Bonaparte is back. And suddenly there is a lot of hype about Levon Ter-Petrossyan’s almost unexpected re-emergence on the political scene. This hype is also worrying as it is indicative of how volatile and *individual-orientated* the political atmosphere in Armenia is. Levon has made a 90min speech mostly criticising the existing regime, he has shown us no real alternative and no real manifesto or directions as of yet, though what is really worrying is that suddenly the public is already all hyped up about his re-emergence. Armenian politics is still about particular individuals, rather than concrete policies and directions. So I thought I’d throw in some of my reflections and analysis to clarify my position especially since we’ve been previously accused of being LTP supporters mainly by the writers from the Russophone blogosphere.
This is the video of Gagik Tsarukian’s “house”. (if you have issues with high blood pressure or anger management, then don’t watch)
But what you see there is only the front reception room… I know that there is a whole huge palace complex with latin-american style piazza behind it.
When I first watched this video, the first instinct was Anger — pure anger! But then one needs to sober up and look at all this in calm analytical and historical perspectives. This is not Oligarchy!!!“Oligarkhia” is a stupid apologetic term applied by the social scientists to some post-Soviet republics, with a connotation of “a peculiar case of capitalist development that went *slightly* off track” … as if Capitalism is designed to deliver general prosperity and long-term balance for all, but in some rare cases small anomalies such as oligarkia are possible. Bullfuckingshit. This is Capitalism, and that’s all there is to it. And oligarchy is the integral and inseparable part in its development.
From this point onwards I refuse to use the term “Oligarkhiya“. Let’s name things as they are: this is Capitalism! Yes, it’s a simple and banal point, but nevertheless an important one: revolution must start from a refusal to participate in the usage of the terminology and the language of the enemy. And Gagik, Serzhik, Robik, they are not oligarchs – they are Capitalists — the rulling elite of this capitalist regime — the Labrador Class acting on behalf of Global Capital. There is nothing new or original in the way that capitalist structures develop and integrate in Armenia — a same old story that we have witnessed time and time again.
As I watched this video the second time, I couldn’t help but recall the videos from pre-Castro Cuba… it was all the same. Cuba was a satellite puppy of America with very small white minority owning everything there was to own and indulging themselves in endless endeavours of bourgeois decadence, while the vast majority of population was living in shanty-towns and townships with no education, healthcare, regular food – toiling in sugar cane plantations and tobacco fields. And sooner or later people did rebel – people rebelled and as we have seen in so many other places the Communist forces hijacked the revolution.
My instinct is to wait – wait until the conditions have matured to the point when people will see that it is not the Individual leader or the Will to do good that is the question, but the Structure of the economical system that cultivates these material and cultural conditions, and the social and political contradictions and paradoxes. Until people themselves realise it that capitalism is not the right path to democracy, free-entrepreneurship and participatory-politics, until that day revolutions will either be shipwrecked or replaced by dictatorships.
I wonder what would happen if a video like this was broadcasted on Armenian TV? Yes, Armenia definitely needs alternative channels of Information whereby the info can flow openly and with no restrictions or privileges.
Flash Radio is going to be broadcasting directly from Rostock from anti-G8 protests: 1 podcast per day. Since none of these events are given any significance whatsoever in Armenian media (even the ones who parade themselves as “Alternative” or “Radical”), I decided to post these daily Podcasts as soon as the arrive from location.
I will keep updating this post each day with new podcasts.
Yesterday on the 2nd of June the first major G8 2007 clashes occurred in Restock, Germany. As usual the clashes were perpetrated by the fascist police units who attacked the protestors indiscriminately and brutally. As the protestors are branded as ‘terrorists’ I guess there is a new State policy of ‘shoot anything that moves’. The same thing is in practice in Iraq.
Now the question is: be beaten and arrested or protect yourself and others. I go with the second option where as a united group you can resist the beating and arrests. That’s the core of the Black blocs re-introduced in Seattle.
Black Bloc. I also like the clown tactics.
Дорогие Читатели,
Хотим пригласить Вас на наш новый форум, который находится по адрессу www.esin.ws . Форум посвящён обсуждению всего политического как в Армении так и на Кавказе. Можно сказать мы отрицаыем “Политику” Спектакля, и ищем настоящую Политику. Форум основан на принцыпах Солидарности, Плюрализма, Уважения, Содействия, Разнобразности и Автонома. Мы призываем всех кто слева как и всех кто не желает быть классифицирован(ной), но требует свободы и Радикальнои Демократии. Мы зазываем на наш новый ФОРУМ всех груп, организации и индивидов не-конформистов кто желает Свободу и Равенство – давайте садиться за круглуй стол (или скорее, за много разных круглых столов) и делиться идеями.
Этот проект основан на организационных принцыпах Автономного движения, Анти-Глобалистского движения и Мирового Общественного Форума. Наша организация имеет федеративную структуру, исключающую руководство и иерархию, отрицающую неравенство участников, централизм, жесткое разделение функций, которые губят инициативу, разрушают нашу автономию и подавляют личность. Наши идейные и орнанизационные принцыпы достаточно широки чтобы не сделать из этого движения секту, и в тоже самоые время позволить каждому извлечь что-то полезное в практическом плане и интересное. Read the rest of this entry »
(I took this video from one of my favourite blogs in Armenian blogosphere: What Democracy Means)
What is this “Long-War” all about??? Afghanistan first, then Iraq and now Rupert Murdock and the Imperialists have unleashed their propaganda/media campaigns against our neighboring Iran. Are these invasions by the terrorist superpower about nuclear power? Islamic fundamentalism? Dictatorships? weapons of mass destruction? Terrorism? human rights violations against the Kurds and other minorities? Or are they about something much more basic – OIL?!? So what does this mean in global context and what does it mean for ordinary people in Armenia? Read the rest of this entry »
Indymedia reports: On January 14 of this year, Mandiyú – a group of small dairy farmers – occupied a 388 hectare section of the Eduardo Acevedo Estate in the area of Bella Unión, in the north of Uruguay. This is the second land occupation in the country, following the group of “peludos” (sugar cane workers) in their occupation one year ago of another 32 hectares that had been abandoned for more than ten years. Read the rest of this entry »
“In this possibly terminal phase of human existence democracy and freedom are more than values to be treasured. They may well be essential to survival.”
Noam Chomsky is officially the most quoted intellectual alive. Some regard him as the greatest philosopher remaining. …oh, and he is also an anarchist, or as he sometimes refers to himself, a “Libertarian-Socialist”.
I’m deeply disappointed by the level at which the contemporary debates and thinking about Armenian politics is taking place (especially within Read the rest of this entry »
I stumbled across this documentary during one of my regular visits to “Martuni or Bust!” blog.This documentary by award winning director/producer Aaron Russo (who nearly won Libertarian Party‘s presidential candidacy in 2004) titled “America: Freedom to Fascism” is 1h49min long, but well worth the watch.It’s a wake up call not only to Americans but also to everyone around the world.It talks about the many plans which in effect will result in further and total enslavement of the people and the rise of the Total State.Consider some of these:
By May of 2008 the law will require you to carry a bio-metric national identification card, which will contain the info about your DNA, Retina scan, finger-prints and other info and the card will be connected to a governement database !
The fact that there are so many parties in Armenia might not actually be a bad development (given that there is the right type of constitutional setting to cater for such a development). Of course, that’s not what the Rebiblican and Parliamentary system desire, but at least it shows that people care and are involved with political life of the country.
Now it’s not something that should be disqualified as a necessarily ill development on the grounds that it won’t work within the configurations of Parliamentarianism (after all the struggle should be to make Democracy work, and not the Representative Parliamentarism 😉 ). Instead, we should be asking how to re-structure the political system in such a way that would accomodate and make the best use of such political diversification (something that many political scientists, for instance, would praise).
Armenian Libertarian-Socialist Movement 