Skip Navigation

them, doesn't matter too much
Marxist-Leninist ☭
Interested in Marxism-Leninism, but don't know where to start? Check out my Read Theory, Darn it! introductory reading list!

26m ago

hello again
Jump
1

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 26m ago
No worries on taking time! It's great that you're reading, and progressing. Socialism: Utopian and Scientific is a snippet from the broader Anti-Dühring, correct. A-D has 3 sections: Philosophy, where Engels goes over dialectical materialism in depth, Scientific Socialism, where Engels explores more about how socialism came to be "scientific" and what that means, and a section on Political Economy.
Really, my recommendation is to go for Socialism: Utopian and Scientifc for now, and return to Anti-Dühring later, seeing it (as well as his unfinished Dialectics of Nature) as Engels' Capital, his masterwork. Socialism: Utopian and Scientific is where I personally broke from anarchism and became convinced of Marxism, and while that may not happen to you (and that's okay), it's such an amazing work for how short it is.
Be sure to read the footnotes and captions! It's extremely easy to misunderstand the notes on Bismarck and the section on the withering away of the state, but as long as you're reading carefully you'll have no problems. Good luck!

2h ago

all of it apparently

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2h ago

.epub version of This Soviet World.

2h ago

Why are you booing me???

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2h ago

No matter how much you hate the US Empire, I don't think it's possible not to hate it more after reading Settlers.

2h ago

Tankie and PROUD, come @ me lemmy liberals

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2h ago

I don't see why you believe socialist democracies to be inherently more corrupt than capitalist "democracies."

2h ago

That's great, glad to see that you're making good progress! And yep, I was hit harder than I thought I'd be by Parenti's passing, I knew he was on his way out for years and yet it still hurt quite a bit when I heard about it. Rest in peace, comrade, may we continue what you left off!

1d ago

What Fediverse instances would you recommend to others?

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 1d ago

To be clear, one comment having 1-2 upvotes and a reply to it having a dozen or more upvotes gets that across just fine, it just requires the reply in the first place.

1d ago

What Fediverse instances would you recommend to others?

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 1d ago

Since when was the Palestinian resistance to genocide genocidal themselves? What kind of hasbara is this?

1d ago

What Fediverse instances would you recommend to others?

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 1d ago

Blocking instances blocks their communities, not their users. Further, Lemmy.world is already defederated from Hexbear, blocking it does nothing in that case.

2d ago

all of it apparently

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

Not sure I understand the point, states and markets are entirely different things, especially a state run by the working class whose goal is to collectivize all production and distribution, erasing the basis of class struggle and therefore the oppressive elements of government that make up the state.

2d ago

all of it apparently

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

The state is a result of class struggle, so to end states once and for all you need to achieve classless society, eliminating the basis of the state. That means collectivizing all production and distribution globally, into one system. Once this is done, there are no classes in contention, and as such the oppressive elements of society used to keep the proletariat on top will gradually disappear and "wither," being reduced in function and scope until only what's necessary remains, like administration.

2d ago

Tankie and PROUD, come @ me lemmy liberals

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

"Lemmy" in the subject meaning, presumably, the broader lemmy, not Lemmy.ml in particular.

2d ago

Protestation

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

Thanks, comrade! 🫡

2d ago

What Fediverse instances would you recommend to others?

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

"Tankie" is just a pejorative for communists, it's a strawman that essentially says that the Red Scare was correct, but that that's a good thing. In reality, the ones called "tankies" have very reasonable views and reasons for supporting existing socialism, the label gets thrown to shut down discussion.

2d ago

Read Theory, Darn it!

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

No problem! And good luck! 🫡

2d ago

Read Theory, Darn it!

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

If there's no ML parties near you, then you have a few options! One is to join a national org and agree to start a chapter near you, which is lots of work. I greatly admire those who can do that, but if you're new to organizing I wouldn't recommend this at all. The other option is to join decent orgs, keep reading, and try to get involved with your community. You're never too green to get involved! Just keep up with both theory and practice, they reinforce each other.

2d ago

Protestation

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

Yep, but it's helpful to have that hang so it's obvious to others.

2d ago

Protestation

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

No clue, honestly, it surprised me when I saw it too.

2d ago

Protestation

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

This is a communist community, it's not surprising that there are communists here. China is run by the working classes, and has a lower suicide rate than the vast majority of capitalist countries. Labor rights in China are strong, and regularly improving. China isn't perfect, but when judged in the context of their development over time and when compared to peers, they are doing incredibly well.

If you have a meaningful way to counter what I've said, do so. Don't just spout easily disproven rhetoric like claiming China has a high suicide rate or slave labor conditions. It's entirely unconvincing when you come in with no actual backing to your points, especially when my own were well-sourced and my stances transparent from the beginning.

2d ago

Protestation

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

In what way is this gatekeeping? The working class can quite easily understand that we are being exploited, just looking at disparity alone makes it come quite easily to us. However, the inner workings of capitalism, imperialism, its drives, how it works and functions, all of this is far from obvious. If it were truly obvious, then everyone would probably already be a Marxist.

I can say that revolutionaries should be trained, because we know what happens when they are, vs. when they aren't. For example, in the Russian revolutions, many factions tried to rely on "sponteniety" or otherwise disapproved of revolutionary theory. These factions all lost out to the bolsheviks, who were dedicated, professional revolutionaries.

That isn't to say that the entire working class shouldn't participate, just that they won't be the ones leading revolution. Lady Izdihar made a helpful diagram:

All of these components are necessary for success, which we can verify by looking at successful vs. failed revolutions. It isn't gatekeeping to say that a random person should be a surgeon without due training, but instead aconowledgement that for success, we need to train, and that we cannot expect everyone to have the time and dedication to train equally. This isn't shutting people out of the movement, but proper organizing.

2d ago

What Fediverse instances would you recommend to others?

Jump

Cowbee [he/they] @lemmy.ml 2d ago

Just browse Join-Lemmy and pick an instance that sticks out and you like the vibe of, with good local communities and decent federation. The only one I truly recommend avoiding is Lemmy.world, due to its size and moderation on some larger communities.