Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

LightNews

Raju J Das

@rajujdas.bsky.social

31 followers 20 following 16 posts

Professor. Writes about: capitalism; state; uneven & combined development; environment; poverty; peasants; workers; Far Right. Views are personal. https://euc.yorku.ca/faculty/raju-j-das/

Political science 36%

Sociology 32%

more

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 23

As fascist movements get stronger, and with it the oppression of working people from religious or racial minorities intensifies, and as attacks on working people's living standards continue,the ? of 'revolutionary compromise' by socialists assumes urgency.
links.org.au/node/7045

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 21

The police treatment of common people, suppression of freedom of speech, persecution of religious sects, authoritarian treatment of students & professors – all these and other manifestations of tyranny are occasions for political struggle (Lenin).

Democracy is our birth right.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 21

Any govt can engage in crimes against minorities, genocide, predatory wars, etc., if it has the blessings of, or, if it does the bidding of, advanced capitalist (=imperialist) nations which support all these in the name of democracy and peace, etc.

A 'new USSR' is needed today.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 21

It's tiring to see that: criticisms of injustice committed by a given religious group or by a govt allied with it, incl. injustice against other religious groups, are seen as being biased against that group.

Why?

Political use of a religion is not the same as that religion itself.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

'Both in foreign and home policy imperialism strives towards violations of democracy, towards reaction. In this sense imperialism is indisputably the "negation" of democracy in general, of all democracy, and not just of one of its demands, national self-determination.' (Lenin)

How true today!

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

People always have been the foolish victims of deception and self-deception in politics, and they always will be until they have learnt to seek out the interests of some class or other behind all moral, religious, political and social phrases, declarations and promises' (Lenin)

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

When innocents are killed in predatory wars, genocides & pogroms, and when people protest, it is unacceptable to say: such protests don’t provide space for diversity of ideas.

Oppression and protests against it already constitute ‘diversity’.

Justification for oppression kills diversity.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

It IS anti-democratic to discriminate against anyone based on religion.

And, it’s cowardly for a religious group or a govt allied with a religion that does unjust things, to protect itself from criticisms by equating such criticisms to discrimination against a religion.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

When there is oppression, and when there is protest against it, the oppressor and its ideological lackeys say: we feel traumatized/unsafe.

But what about the trauma of the oppressed?

If you can’t hear the sound of protests, just close your ears, or better, stop the oppression.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

When there is oppression, and when there is protest against it, the oppressor and its ideological lackeys say: we feel traumatized/unsafe.

But what about the trauma of the oppressed?

If you can’t hear the sound of protests, just close your ears, or better, stop the oppression.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

When a state supports a religion or is established as a state of a religious group, this goes against secularism, a founding principle of democracy.

Then it is wrong for that state to equate criticisms of its actions to the criticisms of the religion that it supports.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

The Rightwing demagogically defends free speech to engage in its hate politics.

Negating the freedom of speech of those people who negate the freedom of speech of common people is to actually promote the freedom of speech.

Negation of negation is a positive accomplishment.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

Those people who don’t value democratic rights (incl. of minorities, and of those who protest genocide, predatory wars and inequality, etc), must not be allowed to use the freedom of speech to spread anti-democratic ideas and engage in authoritarian practices.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 20

Those people who don’t value democratic rights (incl. of minorities, and of those who protest genocide, predatory wars and inequality, etc), must not be allowed to use the freedom of speech to spread anti-democratic ideas and engage in authoritarian practices.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 18

Western imperialism's violent interventions (e.g. endless wars or war-mongering, direct or via its outposts/proxies) are basically driven by the interests of a) imperialist capital and b) its specific fractions (e.g. military-industrial complex).

Can imperialism and world-peace coexist?

No!

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 18

'Fossil fuels are the leading driver of climate change, yet they are still heavily subsidised by governments....As a result, fossil fuels remain relatively inexpensive, and their use and greenhouse gas emissions continue to grow'.
@Bruce_Huber
www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/ene...

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 18

There are people who are starved or bombed to death.

Those who 'observe' this are of 2 types:

1) those who think they are human beings but ARE NOT.
2) those who think they are human beings and THEY ARE.

To be human is to fight against suffering.

Those who cause suffering create a grave digger.

Raju J Das @rajujdas.bsky.social · Nov 18

Explosive growth of Bluesky, an alternative to X and Facebook, etc.
www.nytimes.com/2024/11/17/t...

How Bluesky, Alternative to X and Facebook, Is Handling Growth

The fledgling social media site has been flooded with new users since the election. It hasn’t all been easy.

www.nytimes.com