Year: 2001
Author: Istvan Meszaros
Genre: Marxism Today
Publisher: Monthly Review Press, New York
ISBN: 1-58367-051-3 / 9781583670514
English language
Format: PDF
Interactive table of contents: No
Number of Pages: 126
A philosopher (if he really is a philosopher) can not chase fashion, fashion is for fools. A philosopher (if he really is a philosopher) should not be so cowardly as to necessarily follow the mainstream. The old revolutionary theory has not died. Even within the framework of the existing Marxism, all the recent events (including the collapse of the USSR) and the events that are happening now are elementary explained. If someone can not do this, then he either lacks Marxist knowledge, or lacks the mind for the correct use of this knowledge. Now in schools and universities they suggest that Marxism is stupidity, that Marxism was defeated, since there is no USSR. But this inspired and inspired by the ideological whores of the ruling class, which only work out the ration. They have nothing else to say and should not. But to believe them is true foolishness, a testimony to the inability to think independently.
István Mészáros (born 1930) is an economist and philosopher of Hungarian descent, Honored Professor of the University of Sussex (Great Britain). He left Hungary after the Soviet invasion in 1956. He is referred to representatives of modern Western Marxism. The author of the books "Beyond Capital" and "Marx's Theory of Alienation."
FROM THE INTERVIEW MONTHLY REVIEW
Eleonora di Lucena
After the disappearance of the Soviet Union, many predicted the bankruptcy of Marxism. Then, with the onset of the 2008 economic crisis, many predicted the disappearance of neoliberalism and the return of Marxist ideas. In your opinion, does Marxism spread its wings?
Istvan Mesarosh
You are right, you need to be careful and avoid hasty and cheerful conclusions on any issue. Such conclusions are often conditioned by the wishful thinking, and by no means historical facts. The collapse of the Gorbachev government did not help solve any of the problems of the USSR. Fukuyama's foolish fantasy on the "end of history" did not work any better. But neoliberalism can not be abolished, based solely on the fact that its aggressively advanced ideas and political superiority principles are today - in view of their attitude toward war - not just dangerously irrational, but rather absurd (judging by the fantasies of "liberal imperialism"). For under certain conditions even dangerous absurdities can receive significant support, as we know from history. The real question is: what are the fundamental forces and causes that cause people to follow dead ends in opposite directions. The change in the atmosphere through which Marx's Capital appears on trendy coffee tables is not for study, of course, but for a sight like what is called a "topic for conversation" - does not mean that Marxist ideas are moving around the world today. Today's deepening crisis is indisputable, as it engenders protests around the world. To find effective ways out of situations that are spreading everywhere, it is necessary to develop suitable strategies, as well as appropriate forms of organization, capable of responding to the importance of vital problems.
Eleonora di Lucena
What about conservative ideas? Do they get more supporters today or not?
Istvan Mesarosh
On the one hand, they undoubtedly acquire more supporters - even if they are not based on stable conservative ideas. Do not change once the established mode of action is often much easier than changing it. It is the actual historical situation that prompts people to go in one direction, and not in the other, when they are more or less disposed towards the chosen path. But is the course adopted really reasonable? Let us recall the well-known law of physics (from the field of electricity), according to which the electric current follows the "line of least resistance". This is true for many social conflicts that determine (albeit temporarily) in which direction - depending on the correlation of forces (that is, the strength of the resistance of the current situation) and the possibilities for implementing suitable alternatives, a particular problem is solved. The long-term vitality of one adopted course, and not of any other, is by no means the guarantee of the best state of affairs. Often the opposite takes place. In our historical situation, a long-term viable answer requires incomparably greater efforts than simply following the "course that worked in the past", instead of facing problems and facing the burden of radical structural changes. However, the problems are unusually large, and the interaction of social forces is incomparably more complicated than the direction of the electric current. In fact, it is very doubtful that the "tested" conservative line of least resistance could be relevant, if only within the medium-term perspective, not to mention the long-term.
Foreword 9
Part 1. Socialism or barbarism: From the "American century" to the crossroads
1. Capital - the living contradiction 11
2. The potentially deadliest phase of imperialism 23
3. The historical challenges facing the socialist movement 57
4. Conclusion 79
Part II. Marxism, the capital system, and social revolution: an interview 83
Notes 113
Index 121
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