Economic nationalism isn't socialism or leftism and should not be supported by progressives

[forjusticethunders]

Favoring SOME members of the working class over OTHER members of the working class is reactionary. Just wanna throw this out there.

[Dawson Leery]

1. k/r

Corbyn is to blame for this too.

Before he became Labour leader, he was for BREXIT. He was no fully in for the "remain" campaign.

[katsy]

2. What?

How about raising the floor for all workers so you aren't cutting any workers financial throat?

Maybe a level playing field for all workers even at the expense of capitalists?

Or do you think it's fair game if corporations are allowed to pay workers in one country $.50 a day then ship those goods across the world at a cost to our environment and laborers worldwide?

Workers shouldn't have been pitted against one another.

[glennward]

3. Level the playing field? Capitalists own and manage the playing field. nt

[katsy]

13. Is their position sustainable?

How can they maintain their status?

[Uponthegears]

5. Exactly

Economic nationalism, like economic racism, festers in the social justice vacuum left by global capitalism's race to push ALL workers to the bottom of the barrel. NO ONE, not POC, not immigrants, not women, no one who creates wealth (capital) through the sweat of their brow benefits when capital is allowed to accumulate in the pockets of the 1%.

[forjusticethunders]

10. True to an extent

But racism (and other bigotries) also impedes solidarity and organization against capitalism and has become deeply ingrained in the West to the point it doesn't need capitalism to sustain itself. It's racism that leads white workers to vote for keeping immigrants out to protect their wages, not to vote for redistributing wealth, expanding union power, and imposing stronger regulation.

[katsy]

12. Exactly.

And the politicians fuel this hatred of others by not working for equal pay, living wages, for all.

Politicians work for corporations. Period. Divide and conquer is their MO.

Brexit was a resounding "fuck you" to tptb. And tptb are shocked at the end result of feeding people racist poison for so long that it finally came to bite them in the ass.

Sure... they want workers divided by color, race & creed, but not so much as it interrupts business as fucking usual.

Now what? What will be their response when it turns out it wasn't "the others" fault your wages are shit? Ooops we were just greedy? LOL the fuckers are just gunning to get their heads lopped off & put on spikes by the hungry.

[cyberpunk]

15. Stephen King.

"Conservatives who for 8 years sowed the dragon's teeth of partisan politics are horrified to discover they have grown an actual dragon."

[forjusticethunders]

16. A fuck you by who?

I really want to see some exit polls based on income but Brexit Remain versus Stay broke largely on left verus right lines?

[katsy]

18. Here

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/brexit-referendum/britain-s-brexit-how-baby-boomers-defeated-millennials-historic-vote-n598481


Or you can google other commentaries.

The working class has been played by tptb for a long time. Politicians engage in pitting one group of workers against the other and brexit is a result of this rage. The divisive racist propoganda fed to the working class reared its ugly head and now, tptb are shocked. Why is that?

Why was it always that one group of workers suffered so the other group could be accomodated? One rationale: profit.

[forjusticethunders]

19. Where were these workers when Thatcher was elected?

Where were they when Austerity pushed, that the EU had nothing to do with?
Why are "leftists" so desperate to interpret votes for xenophobia and nationalism as some kind of revolt?
What makes you think old white workers (aka ones that are much more comfortable in their positions) are more representative of a downtrodden group than young millenials who likely don't own any property, deal with shit wages, and have to face rising rents?

[katsy]

20. Did you just move the goalposts or should you maybe

better direct your comments to the people conducting the exit poll?

I don't agree with brexit and i believe its the fault of politicians, media & capitalists who fostered an environment of hatred and divisiveness amongst working people. And yes, not everyone is smart enough to identify the source of their problems and turn to racism and isolationism as a solution. In reality, people have been manipulated by power & profit grubbing elite.

Why attack me?

[ljm2002]

4. So expecting representatives in one's own country...

...to look after workers in one's own country, is favoring SOME workers (i.e. citizens of one's own country) over OTHER workers (i.e. residents of other countries)?

Meanwhile the corporations continue to outsource labor to the very cheapest they can find, countries without labor laws, without environmental protections, with horrible human rights records... but that isn't reactionary, that isn't favoring some (the 1%) over others (the 99%)?

Come on. This is standard class war propaganda -- that any time workers stand up for their own rights, they are trampling the rights of other workers. All while the corporations trample over all workers' rights.

[forjusticethunders]

9. So fight and organize against that

But it always seems to be entities other than the corporations who get screwed by economic nationalism. I don't support Western workers being lowered to the level of the super-exploited, but it is also fucked up to say "well us white 1st workers are gonna throw you brown/black/3rd world workers under the bus to gain leverage with the bosses"

[JaneyVee]

14. So fight to raise other countries wages, that will level the playing field.

We're over here in the US demanding $15/hr and not doing anything to raise global wages. We cant force corporations to keep jobs here.

[forjusticethunders]

17. To be fair, if anything 15 is too low in a lot of places in terms of US COL.

A single mother, for instance, cannot afford a 2 bedroom apartment in most cities on either coast for a child/teenager without assistance. I agree we do need to push for global wage increases, if nothing else, because it will reduce downward pressure on 1st world wages.

[Starry Messenger]

6. K&R

[closeupready]

7. Yawn.

[Hortensis]

8. Excellent point, ForJustice.

Yes, and economic nationalism is a facet of nationalism, which could easily result in people supporting other nationalist goals that should not be supported.

Not that economic nationalism and laissez-faire capitalism aren't both useful ingredients among many needed for a well functioning economy--when used properly.

[forjusticethunders]

11. also i just realized i posted it in the wrong forum