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1021 The Bourgeois Right to Bear Arms -- rank: 1000

The right of all citizens to bear arms, "enshrined" in the American Constitution is one of its most characteristic revolutionary bourgeois features. For 500 years prior to 1776 this was one of the touchstones of freedom against feudalism and hierocracy, particularly in those towns that could have early features of bourgeois democratic freedom. In the revolutionary American War of Independence it was crucial to the overthrow of British colonialism. But two centuries later the class anal ...

Document Size:	5998
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Tue Apr 20 22:59:09 PDT 1999

1022 Nathan's gone -- rank: 1000

At 13:14 20/04/99 -0400, Doug wrote: >Dennis Breslin wrote: > >>I hate to waste my first and maybe only posting for list-keep stuff, >>but given the name-calling and folks questioning one another's >>intelligence, morality, or god forbid lack of theoretical consistency, >>I'm still waiting for the discussions to advance to phase 2. Hmmm... >>Given the big dick thread, seems to me that despite all the erudition, >>some folks are suffering from a steep le ...

Document Size:	7667
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Tue Apr 20 15:47:08 PDT 1999

1023 nationthingy Re: determination ,chris? -- rank: 1000

At 06:24 20/04/99 +1000, you wrote: >comments interspersed: > > >Chris wrote: > >>How to orientate ourselves, and avoid just choosing one historical >>narrative over another? > >where is the class in this text? why do you need to orientate >yourself around what is effectively the SAME narrative from the point >of view of the working class? where's your analysis of the situation >of the class struggle in the ex-yu? of the situation of the global >a ...

Document Size:	28009
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Tue Apr 20 01:02:03 PDT 1999

1024 For Rob: determination ,chris? -- rank: 1000

Forwarded for Rob, out of a fit of generosity and confidence. >Would you mind forwarding the bit after this bit to LBO for me? I'm writing >from an unsubscribed address. >____________________________________________________________________________ >________________ > >When Ange (?) writes: > >>>>my point being is that the claim to self-determination is unsustainable >*as >>>>an unconditional claim*; and *at the same time*, it is not possible to &g ...

Document Size:	24810
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Apr 19 15:55:42 PDT 1999

1025 Reichstag open for business -- rank: 1000

Today cannot pass without noting the first sitting of the Bundestag in the renovated Reichstag in Berlin. With contours softened by British architect Norman Foster, it might be a new symbol of reconciliation or sign of a new accelerating assertiveness, easier perhaps under a Red Green coalition than it would have been under Kohl. One test of Berlin as the capital of Germany again is how it will respond to the fact that after the ethnic forced depopulation of Germans to the west at the end of the ...

Document Size:	5130
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Apr 19 16:00:48 PDT 1999

1026 The Division of NATO -- rank: 1000

NATO will have to win this war, for its own sake. Henry predicted the war would lead to the destruction of NATO. If the failure of Madeleine Albrights plan to impose Rambouillet on Serbia with a quick bombing campaign comes to be rejected more publically, the article below shows the shape of things to come. A Panorama programme tonight reports that Clinton, occupied by personal business, did not attend the crucial meeting on January 19th in which Albright's strategy prevailed despite intelligenc ...

Document Size:	12524
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Apr 19 15:52:05 PDT 1999

1027 determination ,chris? -- rank: 1000

At 17:06 18/04/99 +1000, Angela wrote: >Chris, > >below is a paste of previous posts. > >my point being is that the claim to self-determination is unsustainable *as >an unconditional claim*; and *at the same time*, it is not possible to >support self-determination *with conditions* since this is no longer >self-determination. >to put it another way, to frame this conflict within the terms of >self-determination is to make a decision to accept one set of claims (the ...

Document Size:	17143
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Apr 18 23:58:52 PDT 1999

1028 Marx and the American Civil War -- rank: 1000

Interesting contributions from Jim Farmelant and Michael Perelman on the US Civil War, despite the latter's gratuitous comments about cruise missile liberals. I see on checking the collected works, that Marx praised Lincoln with the striking phrase that he was "an average person of good will." >This should BTW call into question Chris' contention that Marxism >invariably defends the right to national self-determination. The >Confederates invoked consitutional arguments in fav ...

Document Size:	7497
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Apr 18 15:24:14 PDT 1999

1029 Realism in Eastern Europe -- rank: 1000

Under the thread title Re: Any old Irony At 17:29 17/04/99 +0100, Jim Heartfield wrote: >In message <3.0.2.32.19990416211611.013467b0 at pop.gn.apc.org>, Chris >Burford <cburford at gn.apc.org> writes >>>>I am indeed on this planet, Doug. >>> > >To which I said, rudely > >>>With all four feet planted firmly on the ground. > >And Chris complained, understandably > >>But this suggestion above is strangely ineligant for Jim Hea ...

Document Size:	9882
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Apr 18 01:01:02 PDT 1999

1030 determination ,chris? -- rank: 1000

At 16:25 17/04/99 +1000, you wrote: >Chris, > >I am not sure, did you answer my query from some time back? > >how can you argue for self-determination *with conditions attached*? isn't >the whole idea of self-determination the absence of external conditions? >in which case, isn't support for self-determination somewhat cynical unless >it is also the refusal of conditions? > >Angela >--- >rcollins at netlink.com.au I have missed that, and I am not sure of the ...

Document Size:	5706
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sat Apr 17 16:00:25 PDT 1999

1031 Clinton's strategic speech 15 April -- rank: 1000

I am not copying the strategic part of Clinton's speech to the Association of News Editors in San Francisco on Thursday to offend subscribers to this list who are revolted by yet another war by their government. Although I think Clinton has a more profound economic strategy than does Milosevic, I would suggest to the strongest oppponent of Clinton, that it is best to understand the enemy. I get the impression the news clips from his speech did not convey the strategic range of it, and of course ...

Document Size:	20822
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sat Apr 17 00:09:13 PDT 1999

1032 What's the Alternative to NATO? -- rank: 1000

As usual a reasoned case from Nathan. >In an ideal world, international law backed by a global set of institutions >run democratically outside the dominance of great powers would address such >incidents of mass murder, ethnic clensing and genocide. > >But at the moment, that isn't an alternative. The alternative seems to be >either a world of ethnic hatred and killing in disintegrating nation-states >(fed by global capital and great powers) versus imperial hegemony by the U ...

Document Size:	9924
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Fri Apr 16 15:33:38 PDT 1999

1033 Marshall Burford for Balkans? -- rank: 1000

At 02:14 16/04/99 +0100, Jim Heartfield wrote: >In message <3.0.2.32.19990415235954.00f5d1b0 at pop.gn.apc.org>, Chris >Burford <cburford at gn.apc.org> writes > >>I am indeed on this planet, Doug. > >With all four feet planted firmly on the ground. > >-- >Jim heartfield But this suggestion above is strangely ineligant for Jim Heartfield. He is not suggesting perhaps the feet are cloven? No. Only if the beast were a biped? _________________________ Inter ...

Document Size:	7252
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Fri Apr 16 13:16:11 PDT 1999

1034 Marshall Plan for Balkans? -- rank: 1000

At 11:30 15/04/99 -0400, Doug wrote: >Chris Burford wrote: > >>All money is funny. It has fetishistic power. Whatever its units, its >>exchange value is a proportion of the total social labour of the economy, >>in this case the global economy. > >So if there's only an issuance of SDRs, and nothing else changes - no >alterations in the structure of social labor - in Africa, then you've just >printed money. No you haven't even done that, since SDRs are purely & ...

Document Size:	8285
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Thu Apr 15 15:59:54 PDT 1999

1035 Time runs out for Pinochet -- rank: 1000

The contemptible "Third Way" British Home Secretary, well-named man of Straw, ruled today that Pinochet could still be extradited to Spain despite the British Law Lords restricting his international vulnerability only to charges concerning crimes committed after 1988. Straw did it in a low key fashion as a mere technicality, rather than a vindication of the heroic socialist minority government policies of Allende. Typical of New Labour's cynical attempt to do anything to keep their ove ...

Document Size:	6724
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Thu Apr 15 15:37:17 PDT 1999