[lbo-talk] Response to MG -- Was Poll....

[Dennis Claxton]

At 04:08 PM 7/6/2011, Doug Henwood wrote:


> > Walter Benjamin wrote that the revolution is like slamming the 
> brakes on the train of history.
>
>Really? He said that? Why not taking the controls instead?

I think that's a better way of interpreting what he said, which was 
"activate the emergency brake."   "Slamming" the brakes suggests a 
last-ditch effort by the engineer.  Activating the emergency brake 
suggests the passengers taking control of the train.

http://books.google.com/books?id=tD1AupO0vvoC&pg=PA402&lpg=PA402&dq=%22walter+benjamin%22+train+brakes&source=bl&ots=jjR-1AQ07i&sig=AkEAH8vdWBtyLLdzZh7HH_H9nKE&hl=en&ei=OusUTpOCGsrKiAK2xsX5DQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CEQQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q&f=false