Friday, December 19, 2008

Thinking about "Two Tactics"

Have you read Lenin's 2 tactics of social-dem in the Democratic Revolution in a while? I am thinking of doing a rewrite -- of parts of "two tactics" -- but changing the tactics to reflect revolutionary aspects of the current economic and political restructuring that is underway in the United States, and the world.

As Jared Diamond demonstrated in his book surveying the economic, political and evironmental conditions of societies that collapsed vs those that prevailed in times of systemic crisis, adaptation to objectively mandated social restructuring is not guaranteed. Nor is success often completely foreclosed. The outcomes flow from the good and bad choices societies make.

The themes of "Two Tactics" are tempting. Despite the historical and other gaps between then (1905 on the eve of the 1905 Russian Revolution) and now, revolutionary democratic principles (I will have to spell them out) are again going to contend with opportunism (which will have to be defined anew) in determining the shape and content of the restructuring process. Of course, contrary to then, I think I will attempt an argument in Lenin's style against a "Leninist" tendency toward a split in 'social-democracy' at this time! :)

This would be a fun thing to blog on. Anyone interested?

Maybe the holidays will give me enough time to play with this. But I will have to stay away from the wine.....

cheers, and Happy Holidays