Spectre of Communism

RCI - www.marxist.com
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Spectre of Communism

Are you a communist? Think we need a revolution? Tune into the official podcast of the Revolutionary Communist International, for communist theory, analysis and history, every week! Under the crisis-ridden capitalist system, humanity lurches from one disaster to another. War, poverty and precarity are facts of life for millions. Given the circumstances, it is no surprise that an unprecedented number of workers and young people are being drawn to the revolutionary banner of communism. But what does it mean to be a communist? What is the communist perspective on the most pressing questions facing humanity: like armed conflict, the climate crisis, technological development, inequality, and so on? In what philosophical and historical traditions do we stand? How do we answer typical right-wing objections to communism? The purpose of this podcast is to arm our listeners with the ideas and arguments necessary to defend the principles of communism, to win others over to a revolutionary perspective, and develop their own mastery of Marxist theory.

  1. 1 DAY AGO

    Trump and the crisis of liberal democracy

    Three weeks ago, to the horror of the liberal establishment in the USA and internationally, Donald Trump was elected President of the United States for the second time, defeating the hated and discredited Democrats. The capitalist media is filled with hysteria about a dire threat to democracy and the rise of ‘fascism’ posed by Trump’s presidency… just like in 2016! Communists need to cut through all the noise and understand what is really happening here. The US is facing a deep crisis of the regime, following half a century of capitalist decay. After four years of Joe Biden and the Democrats running in the interests of the rich at home, while facilitating war and genocide abroad, people have had enough. They have lost all faith in ‘official’ institutions like the state, the courts, and establishment politicians, and a growing layer is looking towards (self-proclaimed) alternatives. The liberals have nothing to offer, as they preside over a discredited system. Attempts to sell Kamala Harris through identity politics failed to wash. Reformists like Bernie Sanders have also animated millions of workers and young people with class struggle rhetoric, only to betray and disappoint. The labour movement leaders remain slavishly attached to the Democrats. Despite being a billionaire elite himself, Trump poses himself as a scrappy, unapologetic enemy of the establishment, and has been able to skillfully (albeit cynically) capitalise on some of the angry mood. Another dose of Trump’s ‘fire and fury’, coupled with a war on federal institutions, will only intensify the polarisation of US society, and further expose the limits of the so-called democratic regime, which will create huge opportunities for revolutionaries! Trump will inevitably disappoint, leading millions to question the entire capitalist system like never before. This week’s episode of Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes Antonio Balmer, a leading member of the Revolutionary Communists of America – the US section of the Revolutionary Communist International – who explains why it has never been a better time to be an American communist! — For more from Antonio on the implications of Trump’s victory, we recommend his recent talk on this topic at the Revolution Festival in London: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Cz_JGRVDOY For further analysis of what Trump’s return to power means for the establishment, we recommend this article by Alan Woods: https://marxist.com/trump-victory-2024.htm Check out the website of our US comrades in the RCA: https://communistusa.org/ New episodes of the Spectre of Communism podcast are out every Tuesday! Subscribe and listen at your preferred platform, and find us on social media, here: https://linktr.ee/specom #CommunismPodcast #booksnotbombs #civilwar #communism #marxism #podcast #leninlives

    1h 8m

  2. 19 NOV

    Corbyn spokesman: "Why we lost" – reformism & the perils of opportunism

    The meteoric rise and catastrophic fall of the Corbyn movement represented a major turning point in British and world politics. It was an object lesson in the betrayals inherent in reformism and the pitfalls of opportunism: i.e. when left-wing leaders make ‘pragmatic’ concessions to the class enemy – with fatal consequences. This week, the Spectre of Communism speaks to Matt Zarb-Cousin, former spokesperson for Jeremy Corbyn, who saw this process unfold from the inside… The election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the British Labour Party in 2015 was an earthquake. Massive support for Corbyn’s left-wing programme from workers and young people, in particular, showed the desperation for an alternative after years of grinding capitalist austerity following the 2008 crash. Corbyn was almost elected as Prime Minister in 2017; but was eventually crushed and the Labour left routed, with the pro-capitalist, genocide-supporting Keir Starmer firmly in the driver’s seat. What happened, and what are the lessons to be learned? Listen to Zarb-Cousin providing an inside perspective on the errors that ultimately spelled doom for the Corbyn movement, which so terrified the British ruling class for a period. We also welcome Sean Hodges, a leading member of the Revolutionary Communist Party, whose own experiences of that period led him towards Marxism and communism, as the only road forward for working people and the youth. The Labour Party in its current guise is totally sewn up by the right wing, but the return of popular left-reformist trends is not ruled out. As the crisis of capitalism continues unabated, similar developments to the Corbyn phenomenon will undoubtedly emerge in the future. It is therefore vital that communists and class fighters make a serious study of the failure of Corbynism, and especially the threat posed by opportunism in particular. --- New episodes of the Spectre of Communism podcast are out every Tuesday! Subscribe and listen at your preferred platform, and find us on social media, here: https://linktr.ee/specom #CommunismPodcast #booksnotbombs #civilwar #communism #marxism #podcast #leninlives

    1h 7m

  3. 12 NOV

    Venezuelan communist discusses revolution, Hugo Chavez and workers' control

    Right-wingers and reactionaries often hold up Venezuela as an example of why “socialism never works” (notwithstanding the disastrous state of capitalism today). In fact, the Venezuelan Revolution was an inspiring episode in recent history, which showed the immense power of the masses and the potential of workers to run their workplaces without bosses. But it also demonstrated that you cannot have half a revolution: once the process has begun, it must end with the expropriation of capitalism and socialist reconstruction – as our comrade Luis Romero from Caracas explains! The oppressed masses, rallying behind the figure of Hugo Chávez, mobilised to fight imperialism and oligarchy, who used the immense oil of the country for the betterment of the working class and the poor. When the bosses and oil barons tried to sabotage the revolution by halting production, the workers took over the companies and land themselves, and began running them under workers’ control. Luis talks all about these experiences. Despite all his strengths, Chavez never fully broke with the state bureaucracy and did not help the workers manage the economy under a common, national plan. However, the ingenuity of the masses and the power of workers’ management were demonstrated in practice during the Bolivarian Revolution, which is full of lessons for class fighters today! ---- For more on the Venezuelan Revolution, we recommend this selection of articles available on the In Defence of Marxism website: https://marxist.com/theory-venezuelan-revolution.htm We also recommend this recent podcast by the US section of the Revolutionary Communist International: https://communistusa.org/audio-what-happened-in-the-venezuelan-revolution/ New episodes of the Spectre of Communism podcast are out every Tuesday! Subscribe and listen at your preferred platform, and find us on social media, here: https://linktr.ee/specom #CommunismPodcast #booksnotbombs #civilwar #communism #marxism #podcast #leninlives

    46 min

  4. 5 NOV

    Communist answers the web's most searched questions

    With so much crisis and chaos in the world today, more and more people are turning to the internet for answers about what communism really is. But there’s a lot of propaganda and misinformation out there, so this week we’ve brought on leading RCI member Fred Weston for the Communism Autocomplete Interview: answering the most common questions people are typing into Google about what communists believe, what we want, and how we’re fighting for it! Millions of people around the world are actively looking towards communism to put an end to the misery and barbarism of capitalism. If you are one of them, join the Revolutionary Communist International in the fight for communism! — New episodes of the Spectre of Communism podcast are out every Tuesday! Subscribe and listen at your preferred platform, and find us on social media, here: https://linktr.ee/specom #CommunismPodcast #booksnotbombs #civilwar #communism #marxism #podcast #leninlives

    1h 10m

  5. 29 OCT

    Is socialism in one country possible? A reply to the Young Communist League

    The idea of building socialism in one country alone was alien to Marx, Engels and Lenin. But after the latter’s death, Stalin and his supporters raised the possibility of constructing socialism in the USSR amidst a sea of capitalism. The Young Communist League – the youth wing of the Communist Party of Britain – recently advanced the theory of socialism in one country, as opposed to Trotsky’s Permanent Revolution. Where does the RCI stand on the matter? Was the USSR socialist? Is China today socialist? Is it possible to build socialism in a single country? This week’s episode of Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes Niklas Albin Svensson from our International Secretariat. He explains that the survival of the Russian Revolution was always dependent on a European and eventual world revolution. Lenin was under no illusions about this. The idea of building socialism in economically backward Russia reflected the narrow interests of the Stalinist bureaucracy, in a period of temporary defeat for the world revolution. The notion of achieving socialism within any single nation’s borders – even a very advanced one – was and remains a utopian fantasy; as attested by the experience of the USSR: a workers’ state encompassing a huge geographical area and vast resources, that lasted far longer than expected, yet still ultimately collapsed. Modern capitalist production is global: with supply chains and manufacturing processes for all manner of commodities, from smartphones to aeroplanes, distributed across the world. Socialism can only be built based on the highest possible level of productivity, harnessing the full potential of the international working class. Therefore, socialism being built anywhere depends on a victorious revolutionary process overthrowing capitalism in one counter after another! While the YCL heavily quotes Lenin, the ‘theory’ of socialism in one country represents a total break with his ideas and the authentic traditions of Marxism. We must return to these traditions if we hope to overthrow capitalism and achieve socialism in our lifetimes! Niklas’ article on socialism in one country is available in issue 47 of the In Defence of Marxism magazine, available to purchase now: https://marxist.com/magazine.htm —- New episodes of the Spectre of Communism podcast are out every Tuesday! Subscribe and listen at your preferred platform, and find us on social media, here: https://linktr.ee/specom #CommunismPodcast #booksnotbombs #civilwar #communism #marxism #podcast #leninlives

    1h 5m

  6. 22 OCT

    US Civil War: America's Second Revolution

    The American Civil War, unlike the conflicts that plague the world today, was just and historically progressive. The Union north smashed the Confederacy of southern slave states and carried out the biggest expropriation of private property in history at the time, with the emancipation of 4 million enslaved people. The Union cause was praised by Karl Marx, who said Lincoln’s battle cry should be: “death to slavery!” With elections in the US just a few weeks away, the American bourgeoisie once again has civil war on its mind….  With recent polls showing nearly half of Americans believe that a new civil war is on the horizon, it is vital that revolutionaries study this period of history to prepare for the third, socialist revolution. This week, Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes John Peterson – executive editor of The Communist, the organ of the Revolutionary Communists of America. John discusses the enduring lessons and contemporary relevance of the Civil War, which communists consider the Second American Revolution.  For more from John Peterson on the US Civil War, we recommend issue 38 of In Defence of Marxism magazine, which includes a detailed article on this topic. John has also presented a series of podcasts on this topic, as part of the regular podcast of the Revolutionary Communists of America, the US section of the Revolutionary Communist International.

    52 min

  7. 17 OCT

    Threads: a terrifying vision of nuclear annihilation

    This year marks 40 years since the release of the film Threads, one of the clearest and most harrowing depictions of the consequences of nuclear war ever produced. With wars and conflicts escalating around the globe, the stark message of this film has never been more relevant. The fight against the barbarity of militarism and imperialism is an existential struggle that communists have a duty to take up. This week’s episode of Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes Alan Woods, lead editor of marxist.com and leading member of the International Secretariat of the Revolutionary Communist International. Alan discusses not only the powerful artistic impact of Threads, but also its vital message for us today. With Netanyahu hell-bent on escalation in the Middle East, and Zelensky intent on provoking Russia with the West’s help, the possibility of an open confrontation between nuclear powers is closer than ever. If we are to avoid the horrors that Threads so brilliantly depicts, we must wage a relentless struggle against war and imperialism, and fight to bring an end to the capitalist system that engenders them. It is for this reason that the RCI has launched its Books not Bombs campaign, and we encourage listeners to read the opening statement of the campaign here: https://marxist.com/fight-imperialism-and-war-workers-of-the-world-unite-rci-statement.htm People in the UK can watch Threads on BBC iPlayer here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p02kgkkg/threads For more on the threat of escalation in the world today, we recommend this recent article by Alan Woods on the risk of World War III: https://marxist.com/are-we-facing-world-war-iii.htm

    59 min

  8. 10 OCT

    What is 'woke'? Culture war vs. class war

    Around the world, the capitalist establishment is increasingly obsessed with the so-called ‘Culture War’, with conservative journalists and politicians scaremongering about the ‘woke agenda’, while liberals drape rainbow flags on war and austerity and call it ‘liberation’. How can communists cut through this reactionary nonsense and get to the heart of the issues facing us today? To answer this question, this week’s episode of Spectre of Communism Podcast welcomes Yola Kipcak, a leading member of Der Funke, the Austrian section of the Revolutionary Communist International. Yola explains why communists oppose the toxic division sown by identity politics, and instead fight for a class-based approach to fighting for the liberation of humanity. For more from Yola on how communists should fight for liberation, read her article “Marxism vs Queer Theory” here: https://marxist.com/marxism-vs-queer-theory.htm For a longer read on this topic, we recommend the Revolutionary Communist International’s document from 2018, “Marxism vs Identity Politics”: https://marxist.com/marxist-theory-and-the-struggle-against-alien-class-ideas.htm

    54 min
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About

Are you a communist? Think we need a revolution? Tune into the official podcast of the Revolutionary Communist International, for communist theory, analysis and history, every week! Under the crisis-ridden capitalist system, humanity lurches from one disaster to another. War, poverty and precarity are facts of life for millions. Given the circumstances, it is no surprise that an unprecedented number of workers and young people are being drawn to the revolutionary banner of communism. But what does it mean to be a communist? What is the communist perspective on the most pressing questions facing humanity: like armed conflict, the climate crisis, technological development, inequality, and so on? In what philosophical and historical traditions do we stand? How do we answer typical right-wing objections to communism? The purpose of this podcast is to arm our listeners with the ideas and arguments necessary to defend the principles of communism, to win others over to a revolutionary perspective, and develop their own mastery of Marxist theory.

Information

  • Creator
    RCI - www.marxist.com
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2024
  • Episodes
    65
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Show Website
    Spectre of Communism

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