Dear Gillian
Assessing: Essence of Time – Manifesto
I enjoy countering the US propaganda that mispresents and demeans the historical reality of the USSR. In other words, I counter US anti-intellectualism as both a tradition and a policy when directed toward the Soviet Union (and the Communist Bloc). The CPC considers this a vital task of ‘Internationalism’ despite the Sino-Soviet Split (1956-1991). One problem has been the Russian response to the Chinese disagreement with Khrushchev’s demonisation of Stalin. Just as Chinese PLA and Soviet Red Army clashed on the border throughout the 1960s – quite often the Russian response has been to contract around an artificial sense of ‘Whiteness’ (disguised as ‘Slavic’ nationalism), In the 1991 post-Soviet space – this response (not only to China – but to all external challenges) has only intensified as ‘Internationalism’ gives way to ‘nationalism’!
The USSR was NOT a country or ‘Nation State’ in the bourgeois sense. The USSR was not an object in itself – for itself. It was part of the world-wide Socialist Revolution! Its flag is ‘red’ because it symbolises the ‘blood of workers’ (taken from worker’s white-shirt after he was struck-down by the British Authorities in Manchester – with the blood-soaked shirt placed on a stick)! The capitalist (bourgeois) system has done very well in driving a wedge between ‘Socialist’ countries and making each appear isolated and out of step with the mainstream! This is where racism comes into play. Racism is an important tool for the bourgeoisie as it makes each section of the working-class contract around a limited ‘nationalism’ and ‘ethnic’ identity – whilst supporting the ruling bourgeoisie in ‘hating’ anyone who is not from their particular piece of land!
Since the demise of the USSR, China has taken its place as the main ‘Socialist’ representation – but as Western racism against China has been so successful – the Western working-class ‘hates’ the Chinese people and in no way views this part of the working-class as having any relevance! This attitude is a total inversion of Marxist-Leninism! Indeed, it is a victory for a) predatory capitalism, and b) Trotskyism! What I find interesting is why modern ‘Russian’ adherents to Marxist-Leninism still insist on preferring a ‘Russo-centric’ (‘nationalist’) view of reality? Infiltrating ‘nationalism’ is one of the greatest betrayals of Marxist-Leninism and has been so successful outside of China that most European ‘Leftists’ take it for granted and see it as normal! Most post-1991 so-called ‘Communist Parties’ have abandoned ‘Internationalism’ as if such a pan-working-class attitude was an ideological mistake made by Lenin! The USSR is NOT a place but a concept.
The USSR is NOT an ‘ethnicity’ which a group of people once contracted around. I would go as far as saying that a ‘Pan-Slavic’ attitude has absolutely nothing to do with the USSR outside of the Western imagination and Trotskyite misdirection! Do not forget that Hitler’s ‘SS’ Divisions that were staffed by Scandinavian ‘Volunteers’ (during WWII) – were motivated to fight and destroy ‘Bolshevism’ exactly because of this ‘Pan-Slavic’ attitude! On the one-hand, Hitler viewed Scandinavians as a ‘pure’ race’ – whilst he viewed ‘Russians’ (Scandinavians who had migrated) – as a racially ‘inferior’ problem that had to be solved through eradication! Nostalgia is one thing – but confusing ‘Marxist-Leninism’ with notions of identity that ‘Marxist-Leninism’ uprooted its quite another! There is a racist movement in Russia that calls itself ‘National Bolshevism’ which combines the ideology of Hitler with a Western misrepresentation of Joseph Stalin. Quite often its adherents apply a ‘racist’ notion of identity to that of the USSR and this permeates its entire literature!
Best Wishes
Adrian
THE SANGHA KOMMUNE (SSR) 