The economic constraints imposed by the IMF and the World Bank are crippling by design. Reducing dependence on them and adjusting economic priorities to social needs, rather than competing within the world economic system on the latter’s terms, are among the salient features of delinking, a process that may or may not culminate in socialism. “It being understood,” Samir warns, “that the socialism in question remains a plan for society, largely ahead of us, and not a reality already achieved.” This note of caution alludes to the Chinese model of delinking, a project whose ultimate destiny remains uncertain.
Paraphrasing Rosa Luxemburg, war unleashes the reactionary forces of the capitalist world, but it also generates forces of social revolution that ferment beneath the surface.
Samir has his own definition of a national capitalist state. For him, “a state is not formally national capitalist, even if the local bourgeoisie is in command of the apparatus, insofar as it does not control the process of accumulation…. For this to happen, the bourgeois state must possess an ‘auto-centric national economy.'” The Iranian bourgeoisie not only controlled accumulation through the oil trade but also refused to “submit its economy to the demands of transnationalization”-or what Samir understood as rapid integration into world exchange.
External pressure often reinforces the very national consciousness that imperial power seeks to weaken. During the Second World War, the Soviets reinvigorated their spirit of the fatherland. Similarly, the US aggression helped Iranians not only revive their revolutionary spirit but also rediscover their fading nationalism.
Every war has its dialectics. Paraphrasing Rosa Luxemburg, war unleashes the reactionary forces of the capitalist world, but it also generates forces of social revolution that ferment beneath the surface. Whereas the aggression destroyed Iran’s civilian infrastructure, it has also, with nonchalant ease, consolidated Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz-an instrument of hegemonic leverage over the West. The decadence of imperialism appears increasingly evident. The process that began with Gaza’s genocide is approaching its logical conclusion. From the decline of Zionism to the emergence of a multipolar world, all possibilities now appear within sight. The last nail in imperialism’s coffin is being driven by the people of Iran. (Concluded)
The writer is an Australian-based academic and has authored books on socialism and history. His Latest Work: “God’s Republic Making & Unmaking of Israel & Pakistan” is available in Pakistan & on Amazon.com. He can be reached at saulatnagi @hotmail.com