This provocative book addresses the ideological and political crisis of the Western left, comparing it with the problems facing leftist politics in Russia and other countries. The author presents a radical critique of the current state of the Western left which puts discourse above class interest and politics of diversity above politics of social change. The trajectory away from class politics towards feminism, minority rights and the coalition of coalitions led to the destruction of the basic strategic pillars of the movement. Some elements of this broad progressive agenda became mainstream, but in fact this made the crisis of the left even deeper and contributed to the disintegration of the left's identity. The author demonstrates that a simple return to 'the good old times' of classical socialist politics of the industrial age is not possible, suggesting that class politics must be redefined and reinvented through the experience of new radical populism. This book speaks directly to the way the identity politics/class politics divide has been framed within the English-speaking world. It will be of great interest to scholars and students of political science and political sociology, international relations, security studies and global studies, as well as socialist activists.

This provocative book addresses the ideological and political crisis of the Western left, comparing it with the problems facing leftist politics in Russia and other countries. The author presents a radical critique of the current state of the Western left which puts discourse above class interest and politics of diversity above politics of social change. The trajectory away from class politics towards feminism, minority rights and the coalition of coalitions led to the destruction of the basic strategic pillars of the movement. Some elements of this broad progressive agenda became mainstream, but in fact this made the crisis of the left even deeper and contributed to the disintegration of the left's identity. The author demonstrates that a simple return to 'the good old times' of classical socialist politics of the industrial age is not possible, suggesting that class politics must be redefined and reinvented through the experience of new radical populism. This book speaks directly to the way the identity politics/class politics divide has been framed within the English-speaking world. It will be of great interest to scholars and students of political science and political sociology, international relations, security studies and global studies, as well as socialist activists.

This book is a unique contribution to scholarship on the sources of the conflict in Ukraine. The volume brings together writers from Russia, Ukraine, Canada, the United States, Europe and Australia, many of whom attended a gathering of scholars and activists from all over Ukraine, held in Yalta, Crimea, just after the conflict in Eastern Ukraine erupted. Challenging both the demonization of Russia, which has become standard for Western writing on the topic, and the simplistic discourse of official Russian sources, this book scrutinises the events of the conflict and the motives of the agents, bringing to the fore the underlying causes of the most critical flashpoints of the post-Soviet world order. This volume offers a refreshing, profound perspective on the Ukraine conflict, and will be an indispensable source for any student or researcher. This book was originally published as a special issue of the journal International Critical Thought.

Translated from the original Russian, this book analyzes the economic development of leading European empires and the United States of America. The author exposes the myths of the spontaneous emergence of the market economy and the role of government as a disincentive towards private initiative, when for centuries the state power has been carrying out a "coercing to the market" with all its strength. This book presents a somewhat epic depiction of the development of Western hegemonic powers within the capitalist world system, from the struggles of the late Middle Ages to the rise and crisis of the American Empire. It both develops and questions some of the traditional assumptions of the world-system theory, arguing that it was very much the political form of the state that shaped capitalism as we know it and that, though the existence of a hegemonic power results from the logic of the system, hegemony is often missing in reality. A major work of historical Marxist theory, this book is essential reading for students of international political economy, globalisation and the crisis of capitalism. This book is also ideal for students of politics, history, economics and international relations.

This book is a unique contribution to scholarship on the sources of the conflict in Ukraine. The volume brings together writers from Russia, Ukraine, Canada, the United States, Europe and Australia, many of whom attended a gathering of scholars and activists from all over Ukraine, held in Yalta, Crimea, just after the conflict in Eastern Ukraine erupted. Challenging both the demonization of Russia, which has become standard for Western writing on the topic, and the simplistic discourse of official Russian sources, this book scrutinises the events of the conflict and the motives of the agents, bringing to the fore the underlying causes of the most critical flashpoints of the post-Soviet world order. This volume offers a refreshing, profound perspective on the Ukraine conflict, and will be an indispensable source for any student or researcher. This book was originally published as a special issue of the journal International Critical Thought.

Translated from the original Russian, this book analyzes the economic development of leading European empires and the United States of America. The author exposes the myths of the spontaneous emergence of the market economy and the role of government as a disincentive towards private initiative, when for centuries the state power has been carrying out a "coercing to the market" with all its strength. This book presents a somewhat epic depiction of the development of Western hegemonic powers within the capitalist world system, from the struggles of the late Middle Ages to the rise and crisis of the American Empire. It both develops and questions some of the traditional assumptions of the world-system theory, arguing that it was very much the political form of the state that shaped capitalism as we know it and that, though the existence of a hegemonic power results from the logic of the system, hegemony is often missing in reality. A major work of historical Marxist theory, this book is essential reading for students of international political economy, globalisation and the crisis of capitalism. This book is also ideal for students of politics, history, economics and international relations.

Leading writer Boris Kagarlitsky offers an ambitious account of 1000 years of Russian history. Encompassing all key periods in Russia's dramatic development, the book covers everything from early settlers, through medieval decline, Ivan the Terrible - the 'English Tsar', Peter the Great, the Crimean War and the rise of capitalism, the revolution, the Soviet period, finally ending with the return of capitalism after 1991. Setting Russia within the context of the 'World System', as outlined by Wallerstein, this is a major work of historical Marxist theory that is set to become a future classic.

As a leading member of the Moscow Popular Front, Kagarlitsky and his associates sought to extend the debate and agitation throughout society as a whole. From the striking coalfields if Siberia and the human chain protests of the Baltic republics to the rallies of the fascist Pamyat and the burgeoning of a Soviet environmental movement, Kagarlitsky listens to and analyses a nation in turmoil. Describing the elections of Spring 1989, Kagarlitsky assesses candidates like Boris Yeltsin, to whom the Popular Front lent critical support. He outlines the way in which the ensuing People's Congress fed a mounting frustration at the gap between promised and actual change. And he points to the dangers of an emerging 'market Stalinism' which could exacerbate social inequity without delivering political freedom. Fall 1989 saw governments throughout Eastern Europe tumble before mass mobilizations of peoples no longer afraid of Soviet intervention. The biggest transformation in global politics since 1945 flowed directly from the opening of discussion between the caucuses of the Soviet Communist Party and the masses it claimed to represent, a debate which is described in these pages with a vividness and insight available only to a participant. Kagarlitsky's testament concludes with a stark account of the escalating difficulties and conflicts facing the government in the early months of 1990 events signalling, in the author's view, the demise of perestroika itself.

This panoramic account of political culture in the Soviet Union, by one of the leading voices of unofficial radical socialism, examines the way in which cultural life in the arts, philosophy and historiography has been able to withstand the persistent efforts of the "statocracy" to extinguish independent thought.

In this book Boris Kagarlitsky offers a trenchant analysis of the break-up of the Soviet Union and the transformation of a section of the old nomenklatura into a new possessing and ruling elite. Kagarlitsky shows that Western commentators have been misled by the street theatre of events like the bungled coup of August 1991 into supposing that a fundamental break has been made with the confused politics and economics of the late Soviet period. He analyses the ill-considered and self-interested attempts made by the nomenklatura to privatize assets and inaugurate a free-market economy, finding an essential continuity between the plans of Gorbachev's and Yeltsin's advisers. He reveals, too, how the new Russian President has displayed a greater capacity to assert dictatorial powers than did the last General Secretary, a tendency which has brought him into repeated conflict with elected bodies. Boris Kagarlitsky is himself a Socialist member of the Moscow Soviet and one of the founders of Russia's new Party of Labour.The Disintegration of the Monolith furnishes both a memorable indictment of the greed and irresponsibility of Russia's new/old rulers and a fascinating account of the slow but unmistakeable awakening of forces of resistance as the peoples of Russia and the other states of the former Soviet Union confront the hyper-inflation, shortages, unemployment and general havoc wreaked by the free-market experiment. Kagarlitsky describes the gradual emergence of a new Russian trade unionism, but warns that popular discontent is also being exploited by nationalist demagogues, such as the leader of Russia's new Liberal Party. For those seeking to understand what has changed in Russia - and what has remained the same - The Disintegration of the Monolith is required reading.

Neo-liberalism has fundamentally altered the relationship between the global political forces. In this radical overview of the post-communist world, Boris Kagarlitsky argues that the very success of neo-liberal capitalism has made traditional socialism all the more necessary and feasible. He argues that leftists exaggerate the importance of the "objective" aspects of the "new reality" - globalization - and the weakening of the state, while underestimating the importance of the hegemony of neo-liberalism. As long as neo-liberalism retains its ideological hegemony, despite its economic failure, the consequence is a "new barbarism" - already a reality in eastern Europe, and now also emerging in the West. Kagarlitsky challenges the political neurosis of the left and prevailing assumptions of Marxism to argue that Marx's theories are now more timely than they were in the mid 20th century. Kagarlitsky analyzes theories of the "end of the proletariat" and the "end of work", and assesses the potential of the new technologies - such as the Internet - which create fresh challenges for capitalism and new arenas for struggle.

Though it has been nearly two decades since the fall of Communism in the former Soviet Union and the accompanying disintegration of the Soviet state, a strange aspect of the current cultural situation in Russia and in the other former republics of the USSR is that the people still identify themselves as post-Soviet. Yet, the difference between the Soviet past and a capitalist present is striking, which raises many questions: Why are the new elites referring to the old times to legitimize themselves? Why do commercial advertisements stress that the products they offer are exactly the same as they used to be in Soviet times? And why, year after year, does the government in Moscow organize impressive celebrations for Victory Day, inevitably drawing parallels to the old Soviet ceremonies? "Back in the USSR", by Boris Kagarlitsky, tackles these questions and more as it reflects on what happened in Russia after the collapse of the old regime and how this has affected social and cultural life, as well as the everyday lives of ordinary people. In this arresting work, Kagarlitsky also delves into what type of intelligentsia still exists in the former USSR and the cultural products that are being produced by these artists, including novels, films, and music.

The decisive event of the late twentieth century has been the collapse of communism and the perceived triumph of capitalism. Written by authors from the First, former Second, and Third Worlds, this book reveals the characteristics and flaws of the late capitalist order. The authors explore the societal polarisation produced by globalization, the crisis of Western ideology, and the soft financial underbelly of globalization that could well bring us to an economic collapse. The perspective of this provocative book goes beyond those of the traditional left and the relativist, anti-historical school of postmodernism to offer an entirely fresh view of the world order.

In this follow-up to his acclaimed The Thinking Reed, Boris Kagarlistky presents an incisive analysis of the interplay between reform and revolution in Western and Eastern Europe in the twentieth century. At once theoretical and polemical, the book attempts to develop a dialogue between the emergent Soviet Left - of which he is a key figure - and radical forces in the West, in pursuit of a coherent and consistent strategy of change. The first part of Kagarlitsky's endeavour takes us from a re-examination of the Marxist classics - via the dogmatism of the Second International, and the more fertile ideas of Jaures, Luxemburg and Gramsci - to the actual practice of postwar socialist governments in Western Europe. He shows how these governments , influenced by Keynesian and Galbraithian technocratic reformism, have been unable to transcend the confines imposed by capitalism and develop alternative working-class strategies - eventually succumbing to the monetarist counter-offensive. In a counterpoint to the Western experience Kagarlitsky then turns his attention to the failures of technocratic reformism in Eastern Europe. He reviews the crucial lessons of the emergence of Solidarity in Poland, and the Brezhnev period of 'stability', corruption and stagnation, against the backdrop of profound social changes - changes which render the question of Gorbachev's democratization and reform vital for the future of both the Soviet Union and the world.