[lbo-talk] Check your privilege: Rise of the Post-New Left political vocabulary

Carrol Cox cbcox at ilstu.edu
Thu Feb 6 07:11:58 PST 2014


I'm going to push this thread, because I think that Joseph's ideas are not only wrong but in fact counter-revolutionary. I'll develop that (I hope) later, but just a note now.

The Vietnamese continued to use non-violent civil disobedience even in the years of massive armed conflict.

The Czar was overthrown, essentially, by a peaceful demonstration.

The Ussr was similarly overthrown by a peaceful demonstration.

Under almost ALL conditions the essential revolutionary act is non-violent civil disobedience.

I am definitely NOT a pacifist. To use Orwell's language (which he said assistant professors such as I were afraid to use) , sometimes you can achieve good results by killing people.

But non-violent civil disobedience remains the primary tactic.

Carrol



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