Capitalist Russia

international | anti-capitalism | news report

Thursday March 23, 2006 13:58

by proletarian

For all you lovers of 'democracy' who celebrated the fall of the USSR .

Check out the series of programmes on more4 and gain insight into 'modern' Russia.

It's frightening viewing and proof that in Russia babarism has won the battle with socialism. Hopefully, the war isn't over

Facts about Russia:

- In the first six months of 2005, the Russian population fell by half a million;

- By the middle of this century Russia could lose up to half of its people, according to Russian government stats;

- Life expectancy for men is 56 years, the same as Bangladesh;

- Ten years ago, the life expectancy for men in Russia was 63;

- The World Health Organisation says that at a conservative estimate more than a million people will have died because of AIDS in Russia by 2020;

- Every other newborn baby is diagnosed with a disease at birth;

- There are more abortions every year in Russia than babies are born;

- Thanks to ill-health, 10 million Russians are infertile;

- A quarter of the population lives below the poverty line;

- Paradoxically, Moscow has more billionaires than any other city in the world;

- Although Russia's population is in freefall, they're still throwing people out. Thirty thousand Meshket Turks have recently had to seek asylum in America, having been forced from their homes in the south of the country by discriminatory laws and racist attacks.

listings of programmes at
http://www.channel4.com/more4/documentaries/doc-feature...id=43

Analysis of the left in Russia check out:

New period for Russia

Vladimir Putin’s draconian anti-union legislation and attempts to stifle the opposition have made life for the left in Russia extremely difficult in one sense - but they have also helped it to rebuild. Boris Kagarlitsky of the Institute for Globalisation Studies spoke to Tina Becker about the emergence of a new Marxist left

http://www.cpgb.org.uk/worker/616/Kagarlitsky.htm

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Comments (9 of 9)

Luxemburg

by Djerg

Fri Mar 24, 2006 11:42

"In the last general election the Russian CP encouraged capitalist to stand as candidates for the party, hoping for an influx of funding. "

So what? Even the SWP have won over Capitalists to stand for them. Take Richard Boyd Barrett he is the scion of one of the richest families in Ireland. His father a multi-millionaire is always happy to make more millions but does not pay taxes. Boyd Barrett Senior was one of those named in the Ansbacher Report. Yet in spite of this the SWP have been happy to make RBB their leader and he has stood on their behalf in elections.

Please publish in ful the anti-Semitic motion you claim the CPR supported. Please give details from a credible site which says the CPR voted for it.

by "trotwatch"watch

Fri Mar 24, 2006 01:01

"BK must be the SWP member in Belfast who often appears as a US Socialist at their meetings. Hes been here so long that its a bit like calling James Connolly a Scottish Socialist. Is this the BK you meant?"
of course he must be thanks for the research. Oh yeah your talking out your arse
im on to your nonsense trotwatch. Not wacthing hard enough obviously

Rubbish

by Luxemburg

Thu Mar 23, 2006 22:29

Kagarlitsky has been a radical socialist since the days he opposed the stalinist regime from a left perspective and is now Russia's leading anti-capitalist intellectual. Djerg is displaying total ignorance by suggesting a radical anti-capitalist favours the capitalist economics of the Chicago School.

As for the Russian Communist Party, their deputies recently suppported an anti-semitic motion in the Duma and frequently use rhetoric about 'zionists' to refer to the Jewish commmunity in Russia. The party is closely aligned to the Russian Orthodox Church, characterises the October Revolution as a 'historic mistake' (they may be right but for the wrong reasons), and fully suppports the genocidal war being waged by the authoritarian-capitalist Putin regime in Chechnya. This so-called 'Commmunist Party' is allied with the chauvinist-fascist forces in Russia. In the last general election the Russian CP encouraged capitalist to stand as candidates for the party, hoping for an influx of funding.

Just because an organisation is called 'commmunist' is not really relevent, its what they actually say and do is whats really significant. The Russian CP is about no more communist than Hitlers National Socialists were socialists.

CPR

Thu Mar 23, 2006 18:46

The CPR is not anti-Semitic nor is it Social-Fascist. It is one the few forces which are fighting the privatisation agenda. Its so familiar that supposed Left will align themselves with the fans of the Chicago School like Kagerlitsky.

Boris Kagarlitsky

Thu Mar 23, 2006 18:38

Kagarlitsky is one of the few Russian socialists who was a dissident during the Soviet period. He is certainly not a stalinist or USSR nostalgist. He is one of the most progressive voices in Russia today, opposing both nationalist and stalinist authoritarianism as well as the failed robber capitalist economy. He has also written incisive critiques of western social democracy and Russia's occupation of Chechnya.

Kagirlitsky and other anti-stalinist leftists are currently working on bringing together various radical groups and individuals to form a new left party. These genuine leftists have nothing to do with the official Commmunist Party (heirs to the CPSU) which is really a social fascist party combining unltra-nationalism, anti-semitism and vague anti-capitalist rhetoric.

Quiry

by Jimmy

Thu Mar 23, 2006 18:30

Why are the Trots defending the Soviet Unionm?

BK's website

Thu Mar 23, 2006 17:10

Boris Kagarlitsky's
ZNet HomePage
http://www.zmag.org/bios/homepage.cfm?authorID=137

by TrotWatch

Thu Mar 23, 2006 16:58

BK must be the SWP member in Belfast who often appears as a US Socialist at their meetings. Hes been here so long that its a bit like calling James Connolly a Scottish Socialist. Is this the BK you meant?

info

by james

Thu Mar 23, 2006 16:53

who is BK? Is he a member of the stalinist former rulers of russia?

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Comments (9 of 9)