[lbo-talk] Why aren't the poor storming the barricades?

Charles Brown cb31450 at gmail.com
Fri Feb 14 05:26:13 PST 2014


On Fri, Feb 14, 2014 at 12:56 AM, Victor Friedlander <victor at kfar-hanassi.org.il> wrote:
> The whole issue is a red herring. A social revolution occurs only when
> there emerges a revolutionary class, that is a class which has achieved
> economic and political power by virtue of having become essential to the
> perpetuation of the state, yet is subject to the rule of an anachronistic
> ruling class.

^^^^^ CB: There's a comment worth contemplating

^^^^^

Without such a class that can mobilize and organize
> widespread dissatisfaction with the ruling class and focus the anger,
> design and direct the seizure of the political and economic institutions of
> the community, and form a viable alternative to the ancien régime there can
> be no revolution.
>
> Incidentally, storming the barricades is neither rare, nor is it an
> effective a revolutionary tactic. As an inchoate expression of rage and
> disgust it is easily coopted or otherwise overcame by even the most
> moribund of ruling classes.
>
>
> On 13 February 2014 03:36, Charles Brown <cb31450 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> "The worse the better " is false most of the time.
>>
>> On Wed, Feb 12, 2014 at 1:52 PM, Wojtek S <wsoko52 at gmail.com> wrote:
>> > The storming the castle argument is based om a false premise that the
>> > worsening of the conditions sparks a revolt. In reality, the opposite is
>> > true. it is the betterment of social conditions that spark a revolt.
>> > Better conditions increase people's expectations and when those higher
>> > expectations are not being met, people are more likely to turn to
>> > alternatives. If the conditions worsen, retrenchment is the normal
>> > behavior. Economists never understood human psychology.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > --
>> > Wojtek
>> >
>> > "An anarchist is a neoliberal without money."
>> > ___________________________________
>> > http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk
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>>
>
>
> --
> Victor Friedlander
> ___________________________________
> http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk



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