Marxist theory is the bedrock upon which our
political ideas, perspectives, and methods are built upon. It is our guide to action
in an often confusing and chaotic world. Through the correct application of the
ideas of Marx, Engels, Lenin, and Trotsky to the current world situation, we can more
effectively anticipate the most likely course of events and plan our work
accordingly. Marxism is the collective, generalized experience of the world working
class. By studying the past, we are able to learn from the innovations, mistakes,
victories, and defeats of the working class as a whole. By studying theory, history, and
the processes unfolding around us, we can, through a series of
successive approximations, come to an ever-better understanding of the world and most
importantly, we can change it.
This FAQ is intended as an introduction to
some of the basic ideas and positions of the Workers International League. In
general, we have provided short, concise answers, with plenty of suggestions for further
reading, although in some cases we have provided a longer explanation. We also invite our
readers to become acquainted with the more basic ideas of Marxism by going through the
Marxism FAQ at www.newyouth.com. However, reading
the classics of Marxism is the
best way to understand these ideas. At first it may seem difficult, but every worker
and young person knows that things worth having are worth working hard for! Patient
and persistent study, discussion, and ultimately, the day to day application of these
ideas over a lifetime are the key.
Trotsky gave some very good advice in his
short article Don't
Spread Yourself Too Thin. We recommend everyone interested in studying the ideas
of Marxism start by reading it. We also suggest reading If America Should
Go Communist by Leon Trotsky, The Principles of
Communism by Frederick Engels, and Workshop Talks by
James Connolly. We also offer a Marxist Education Plan which will help focus your studies of Marxist theory. Check out in particular the ABC of Communism by Nikolai Bukharin and Evgenii
Preobrazhensky for an excellent overview of many of the basic concepts
of Marxism and a look at some of the progress made during the early
years of the Soviet Union.
|
|
We wholeheartedly welcome the participation in the struggle of every progressive person,
irrespective of nationality, the colour of their skin, or their religious beliefs.
However, in order to fight effectively, it is necessary to work out a serious program,
policy and perspective that can guarantee success. We believe that only Marxism
(scientific socialism) provides such a perspective.
|
Undoubtedly, the Russian Revolution of 1917 was one of the greatest events that shaped the modern world.
|
|
In order to understand the conditions which led to the rise of Stalinism,
it is necessary first to understand the Marxist theory of the state,
and to understand the conditions under which the world's first real workers' state emerged. There are many distortions on this
subject, which attempt to "prove" that the Soviet State under Lenin and Trotsky
was the same state which Stalin headed a few years later.
|
|
The integration of the economies of the Republics under a common plan was beneficial to
all the peoples of the USSR. The advantages were particularly evident in the formerly
backward Republics of Central Asia... But this was only one side of the picture. The Stalinist regime created a whole series
of miniature bureaucracies in the Republics which accurately reproduced all the negative
features of the original from which they were copied. The national bureaucracies in the
Republics gathered increasing power into their hands thanks to the successive measures of
decentralisation pursued under Khrushchev and Brezhnev. Decentralisation without the check
of workers' democracy led to a flowering of unprecedented corruption.
|
|
The theory of the permanent revolution was
first developed by Trotsky as early as 1904. The permanent revolution, while accepting
that the objective tasks facing the Russian workers were those of the bourgeois democratic
revolution, nevertheless explained how in a backward country in the epoch of imperialism,
the "national bourgeoisie" was inseparably linked to the remains of feudalism on
the one hand and to imperialist capital on the other and was therefore completely unable
to carry through any of its historical tasks.
|
|
In our work of raising the
class-consciousness of the workers, we raise certain demands which workers can relate to.
These demands are designed to bridge the gap between the current conditions of life under
capitalism, and the need for a socialist revolution in order to genuinely improve the
lives of working people.
|
|
The history of the workers’ movement
begins with the unions, the basic organisation of the class which were “not only a
natural, but also an essential phenomenon under capitalism and… an extremely
important means for organising the working class in its daily struggle against capital and
for the abolition of wage-labour”. But once established, the trade unions cannot
confine their sphere of activity to economic demands, but inevitably tend to move into the
political plane.
|
|
|
<< Start < Prev 1 2 Next > End >>
|
| Results 19 - 25 of 25 |
FAQ 
