Nèdeem Elmahjoub's blog

 Via Corey Robin The fashionable fear in the media and academia of the working class as the bacillus of populist authoritarianism is very much in conflict with the empirical evi dence of decades of history, including contemporary history: "Many observers fear that [capitalist] democracy is currently at risk — including in the United States and some European countries. Some commentators blame less-educated members of the working classes for the democratic backlash....But are industrial workers really an anti-democratic force? In a new study, we systematically examine how citizens have sought to promote democracy in about 150 countries. Here’s what we find: Industrial workers have been key agents of democratization and, if anything, are even more important than the urban middle classes....We investigated all major mass protest movements around the world from 1900-2006, and recorded who dominated each movement — industrial workers, urban middle classes, rural laborers, ethnic

ما هي الدوائر الدولية المعادية للإصلاح السياسي بالمنطقة العربية؟ Who are the international powers opposing political reform in the Arab region? لا يذكر كاتب المقال قوى أخرى معادية  للثورة أو قوى تلعب دورا متذبذبا خلال المسار الثوري. شرائح من الطبقة الوسطى مثلا تعادي التغيير الثوري والبرامج الراديكالية أو  تتذبذب في مواقفها وتحالفاتها. توجد أحزاب إصلاحية وليبيرالية وأحزاب إسلامية  معادية للثورة  تكتفي بإصلاحات طفيفة وتعقد تحلافات مع الدوائر الدولية لمواصلة السياسات الاقتصادية والاجتماعية المعادية للتنمية الحقيقية والطبقات العمالية والشعبية .

"White dominance is evident in the consumption of resources, in the balance of economic power, in capital flows, in the interpretation of conflicts, and in the writing of history. In all these areas, a new age is dawning," Charlotte Wiedemann writes.  For centuries, Europe dominated the world politically  and  imposed on it a capitalist market economy, which to this day benefits itself more than anyone else. Wiedemann has some very valid points, but speaking about "the end of white dominance" is premature. Yes, the world seems to be moving towards a multipolar world. However, economy goes hand in hand with military power. The U.S. and its European allies still have the upper hand. Although China looks as a rival, in reality it is still not a threat and it is not a power that could create an equilibrium in geopolitical terms. One has only to look at the American military budget and military bases around the world. That is coupled with NATO's military power.

" The protests have been remarkable for their territorial reach and the absence of political or sectarian banners in a country often defined by its divisions." Class remains the main determinant. "National unity" is a recipe of ignoring class and perpetuate the status quo in the name of "we are one nation, one people, etc. and let's all work together for Lebanon."

Soviet Film Festival Cairo, Egypt 1950s Credit: Rene Burri

"Impossible to anticipate the spur for rebellion. In Lebanon, it was a tax on the use of WhatsApp; in Chile, it was the rise in subway fares; in Ecuador and in Haiti, it was the cut in fuel subsidies. Each of these conjunctures brought people to the streets and then, as these people flooded the streets, more and more joined them. They did not come for WhatsApp or for subway tokens. They came because they are frustrated, angry that history seems to disregard them as it consistently favours the ruling class." There is something that's ours on the streets and we're going to take it back