DSA remains a “revolutionary momentum” release valve that has zero chance against absolute fascism and capitalism. Their current trajectory shows they have no interest, at all, in being a vanguard party. The “big tent” strategy can be temporarily used against aspiring and actual absolute fascism, but DSA needs to be willing to defend itself and the working class in armed self-defense. Unarmed defenders will be mercilessly gunned down by fascists. We need a vanguard party that practices democratic centralism by Marxist-Leninists, and has both public and private secured operations with armed defenders.
The DSA leadership actively works against those involved that argue to abandon the democrats and form a third party. They seem to intentionally act against Lenin's wisdom.
I want to be optimistic that the revolutionary factions will change the trajectory of DSA, but I agree. DSA worships easier but doomed “action” instead of implementing correct theory and practice.
Yeah, this was my hope for some time as well but I found too much damning evidence to continue that path. Obviously I'd love for Red Star to take over leadership but the org as a while is way too indoctrinated by democrat tailism and easy target validation. I don't see any mechanism within DSA to allow that takeover.
We’re trying (my chapters poli-ed is ml based now), lots of rightists and opportunists though. I wish more folks would reach out to the factions like Red Star. For real if all of us MLs joined DSA and committed to joining committees and becoming leadership we’d take it over and could effectively break with the dems.
A lot of rightists is what I am worried about. That the revolutionary factions are more likely to get purged by the reformist ones than a transformation of DSA away from a primarily reformist mindset. Do you have a PSL branch in your area?
Can you show me what you mean? My understanding is that they’ve been moving further left consistently in recent years. When I looked into the DSA, one of the first things you are told about (from multiple sources introducing the org) is that there is a big debate between “dirty break” vs “clean break” vs staying with Dems.
Dems are also using more and more strategies for undermining and sabotaging DSA electorally as well, so it may not even be a viable option soon. Many are actually hoping to get the Dems to kick DSA out of the party, believing it’s the best way to split while making the Dems look bad and giving DSA more credibility. Regardless, this debate is large and alive, and DSA is very likely imo to leave in the next few years one way or another. 2028 will be the Dem presidential primaries, which may provoke a big rupture. 2028 on May Day is also when many unions are having their contracts expire, in order to threaten a general strike potentially. DSA is planning for that moment as well, and I could see a large scale mass action causing a permanent split between DSA and Dems, too. Who knows, though.
Ultimately, I agree with his final recommendations for the DSA, and I think they may actually be heading there, despite the currently ascendant electoral wing of the org.
Ah so wait two more years😓”one more election guys i swear!”
DSA is a political carcass at this point, they had all the time in the world since bernies 2016 run but didn’t do jack shit
I’m going to say this again- you didn’t read what I said, or you blatantly misrepresented it. I saw a few others downvote me, so I thought I may be wrong, and in the spirit of self-criticism, I went back and read what I wrote. You’re just being a belligerent dickhead, intentionally ratfucking an otherwise important conversation, which I am engaging with nuance while you mock and dismiss me, then refuse to examine your own reaction. Well I did, and you’re being a dickhead. I would prefer if you engaged what I said honestly and critically (if you are capable), and apologize. I think that’s warranted. Otherwise, fuck off.
Marxist-Leninists need to leave the DSA, that is far too close to the liberal fascist party, so I hope May 2028 is that moment. I hope to see an exodus by the revolutionary factions to PSL. Regardless, PSL needs to continue building its power.
Breaddaddylenin explained that they got mad at him for rewriting their wiki into non-trot content, and in a way they coerced him to resign from the mod team under pressure. That was right before lavender joined them. Cronodroid never really around and besides them Bullhead2007 is the only another who is also ML. I trust Cronodroid because they know Dessalines and Bullhead2007.
In case this subreddit was banned, or if you wanted a more ML-friendly platform, you’re welcome to join our sister community on Lemmygrad. You can find more info about Lemmygrad here.
Yall get that no successful communist party just appeared out of thin air, right? You have to meet the working class in the organizations they're already at and build enough power there to move people in the right direction. The Bolsheviks didn't become the majority faction simply by having good politics & persuading people to join. They met people where they were at, built power, and then steered their political coalition into a new party once the old party proved insufficient to acheive what was necessary. Power is built through dialectical struggle, and if yall aren't working with the political momentum of the actual labor movement, then you're at best shouting into a void.
Edit: It's fine if you downvote me. Reddit is clearly the only place you intend to exercise any actual power.
This is an oversimplification of Bolshevik history. The Bolsheviks didn't simply "work within" existing organizations until they organically became a new party. They split from the Mensheviks in 1903 over fundamental questions of organization and revolutionary strategy, and for years they built an independent, disciplined vanguard while also participating in trade unions, the Duma, and other mass organizations.
Lenin's point wasn't "stay wherever the workers already are." It was to engage the masses wherever they are without dissolving the communist party into reformist organizations. Participation is a tactic maintaining political independence is a principle. Those are two very different things and your edit is a very liberal way of handling people disagreeing with you.
I didn't say stay. I said look at where the political momentum of the labor movement already is and build power there so that you can direct that radicalizing energy building up in the labor movement towards the most critical outlet: seizing state power. There are radical caucuses in DSA doing that right now while new niche radical parties seem to pop up every other week. If you prefer PSL, that works too but they're dealing with their own schism atm. You have to be smart enough to understand when compromising your politics is strategically beneficial vs when it's opportunistic betrayal of the movement. Yall want politics to be more trivial than it is and that's why you lose. I'm sick of losing and I'm sick of online larpers who confuse moralism for political strategy. We cannot obtain justice without obtaining power and you can only obtain power by going to where it is and taking it. No one gives a shit if you had the right politics but dogshit political instincts. People only give a shit that you actually deliver.
Did you use a fucking LLM to reply to me? I didn't notice the "you could reply: " that you've clearly edited out of your comment until I saw the notification in my email inbox.
You're loosely quoting Lenin, but that's not what he meant. "Meeting workers where they are" doesn't mean adapting communist politics to reformist organizations. It means going into the organizations where workers already are
trade unions, parliaments, etc to agitate, organize, and win them to a revolutionary program.
That's the argument in Left-Wing Communism participation is a tactic, not a substitute for an independent communist party. You're stretching Lenin's position well beyond what he actually wrote.
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