I hope. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Yoshie Furuhashi" <furuhashi.1 at osu.edu> To: <lbo-talk at lists.panix.com> Sent: Saturday, December 28, 2002 7:04 PM Subject: The Hidden Hand of the Market
> At 1:35 AM -0500 12/23/02, Chuck0 wrote:
> >This war situation has prompted more than a few activists to drop
> >their work on economic justice, anti-globalization, and
> >anti-capitalist issues, precisely at a time when most Americans are
> >worried about the economy. Where did the economic critique go in the
> >anti-war movement? Where are the signs that read, "IT'S THE ECONOMY
> >STUPID!"
>
> "The hidden hand of the market will never work without a hidden fist.
> McDonald's cannot flourish without McDonnell Douglas....And the
> hidden fist that keeps the world safe for Silicon Valley's
> technologies to flourish is called the U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy and
> Marine Corps." -- Thomas Friedman, _The Lexus and the Olive Tree_
>
> To oppose the war on Iraq is implicitly to work on economic justice,
> "anti-globalization," and "anti-capitalist" issues, as it means
> seeking to stay the hidden fist. There have also been plenty of
> signs and speeches at anti-war demos that call attention to what you
> call "economic critique." It's not a good idea for anarchists to
> underestimate the intelligence of rank-and-file activists. "Economic
> critique" -- perennially expressed at all anti-war demos -- doesn't
> necessarily lead to the commitment to work to abolish capitalism and
> build a socialist or anarchist society, though. Even Democrats like
> Jesse Jackson and Dennis J. Kucinich have their "economic critique."
>
> Most participants in the "global justice movement" in the USA have
> not been "anti-capitalists"; only anarchists and socialists among
> them -- a tiny minority -- were. Hence the retreat of many orgs and
> individuals after 9.11, backing off from S29 in 2001. The same goes
> for the anti-war movement. Let's not indulge in any illusion here.
> We have a long way to go.
>
> At 1:35 AM -0500 12/23/02, Chuck0 wrote:
> >I don't think we've done enough to attack the legitimacy of the Bush
> >Regime. Where are the calls and signs that read, "WE DEMAND NEW
> >ELECTIONS IN 2003!"
>
> The slogan "Regime Change Begins at Home" has been seen on many
> signs, but it's clear that we don't have the capacity to force it
> today, despite a widespread desire for it among activists and even a
> good number of non-activists. If ILWU, etc. went on an illegal
> political strike calling for "regime change," if the strike were
> massively supported by the populace in the streets, and if sizable
> segments of the police, the national guard, etc. refused to come down
> on the strikers and protesters, it can happen, but that's just a
> strategy-in-dream now. It can't happen here at this point in
> history. It's not even happening in France and Italy, where
> left-wingers do have an organized presence and workers can and do
> sometimes go on a general strike.
>
> At 1:35 AM -0500 12/23/02, Chuck0 wrote:
> >How do you stop a war? Like I said, there are no easy answers, but I
> >have a few opinions. We need to start being more honest about our
> >history and that includes dispensing with the myths about how
> >activists stopped the Vietnam War. We need to understand that the
> >state can't be defeated by mass spectacles on the Mall, but does get
> >worried when lots of movements break out that it can't understand.
> >We have to put a stop to the protest du jour mentality that the Left
> >engages in, where it drops all work on one issue to go work on
> >another hot one.
> <snip>
> >Other thoughts? If you read up on your history of the Vietnam War,
> >you'll come across stories of GI resistance within the ranks of the
> >military. You'll hear about the GI Coffeehouse programs. Anti-war
> >and peace activists need to build bridges to military people and
> >their families. The families and members of the National Guard are
> >the most upset right now, because most NG members only do the NG to
> >pick up some extra money each month. National guard families aren't
> >going to be too happy about their loved ones and breadwinners being
> >taken out of the country for a long period of time during tough
> >economic times.
>
> No left-winger thinks or argues that we can stop a war by having
> "mass spectacles on the Mall." There is no myth that activists
> holding demonstrations single-handedly stopped the Vietnam War
> either; that's your and Nathan's straw man. Widespread GI resistance
> in the military was not born spontaneously, in isolation from those
> who organized and participated in vigils, demonstrations, and other
> activities that you hold in contempt. The former would not have
> happened without the latter. Many works that analyzed GI resistance
> document various connections, from personal to ideological. You
> can't build large-scale "bridges to the military people and their
> families" -- beyond what exists now -- without first creating the
> milieu in which such large-scale bridges may be built.
> --
> Yoshie
>
> * Calendar of Events in Columbus:
> <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/calendar.html>
> * Anti-War Activist Resources:
<http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/activist.html>
> * Student International Forum: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/>
> * Committee for Justice in Palestine: <http://www.osudivest.org/>