woodenghost

This telegram channel is censored in Europe.

Good point, thanks! 👍

I guess endless conflicts that burn through a lot of equipment as quickly as possible to open up space for more buying is the logical endpoint of a for-profit military force.

Yes exactly. Imperialist wars temporarily alleviate crisis symptoms caused by inherent contradictions. They do the following:

• Destroy lots of value inside the imperialist countries, that flows into building weapons (like dumping it in the ocean, as Marx said). Thereby reducing the problem of the rising mass of capital finding fewer and fewer opportunities for profitable investment. So they remove dead capital that clogs up the arteries of circulation. And lower the crisis of overproduction. That's how they re-enable accumulation by capitalist production. They also destroy value in the attacked countries, creating opportunities for profitable rebuilding. This also helps to give a new kickstart to the aging engine of capital circulation.
• Enable accumulation by dispossession: the government moves value from the people to weapons manufacturers. Critically, this does not threaten anyone's profits since no need is fulfilled. If the government tried doing the above by funding housing, education or health care, the for-profit companies involved in that would lose profits.
• Enable renewed primitive accumulation by opening up markets and access to resources. Similar to colonialism.
• Lenin emphasized, how they also can take out imperialist rivals to allow continued export of (financial) capital and charging of monopoly prices. Thereby reacting to the tendency of the rate of profit to fall and to inter imperialist rivalries.

This last reason is the classic one. But the previous three reasons (championed by Harvey and others) help to understand how war is also fueled by internal contradictions. Even if there was only one single big capitalist state on the planet, war would still be necessary and enemies would have to be invented. That's why Russia was denied entry into NATO when they were at their lowest point and ready to become a subservient vassal to the US. The war machine has to go on.

Interesting, but maybe put the country in the title? US shouldn't have to be the default assumption or non-USians might not feel welcome.

In another life, maybe a veterinary nurse or zookeeper, he might have been happier, who knows.

Please take care of yourself. Your work is greatly appreciated, but don't overstretch yourself and don't hesitate to take a brake if you need one.

Strawman argument. There is a whole spectrum of things China could do before literally going to war.

Thank you for your service!

100 % agree! I picked up those vibes too, like a vibe was building around justifying to not do anything. It used to be different, right? Everyone used to keep saying:"Get organized!"

And yes, everyone on hexbear who is physically and mentally able and has the necessary bare minimum of resources and time should at least try to get organized and/or contribute in some (not online only) way that fits them. There are so many unique, individual ways to participate. We just have to find ones that fit us long-term without getting burned out.

And of course moments like this should absolutely be used to agitate and to win more comrades and raise class consciousness and in the imperial core: to lower acceptance for imperialist wars. Even if the outcome is not revolution in the US, lowering acceptance for wars can harm hegemony enough to save literally millions of lives outside the imperial core. It worked for Vietnam.

Not American, but where I am, I often feel like, I've let things slide too. Only been to like two protests this year and not really active anymore in the orgs I'm in. I used to do more. I always feel guilty when I'm in a period where I do less politically and of course there are always good reasons. Point is, it's not about feeling guilty, it's about at least trying to go out there. Just this week I reconnected with a comrade and activated some friends and we'll go to some leftish/semi-lib Pro-Palestine protest soon and we'll see what we can do/who we can connect with.

Oh no, not the white people! Those are the ones with like real feelings that matter. /s

Instead of centering the ideological justifications, perhaps it's more useful to talk about the material effects on different classes within China: Chinese capitalists profit by trade. Chinese finance capital profits from investments. Capital being exported slows the overproduction crisis.

And for ideological effects: Since foreign relations are centered not on solidarity(like in Cuba), but on globalization, free trade and the neo-liberal world order, the Chinese working class is denied an opportunity to develop it's class consciousness further by building international solidarity with people from other countries effected by US imperialism.

Critique of nonviolent politics.

I didn't have time to read the whole thing yet, but he makes some good points in the chapter on common arguments for non-violence (arguing against them).

Yay! Go PSL!