Marxist nerd. I will never finish a book.
This link opens in a pop-up window
Mutual aid is the radical act of caring for each other while working to change …
This book swings wildly from idealizing failed movements (Occupy, Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone, etc) to having really solid advice for group dynamics and holding meetings.
I'm sure all of the good bits can be found in other books, but this book is short enough to just deal with the junk.
Social Reform or Revolution? (German: Sozialreform oder Revolution?) is an 1899 pamphlet by Polish-German Marxist …
I don't always agree with Luxemburg but she's got some bangers for sure. She ruthlessly tears apart her contemporaries, and whether I agree with her criticism or not it's definitely entertaining. Not to mention I get to see a non-Leninist but still Marxist perspective on revolution.
Her criticisms of the Bolsheviks and their organization, especially in "Leninism or Marxism?" definitely need to be taken with a grain of salt considering her decentralized party had her executed by Nazis (she criticizes centralism and promotes decentralized organizing), but they shouldn't be written off.
Although this book doesn't delve as deeply into analysis as Lenin's Imperialism does, it is still a great analysis of Imperialism in the 21st century, with plenty of examples.
My only critique is that this book leaves me wishing it were more in-depth.
Capitalist Realism: Is There No Alternative? explores Fisher's concept of "capitalist realism," which he takes …
I will admit that I didn't finish this. I got about 3/4 the way through and decided that it was a waste of my time.
What is a "liberal communist"? What is "market Stalinism"? Why would you imply that dyslexia is because we've been brainwashed into only recognizing brand logos and that it can make you a better business executive?
It's very clear that "Stalinism" means something negative that isn't explained and is often oxymoronic (as well as calling George Soros and Bill Gates "liberal communists").
He obviously looks down on the students he used to teach.
He's right that mental health needs to be politicized (and not in the way it usually is in the US, by demonizing the mentally ill and manufacturing consent for the police to execute people on the street), and he's right that we need to look into the social reasons people are ill rather …
I will admit that I didn't finish this. I got about 3/4 the way through and decided that it was a waste of my time.
What is a "liberal communist"? What is "market Stalinism"? Why would you imply that dyslexia is because we've been brainwashed into only recognizing brand logos and that it can make you a better business executive?
It's very clear that "Stalinism" means something negative that isn't explained and is often oxymoronic (as well as calling George Soros and Bill Gates "liberal communists").
He obviously looks down on the students he used to teach.
He's right that mental health needs to be politicized (and not in the way it usually is in the US, by demonizing the mentally ill and manufacturing consent for the police to execute people on the street), and he's right that we need to look into the social reasons people are ill rather than just the biochemical reasons. And he's right about the fact that being apathetic because you feel powerless is a self fulfilling prophecy.
But for every coherent and good point he makes he rambles on equally as long, and he can't help but drop the term Stalinism constantly and frame Leninists as impotent.
2 stars because it wasn't complete trash.
If you already agree with the concept of materialist dialectics then this starts off strong and immediately plateaus. It's more an argument in favor of using materialist dialectics than it is an explanation of the concept. There are definitely better introductions to DiaMat than this, although with almost a century of development of Marxism I'd hope so.
The Metamorphosis (German: Die Verwandlung) is a novella written by Franz Kafka which was first …
Content warning This review contains spoilers
The ending was really weird, like I understand Gregor dying but Kafka literally ended the book by talking about how Gregor's sister suddenly had big tits bc she went through puberty while everyone was stressed out.
I mean it's a totally mundane observation I guess, which seems to follow the theme of "wow what a fucked up situation I'm in, let me worry about literally everything that isn't the fact that I'm a bug"
Listen. A god is speaking. My voice echoes through the stone of your master's castle. …
This was a pretty good book, I'd give it 5 stars but the conversation about how it's okay to be trans was patronizing and cringey and forced. Coulda had more than one trans character instead of having a cis character ramble about her trans aunt. It was cool to have a trans character whose story didn't revolve around being trans, though.
I’m thinking of ending things. Once this thought arrives, it stays. It sticks. It lingers. …
Content warning This review contains spoilers.
The ending wasn't entirely a surprise by the time I got there, but I can't say I enjoy reading about psychotic people killing themselves, or psychosis being used as horror story material. I still have lots of questions, but the ending makes me too uncomfortable to think about the possible answers.
"Wage Labour and Capital" (German: Lohnarbeit und Kapital) was an 1847 lecture by the critic …
This is a pretty good introduction to Capitalist economics from a Marxist perspective, but even with the updates provided by Engels it definitely shows some naiveté. Later works by Marx are much better, although I do appreciate the flowery language Marx uses.