Mike Foster
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Here are details of another talk at Summer School. I’m glad to announce that Darren Poynton will be speaking on ‘Karl Kautsky and the Invention of Marxism’
Karl Marx died in 1883 but it wasn’t until a generation later that his ideas, through the interpretation and popularisation of others, came into full force. This talk will focus on Karl Kautsky who, besides Engels, was arguably the most important populariser of Marx’s work. Kautsky’s opposition to the Bolshevik dictatorship led him to being labelled a ‘renegade’ by Lenin, and his criticisms of spontaneity led him into disagreements with left radicals like Luxemburg and Pannekoek. An obituary in The Socialist Standard of January 1939 stated that “Kautsky’s life and work might perplex future historians of the working class”. This talk will serve to clarify what is of use in Kautsky and to encourage socialists to examine his work once more.
More details about the event will be posted shortly. Summer School is being held on 22nd – 24th August in Worcester, and information (including how to make a booking) can be found at https://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/summer-school-2025/
Today was Leveller’s Day in Burford. As with previous years, there was a procession through the village, some talks and music events, and a room for stalls. In here, there were a couple of Communist groups, the Bristol Radical History Group, ‘Make Votes Matter’ and the Radical Tea Towel Company, among others. Piers, Stephen and myself ran our stall, which attracted some interest through the day, although perhaps numbers were down overall on past years. Still, a few people were happy to stop and chat, and some literature was sold on, with the ‘What’s Wrong With Using Parliament?’ pamphlet being most popular.
I’m happy to announce another talk at this year’s ‘What Is Marxism?’ Summer School. Howard Moss will be asking ‘Do Socialists Need Marx?’
It has been said that, when socialism is established, it will be without the majority of the people who establish it knowing much if anything about Marx. And with reference to now, when the socialist case is put to people, they can easily be put off if it is closely associated with Marxism. This is because Marxism is commonly represented either as something that has been tried and failed (e.g. the Soviet Union) or, when seen as existing now, some kind of authoritarian political system (e.g. China). It is also often associated with small left-wing groups wedded to the ideas of Lenin or Trotsky, which most people also find unattractive. So should the SPGB, while in its theory espousing many (though not all) of the ideas about capitalism and socialism put forward by Marx, claim these as an integral part of its case for socialism? Or should it at least avoid putting them in the forefront and focus instead on simply fostering an understanding of how capitalism works and why and how socialism should replace it – all based on the reality of the contemporary world and not on a theory put forward close to two centuries ago?Details of other sessions will be announced soon. The event is being held in Worcester on 22nd – 24th August, and for more information, visit https://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/summer-school-2025/
I’m pleased to announce the first of the talks at this year’s Summer School. Keith Graham will be presenting ‘Marxism and Marx – Can They Ever Be Friends?’
Karl Marx was both a theorist and a political activist, and in both cases many people have either claimed his name or had it inflicted on them. This talk will consider what things Marxists would have to say and do to merit the name. The most prominent political movement claiming his name is or was Marxism-Leninism. Two common theoretical stances are those of Western Marxism and analytical Marxism. In each case they will be measured against the most plausible relevant commitments which can be attributed to Marx. While they vary widely in their nature, in each case it will be suggested that in some respects or other they all fall short of an accurate reflection of Marx’s own views.The other sessions are in the pipeline, and more details will be announced in the coming weeks. For more information about the event, go to https://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/summer-school-2025/
The extended version of Bedsitter by Soft Cell, from the 1981 12″ single release. Soft Cell did a few ‘kitchen sink drama’-type songs, and this one’s probably their best.
Labour’s publicity department seriously messed up recently when it released a video promoting claims about how the government will improve things for people. Its AI-generated graphics of animals representing keyworkers (such as a hare wearing a nurse’s uniform) are unsettling enough, but the soundtrack is a song in Portuguese which advocates abusing young girls. Releasing this video at the same time as debate about how the state has dealt with ‘grooming gangs’ makes it even more of a misfire. The sorry story is reported here: https://news.sky.com/story/labour-apologise-after-posting-tiktok-video-featuring-explicit-song-13284944
Here’s a BBC report from 2000 on the libel case against Living Marxism http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/677481.stm . The articles about Living Marxism and the RCP on Wikipedia give an account of their demise, and it reminded me that their most prominent derivation is now the online magazine Spiked. I read Living Marxism magazine for a while in the mid-90s, and it was always slickly presented, although I don’t remember much in the way of Marxism…
Unfortunately, bookings for Summer School have now closed. Thanks go to everyone who made a booking. The talks should be streamed over Zoom, so check again for the link and timings nearer to the event.
I’m very pleased to announce an extra session at Summer School! Guest speaker Cat Rylance of Communist Future will give an introduction to the organisation, which is “both a political collective and an affirmation that a world beyond capitalism is possible”. This new project has been established in Manchester, where Cat stood as a candidate in the recent general election. Communist Future holds that “The political power of the majority — the working class — is a force that can transform the world. The communist future would not result in replacing the dominance of one group with another, but through collective ownership would do away with the need for a class system at all. This is what we mean when we speak about revolution: an overcoming of the limitations of the system, an absolute reorganisation of society as a whole”.
If anyone who hasn’t yet booked would like to attend, please email me at spgbschool[at]yahoo.co.uk before Thursday afternoon.
The deadline for Summer School bookings is tomorrow – 15th July, so there’s not long left! To make sure that a last-minute booking is logged, please email me at spgbschool[at]yahoo.co.uk as well as making the booking. An extra session is being planned, which will hopefully be announced soon!
The Summer School page on the website is here: https://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/summer-school-2024/Andrew Whitehead made another blog entry (in 2021) which mentions Harry Young, prompted by Andrew picking up some old copies of the Standard. It’s worth a read: https://www.andrewwhitehead.net/blog/the-spgb-and-the-standard-of-socialism
And he also posted this not too long ago, after popping in to Head Office: https://www.andrewwhitehead.net/blog/the-clapham-partyThere are still spaces available at Summer School, and the deadline for bookings is only a week away on the 15th July. The event is being held on the weekend of 16th – 18th August at in Worcester. As well as four talks on the theme of Political Consciousness, there’s also a board game evening, exhibition of how the Socialist Standard has covered the theme, bookstall and exclusive publication. For more information, including about how to make a booking, see here: http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/summer-school-2024/
