Theory

The idea that no alternative presented as a solution under the capitalist system to the problems created by that very system can be a genuine solution is proving itself with concrete examples in the field of so-called green/clean technology. The term green/clean technology is used to characterize technologies designed to be environmentally friendly from the production line to their use. This term also encompasses recycling. To control climate change, reduce pressure on natural resources, protect nature, and repair the damage done, it is necessary to shift towards models that phase out environmentally harmful production techniques, practices, and products. This, in turn, requires a transformation in every field – from energy production to industry, from agriculture to transportation. To move away from fossil fuels, which play a major role in global climate change, turning to clean energy sources and technologies such as wind, solar, hydroelectric, and geothermal power through planning focused on minimizing their negative environmental impacts plays a key role in this regard.

Today, we are at a crucial historical turning point, with imperialist war drums beating due to the crisis of the capitalist system on the one hand, and the workers’ movement beginning to make its voice heard again in various parts of the world on the other. Without waging a systematic struggle against the entrenched misconceptions of the old era, it is impossible to meet the tasks of the new era. A new breakthrough is necessary, and for this, a resolute struggle must be waged in every respect. If a new organisation signifying a breakthrough is not grounded in a clear and comprehensive reckoning with the entrenched but distorted conceptions of the old era, then what is the point of all this effort?

Revolutionary Marxists take the side of neither Israel nor Iran. Marxists focus principally on the class character of the warring parties, analysing which class interests the war serves, for what aims, and as a continuation of which policies. Here, we are dealing with two regional capitalist powers, both connected to rival major imperialist forces. Each side pursues policies aimed at expanding or consolidating its regional influence. And these events are unfolding within the broader framework of the ongoing third imperialist world war, which is being fought in its own distinct manner. This specific war is merely one link in the larger chain of that great war. Precisely for this reason, the “12-Day War” could not remain a mere twelve-day conflict. New wars and clashes are inevitable as links in this greater war. On one side, we have forces attempting to establish a new order in the region, desired primarily by US and other Western imperialist powers. On the other, we have a power aligning itself with the imperialist interests of rivals like Russia and China in the region. Both policies are reactionary from the standpoint of the working class; both are enemies of the working class. The working class cannot take sides in this reactionary bourgeois line-up.

It would not be correct to expect the current global fascist escalation process to be an exact copy of fascism between 1920-40, with all its symbols, institutions, rituals, and practices. Fascism develops by adapting to current conditions, resorting to different forms of dissimulation, wearing modern clothes, adjusting its discourse accordingly, and carrying out its demagoguery according to existing conditions. Until they cross the bridge, the ends justify the means! But the essence, function, goals, and main methods of fascism do not change: to ensure the survival of the capitalist exploitative order and the bourgeois state by eliminating the revolutionary threat in the harshest possible way! Why then call the rising reactionary wave today by different concepts like right-wing populism, totalitarianism, etc., as if it has a considerable difference from fascism? To call fascism by its name today and to link it to the historical system crisis of capitalism is also the first condition for a consistent struggle against fascism.

The world has been shaken for a quarter of a century by a deep system crisis and an accompanying imperialist struggle for sharing and hegemony. If the right-wing views that advocate eliminating globalization succeed in taking even a small step towards eliminating the global functioning of capitalism, the only meaning of this will be that both the economic crisis and the war will intensify even more. Nationalist policies, like globalist policies, cannot solve the current system crisis, cannot increase falling profit rates, cannot restore consumption to its former vitality, cannot melt debt mountains, and cannot eliminate the scourge of inflation. If they were to go beyond rhetoric and actually try to implement nationalist nonsense, they would themselves deal a blow to the capitalist system struggling in crisis and drag the world into a much more terrible chaos in every respect. The only solution to the problems that humanity is struggling with is not to try to eliminate the phenomenon of globalization in vain, but to build socialism on the material basis that it has matured. What will pave the way for this is the proletarian world revolution.

The capitalist system, floundering in its historical crisis, continues to exist alongside the immense unemployment it has created, the deepening poverty of the masses, and the imperialist wars of division it has spread. The rulers of this system, which is turning our world into an increasingly chaotic and hellish place, maintain their dominance by intensifying their oppression of the masses and spreading authoritarian regimes. The United States, which presented itself as the champion of democracy to the world after the Second World War, is now, under the reckless leadership of the madman Trump, trying to bring countries into line with astonishing audacity. While Trump challenges the institutions that limit the powers of the president in the US and secures his seat of dominance, his crony Elon Musk puts on a show with Nazi salutes in his speeches. The bourgeois democracies that accompanied the rise of capitalism are increasingly giving way, in capitalism’s era of decay, to a general reality of authoritarianism and fascism in political life. What defines our era is the dominance of plutocracy shaped by dictators like Trump and Putin and the pinnacles of financial capital. There is no need to dwell on this point for too long. Because it is clear that wherever we look, filth is oozing from the seams of the capitalist system. Writers who have not sold their conscience to capitalism enough to ignore this reality cannot help but ask, “How will this filth be cleaned up?”

The period between 1960 and 1971 represents a very significant episode in the history of the left-wing movement in Turkey. Indeed, during this period, the socialist movement in Turkey opened itself to masses, leaving behind the protracted years that passed with silence and lack of organisation. Embracing intellectuals, youth and vanguard workers, it gained massive support for the first time in its history. In addition to the general upsurge of the left-wing movement, the 1960s also saw vigorous and intense debates on theoretical, political and organisational matters, to an extent unprecedented in the history of socialist movement in Turkey.

It is very important to overcome the theoretical confusion reproduced at a more intellectual level by some “revolutionary Marxist” circles who adapted themselves tothe Third Worldism and hoodwinked by these movements. Here, we only touch briefly on the matters such as; why and how in backward countries had the petty-bourgeois leaderships entered a road which led to the liquidation of capitalism; what kind of problems arise in relation to the permanent revolution and where does the solution of these problems lie in our opinion. But first of all, it is necessary to take a glance at how in Trotskyist movement had this question been attempted to solve.

Although it appears to be inspired by revolutionary Marxism, petty-bourgeois revolutionism, which cannot fully absorb it, causes various left deviations as it manages to creep in the labour movement. Such tendencies have been expressed in various political forms in the past and continue to do so today. However, the common element in almost all of them is the sharp revolutionism that dominates at the level of words, in other words, revolutionary verbiage. We can give a simple example to illustrate this. Let's say that downplaying the struggle for the actual demands of the workers and talking only about the ultimate revolutionary goals may give the person who does this a sharper revolutionary appearance on the level of words. But in reality this attitude does not necessarily mean being more militant. On the contrary, such attitudes often serve as a cover for pacifism.

With the overthrow of the Assad government in Syria, the last bastion of Baathism was destroyed. On this occasion, we see that the confusion about Baathism within the socialist movement has once again been exposed. This article from 2006 deals with both Chavismo and Baathism , analysing their similarities, their emergence and their subsequent meaning.