On May 8, 11:21 am, "Stephen R. Diamond" <srdiam...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
wrote:
> On Wed, 07 May 2008 08:28:45 -0700, nada <dwalters...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> > Well, in the US I don't know of any group that *agitates for open
> > borders*.
>
> You keep making this point, and John Holmes apparently sees it as
> sufficiently im****tant to clarify. The problem is, you proceed
immediately
> to imply that "open borders" is a proper democratic demand, when
properly
> subordinated to the socialist program. So what's your problem with "Open
> Borders." Seems to me there is none, and you'd probably be raising it
> where the populace was more receptive.
>
> --
> srd
It is not now, here, a proper "democratic demand"...it's a democratic
task, for sure. Land Reform (land to the peasant/farmer) in the US is
probably a democratic task now that big capitalist almost feudal-like
factory farms are dominant in the US agricultural economy in
California...yet no one seriously would raise this (that I know of).
I'm saying that the Open Borders perspective...that workers have no
land, that IS reflected in every statement on the issue of immigration
by the socialist movement...doesn't mean we "agitate" for this any
more than I would agitate for "workers councils" since no sector of
the working class makes this their pov or, for that matter, is at all
tactically being poised. But our agitation comes from this analysis.
And it's analysis that dictates we welcome all workers, that workers
become part of the working class where they *live* and *work*.
Additionally, there is plenty of historical evidence that our movement
*defends* immigrants without any qualification. No "but..." or
"...if...". They are out class, we express solidarity.
Don't forget, really, here on the abstracting APST, it has ONLY been
Vngelis that has raised "open borders' as part of his analysis of
globalization. While the *issue* of immigration in the US is a big
one, still it's only him that has tried to revise history. Like his
hatred of the MIA (along with some Stalinists), it's totally
abstracted from the context he raises.
So..."Open Borders" is not a "democratic demand" in that it is poised
now, it's a democratic TASK. At some point in the future we can raise
it. It would take a much higher level of class consiousness to achieve
this. Right now, we are against *repression* of foriegn born workers
here in the US and opposition to being forced to emigrate in Mexico.
Both are aimed at our respective gov'ts. Internationalism in action.
David
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