Welcome again to everybody! Make yourself at home. Enjoy the expertly designed Stalin flag thing. In the time-honoured tradition of our group, here is our weekly discussion thread!
We’re also testing a weekly news thread specifically for discussing world news.
We have a Matrix homeserver at genzedong.xyz. See this thread for information about our Matrix space.
Short reading list for new MLs here. To find theory, try https://marxists.org, z-lib, libgen, or Sci-Hub (for scientific articles). If an article is unavailable, try the Wayback Machine.
Hearing libertarian leftists mention the Spanish Civil War and explain it as “the Soviets betraying anarchists” to justify their beliefs, as someone who actually had it in his school curriculum, is a level of pain that I wish to no one. No mention of their war industry mismanagement, no mention of their botched justice system, no mention of their military ineptitude at the Aragon front and most importantly, no mention of the actions of nonchalant sabotage against the broader Republican front (the real force against fascism) that led to the May Days of 1937.
Fantasizing about a romantisized picture of brave anarchist freedom fighters being stabbed with a dagger in the back by the devilish tankies dressing in cloaks is and will always be more adequate than picking up a book and actually learning about their movement’s past, be it with Catalonia, with Makhno’s Ukraine or absolutely anywhere else.
The fun part of it is that, because of it, you always have the chance of catching anarchists by surprise by showing them their own history and seeing them not knowing what to do. Next time you find one searching for trouble, ask them about Makhno’s history with Mennonites.
The lack of organization and internal division, killed the chances of the republicans to win the war, it is easier to blame only the USSR.