The Garden of the Finzi-Continis by Giorgio Bassani. Although initially I couldn’t grasp much of what was happening in the prologue, as I progress it grows on me more and more.
The term “social democracy” is very deceiving nowadays since it does not pertain anymore to the roots of the ideology which has changed quite drastically in the last century.
The original premise was that socialism could be achieved through reform and not revolution (hence it parted ways with the Marxist position). That is, the State’s institutions were suitable enough to “eventually” or “some day” lead to a socialist mode of production, and so cooperation with the state and, by extension, the bourgeoisie were incremental for socialism. This is why socdem parties were firm believers that change comes from the parliamentary electoral structure (Esson, 2022). I am not going to argue why this is problematic—Marx and Engels have said enough regarding this.
However, social democracy as we know it in the modern age is vastly different from what it used to be. The ideology in the 70’s has become attached to the Third Way and socdem parties throughout the world gradually adopted neoliberal policies, pressured by electoral competition. And the Scandinavian countries, home of social democracy, are an exemplary case to this. Just compare their parties’ agenda before and after WW2 and you will see what I am talking about.
To refer to “social democracy” as anything less than capitalism would be factually fallacious.
It’s always been a family (indeed, a national) tradition to watch the world cup. Son inherits his loyalty to a club from father just like clan names. However, in the last two cups I became only loyal to a good match of football, to whomever knows how to treat a ball like a gentleman. Perhaps it’s the nostalgia or the collective bondage which still draws me like millions of other fans to watch it play out every four years.
That said, nothing beats a good, friendly match with the pals in the local field; or the recess matches between the cramped walls in school, using a home-made nylon/paper ball.
Soccer in Sun and Shadow by Uruguayan journalist Eduardo Galeano. The passion in which he recounts the sport’s history from its modest inception up to its consumerist rebranding, and the vividness in which he describes its beautiful moments and dismal tragedies, is simply breathtaking. Galeano’s words on paper capture the art of the sport better than any camera and TV screen.
I will be writing and posting a review of the book once I am done reading it.
The centrality of archaeology in articulating and espousing the politics of nation states as also erstwhile empires is today undeniable. The history of archaeological research and practice is replete with cases where material culture has been used to produce origin myths, shared imaginaries of communities simultaneous with...
My review of “Orientalism” (1978) by Edward W. Said (lemmy.ml)
When I asked my friend how she found the book to be, she described it as “a jumble of thoughts that felt familiar.”...
The Historical Awareness of Khairy Al-Zahaby's “The Trap of Names” (2009) (lemmy.ml)
Disclaimer: there is no English translation of this book...
Why are we suddenly getting spammed? Does anyone know why? (lemmygrad.ml)
It’s super weird that a niche communist forum with like 100 active users is getting spammed in the first place....
Attack on Titan and existentialism
cross-posted from: lemmy.ml/post/11759040...
Did The Future Already Happen? - The Paradox of Time (www.youtube.com)
'Our goal is to stop the genocide': Houthi spokesman meets The Grayzone (www.youtube.com)
What book(s) are you currently reading or listening? 21 January
Oh, this got delayed a bit....
New Advertisement and Internet connection permissions for Simple SMS Messenger on Google Play Store... (lemmy.ml)
Title
How Lemmy's Communist Devs Saved It (coship.bloggi.co)
unironically. yes. demand your government work for you. (slrpnk.net)
A Review of Eduardo Galeano's “Soccer in Sun and Shadow” (2013) (lemmy.ml)
cross-posted from: lemmy.ml/post/10484701...
What book(s) are you currently reading or listening? 12 January
Finished Dead Beat by Jim Butcher. Loved the book. Series keep getting better and better....
Their Civilization—Whose Archaeology? (www.jhiblog.org)
The centrality of archaeology in articulating and espousing the politics of nation states as also erstwhile empires is today undeniable. The history of archaeological research and practice is replete with cases where material culture has been used to produce origin myths, shared imaginaries of communities simultaneous with...
Open source Android video editor, built with Media3 and Jetpack Compose. (github.com)
41% of fediverse instances have blocked threads so far!!! (tech.lgbt)
Deleuze on Palestine: "The Grandeur of Yasser Arafat" and "Stones" (www.youtube.com)
Two of Deleuze’s essays read by Acid Horizon....