Source: Anti-Bolshevik Communism by Paul Mattick, published by Merlin Press, 1978; Transcribed: by Andy Blunden, for marxists.org 2003.
The conflict between the East and the West, although it involves
different ideologies, has little to do with different concepts of physical
reality. Ideologies differ because material and social interests differ;
‘physical reality’, on the other hand, is quite the same for all
the combatants. Nevertheless, in both camps, the ideological struggle is
carried into the natural sciences — in the East, in the form of a
rearguard defense of dialectical materialism; in the West, in the assertion
that dialectical materialism is “the real root of the conflict between
East and West, b... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Kurasje Archive; Transcribed: by Andy Blunden, for marxists.org 2003.
The new interest in Marxism, as reflected in numerous
publications, seems to substantiate George Lichtheim’s remark that
‘a new doctrine becomes academically respectable only after it has
petrified’.[1] From this point of view the
renewed concern with Marx resembles an intellectual wake over the dead body of
Marxism and the disposition of some of its still-usable properties among the
heirs. If nothing good can be said about past Marxian practice, the aspects of
Marxian theory, at least, can be and have been assimilated into current social
sciences. Marx himself, it is said, is thereby honored, for ‘the highest
triumph a great sch... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Kurasje Archive; First Published: in Living Marxism vol. 4, no. 4 August 1938 and reprinted in Red & Black Notes #6 and #7; Transcribed: by Andy Blunden, for marxists.org 2003; Proofed: and corrected by Geoff Traugh, July 2005.
Economic and political changes proceed with bewildering
rapidity since the close of the world war. The old conceptions in the labor
movement have become faulty and inadequate and the working class organizations
present a scene of indecision and confusion.
In view of the changing economic and political situation it seems that
thorough reappraisement of the task of the working class becomes necessary in
order to find the forms of struggle and organization most needful and
effective.
The rela... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: American Socialist, vol. 6, Sept. 1959, No 9, pp. 16-19; Transcribed: by Thomas Schmidt.
Editors’ Note: We are sure that our readers will
find many valuable insights in the following article by the long-time socialist
writer, Paul Mattick, whose contributions have previously appeared in the
American Socialist. Mr. Mattick here argues strongly the thesis
held by Rosa Luxemburg and others before the first World War, on the so-called
“national question.”
We do not, for our part, believe it is possible to
dissociate the battle for socialism from the general revolutionary wave in the
under-developed world, a wave that is powered by aspirations for national
independence and a better life. The two currents d... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Kurasje Archive; First Published: as “El Nuevo Capitalismo y la Vieja Lucha de Clase”, Negaciones 1, Oct. 1976, Madrid; Transcribed: by Andy Blunden, for marxists.org 2003.
“The proletariat is revolutionary or it is nothing.” – Karl Marx
Being a product of bourgeois society, the socialist movement is
linked to the vicissitudes of capitalist development. It will assume different
forms according to the changing fortunes of the capitalist system. In
circumstances which are not favorable to the formation of class consciousness,
it will not grow, or will practically disappear. In conditions of capitalist
prosperity it tends to transform itself from a revolutionary to a reformist
movement. In times... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Western Socialist, Boston, USA, May-June 1956; Transcribed: by Adam Buick.
Policies to Combat Depression. A Conference of the Universities National Bureau Committee for Economic Research. Princeton University Press, 1956. (417 pp; $8.50).
The Political Economy of American Foreign Policy. Report of a Study Group sponsored by the Woodrow Wilson Foundation and the National Planning Association. Henry Holt & Co., New York. (414 pp; $600).
According to Keynes, depressions are no longer necessary. And, in fact,
instead of depression there was the second world war and the upswing of economy
activity based on the probability of a new war. Government manipulations and
expenditures kept unemployment at a low level; a greatly ... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: One Big Union Monthly, August 1937, pp. 14-7, 33-34. Transcribed: by Brian Reid, Thomas Schmidt;
The literature dealing with the problems of a planned economy has attained
proportions comparable only with those of the depression which brought it
forth. In all this welter of thought, we may distinguish three main currents:
one which stands for the possibility of capitalist planning, another which
denies it on principle, and a third which hovers between these extremes and
finds its champions both in the bourgeois and socialist camps.
In view of the depression, the surviving representatives of the
laissez-faire principle have a hard time defending their theoretical postulates
against the planners. It becomes increasingly ... (From: Marxists.org.) From Partisan Review, Vol.15 No.10, October 1948, pp.1108-1124.
Copied with thanks from the Council Communist Archive at web.archive.org/web/20090221055640/www.kurasje.org.
Marked up by Einde O’Callaghan for the Marxists’ Internet Archive.
As against the terror of the bombs, the actual conquest
of Berlin was of lesser significance to its inhabitants. Nevertheless,
the artillery tore new holes into the ruins, shot away parts of the
surviving buildings, killed many people running for food and water. The
spray of machine guns is visible almost on every house, every floor,
every apartment door. The tanks ground down the streets and sidewalks.
The battle was fought section by section, street by street, house by
house. ... (From: Marxists.org.) Review of Engels-Kautsky Correspondence. Orbis-Verlag, Prague. First Published: International Review, February 1937; Transcribed: by Adam Buick; Proofed: and corrected by Geoff Traugh, July 2005.
Kautsky’s relations with Engels began in 1881. In explanation, Kautsky
precedes the collection of letters with a short sketch of his own development,
showing the great influence exercised by Engels in the making of Kautsky. The
correspondence itself cannot contribute much to this. It contains little of
theoretic matter. It sheds more light on the history of the Social-Democratic
Party. Kautsky refers to Marx and Engels, in the typical social-democratic and
philistine manner, as the “great masters,” the
“Olympian,&... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Kurasje Archive; Written: by Paul Mattick published in Anti-Bolshevik Communism in 1978 by Merlin Press, London; Transcribed: by Andy Blunden, for marxists.org 2003; Proofed: and corrected by Geoff Traugh, August 2005.
I
Otto Rühle’s activity in the German Labor Movement
was related to the work of small and restricted minorities within and outside
of the official labor organizations. The groups which he directly adhered to
were at no time of real significance. And even within these groups he held a
peculiar position; he could never completely identify himself with any
organization. He never lost sight of the general interests of the working
class, no matter what specific political strategy he was advocating ... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Paul Mattick Home page; Proofed: and corrected by Geoff Traugh, August 2005.
Our custom of omitting names has led to a misunderstanding. The
article, “The Party and the Working Class,” which, after it had
appeared in Council Correspondence, was reprinted by the APCF and discussed in
Solidarity (Nos. 34-36) by Frank Maitland, was written by Anton
Pannekoek. The latter is at present in no position to answer Maitland’s
critique. Being in some way responsible for the contents of Council
Correspondence, I will try to answer some of Maitland’s questions.
The problems raised cannot be approached in an abstract manner and in
general terms, but only specifically in regard to concrete historical
situati... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: The Council Communist Archive - http://web.archive.org/web/20090221055640/www.kurasje.org; Written: by Paul Mattick, published in International Council Correspondence Vol. 1, no. 2, November 1934, pp. 1-20. The e-version of this text was made by Kavosh Kavoshgar for Kurasje; Transcribed: by Steve Palmer.
I.
According to Marx, the development of the productive forces of
society
is the motive power of historical development. In acquiring new
productive forces men change their mode of production, and in changing
their mode of production, their manner of gaining a living, they change
all their social relations. The transformation of the spinning wheel,
the hand-loom and blacksmiths sledge, into the self-tending mule, the
... (From: Marxists.org.) Published: in Contemporary Issues (New York) No 52, Spring 1966. Transcription: Adam Buick HTML-markup: Jonas Holmgren
The Orwellian principles of newspeak, which include the
interchangeability of words to enable them to express the opposite of what they
appear to be, dominate today's political vocabulary. Just as peace stands for
war and wars are fought to maintain peace, so many other terms have come to
designate their opposites. It is then not surprising to encounter a book which
declares that the opposite of crisis, namely prosperity, is itself in crisis.
[Prosperity in Crisis by Joseph M. Gillman. Marzani & Munsel.
New York, 1965. $5.00].
Gillman's new book develops the thesis "that the capitalist
economies experience ... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Western Socialist, Boston, USA, June 1944; Transcribed: by Adam Buick; Proofed: and corrected by Geoff Traugh, August 2005.
Reflections on the Revolution of Our Times, by Harold J. Laski. The Viking Press, New York, 1943. (410pp., $3.50)
Harold Laski’s wordy and repetitious book attempts to
reconcile the “liberal” ideology of the British Labor Party and
the American New Deal with the power politics of the United Nations. Despite
its length, this volume is a propaganda tract on the intellectual level of
The New Republic and The Nation. It was undoubtedly
intended to be the most brilliant of all the apologies for the Allied Nations,
but instead it is a boring, hypocritical and unconvincing sort of self-d... (From: Marxists.org.) Whereas Marx’s analysis of the social contradictions inherent in
capitalism refers to the general trend of capitalistic development, the actual
class struggle is a day-to-day affair and necessarily adjusts itself to
changing social conditions. These adjustments are bound to find a reflection in
Marxian theory. The history of capitalism is thus also the history of Marxism.
Although interrupted by periods of crisis and depression, capitalism was able
to maintain itself until now by the continuous expansion of capital and its
extension into space through an accelerating increase of the productivity of
labor. It proved possible not only to regain a temporarily lost profitability
but to increase it sufficiently to continue the acc... (From: Marxists.org.) Paul Mattick 1945
Remember the Wrapper
Source: Western Socialist, Boston, USA, September 1945; The Economics of Control. Principles of Welfare Economics. By Abba P. Lerner. The Macmillan Company, New York, 1944 (428 pp.; $3.75); Transcribed: by Adam Buick; Proofed: and corrected by Geoff Traugh, August 2005.
It is difficult to review Professor Lerner’s study, not because it is
intricate, but because it seems so superfluous. As trying as it is to read this
work it is almost inconceivable that Lerner could spent twelve years on its
preparation and writing; particularly these last twelve years of crisis,
depression, fascism and war. And yet it is quite understandable from the
academic point of view, that is, from the position ... (From: Marxists.org.) Published: in Science & Society, Spring 1961. Vol. XXV, Nº 2 Transcription: Adam Buick HTML-markup: Jonas Holmgren
Aspects of Revolt, by Max Nomad. New York: Bookman
Associates, 1959. $5.00. Pp. 311.
While Max Nomad's previous books were mainly biographical
sketches of leading personalities of various radical movements, and the
theoretical explanation of their behavior was incidental, the present book
reverses the procedure; personalities are dealt with merely to illustrate his
theory of history. This theory is simple and seems very convincing because of
the enormous evidence that supports it. It is not properly his own but is as
old as mankind itself. It consists of a well-founded skepticism regarding man's
ability ... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Western Socialist, September-October, 1956; Transcribed: by Adam Buick.
Soviet Russian Nationalism. By Frederick C. Barghoorn. Oxford University Press, New York, 1956, pp. 330; $7.00.
Capitalism, although it is an international mode of production,
developed within the frame of the modern nation-state. Its
“internationalism” assumes the form of aggressive
“nationalism.” The imperialistic expansion of nationally-organized
capitalism needs such extra-nationalist ideologies as “the civilizing
mission” of colonialism, or “the defense of democracy”
against fascist national movements and their imperialist aspirations. The
vested interests of the national state and the power of n... (From: Marxists.org.) Published: Science & Society, vol. 36, no. 1. 1972. Pp. 121-123. Transcription/Markup: Micah Muer, 2018.
The Challenge to U.S. Dominance of the International
Corporations, by Rainer Hellmann. New York: The Dunellen
Company, Inc., 1971. $17.50. Pp. 348.
Between 1950 and 1970, there was roughly a tenfold increase in
American direct investments in Europe. The fear arose, and found
expression in various publications, that this trend, if not reversed,
would sooner or later subject Europe to the rule of American capital.
Hellmann's book deals with this American dominance by way of
international corporations operating in Europe and the world at large,
and with the counter-moves on the part of European capital to arrest
this ... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Western Socialist, Boston, USA, March-April, 1956; Transcribed: by Adam Buick.
EROS AND CIVILIZATION. A PHILOSOPHICAL INQUIRY INTO FREUD. By Herbert Marcuse. The Beacon Press, Boston, 1955, 277 pp., $3.95.
Marcuse’s book renews the endeavor to read Marx into
Freud. Previous attempts, by Reich and Osborn for instance, failed miserably.
Instead of overcoming a bewailed inertia, Reich’s theories hardly
sufficed to sustain a ridiculous private racket. Osborn’s work, a product
of the Stalinist popular-front period, designed to attract the petty bourgeois,
was soon forgotten by both the Western petty-bourgeoisie and the bolshevik
regime. Psychoanalysis did not become part of, or a new basis for, a radical
do... (From: Marxists.org.) Published: Science & Society, vol. 32, no. 3. 1968. Pp. 348-350. Transcription/Markup: Micah Muer, 2018.
The German Revolution of 1918: A Study of German Socialism in War and Revolt, by A. J. Ryder. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1967. 63s. Pp. 304.
Waste-production, a characteristic of present-day capitalism,
displays itself in intellectual as well as material forms. Ryder's book
falls in this category by telling once more the dreary story of the
German Revolution of 1918. Its extensive yet selective bibliography
names its numerous predecessors and, due to the strange proceedings of
the academic world, it will undoubtedly find just as many successors.
This is not to say that the book is not worthwhile; on the co... (From: Marxists.org.) By Gunnar Myrdal. Assisted by William J. Barber, Altti Majava, Alva Myrdal, Paul P. Streeten, David Wightman and George W. Wilson. 3 Volumes, charts and tables, 2,284 pp. The Twentieth Century Fund, New York, cloth, boxed, $25. Pantheon Books, New York, paper, boxed, $ 8.50. 1968.
Source: International Socialist Journal, July 1968, Year 5, number 26-27, pp. 385-402. Transcribed: by Thomas Schmidt;
Professor Myrdal’s vast study – the result of a decade of
research – deals with the countries of South Asia, with their poverty and
their developmental needs. While embracing Pakistan, Ceylon, Burma, Thailand,
Malaysia, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia, South Vietnam and the Philippines, it
concentrates chiefly on India. The reg... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Politics, vol. 1, June 1944, no. 5, p. 156. Transcribed: by Thomas Schmidt;
This booklet is an incompetent and badly written answer by the
leader of the Socialist Labor Party to such equally incompetent but
literarily better-versed critics of Marxism as Lewis Corey, Sidney
Hook, Edmund Wilson, and Harold Laski. Some of these critics are called
“renegades” though it is difficult to establish from what
they have deserted. They merely tried different enterprises, a trouble
which such organizational monopolists as Petersen are spared. Of course
Petersen is right in maintaining that, in comparison with his
present-day critics, Marx is really a “universal genius.”
But the proof he delivers in support o... (From: Marxists.org.) Published: Science & Society, vol. 35, no. 3. 1971. Pp. 378-380. Transcription/Markup: Micah Muer, 2018.
Marx Before Marxism, by David McLellan. New York: Harper & Row, 1970. $6.50. Pp. 233.
Here is another addition to the vast literature devoted to the young
Marx and his relationship to the mature Marx of Capital--a
subject which has agitated academic Marxism during the last decade.
McLellan offers as justification for his book the claim that previous
interpretations of Marx's early writings suffered from one or another
bias, whereas his own exposition is presented "as neutrally as
possible." He presents these writings "in their historical context,"
which has of course been extensively dealt with by other authors as ... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: American Socialist, vol. 5, April 1958, No. 4, p. 23; Transcribed: by Thomas Schmidt;
Hydraulic Society
LIKE historians before him, Marx held that “there have
been in Asia, generally, from immemorial times, but three departments of
Government: that of Finance, or the plunder of the interior: that of War, or
the plunder of the exterior; and, finally, the department of Public
Works.” The reasons for this, he wrote, were climatic and territorial,
which made “artificial irrigation by canals and water-works the basis of
Oriental agriculture and of Oriental despotism.” The “prime
necessity of an economical and common use of water, which, in the Occident,
drove private enterprise to voluntary asso... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: American Socialist, Vol 3, No. 8, August 1956, pp. 19-20. Transcribed: by Thomas Schmidt;
C. WRIGHT MILLS’ portrait of the top layer of America’s power
hierarchy (“The Power Elite” by C. Wright Mills) is as true and
unpleasing as Sutherland’s painting of Churchill. And just as the latter
has reportedly been put out of sight, so Mills’ portrait is deprecatingly
called a caricature rather than a work of art. In both cases, however, the
artist’s object is a caricature. Mills’ canvas, done with infinite
care, cannot really be challenged. This is exactly how the decision makers look
and how they operate; disturbing, perhaps, to those whose well-being depends on
their rule and be... (From: Marxists.org.) Published: Science & Society, vol. 31, no. 3. 1967. Pp. 373-375. Transcription/Markup: Micah Muer, 2018.
A Reappraisal of Marxian Economics, by
Murray Wolfson. New York: Columbia University Press, 1966. $6.75. Pp.
220.
Rather generously, Murray Wolfson gives Marx credit for raising
economic issues which are still the real problems of mature capitalism.
In his view, however, Marx did not succeed in showing that they are
insurmountable within the confines of bourgeois society. Wolfson thinks
them surmountable and attempts to show why and where Marx went wrong in
predicting the necessity of change from capitalism to socialism. He
finds Marx's errors rooted in his philosophical preconceptions and a
theory of value from wh... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Living Marxism, April 1939; Karl Marx. By Karl Korsch. Chapman & Hall, London (6s.). John Wiley & Sons, New York (247 pp.; $1.75); Transcribed: by Adam Buick; Proofed: and corrected by Geoff Traugh, July 2005.
In conspicuous distinction to many other interpretations of Marx, this book
concentrates upon the essentials of Marxian theory and practice. The author
restates “the most important principles and contents of Marx’s
social science in the light of recent historical events and of the new
theoretical needs which have arisen under the impact of those events.”
The book is not out to please the curious, nor does it correspond to any
particular group interest. Because in its compactness and objectivit... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Western Socialist, Boston, USA, January-February 1956; Transcribed: by Adam Buick.
Monopoly in America: the Government As Promoter. By Walter Adams and Horace M. Gray. The Macmillan Co., New York, 1955, 221 pp. $3.50.
This latest addition of the enormous literature on monopoly and competition
brings the story up to date without adding anything essential to the problem
and its “solution” save the warning that monopoly will lead to
totalitarianism unless stopped by government intervention. Like most authors in
this field, Adams and Gray see nothing wrong with capitalism but condemn
alleged violations of “proper” capitalist practices. In their view,
monopoly is bad because with competition it dest... (From: Marxists.org.) Source: Western Socialist, Boston, USA, May-June 1955; Transcribed: by Adam Buick.
The Present As History. By Paul M. Sweezy. Monthly Review Press (376 pp., $5.00);
Mr. Sweezy, an editor of Monthly Review and author of a highly
regarded but quite muddled Theory of Capitalist Development,
presents in this book a collection of book reviews and essays written firing
the last fifteen years. Aside from three short and insignificant papers, all
the reprinted material is still available in its original publication in
various magazines. Its reappearance in book form is difficult to understand,
particularly because the review, the editorial, and even the space-restricted
essay are not the best media for the consideration of comprehensive t... (From: Marxists.org.)