"We applaud the democratic revolutions that have transformed the former Communist bloc"

I love the rising wave of neo-fascism in eastern europe - National DSA

this is from their website

tweet

(many DSA chapters are good and based ok, this post is dunking on the National DSA, not all chapters or the DSA on its entirety)

  • MarxMadness [comrade/them]
    ·
    4 years ago

    i mean why distance yourself from the USSR at all

    Because if you don't you can kiss the possibility of growing into a mass movement goodbye.

      • MarxMadness [comrade/them]
        ·
        4 years ago

        Caring about "the truth" more than actually achieving anything is liberalism. I don't give a damn about defending the honor of governments that have been dead for 30 years unless it's helpful to building socialism today.

        If you can't see how "the USSR was good, actually" is a horrible recruiting strategy, I don't know what to tell you. Thinking that is just out of touch with the vast majority of the country, and we need an approach that has mass appeal. We can have struggle sessions about Stalin and political freedoms in the Warsaw Pact once we get them in the door, but first we need to get them in the door.

            • MarxMadness [comrade/them]
              ·
              4 years ago

              Imagine handing people a list of 10 things your political organization believes. 9 of those things are popular, but number 10 is "that Hitler guy wasn't as bad as you might think." It doesn't matter if that's the last thing on your list -- it's going to push away a ton of people who'd otherwise get on board.

              That's the reality we're in. There have been decades of "communism = fascism" propaganda specifically to create this problem for us. We can either run headlong into that problem with people who aren't even on board, or we can sidestep it for now and address it later if it becomes necessary.

                • MarxMadness [comrade/them]
                  ·
                  4 years ago

                  It’s going to be necessary unless your end goal isn’t socialism but just health care for Americans.

                  We don't know, and given how little Americans care about the rest of the world and history right now, I'd say we probably don't need to relitigate the Cold War to achieve socialism here. We certainly don't need to do it on the FAQ page of a website.

          • MarxMadness [comrade/them]
            ·
            4 years ago

            if it comes up i’m not going to assist in revisionism

            You can do this in person far easier than you can on an "about us" section of a website. In person you can have a real conversation. On a website you'll just get targeted with shit like that YouTube link of yours.

            “isn’t that word synonymous with gulags, holodomor, mass murder?!?!?!”

            Why even lead into this conversation if you can avoid it? It's not at all necessary to get people on board with what the DSA is pushing.

              • comi [he/him]
                ·
                4 years ago

                Make people interested and simultaneously trying to unbrainwash 100 years of red scare by text on website? Also, I can make educated guesses what will happen with dsa and so should you, so while it works and people heard of it - comrades should make the most of it.

                  • comi [he/him]
                    ·
                    4 years ago

                    So? Their faq documents are completely irrelevant then, only interpersonal agitation matters and connections. Rsdlp joined duma despite thinking it’s irrelevant institution to get a platform, not to endorse tzar

              • MarxMadness [comrade/them]
                ·
                4 years ago

                I'm pointing out the difference between a mass media approach and a personal one. What you're suggesting works decently in the latter but poorly in the former.

                i can walk and chew gum at the same time

                This isn't walking and chewing gum, it's running a race with a weighted vest. It doesn't matter if you can do OK even if you take on an added challenge -- you'd do better without it.

                  • MarxMadness [comrade/them]
                    ·
                    4 years ago

                    correcting people on the condition that they are receptive to it

                    Determining who might be receptive to it is impossible in the FAQ section of a website. This is what I mean when I say that the approach you're suggesting does not work in this context.