Cockburn on Populism is like Chamberlain on Peace

Chip Berlet cberlet at igc.org
Fri Dec 22 18:36:16 PST 2000


Hi,

Citing Alexander Cockburn on Populism is like citing Neville Chamberlain on Peace.

Cockburn's inability to see that populism can move left or right is one reason Matt Lyons and I wrote a whole book on the subject. Populism is not a radical analysis.

See Joel Kovel's critical essay "Beyond Populism" at:

http://www.publiceye.org/Sucker_Punch/Clueless.html

And just in time for light holiday reading:

Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort

by Chip Berlet and Matthew N. Lyons

(New York: Guilford Publications, 2000)

-Chip Berlet

----- Original Message ----- From: Doug Henwood <dhenwood at panix.com> To: <lbo-talk at lists.panix.com> Sent: Thursday, December 21, 2000 7:42 PM Subject: Re: The Democratic Party & the Illusion of Splits in the RulingClass, was Re: Cockburn: The Coup


> Chris Kromm wrote:
>
> >Alexander Cockburn puts the point nicely in one of his essays, that you
can
> >win over lots of people to radical ideas (even marxist ones) in America,
but
> >only if dressed in the language of populism.
>
> Hmm, what's that mean? Put a petit bourg spin on everything?
>
> Doug



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