THE PUBLICATION OF the late Domenico Losurdo’s last work Western Marxism has aroused a flurry of interest within particular milieus within the online and the offline Left. A reviewer of the book is tasked with examining whether such interest is warranted or not. I want to argue that one’s evaluation of whether this interest is warranted or not will depend upon what one is attempting to glean from the work. The text purports to be both a political and a theoretical engagement with the “Western Marxist” tradition.
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On April 7, 2018, as part of its 10th annual International Convention, the Platypus Affiliated Society hosted the discussion “History of the Platypus critique” at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. The panel was made up of Platypus members who addressed different phases of the history of Platypus and its engagement with the Left: Ian Morrison (first phase: anti-war movement / anti-imperialism), Spencer A. Leonard (second phase: the “Marxist turn” / IBT, CPGB engagement), Tom Carey (third phase: #Occupy / Marxism and anarchism), Ed Remus (protracted fourth phase: SYRIZA, Podemos / “What is political party for the Left?”), and Omair Hussain (fourth and 1/2 phase: the “socialist turn” / Millennial Left).
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I HAD THE PLEASURE of actually seeing Benjamin Studebaker during an online Platypus panel on the Middle East on July 20. Through our comradely deliberations I discovered we had a lot in common; we both see the kernel of truth in Bismarckianism; Marxists should have no empathy nor patience for city-states’ right to self-determination. From that angle, I can understand his opposition to both Israeli and Palestinian nationalisms, and maybe even towards most postcolonial nationalisms in the region.
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On May 4, 2024, the Platypus Affiliated Society chapters at UC Merced and UC Santa Cruz hosted an introductory workshop on the Philippines and the Left, which included this teach-in by member Daniel Rudin. An edited, revised version follows.
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