Bingo! Anti-AES Trots frequently oppose the quantitative, hoping for a qualitative victory coming out of nowhere.

Great point on Trots, it’s an example of how misusing theory to justify opposition to AES is a pervasive issue. Even if communism must be global, national revolutions are not only immediately beneficial for those living there, but help other nations have their own revolutions and help pave the way for eventual communism. You can’t have a global revolution without national revolutions.

As for the question of the state, you’re actually spot-on. The state (in the Marxist conception) can only wither globally. Without that, property globally cannot be sublimated. You can’t achieve communism in one country, but you can certainly move the process forwards without needing everyone else to do the same. That’s why AES states aren’t withering, they can’t, nor are they trying to. To begin with, withering isn’t a choice, it’s an economic compulsion. Once all capitalist states have fallen and global socialism exists, gradually all of the socialist states will shed their national differences, borders will lose significance, into one, unified, collectivized system. At least, that’s the Marxist conception.

As for what the USSR actually looked like in practice, comrade @Edie@hexbear.net hosts some excellent books on Comrade’s Library. I also like ProleWiki. You can go to this page on socialist states and look at summarizations of different aspects of the economy and political structures, though you won’t get depth that way, just a better understanding.

Funny that you mention a re-edit of What is to be Done? would be wanted. The Red Sails crew hosts What is to be Done? (Abridged), which modernizes the lingo and trims it a bit. Might be a good alternative for you! It’s based on Lenin Rediscovered, I believe.

Left-Wing Communism is a great text. Imperialism makes most sense if you already have a good conception of Marxist economics, but ultimately it stands on its own. Good luck!

Yep, S&R is a fantastic read for how succinct it is. One thing I see people sometimes neglecting is the concept of a “stateless” society in the Marxist conception having “foremen and accountants,” but recognizing that once all property has been sublimated, there is no class distinction, and the oppressive aspects of societal formations lack that backing.

What is to be Done? is definitely a product of its time with how it names certain groups and issues, but the core is relevant to this day. Just keep that in mind! Also, if you haven’t read Imperialism, it’s easily my favorite work of Lenin’s.

Yep, I’ve seen people increasingly falling for loaded articles against the PRC. It’s easier to see through when it isn’t related to anything immediately moral, ie “China is going to collapse!” narratives that China Watchers push, but when it’s tied to potential failings of the PRC with regard to genuine struggles, like Palestinian Liberation, people tend to read the media less critically.

I can’t say I blame people for wishing China did more, after all, many of us live in countries actively contributing to the genocide, so we often push our agency onto AES countries. This is, of course, wrong, we need to push to what we can actually do to stop the genocide ourselves, but from an emotional perspective I can see why doomerism can manifest into anti-AES stances, which needs to be thoroughly understood so that it doesn’t take root. Imperialists weilding the left against the left is an old weapon in the armory, we need to be vigilant.

It’s so perfectly blessed and cursed, lmao. I also love the emoji, lol

this emoji was a prophesy

Yep, it was a good thread, with useful info. I’m happy you got another chance to post the research you did!

They eventually did, to be fair.

Masses, Elites, and Rebels: The Theory of “Brainwashing”

That user in particular has deliberately misgendered other users, claiming that they’re alts of mine, and thinks davel and I are the same person. This is a conspiracy theorist at best, just with a radlib veneer.

Mandatory support

PJ is a social fascist powermod, I consider their comments and posts to be low-hanging fruit.

Good research, comrade.

Yep, that kind of export dodging seems like the most likey answer, especially because the PRC has a huge lead in drone production, meaning it’s probably cheaper and easier to do it this way. Still, I need to investigate more on my own.

Not sure how the restrictions work, but if you use a VPN and select the Zionist settler-colony as your location, Autel won’t ship to you either from Amazon or AliExpress, from what I’ve seen other users try. I don’t doubt that the IOF is using them, but they don’t seem to be through direct channels.

If they genuinely sympathized with the innocent citizens of, say, Palestine, then they’d understand that the best thing for queer Palestinians is Palestinian liberation, not the defeat of Hamas, as once Palestine is free the wheels of social progress can turn as well. Crushing Palestine doesn’t free the wheel, it destroys it. The same applies to all countries targeted by western imperialism that liberals attack on the basis of being socially reactionary.