Soviets were the only ones who truly supported the Spanish democracy against the fascist. Every other country, including Poland, turned their back to us while the Luffwaffle was bombing our citizens.
He was radicalized against the Soviets because they did not support the socialist revolution led by anarchosyndicalists. Instead Stalin supported the liberals because he said it wasn’t time for revolution yet which is BS since Barcelona and big parts of Catalonia did well under anarchists. An anarchist revolution would undermine the “ends justify the means” and “there is no other way to socialism than ours” rhetoric of the bolsheviks.
TLDR He was an anti-Soviet agitator but from the left
It was after. That also radicalized him towards class solidarity and socialism. He empathized with the suppressed indigenous peoples there and in the next step with the suppressed in his own country. He went to meet them and live with them as documented in this book The Road to Wigan Pier. Then, as a vaguely socialist, he went to Spain as documented in Homage to Catalonia. I read both books btw
Soviets were the only ones who truly supported the Spanish democracy against the fascist.
Curious that their backstabbing the Spanish republicans was instrumental in losing the Spanish Civil War for the republican side. Strange kind of support.
You’re on Divide By Zero, you should be fucking familiar with how they fucked the anarchists and the Trots, and that most of their ‘aid’ was purchased, not given.
I’m friends with everyone leftist, even if they hate each other. I can feel comfortable among anarchist, tankies, socdems, new age leftists, reformist, etc. Because I know what our common objective is and I just can’t care about the subtle differences. So I know the anarchist side of the story as well as I know the tankie side.
Being myself an active member of the social movement in my country and actually having watched modern day anarchist working with modern day communists I can say without any doubts that no version is true. Probably both starting arguing about stupid shit, and actual personal problems disguised as political problems, when they should had focused on the real enemy. But anyway I’m thankful for ALL who fought against fascism in Spain, anarchist, communist, republicans… I thank the international brigades, I thank oswell and I thank the soviets and stalinist. They all put their lives on line to stop fascism.
I just despise such an unproductive and harmful division of the left for shit that just does not matter when the true enemy is so big. And sometimes I just see a lust for internal division and eternal losing in such behavior.
Because I know what our common objective is and I just can’t care about the subtle differences.
Even when those ‘subtle differences’ result in being backstabbed and sold out and the entire cause being lost against a fascist enemy, great. Subtle little differences, like “We need to purge the anarchists and Trots” should be met with “We need complete and total cooperation with the people who want to purge us 😊”
As I said I have actually worked a lot in environments with a diverse leftist spectrum.
And in my experience backstabbing usually goes both ways and is a result of the previous hate (and a lot of the time because personal non political issues) not the other way around.
Soviets were the only ones who truly supported the Spanish democracy against the fascist. Every other country, including Poland, turned their back to us while the Luffwaffle was bombing our citizens.
For Whom The Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemmingway is set during this period. Just a side note.
Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell would also be a good read for someone looking favorably on the Soviets during the Spanish Civil War.
Wasn’t Orwell a British spy under Churchill and a professional anti-communist agitator?
He was radicalized against the Soviets because they did not support the socialist revolution led by anarchosyndicalists. Instead Stalin supported the liberals because he said it wasn’t time for revolution yet which is BS since Barcelona and big parts of Catalonia did well under anarchists. An anarchist revolution would undermine the “ends justify the means” and “there is no other way to socialism than ours” rhetoric of the bolsheviks.
TLDR He was an anti-Soviet agitator but from the left
Was this before or after he served as a British intelligence officer in colonial-era Burma?
It was after. That also radicalized him towards class solidarity and socialism. He empathized with the suppressed indigenous peoples there and in the next step with the suppressed in his own country. He went to meet them and live with them as documented in this book The Road to Wigan Pier. Then, as a vaguely socialist, he went to Spain as documented in Homage to Catalonia. I read both books btw
Curious that their backstabbing the Spanish republicans was instrumental in losing the Spanish Civil War for the republican side. Strange kind of support.
What kind of propaganda are you reading in which sending weapons, planes and officers (while all the other countries did NOTHING) is backstabbing.
You’re on Divide By Zero, you should be fucking familiar with how they fucked the anarchists and the Trots, and that most of their ‘aid’ was purchased, not given.
I’m friends with everyone leftist, even if they hate each other. I can feel comfortable among anarchist, tankies, socdems, new age leftists, reformist, etc. Because I know what our common objective is and I just can’t care about the subtle differences. So I know the anarchist side of the story as well as I know the tankie side.
Being myself an active member of the social movement in my country and actually having watched modern day anarchist working with modern day communists I can say without any doubts that no version is true. Probably both starting arguing about stupid shit, and actual personal problems disguised as political problems, when they should had focused on the real enemy. But anyway I’m thankful for ALL who fought against fascism in Spain, anarchist, communist, republicans… I thank the international brigades, I thank oswell and I thank the soviets and stalinist. They all put their lives on line to stop fascism.
I just despise such an unproductive and harmful division of the left for shit that just does not matter when the true enemy is so big. And sometimes I just see a lust for internal division and eternal losing in such behavior.
Even when those ‘subtle differences’ result in being backstabbed and sold out and the entire cause being lost against a fascist enemy, great. Subtle little differences, like “We need to purge the anarchists and Trots” should be met with “We need complete and total cooperation with the people who want to purge us 😊”
The true meaning of a united front, huh?
As I said I have actually worked a lot in environments with a diverse leftist spectrum.
And in my experience backstabbing usually goes both ways and is a result of the previous hate (and a lot of the time because personal non political issues) not the other way around.