But Michael's artgument is a form of voluntarism. It only makes sense on the premise that the only reason socialism did not replace capitalism worldwide a century ago was because leftist did not use the right persuasion. Most people are unpersuadable most of the time. At any given time, a varying number are potentially perusadable. That number is always small except under extraordinary condtions -- which are _always_ both unpredictable in advance and cannot be created by some particular effort on the part of leftists. (Julio's argument may be seen in part as a view of Obama's supposed perfidy as constituting such extraordinary condtions.) This widespread assumption that there exists some right way for the left to proceed, and that the failure of the left to make steady progress or at least in some way increase its power (and maintain the advance is simply false.
Moreover, as Dennis P. pointed out, there is a serious error in the concept of "what the left can do for workers." The left has _nothing_ to offer workers or anyone else except the opportunity to risk their livelihood, perhaps their freedom, even thier life, in a struggle for the freedom of all, a struggle against superior forces capable of any infamy in the crushing even peaceful resistence that is seen to represent a threat to the domination of capital. (That phrase "even peaceful" is crucial: renunciation of froce and commitment to peaceful modes of struggle is no protection whatever against savage represdsion.)
There is nor has there ever been any "failure" to communicate. That is not our problem. The left will flourish (as has ALWASY been the case in the past) when some issue energizes and (more or less) unifies a militant minority to resist outside teh electoral arena. Except in such periods, the most perfect style of persuastion will be powerless, since no one will bother to listen to it.
It is one of the daydreams of leftists that there exists a method that will gurarantee success, and that failure is simply evidence that that method has either not yet been discovered or that "the left" out of pure stubborness refuses to follow. Horse Shti!
Carrol
Eubulides wrote:
>
> On 09-12-21 09:11 PM, Michael Perelman wrote:
>
> > I did not blame the workers. Our failure to communicate is more
> > rsponsibile than than the people who get whipped up by Glen Beck& the
> > like.
> ==============
>
> Is a multilogue of the deaf a fault free communication zone?
> Unpersuadable people are never the problem?
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