I have complained about it before but I heard on of the guests from guerrilla history on the deprogram make this argument and it made me want to gouge my eyes out. This kind of trans historical argumentation is both stupid and unmarxist, just stop! Sorry I felt the need to vent.
These states were not imperialist and they weren't settler colonies. This framing doesn't make any fucking sense when transfered to a medieval context. Like the best you could say is that the Italian city states represented an early firm of merchant capital, but even then that is an incredibly complex phenomenon that has only a tenuous connection to modern capitalism. Calling these city states early capitalism is just a fancy way of saying "lol u hate capitalism yet you exchange good or service! Curious!"
Seriously just stop. I don't know why this set me off but it was like a week ago and I am still mad about it.
Literally all those points aren't true or varied in truth over the 300+ year history of the conflict in the Levant.
do you have reading suggestions or what
like i know i said a bunch of stuff unsourced but i took a college class on history and thats the gist of what they covered, i would seriously like to have better reading material
have you read the Very Short Introduction?
never heard of it, no
very short. i don't think it really treats with imperial theory but it should remove you of some misconceptions