IC has received a printed sheet, undated but evidently recent; bearing no indication of author or source it reports the development, in the USA and the USSR, of radiofrequency weapons. Impressive both in content and in its carefully understated, hysteria-free approach, it ends by speaking of them as “a new kind of weapon the world… read more »
Russia abandons the drive towards communism, America (with a little help) drives Iran out of Kuwait, Mrs. Thatcher resigns the premiership. Great events, all of them. And now, to crown the series (spotlight, roll of drums): IC GOES QUARTERLY. This issue carries the date Summer 1991, to be followed by Autumn, Winter and Spring. The… read more »
Sir: You say [IC50, From Hegel-San to Niat] that “nothing is absolutely true.” Is that right? I am assured by my scientific friends that there are two absolutes; the speed of light and absolute zero. This seems to be beyond question. At another level, however, the matter may be mostly semantic. We still have to… read more »
Robert Michels: The socialist theory has arisen out of the reflections of philosophers, economists, sociologists, and historians. In the socialist programmes of the different countries, every word represents a synthesis of the work of numerous learned men. The fathers of modern socialism were with few exceptions men of science primarily, and in the second place… read more »
SEEN FROM OUTSIDE FactSheetFive #41 says of IC “This political journal is a chewy nugget indeed, as it tries to expound the ideas of ‘systematic ideology.’ Their basic tenet is that there is a hierarchy of ideologies, with progressively fewer people at each step; they spin this out into fascinating discussions of everything from history… read more »
Robert Michels’ book, Political Parties, a sociological study of the oligarchical tendencies of modern democracy [1], first appeared in 1911, and quickly became famous [2]. The English translation has been available since 1915 (there were also Italian, German, French and Japanese versions) and in those seventy-five years nobody, so far as I have been able… read more »
Review of Beyond Politics, an outline of systematic ideology. From PLAN, Journal of the Progressive League, November 1990, by Ailsa Pain. This is a readable and thought-provoking little book. While many people have come to somewhat differing conclusions as a result of their own studies and speculation, I am sure they will find interest and… read more »
Review of Beyond Politics, an outline of systematic ideology. From SELF AND SOCIETY, European Journal of Humanistic Psychology, Vol. XVIII No.6, Nov / Dec 1990, by John Rowan. This is a book about ideologies. An ideology is a way of seeing the world, a more or less coherent philosophy of the way things seem to… read more »
This is the third (and final) part of a reply, by Merseyside Branch, to criticism of the party by IC. Part I appeared in IC47, Part II in IC48. These are both available on request. – GW In order to cover up its own failings IC always reverts to character by arguing that socialism has… read more »
(Reprinted from Ethical Record, journal of the South Place Ethical Society, October 1989) May I propose the application of some SPES rationalism to the myth of class politics as displayed, particularly, in The Unsung Heroes of the First Austrian Republic, by Gertrude Elias (ER July/August). This article repeatedly identifies the workers with the left. It… read more »