> Yeah, the facts Coogan mobilizes are pretty amazing
> - the shift on
> Hussein (and why do they spell it Hussayn?) was
> stunning. As was the
> writing out of WWP's Trot history.
Well, obviously there is nothing wrong about changing position. However I suspect the reason for the WWP's position is that Sadaam was at one time under the umbrella of US support. At that time WWP would denounce him. However when Hussein came into conflict with the US, he immediately became, in WWP's eyes, an anti-imperialist hero...and therefore "objectively" progressive.
The question is how is it progressive...Does it really weaken "Imperialism"? I dont think so...even though I have heard this argument for years (and at one time early on would even have made such an argument myself).
And so, the Iraqi people have to go through this purgatory (that is much more like hell) and we on the Left are supposed to support it because Hussein is "objectively" progressive and in the end, when enough Third World countries rebel, the US will be thrown into crisis and the US masses (under the venerable leadership of the Workers World Party) will be led to that Eldorado where the WWP will run everything and children will take school field trips to lay flowers on Sam Marcy's grave...Perhaps he will even be exhumed and mumified. I think that it is the rationale.
The other rationale that I hear is what I call binary thinking. They (meaning groups like the WWP) will say well, who is the bigger source of evil Hussein or the US, who has caused more ill throughout the world...So, they corner you into choosing between the lesser of two evils (sound familiar, you are either with us or you are with them). I would not choose either, and why should I? It's correct to protest the US bombings and sanctions against Iraq, but I dont see any reason to support Hussein.
> mean. But there's quite an anti-left (even very
> broadly defined) tone
> to the thing.
I will agree with you on this. That is why I say that I found the facts that he collected were good but do not agree with all of the analysis.
Thomas
===== "The tradition of all the dead generations
weighs like a nightmare on the brain of the living"
-Karl Marx
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