Slavoj Zizek on the Bolsheviks' Red Terror

Slavoj Zizek discusses how we should understand the Red Terror, the Russian Civil War, and the legacy of Felix Dzerzhinsky.
Subscribe to the channel and hit the like button!
Subscribe to Jacobin for just $10: jacobinmag.com/subscribe/?cod...
Music provided by Zonkey: linktr.ee/zonkey
Full livestream (members): • Slavoj Zizek: The Lega...

[@nathanielibrahim3492]

Sometimes listening to Žižek, I have no idea where he’s going. It feels like a collection of weird anecdotes and comments, but if you put it together and listen to him make his conclusions, it actually makes a lot of sense and he has a lot of great insights.

[@larshofler8298]

yep, it is we the listener's job to give it a punctuation at the end

[@mikemack3243]

Only sometimes? :)

[@cinikcynic3087]

I view him as a total experience. If you listen to him for two minutes it is too much. If you listen for an hour you want more...

[@DC-wg1cr]

Just do cocaine, Zizek makes hella sense on cocaine

[@PaulThronson]

put it on 1.5 speed with captions. it feels more like the language im used to listening to

[@roisin9401]

the violent hand gesturing coupled with shaky video cam is truly cinematographic ty

[@SvalbardSleeperDistrict]

"I will nau say samting horibl haha"

[@hughquigley5337]

Sometimes it takes a while for my ears to get used to listening to Žižek again.

[@farzanamughal5933]

His voice is music to my hears

[@Frame_Verse]

The global scientific capitalism, the capitalist, the capitalist ruler, the capitalist citizen, the capitalist thinker, the capitalist explorer, the capitalist philosopher and the capitalist revolutionary are citizens who do not want to see the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and war on the earth. The global capitalism will end poverty, underdevelopment and war on Earth and in global capitalism the people of the world will begin to live as one nation all over the world. It can be called the era of beauty. In global scientific capitalism, man will start living as a young man for over 150 years.

[@user-mk3vh4cr9j]

王沪宁 is who zizek is referring to en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wang_Huning, whose name literally means Wang of Nanjing and Shanghai (two close megacities of coastal midchina), he's the fifth chair of CCP Central Bureau and the brain behind ideological design of the last three chairmen & general secretaries of China. Usually we call him Xi's Zhdanov or Suslov

[@justinanderson617callme]

I was totally not disappointed with the big Z - - -

[@adoredpariah]

I couldn’t help but laugh that Nando’s only input into the discussion was that he has heard of 69ing. Just to be clear I know Nando is great at his job and has a lot of interesting insights, it was just in this specific interview that was all he got to say, and that made me giggle.

[@dannya1854]

He wanted to say "nice" so badly.

[@farzanamughal5933]

😂

[@Frame_Verse]

The global scientific capitalism, the capitalist, the capitalist ruler, the capitalist citizen, the capitalist thinker, the capitalist explorer, the capitalist philosopher and the capitalist revolutionary are citizens who do not want to see the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and war on the earth. The global capitalism will end poverty, underdevelopment and war on Earth and in global capitalism the people of the world will begin to live as one nation all over the world. It can be called the era of beauty. In global scientific capitalism, man will start living as a young man for over 150 years.

[@billfenner5990]

@27:50 "you know what six nine means? A mutual oral sex position." lol whenever Zizek talks, expect the unexpected

[@RB-jl8gj]

Cale : can you please ask Zizek what biography of Djerdjinski he recommends ? I would be very interested in reading it.

[@shaiaheyes2c41]

Not a biography, but an illuminating read; "The Tcheka" by George Popoff. He was arrested and met Felix Dezerzhinsky himself.

[@noheroespublishing1907]

Shouldn't we just label the evolution of neoliberalism into a furtherance of Enclosure of intellectual property.

[@Work-WorkBalance]

So true!! Thank you Zizek, best man!

[@78deathface]

I just love this absolute holy madman

[@chrishayes5755]

your role model is a crackhead 😂😂😂

[@tengiz8508]

OMG, his laugh when he quotes Lenin saying "practically all the working class is dead"...

[@victorfergn]

Slavoj Žižek loves paradoxes that cause ironic situations.

[@JJ-vz1cx]

Reward capitalists and stomp out tradesmen forming families... story of every Western modern country.

[@CarlosCosta-lm4ye]

Can you guys post the continuation of this video? If it's already posted, can someone link me? I want to watch more about this part that he is talking about China.

[@lunaridge4510]

Comrade Richard Wolff has much more knowledge about China than Žižek. There is a video somewhere on his youtube channel where he explains China's unique predicament and historical trajectory.

[@bruv.8537]

@@lunaridge4510 shut up

[@xasthurwithin4178]

@@lunaridge4510 Yeah dude he just packages it in a baby tier analysis, not comparable to Zizek

[@lunaridge4510]

@@xasthurwithin4178 what is a baby tier analysis?

[@mikemack3243]

@@lunaridge4510 it is superficial

[@nyguerilla]

LMFAO @ Nando's deadpan reply to Zizek's "69" reference @ 27:53 "I've heard of it".. Slavoj's a great guest on these Jacobin shows! #LeftIsBest

[@adoredpariah]

Incredibly interesting perspective as usual, great interview

[@Frame_Verse]

The global scientific capitalism, the capitalist, the capitalist ruler, the capitalist citizen, the capitalist thinker, the capitalist explorer, the capitalist philosopher and the capitalist revolutionary are citizens who do not want to see the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and war on the earth. The global capitalism will end poverty, underdevelopment and war on Earth and in global capitalism the people of the world will begin to live as one nation all over the world. It can be called the era of beauty. In global scientific capitalism, man will start living as a young man for over 150 years.

[@jerrynelson5289]

the Red Terror was necessary because internal enemies were everywhere to kill them. First , The Left SR declared war on the Bolsheviks , Arnachist, Mornachist, so many enemies. Lenin have learned from the Paris Communes Communes where they were crushed by the bourgeoisie.

[@ababyatemydingo4926]

Comrade Slavoj has mentioned before on Jacobin I/Vs memoirs by a British general attached to Kolchak. Have any comrades here managed to find this reference? It is likely the author was Alfred Knox, whose memoirs, published in 1921, end in 1917; but, later on, he was the largely ignored Head of the British Mission (which went by a very Soviet sounding contraction, "Britimis"), a kind of "notional Chef d'Arrière", according to wikipedia attached to Kolchak's (also notional) "All Russian Provisional Government"; there's a photograph of Knox posing, smoking a pipe, standing behind Kolchak and wife from 1919, and another of him with fellow foreign insurgents in Vladivostock. If anyone can share a less tentative reference it would be much appreciated.

[@Luis-of4fs]

He was probably tlaking about Major general William S. Graves, commander of the american forces in Siberia who said: «Semeonoff and Kalmikoff soldiers, under the protection of Japanese troops, were roaming the country like wild animals, killing and robbing the people, and these murders could have been stopped any day Japan wished. If questions were asked about these brutal murders, the reply was that the people murdered were Bolsheviks and this explanation, apparently, satisfied the world. Conditions were represented as being horrible in Eastern Siberia, and that life was the cheapest thing there. There were horrible murders committed, but they were not committed by the Bolsheviks as the world believes. I am well on the side of safety when I say that the anti-Bolsheviks killed one hundred people in Eastern Siberia, to every one killed by the Bolsheviks»

[@dylanvickers8757]

Major Gen. William S. Graves wrote memoirs published about the white terror, a poignant quote: “There were horrible murders committed, but they were not committed by the Bolsheviks as the world believes. I am well on the side of safety when I say that the anti-Bolsheviks killed one hundred people in Eastern Siberia, to every one killed by the Bolsheviks.”

[@lunaridge4510]

I can send you some but they are all in Russian

[@TheGreatAmphibian]

Knox is the only possible candidate. As you say, his book stops before the civil war. Zizek seems to have invented a source to endorse his opinions.

[@LibertarianLeninistRants]

We learn so much from Zizek

[@lunaridge4510]

seriously tho, a Leninist could not possibly be a libertarian. I hope this is in zest.

[@LibertarianLeninistRants]

@@lunaridge4510 Why not? All Communists, including Leninists are against the state. _"While the State exists, there can be no freedom. When there is freedom there will be no State."_ Lenin, State and Revolution Secondly, the original term of libertarianism was always referring to socialists. Just claiming it back from those pseudo-libertarian market worshippers

[@lunaridge4510]

@@LibertarianLeninistRants American "pseudo-libertarians" (but actually fascists) aside, I think you are somewhat confused about the communist parties. They claim they don't like the State and love freedom (as per your quote), but their political program is to institute "socialism" first and then---whenever, in that perfect future---the state under socialism "will wither" and the communism with magically appear. Once they gain power, they forget about withering the State. The real anarchists do not propose any such programs. Nor do they believe in a party that is hierarchal and undemocratic in its structure, with a Leader on top, could possibly make statements about "freedom." Just propaganda and lies. Do you know any centralized state in history that EVER gave up its power?

[@liamalexanian3118]

​@@lunaridge4510 I think the king of bhutan instituted democracy, but one example doesnt disprove your point.

[@CromwellFan]

@@lunaridge4510 there are no fascists in America stop using that word lol

[@pasquieretienne6910]

What's the name of the chinese guy that Slavoj talks about at the end of the video again ?

[@xasthurwithin4178]

Do you mean Xi? Otherwise, if you are interested in Chinese Marxism you should look up Cheng Enfu

[@thomasscream4179]

Wang Hu Ning

[@pasquieretienne6910]

@@thomasscream4179 xie xie :)

[@user-iw1xu5mj5w]

American against American

[@j1n3]

throwing a berserk meme reference there? appreciated!

[@Cabral_del_Norte]

I love the analysis of Zizek of the whole situation.

[@Frame_Verse]

The global scientific capitalism, the capitalist, the capitalist ruler, the capitalist citizen, the capitalist thinker, the capitalist explorer, the capitalist philosopher and the capitalist revolutionary are citizens who do not want to see the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and war on the earth. The global capitalism will end poverty, underdevelopment and war on Earth and in global capitalism the people of the world will begin to live as one nation all over the world. It can be called the era of beauty. In global scientific capitalism, man will start living as a young man for over 150 years.

[@dumupad3-da241]

14:58 - 'In Stalin, you find ... passages where he says: 'OK, we made a compromise in economy, but not to lose power, we have to strengthen our state power, our secret police and so on.' I think that you can find this already in Lenin, unfortunately. And even a formal ban of factions was introduced precisely at that point under Lenin and was later used against the anti-Stalinist oppositions.

[@xasthurwithin4178]

The ban on factions was due to the emergency situation, and the fact that Social Revolutionaries and Mensheviks in the past stood in the way of peace. I'd like to point out though that Democratic Centralism still means open discussion and democratic process; it just means you do not conspire in factions like in bourgeois parties.

[@lunaridge4510]

Stalin was the most dutiful of Lenin's followers, he implemented many of his boss' nascent programs and ideas. A brutal version of G.U.L.A.G. started with him (well, he followed the Tsar , of course). Lenin murdered the cream of the Russian literary and artistic avant garde who had cheered the revolution. The latter being the most urgent aim of the Red Terror in St. Petersburg.

[@denxero]

nothing unfortunate about it. You libs need to grow up.

[@disappointedoptimist255]

@@denxero Can something not even be a necessary evil with you people? Do you have to glorify what are at best controlled measures of brutality brought on by extreme circumstances as if they are virtuous?

[@dumupad3-da241]

@@lunaridge4510 'Lenin murdered the cream of the Russian literary and artistic avant garde who had cheered the revolution.' - this is just false, even if you mean those who cheered the February revolution and were hostile to October. Of course those who actively conspired against the Soviet regime like Gumilev were executed.

[@diogrigor]

Respected Slavoj Zizek speaks english in a special way. I think you should definitely add subs when he talks. Kind suggestion.

[@ConanDuke]

Jen Pan's mullet looks dope!

[@Frame_Verse]

Along with great capitalism and natural science around the world rapidly make knowledge strong on the Earth. To the extent that knowledge is strengthened in the human mind throughout the world, the philosophy of scientific capitalism will be strengthened on Earth. It will be the cause of beauty and happiness in man as well as in the world. The global scientific and capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary are defenders of the future Earth and global people, as well as defenders of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Only the capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary can end the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and wars in the world today with the help of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Likewise, scientific capitalist philosophers will create rapid plans on Earth with the help of natural science and grand capitalism to conquer the universe.

[@luisbroscheit7834]

My god this is really refreshing! Inspite of the predominant fearmongering on the "Horrors" of the Sovjet-Union (wich usually is enough for most people to just wash it away, not having to care or think about it) , we get a well balanced kritical look on the incredibly uncertain times of Russian Revolution. My Question would be about the guy Slavoj names as one of the big 7 in the Coucil of China. I dont really get his name.

[@dez713]

Wang Huning

[@shaiaheyes2c41]

It was horror, if you care to think and learn about it, you'll know it was. Hell on earth.

[@philipganchev2306]

Fascinating! Zizek is so clear here! Pleasantly surprised and grateful!

[@lunaridge4510]

Me too, pleasantly surprised. Sometimes he actually does explain things and offer unique perspective on ideas, personalities, and history, rather than jumping all over the place and being ridiculous. A very good lecture.

[@coldcoffee1506]

I would call Zizek a lot of things but “clear” wouldn’t be one of them 😂

[@Frame_Verse]

The global scientific capitalism, the capitalist, the capitalist ruler, the capitalist citizen, the capitalist thinker, the capitalist explorer, the capitalist philosopher and the capitalist revolutionary are citizens who do not want to see the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and war on the earth. The global capitalism will end poverty, underdevelopment and war on Earth and in global capitalism the people of the world will begin to live as one nation all over the world. It can be called the era of beauty. In global scientific capitalism, man will start living as a young man for over 150 years.

[@NobuhikuObayashi]

❤️ you Zizek

[@TheJayman213]

great ramble.

[@tengiz8508]

Why do you time this around October 25? Why not November 7th?

[@herm574]

WOW. amazing interview detailing the nuances of historical leftism. Too many leftists are quick to stick to one idea and reject all other forms they don't consider "true communism" (looking at you Chomsky), but learning from past and even present socialist states is very essential to our own practise.

[@danebarisic1061]

Hello great talk. Looks like my contribution by being an Economics Technic... Almost an diplomated economist well not finished. I am an Econom none the less. Would be happy to help evolve the economics sistems in the world participating in the biggest ongoing evolution of the world. This is the time and opportunity to better the harmonic evolution of the economic sistem with others... social work education and management Great Evolution of awareness and management of the world and its optimistic evolutionary change for the better. Its a pleasure an honnor a need of earth itself and an opportunity for you for Mr and for all. Let's leave this world as late as possible and leave it in the best of conditions for the ones chiming after and now growing. All well to you and for the after us all. Appreciate your efforts passion and courage mostly time. We'll done until now.

[@Frame_Verse]

Along with great capitalism and natural science around the world rapidly make knowledge strong on the Earth. To the extent that knowledge is strengthened in the human mind throughout the world, the philosophy of scientific capitalism will be strengthened on Earth. It will be the cause of beauty and happiness in man as well as in the world. The global scientific and capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary are defenders of the future Earth and global people, as well as defenders of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Only the capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary can end the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and wars in the world today with the help of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Likewise, scientific capitalist philosophers will create rapid plans on Earth with the help of natural science and grand capitalism to conquer the universe.

[@andreav318]

Love ❤️ Slavoj!

[@kyelemoler]

"Smile Revolution"

[@trajancanada]

Is this man in good health? The frantic and frenetic speech, gesticulations and the constant rubbing of the nose.

[@Frame_Verse]

Along with great capitalism and natural science around the world rapidly make knowledge strong on the Earth. To the extent that knowledge is strengthened in the human mind throughout the world, the philosophy of scientific capitalism will be strengthened on Earth. It will be the cause of beauty and happiness in man as well as in the world. The global scientific and capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary are defenders of the future Earth and global people, as well as defenders of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Only the capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary can end the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and wars in the world today with the help of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Likewise, scientific capitalist philosophers will create rapid plans on Earth with the help of natural science and grand capitalism to conquer the universe.

[@TheLetterH111]

Theyre nervous ticks. English is not his native language

[@anpro....]

👍👋

[@farrider3339]

Stock market is happy when things go rough , because by second look at situation the broker immediately knows , that tax money will be used to support struggling big companies. Constant infusions of vast sums since 2008 has totally changed the free capitalistic market from free to dependent (roughly about what Varufakis said) And GiGa companies like Amazon decide about the price of a product , neither market nor consumer . Capitalism already is dead , we don't have to fight it anymore ✊°°°

[@rogerdinhelm4671]

I don't know what kind of biography did Zizek read, but I haven't seens any mentions of Dzerjinskyi caring about prisoners at all, for example with tragedy of Nazino, when his OGPU rounded up thousands of random people and left them fend for themselves on uninhabited island, it was not Dzerjinskiy, who shed light on and resolved this problem, but low-level party functioneers. On contrary I 've read memoirs, that Dzerjinsky turned any minitsry into OGPU, i.e. totalitarian hell.

[@nicoloprovenzi]

Dzerjinskyi died in 1926,the Nazino tragedy appended in 1933. You can check on Wikipedia.

[@Frame_Verse]

Along with great capitalism and natural science around the world rapidly make knowledge strong on the Earth. To the extent that knowledge is strengthened in the human mind throughout the world, the philosophy of scientific capitalism will be strengthened on Earth. It will be the cause of beauty and happiness in man as well as in the world. The global scientific and capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary are defenders of the future Earth and global people, as well as defenders of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Only the capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary can end the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and wars in the world today with the help of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Likewise, scientific capitalist philosophers will create rapid plans on Earth with the help of natural science and grand capitalism to conquer the universe.

[@user-ij5sw7fd6x]

'you want to listen to a professional of this period? Listen to Asatar Bair. PS: He has a much cooler beard maybe that's why he has much more to say on the topic🤔.

[@lunaridge4510]

would you share a link then?

[@user-ij5sw7fd6x]

@@lunaridge4510 I don't know how to share links in KZbin (

[@lunaridge4510]

@@user-ij5sw7fd6x You don't know how to copy and paste?

[@user-ij5sw7fd6x]

@@lunaridge4510 I use a cellphone, there is no address line.

[@Stret173]

интересно впервые слышу про этого чела

[@sgh94644]

As a Marxist leninist ISH I appreciate the balance here. I would def give numbers from the revisionists too but this was still good

[@grev.]

someone buy zizek a microphone

[@Alexed.w]

It's strange to have to make this correction but I think it should be said that homosexuality was decriminalized only as a consequence of the transition from czarist law. It was soon recriminalized.

[@sgh94644]

My goodness does my dude touch his face a lot. But I can relate lol

[@user-sl6gn1ss8p]

I may have misunderstood something, but isn't banning 12 hours a day 6 days a week of work kind of 100 years overdue, even by capitalist countries standards?

[@johnstewart7025]

When I would read how the US supreme court foiled progressive attempts to regulate labor and working conditions in the 19th century, I always assumed that once the court changed its mind, it would never UNCHANGE it. But, of course, the court changed its mind about Jim Crow (Plessy) and about abortion laws (Roe).

[@Tolyan97kartofan]

I am the walrus

[@christophercrane5831]

Zizek sounding a lot like he read Revolution Betrayed

[@Frame_Verse]

Along with great capitalism and natural science around the world rapidly make knowledge strong on the Earth. To the extent that knowledge is strengthened in the human mind throughout the world, the philosophy of scientific capitalism will be strengthened on Earth. It will be the cause of beauty and happiness in man as well as in the world. The global scientific and capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary are defenders of the future Earth and global people, as well as defenders of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Only the capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary can end the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and wars in the world today with the help of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Likewise, scientific capitalist philosophers will create rapid plans on Earth with the help of natural science and grand capitalism to conquer the universe.

[@Wkay04]

but the NEP was put into place by Lenin and Stalin reversed it....

[@nebojsabuhac1442]

I'm definitely not a fan of Zizek but he's made some great points here

[@farzanamughal5933]

Why aren't you a fan

[@nebojsabuhac1442]

@@farzanamughal5933 in short, he's a little bit too eclectic (which i believe isn't really good for anyone in social sciences), he says so much that he ends up contradicting himself too often, & he's way too easy on liberals and conservatives (as seen in debate with Peterson, even though JP was demolished, moreso by himself than by Žižek imo).. i think it can be summed up in a very accurate self criticism in his Mongol and farmer joke in regards to the critical left.. however, i do find some of his writings on Lenin pretty interesting and i can't deny that many of his jokes are a treasure 😂 however, i think he might be good as an introduction to radical leftist thought but not much more

[@farzanamughal5933]

@@nebojsabuhac1442 Ok that's interesting. I would say I am a big fan of Zizek even though I guess you are correct about some of your criticisms, although I don't necessarily see some of ehat you said as negatives. I see him as a funny uncle who is eccentric but very wise and insightful too

[@nebojsabuhac1442]

@@farzanamughal5933 and i would not disagree with your description of him, in fact i think it's pretty accurate. Some of his works have had a great impact on me previously but i believe his criticism of the "real existing socialism" (Cuba first of all) is more in line with a lot of imperialist propaganda than any Marxist thinkers. However, he did define himself as a Hegelian rather than Marxist. I see him more as a poet instead of a scientist, so while i do enjoy listening to him (yes, really) i am careful enough to put up a thick wall of skepticism.

[@Qualia_z]

21:29

[@KozelPraiseGOELRO]

Not very interested in Jacobin, but where Zizek speaks, it's a call for me.

[@user-Jamie218]

Put on the sunglasses 😎

[@michaelslowmin]

Was Zizek making the "red fascism" fallacy about china at the end there. I could be wrong, I have a really hard time following him sometimes. He makes a lot of inferences without elaborating in a way that makes sense.

[@rudiegotbetter8730]

Could you elaborate what you mean by fallacy?

[@michaelslowmin]

@@rudiegotbetter8730 basically the idea that existing socialist projects like the USSR or China are/were some form of fascism from the left. Idk if I was using the term fallacy correctly, but I think you get the idea.

[@rudiegotbetter8730]

@@michaelslowmin Sure I get it.

[@user-bl7oe2md4p]

One of the many weird and unfortunately tragic ironies of the Russian revolution was that Lenin himself was wildly revisionist of what pre WWI standard Marxist socialist doctrine was, he then went on to ruthlessly repress any other deviation from their specific inflexible interpretation as being revisionism and as dangerously antisocialist and counter revolutionary. These deviations and revisions (freedom of thought) of the new orthodoxy were seen as threatening to the authority and power of the revolutionary government and were turned into crimes against the state and the people. Lenin was actually more a pragmatist rather than ideological but since the success of the revolution was conditional on maintaining the party unity and a high degree of party cohesion, consensus and discipline, all dissent was seen as disloyalty and treason.

[@maynardwayward12]

Personally, I adhere to the dogma of Groucho-Lennonism

[@ConanDuke]

Maybe it's time to stop calling it: 'The Red Terror'.

[@tengiz8508]

What are you talking about, comrade? It's the name used by the Bolsheviks.

[@Newt0rz]

It's an homage to the purging during the French Revolution I think

[@lunaridge4510]

@@tengiz8508 Exactly, I was about to say that. Красный Террор

[@xasthurwithin4178]

Terror didn't have a negative connotation since the end of WWII.

[@tengiz8508]

@@xasthurwithin4178 out of 7 First Secretaries of the Youth Communist Organization (29 October is when it was celebrated in USSR), 6 were convicted end executed because they were Enemies of the People. Is this negative enough?

[@kevinistoxic1179]

This dude is so cracked out. Fools geekin

[@thedeadcellist]

Unless you have a lot of mediocre cocaine and no better plans, do not watch this. We deserve better.

[@Frame_Verse]

Along with great capitalism and natural science around the world rapidly make knowledge strong on the Earth. To the extent that knowledge is strengthened in the human mind throughout the world, the philosophy of scientific capitalism will be strengthened on Earth. It will be the cause of beauty and happiness in man as well as in the world. The global scientific and capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary are defenders of the future Earth and global people, as well as defenders of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Only the capitalist citizen, thinker, explorer, philosopher and revolutionary can end the poverty, underdevelopment, divisions and wars in the world today with the help of capitalism, the capitalist mechanism and the capitalist class. Likewise, scientific capitalist philosophers will create rapid plans on Earth with the help of natural science and grand capitalism to conquer the universe.

[@denxero]

In a nutshell, Red Terror GOOD. Soclibs get mad about it.

[@farrider3339]

Wall Street terror better ?

[@denxero]

If you can't help but side with Imperialism, I suppose you'd say that. Which only confirms my initial point.

[@nicholasdasilva9]

If you read Lenin’s letters, you will very quickly find that he had very little regard for human life, which he viewed as expendable for the revolution.

[@dennisryan5586]

New to Zizek, but he actually thinks Cromwell was a good guy??

[@farrider3339]

I bet not . He uses irony. But for him I think the figure of C. and all the other "good friends" are useful to point out certain deep basics about the insufficiency in human society to reach at a point of arrival. Greed fear jealousy drunkenness by power and so and so on always stand between the idea and what is factually implemented .•°

[@DC-wg1cr]

Uh Zizek, Stalin had even more shit coming at him than Lenin. His terrors pale in comparison to what he beat, nazism.

[@Saktoth]

He is talking about the 20s into late 30s. The Molotov Ribbentrop pact was only violated in '41. Not like Stalin chilled out on '45 either.

[@DC-wg1cr]

@@Saktoth uh you can't "chill out" when imperialist countries are trying to overthrow you. You can't "chill out" after a devastating war that has severely crippled your society. Should Stalin have been less paranoid about the USSR being overthrown? Lmao

[@otto_jk]

Gulags are good because Concentration camps are worse? What shit Tankie logic this is

[@DC-wg1cr]

@@otto_jk you're brain on liberalism: "let the Nazis win, if you fight them you're as bad as they are!"

[@disappointedoptimist255]

@@DC-wg1cr Lmao it was liberals in the west that fought Nazism, what do any of Stalin's actions within his own jurisdiction have to do with WW2?

[@thosethatcan]

That's...old hat.

[@selfsaboteursounds5273]

He has so many other interesting takes that it's honestly hard to listen to him simp for violent political repression here, particularly in a somewhat blinkered, leninist-trotskyist flavored way. Of course I also know that his whole philosophical programme is about the ironic critique of ideology as a whole while realizing that one cannot escape ideology, so it's actually hard to tell to what degree he's intentionally playing to the biases of Jacobin Mag editors in order to play a Diogenes-esque game with them. This must be how SJWs feel when they here him spit what are actually fairly neutral takes about trans rights, but in a provocatively ambiguous framing that scans as transphobia from their ideological lens. It's funny, because it almost seems like he's trying to be neutral when he knows damn well that's not really possible, so he allows everyone to project onto his projections as a way to help him make his point. How many licks does it take to get to the center of what Zizek actually believes? The world may never know

[@febopennyficari8716]

Does zizek believe the propaganda about the Soviet Union?

[@febopennyficari8716]

I’ve not seen the episode yes just asking if someone already knows

[@thosethatcan]

He likes *something..😁🥦🪄

[@goodbeans]

So you mean Soviet propaganda about the USSR or US propaganda about the USSR? Your question isn't clear.

[@seanconnolly6002]

@@febopennyficari8716 His views aren’t informed by Soviet propaganda.

[@tengiz8508]

He absolutely repeats the most of the Soviet Propaganda and the official Soviet Narratives.

[@TheHonestScribbler]

The only thing worse than his analysis is his coke habit.

[@TLM860]

The Bolsheviks weren't particularly nice to the peasants, tambov rebellion, makhnovschina and Kronstadt big examples.

[@lunaridge4510]

As far as the communists were concerned, the peasants were property owners and, therefore, class enemy. The only classes who were not their enemies were the starving poor. In a way, they were right. Look what happened to the industrial working class, as soon as they got their cars, houses, pensions--they moved right. Sometimes, quite far right.

[@TLM860]

The vast majority of peasants were "starving poor", their economic conditions were not too much better after the formal abolition of serfdom.

[@chrishayes5755]

@@TLM860 doesn't help they literally got robbed of their meager harvest to feed the socialists in the cities. oh, and they got all their private land robbed, cuz you know 1 acre of farmland makes you a rich peasant.

[@SzalonyKucharz]

@@lunaridge4510 By that logic, was Holodomor the Bolsheviks' attempt to expand their Ukrainian fan-base? Oh yeah, how they fondly remember starving just to be delivered from becoming those quite far right sympathizers.

[@TLM860]

@@chrishayes5755 The peasants were socialists too. Most of them would've been happier with the Socialist Revolutionaries (SRs) than the Bolsheviks. In fact the SRs won the elections for the constituent assembly in 1918 but the Bolsheviks overode the results anyway.

[@heberpelagio7161]

The "success" of Stalin - the man who used to boast about having conducted the U.S.S.R. "from the plow to the atomic bomb in just a generation" - compared to Gorbachev's failure shows that a socialist economy is unable to function with a minimum of efficiency without requiring a massive dose of political violence. In an attempt to reform a decadent regime, Gorbachev moved faster with the process of economic opening in the hope of removing the predictable resistance that the Soviet bureaucracy would create to economic reform measures, as thorough proof with the failed attempt. coup d'état in August 1991 - which ended up precipitating the final crisis of socialism and the dissolution of the USSR itself Its Chinese parallel - Deng Xiaoping - adopted a logic diametrically opposed to that of Gorbachev: it prioritized the achievement of economic prosperity (adopting in practice capitalism) precisely to delay any attempt at political opening, as was evident with the acceleration of the economy. reforms after the Tiananmen Square massacre. It is important to note that it was Karl Marx himself who, in his Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy, discerned the scenario in which the conditions for a social revolution process are formed, describing it as follows: “At a certain stage in its development, the material productive forces of society contradict existing production relations or - which is only their legal expression - with the property relations in which they have been active until then. From the forms of development of the productive forces, these relations are transformed into fetters of them. So, it is a time of social revolution. ' * By rejecting the pursuit of profit maximization as an instrument to stimulate innovation, socialist countries ended up condemning themselves to obsolescence. Thus, they lost the chance to incorporate the productivity gains made possible by technological progress. That is why the capitalist countries managed to provide a greater rise in the standard of living of their population, even without pursuing the egalitarian ideal. Therefore, until the “final crisis of socialism” (to paraphrase K. Marx's own definitions once again), it was only a matter of time. But religious fanatics do not give up on their faith, even against the indisputable proof of the facts, which completely refute it! * Reproduced according to MARX, K. Preface to the Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy, organized by Florestan Fernandes and published under the title K. Marx: Theory and historical process of the social revolution, In Marx & Engels, Great Social Scientists Collection, History, vol. 36. São Paulo: Ática, 1983. p. 232. Commemorative edition of the centenary of Karl Marx's death

[@mnoorist8223]

Stalin still the real hero.

[@user1138]

Stalin was a power hungry, paranoid, thug who betrayed the revolution.

[@KARW37]

Stalin killed my grandmother’s family and was a totalitarian

[@mnoorist8223]

@@KARW37don't care.

[@rybakmm8877]

Stalin is a most responsible for extention and transferring of red terror into the "class war", he is responsible for killing of millions innocent people in USSR 1930 to 1953, he was asatan and the devil at the same time.

[@mnoorist8223]

@@rybakmm8877 no proof oh him killing so many people. No graves, no paper trail. It is all made up to make him look bad.

[@tengiz8508]

I find the fascination by the Bolsheviks quite distasteful to say the least.

[@pasternus]

No one cares abour your tastes

[@tengiz8508]

​@@pasternus I have No doubt about it. I lived under the Soviets, so I know the type.

[@uhwaykin]

@@tengiz8508 no one asked

[@tengiz8508]

@@uhwaykin as I said. Having lived under the Communism, I am not at all shocked by this kind of comments. I know the type too well.

[@OleSandberg]

@@pasternus not true. I care.