Polish comrade sends update on situation

Dear MIM:
I live in Warsaw, the capital city of Poland.

Here in Poland we haven't got any groups of Maoist profile. In Poland function:

1. Trotskyist sects (generally in Warsaw). a) Polish representation of www.istendency.org. b) Very small group/section of www.marxist.com. c) (Grant/Militante) - www.walka-klas-trwa.prv.pl (some texts are in English ). Also, groups, after break in The Revolutionary Left Current. d) Revolutionary Left Current ( 4 person ), and e) Anticapitalist Offensive (~10 person ) - they have Mandel character ( www.republika.pl/soclalizm page before break ).

2.Polish Socialist Party ( www.pps.org.pl/ev.html English page) I cooperate with the young organization of this party --Young Socialist (http://www.pps.org.pl/e/om.html English version ). This party has long tradition , but nowadays--after being defeated in parliamentary election--is plunging into internal conflict and the margin of the political scene. It has socialist/reformist character.

3.Coalition SLD ( Alliance of the Democratic Left - page www.sld.org.pl ) and UP ( Union of Labour page www.uniapracy.org.pl ). This coalition ( SLD/UP + country party PSL ) is governing of Poland. SLD - is the successor of the Polish Communist Party but after the collapse in 1989, it has a liberal character ( like Blair & Schrader). UP - is a little bit radical but in coalition she haven't got anything to say. Social Democratic character. I also cooperate with the young organization of this party Polish Labour Youth ( http://www.fmup.org.pl/english.html ) Some people of this organization from X are Maoist.

4.Anarchist Federation ( www.fa.prv.pl ) - the right character.

5.Left Alternative ( www.la.w.pl ) - Anarcho-Syndicalists.

6.Union of Communists of the Polish Republic "Proletariat" (www.proletariat.prv.pl , www.komunista.wizytowka.pl/ ) small group without support--Stalinist character; the members are very old. They have also young organizacione but she doesn't work.

7.ATTAC Poland ( http://www.pologne.com/attac )

8.The other (student , local organizations, for example Anarchist-Communist Organizational Platform, as I write I cooperate with Young Socialist & Polish Labour Youth in spite of the fact that they aren't communist (some of them are and like Mao) but make radical action (example --stop people eviction ).

--Polish youth
December, 2001

International Minister replies for MIM:
Greetings comrade! Thank you for your summary of the political situation in Poland. MIM has created a web page in Polish (www.prisoncensorship.info/archive/etext/polish/index.html). We look forward to working together.

Questions from a prisoner student of history

MIM Notes,
I'm currently reading a book by Marshall Green (former U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia, 1965-1969) called Indonesia: Crisis and Transformation 1965-1968 (Washington D.C.: Compass Press, 1990). On page 13 of this book Green writes on how then-President Sukarno of Indonesia left the United Nations and was in the process of aligning his country with the People's Republic of China, north Korea and north Vietnam. Sukarno called on other Asian and African independent nations to follow. [Green writes] "the U.S. had no choice but to find some way of getting along with Sukarno, much as we abhorred their [sic] policies. Only in that way could we exercise any influence over events in Indonesia, or at least be in a position to improve Indonesian-American relations should the opportunity arise."

What is the purpose for wanting to have influence over what's going on in Indonesia? The U.S. at that time was sending troops to fight in Vietnam. How are they going to venture off in someone else's affairs, and they can't even handle the injustices going on in their own country -- the homelessness, racial discrimination, hunger, death, disease and improper education? Is it because Communism in the East Asian Block would cripple U.S. domination and takeovers of those countries? Is it because prosperity would further advance those civilized nations so that they could grow without the assistance of a superpower? The U.S. creates much aggression in other countries. It invaded Lebanon in 1958, Grenada in 1983, Panama in 1989, Iraq in 1991, Somalia in 1992, and with NATO, Yugoslavia in 1999. Now the U.S. is in Afghanistan -- supporting a "war" that it created. What is going to happen next? Iraq? Syria? Libya? ...

--an Indiana prisoner, 5 December, 2001
Polish comrade sends update on situation

Thoughts on "Ali"

I read your paper regularly. I thought I'd send you a quick note to share some of my thoughts about the movie Ali, which is being screened at many movie theatres.

First off, I think that people could get some positive results from seeing this book only if it spurs them to do a few things: 1) To closely examine the criminal and roles of the FBI and the CIA and its undercover agents in the civil rights and Black Power Movements; 2) to consider the role that public figures on affecting public opinion; 3) to ponder the role of money in corrupting and changing human character, especially the character of the oppressed peoples; 4) To examine how Nation of Islam [NOI], which, while projecting itself as a positive force for Black self-determination, had a negative, conservative hand as well, one that [allegedly] led its members to participate (under close secret police manipulation and observation) in the murder of Malcolm X. [While MIM has no proof of the NOI's involvement in the assassination, Minister Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam has admitted to being among those who "created an atmosphere that allowed Malcolm to be assassinated." He has not made self-criticism for this, but instead said, "Was Malcolm your traitor or was he ours? And if we dealt with him like a nation deals with a traitor, what the hell business is it of yours?"(Boston Globe, 11 Mar 94). The role of the FBI in Malcolm's assassination is clear. For other conservative aspects of the NOI, see e.g. "Final Call undermines public health" (MIM Notes 204) and "Nation of Islam pushes metaphysics, crypto-pacifism" (MIM Notes 124).] In fact, 5) viewing of Ali would give viewers of the movie a chance to see how the civil rights movement and the Black Power leadership of Malcolm X motivated, encouraged, and, at times, divided Blacks in the US. The dynamics of husband-wife relations, especially in the African-American population are examined, and, in fact, make up a large part of the dialogue. (Ali's second wife clearly stands out as a progressive, if not revolutionary, figure in the film). Finally, seeing the movie would be beneficial also if it does nothing else but to give moviegoers an opportunity to African-American actors in roles in which they do not depict gangsters, killers, criminals or comedians. This is a constant struggle on the Hollywood front for non-white actors. These are the things that went through my mind after seeing the movie. Perhaps if other readers of the paper shared their opinions and insights, we could all learn more abut what benefits this movie could have on those who get the chance to see it, either in movie theatres, or later, when it is released on video tape.

--A West Coast reader

Anti-Semitism is a pernicious weed

ITAL At its 2001 Congress, MIM approved a document criticizing the Communist Party of the Philippines for signing a declaration equating "American imperialism and international Zionism." "The willingness to equate international Zionism' with Amerikan imperialism is anti-Semitism and a coup by fascist forces seeking to derail our movement with a wildly distorted understanding of parasitism. We are not surprised that Russian nationalists and European social-democrats seeking to whitewash their own imperialist ruling classes as they have so many times before signed on to the document, but unfortunately it was not only those signing. They received important internationalist legitimacy from the CPP and others." The full document was printed in MIM Notes 242 and is available at www.prisoncensorship.info/archive/etext/wim/cong/cppparasitism.html. We received the following response to this document. Punctuation/capitalization are the author's. END

I meant what I said in arguing that jewish persyns in the United States and France and Germany are better off, i.e. more parasitic, than the worker's aristocracy. I think it is naive of MIM not to recognize that the main backers abroad of Zionism in Imperialist I$rael are jewish and that other imperialists only do so secondarily and in function of the effective lobbying of jewish persyns. In so far as jewish persyns live all around the world Zionism is international, and in particular in its claim to unify jewish persyns. Much the same could be said of any other form of racism or nationalism ... As for condemning the CPP I think it is unfair in as much as some peasant in the Philippines is not going to know much about the issue if anything. I am sure that CPP will have an easier time correcting their practice because of MIM. I unfortunately am a tougher nut to crack. I think the Brezhnevite influenced workers have a point - sell outs that ditched communism deserve condemnation.

Anyway just go to your neighbors next bar mitzvah and see how you are treated. I presume you do not know what a goyim is - so I suggest you look it up and study. Is it racist to point out the racism of another group? Does MIM define racism? I think to claim to be a victim of racism one must be powerless - and I do not see jewish persyns in Amerika or western europe as powerless - quite the opposite.

International Minister replies for MIM: As usual for people with twisted ideas of anti-Semitism, half-truths are mixed in with broadly criminal assertions. Note how the author has to shoot down various "straw men," arguments that MIM never made. MIM has never said that Jews are not parasitic. That they may be on average more parasitic than the average Amerikkkan does not prove anything. Attacking Israeli imperialism and pairing "Zionism" with U.$. imperialism are two COMPLETELY different things. That is why we are criticizing the CPP. MIM also never denied that Jewish people lobby the U.$. government. Again, what people within U.$. borders does not lobby the U.$. government? What this sort of "analysis" is DESIGNED to cover up is that the bourgeoisie CONTROLS the government.

Hitler succeeded with these methods of PARTIALLY addressing parasitism and substituting the part for the whole, the same way reformists do. The proletariat was catching on about parasitism generally and getting fed up with parliamentary cretinism of the social-democratic sort and so Hitler (paraphrasing) said, "HERE, do something about parasitism: kill the Jews."

The whole purpose of these Holocaust revisionists and other Nazi types is to let parasitism AS A WHOLE off the hook. They seek a scapegoat to save imperialism.

Look above how our critic implies we said Jews were powerless. What a stupid thing to say to MIM. Jews were not powerless when Hitler took power in Germany; yet, we oppose the Holocaust. French imperialism was not powerless when Nazis occupied France, but we still opposed the Germans. Gays within the United $tates are disproportionately of the upper ranks of the petty-bourgeoisie, but we do not allow homophobia to be used as a tool by the imperialists. Hence, just because a group -- whether nation, class, sexual "orientation" etc. -- is more powerful or more parasitic than the proletariat does not mean we favor giving the imperialists an out to PARTIALLY change their system, at the expense of whatever social group is the scapegoat of the moment.

Capitalism has ALWAYS tossed some people from the ruling class back into the most oppressed sections of the proletariat. It is not a big deal for the imperialists to CONSCIOUSLY toss another scapegoated group down into the oppressed -- if it will divert the international proletariat and delay the inevitable demise of imperialism.

People who think Zionism is some global equivalent of Amerikan imperialism or even the puppeteer of Amerikan imperialism, as some dumb-ass Nazis would say, are seeking to delay the demise of imperialism. The Israeli imperialists love these Nazi-type kooks who justify their special existence apart from the rest of imperialism and the FBI loves using them to do its dirty work.

ITAL The same letter-writer later (who goes by the name John) raised the issue of Holocaust Revisionism -- the idea that the Holocaust is a hoax used to justify Zionism, forcing the International Minister to respond again. END

I want to say again: it does not interest MIM. I request that people not raise Holocaust issues here again. The way to handle Zionist spin on the Holocaust is to teach the whole history of World War II, including the murder of other nationalities by the Nazis. Then when we learn that countless memorials in various places memorialize ONLY the Jews and no where else the other peoples like the Russians, Roma, Slavic peoples in general that were exterminated--then we can see why communists are also pissed off with the Zionist agenda--above all stabbing Stalin in the back. Sorry John, even the humyn soap stories are true. I'm not interested in getting into why people have picked at those and other aspects of World War II crimes by the Nazis. More importantly, the international proletariat has no reason to: the neo-Nazis are taking advantage of fools who can't see the forest for the trees.