I've definitely become more tankie as I've read more theory - although a part of me can't shake the thought that my belief in China is . I feel like if China isn't at the very least on a viable path to socialism, then we live in a world where the baddies literally always win and I just can't bring myself to be that cynical.
I sympathize, but I also think it's the natural trend of an alienated person's ideology to orient around hope. You'd either have something to hope for or just go insane (or both, like the Q hole). I don't think the fact that China occupies that spot in your conception makes is false, so long as you aren't a rapturist about it.
Edit: I should clarify that I think putting things in terms of "if the CPC is being honest" as some people even in the thread do, is a symptom of magical thinking. As Lenin said, the Dictatorship of the Proletariat must be state that cannot help but move increasingly towards communism. If you are making judgements based on really liking the cut of Jiang Zemin's jib or whatever, you are failing to assess things in terms of the actual empirical record and what we have reason to believe will be helpful or harmful for the cause of socialism.
Honesty is helpful, but what fundamentally matters is incentive.
Not that I think you are doing one or the other, of course, just providing some epistemic grounding.
Good comment. I'm generally convinced by the pro-China arguments I see, the feeling I'm describing is a voice in the back of my head that can't help but wonder if I'm wrong.
I've definitely become more tankie as I've read more theory - although a part of me can't shake the thought that my belief in China is
. I feel like if China isn't at the very least on a viable path to socialism, then we live in a world where the baddies literally always win and I just can't bring myself to be that cynical.
I sympathize, but I also think it's the natural trend of an alienated person's ideology to orient around hope. You'd either have something to hope for or just go insane (or both, like the Q hole). I don't think the fact that China occupies that spot in your conception makes is false, so long as you aren't a rapturist about it.
Edit: I should clarify that I think putting things in terms of "if the CPC is being honest" as some people even in the thread do, is a symptom of magical thinking. As Lenin said, the Dictatorship of the Proletariat must be state that cannot help but move increasingly towards communism. If you are making judgements based on really liking the cut of Jiang Zemin's jib or whatever, you are failing to assess things in terms of the actual empirical record and what we have reason to believe will be helpful or harmful for the cause of socialism.
Honesty is helpful, but what fundamentally matters is incentive.
Not that I think you are doing one or the other, of course, just providing some epistemic grounding.
Good comment. I'm generally convinced by the pro-China arguments I see, the feeling I'm describing is a voice in the back of my head that can't help but wonder if I'm wrong.