/391/ Aufhebonus Bonus - Feb 2024
Added 2024-02-13 07:00:04 +0000 UTCOn our '1914 vibes'. And your questions & comments.
We discuss the parallels between our age (the end of globalisation, the threat of war) with the end of the Belle Epoque in the early 20th century. What might Lenin have to teach us?
We then turn to your questions and comments on:
- Palestinians as surplus population
- Peripheral countries as 'imitators'
- Whether Brexit has led to greater political accountability
- Why Ridley Scott sucks
- Why contemporary art sucks
- Bonapartism and techno-populism
- Romanticising dead workers - and old social-democrats
- Esoteric knowledge about how the world *really* works
Readings:
- Lenin's Lesson for Western Liberals, Philip Cunliffe, UnHerd
- Why the Tories Are Blowing Brexit, George Hoare, The Northern Star
Comments
As one of the coauthors of Taking Control, I'm happy to admit that things in Britain are incredibly shit. The point of the book is precisely to explain why that is so. Brexit was a necessary but by no means sufficient step for democratic renewal - that is the core argument of the book. Phil is perhaps too defensive of Brexit's "positive achievements", but the he is right that the establishment now stands totally exposed, with nowhere to hide. It has clarified that the only way forwards is to sweep away the whole lot. What remains crucially lacking is a collective subject willing to take on this task; citizens remain atomised, sullen and cynical, waiting for a bankrupt elite to reform itself. As we say in the book, until that changes, the democratic potential of Brexit cannot be realised.
Lee Jones
2024-03-15 18:42:17 +0000 UTCThe "scary" thing is that talks of compulsory conscription is actually going on in multiple countries in Europe now, like in Italy and France. And even though I still think it would not be possible to do it now, not just in terms of compliance of the population, but also in terms of the dismantling of vast assets of the army that was used for the training of conscription until the end of the nineties when compulsory training in the army was scrapped, in Italy it would be quite easy to reinstate conscription. That's because conscription was never abolished, it's the training conscription time that has been eliminated, but the lists of conscripts are still active. This is just a random feeling, but I am worried there could be something more than simple talks to distract from other issues, like the opening of a conversation for future Times.
Andrea
2024-02-18 21:51:57 +0000 UTC
