The following is the first part of our republication of Loren Goldner‘s 2008 series of articles in the journal Historical Materialism. The articles concern the Bolivian National Revolution of 1952 and the strategy of the socialist movement in the context of the national liberation struggle. We consider this debate to be of considerable importance, and […]

Brian de Palma’s 1974 film Phantom of the Paradise was met with shrugs by most critics, becoming a cult classic soon after. Max J revisits the comedy-musical and what it has to say about the human cost of fame in the culture industry. In the myth of Faust, German alchemist Johann Georg Faust sells his […]

R. Lee Antonio Garcia has written a clear and articulate article about Marxism, law and the state, which is to be commended. Unfortunately, because of the way the article is phrased as an ‘Introduction’ rather than an expression of personal opinion, I am worried that some people will take the article as representing Communist Unity […]

Anthony Furia, Melbourne Comrade Brunhilda’s article “Australia’s ‘foreign legion'” is a strong discussion of the history of Australian militarism (as intimately tied as it is with colonial and imperialist ambitions) in the Pacific. Unfortunately, due to focus and scope, it neglects to provide critical detail on what, precisely, Australian imperialism is. That is, what structure […]

The question of the state, and subsequently the theory of law and politics, is central to Marxist theory. Antonio Garcia endeavours to give a general introduction. “What is the state?” The state is, at its most essential, the embodiment of the ruling class’ privileged position in a society, and the enforcer of that position. It […]

The following text was written in 1979 by Mansoor Hekmat, leading figure in Sahand, a precursor organisation to the Communist Party of Iran. In it, he argues that in the epoch of imperialism, the national bourgeoisie is no longer able to play a progressive role in social development, and are instead subordinate to and dominated […]

Even in the wake of the collapse of the European left populist projects, one form of populism or another still seems the order of the day. Brunhilda Olding mounts a criticism of this trend, with reference to a recent book on the topic by C. Derrick Varn and Daniel Tutt. The Australian historian Humphrey McQueen […]

The erstwhile Australian Communist Party (ACP) have renamed themselves the Republican Workers Party. However, as Joey X. argues, this turn towards left nationalism will not save them. For the past two years, the Australian Communist Party (ACP) has been dying a slow death. Its membership has dwindled, its infamous kitchens are closing, and few now […]

What is the communist press, and why is it important? Max J argues that such a press, made up of robust publications, is crucial for spreading communist politics and for building a counter-hegemonic, revolutionary pole.See also: Reflections on the RCO’s three years of publishing William F. Dunne’s 1924 article The Revolutionary Role of Workers Correspondents […]

Giacomo Corrado, WA. A community forum hosted by The Greens WA on 10 September told us nothing about why reactionary politics have exploded in Australia, and even less about how to fight it. It featured five panelists; MLC Sophie McNeill, emergency physician Dr. Mohammed Mustafa, writer Sisonke Msimang, Aboriginal Elder Esther Montgomery and MP Dr […]

With the summer approaching and the water system failing, catastrophic social crisis is looming in Papua New Guinea. Brunhilda Olding reports. I feel it would be remiss not to begin this article with a brief disclaimer on its nature. The bones of this piece is taken from a much longer and more analytical article I […]

Anthony Furia, Melbourne In June, Partisan published a letter entitled “Which Australia benefits from imperialism?” by ‘Ober’ – a response to my own article on a recent article of David Clarke’s published by Red Ant. The consistent fault in Ober’s line of argument is the notion that the internal stratification of, for example, the Australian […]