Dogshit article. If this person considers themselves a Communist they're a shit one.

often proclaiming imperialism to be the primary contradiction that must be confronted,

WEE-WAW-WEE-WAW-WEE-WAW

Imperialism is the primary contradiction. Immperialism has turned the 1st world into a kind of Elysium and the rest of the world into a child slave labour work camp who's only chance at a decent life is to abandon everything and get into the "safe zone".

In the 20th Century the primary contradiction was between Capitalism and Socialism. With the fall of the USSR the primary contradiction is between the Right Of Nations To Self Determination (even under a bourgeois context as Lenin described) and the "Washington Consensus" ie. Imperialism.

Why a member of a Marxist-Leninist party would choose to work with a man who spent part of his professional career targeting communists for persecution is baffling.

Because who gives a shit. Brian Becker is a communist organiser so he's already on every list imaginable. There seems to be a trend of Communists obsessed with Opsec (looking at Bayarea 415).

That only works if you're considering Maoist guerilla tactics or something. If you're an organiser the cops and spooks already know who you are and are tapping you're phone/net connection etc. And if you're a public facing communist in any capacity you've already made the decision that if you're effective in any way you'll likely see the inside of a prison

Lionel is an anti-vaxxer, 9/11-truther, virulent transphobe and quite open anti-communist and Trump fan. He is probably the last person in the world anyone on the left should want to have discussing Trump endorsing anti-Muslim propaganda, yet he was Loud & Clear’s choice.

Literally who gives a shit. Right wing conspiracy theories arise out of a non-class conscious proletariat. If you put class politics in front of most conspiracy types they'll connect the dots. That it is a global cabal of capitalists that run and control everything (not jews). That nations will act in a profit driven interest against the will of the people. etc. etc.

There is a recurring theme here other than Loud & Clear’s guests being either LaRouchite entryists or outright belonging to the far right, and that theme is opposition to the ridiculous Russiagate theory. But opposing such nonsense absolutely does not require platforming crypto-fash, anti-semites and various other far-right bigots.

No platforming is hot garbage. The only people who ever get properly no platformed are Communists and there was a current of Communists warning against demanding stuff like Infowars be banned and ever since the State has used this to alter the algorithym for left wing newspapers and completely shut out anti-imperialist and communist voices.

And once again platforming right wingers and putting class politics in front of them is a good thing - because you'll likekly hook a few of their listeners from a reactionary pipeline

Syria as directed by Israel. In fact he says “the only way you can explain what the US has been doing in Syria” is advancing Israeli interests. Not only is this idea that Israel directs US policy rooted in anti-semitism, it also requires ignoring the rather straight-forward fact that the State of Israel is a US client state and serves to advance US interests in the region.

So Israel didn't occupy the Golan Heights? Israel serves US interest but it also on many occasions has been the tail wagging the dog

I haven't heard anything from Brian Becker that I didn't agree with, though I haven't searched in depth. Can't really speak to the co-hosts or the connections.

But the idea that a Marxist Leninist is at risk of "platforming" right wingers is pretty funny. Honestly, in thinking about it, it's not a terrible idea to appear on the conspiracy-anti-gov-right platforms. Many that listen to Breitbart/Infowars are uneducated and not yet fascist radicalized, but deeply feel their alienation and will inevitably fall into one or the other. They seek an avenue for their distinct feeling of society being wrong, and in the US, the easiest access of radical politics they have is right wing media. A Marxist Leninist who knows how to speak to the working class will come across well and change perceptions of the evil communist ghost that right wing media proclaims. The degree of success from the method is for sure debatable, but I feel that the logic is sound if that is indeed the case. Like, anyone consistently watching/listening to Brian Becker stuff isn't gonna persuaded by the alt-right lol, so I don't see a threat of growing our opposition.

But if I'm off base here, I'm certainly open to hearing it.

EDIT: Don't fall for liberal BS about the white working class being impossible to work with. They feel the pain, and while they also benefit from this settler colonial state in ways, they suffer in their own ways from this system. If we can't pull people back from the reactionary drift, then our chances of winning is slim. That is not to say we tolerate any reactionary views. But people can learn and change, it's a foundation of our materialism. The US left is still young and small, and we need to do everything in our power to grow. Our platform WILL appeal to the working class if it is explained to them. The US white working class has been fed decades of reactionary/fascist media, and it continues to this day in new forms.

Former spooks engaging in subtle propaganda within leftist currents? Definitely not a tried and true 3 letter agency tradition.

My issue with these things is ensconced within the "purity test" line of argument. While there might be some positive in engaging with crypto-fascists in order to reach the masses that listen to them - it's also the case that you're still working with people that will undoubtedly have broader support from actual power centers.

How are we to be sure that Becker and the likes aren't building these connections that will influence their decisions going forward? It's easy when the PSL is going nowhere at the moment, but if ever there was a time that the PSL became a very real and active threat to capital, could we rely on someone like a Brian Becker to stand firm with any workers movement?

It's speculative, but I'm generally pessimistic when spooks are even tangentially involved.