Peaceful Revolution Will Prevail
Elio Delgado Legon
HAVANA TIMES — After the Second World War, the United States emerged as the only great power with the capacity and pretensions for world domination.
The Soviet Union lost 27 million people, including soldiers and civilians, and suffered heavy destruction. Germany, until then the nation attempting to secure world hegemony, was roundly defeated.
Nuclear blackmail, used after unjustifiably dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ensured the United States military superiority. Likewise, its economy was secured by its entering into the war late, after the conflict had already caused widespread destruction across all of Europe.
With this background, the conditions were in place for the US to impose itself on many parts of the world – especially in Latin America, whose docile governments bowed to the will of the nascent empire.
Duvalier in Haiti, Trujillo in the Dominican Republic, Somoza in Nicaragua and Batista in Cuba: these were a few of the old dictators supported by the US government.
The triumph of the armed revolution in Cuba and the progress of the struggle in Nicaragua clearly showed that this was the appropriate route and possibly the only way to bring our oppressed peoples the social revolutions they needed.
By that time, all attempts to win through the ballot box had ended in more or less bloody coups that enthroned cruel dictatorships, all with the unconditional support of the United States.
Imprisonment, torture, political killings and disappearances were everyday in each of those countries dominated by a dictatorship. Political opponents met with any of these fates.
Against this background, one couldn’t think of any another alternative except armed struggle. The last attempt to achieve independence and democracy through the ballot box was in Chile – which ended in a bloody coup, the assassination of President Salvador Allende and the establishment of a vicious fascist dictatorship that cost thousands of Chilean lives.
However, this whole tragic situation ended up having a negative balance for both proponents and beneficiaries of such regimes: the awareness of people, who could now clearly distinguish between their friends and enemies.
The dictatorships were unsustainable given the rejection by the masses, who forced them to give way to democracy. The peoples of the Americas said “never again,” and today the establishment of another dictatorship on the continent is something unthinkable.
Moreover, that increased awareness also brought an alternative political vision that allowed the exploited masses to decipher who are the oppressors and the defenders of the people.
The complete failure of neoliberalism added yet another ingredient to their increasing consciousness. People came to see left governments as the only possible solution to their plight.
The victory of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela (and resulting positive changes for his people) was an example followed by other leaders such as Evo Morales in Bolivia, Rafael Correa in Ecuador, Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua and other leftist and nationalist governments that have clearly shown where that path lies.
The repression of social and indigenous movements in other countries have done nothing but deepen the consciousness of people in their knowledge of where to go and what is needed to pursue the path to peaceful revolution, which previously was not possible but that sooner rather than later will prevail throughout the world.
BS! two term of blood soaked Bush & devil Cheney were fair elections… no clue but the rest of the world knows the truth, blood for oil!
elio should look at salvador allende`s government from an economic viewpoint. he spent too much money too fast trying to fix the problems of the past and wrecked the economy. he nationalized banks and drove other banks out of business. a coup was inevitable but the C.I.A. was not involved except that they funded the opposition press. before allende was elected it was too late for the C.I.A. to get involved. they realized too late that allende would win. certainly the military dictatorship murdered and tortured thousands and this was unnecessary. it is also true that free market economics have worked well in chile and santago de chile could be paris if you look at what is available in the shops. there have been many winners in the chilean economy but it is also obvious just looking around the streets that there are many poor people who have not done well and they have been left out of the chilean social security system. but the poor do have ways to make a living. the streets of santago are full of street vendors selling things like clothing, locks, sunglasses, candy, reading glasses etc. which provides them with enough to live fairly well but no luxuries. a recent investigation alleged that allende committed suicide rather than be a prisoner of the military.
Brainwashed!
“Luis, you were clearly educated in Cuba as you appear to know only the bits and pieces of world history like Elio that fit into your Cuban model of US bad, Communist good paradigm.”
This is empty rhetoric, I could say the same about you with switched sides.
“The Russians had a similiar project underway at the same time. The US program did not suffer the bureacratic and hierarchical delays endemic to socialist programs. The US program finished first.”
The US had plenty more time to industrialize itself than Russia, who had to build a modern economy from scratch after the 1917 Revolution. Second, the Russians only begun their investigation on nuclear power after knowing its ongoing in the US. Third, the Russians were the second country to test an atomic bomb… besting many industrialized countries like the UK and France – I certainly wouldn’t call this “inefficiency”.
“Hitler could not fight his war on both fronts and the cruel Russian winter served to be more than he had bargained for.”
There was no “Russian winter” like when Napoleon tried to invade Russia in the early 1800’s – the T-34 was technically superior than the Panzer, as well as the will and sacrifice of the Russians in the bloody eastern front.
“The US ingenuity in the 1950?s, not nuclear intimidation, was the basis for the unmatched growth in GNP.”
Wait a minute, I didn’t imply that!
“As far as never having to fight on American soil, now you understand the basis of US military strategy for locating bases abroad. We would rather fight ‘em over there!”
So you ARE a supporter of US imperialism… interesting.
Luis, you were clearly educated in Cuba as you appear to know only the bits and pieces of world history like Elio that fit into your Cuban model of US bad, Communist good paradigm. The “Manhattan Project” (see the movie) is the well-studied and widely-known birthplace of the US atomic bomb. The Russians had a similiar project underway at the same time. The US program did not suffer the bureacratic and hierarchical delays endemic to socialist programs. The US program finished first. The Russians were hoping to do to Berlin what we did to Japan. Hitler could not fight his war on both fronts and the cruel Russian winter served to be more than he had bargained for. The Russian army fought a war of attrition. The US ingenuity in the 1950’s, not nuclear intimidation, was the basis for the unmatched growth in GNP. The success of the German Panzer tanks was undercut by the lack of supply line support. As far as never having to fight on American soil, now you understand the basis of US military strategy for locating bases abroad. We would rather fight ’em over there!
“This statement ignores, the huge advantage the US maintained in its conventional warfare capabilities. We had a Detroit-based infracture at the ready to build tanks, airplanes, bombs, rifles and uniforms. The military-industrial complex was the best in the world at producing the necessities of war. This had nothing to do with our nascient nuclear capabilities.”
The huge military-industrial complex of the US had *nothing* to do with its nuclear capabilities? What was the Manhattan Project then? Please explain, or else you’re just backing Elio’s statement of “nuclear blackmail” regarding Hiroshima and Nagasaki – it was an intimidation (and a warning) for the USSR, who rode like lightning Germany’s troops in the eastern front and was gathering too much military power for the US to bare.
“People like you were constrained to spreading your ill-concieved diatribes through print and spoken media, until a group of US MILITARY minds invented the internet. Now, you can send this lunacy into cyberspace.”
Following this logic, we should also say thanks to the middle ages for the printing press!
“Moreover, despite the devastation in Europe, post WWII US productivity was the highest the world had ever seen (…) Where is your acknowlegement of post-war advancements in medicine, science and technology.”
Maybe this had something to do with joining the war late when its tides were already unfavorable for the Axis forces and – obviously – not having to battle at home. The US was like a raven in both WWI and WWII, providing military aid from a distance and sacking the spoils later.
It is so convenient to leave out the failed state of the Soviet Union; is this because Cuba picked the winning revolutionary partner who tried to base nuclear missiles on Cuban soil and backed down and fled to Moscow with their tails between their legs? Cuba`s lasting legacy under Stalinist Communism to date has been exporting revolution. Now what; is Cuba going to join the Maoist Chinese Communist revolution and trade oil for missiles, or what? I support peaceful revolutions. The United States has them quite frequently. They are called free and fair elections.
An excellent post, Elio. Thank you.
Our US movement agrees with your basic premise, that peaceful socialist transformation is possible in today’s world. For two-hundred years this has been the ideal preference of socialists. Violent revolution has only been necessary in some countries mainly due to the brutal violence of counter-transformationary forces.
For peaceful transformations to occur and be successful after the acquisition of state power however, something new is needed. The leadership political party must have a clear and correct maximum (strategic) program for building a dynamic bridge over to an ideal society.
This further-in-the-future society is one in which the need for private productive property incentives has diminished to insignificance, the coercive powers of the state have become unnecessary and have withered to an absolute minimum, and social classes have merged into non-existence. The new maximum program, the one needed as a bridge to get there, must take account both the positive and negative results of the erroneous state monopoly socialism strategic program.
If the socialist left, in Latin America and in the countries of the “north,” can discard the old state monopoly concept of “real” socialism, in favor of the modern cooperative, state co-ownership concept, the vast majority of citizens in every country can rapidly be won to socialist consciousness. This is the absolute prerequisite to peaceful socialist transformation.
Elio…pobrecito! You have cobbled together a series of partially-related events while ignoring huge gaps of real history. For the sake of brevity, I will choose one example: You state, “Nuclear blackmail, used after unjustifiably dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ensured the United States military superiority”. This statement ignores, the huge advantage the US maintained in its conventional warfare capabilities. We had a Detroit-based infracture at the ready to build tanks, airplanes, bombs, rifles and uniforms. The military-industrial complex was the best in the world at producing the necessities of war. This had nothing to do with our nascient nuclear capabilities. Moreover, despite the devastation in Europe, post WWII US productivity was the highest the world had ever seen. Finally, there is no room in your criticism for American innovation. Where is your acknowlegement of post-war advancements in medicine, science and technology. Putting a man on the moon came at a national sacrifice and remains the most-watched television event in the history of mankind. The US advances in countering communicable diseases has been the single biggest contribution to latin american health since 1950. And oh yea, the internet. People like you were constrained to spreading your ill-concieved diatribes through print and spoken media, until a group of US MILITARY minds invented the internet. Now, you can send this lunacy into cyberspace.
Ignoring the social struggles in Bolivia against the Morales policies indicates to me that Elio Delgado Legon lives on a different planet.
Sorry to have to point out none of the revolutions have been completed as of yet.
In Venezuela, a corrupt bureaucracy (along with their Cuban allies) has sabatoged, blocked and repressed it but the grassroots and rank and file militants struggle on.
Even in Bolivia many strikes are taking place by workers, students, teachers, health care workers and against the neoliberal policies of the MAS government and indigenous marches against extractive capitalism and Evo does not even come up to Chavez’s bootstraps.
The revolution continues…
Rojo Rojito
cort