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Spectre of Communism

Is socialism in one country possible? A reply to the Young Communist League

The idea of building socialism in one country alone was alien to Marx, Engels and Lenin. But after the latter’s death, Stalin and his supporters raised the possibility of constructing socialism in the USSR amidst a sea of capitalism. The Young Communist League – the youth wing of the Communist Party of Britain – recently advanced the theory of socialism in one country, as opposed to Trotsky’s Permanent Revolution. Where does the RCI stand on the matter? Was the USSR socialist? Is China today socialist? Is it possible to build socialism in a single country?

This week’s episode of Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes Niklas Albin Svensson from our International Secretariat. He explains that the survival of the Russian Revolution was always dependent on a European and eventual world revolution. Lenin was under no illusions about this. The idea of building socialism in economically backward Russia reflected the narrow interests of the Stalinist bureaucracy, in a period of temporary defeat for the world revolution.

The notion of achieving socialism within any single nation’s borders – even a very advanced one – was and remains a utopian fantasy; as attested by the experience of the USSR: a workers’ state encompassing a huge geographical area and vast resources, that lasted far longer than expected, yet still ultimately collapsed.

Modern capitalist production is global: with supply chains and manufacturing processes for all manner of commodities, from smartphones to aeroplanes, distributed across the world. Socialism can only be built based on the highest possible level of productivity, harnessing the full potential of the international working class. Therefore, socialism being built anywhere depends on a victorious revolutionary process overthrowing capitalism in one counter after another!

While the YCL heavily quotes Lenin, the ‘theory’ of socialism in one country represents a total break with his ideas and the authentic traditions of Marxism. We must return to these traditions if we hope to overthrow capitalism and achieve socialism in our lifetimes!

Niklas’ article on socialism in one country is available in issue 47 of the In Defence of Marxism magazine, available to purchase now: https://marxist.com/magazine.htm

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Spectre of Communism

US Civil War: America’s Second Revolution

The American Civil War, unlike the conflicts that plague the world today, was just and historically progressive. The Union north smashed the Confederacy of southern slave states and carried out the biggest expropriation of private property in history at the time, with the emancipation of 4 million enslaved people. The Union cause was praised by Karl Marx, who said Lincoln’s battle cry should be: “death to slavery!” With elections in the US just a few weeks away, the American bourgeoisie once again has civil war on its mind…. 

With recent polls showing nearly half of Americans believe that a new civil war is on the horizon, it is vital that revolutionaries study this period of history to prepare for the third, socialist revolution.

This week, Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes John Peterson – executive editor of The Communist, the organ of the Revolutionary Communists of America. John discusses the enduring lessons and contemporary relevance of the Civil War, which communists consider the Second American Revolution. 

For more from John Peterson on the US Civil War, we recommend issue 38 of In Defence of Marxism magazine, which includes a detailed article on this topic.

John has also presented a series of podcasts on this topic (available here), as part of the regular podcast of the Revolutionary Communists of America, the US section of the Revolutionary Communist International.

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Spectre of Communism

Threads: a terrifying vision of nuclear annihilation

This year marks 40 years since the release of the film Threads, one of the clearest and most harrowing depictions of the consequences of nuclear war ever produced. With wars and conflicts escalating around the globe, the stark message of this film has never been more relevant. The fight against the barbarity of militarism and imperialism is an existential struggle that communists have a duty to take up.

This week’s episode of Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes Alan Woods, lead editor of marxist.com and leading member of the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International. 

Alan discusses not only the powerful artistic impact of Threads, but also its vital message for us today. With Netanyahu hell-bent on escalation in the Middle East, and Zelensky intent on provoking Russia with the West’s help, the possibility of an open confrontation between nuclear powers is closer than ever. If we are to avoid the horrors that Threads so brilliantly depicts, we must wage a relentless struggle against war and imperialism, and fight to bring an end to the capitalist system that engenders them.

It is for this reason that the RCI has launched its Books not Bombs campaign, and we encourage listeners to read the opening statement of the campaign here: https://marxist.com/fight-imperialism-and-war-workers-of-the-world-unite-rci-statement.htm

People in the UK can watch Threads on BBC iPlayer here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p02kgkkg/threads

For more on the threat of escalation in the world today, we recommend this recent article by Alan Woods on the risk of World War III: https://marxist.com/are-we-facing-world-war-iii.htm

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Spectre of Communism

What is ‘woke’? Culture war vs. class war

Around the world, the capitalist establishment is increasingly obsessed with the so-called ‘Culture War’, with conservative journalists and politicians scaremongering about the ‘woke agenda’, while liberals drape rainbow flags on war and austerity and call it ‘liberation’. How can communists cut through this reactionary nonsense and get to the heart of the issues facing us today?

To answer this question, this week’s episode of Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes Yola Kipcak, a leading member of Der Funke, the Austrian section of the Revolutionary Communist International. Yola explains why communists oppose the toxic division sown by identity politics, and instead fight for a class-based approach to fighting for the liberation of humanity.

For more from Yola on how communists should fight for liberation, read her article “Marxism vs Queer Theory” here: https://marxist.com/marxism-vs-queer-theory.htm

For a longer read on this topic, we recommend the Revolutionary Communist International’s document from 2018, “Marxism vs Identity Politics”: https://marxist.com/marxist-theory-and-the-struggle-against-alien-class-ideas.htm

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Spectre of Communism

Israel invades Lebanon: fight war, fight imperialism!

The situation in the Middle East is escalating dramatically. Israel’s current invasion of Lebanon has sent shockwaves throughout the region and represents a further step towards the outbreak of a region-wide conflict, risking open war with Iran. As the Middle East grows more unstable, communists need a clear understanding of these events and what we can do to fight against militarism and imperialism wherever we are.

This week’s episode of Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes Fred Weston, from the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International. Fred discusses recent events in Israel’s escalating military campaign, and explains the need for communists to fight for the real interests of workers and youth, which has nothing to do with the hypocritical warmongering of the ruling class internationally.

For further reading on Israel’s war on Lebanon, we recommend this article published on 1 October: https://www.marxist.com/israel-invasion-of-lebanon-starts-fight-war-fight-imperialism.htm

For more from Fred on recent events in the Middle East, we recommend his latest article on the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah: https://www.marxist.com/the-killing-of-nasrallah-netanyahu-is-provoking-iran-to-enter-war.htm

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Spectre of Communism

State surveillance, fake boyfriends and blacklisting: police infiltration exposed – feat. SpyCops Info Podcast

For decades, undercover police officers with Britain’s Metropolitan Police systematically infiltrated numerous political organisations, posing as activists. These SpyCops not only gathered information on supposed enemies of the state, but went as far as entering romantic relationships and even having children with political activists, in order to maintain their cover.

A public inquiry into the outrageous and despicable behaviour of these Spy Cops has been underway since 2015, revealing the depths that the British state is willing to sink to, in order to defend its interests.

This episode of Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes Tom Fowler, presenter of The Spycops Info Podcast, as well as Jorge Martin from marxist.com’s editorial board, to discuss the details of the case and what it shows about the role of the police in the capitalist state.

For more on the ongoing SpyCops inquiry, check out Spycops Info Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3Ro2fbJDChepIcpCgz48x5 

Also on Twitter: @SpyCopsInfo

Follow Tom Fowler on twitter: @tombfowler

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Spectre of Communism

Israel, Ukraine and the threat of World War Three

Are we on the edge of a third World War? The Spectre of Communism podcast is back for a new season. Our first episode welcomes Hamid Alizadeh, a leading comrade of the Revolutionary Communist International (RCI), to discuss the two central conflicts in the world today: the Middle East and Ukraine, and the madmen driving them forward.

We are in a period of wars, revolutions and counter-revolutions. As we release this episode, Israel has unleashed a mass terror attack in Lebanon in an attempt to drag the US into a wider Middle Eastern war. Zelensky is also trying to get the US involved in a direct clash with nuclear-armed Russia. 

The main imperialist powers could stop both of these wars tomorrow by withdrawing their support. They don’t really want an all-out clash: it would be bad for business. And yet, they drag us closer and closer to the brink. How are we to explain the insanity of the ruling class? As Hamid explains, their actions are symptoms of a senile system, which must be put to an end.

At the same time trillions of dollars are wasted on the arms industry, countless people are condemned to poverty and starvation. Capitalism is squandering the world’s plentiful resources on tools for death and destruction. This is why the RCI has launched a new campaign against imperialism and militarism, because only a war against the billionaires and the bosses can ensure a real, lasting peace for the masses. 

Read the RCI’s statement launching this campaign here: https://www.marxist.com/fight-imperialism-and-war-workers-of-the-world-unite-rci-statement.htm

#BooksNotBombs #CommunismPodcast

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School of Communism

Building the revolutionary party

Our International has made huge advances in the past year. From our tremendously successful ‘Are You A Communist’ campaign, to our bold work in the Palestine solidarity movement, to comrade Fiona Lali’s massively successful election campaign in Britain. 

On top of that, we have swelled our ranks, and are founding Revolutionary Communist Parties all over the world. We can truly say that the communists have arrived!

In this episode, the culmination of our founding conference, Hamid Alizadeh from our global leadership gives an inspiring report of our work in the last period, before formally announcing the founding of the Revolutionary Communist International!

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School of Communism

How can the communists conquer the masses?

Communists place a great deal of importance on education and theoretical study, but that doesn’t mean we confine ourselves to small reading groups.

The question of building the revolutionary party is central. Once a small revolutionary organisation has grown to the size necessary to become a factor in the class struggle, how can the revolutionary party win over the most advanced layer of the youth and the working class? Furthermore, what is a revolutionary crisis, and how can the party conquer the leadership of the working class? Above all, in order to lead the revolution to victory, how can it conquer the support of the masses?

The Revolutionary Communist International aims to organise the most advanced, revolutionary-oriented youth and workers, and train them as communist cadres. While we do so we need to steel all our members with an understanding of how to approach these questions. 

If we succeed in this task, we will be building powerful communist parties around the world.

As Francesco Merli from our international leadership explains in this talk, we must understand the method of Lenin and the Bolsheviks if we want to find a route to the working class, in order to offer direction and a programme when revolutionary struggles eventually, inevitably erupt.

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School of Communism

World revolution or socialism in one country?

Ever since the days of Marx and Engels, communists have understood that the struggle to overthrow capitalism is inherently international.

This reflects the fact that capitalism is a global system, and that the power of the world market can only be overthrown by the planned cooperation of at least several countries, operating on the basis of the most advanced productive forces developed under capitalism.

It was with this in mind that Lenin describes the Russian Revolution as only the start of the world proletarian revolution.

However, after Lenin’s death in 1924, Stalin put forward the idea of ‘socialism in one country’, which marked a fundamental departure not only from the internationalism of Lenin, but from Marxism itself.

In this talk, Josh Holroyd from the RCI’s international leadership will explain why socialism in one country is impossible, and how the adoption of this false idea contributed to some of the worst catastrophes ever suffered by the world workers’ movement.

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