Difference between revisions of "Marxism"

Revision as of 04:47, 1 March 2005

This article deals with Marxism as it relates to NationStates. For more general information, see the Wikipedia article on this subject.

Marxism is the political practice and social theory based on the works of the RL figure Karl Marx. Within NationStates there is a large and powerful Marxist community, more commonly referred to as socialists or (incorrectly) liberals. In the article below, socialism is often used instead of the term Marxism. While it is recognised that there are other types of socialism (e.g. Christian or Fabian socialism), the major type was and continues to be the schools of thought based around Marx, Engels, Lenin and Trotsky. Many also include the works of Stalin and Mao Zedong. This explains in brief the high degree of interchanging terminology.

Marxism in regional gameplaying

What follows is a history of the application of Marxism and related ideologies to intra- and inter-regional relations.

The application of Marxism to NationStates became a feature early on in regional government structure. The Proletariat Coalition (TPC) under its founder Haderan and his successors was a Socialist region which sought to engender equality between the members. The region maintained a fairly basic form of rule by referendum until Southern Tasmania created the TPC Constitution, which was democratically ratified by the region and instituted formal ministerships and written constraints on the powers of the executive officers, with a seperate judiciary branch for members to keep their elected officials in line.

The USSR claimed to be Marxist upon its inception, but outside of roleplaying, the government structure and indeed the members of USSR had no real conception of Marxist theory until other Marxist governments were already well established.

The Anticapitalist Alliance (ACA) was another left wing region, with the roleplay-oriented Coalition of Anti-Capitalist Economies (CACE). This group organised aid to struggling nations which had voted themselves an anti-capitalist, anti-statist system of economy, including Anarchists and Marxists. It continues to be a major success in NationStates, attracting many nations to the anti-capitalist banner.

Later than both of these, by April 2003, came another major socialist region, Allied States of EuroIslanders. Other smaller Marxist regions existed during this time, including Coalition of Socialist States, World Socialist Alliance, The USSR, The Lefts Nirvana, Socialist Alliance, New Socialist Alliance and others, each of whom made contributions to the inter-regional scene by their relations with one or more of the three major socialist regions in NationStates. These relations were consistently of a friendly nature, involving mutual defence pacts and agreements on common policy. Out of bi-regional relationships grew the first Marxist interregional organisations.

The first interregional organisation of Marxists, which included other left wing ideologies was the MASS Alliance, an alliance which found its common expression in a policy of mutual defence of the left wing of NationStates, of open membership to any region which wished to join and of co-operation with other groups insofar as was possible. The MASS Alliance was not particularly well organised, relying rather upon comradeship until the time of the war with the Atlantic Alliance. As a result a treaty of formal participation was drawn up between members of the MASS Alliance.

Noted Marxist Nations in NationStates

• Blackbird (Trotskyist)
• Cavalieriana (Stalinist)
• Danitoria (Bolshevik Leninist)
• Dobbyniania (Non-Leninist Marxist)
• Dublin Commune (Non-Leninist Marxist)
• EuroSoviets (Trotskyist)
• Karpathos (Bolshevik Leninist)
• Marturia (Marxist-Leninist)
• Masterayabaya (Non-Leninist Marxist)
• RedCommunist (Marxist)
• The Red Factions (Non-Leninist Marxist)
• Xha'dam (Bolshevik Leninist)