[lbo-talk] The "Anybody But Bush" Plague

Leigh Meyers leighcmeyers at yahoo.com
Sat Sep 18 18:10:28 PDT 2004


"I'd rather vote for something I want and not get it than vote for something I don't want, and get it." - Eugene V. Debs

Six Grim Consequences of the Anybody But Bush Plague - by M. Junaid Alam M. Junaid Alam, 21, Boston, co-editor of Left Hook A Journal By and For American Youth on the Radical Left http://www.lefthook.org

http://www.lefthook.org/Politics/Alam082304.html

The Anybody But Bush plague has infected the American left with ruthless speed and efficiency. Descrying how, why, and under what circumstances this or that particular leftist figure has fallen victim to it is a rather cumbersome and tedious task best left to the coroners of history. It seems far more prudent now to identify, in concrete terms, the most important consequences the ABB epidemic will have on our attempts to reshape society along more just and rational lines.

Below, I outline six of them. One: The first and most devastating consequence of ABB politics in the short-term is that it has resulted in total political paralysis on the burning question of war in Iraq. It is irrefutable that this issue more than any other currently occupies the full attention of the American public; polls have found that it ranks above any other foreign or domestic among the electorate, and that a continually growing -now majority - part of the population opposes the war. It is equally irrefutable that John Kerry and the Democratic Party have decided not to jeopardize the ruling-class consensus to continue and deepen the war effort: far from opposing the war, their goal is to appear as more efficient and responsible executors of the war than the Bush team.

For a left which has placed its neck in the noose of the Democratic Party the implication is obvious: the priority is to elect Kerry, not oppose the war. A major segment of the leadership and the rank-and-file they influence in the anti-war movement are currently scurrying about getting out the vote for John Kerry. The main intellectual and political firepower of the liberal anti-war left is and has been directed at whipping up the ABB frenzy, slandering Nader, painting Bush as Hitler reborn - in other words, not focused on Iraq. This represents a tremendous failure to capitalize upon an enormous opportunity: to galvanize and consolidate public anti-war sentiment into a powerful domestic movement to end the war at this pivotal stage of conflict. Instead, with the drive to vote for pro-war Kerry, all that is being built up is false illusions among the many who stand against war, and the pay envelope of the few who kneel before power.

Two: A second and related side effect of the ABB position is deafening silence concerning the Palestinian plight. Naturally, Kerry has heartily embraced the one-wall dungeon Ariel Sharon is building for the Palestinian people and has snip~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Six: The sixth and final ramification to contend with is the fact that ABB-lite arguments advanced by radicals result in complete disorientation and confusion about what the left actually is, what it is capable or willing of doing, and how it can act effectively. That there is in fact no monolithic creature known as "the left" should have been made clear by the obvious differences and fault lines in the anti-war movement over questions like the importance of Palestine, the nature of the Iraqi resistance, the meaning of the "Support Our Troops" slogan, the authority of the UN, and so on. Of course, political unity became important because the war drums were beating and getting people out on the streets was the priority; whether people opposed the war because they opposed the system producing it or merely the president launching it was not the point. Now however, the inability and unwillingness to state the obvious - distinguishing what it means to be anti-capitalist as opposed to merely anti-Bush - is totally inexcusable. No purpose of unity is served by radicals lending cover to liberals with watered-down versions of the ABB argument, because the liberal opposition to the inherent flaws of the system will be silenced, tamed, and bought out if their supposed savior John Kerry wins the presidency. And then it's back to square one all over again. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.lefthook.org/Politics/Alam082304.html

feedback: alam at lefthook.org ==================================



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