Bolivia: University revolt in Oruro - Students and workers join hands After the manoeuvre of the so-called referendum on the privatisation of gas, in August transport workers and community organisations organised protests against the rise in the price of gas. They were joined by the Landless Peasant Movement (MST). But the most striking development is what has become known as the "University Revolution" at Oruro.
The Changing Mood in America Immediately after the fall of the Soviet Union, there was a spirit of optimism in the United States. We had "won" so to speak, and in the words of our then president George Bush, we could look forward to a New World Order of peace, freedom, full employment, and the crushing domination of the US in world affairs and trade. This fresh outlook, coupled with one of the most powerful economic booms in history, led many to believe ever more strongly in the system. Yet there are chinks in the armor. To look at the stock market, the economy is still healthy. But corporate profits are at their lowest level in nearly a decade (in spite of the billions of dollars handed to them in corporate...
What Sort of Unity? The repercussions of the terrorist attacks in the US will be much wider than anyone could have imagined. Now that the shattering impact of these events is beginning to seep into people's minds, the far-ranging implications for the world economy, the class struggle, national and international politics and world relations are becoming more and more clear. We explained on numerous occasions that we have entered the most unstable period in history since World War II - a period of wars, revolutions, and counter-revolutions. We predicted that economically, politically and socially, the world would be turned upside down. But nothing could have prepared us for the suddenness and trauma of these...
How September 11th was used by Bush Three years on the world is no safer after Bush's so-called "war on terror". What is becoming ever clearer is that the war in Iraq is not about fighting terrorism, but about the economic, military and strategic interests of US imperialism.
Socialism is not utopian but a necessity We publish a resolution, written by the editor of Marxist.com Alan Woods, which was defended by Celia Hart in the seminar entitled "The Utopia We Need", held in Havana on Friday September 10, 2004. The conference took place in the Hispano-American Centre in Malecón.
The RNC Demos and the American Working Class Last week, the Republican National Convention met in New York City, but while inside the delegates were busy worshipping Bush, oustide massive protests – the largest in the history of U.S. political conventions – took place with an estimated 200,000 to 500,000 participating throughout the day. The mood was one of anger against Bush, but there was also a growing realisation that the Democrats are not much different.
Fight imperialism! Defend the Venezuelan and Cuban Revolutions! The following resolution on the Venezuelan and Cuban revolutions was put before a meeting of almost 300 Marxists from 24 countries, which was held in Spain in the first week of August.
Canadian Marxists launch www.marxist.ca and new publication, Fightback The Marxists in Canada are launching a new website – www.marxist.ca, and a new publication – Fightback. We support their call for all Canadians who read In Defence of Marxism and agree with the ideas of the International Marxist Tendency to contact them and join their fight. We welcome Fightback and www.marxist.ca as new comrades in the struggle, and we are confident that they will become the key organisers for revolutionaries in Canada. We are publishing three articles from issue #1 of Fightback.
The recall referendum in Venezuela: A crushing blow to the counterrevolution Venezuela's National Electoral Council released the result of yesterday's recall referendum on the government of President Hugo Chávez Frias. It was revealed that the opposition failed to obtain more votes than those who wanted Chavez to stay on as President. Even so, the opposition has refused to recognize the result and has charged that the "no" victory was based on electoral fraud. But does the result mean the opposition has suffered a decisive defeat? The internal and external enemies of the Venezuelan revolution cannot be reconciled by elections, referendums and negotiations. They will only be satisfied when the revolution is defeated.
Who is Celia Hart? Some brief biographical notes Celia Hart comes from a family of veteran Cuban revolutionaries who fought against the Batista dictatorship together with Fidel Castro. Celia Hart has been an outspoken defender of the political and revolutionary heritage of Leon Trotsky. Her recent articles on this subject have been published by the Spanish Marxist website El Militante and also on Marxist.com and have provoked an intense debate on the question of Trotsky internationally. Here she describes her political evolution.
As August 15 approaches: Why Marxists are fighting for a “No” next Sunday Genuine Marxists oppose the attempts of the Venezuelan oligarchy, backed by imperialism, to overthrow President Chavez. Why do we take this position? Because a defeat for Chavez in the referendum would be a heavy blow against the workers and peasants of all Latin America. It would be a victory for imperialism and the forces of reaction everywhere. The barricades have been drawn in this class war and it is necessary to take sides clearly and unambiguously.
Bolivia, after the referendum the fight is on The fraudulent nature of the recent gas referendum in Bolivia has become even clearer to the Bolivian masses. Within just a few days Mesa was selling off even more of Bolivia's natural gas resources to the multinationals. The response of the masses has been to mobilise once more.
Foxes and Grapes: sectarian stupidity and the Venezuelan revolution The attitude to revolution is the acid test for revolutionaries. Yet surprisingly many of those who call themselves Marxists have proved organically incapable of understanding the Venezuelan revolution or intervening in it. Two years ago, when the attempted coup against the Chavez government was defeated by the revolutionary movement of the masses, the response of most of the Left internationally was a deafening silence. Now the ultra-left have suddenly been getting hot under the collar - not about the Venezuelan revolution, but about the apparent opportunism of the Marxist tendency, gathered around this web site. Alan Woods points out a few elementary points that to any serious Marxist...
The gas referendum in Bolivia – a dirty trick The recent referendum was called by the Mesa government as a legal cover for what it has laready gone ahead with - the privatisation of Bolivian gas. The questions were not simply posed as yes or no to privatisation. The masses sensed this and in many parts of the country took part in a boycott. This is the priced the movement is having to pay for the compromise reached back in October.
US Perspectives 2004 As this document was drafted in April of 2004, many of the specific facts and figures have changed. However, the fundamental processes and trends remain accurate to this day, and many of the predictions are already coming to pass. The economic recovery has still not conclusively taken off or slipped back into recession, but the factors that allowed some breathing room for the economy are rapidly disappearing. The effects of Alan Greenspan’s recent interest rate rise - in an effort to counter inflation - cannot yet be predicted. With energy prices cutting into consumer spending, the industrial sector is once again shedding jobs, and the economy is producing less than the bare 150,000...
