Morning Comrades.
All too often in conversations during my day I get asked what my take on various items on the news’ agenda are and occasionally I even get asked why. Obviously, a topic often mentioned is war, specifically the war in Ukraine, of course, why wouldn’t it be but depending on who is doing the asking these questions involve other subject matters.
There are several angles to approach this one from so let’s get right to it. From the start, though, I am going to specifically lean on Eugene V. Debs. Of course, there are thousands of other thinkers, doers, writers my evolving understanding of the world is based on and continues to be build but I have always had a soft spot for Mr. Debs. All following highlighted quotes are from him and his work.
“While there is a lower class, I am in it, while there is a criminal element, I am of it, and while there is a soul in prison, I am not free.”
Eugene Victor "Gene" Debs (November 5, 1855 – October 20, 1926) was an American socialist, political activist, trade unionist, one of the founding members of the Industrial Workers of the World (of whom I am a member for all transparency), and five times the candidate of the Socialist Party of America for President of the United States. Through his presidential candidacies as well as his work with labor movements, Debs eventually became one of the best-known socialists living in the United States. More importantly, I have always found his transportation of Marxist ideas into easily understandable language fascinating.
“Too long have the workers of the world waited for some Moses to lead them out of bondage. He has not come; he never will come. I would not be a Moses to lead you into the Promised Land, because if I could lead you into it, someone else could lead you out of it.”
Before I start, this is where I stand and how I think. As always, I refuse any and all claims of taking leadership and this isn’t meant to influence anyone. This is entirely about opening up an alternative angle on reality and I have no stakes in “winning” anyone over to my “side” - because these so called sides of “right” and “wrong” are mostly, not entirely, psychological constructs to keep us divided and occupied from understanding that it’s entirely about who rules over you. The enemy sits above, plain and simple.
“. . . the press and the pulpit have in every age and every nation been on the side of the exploiting class and the ruling class.”
Everyone expects you to have an opinion on everything in our age, a fact I find rotten to the core. Blame it on whatever you want, personally I am going to go for the insane amplification of our collective alienation from “everything” by social media but there is more to it, of course, I am just too tired to get into that discussion. Nevertheless, opinions of what our collective narrative deems important is how we are perceived and thus judged by the collective. This is where my problem starts. The perceived, important narrative upon which large parts of our society perceives and thus judges anyone on is nothing but the vested interests of the ruling classes through their mouthpieces, or what we call our “news”, governments and so on. This is where I start, and I refuse to be manipulated into having to take sides to garner some sort of immaterial value, quite frankly it is utterly psychotic to submit to this existence as it solely exists to keep the attention away from the actual immorality.
“To stir the masses, to appeal to their higher, better selves, to set them thinking for themselves, and to hold ever before them the ideal of mutual kindness and good will, based upon mutual interests, is to render real service to the cause of humanity.”
Regardless of the issue, be it war, immigration, culture wars, cancel culture etc etc etc - all of these social constructs that were mostly created by the ruling classes exists as an entity upon which individual morality is judged for precisely that reason: division and distraction. The one guiding understanding I hold close when I see the world before me is that there is a capitalist ruling class that has created the entire world in which I have to exist and that they are in direct opposition to my pursuit of happiness, to flip those oh’ so holy words by the said capitalists. Freedom of fear, servitude, need and want are the goals of my cause and whilst, for brevity’s sake, I will not go into depth about what that actually means in minute detail1 that is all it takes to understand to see who is in the way of this. More importantly is the constant questions that who is to gain, materially2, from this opposition. Once I understood that I merely had to ask that and you always arrive at the same damn answer, the proposed binary reality that they call democracy, the right or wrong side, becomes irrelevant.
But let’s talk about sides for a moment as my reality isn’t binary either. There are a few sides I am definitely taking, the anti-fascist/racist/sexist one, for example3 - yes, fascism and racism are desired end results and tools of capitalism and the capitalist ruling class and yes, in theory it could be possible to eradicate these violent offsprings but that won’t save any or all minorities from being killed by these manipulated white men ( mostly ) - apply this racial observance as you need from your perspective - as a person living in Western Europe it’s almost guaranteed to be some white dickwad.
Generally speaking though, or rather, in most cases when asked what side I am on, it’s never answered by discussing the two to three options the ruling classed have given us to choose from4 by always, and unwavering this: the working class, the poor, the working people. It is and has always been a class issue and as long as we have a capitalist ruling class it will always be a class issue.
“The working class who fight the battles, the working class who make the sacrifices, the working class who shed the blood, the working class who furnish the corpses, the working class have never yet had a voice in declaring war.”
War? Fuck all sides that instigate this most immoral act of robbery on the backs of the working poor. Whoever tells you that you, especially in our age, have to choose between good and evil is offending your intelligence and memories of centuries of poor people being sent off to die for nothing but the enrichment of the ruling classes. There is no right or wrong, just masters and servants and that is what is wrong.
I wrote a piece for the patreons of this newsletter last week on Guidance and Leadership and this is an excerpt of it that ties into this thought:
“I recently had a comrade drop me a line and they observed that I rarely, if ever, put my foot wrong when it comes to observing our realities and they asked why that is. Not only is that observation wrong, I have heaps of dumb ass ideas and takes but I have learned to keep my mouth shut and us my brain before speaking. Mostly because I have paid silly prices for not having done so in the past - monetarily and physically more often than I dare to remember - but also thanks to the late Michael Brooks, who so brilliantly and clearly articulated a guide line for interpersonal behaviour that has since stuck with me, one that I try to apply at any time when I feel like I need open my mouth ( or type for that matter ).
“Be ruthless with systems; be kind to people.”
As simple as it my seem it holds a brilliant brutal truth within it and applying it to any and all interactions has truly served me well. In other words, always punch up and never punch down. At the core of all any Marxist thought and praxis is Humanism, rooted in a deep disgust at the violently enforced inequality of our existence and the utmost wish to help change this. Whilst I have always understood that later part for the longest part of my life I have struggled to put that into action, replicating the hierarchical, inert structuring of the heteronormative patriarchal structuring our societies that only aid in perpetuating capitalism.
“If it had not been for the discontent of a few fellows who had not been satisfied with their conditions, you would still be living in caves. Intelligent discontent is the mainspring of civilization.”
My advice is thus to make this your waking and working mantra. All injustice is systemic and thus you punch up, never down. Obviously, the world isn’t as binary as this and there are grey areas, such as a horde of neo-nazis, and feel free to do whatever it is that you want to do when you see them - but if I wanted to mince words, punching nazis is technically also punching up - not down, as they represent the violent will of the capitalist state. Nevertheless, applying this to your day-to-day will not only work wonders for your mental health, it will genuinely help you navigate the many pitfalls this system has laid in our paths.”
In any case, to cut a long story short, when the masters decide who is good and evil know that you are being duped. It’s them that are the evil and our aim and focus as always needs to not only get rid of those evil bastards, but first and foremost to understand, that we, the working people of the world, upon whose exploitation their “mastery” rests, are on the same side.
Yours, in our most righteous of causes, class war until there is no class no more,
V.
Honestly, why the fuck should anyone who wants peace do so in any case as our ruling classes have thrown lofty ideals and fancy words around for centuries without ever having felt the need to actually show us a detailed road plan that we don’t and never under their rule have a say in, anyway. This is what I want, fuck you and moronic takes of “how ya gonna pay for it ya dumb commie” and “blergh human nature etc” - that’s a you problem, not mine.
Or financially really, even though I prefer materially as so often “material” incorporates more than just “money”
There’s a few more, but let’s use this one as an example.
Ohhhh democracy, where all options are vetted by the ruling classes without any input from vast majority of people these pre-chosen choices will affect. Nice.