chapotraphouse

A Marxist understanding of capitalism leads to anti-imperialism. Anti-imperialism is understood by detractors as a simple rhetorical dressing over simplistic heuristics like “reflexive anti-americanism,” “history repeats itself,” and “the military-industrial complex needs contracts,” but all of these are reductive. Marxists understand that human political leadership in the imperial periphery, whether enlightened or tyrannical, will only be antagonized by empire for one single possible reason: it is getting in the way of market penetration. This is phrased succinctly by Kevin Dooley when criticizing Noam Chomsky’s support for a military alliance between the Kurds and the USA in Syria: “The difference between [Chomsky’s] position and a hard-line anti-imperialist position isn’t tactical. What he’s arguing is simply a violation of anti-imperialist principles based on a fundamentally different understanding of what can drive the empire to act in the world.” [16]

The accusation that anti-imperialists are unconcerned with human rights deserves a sharp rebuke. The USA was born of slavery and genocide, dropped atomic bombs as a matter of political brinkmanship, imported Nazi scientists and installed war criminals like Klaus Barbie and Nobusuke Kishi around the world to defend and advance anti-communist positions [17], and enthusiastically supports gruesome butcherers today. Simply put, Capital has destroyed innumerable countries and murdered hundreds of millions directly and indirectly. It is precisely a concern for the rights of humans that should make one immediately skeptical of any humanitarian posturing by Capital. Anti-imperialism not only means support for the important pro-social projects of states like Cuba, Vietnam, and China; it also means critical support for non-socialist states such as Iran and Russia. Critical support acknowledges that, though instituting various indefensible policies, enemies of empire are not being antagonized because of said policies. The only thing that can drive empire to act in the world is capital accumulation.

from https://redsails.org/why-marxism/

The term “October Surprise” comes from an event during the Regan administration in October of a Presidential election year.

Today is October 1st, during a Presidential election.

It is, by definition, US-centric. It wouldn’t make sense to call events around the world October surprises.

At the same time, “Israel” has launched a ground invasion – fully backed by the top two candidates for President, hundreds of people are dead with thousands stranded after a hurricane during hurricane season that has Katrina-levels of incompetence, and a major labor action threatens to disrupt the churn of consumption in the capital of capitalism.

Not really Anti-USian whatever the fuck you said.

the only one of those 3 things that applies to the whole world is climate change, and even in that case, more functional countries will respond to it and prepare for its consequences in more meaningful ways than the US is.

Can you describe the symptoms of Anti-USian Tumescence Syndrome for me? Need to see if I missed any.

Sometimes it's not so much "anti-US", but anti-regimes that tend to drone strike hospitals...and then follow it up with a double-tap when rescue teams arrive. (I wasn't going to hyphenate all that.)

Is tankie not enough letters for you to feel smugly superior?

This one time I freaked out because I shat and pissed blood, but then I realised I had just eaten rhubarb