> This conversation seems like a lot of useless wankery.
>
> If Carrol thinks that "Abolish the Prison System" is a useful demand to
> raise, then he (or others who share his perspective) should mobilize around
> it.
>
> Similarly, those who disagree should mobilize around something else instead.
>
> I see absolutely no reason to expect that we'll all agree on what, exactly,
> we should mobilize around, since a decisive answer would require a crystal
> ball. So why debate it?
>
> Whatever else you think of his argument, Carrol's certainly right that
> "[l]eft demands are NEVER simply implemented." I have absolutely no fear
> that Charles Manson will be freed before I return to the States.
>
> I'll continue to work on Palestine stuff for a while. (I'm not claiming
> there's anything inherently "left" about national liberation struggles,
> although they lay necessary groundwork, but that's a discussion for another
> day.) Those with different priorities can work on prisons, or immigration,
> or any number of other things. How is that a problem worth trying to
> resolve?
>
> If I can pull a Carrol, so to speak, I would opine that left debates about
> the best causes to mobilize around are the most useless kind of left
> debates. If you think a flag is worth flying, go fly it. And if you achieve
> any sort of success at all, the scent of victory will draw more active
> support from the rest of us than your most eloquent arguments ever could.
This is one of the most sensible posts I've read in a long time.
And let me say that if Carrol or anyone else ever succeeded in galvanizing multitudes behind a campaign for "Abolish Prisons," I would, despite my previous grave doubts, not only happily eat my words but I'd happily join it.
As a first step toward helping Carrol achieve that goal, I'd advise him to drop the tactic of calling his potential recruits gutless cowards.
SA