Socialist Theory

The Human Cost of Failed Revolutions

Translator’s note. Mainstream historians typically focus on the human cost of revolution in the form of violence, terror, lost lives, economic disorganization, the rise of dictatorships, etc. In this piece, Marxist economist Ernest Mandel describes the far greater costs to humanity of a revolution that did not succeed.

The “Human Cost” of Revolutions that Never Happened


Ernest Mandel

Today is Karl Marx's 192nd birthday!

Today, May 5, is also, of course, Cinco de Mayo, the holiday celebrated by Americans that recognizes the victory over the French colonialist army by a rag-tag army of Mexican peasants in 1862, in the Mexican state of Puebla--truly a people's victory.

But May 5 is Karl Marx's birthday as well; Marx was born on this date in 1818 in Trier, Germany. Marx's family had a long lineage of rabbis, but Karl's father converted to Lutheranism the year before his birth--a comon "assimilationist" strategy among Jews to avoid persecution and discrimination because they were Jewish. For now they were Christians!

Young Marx

Karl Marx began his active political life after he received his Ph.D. in 1842, becoming the editor of the Rheinisische Zeitung, a liberal newspaper shut down soon thereafter by the authorities. It was also in 1842 that he met Frederick Engels, and their lifelong friendship and political collaboration began in earnest in 1844.

Video: Anwar Shaikh on Marx and the Global Economic Crisis

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  • Video: David McNally on Marx and the Global Economic Crisis

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  • Reimagining Socialism: The Nation encourages a critical discussion

    No one can tell you that capitalism is working, and after several decades of global neoliberalism (a brand of de-regulated hyper-capitalism spawned in the mid-1970s to secure the continuing rule of

    The Authoritarian Personality

    While there are people who pursue powerful positions in society or in a group in order to dominate others, there are also those who identify themselves with dominant groups or the ideology of the group and submit themselves to the opinions of strong authority figures. One of the characteristics of them is to show a “blind faith” toward their “ingroup” to which they belong and hostility toward “outgroups.” Besides, they seldom show sympathy (or often show hostility) toward minorities who occupy weaker positions in social structure, whether in terms of ethnicity or in such criteria as gender, sexuality, occupation, nationality, opinions, and wealth.

    Another Comment on FRSO/OSCL's Which Way is Left?

    COMMENTS ON FRSO, WHICH WAY IS LEFT?

    [This contribution was originally presented to a November 18, 2007 joint meeting of Solidarity, Freedom Road Socialist Organization/OSCL and an independent study group of activists interested in revolutionary organization]

    Marxist Blogs, Part One

    “Radical Blogging Is The Main Trend In Our World Today”

    Let’s focus on two trends in radical blogs, both based on Marxism. One is the emergence of a web of prolific Maoist/Marxist-Leninist blogs in the United States. The other is the world of Marxist blogs emanating from English-speaking western Europe. I will start this entry with a look at the Maoist-inspired blogs.

    Michael Albert's Parecon

    So... I’ve been mulling over my reaction to this book by Michael Albert, Parecon. Friends on a blogging engine, LiveJournal, directed my attention toward it. I read it with very close attention. Herewith is my response, finally.

    2008 Elections: Are We Having Fun Yet?

    Like Christmas, the US bourgeois electoral cycle seems to start earlier every time around. The scripted, stage-managed debates, the empty moralisms and focus-group politics, competition for Oprah’s endorsement – yep, there must be a national election soon. Besides recognizing the increasingly vapid terms of political debate at the national stage and entertainment spectacle of it all, there are important shifts and realignments already surfacing.