Post by Stallit 2 de Halfo on Oct 28, 2008 19:59:14 GMT
Worn slogans of economism
With no surprise, the usual suspects have again rolled out the tired slogans of economism (gas and water socialism) prior to this Sunday’s Royal Irish Regiment parade in Belfast. It is not surprising and is part of a general trend which James Connolly grappled with in the Connolly-Walker Controversy documents.
The Irish left have consistently failed to challenge imperialism in any consistent or coherent manner since the times of Connolly. The arguments both Lenin, Connolly and additionally Seamus Costello put forward against economism have stood the test of time. Any revolutionary fermentation in Ireland has always been manifested by the issue of the national question and has been harnessed by the national liberation forces.
Davy Carlin, a member of the Workers Solidarity Movement published an article in the past few days which was incorrect on several points, particularly around the fact he compares Republicanism and Loyalism as mirror opposites - they aren’t. One is a progressive nationalist ideology which is ant-imperialist and has a general democratic content, the other is a reactionary creation of imperialism to subvert the Irish people through the Protestant labour aristocracy.
Davy neglects to mention that imperialism exists in Ireland both in an obvious and not so obvious form. We will deal with the obvious forms here – the British army is still here, the Unionists still have a veto over the rest of the Irish people, MI5 is continuing to recruit informers, the PSNI is still hauling Republicans off to prison and Westminster have the final say over anything and everything. The left believe these things shouldn’t be mentioned for they will alienate Protestants. This should be taken as an indication of the sectarian nature of Protestants in general but the left are oblivious to reality.
To instead talk about working class unity is fantasy. Why would Protestants, who historically were the landed class, give up their ill-gotten gains for the Catholics they trampled upon and whose extracted surplus value they have lived on for hundreds of years? The north Belfast housing situation in recent times is enough to shatter any illusions of ‘working class unity’, historically, the non-action of the Protestant working class speak for themselves – the left instead pander to their sectarian nature and sections of the left like the Socialist Party, Communist Party of Ireland and members of the Irish Socialist Network believe the Ulster Volunteer Force are somehow revolutionary or at the least represent an independent trend of Protestant working class thought.
The UVF is a creation of British imperialism. It is a sectarian organisation that murders people because of their religion or nationality. The UVF and Ulster Defense Association have been at the forefront of organising sectarian and racist attacks against migrant workers and are providing the recruiting ground for the British National Party to begin their advent into the north.
Davy claims the march is being “sectarianised via various quarters”. But this is just what the march is. It’s a sectarian coat-trailing ceremony organised by the British Ministry of Defense to celebrate the plunder of Iraq and to get the croppies to once more lie down. Sectarianism is a creation of British rule in Ireland. It is not a creation of the Republican Movement at any stage of history. To really be opposed to sectarianism in Ireland we must oppose the primary contradiction, the primary contradiction is embodied by British rule here. Davy absolves British rule of any responsibility, his article gives the impression that Britain is neutral and that Republicans and Loyalists are squabbling over some irrelevancy.
Sections of Republicanism have bought into the imperialist myth and today are talking about the ‘Protestant Unionist Loyalist’ community and the ‘Protestant working class’ – we believe neither exists. Both are artificial and are proven creations of partition to enhance British rule and to create confusion amongst those who claim to be anti-imperialist. Prior to partition it was rare to hear a Unionist call themselves ‘British’, they referred to themselves as Irish, some were avid Irish speakers that kept the language alive in times of persecution. Although they considered themselves Irish, it was a different type of Irish than the Republican croppy.
Should be the people of Africa seek a ‘third way’ with the Boers, who have murdered, robbed and raped their way across several African countries? The answer is a resounding no, the people of Zimbabwe and elsewhere have the right to stand up and to take back what is rightfully theirs.
Hopefully the Irish people realise that path also.
inniu.wordpress.com/
With no surprise, the usual suspects have again rolled out the tired slogans of economism (gas and water socialism) prior to this Sunday’s Royal Irish Regiment parade in Belfast. It is not surprising and is part of a general trend which James Connolly grappled with in the Connolly-Walker Controversy documents.
The Irish left have consistently failed to challenge imperialism in any consistent or coherent manner since the times of Connolly. The arguments both Lenin, Connolly and additionally Seamus Costello put forward against economism have stood the test of time. Any revolutionary fermentation in Ireland has always been manifested by the issue of the national question and has been harnessed by the national liberation forces.
Davy Carlin, a member of the Workers Solidarity Movement published an article in the past few days which was incorrect on several points, particularly around the fact he compares Republicanism and Loyalism as mirror opposites - they aren’t. One is a progressive nationalist ideology which is ant-imperialist and has a general democratic content, the other is a reactionary creation of imperialism to subvert the Irish people through the Protestant labour aristocracy.
Davy neglects to mention that imperialism exists in Ireland both in an obvious and not so obvious form. We will deal with the obvious forms here – the British army is still here, the Unionists still have a veto over the rest of the Irish people, MI5 is continuing to recruit informers, the PSNI is still hauling Republicans off to prison and Westminster have the final say over anything and everything. The left believe these things shouldn’t be mentioned for they will alienate Protestants. This should be taken as an indication of the sectarian nature of Protestants in general but the left are oblivious to reality.
To instead talk about working class unity is fantasy. Why would Protestants, who historically were the landed class, give up their ill-gotten gains for the Catholics they trampled upon and whose extracted surplus value they have lived on for hundreds of years? The north Belfast housing situation in recent times is enough to shatter any illusions of ‘working class unity’, historically, the non-action of the Protestant working class speak for themselves – the left instead pander to their sectarian nature and sections of the left like the Socialist Party, Communist Party of Ireland and members of the Irish Socialist Network believe the Ulster Volunteer Force are somehow revolutionary or at the least represent an independent trend of Protestant working class thought.
The UVF is a creation of British imperialism. It is a sectarian organisation that murders people because of their religion or nationality. The UVF and Ulster Defense Association have been at the forefront of organising sectarian and racist attacks against migrant workers and are providing the recruiting ground for the British National Party to begin their advent into the north.
Davy claims the march is being “sectarianised via various quarters”. But this is just what the march is. It’s a sectarian coat-trailing ceremony organised by the British Ministry of Defense to celebrate the plunder of Iraq and to get the croppies to once more lie down. Sectarianism is a creation of British rule in Ireland. It is not a creation of the Republican Movement at any stage of history. To really be opposed to sectarianism in Ireland we must oppose the primary contradiction, the primary contradiction is embodied by British rule here. Davy absolves British rule of any responsibility, his article gives the impression that Britain is neutral and that Republicans and Loyalists are squabbling over some irrelevancy.
Sections of Republicanism have bought into the imperialist myth and today are talking about the ‘Protestant Unionist Loyalist’ community and the ‘Protestant working class’ – we believe neither exists. Both are artificial and are proven creations of partition to enhance British rule and to create confusion amongst those who claim to be anti-imperialist. Prior to partition it was rare to hear a Unionist call themselves ‘British’, they referred to themselves as Irish, some were avid Irish speakers that kept the language alive in times of persecution. Although they considered themselves Irish, it was a different type of Irish than the Republican croppy.
Should be the people of Africa seek a ‘third way’ with the Boers, who have murdered, robbed and raped their way across several African countries? The answer is a resounding no, the people of Zimbabwe and elsewhere have the right to stand up and to take back what is rightfully theirs.
Hopefully the Irish people realise that path also.
inniu.wordpress.com/