[Marxism] A public debate in the DSP

[Ratbag Radio]

Ed Lewis wrote:

"There is, however, no good reason to keep secret the contributions to
the discussion of the leading members of the various factions in the
DSP. Both the DSP and the rest of the left would benefit from an open
discussion of these matters."

I agree with Ed -- except I don't know why he wants to limit it to
"leaderships". Any publication of opposing positions in a leadership
dispute straightaway puts pressure on rank and file members to
indicate their own preferences as they will be individually asked
about their own views. That's in part why the debating and the lining
up is often limited to set pre-conference discussion periods.

Nonetheless, the membership of ANY organisation -- political or
otherwise -- has the right to determine how their discussions  will be
conducted. I think that warrants consideration as that is a very good
reason indeed why contributions may be kept 'secret' -- members may
wish it that way.(Although in a digital universe it's a fool's
paradise position.) And, while the DSP national leadership can decide
what to do with congress platforms  it is a decision for the rank and
file party membership how their own contributions should be
handled....in any future debates.

 I doubt anyone would seek to  make things retrospective if the
original assumption was that the debate was other than public.

But Louis' preference to explore the issue  of "public debate" rather
than the politics of the competing platforms tends to undermine the
purported benefit(that Ed Lewis suggested he was gung ho for) of  such
publishing options. Are Louis Proyect or Ed Lewis interested at all in
the issues in dispute or simply caught up in the fact that the debate
is closed and factional?

Whats' the point of publishing and sharing  a debate or part thereof
just so that others can simply comment that "Nah! Nah! A dispute
exists" ? Either you want a piece of the polemical action in terms of
the politics at stake or you pass on it.

Nonetheless, the extensive debate has been of a nature that I think
the "rest of the left" would have benefited greatly from it as the DSP
membership is way way ahead of others on the Australian left in
getting a handle  on broad party issues as they relate to party
building from a Marxist perspective.

That you lot have been locked out is a bit of a pity. (But I'm sure
you'll get over that.)

Nonetheless it is self evident that the issues in dispute and the
counterposing arguments  reflect all disputations on the left that
have occurred in regard to the Socialists Alliance  and the broad
party tactic. This isn't a dispute in a vacuum despite the fact that
it is contained within the DSP. But the DSP membership has been
actively engaged in building the Socialist Alliance so there is that
depth of experience that enriches the debate in a way that most other
sectors on the left don't have access to.

And it's pretty clear that the DSP membership if it so wishes need
only vote its way out of the SA commitment next week  if it wanted to.

dave riley