the-frosty-mac

[the-frosty-mac]

just throwing shit at the wall do you know any good marxisr critique of terf ideology or will i have to make that myself?

My first thoughts are Leslie Feinberg and Judith Butler, though they're not especially recent. But arguably that's a relevant point, because it asserts that we've been dealing with fascists and transphobes for awhile, and the current reactionary wave is just fash scrambling for an enemy to mobilise a popular movement. Butler also gave an interview a couple years ago in which they explicitly identified TERFs as fascist (“Anti-gender ideology is one of the dominant strains of fascism in our times”) which was subsequently censored by the Guardian. Worth a read (both the original and the PinkNews call out of the censorship). There's also a book called Transgender Marxism, which I have not read and will therefore not endorse, but if anyone wants to give it a look and let me know what's up, I'd be grateful.

Idk, as a Marxist I do really think the problems we face are sort of always the same and just slightly changing their stupid face. I still recommend Frederic Jameson and Mark Fisher as the best sources to confront the digital age. Liberalism/fascism is 'agile', that's why you see rainbows in the midst of genocide and memes in the midst of mass layoffs. But, as one of our best once said, we're dialectical materialists. And we deal with what reality is, whether we like it or not.

[the-frosty-mac]

Among the greatest successes of the right is the resignification of the merest hint of communist sympathies, let alone advocacy, as being ‘radical’. Communism was one of the dominant political and economic systems of the Twentieth Century; the most populous country on earth today is a socialist state with Marxism-Leninism written into the fabric of its constitution administered by a sitting communist party. Even in the West, many of our most celebrated figures openly propounded Marxist ideals, and not just the obvious examples such as MLK or Frida Kahlo or Albert Einstein, but the likes of Oscar Wilde and Jean-Luc Godard and Nina Simone as well. Our immortal science is not fringe. We should contest this erstwhile victory of our enemies at every opportunity. In fact, it is in our interest, and the interest of the entire international working class, to remind people around us that our practical pursuit of justice and liberation for all is and always has been a popular movement of the mainstream, and indeed our own myriad victories would never have been possible otherwise.

[the-frosty-mac]

The execution of Nex Benedict by classmates in their school bathroom is an example in the long line of transphobic violence in this country, and is emblematic of a genocidal movement to eradicate transgender and non binary people from America. This violence was excused by school faculty, including the callous refusal to allow Benedict's injury to be treated properly in a hospital. This was following a bill requiring trans and nonbinary students to use the bathroom associated with the gender they were assigned at birth. Despite using the bathroom associated with the gender assigned to Benedict at birth, they were still murdered by transphobic classmates, punished by school authorities for being assaulted, and refused access to adequate healthcare after the event. This is unacceptable, and the sytem that produced this and many more tragic incidents like this must be resisted strenuously by all trans and nonbinary folks, as well as anyone who considers themselves supporters of queer, trans, and nonbinary liberation.

[the-frosty-mac]

[the-frosty-mac]

[the-frosty-mac]

The Congolese struggle is vital to the global revolutionary movement and the masses in the Congo should be supported vigorously by any means available. We should never break solidarity with Congolese workers and slaves and all other exploited classes. All efforts to imperialize the Congo or continue the genocide there must be emphatically opposed. Any organization that stands for the rights of the marginalized, the workers, and human rights needs to stand in solidarity with the Congolese masses, and the ongoing attempt to wipe out this people and plunder their resources must be struggled against with all available power the workers of the world have. Solidarity with the Congolese masses! Death to the imperialists! Liberation to all peoples!

[the-frosty-mac]

INTRO TO LEFTIST THEORY

So I wrote a recommended reading list awhile back, but have increasingly become aware it can be daunting. As such, I wanted to present a simplified sort of guide to leftist theory. So here’s a sequence of texts to help you get to grips with it all, rather than just a mass of recommendations. So let’s get started!

The Communist Manifesto. Just read it, comrade. It’s like fifty pages long, and intentionally simplified, so as to be accessible. Start here.

What next? You wanna expand your familiarity with Marx & Engels? How about Socialism: Utopian And Scientific? Written by Engels as a truncated, simplified form of Marx’ magnum opus Capital (which you should also read, eventually, but is a bit much to start). Want more? Check out Wage Labour And Capital, another of Marx & Engels’ shorter works which is a good, simple introduction to understanding our plight in both human and economic terms. Want something similar but not limited to the perspective of just a couple (visionary) gentlemen? The Conquest Of Bread is also short-ish and an easy intro, but this time from a less orthodox angle (anarchism!?); simultaneously a plea for tenderness and a call to arms.

So now, you’re comfortable with Marx et al, but you want something a bit more pracitically engaged with revolutionary movements? Try Quotations From Chairman Mao. There’s a reason the Black Panthers prescribed members read this little red book; rather than a single long text, the short, punchy form gives a lot of good ideas to the budding revolutionary. Want something a bit more in-depth? State And Revolution is surprisingly applicable to our present predicament; this is how we agitate, educate, and organise, regardless of how we identify. Speaking of which, want something that won’t scare people with the mere mention of Lenin or Mao? Consider Reform Or Revolution? The question is rhetorical, so why not get familiar with the rhetoric.

Okay, but maybe your interest in leftism is via a specific experience of marginalisation. These old school classics are all well and good, but what about something that really speaks to you?

Are you trans, or have you got a particular interest in gender and its politics? Read Transgender Liberation: A Movement Whose Time Has Come, which lays the groundwork, and is still pertinent today. Want something a bit more in-depth and academic? Gender Trouble: Feminism And The Subversion Of Identity can equip you to rhetorically destroy TERF nonsense like nothing else, among other things!

Right, and what about the intersections of gender and other forms of marginalisation? Feminism For The 99 may be a good starting point! Maybe something a bit more introspective, that tackles race and identity? Sister Outsider: Essays And Speeches is a digestible and inspiring collection which you can read in short bursts or all at once.

But some of this seems a bit Amero-centric, huh. If you wanna grapple with racialised imperialism more broadly, maybe delve into Discourse On Colonialism. Oh, but that seems to ignore the significance of sex and gender? Well luckily we can ask Can The Subaltern Speak? which may draw a lot of these threads together.

Yeah, but some of this postcolonial stuff seems a bit tangled up with history and international relations, so maybe a more in-depth understanding can be gleaned from Orientalism. Looking for more contemporary, less academic? Well we should all know by now Decolonization Is Not A Metaphor.

And what about the environment; isn’t capitalism largely a threat because of it’s refusal to address climate change? Yes, have a look at An Ecosocialist Manifesto.

Or do you find yourself asking Are Prisons Obsolete? Well let me tell you, you’re not alone!

The point is that this stuff is easier than you may think, and readily accessible. And yes, we’re in this together, and we’ve all got to co-educate, but it starts with you.

[the-frosty-mac]

“By selling his labour to the capitalist, the worker obtains a right only to the price of labour, not to the product of his labour, nor to the value which his labour has added to it.”

— Marx - Grundrisse 1857

[the-frosty-mac]

🇵🇸 The RNN Guide to the Palestinian Resistance.

Many readers may struggle to keep track of all of groups, formations, and brigades that constitute the united and victorious Palestinian resistance landscape. We have attempted to break down their differences, capabilities, and active formations to help our readers get a better picture of the resistance on the ground.

We hope that this guide serves as a useful reference for those becoming aware of the reality of the daily resistance in Palestine.

Together, we are united until liberation.

[the-frosty-mac]

[the-frosty-mac]

[the-frosty-mac]

Here's something I'm sure you find infuriating;

"I'm not into politics. I don't really know, I'm just not a political person."

We know that this IS being political! It means you condone everything - you don't think anything is worth fighting for, you're fine with the status quo as long as it benefits you vaguely. It's the mindset of someone so aggressively individualist, that the suffering of others is simply not a concern - since the system can't be broken, if they're alright. The kind of people to vote for a fascist if it'll mean that their taxes are lower next year. To stand by and watch oppression is insidious. Not even watch - to Celebrate oppression as long as it's against the "savages" and "beasts." Mass mistreatment still exists beyond the gulf surrounding apathetic suburbia.

[the-frosty-mac]

being a revolutionary communist with a grandfather who was an american spy during the cold war is so fun because i can never tell whether he’s gonna agree with me or report me to the House Un-American

#he’s actually pretty cool #still tho #communism #socialism

[the-frosty-mac]

horse dutifully typing away on a comically large keyboard in front of a beautiful icelandic landscape that is the life right there i wonder if this horse is typing peaceful and joyful messages or sending 20 slurs directly into my inbox

[the-frosty-mac]

ᔕᑌᑎᗪᗩY ᖴᗩᑎ ᗩᖇT 

Young and beautiful Hayden Christensen as exhausted with nightmares Anakin Skywalker  Art by kjelle_art on ig

#star wars #hayden christensen #anakin skywalker

[the-frosty-mac]

I’d go a step beyond that. Revolt against this dynamic. Make sure future generations never have to make that choice in the first place.

we are so anti-fun in capitalism. fun isn't allowed because joy and stimulation create serotonin and dopamine and that would just be terrible because you can't be a crushingly depressed drone who can't do anything but work. not even sleep, just work. it would be a shame if you chose to chase joy and happiness and fun despite this. it would be a real shame, for the CEOs and billionaires who steal your hard earned money for themselves. a pity, really.

seriously, though, smarmy tone aside: chase fun like your life depends on it, because it does. happiness is a human right. kids and adults alike need to play. play isn't just for children: adults require leisure and happiness, too. happiness should not be reserved for any age group. fun isn't even optional, it's required in order to keep your mental health in check. we're depressed as a culture because all we do is work and leave no time for play. living is meant for chasing and fighting for what brings you joy. play. laugh. have fun. spite those who want you to be a miserable worker drone who can't spare a thought beyond work work work.

fight like hell for happiness.

#anti capitalism #socialism #revolution #revolutionary

[the-frosty-mac]

i feel like people dont like the idea of communism because they cannot imagine a world where there is no monetary gain, like its also because capitalism is force fed to us from a young age, but also people do not understand how we could live in a world where you can just walk into a store, grab what you want or need, and leave. Same with anarchism, people cannot imagine a world where there is no overarching power that tells them what is ok and what is not. Plus you have media giving the idea of anarchism just being mindless chaos with no laws whatsoever.

#communism #anarchocommunism