On the political economy of contemporary imperialism: The concept of the “imperialist pyramid” and its critics

By Thanasis Spanidis

Summary in short theses: 

1. In the Programmatic Theses of Kommunistische Organisation (KO) we find (in broad outline) a clear orientation for the analysis of imperialism. The theoretical conception developed therein has now been rejected in a number of contributions to the discussion (Klara Bina, Alexander Kiknadze, to a lesser extent Paul Oswald). 

2. The assertion that the imperialist world system is characterized by a “unipolar world order” led by the USA cannot be confirmed by the available data. Both the economic and military balance of power at the top of the imperialist world order refute the picture of singular U.S. domination. 

KARL MARX, THE MAN WHO CHANGED THE WORLD

 By Nikos Mottas 

 

"Philosophers have hitherto only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it." 

 

- Karl Marx, Theses on Feuerbach.

140 years have been passed since the day when "the greatest living thinker ceased to think". It was the 14th of March 1883 when Karl Marx, the greatest of modern-era philosophers, died peacefully at his home in London. Three days later, during his burial at Highgate Cemetery, his close companion Friedrich Engels was saying: "An immeasurable loss has been sustained both by the militant proletariat of Europe and America, and by historical science, in the death of this man. The gap that has been left by the departure of this mighty spirit will soon enough make itself felt."  

Thoughts prompted by the film "The Young Karl Marx"

By Nikos Mottas.

“Der junge Karl Marx” (The Young Karl Marx) is a historical drama that covers the revolutionary, theoretical and political activity of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in the period from 1843 to 1847. This is the period when Marx and Engels began the joint work which became the foundation of the scientific worldview of the proletariat.

Within the limited framework of a film, Raoul Peck tries his best in order to present both the rich theoretical work of the two revolutionary thinkers as well as their militant activity. Despite the difficulty of the task the director uses effectively the powerful tools provided by cinema as a means of disseminating ideas. 

Slavoj Žižek, an apologist of Capitalism disguised as "Marxist philosopher"

By Nikos Mottas.

"The least we owe Ukraine is full support, and to do this we need a stronger Nato [...]  Today, one cannot be a leftist if one does not unequivocally stand behind Ukraine” (The Guardian, June 21, 2022).

Who is the author of the above words? Is it NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg? Or German Chancellor Olaf Scholz? Maybe Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez? None of them. The phrase belongs to a celebrity of contemporary left-wing intelligentsia. The much publicized “Hegelian Marxist” philosopher Slavoj Žižek. 

Antonio Gramsci — I hate the indifferent

By Antonio Gramsci.

I hate the indifferent. I believe that living means taking sides. Those who really live cannot help being a citizen and a partisan. Indifference and apathy are parasitism, perversion, not life. That is why I hate the indifferent.

The indifference is the dead weight of history. The indifference operates with great power on history. The indifference operates passively, but it operates. It is fate, that which cannot be counted on. It twists programs and ruins the best-conceived plans. It is the raw material that ruins intelligence. That what happens, the evil that weighs upon all, happens because the human mass abdicates to their will; allows laws to be promulgated that only the revolt could nullify, and leaves men that only a mutiny will be able to overthrow to achieve the power.

Friedrich Engels Bicentennial: Joint edition of Marx and Engels selected works to be published by PCM and PCTE

On the occasion of the 200 years since the birth of Friedrich Engels, the Communist Party of the Workers of Spain (PCTE) and the Communist Party of Mexico (PCM) announced their initiative to publish a joint edition of Marx and Engels Selected Works. Read the statement in English and Spanish below:

Being the bicentenary of Friedrich Engels’ birthday, the Communist Party of Mexico (PCM) and the Communist Party of the Workers of Spain (PCTE) consider that it is necessary to contribute to the diffusion of the work that he devoted most of his life to along with Karl Marx.

Karl Marx's birth anniversary: 20 quotes by the philosopher who changed the world

Today marks the 202nd anniversary since the birth of the greatest of the philosophers, whose teachings changed the course of world's history. Karl Marx was born on 5 May 1818 in Trier, part of then Kingdom of Prussia. 

On the occasion of his 202th birth anniversary, we choosed from the treasury of his writings, 20 memorable quotes:

1. Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.

Contribution to the Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right (1844).

Marxist-Leninist Theory with Nikos Mottas | The Dictatorship of the Proletariat: A Higher Form of Democracy [Audio]

Kemal Okuyan: "The goal of communism is absolutely timely today"

On the occasion of the 101st anniversary of the 1917 Great October Socialist Revolution, soL news portal interviewed Kemal Okuyan, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP):

On the 7th of November, 101st anniversary of the October Revolution will be celebrated. Is there anything left to celebrate?

USSR has been collapsed, that is, the country that is founded on the basis of the Revolution now does not exist. From that point of view, it might be thought that there is nothing to be celebrated, however, the Revolution is the greatest event of the 20th century whose remains cannot be wiped off from the earth and which still continues to inspire those who are oppressed all around the world. Today, in Russia, various rock bands are playing songs saying 'Towards New Octobers". 

Interview with Domenico Losurdo: Marx and the counter-history of Liberalism

Domenico Losurdo, one of the most significant contemporary Marxist thinkers, died at the age of 77. He was a Professor of Philosophy at Urbino University as well as President of the International Association Hegel-Marx for Dialectical Thought. Despite any possible disagreements of different views regarding his work, the death of Losurdo consists a major loss for marxist thought in the academic and literature sector. Below, we republish an interesting interview he gave to the Platypus Affiliated Society in 2012, based on one of his latest books titled "Liberalism: A Counter-History". 

Anticommunist hysteria in Poland: Police storms university conference on Marxism!

The Communist Party of Poland denounces political persecution launched by the Polish authorities expressed by the increasing attacks. 

The especially outrageous example happened on the 11th of May when police entered the conference about Marxism held in Szczecin University’s facilities in Pobierowo. The functionaries acting on demand of the prosecutor’s office were searching for evidence of “promoting totalitarian system”. This intrusion constituted a clear violation of the university’s autonomy and constitutional right for freedom of the scientific activity. Professor organizing the conference said that police intervention was “an attempt to intimidate the scientists and to entangle them into the political order that is entirely contradictory with values such as freedom of speech and scientific research”. He also stated that the basic citizen’s rights are endangered.

KKE: Marxism as a factor in the shaping of sociopolitical processes in Greece

Marxist Theory as a factor in the shaping of sociopolitical processes in Greece: Some Conclusions drawn from the action of the KKE.

International Conference on Karl Marx’s “Capital” and its Impact on the development of the World Moscow, May 11 - 12, 2018

By Giorgos Magganas, 

representative of the Ideological Committee of the CC of the KKE.

The central work of Marxism, “Capital” is the foundation, the pedestal of a radically new worldview – Dialectical Materialism -  that, having assimilated the totality of intellectual achievement, shattered the limitations of the interpretations of the world, creating the theoretical preconditions that make changing it not only timely but realistic.

Xi Jinping praises Marxism while China deepens its capitalist transformation

Chinese President Xi Jinping has praised Karl Marx as "the greatest thinker of modern times," calling his theories a tool for China to "win the future", according to a recent report by Xinhua. 

President Xi gave a speech last Friday at the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing, during an event marking the bicentennial of Marx's birth in 1818 in Germany.

The most valuable and influential spiritual asset that Marx left us is the scientific theory named after him -- Marxism. Like a spectacular sunrise, the theory illuminated the path of humanity's exploration of the law of history, and humanity's search for their own liberation, Xi said.

European Communist Initiative: For the 200 years since the birth of Karl Marx

Statement of the Secretariat of the European Communist Initiative for the 200 years since the birth of Karl Marx.

"The philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point, however, is to change it”.

200 years ago, οn May 5th 1818, in the city of Trier of Prussia, the great revolutionary Karl Marx was born. Marx had a decisive contribution to the foundation of the revolutionary worldview of the working class as well to the economic, political and philosophical thought of humanity. He was connected with Friedrich Engels and with their decisive contribution they played a key role in the first revolutionary groups of Paris. He consistently fought against various petty bourgeois theories on socialism that were dominant in that period. Following his deportation to Brussels in 1845, he joined the “Communist League” along with Engels and participated in its 2nd Congress where they played a vital role in the adoption of revolutionary positions. Commissioned by the Congress they wrote the famous and unparalleled work “The Communist Manifesto”, which was published in February 1848.

Karl Marx's 200th birth anniversary: The man who changed the world forever

By Nikos Mottas.

"Philosophers have hitherto only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it." 

 

- Karl Marx, Theses on Feuerbach.

Two centuries have passed since the birth of the greatest thinker in the history of mankind. It was the 5th of May 1818 when Karl Heinrich Marx was born in Trier, Rhenish Prussia (present-day Germany). 

He was the man who tried not just to interpret the world, but to change it. The issue of how to change the world consisted the core of his remarkably unique theoretical work as well as his practical activity. The result was the scientific theory of the working class, for the overthrow of the capital's power and the establishment of the workers' power, the "dictatorship of the proletariat", the abolition of the exploitation of man by man and the ultimate transition from class societies to communism. 

Brinda Karat- Marxism and the Struggle for Women’s Emancipation in India

Marxism and the Struggle for Women’s Emancipation in Contemporary India

By Brinda Karat*.

Source: International Communist Review, Issue 8, 2018.

Introduction

The struggle for and the road to women’s emancipation depends on the nature of the State and the specific correlation of class forces in any given society. Which are the forces responsible for the unequal status of women, the violence against women, the daily humiliations and creation of multiple barriers in women’s struggles for freedom? 

Jerónimo de Sousa- Speech at "Bicentennial of the birth of Karl Marx" Conference

Speech by Jerónimo de Sousa, General Secretary of the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) at the opening of the conference "Bicentennial of the birth of Karl Marx- Legacy, Intervention, Struggle, Transform the World" which was held in Lisbon on February 24th 2018. 

With this conference, we begin the commemorations of the bicentennial of the birth of Karl Marx, which will take place throughout 2018, under the theme «Legacy, Intervention, Struggle. Transform the World».

V.I. Lenin writes about Engels: "A great fighter and teacher of the proletariat!"

  By Vladimir Ilyich Lenin.

 

Written in autumn 1895, First published in 1896 in the miscellany Rabotnik, No. 1-2.

Source: V. I. Lenin, Collected Works, 4th English Edition, Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1972 via Marxists Internet Archives.

What a torch of reason ceased to burn, 

What a heart has ceased to beat!

On August 5 (new style), 1895, Frederick Engels died in London. After his friend Karl Marx (who died in 1883), Engels was the finest scholar and teacher of the modern proletariat in the whole civilised world. From the time that fate brought Karl Marx and Frederick Engels together, the two friends devoted their life’s work to a common cause. And so to understand what Frederick Engels has done for the proletariat, one must have a clear idea of the significance of Marx’s teaching and work for the development of the contemporary working-class movement. 

Karl Marx- Wage, Labour and Capital 1847 (Part II)

Wage, Labour and Capital.

By Karl Marx. 

First Published: April 1849.

Source: From the original 1891 pamphlet via Marxists Internet Archives.

(Continue from Part I)

PART II.

THE NATURE AND GROWTH OF CAPITAL 

Capital consists of raw materials, instruments of labor, and means of subsistence of all kinds, which are employed in producing new raw materials, new instruments, and new means of subsistence. All these components of capital are created by labour, products of labour, accumulated labour. Accumulated labour that serves as a means to new production is capital. 

Karl Marx- Wage, Labour and Capital 1847 (Part I)

Wage, Labour and Capital.

By Karl Marx. 

First Published: April 1849.

Source: From the original 1891 pamphlet via Marxists Internet Archives.

PART I.

INTRODUCTION.

BY FRIEDRICH ENGELS.

This pamphlet first appeared in the form of a series of leading articles in the Neue Rheinische Zeitung, beginning on April 4th, 1849. The text is made up of from lectures delivered by Marx before the German Workingmen's Club of Brussels in 1847. The series was never completed. The promise "to be continued", at the end of the editorial in Number 269 of the newspaper, remained unfulfilled in consequence of the precipitous events of that time: the invasion of Hungary by the Russians [Tsarist troops invaded hungary in 1849 to keep the Austrian Hapsburg dynasty in power], and the uprisings in Dresden, Iserlohn, Elberfeld, the Palatinate, and in Baden [Spontaneous uprisings in Germany in May-July 1849, supporting the Imperial Constituion which were crushed in mid-July], which led to the suppression of the paper on May 19th, 1849. And among the papers left by Marx no manuscript of any continuation of these articles has been found.