Open Network of Revolutionary Activists: 3/8/12

This meeting was slightly out of orthodox, as the bulk of the meeting entailed empirical, anecdotal discussions. However, the meeting was very effective nevertheless.

Our Agenda was as follows:
- Comrade 1's adventures with a cooperative that they are involved in
- Comrade 2's recent political adventures
- Comrade 3's discourses with Frank in regards to Syndicalism, et al.
- Media theory discussion
- Discussion of meeting time, location, et cetera.
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- With regards to Frank, while he is a proponent of syndicalism in many regards, he also is seemingly diametrically opposed to it in much respect. Frank particularly likes solidarity networks, and their often cohesive politics. However, he is concerned about the way syndicalists tend to approach economic struggle, et al.

- With regards to Seattle Solidarity (which is a solidarity network), a certain dichotomy quickly manifested. This dichotomy dealt with political transparency (or lack thereof) and the practice to "avoid offending people". While we could acknowledge the rationalization behind Seattle Solidarity's practice of avoiding offending people, we invariably felt that the latter group needs to persist in political transparency instead.

- Social democracy was discussed. A lot of analogies and metaphors were applied toward the latter. It is sufficed to say that social democracy is a phenomenon, and a theoretical abstraction in many ways. There exists myriad ambiguity inherent in the term "social democracy". Incidentally, social democracy is akin to a virus; social democracy ideologues infect often genuinely anti-reformist and "pro-proletarian" groups, with the implicit propagation of the opportunist, bourgeois ideology of social democracy.

-Regarding groups that espouse "so-called" Marxism-Leninism, there is a particular pattern, it would seem, that exists among them. This pattern follows necessarily: The ISO, Socialist Alternative, et al, which are self-proclaimed Marxist-Leninists, often shun general assemblies, and opt for rallies, or speak-outs instead. ONRA members conjectured that Marxist-Leninst groups prefer rallies or speak outs, as they can literally hi-jack the former and latter with their bullhorns. In contrast, general assemblies are not set up to be hi-jacked, and M-L groups often feel out of their comfort zones when they're within a GA context.

- Concept of Mass Democracy was discussed, as well as the concept of substitutionalism, which is in conjunction with a dictatorship of an organization, as opposed to proletarian dictatorship.


Again, the meeting was especially unorthodox, but a meeting of much efficacy!

--- Damien Harris