Marxism is like…incredibly dumb? Like it’s pretty shocking that it shook the world. And indeed it was once lauded particularly “scientific”, despite being not remotely like that.
I think that the main thing that happened in the 1800s was not that Marxism, per se, was actually compelling to people, but rather that there were a lot of people who could perceive serious injustice, and felt motivational force to organize to fight it, and they grabbed on to this ideology kind of at random, because it gave expression to their outlook, and claimed to be scientific, so was prestigious (it mattered a lot to the Russian radicals that it was _western_, because western Europe was modern where Russia as a backwater).
But the actual ideology, as near as I can tell, is dumb, and has always been dumb.
And then on top of that, when people tried to execute it…it resulted in (I think) in literally the most loss of human life, on purpose, ever?
I tried to talk with some smart Marxists once, to try to pass the ITT. I think I didn’t actually find the cream of the crop, but I was not impressed with the SSC-subreddit associated Marxist who had a video call with me.
I would still be up for talking to a smart Marxist, if anyone happens to know one.
But as it is, this is among the most inaccurate, most intellectually bankrupt, most consequentially harmful ideologies.
musings and rough drafts 
I usually appreciate your musings but this is, like, the dumbest thing I’ve ever seen you write! Seriously, not a single valid reason just your clear discomfort for an ideology you don’t understand, nor seem interested in understanding due to your biases. In the midst of a climate disaster, in the midst of a war-profiteering clusterfuck in Ukraine and the Middle East, it rather boggles my mind. Keynes, the economist, wrote that, “Capitalism is the extraordinary belief that the nastiest of men, for the nastiest of reasons will work for the good of us all.” It is an ideology that wealthy Western middle class people parrot as a golden goose, but many in the developing world sacrifice greatly for. It’s essentially a game of Monopoly, and we know how the game ends. Have you observed the wealth gap lately? Please explore the work of Richard D Wolff, a Marxist economist and author. Wolff earned a Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, in history from Harvard College in 1963 and moved on to Stanford University, where he attained a Master of Arts in economics in 1964, to study with Paul A. Baran. Baran died prematurely from a heart attack in 1964 and Wolff transferred to Yale University, where he received a second master’s degree in economics in 1966, a Master of Arts in history in 1967, and a Doctor of Philosophy in economics in 1969. Pretty well credentialed… please watch this video my friends created. It is beautifully filmed and very interesting. There are many reasons Marxism failed but Capitalism’s aggressive opposition to it was a major contributor. https://youtu.be/pA3RRfZKxHk?si=2ak4_GmP7QHKUZxG
I’ll anticipate a thoughtful response in my inbox within a few weeks…
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Which of Richard Wolff’s books do you recommend as a starting point?
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I think Wolff’s view of an ideal society is very different from almost everybody else’s. Here, for example, he envisions how people would get a PS5 under socialism.
https://twitter.com/DylanMAllman/status/1776649146675712146
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Hmmm…. Democracy at Work: Curing Capitalism is probably his best work. Here is a google talk on the book… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynbgMKclWWc
Just give it a chance. The first 10 minutes spells out a worldview you may not be familiar with, especially if you are an American.
What always astounds me is how democracy and capitalism are associated together whereas democracy and socialism are sold as foes… Capitalism doesn’t require democracy, but true socialism is predicated on it, but hopefully you’ll reach that same conclusion. Follow the money and power…. neoliberalism is a boon for the rich and a slow-burning disaster for the working class.
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