Former Communist Party member and champion of the socialist folk-song movement Irwin Silber passed away on September 8 in Oakland, California, from complications of Alzheimer's disease. Geez, he went out not even knowing he was a good commie. How sad. Well...not really.
Born in Manhattan, New York on October 17, 1925, Silber grew up in in New York City's working-class Jewish Community. He joined the ranks of the Communist Party USA's youth wing, the Young Communist League, followed by joining the party proper.
As a student at Brooklyn College, Silber organized the American Folksay Group, and through his associations with the likes of Pete Seeger and Alan Lomax, Silber became an integral part of Seeger's post-war People's Songs organization. This was an independent artist-run collective, which published the songs of veteran left-wing folksingers.
In the late 1950s, Silber had the dubious honor of being called up before the House Un-American Activities Committee where he was questioned regarding his involvement in the Communist Party's Jefferson School of Social Science.
By the 1960s, Silber had severed all ties with the Communist Party and later become a driving force in the ultra leftist Students for a Democratic Society and later still in the Maoist leaning New Communist Movement, Sounds like a he had a serious case of "Not Communist Enough"...
Silber wrote for and edited the Maoists main journal, The Guardian, which was published between 1948 and 1992 in New York City.
In 1970 Students for a Democratic Society member Max Elbaum and Irwin Silber were founders of a one of the "second wave" new communist groups, the pro-Mao Tse Tung, Line of March. When Line of March disbanded in 1989, Elbaum and Silber went on to work as editors for the Institute for Social and Economic Studies-sponsored magazine, CrossRoads, until 1996 when it too folded. No money in it, I guess...
In 1976, Silber attended the Weather Underground and Prairie Fire Organizing Committee - organized Hard Times Conference which was held at the University of Chicago.
In 1990, Silber attended and spoke in a panel entitled "Developments in the USSR and Eastern Europe and their Significance for Western Europe and the US Left" at the Socialist Scholars Conference, held in New York. Frontline, the organization he had founded, sponsored the panel. Also speaking on the panel were Phyllis Bennis, Frontline; Donald Sassoon from the University of London, and key Democratic Socialists of America member, Joanne Barkan. Once again, in 1992, Silber again spoke at the Socialist Scholar's Conference. This time he spoke on a panel entitled "92 Elections & Left Electoral Strategies panel" alongside Ellen David-Freidman, Progressive Vermont Alliance; colleague Max Elbaum, Managing Editor, CrossRoads; Robert Fitrakis, Columbus Democratic Socialists of America; and former Communist Party member, James Steele. The panel was sponsored by CrossRoads. A veritable who's-who of "Commie Legends in Their Own Minds"...
In 1992, Silber endorsed the Committees of Correspondence national conference entitled the Conference on Perspectives for Democracy and Socialism in the 90s which was held at Berkeley California. Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism began in 1991 when approximately one third of the Communist Party USA membership split from the party to form a new organization.
Most of Silber's old Line of March comrades joined Committees of Correspondence. In its last days days Line of March had moved to a pro Soviet, pro Gorbachev position, which matched that of many of the so called called Communist Party reformers.
By 1995, Silber was a member of Solidarity, an independent Socialist organization - dedicated to forming "a broad regrouping of the U.S. left".
In January 2002, Irwin Silber was one of those to endorse a new national anti-Iraq War newspaper entitled War Times. The publication was founded by a group of San Francisco leftists, mainly involved with the neo Maoist Standing Together to Organize a Revolutionary Movement or Committees of Correspondence. The publication is funded by the Center for Third World Organizing, a "racial-justice organization" that aims to build a social-justice movement led by people of color. Well...I suppose it beat working for a living, eh, Irwin?
Former Obama Green Jobs Czar Van Jones was a key member of War Times and STORM and had long been cultivated by Silber's colleagues from the Bay Area Line of March/Committees of Correspondence.
Without Irwin Silber, Van Jones would probably have never risen above abusing cops on the streets of San Francisco. A lifetime spent worshiping evil. So long, Irwin. Try not to make the worms puke...
Hopefully that evil doesn't translate into wormish concepts. Can you imagine a worms' Cultural Revolution?
#2
In 1970 Students for a Democratic Society member Max Elbaum and Irwin Silber were founders of a one of the "second wave" new communist groups, the pro-Mao Tse Tung, Line of March.
However, not in China among the 45 million dead from Mao's Great Leap Forward. And these people scream about American slavery that ended in blood soaked fields over hundred years prior to their love affair with the butchers of the 20th Century. No shame, no proportionality, no perspective. Just sell guilt for POWER. Power is self rationalizing.
#4
Praire Fire?!
Does that mean the Bill Ayers will be at the funeral, along with Van Jones?
Disappointing that the article skips what Silber did/said when the Berlin Wall fell and Eastern Europe freed.
Posted by: DJ Curtis C ||
10/05/2010 9:24 Comments ||
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#5
Gentlemen, gentlemen, gentlemen!
And lady, please, Secret Master. Not many gentlemen dare periwinkle, although Steve White wears salmon beautifully. ;-)
(Prensa Latina) President Hugo Chavez announced this month will mark the beginning of the deepening of the crusade against landlordism in Venezuela, whose main goal is to reclaim land for food production. Pharmino B. Hardo thanks you, El Presidente!
He said in Alo Presidente show, that in October they will begin a new offensive to rescue lands. "Let not be a large land property in Venezuela", he said.
For the President the recovery of those lands is a key in the commitment to turn Venezuela into an agricultural-industrial power.
He said they have to create a new economic model to guarantee food safety and set some workers free from the "slavery" imposed by the legal owners of those lands.
According to Chavez, Lara, Apure and south of Maracaibo lake (Zulia) territories, are going to be targets of the agrarian revolution.
The Venezuela's National Land Institute, the Armed Forces and the peasants fronts are going to be in charged of the land rescue.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/05/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
For an excellent, real world example of how this works, see Zimbabwe.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
10/05/2010 7:30 Comments ||
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#2
Use your head Hugo. Accept responsibility for national education, then link the cost to property owners in the form of real estate taxes. You'll be amazed at how YOU TOO can become the ultimate, federal Landlord.
(Prensa Latina) The Ecuadorian government announced legal proceedings were being conducted against those responsible for attempting to carry out a coup and kill President Rafael Correa, Interior Minister Gustavo Jalkh informed.
Evidence in the case was obtained via a regular investigative process and includes intercepted radio messages which point to a plot that was planned and organized by several people, Jalkh commented.
All elements were being collected, such as the involvement of leaders from the opposition Patriotic Society Party in the incidents, he said.
Government attorneys are investigating the colonels in charge of the police headquarters that mobilized against the government on September 30, he informed. Oh, boy! It's a purge!!
The objective facts lead to the conclusion that the kidnapping of President Correa was a conspiracy, while the process of misinforming the police is part of a politically-slanted destabilization campaign.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/05/2010 00:00 ||
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[Washington Post] Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Sunday that members of the country's civilian militia should be issued weapons to be armed and ready at all times. In case the place is overrun by gringos or imperialists or bears...
Especially bears.
The Mighty Uruguayans shall shake in their shoes ...
The Bolivarian Militia is a force of brownshirts... no, make that redshirts ranging from students to retirees formed in recent years by Chavez, who says it is a crucial component of the nation's defenses. ... against people who might not agree with his plans...
Until now, members of the militia have regularly trained at weekend boot camps, but their guns have usually been locked away in military depots when not in use. Kind of like those of the armies of most civilized countries. And most uncivilized countries as well, come to think of it...
"Who has seen a militia without weapons?" Chavez said during his Sunday television and radio program. How many countries other than Pakistain and Leb have armed militias roaming their streets? Iran?
He said he was surprised when he met some bully boyz standing guard recently and learned they had no guns. "The militias are the people with weapons in hand," Chavez told an audience including military officers and high-ranking officials in rural Guarico state. "You ain't a man without a gun in your hand!"
"We need to break old paradigms because we're still seeing the militias as if they were a complementary force, some battalions that get together once a month over there, or go and march somewhere," Chavez said. "No, buddy. I believe the Spanish word he uses is "compañero," which can also be translated as "comrade." That's the way it's used in Cuba.
The militia is a permanent territorial unit and it should be armed, equipped and trained - campesinos, workers." Yasss... The workers and peasants....
Chavez also suggested that the country should accelerate the formation of militia units. Since the parliamentary tide might be turning he's thinking of storming the Winter Palace.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/05/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
The Red Guard Part II
to be followed by
The Great Leap Forward Part II
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
10/05/2010 12:17 ||
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#1
Hail! to the victors valiant
Hail! to the conqu'ring heroes
Hail! Hail! to Michigan
The leaders and best!
Hail! to the victors valiant
Hail! to the conqu'ring heroes
Hail! Hail! to Michigan,
The champions of the West!
Posted by: Mike ||
10/05/2010 13:10 Comments ||
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#2
And when the officials announce the final tally of votes from such systems how will we be certain the numbers indeed represent the votes of the people? We can't, of course. The numbers could represent the will of the system operators, or of the most skilled hackers instead.
#6
Given the voters in DC it makes no difference how the votes are counted - the same losers will win.
The scary thing is that I suspect other, more competitive jurisdictions are just as vulnerable.
(Ma'an) -- Palestinian Authority police imposed a curfew on the village of Jabe in the northern West Bank district after five residents were stabbed and four homes were set on fire during a family clash on Monday.
Jenin police said they received information on the arson and rushed to the scene to impose the closure. The five injured were transferred to hospital for treatment of stab wounds.
Witnesses said the brawl broke out to "avenge" the death of a child two months ago.
It's difficult to shoot a small child below the knees -- the target area is so small, dontchaknow.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/05/2010 00:00 ||
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(Ma'an) -- Palestinian Authority police arrested a Nablus resident Monday for "blasphemy," a police report said. Police said they stopped a car for reckless driving, and the driver was arrested when he shouted at officers and "cursed God."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/05/2010 00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
(Prensa Latina) President Hugo Chavez announced this month will mark the beginning of the deepening of the crusade against landlordism in Venezuela, whose main goal is to reclaim land for food production.
[Washington Post] Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Sunday that members of the country's civilian militia should be issued weapons to be armed and ready at all times.
