conditions of the carly Sovict state the dictatorsmp or tne proletariat had to take the form o a bolsnevik F'arty dictator *tut it was hardly the product f Trotsky's allegec hich substituted a Party dic for class dictatorship' as Joe Slovo sug gests whist trying to forget that it was his former mentor Stalin who both practised and theorised the real substitution -a class aic totstupora personal clique based on a bureaucracy Your criticism of Outage, namely that it concentrates on stunts (SO16), is of course quite politically correct. No doubt there is a high level of frustration at the general level of political apathy behind the strategy of stunts.
You are, howaver, too censoricus by hall. Al least Outage want to do something and are doing something. The ico of socialists is to pabent explain why alongside 'actions' the aborious work of winning support in longer term change. The two do NOT neo to de counterposto Keith Flett London N17 Feb. 29, 1992 No. 17 Dave Shepherd writes to take issue with my artice "The bitter fruits of marketisation'. He calls my impressionistic and piece superlicial. Methinks he protests too much.
His criticisms concentrate on two national ( autonomy and marketisation. reason to welcome national independence - as I did is that it reduces the potential for conthings would have been much Dave points out that this is with Yugoslavia are inept. True, this is why I made no such comparison. But I stand by my assertion that the potential for national conflict considerable.
The independence gained aner we musus coup ms no prevented conflict between Armenia and Azerbaian; it has not solved anything for peoples gush who claim the right to nanona autonomy, iata norstop extreme right ting nationalism from becoming very popular.
The innumerable problems caused by decades of national repression by Great Russian stalinism are not done away with by the independence of someof its peoples. Particularly when the prevalent conception of nationalism is bourgeis Second, on marketisation. Dave protests that I ignore the uprisings currently taking lace against price rises. Lea g aside the fact that most c these have taken place since the article was written and that 1 predicted such risings and stressed their importance, I vould make two points irst, it just isn't true tha hese have swept the whole oviet Union and forced the new republican leadership into couraging. But that doesn'tadd up to the over-enthusiastic picture Dave paints.
Second, like nationalism, straightforward protests daina price sord. An bei is where my point about 'the SoCialiSt discredited' is important. Both of these factors can lead to a that is to shut our eyes to reality and does no-one-particulariy the Soviet workers - any favours.
inally, Dave quotes a poll ti rather than the market, is the SSR. Let's not kid ourselve n every one of the independen publics, ultra pro-market fo ces are in control; nowhere is there any sigr of them being replaced by left forces. There is no left party in the ex-USSR of any significant size - at best 'Yes! I want to become a Socialist Outlook supporter O II want more information about Socialist Outlook O i I want to take an order of ... 1 Outlook to sell O Name: i Adress: •Tel:
2UU they number in three figures, but mostly two Yes, when good things haprouleay o but wo telene when workers rise, ignore harsh realities beause we don't like them. The real, complete picture is the only asis on which we can positive ly intervene and contribute to the situation Patrick Baker London N4 ... copies of Socialist Please return to: Socialist Outlook, PO Box 1109, London, N4
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