PRAGOTI

Interesting .But I don't share the author's treatment of the entire legacy of the October Revolution and the flawed but momentous experiments in Socialist construction as a baggage. Treating it as good riddance to make Marxism attractive in present circumstances as merely a critique of Capitalism.

We have a lot to learn and adopt from the electoral success of Lula , Chavez , Morares ,Ortega , the Nepalese Maoists and South African communists . Also from the economic growth of China and the political resilience of the Cuban revolution . We have more to learn from the capitalist restoration in former USSR and Eastern Bloc countries and the budding success of nationalist( patriotic ) - Communist currents and parties in former Socialist Bloc countries . There is much to learn from the utter failure of Trotskyist / autonomist / anarchist groups to politically take off anywhere in the world .We have not even tried to study in depth the decline of mass communist parties like the Italian Communist party as well as the once powerful social democratic parties like Marxist oriented Japanese Socialist party . Of course, we need to be update on the endless varieties of European academic Marxism including ' hermeneutic communism'.

All these learning will however will be philistine exercises in the absence of an honest , objective and self critical examination of the long glorious history of the Indian Communist movement and the theorization of its experience including its failures and its uneven growth , all from a Marxistr - Leninist perspective . The CPI(M) draft document on " Some Ideological Issues" for discussion and adoption at its 20th party congress in Kozhikode offers the best opportunity for all well meaning friends of the Left in India to contribute to drawing an organic road map for building " Socialism in Indian Conditions". The party's political resolution has also several bold but practical initiatives for advancing towards this goal within the party's programmatic frame. From whatever little I know , Pragoti comrades seem best equipped and best positioned to contribute responsibly to enriching the two documents which are already in the public domain.

We could even think of a Pragoti Platform if there is sufficient consensus on amendments which have to be distilled after fraternal discussion in the Website. Too ambitious , Comrades ?

NMK