(Part 2) Top products from r/socialism

You might get some people here to read your manuscript, but its generally a lost cause to get visibility for personal writing unless you already have a reputation for good writing.

Anyways, I'll just recommend you some additional reading on socialism. Be sure to check out the suggested readings list from the sidebar, and in particular these two that I recommend:

• Albert Einstein's Why Socialism?
  
• Oscar Wilde's The Soul of Man Under Socialism
  
  Also, if you are up for some really heavy, but really well written books, I can't recommend Postcolonialism: An Historical Introduction enough. The book is a brilliant narrative that shatters all illusions one might have about the monolithic/simplistic nature of Marxism and socialism, as well as the centrality of European philosophy and ideology in the grander schemes of the world. I think its a fantastic book to lay bare the complexities of ideology, the role that capitalism and colonialism have played in shaping the modern world, and the way that theory mixes with practice in the context of the anti-colonial struggles.

I lived and worked in Vietnam for 4 years recently, my wife is from there, I will also give my input despite not being OP.

Vietnam is increasingly capitalistic. The national government does heavily control the economy and there are massive SOEs there, but most businesses are definitely capitalistic, with a small number of owners running the business like a typical feudalistic Western corporation and likewise taking massively inequal pay from it.

Businesses where an owner lives in a million dollar villa and the typical employee makes $250 a month and has 0 say in the management of the business is 100% a capitalist structure. And that's basically every business, except I don't know much about the SOE structures. I do know that Vietnam recently went through a similar "financialization crisis" due to similar financial hijinks with some of their SOEs as you'd expect with any old corrupt capitalist industry to have.

Most businesses are indeed small, family-run enterprises, something of a fuzzy middle ground between socialism and capitalism, but any successful business is basically capitalist in structure.

Vietnam is a (heavily corrupt) market economy where wealth begets wealth and private ownership (technically via the state) allows for runaway inequality.

This is a pretty good book on the situation: https://www.amazon.com/Vietnam-Rising-Dragon-Bill-Hayton/dp/030017814X

Although I can't think of any free articles or videos off the top of my head, this is a nice, short book that covers a lot of what you have questions about. Cohen is an amazingly clear writer, and while it is certainly not comprehensive, it will give you a good overview of the issues, and some further places to start looking for these answers.

There are many threads similar to this one, you might want to search for them in addition to what people are willing to post in this thread:

For a first intake of libertarian socialism:

"Basic Bakunin" by the UK Anarchist Federation

If you are interested in marxian tendencies of libertarian socialism:

"Theory and practice: an introduction to Marxian theory" by Root and Branch

To get more into moderate forms of socialism, where you seem to be at the moment if I look at your flair, read this:

"Why not Socialism?" by G.A. Cohen

or this:

"Why Marx was right" by Terry Eagleton

You might also be interested in one of the absolute classics of marxism:

"The Communist Manifesto" by Marx/Engels

You can find it online here

For a more "in depth" look at libertarian socialism, you can also look at Kropotkins main work:

"The Conquest of Bread" by Kropotkin

also available online on libcom

If you want a quick way to understand the revolutionary history of early 20th century Europe, you can also listen to this lecture series by left communist Lauren Goldner:

Goldner on: German Revolution, Luxemburg and Lenin, Stalin and Trotsky

Or you might be interested in socialist fiction to immerse yourself in the utopian ideas fleshed out by past and present comrades:

50 SciFi and Fantasy works every Socialist should read

To get a first impression of up-to-date marxian enonomic analysis of todays society, you can always listen to "Economic update" by Richard D. Wolff.

To further your understanding of socialism, you should also take a look at socialist feminism, maybe with this work (one click hoster!):

Liese Vogel: Marxism and the Oppression of Women /attention: new book hosted on a one click hoster ;)

To get further reading ideas and recs regarding problems like imperialism, fascism, biologism, critical psychology, materialist history etc. etc., you may want to check the Revolutionary Reading Guide

Knock yourself out, comrade!

History...

Our brains are much worse at reality and thinking than thought. Science on reasoning:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYmi0DLzBdQ

"Intended as an internal document. Good reading to understand the nature of rich democracies and the fact that the common people are not allowed to play a role."

Crisis of democracy

http://trilateral.org/download/doc/crisis_of_democracy.pdf

http://www.amazon.com/Crisis-Democracy-Governability-Democracies-Trilateral/dp/0814713653/

Manufacturing consent (book)

http://www.amazon.com/Manufacturing-Consent-Political-Economy-Media/dp/0375714499/

Protectionism for the rich and big business by state intervention, radical market interference.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHj2GaPuEhY#t=349

Energy subsidies

https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/survey/so/2015/NEW070215A.htm

Manufacturing consent:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwU56Rv0OXM

https://vimeo.com/39566117

Testing theories of representative government

https://scholar.princeton.edu/sites/default/files/mgilens/files/gilens_and_page_2014_-testing_theories_of_american_politics.doc.pdf

Democracy Inc

http://www.amazon.com/Democracy-Incorporated-Managed-Inverted-Totalitarianism/dp/069114589X/

http://www.therealnews.com

For your interest:

The Citibank memo

http://politicalgates.blogspot.ca/2011/12/citigroup-plutonomy-memos-two-bombshell.html

http://www.rdwolff.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcA1v2n7WW4#t=2551

US distribution of wealth

https://imgur.com/a/FShfb

http://www2.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html

Thomas Sankara: An African Revolutionary is pretty good and I haven't read it myself but Thomas Sankara Speaks: The Burkina Faso Revolution 1983–87 sounds pretty good.

You sound like you're not in the workforce yet, and still in college, yeah? If so, take the time to join with radical student organizations and local community groups, and try to find literature on the intersection between engineering and socialism. I've been doing the latter quite a lot, and there is quite a lot to think about in terms of reflecting on the role of the engineer in capitalism, the nature of techno-scientific work, etc.

Here are some books that I highly recommend, that are transforming the way I see myself as an engineer:

• Cyber-Marx: Cycles and Circuits of Struggle in High Technology Capitalism (1999)
  
  
• Cyber-Proletariat: Global Labour in the Digital Vortex (2015)
  
  
• Cybernetic Revolutionaries: Technology and Politics in Allende's Chile (2011)
  
  
• Forces of Production: A Social History of Industrial Automation (1986)
  
  Also, check out Jacobin Magazine's issue on technology and socialism, "Ours to Master", good packet of essays that you would find interesting
  

Goddamn, this is just too good....hahaha

Side note, if anybody is interested in reading a thorough history of the CIA/Saudi/Pakistani jihad in Afghanistan, check out Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 (2004) by Steve Coll. It is not a socialist or Marxist analysis, but it is an absolutely brilliant overview of the covert war and its connections with larger geopolitical changes, internal dynamics within the various governments and the logic and rationale that guided their actions, etc. It got widespread acclaim from a variety of different quarters, and won the Pulitzer Prize.

Get yourself some Chomsky, Hobsbawn, Foucault, Zizek and obviously if you haven't already, some Marx, Engels and more so some Lenin. Everyone and their granddaughter needs some Lenin.

The more you read and absorb the better you'll be versed in proper Socialist and Communist theory, which will in turn allow you to not only defend yourself against the imbecilic mouthbreathing conservative dumbshits that will inevitably spew 'Capitalism won cuz the USSR fell and, uh... Free markets! And...'Murica! And... Freedom!', but the more you'll be capable of applying what you learn to the world around you and acquire a more critical view of international relations, the global financial situation, the social makeup of society and of course the ramifications of your country's contemporary domestic and economic policies.

If you need some titles, you can't go wrong with Imperialism: The highest stage of capitalism, State and Revolution and Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State

These two books convinced me that Marxism was actually a workable system, and are excellent introductions: http://www.amazon.com/Why-Marx-Right-Terry-Eagleton/dp/0300181531/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1417687545&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/The-Revolutionary-Ideas-Karl-Marx/dp/1608461386/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1417687500&sr=1-1

Protectionism for the rich and big business by state intervention, radical market interference.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHj2GaPuEhY#t=349

You can be told the facts and the figures and reason to the wrong conclusion, see the science:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYmi0DLzBdQ

Testing theories of representative government

https://scholar.princeton.edu/sites/default/files/mgilens/files/gilens_and_page_2014_-testing_theories_of_american_politics.doc.pdf

"Intended as an internal document. Good reading to understand the nature of rich democracies and the fact that the common people are not allowed to play a role."

Crisis of democracy

http://trilateral.org/download/doc/crisis_of_democracy.pdf

http://www.amazon.com/Crisis-Democracy-Governability-democracies-Trilateral/dp/0814713653/

Some history on US imperialism by us corporations.

https://kurukshetra1.wordpress.com/2015/09/27/a-brief-history-of-imperialism-and-state-violence-in-colombia/

Energy subsidies

https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/survey/so/2015/NEW070215A.htm

Interference in other states when the rich/corporations dont get their way

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mxp_wgFWQo&feature=youtu.be&list=PLKR2GeygdHomOZeVKx3P0fqH58T3VghOj&t=724

Manufacturing consent:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwU56Rv0OXM

https://vimeo.com/39566117

Read Imperialism by Lenin. I'm a high school student myself, I read this in about three days. Absolutely fantastic read and provides a fair introduction to the fundamental flaws of capitalism.

Check out Dr. Richard Wolff and Democracy at work

Mondragon Corporation

Pretty good book, too.

I would suggest An Introduction to the Three Volumes of Karl Marx's Capital, this text on communization, and also some of the ICC's (international communist current) stuff on the decadence of capitalism. Also by all means if you find yourself interested in the Communist Left feel free to ask us some questions over at /r/leftcommunism

A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn is good, although it talks more about the history of labor and oppression in the US than about what socialism itself is. Still, it's quite eye-opening, and this was the book that turned me.

There have been plenty of reasons for people to arm themselves. Usually it's for protection against the police. If that's how people choose to defend themselves from genuine existing armed threats (like the police) then we need to respect that out of solidarity.

This Nonviolent Stuff'll Get You Killed makes a really good case for this. It wasn't just the Black Panthers, there were armed guards taking shifts outside MLK's home.

Since no one else has chimed in, here are my recommendations:

• The Development of the Monist View of History by Georgi Plekhanov (1895). This is still considered the classic on the subject, and is quite philosophical. Plekhanov was still a good Marxist at the time.
  
  
• Historical Materialism by Nikolai Bukharin (1921). This is a very underrated book that should be more famous. Bukharin was perhaps the most philosophical and theoretical of the Bolsheviks.
  
  
• The Philosophy of Marx by Etienne Balibar (1995). More modern, and a bit demanding. Balibar has some great insights and always poses interesting philosophical questions.
  
  
• Marx's Theory of History by William Shaw (1980). This book assumes you already are familiar with the subject. It is useful to read after all the others, as it clears up a lot of the conflicting interpretations and argues that Marx took a more deterministic approach than his followers.
  
  If I had to pick one book to start with, I'd go with Balibar.

there's so much out there if you like this stuff.

gar alperovitz writes and lectures about democratic economics in the form of coops and democratic communities in what he calls democratization of wealth. his most recent book is called america beyond capitalism (pdf).

richard wolff also talks a lot about workplace democracy in what he calls democracy at work in the form of "worker self-directed enterprises" (WSDEs). his recent book on the matter is called democracy at work: a cure for capitalism.

both of these guys have regular podcasts, public lectures, countless videos and they write prolifically.

apart from these two contemporary examples, there are older works about what you describe such as anton pannekoek's workers' councils and rudolph rocker's anarcho-syndicalism: theory and practice.

p.s. fuck everyone who downvoted you. hope you enjoy this stuff. let me know if you have any questions or just want to rant. solidarity bruv.

A book a week is a lot, wouldn't you want to slow down and be able to process the information/arguments better?

Here are some of my favorite books:

Black Liberation/Race

• Black Marxism: The Making of the Black Radical Tradition (1983)
  
• Hammer and Hoe: Alabama Communists During the Great Depression (1990)
  
• Black Against Empire: The History and Politics of the Black Panther Party (2013)
  
• Hillbilly Nationalists, Urban Race Rebels, and Black Power: Community Organizing in Radical Times (2011)
  
• Liberated Territory: Untold Local Perspectives on the Black Panther Party (2009)
  
• Detroit: I Do Mind Dying--A Study in Urban Revolution (1975)
  
  Technology
  
  
• Fossil Capital: The Rise of Steam Power and the Roots of Global Warming (2016)
  
• Cyber-Marx: Cycles and Circuits of Struggle in High Technology Capitalism (1999)
  
• Cyber-Proletariat: Global Labour in the Digital Vortex (2015)
  
• Cybernetic Revolutionaries: Technology and Politics in Allende's Chile (2011)
  
• Forces of Production: A Social History of Industrial Automation (1986)
  
  Middle East
  
  
• Lineages of Revolt: Issues of Contemporary Capitalism in the Middle East (2013)
  
• Capitalism and Class in the Gulf Arab States (2011)
  
• Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 (2004)
  
• America's Kingdom: Mythmaking on the Saudi Oil Frontier (2006)
  
• Carbon Democracy: Political Power in the Age of Oil (2011)
  

Quite positive, he had good environmental policies, increased women's rights, built a system of community self-organization via the CDRs, hospitals, schools etc. were built all over the country and they had lots of public works projects, he fought against reactionary practises and powers exercised by tribal leaders, fought imperialism, established land reform, nationalized industries, literacy and vaccination cmapaigns and encouraged co-operatives. he was by no means the perfect Socialist revolutionary but he didn't seek any sort of cult of personality improved people's lives in various ways and did this under incredibly harsh conditions. A book abut him i would sugest is Thomas Sankara: An African Revolutionary by Ernest Harsch.

Zak Cope's recent Divided World Divided Class has been the theoretical milestone in this sector of Marxist political economy.

Here's an excellent review.

I would also recommend to OP Lebowitz's other book The Contradictions of "Real Socialism": The Conductor and the Conducted for a detailed account and critique of the economies of the Eastern Bloc and the Soviet Union. I don't think Yugoslavia was mentioned but it did cover relations between different state-owned industries and the way production and management were carried out in places like the DDR, Poland, Czechoslovakia etc.

Read Fanshen.

http://www.amazon.com/Fanshen-Documentary-Revolution-Chinese-Village/dp/1583671757

it's the ultimate documentive account of what life was like in the Maoist communes.

It looks like you're Christian, so I will recommend that you read this article

I also suggest getting this book

An entire book has been written on it. Perhaps worth a look

[Here's one covering both on Amazon, or check your library] (http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Sankara Speaks-Burkina-Revolution/dp/0873489861)

[Also refer to works and further reading in Wikipedia's article about him.] (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Sankara)

Since the comments have already said to read Marx's primary material, I'll just suggest this as a secondary resource.

This is chock full of data. PDF.

Rising Dragon ?

Also kicked the Chinese.

(Vietnam is Socialist only in name....)

Killing hope is an absolute must read. You can't really have a grasp on how many countries the USA has ruined without reading this

https://www.amazon.com/Killing-Hope-C-I-Interventions-II-Updated/dp/1567512526/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500405284&sr=8-1&keywords=killing+hope

America: The imperialism of ignorance.

This ones brilliant. It details a lot of the countries it invaded while also explaining the wider context.

https://www.amazon.com/America-Imperialism-Ignorance-Foreign-Policy/dp/1849541043/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500405339&sr=8-1&keywords=imperialism+of+ignorance

No problem. The last two volumes are a bit more difficult to get through than Volume One, because they were never truly finished before Marx died. David Harvey is currently posting his lectures on reading Volume Two, and Michael Heinrich's Introduction to all three volumes is supposed to be released this year.