Here is an excellent, perhaps even ground breaking and not just leftist, but genuinely leftist [which increases its importance] analysis of the Ukrainian question and which also establishes the importance of Novorossiya not just for Ukraine or Russia, but for the rest of us as well.
The political vector and character of Novorossiya, as set initially by the people themselves, started off spontaneously--as a political, spiritual, and ideological renaissance, which openly claimed the Soviet legacy, the idea of social justice (now together with conscience and honor) and strong commons as the basis of national strength, in a word, as reborn and revived power of the people (narodovlastie) and people's socialism.
I would add that one key paradox of Novorossiya is that, unlike Crimea, this people's, socialist and soviet character of Novorossiya was led by Strelkov and others who might be called traditionalists or even monarchists, but whose sense of what needs to be done, the sense of duty, honor, integrity, and spirit fit the spirit of Novorossiya better than "materialism" of the clever, the base, even he greedy and devoid of spirit. For, indeed, one of the greatest sins (to use the language of faith) of later "real socialism," which, under post-Soviet oligarchy, became even significantly worse, was the ignorance of and sinning against the spirit which resides in humanity unless humanity is zombified, mortified, and hollowed out.
However, after this spontaneous revival and revolution from below, which was a synthesis of new people's socialism and the spirit reborn, came the "clever and cunning" plans from Moscow, involving not only Strelkov's removal, but also the "spirit" and letter of the Minsk Agreement/Appeasement with the Nazi junta, and essentially counter-revolutionary, neo-oligarchic restoration. Management from the outside began to deconstruct and replace the people with all the problems of legitimacy and inadequate, criminally inadequate institution building when, it is obvious, that, both for Russia and Novorossiya to save themselves, technocratic and PR clever management assumes that one can and should replace the action and energy of the people with the manipulative shallowness of self-admiring managers whose policies contradict and even oppose the will and the interests of the people themselves.
Post-Soviet oligarchy (here both Western oligarchy and oligarchs in the former East) brought us this war and brought us into this crisis, and post-soviet oligarchy means spiritual and political death and is inadequate for leading the people. Oligarchy, trying to save itself, is always bound to betray and sacrifice the people for its own narrow interests.
The West wants to see Russia's disintegration. But Russian Westernized oligarchs are more afraid of the people and hence Novorossiya than of the threat from the West.
Just to put it more plainly and simply, starting in May with the negative attitude toward the people's referendum in Novorossiya, besides the series of direct sabotage against Strelkov's fighters and the formation of people's power and the new anti-oligarchic state (and hence the revolution), the course started to be interfered with and managed in a distinctly counter-revolutionary way. And,besides the actions of the junta and the pressure from the West, it was this counter-revolution from above that has brought not only the large vacillations, costs, and setbacks. Far from solving anything, this counter-revolution is only deepening the crisis and further dividing the oligarchic elites from the people themselves.
Novorossiya is thus not only an attempt at political and spiritual renaissance, which is not only needed, but which is also a basic imperative for salvation. It is also a great new school both in revolution and counter-revolution.
The analysis to which I referred in the beginning comes from Basque comrades who, it seems to me, represent now the actual ideological vanguard, the most progressive part of the left and socialist thought in Europe. It is in Russian. Hopefully, it will also be available in English.
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