Comments on: Hope for the New Year: The Past Does Not Predict the Future http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/ a radical newsletter in the struggle for peace and social justice Wed, 08 May 2013 02:53:11 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 By: Susan Rosenthal http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-12226 Susan Rosenthal Fri, 04 Jan 2008 13:48:05 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-12226 Pessimism offers no way forward.
It is not a strategy, it is anti-strategy.
The power of pessimism lies in its ability to block the efforts of those those who believe that real change is possible.
Some things don’t change — pessimism will always be a drag on the struggle for a better world.

]]> By: hp http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-12102 hp Wed, 02 Jan 2008 01:27:41 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-12102 Here’s analysis: The lefties who aren’t brainwashed Zogs and Zogettes are good time Charlie plastic banana rock and rollers.

How do you counter the pessimistic view that the more things change, the more they remain the same?
And examples please. Not pipe dream crappola.

]]> By: Eric Patton http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11714 Eric Patton Thu, 27 Dec 2007 23:31:05 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11714 Deadbeat wrote:
> What is lacking is radical ANALYSIS

Michael Albert has written entire books full of radical analysis. Have you not read any of them?

]]> By: Susan Rosenthal http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11683 Susan Rosenthal Thu, 27 Dec 2007 13:15:30 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11683 This article counters the pessimistic view that nothing can change, therefore, we need not change what we are doing.
Oddly, no one has addressed this central point.
Deadbeat, if you have something useful to contribute, please do so.
Complaining that others are not saying what you want them to say is less than useful.
And your insistence that the only way to rebuild the left is to attack left writers is seriously twisted.
To clarify: nowhere does this article elevate imagination to strategy.
On the contrary, it concludes with a call to ACTION.
Anyone who wants to know what that means can read POWER and Powerlessness (available at http://www.powerandpowerlessness.com ).

]]> By: Deadbeat http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11660 Deadbeat Thu, 27 Dec 2007 02:44:43 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11660 One other point is that Ms. Rothenthal article has a blame-the-victim tone but implying that “we lack imagination”. NO I say. What is lacking is radical ANALYSIS. The assertions and conjecture of how the phony left is designed to disrupt, misdirect, and misinform people. A case in point is Naomi Klein new book which absurdly shift the blame of the War On Iraq from Zionist onto Milton Freedman’s neoliberalism.

Poor analysis lead to wasted action and wasted energy that demoralizes the misled masses.

]]> By: Deadbeat http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11659 Deadbeat Thu, 27 Dec 2007 02:36:12 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11659 People keep mentioning “the left”. There is no “left” in this country anymore. The phony left blindly support Israel and consequently
the left is nothing but closeted neo_con.

Atexan, your point is well taken and why I am critical when I see such lame “abstract” articles. In this case “imagination” is a meaningless abstract phrase that isn’t concrete or real to the masses.

However the plethora of “ideas” associated with the left still exist but there is no solidarity. That solidarity has been retarded and disrupted by the “phony left”. Therefore the only way to rebuild the “left” is by confronting the “phony left” that has misdirected the public.

Without solidarity the reality of making progressive change in the U.S. will be impossible and reveals the idiocy behind these “abstract” articles because they fail to examine and analyze how real change is occurring outside the boarders of the U.S. in places like Ecuador and Venezuela.

Progressive change is happening but not in the United States primarily due to the betrayal and dishonesty of the “phony left”.

]]> By: Deadbeat http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11657 Deadbeat Thu, 27 Dec 2007 00:54:48 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11657 And you can bet that the allocation of water will not occur with fairness, justice, and need in mind. “Conservation” is a meaningless word if fairness, justice, and need means conservation for the rubes but not for the rich and corporations. Therefore, power and oppression are the immediate issues and the left had not honestly dealt with these issue.

]]> By: Donald Hawkins http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11652 Donald Hawkins Wed, 26 Dec 2007 23:15:07 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11652 More on the Drought, this time in North Carolina,which in a lot of places is in more imminent peril than the Atlanta metro area. Some places are looking at roughly one month to go until the “no water” part hits. The Governor there has called for a lot more conservation. An editorial, while praising some of the proclamations, wonders why it was not taken a month earlier and notes that tiered pricing models for water bills to encourage conservation are still two months away, and the computer billing systems have to be upgraded just to do this. One of the harder hit major water users will be hospitals, making this a fasdt rising critical health issue. As part of emergency measures, exisitng rock quarries are to be tapped into as second tier water reservoirs.

]]> By: Atexan http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11647 Atexan Wed, 26 Dec 2007 22:20:52 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11647 People keep mentioning “the left”. There is no “left” in this country anymore. The phony left blindly support Isreal and consequently
the left is nothing but closeted neo_con.

]]> By: Deadbeat http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11643 Deadbeat Wed, 26 Dec 2007 21:34:52 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11643 we must know how capitalism has shaped us to be who we are. By appreciating the problems that our ancestors solved in the past, we can gain the confidence to solve our problems today … Unless we can stop the nonsense and use imagination I don’t think it will work out well.

Imagination manifest ideas. There are tons of ideas. Some ideas are useful some are not. However organizing the masses has to be around reality. There is not only a denial of reality going on there is a distraction from reality going on as well.

Again if you want people to become interested in climate change you need to become sensitive to people everyday problems. Most people will not place climate change high on their agenda if they are trying to survive day to day and face constant oppression. Climate change to the masses is not going to become a priority — that’s reality.

The other reality is that the left is extremely weak and fractured. The question is what will make the left a coherent force? It is not via “imagination”. It will only happened when there is solidarity and to achieve solidarity the left has to being with dealing with real yield a mass movement. Climate change is NOT an immediate issue facing the masses of people . Power and oppression are the immediate issues and the left has not honestly dealt with these issues.

]]> By: Donald Hawkins http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11640 Donald Hawkins Wed, 26 Dec 2007 18:53:00 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11640 When we all start to see the big picture imagination is the key to our survive. All you have to do is watch people talk on TV these day’s in many many way’s just pure nonsense compared to the problems we face. Is it just arrogance some or is it that they think Joe public is just stupid some. Somehow the bar needs to be raised and raised high. Knowing our past is essential to changing our future. To discover who we could become, we must know how capitalism has shaped us to be who we are. By appreciating the problems that our ancestors solved in the past, we can gain the confidence to solve our problems today. That was very good the way Susan put that. Unless we can stop the nonsense and use imagination I don’t think it will work out well. Before the last IPCC report came out the main man from the US this administration because he wanted the language changed on the report sound familiar brought up this question. “Now if the ice sheets melt doesn’t that mean that sometime in the future they will come back”. I am almost sure when he said that the people at the table with there mouths half open there heads cocked to one side just looked at this man in pure amazement and said to themselves, ” what, did he really say that”. That’s what I am talking about nonsense. There was a word he wanted changed in the report, “irreversible”. It’s still not to late somehow there must be away to face these problems

]]> By: Deadbeat http://dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11637 Deadbeat Wed, 26 Dec 2007 17:26:07 +0000 http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2007/12/hope-for-the-new-year-the-past-does-not-predict-the-future/#comment-11637 Before “the left” can start to “imagine” it needs to face certain realities. It has been the denial of certain realities that has keeps the left divided and disrupted and weaken the possibility of enhancing solidarity. Without solidarity no amount of “imagination” will change anything.

I’ve read “Power and Powerlessness” and it is an excellent book but it barely scratch the service of the issue that had divided the left and kep it weak and demoralized. While Ms. Rosenthal addresses racism as a tool of “divide and rule” she limits racism to only “white” racism and doesn’t address another virulent form and its influence upon U.S. society. To acknowledge this reality requires requires courage more so than “imagination”.

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