and destructive psychological problem. Probably the most serious one on the Left and probably the biggest reason we fail.
-- Nathan Newman