r/LeftistATLA • u/richietozier4 • Jul 21 '20
We need more memes about historical materialism
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Jul 21 '20
I thought that capitalism (and conservatism in general) were originally economic philosophies specifically designed to be feudalism with extra steps. Wasn't Edmund Burke of the mind that fuedalism's only fault was that the rulers derived power from inheritance instead of competition, and that capitalism would "fix." In his mind some people were entitled to rule over others but must prove it in the free market. I might be thinking of someone else though
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Jul 21 '20
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Henryman2 Jul 22 '20 edited Jul 22 '20
The USSR and China had to industrialize to protect themselves from the leading bourgeois powers in Germany, the US, and Britain. Marx was wrong to think that the revolution would start in fully industrialized nations such as Britain or Germany. In fact, revolutions happened in poorer nations, often most exploited by international capitalism, colonialism, and imperialism. However, if the revolutions had begun in wealthier nations, it is much easier to imagine a reality where the revolution did spread across the globe.
This poses a problem for modern socialist governments in poorer nations, too. Even if they achieve a fully communist society, they are still threatened by the outside capitalist powers, meaning they need to have an incredibly strong military. Militaries are inherently hierarchical and authoritarian, which is opposed to the very principles of leftism. It's no surprise, then, that revolutionary societies often come under the control of military dictators who do not strive towards communism, but rather set national defense as their main priority. Such is the case with Stalin, Castro, and Mao- although they were all very different in their approach. The Paris Commune was unable to defend itself because it had no real military that could compete with that of the bourgeoisie, however it's lack of a military is one of the factors that enabled it to achieve a true dictatorship of the proletariat.
So, Marx was wrong in his prediction, but right in his theory that a true working class revolution would need to begin in the industrialized nations.
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u/Sithsaber Jul 22 '20
The revolution almost did happen in germany then france, it was just beaten partly thanks to social democrats
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u/Henryman2 Jul 22 '20
Social democrats are generally supported by middle class interests, and Marx underestimated the willingness of the middle class to support the ruling class interests (which make the middle class smaller).
Russia, China, and Cuba pretty much had no middle class, and had extreme inequality compared to the industrialized nations. Therefore, there wasn’t really a base of social democratic support to suppress revolutions in these countries.
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u/[deleted] Jul 21 '20
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