[Marxism] (no subject)

[milongonsinga]

As I recall, national health insurance wasn't on the table before his election. Withdrawal from Iraq (however flawed) wasn't on the table. The end to these ICE raids weren't on the table. I could go on. Those are substantive differences. Failure to acknowledge this is failure to understand how even slight reforms under capitalism matter to the working class. The problem with the left in this country is it's unwillingness to take the concerns of the people seriously. The Black Panther Party railed against police brutality and established breakfast programs because this is what mattered to the people. In the process, thousands became radicalized. Where is the left today? Our task is to continue to push this agenda. Obama's election has made that possible in a way that McCain's election would not. 
 
 
 A student asked Soen Nakagawa during a meditation retreat, "I am very discouraged. What should I do?" Soen replied, "Encourage others."



----- Original Message ----
From: S. Artesian <sartesian at earthlink.net>
To: milongonsinga at yahoo.com
Sent: Wednesday, April 1, 2009 2:32:55 PM
Subject: Re: [Marxism] (no subject)

Really?  Obama has opened up that space?  Or has that space been opened by 
the overall economic conditions, and Obama is attempting to occupy that 
space and recuperate it before all hell, read class struggle, breaks out?

And how is Obama filling that space-- by "honoring" the contracts of and to 
AIG, including bonuses as inviolable but dismissing out of hand, and at the 
same time, the contracts that the automakers have with  workers?

By expanding the war in Afghanistan/Pakistan, while promising to change the 
combat status of US brigades in Irag in 16 months?

What exactly is anything other than the most centrist of centrist openings 
that Obama is seeking to open?


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "milongonsinga" <milongonsinga at yahoo.com>
To: <sartesian at earthlink.net>
Sent: Wednesday, April 01, 2009 5:08 PM
Subject: Re: [Marxism] (no subject)



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