Yes, Trump really said that. The Syrian Kurds, who have been where they are about to be ethnically cleansed out of, are welcoming "the ultimate solution," just like Jews in you know where were welcoming "the final solution." Of course they must accept this because they are "no angels," "communists," and "worse then ISIL." So much for a "post-socialist" Bookchinite cooperative system. But, hey, they are all so fortunate to have "the ultimate solution." What else is there to say?
Barkley Rosser
Well, there is more. Trump has declared that the Syrian Kurds should be "happy" to have this "ulitmate solution" to leave this area they have lived in for 4000 years. And just to emphasize the point, Erdogan has declared that if they do not move in the next few days, he will have his troops "crush their skulls." How happy can one get?
ReplyDeleteWhat is a "Bookchinite?"
ReplyDeletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murray_Bookchin
Murray Bookchin (1921 – 2006) was an American social theorist, author, orator, historian, and political philosopher. A pioneer in the ecology movement, Bookchin formulated and developed the theory of social ecology and urban planning, within anarchist, libertarian socialist, and ecological thought. He was the author of two dozen books covering topics in politics, philosophy, history, urban affairs, and ecology. Among the most important were Our Synthetic Environment (1962), Post-Scarcity Anarchism (1971), The Ecology of Freedom (1982) and Urbanization Without Cities (1987). In the late 1990s he became disenchanted with what he saw as an increasingly apolitical "lifestylism" of the contemporary anarchist movement, stopped referring to himself as an anarchist, and founded his own libertarian socialist ideology called Communalism, which seeks to reconcile Marxist and anarchist thought.
Bookchin was a prominent anti-capitalist and advocate of social decentralisation along ecological and democratic lines. His ideas have influenced social movements since the 1960s, including the New Left, the anti-nuclear movement, the anti-globalization movement, Occupy Wall Street, and more recently, the democratic confederalism of Rojava. He was a central figure in the American green movement and the Burlington Greens.
Why should a person know or care about Bookchin? What possible relevance could this long gone person have in relation to the tragedy of the Kurds? I am wildly well-educated and never came on the name before, but why should I think this person would have destroyed the Kurds?
ReplyDeletePlease explain.
According to Wikipedia, Bookchin as a thinker was admired by the Kurds and expressed admiration for the Kurds in turn before his death. Seemingly, the reference to Bookchin in bringing up the terrifying-eliminationist 1930-1940s was decidedly unfortunate.
ReplyDelete"So much for a "post-socialist" Bookchinite cooperative system...."
ReplyDeletePossibly I read this sentence incorrectly as a severe criticism, when the sentence is praising Kurdish social organization. This sentence needs to be explained, since I would think virtually no reader would know what the term "Bookchinite" refers to.
Please explain.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7589029/Donald-Trump-claims-Kurds-want-ultimate-solution.html
ReplyDeleteDaily Mail confirms this very sick statement by Trump.
Trump is no Murray Bookchin. More like Adolph Hitler.
ReplyDelete"So much for a "post-socialist" Bookchinite cooperative system...."
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this post a number of times, I assume now that this sentence is meant to applaud the Kurds for adopting a "post-socialist" Bookchinite cooperative system. So then the philosophy of Bookchin is being approved, rather than criticized.
Now the post reads so much better and I will learn about Bookchin in coming weeks, having never heard the name before.
Thank you for the post.
ReplyDeleteYes, A., it was meant as a largely a compliment. This is a link with the PKK of Turkey, whom the Turks charge them with being just terrorist flunkies of. But the leader of the PKK, Ocelan (sp?), who has been in jail for quite a long time, read Bookchin about 20 years ago and became a fan of his ideas.
ReplyDeleteThe Syrian Kurds have not had much chance to seriously implement these ideas, which they got from Ocelan (again, sp?), as they have been bogged down in military conflict. But they at least have been secular, pro-womens' rights, and democratics, with emphasizing local cooperatives, definitely something fitting in with the Bookchinite view.
Juan Cole has noted that aside from their false charges that the Syrian Kudish YPG have engaged in terrorist actions against them, something US intel say is plain out false, Cole says Erdogan, who ia an Islamist, is afraid of their secular semi-leftist ideology. There is no doubt that when Trump threw in the accusation against them for being "communists," this was him looking fearfully at this Bookchinite ideology.
BTW, in the 1970 and 80s, the PKK was officially Marxist-Leninist, but then moved on to Bookchinism under the influence of Ocelan (sp?), and quite a few, including him, hve described Bookchinism as a "post-socialist" iideology.
Also, btw, I am not searching for it now, but I did oncee a few years ago put up a post about the Syrian Kurds and their affinity for Bookchinism and what it was all about, so regular long time readers of this space would have seen a discussion of who Bookchin was and what his ideas were about.
Oh, and attention was paid to the Syrian Kurds, because the PKK does not have power in Turkey, although I understand that in a few towns where they are strong there have been some half-baked attempts to implement it. But the Syrian Kurds largely in charge of their autonomous region had more authority and more chance, now ended it looks like.
ReplyDeleteAfter some double-checking, the jailed PKK leader who shifted to supporting Bookchinite ideas is Abdullah Ocallan, who was jailed in 1999 by the Turks. He is a fan of the 1998 book by Bookchin that advocates "libertarian municipalism." Communists, indeed.
ReplyDeleteNow I am seeing it as "Ocalan." Anyeay, latest on the local councils in Northeastern Syria is that they are half women with also Arab and Christian members and supposedly focused on environmental issues. Obviously this is dangerous to Turkey and our fearless leader is right to greenlight the Turkish invason to crush these peoples' skulls if they do not give up.
ReplyDeleteI have also read that the former ISIL/Saesh capital of Raqqa has just been taken by the Syrian national army backed by the Russians. Guess that is better than being taken by the Turkss.
I did oncee a few years ago put up a post about the Syrian Kurds and their affinity for Bookchinism and what it was all about, so regular long time readers of this space would have seen a discussion of who Bookchin was and what his ideas were about.
ReplyDelete[ When possible, please do set down the reference since I am unable to find it. I am however going to begin reading Bookchin this week when reference sets aside the work I asked for.
Thank you very much. ]
I have asked reference for these Bookchin works:
ReplyDeleteThe Murray Bookchin Reader (1999; edited by Janet Biehl) Black Rose Books.
Social Ecology and Communalism, AK Press, (2007)
https://www.nybooks.com/daily/2018/06/15/how-my-fathers-ideas-helped-the-kurds-create-a-new-democracy/
ReplyDeleteJune 15, 2018
How My Father’s Ideas Helped the Kurds Create a New Democracy
By Debbie Bookchin
Murray Bookchin is an excellent find for me, and again I am grateful that the name was "mysteriously" mentioned here and I decided to figure out why.
ReplyDelete"I did once a few years ago put up a post about the Syrian Kurds and their affinity for Bookchinism and what it was all about...."
ReplyDeleteI cannot find this post using Google; please do set down the reference.
These sources are proving excellent:
The Murray Bookchin Reader (1999)
Social Ecology and Communalism (2007)
Also, I have read:
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/29/magazine/a-dream-of-utopia-in-hell.html
November 29, 2015
A Dream of Secular Utopia in ISIS’ Backyard
At a college in Kurdish Syria, Rojava tries to train its future leaders.
And:
https://www.nybooks.com/daily/2018/06/15/how-my-fathers-ideas-helped-the-kurds-create-a-new-democracy/
June 15, 2018
How My Father’s Ideas Helped the Kurds Create a New Democracy
By Debbie Bookchin