Not only do Australian politics get a (rare) mention in Lenin’s frantic and sleep-deprived writings, but so do Aborigines – metaphorically:
The author is such an ignoramus in politics that he does not even realise that he is walking about naked, like an Australian savage.
Collected Works, vol. 11, p. 469.
This time petty bourgeois utopians are in his sights.
10 May, 2011 at 1:48 pm
Speaking of which, I ran into a Calvinist blog from down-under that took aim at the Maori people for playing the victim, falling into “historical determinism.” As if its any worse than theological determinism.
10 May, 2011 at 3:26 pm
M&M (Madfuck and Mudcunt), perhaps?
10 May, 2011 at 10:38 pm
Caught me red handed. I dont even read their blog, I just saw a post on the Maoris and I was like, hmmm I wonder what they have to say.
Curiosity killed the cat.
10 May, 2011 at 3:30 pm
How did I guess?
“We believe this ideology ["historical determinism"] is a neo-Marxist variant. Maori represent the exploited poor, the weak, from which the hegemonic Pakeha have extracted their pound of flesh. It makes many within Maoridom sunburnt strawberries: brown on the outside, red on the inside. We have smiled at Hone Harawira’s call to arms: he wants to stand up now for poor and disadvantaged Maori, the working stiffs. He opposes exploitative Pakeha, but also (now) monied tribal interests. Maori neo-Marxism is undressing and exposing itself. This is a false Gospel and will betray those seduced by it to their destruction.”
Equal rights, one person one vote, eh? Now what is “the trouble with principle”…
10 May, 2011 at 9:12 pm
May the world have more sunburnt strawberries … and watermelons: green on the outside, red on the inside.
10 May, 2011 at 10:53 pm
I just do not get the who white conservative fundamentalist obsession over Marxism/Neo-marxism/communism/socialism. I’m post-structuralist, so sue me.
It is as if considering other possibilities in this life when it comes to economics is The Great Sin. Maybe they are overcompensating for something?
11 May, 2011 at 5:04 am
Marxism does rather conflict with the fantasy about one’s self as independent agent and the self-made man, and all that. And there is that persistent anti-religious streak among most Marxists that might offend the odd Christian fundamentalist.
Mmmmm… watermelons. In the last couple of weeks, New Zealand again has a left-wing party contesting seats in Parliament, the Mana Party. The Greens have been the proxy in the past. Due to a quirk in the electoral system, in which seats are allocated to Maori on a “Maori role”, it may even be possible that they could win seats. Dissidents, activists, and trouble-makers the lot. I’m almost getting excited by national politics.
11 May, 2011 at 5:08 am
…or Maori roll
11 May, 2011 at 6:05 am
As Grandpa Lenin would remind us, parliamentary involvement is perfect for propaganda purposes, using the electoral system to get the message out there, as is grabbing a few seats in parliament. But the purpose of campaigns and seats is to agitate for the overthrow of the parliament itself – since it is a feature of the bourgeois state.
By the way (actually knew a woman with a surname like that – Bytheway, spoken as first written) have you seen that great Australian movie, Children of the Revolution?
11 May, 2011 at 10:20 am
I reckon the Mana Party might agree with Grandpa Lenin, despite his extended-nineteenth-century social developmentalist notions.
I doubt if Children of the Revolution can be found in this city, but as my old Sunday School teacher Dick Seaman used to say, I’ll give it a squizz.
11 May, 2011 at 11:42 am
Grandpa Lenin has much to commend him, except his temper. He would also have done the world and the USSR a great service by getting some more sleep and not working himself to death by 52.
11 May, 2011 at 11:42 am
Is that ‘squeeze’ or ‘squizz’?
11 May, 2011 at 11:51 am
“Squizz” it is, meaning “look”.
11 May, 2011 at 12:32 pm
I wasn’t sure, given the differences between kiwi and aussie accents.
12 May, 2011 at 11:30 pm
Speaking of which, there are these ads running in the UK for Fosters with these two ‘quintessentially’ Aussie blokes giving advice to hapless Brits experiencing crises of masculinity.
But one of them is a Kiwi.
I wrote to the Broadcast Authorities to take it off the air. So far nothing. I told them, I said, do you want another Rushdie Affair on your hands, because it’s headed that way.