Ask Prof Wolff: MAGA Communism

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A Patron of Democracy at Work asks: "I listen to a lot of podcasts such as yourself to get a broader perspective. I love the clarity you bring to pretty much any subject you discuss. I would like your take on something I've heard recently, that communism is actually conservative fascism. It was in the context of the MAGA Communism narrative that has been discussed and in some cases pushed by creators such as Jackson Hinkle. Is someone trying to rewrite the meaning of communism? Or, did I miss something along the way?"

This is Professor Richard Wolff's video response.

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“Marxism always was the critical shadow of capitalism. Their interactions changed them both. Now Marxism is once again stepping into the light as capitalism shakes from its own excesses and confronts decline.”

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[walthaus]

The German word for "national" is definitely not spelled with the letter Z, it's spelled the same as in English, the reason it's called Nazi party is because in Germany socialists ( Sozialisten) are commonly referred to as "Sozis", so the combination is "Nationalist" and "Sozi" or "Sozialist"= Nazi.
And Adolf Hitler didn't propose that name anyway, The party was initially called German Worker's Party ( DAP =deutsche Arbeiterparty) and the executive committee, following Rudolf Jung's recommendation, changed the name to NSDAP, adding the words National and Socialist, both over Hitler's objections. Hitler wanted the name to be "Social Revolutionary Party". However, RudolfJung, having written a book on "National Socialism" a book he hoped was going to be as important to Nazi ideology as "Das Kapital" was to Marxism/ Socialism, was able to convince Hitler to go along with the new party name. The word "Socialism" was indeed added to attract left-wing workers, but it was, of course a 'bait'n'switch" since Nazis were definitely anti socialist, ant-communist and anti-marxist.

[merbst]

I prefer the regular kind of Communism.

[WordUpNicholas]

My simple interpretation is the MAGA crowd are a prime group if you can educate and convince them the importance of a working class movement. I agree that is a challenge but you aren't going to get the progressives, who are not left, to do anything. Maga communism also implies no liking of Trump but the people who want to improve things for working class but have no option.

[davidkociol]

I do think that Parenti’s Blackshirts and Reds illuminates the non-socialism of the Strasser wing of the NSDAP, but that’s my only critique here

[juanrafaellattapiatarriaga]

Here un Chile, the élite people every time when they are defeted an election they discovered new names on the same people, they we're conservatives, liberales, republican, party of the people, etc but their acctions on power are the same . Freedom for corporatives business, no taxes for them, prívate education and health ..

[Tychoxi]

Dry water

Progressive conservatism

MAGA communism

[matthewkopp]

The meme was started by Jackson Hinkle who is a bit of trickster YouTuber trying to gain a left-right audience. And it worked, I view his show on occasion.

Jackson calls himself a Marxist Leninist and has yet to my knowledge spoken articulately about either Marx or Lenin.

BUT his show outlines a few positions that I share at the moment. First, he advocates for protectionism. Well, the early USA, USSR, and contemporary Russia and China all have protectionist economic policies. And some people became MAGA Trump supporters because Trump said he would implement protectionist policies. He did to an extent, in a not very thoughtful way, but it does mark a change in policy that the US has not seen since Johnson.

I support a type of protectionism that Wolff advocates, the right of first refusal for cooperatives concerning industry that decides to close and to offshore. Without public stock holder all kinds of light industries can thrive in the USA. That is a type of protectionism I think we should have.

The other issue that Hinkle focuses on is anti-war and interventionism. This has always been a socialist position. All wars are imperialist wars.

Hinkle is not the person who can truly bridge the gap. And I don’t exactly know what he is up to, like I said a bit of trickster. But there are several concerns that overlap the left and Trump right. But they will need to get a clue that Trump was an incompetent con-man.

I am not a Leninist, because I don’t believe in party vanguardism. (Apparently neither does Hinkle). But that said certain essays written by Lenin, the Trump right would likely agree with if they didn’t know it was written by Lenin.

Lenin (and Engels) believed in the idea that workers in a country could protest to restrict immigration to leverage wages, he called this labor self determination, but they should also work with laborers in other countries to help implement Unions and communist/socialist parties. So he was advocating for both labor internationalism and labor protectionism within states. In fact both Engel’s and Lenin’s writing on immigration would resonate with anti-immigration Trump supporters.

And last, there was a right wing socialism before Hitler, Bismarck’s Staatsocialismus. Everyone should read that history. Because Bismarck first outlawed all socialist parties which proved very unpopular but then implemented state socialist policies keeping aristocratic power. People should understand that modern “social democracy” is a descendant of Bismarck Staatsocialismus. And FDR’s new deal was too. It is better than nothing, but it is a strategy to maintain capitalism and an aristocracy.

What Bismarck feared most was workers taking over industries. Then it was a real threat. Today workers can do it and the oligarchy might not catch on because the oligarchy is no longer industrialists they are finance capitalists. I see great potential in a cooperative movement at this moment because the oligarchy is completely disinterested.

[mig]

Professor Wolff, I think you should go to the source and speak to Haz of Infrared about MAGACommunism. He respects you and defended you when he spoke to Destiny.

[edwinferrer]

So that's what MAGA means

M ake
A merica
G reat
A gain

I can't see why not "MAGA Communist" if its the progress of all and not to few or one.

Again with those labels it shouldn't be the case, but it should be the process and the results is what Americans be focused on.

[pilleater]

Very spicy. I appreciate answering memes.

[cristinacamero]

As always learning from you. Thank you for your efforts to contribute to information and a better world Professor Wolff

[Interlocutor]

Wolff obviously never heard of National Bolshevism in both Germany and Russia between the world wars. Hitler opposed National Bolshevism, by the way.

[juanleon]

It is as Karl Marx said in his book “ The 18th Brumaire of Lois Bonaparte”: The dominant class, or in this case, the bourgeoisie, when is in crisis, it tries to revive names or to disguise under other’s old clothing.

[GarrettFruge]

It sounds like something from a Hearts of Iron mod.

[jameswilkinson]

This history is somewhat distorted. The Nazis during the 1920s had a strong socialist but anti-Bolshevik faction led by Georg Strasser. After a struggle it was the anti-semitic faction which defeated the Socialist faction. In talking about Maga communism one might rather adduce the contrast between Stalin's socialism in one country and Trotsky seeking Global Revolution.

[chrisb]

"the theoretical victory of Marxism compelled its enemies to disguise themselves as Marxists."
V.I. Lenin

[weneedcriticalthinking]

I am pro good third party or bust is a must now! before and tomorrow! and I I think Richard and Haz should hash it out. Peace

[thefacelessstranger]

Professor, who is the revolutionary subject in america?

[JohnDoe-jdq]

We’d be happy to discuss it with you anytime Professor Wolff

[kassis]

actually the first word in NSDAP was spelled "National" . Nazi was just the abbreviated spelling for the whole long thing: Nationalsozialistische deutsche Arbeiterpartei