Category: Uncategorized

Analyzing Biden’s Spending Bill: A Debate Between Sectors of Capital

Here is my general read of the current situation with the Democrats trying to pass Biden’s spending bill, framed within a broader conflict between different sectors of capital:

The Republicans and the Democrats represent different sectors of capital, broadly speaking. The Republicans generally represent less dynamic (even dying) sectors whereas the Democrats represent more progressive and dynamic sectors (particularly big tech and “green” industry).

Part of why the Republicans have gotten more reactionary is that they literally represent dying industries and the white labor aristocracy that has benefited from these industries (think coal mining, old manufacturing jobs, etc.). All that the Republicans can do is to try to preserve what they see as the good old days, from the perspective of both their capitalist and working class bases. I think the future for them is either fascist seizure of power (electoral or otherwise) or a major shakeup.

The Democrats, on the other hand, represent more of the future of capitalism. They are concentrated in the most dynamic, forward-looking, innovative sectors. Big tech gets a lot of the focus, but I think the key here is the green energy sector. Green capitalism—which will still depend on the exploitation of people, land, and animals, but in an ostensibly kinder and more sustainable guise—is likely the way that capital will try to save itself both from climate catastrophe and mass movements demanding a livable world. This might require a relatively substantial break with neoliberal orthodoxy.

But not all Democrats are united around this. It seems clear that Joe Manchin represents one of the major dying sectors of capitalism: coal mining. The fight between different sectors of capital is not over within the party, although it could conceivably be over soon.

I think this framework of understanding the Dems and Repubs as representing different sectors of capital helps explain what is going on here. For what it’s worth, I actually think that most Democrats in office truly want to pass the spending bill. This isn’t all just a show with Manchin and Sinema acting as convenient scapegoats (though I imagine that is part of it). Biden’s plan isn’t radical or socialist. It will arguably be good for the reproduction and growth of capitalism—or at least, for the most dynamic sectors of the nascent green capitalism.

There is a real split within the capitalist/ruling class here. The options on offer are two different visions of the future of capitalism—green capitalism vs fascist reaction. I obviously don’t think either are good. But this dissension gives an opening for us to organize and push for a truly transformative vision that will overcome the contradictions of capitalism and present an alternative both to fascist reaction and to the “green capitalism” that is waiting in the wings.

On Writing: Identity vs. Practice

I’m sure many friends can relate to this tweet. It made me laugh out loud. But I’m going to take it seriously: I think it reveals the problem of viewing one’s life through the framework of identity rather than practice (or Being rather than Becoming, or representation rather than production). I have spent a good chunk of my time in therapy over the past couple years working through this issue in my own life; the transformation of my own relationship to writing is evidence of how my approach has changed.

I used to view writing through the lens of identity. I AM a writer. I AM an academic. The extent to which I live up to these identities is the measure of how successful I am as a person—indeed, the degree to which I am “good.” This means that when I do not write I am failing my identity. I am not simply “not doing” a thing: I am a failure at the kind of person that I want to be.

This focus on the identity of “writer” was demonstrably counterproductive for me. It in fact prevented me from doing the actual act of writing. The pressure to live up to the ideal was too great, and it was easier to avoid it altogether than to work through the problem. This resulted in a whole host of negative reactions and even a good deal of self-loathing (all too common for grad students).

Talking through this problem with my therapist over the course of months was extremely helpful. Together, we practiced identifying the emotions I felt around writing, feeling them in my body, connecting them to specific experiences, and understanding the thought-patterns that fed into them. Once I had this understanding, I could begin to break away from the identity-based approach. Instead, I understood the problem as a set of processes and thus a set of practices. The solution would not be found through finally “living up” to the identity, being a “good” writer (and thus a “good” person). Rather, the solution was to be found in abandoning this focus on Being in favor of a practice of never-ending Becoming.

As part of my re-orientation, I read several books about writing, including Stephen King’s On Writing, Paul J. Silvia’s How to Write a Lot, and Wendy Laura Belcher’s Writing Your Journal Article in Twelve Weeks. The authors of each of these books approach writing as a set of practices to be cultivated rather than as an identity. It turns out that the key to writing is… writing. You have to actually sit down and write, whether you want to or not, whether you “feel inspired” or not.

Following this, I have cultivated the practice of writing as part of my morning routine. I wake up, I drink coffee and read, and then I sit down at my computer and write for at least fifteen minutes. It can be about anything, although usually it is connected to my academic work in some way. I don’t check my email. I don’t go looking for a source. I write.

The key for me is to simply write. This is not the time for editing, not the time for revising. I simply get words down on the page for at least fifteen minutes. I do not identify with them, and I do not identity with the representation of myself as a “writer.” I just produce words. I write. And I do it every day. These sessions add up, and they form the basis for longer writing sessions in which I bring the ideas together, revise, and form them into something that I want to share with others. This post is itself the product of a morning writing session.

I do not mean to trivialize this or present a facile solution. “Oh, the key to writing is to write? Sure, super helpful, thanks.” This is the product of many hours of therapy and a long, at times painful, process of self-evaluation and transformation. Writing is but one of many manifestations of this re-orientation in my life.

But I maintain that the shift from identity and representation to practice and production has completely transformed my relationship with writing. Instead of worrying about being a good writer, I write. And it has been by far the most productive year of my life.

We Can’t Push Biden Left: For An Autonomous Movement

Many on the left have beaten a consistent drum lately: elect Biden and then push him to the left. I understand the position and I did vote for Biden, if only to remove Trump. But we should have no illusions about the possibility of pushing Biden to the left, especially with a split or Republican Senate. Strategically orienting ourselves in relation to the Biden presidency is a recipe for defeat, demobilization, and disempowerment. Instead, we need to build an autonomous movement from below, taking lessons from Occupy Wall Street, Black Lives Matter, and the past six months of Black-led uprisings against police brutality and white supremacy.

Biden has clearly signaled his allegiances. He campaigned to the right: moderate Republicans and the suburban middle class were his (aspirational) base. He has repudiated the left at every turn. Why would we expect this to change upon inauguration? Indeed, it is much more likely that Biden spends his term attempting to work with a few moderate Republicans to find compromises that pull him even further to the right. That said, there will be a short window in the first months of his term in which Biden will likely introduce a number of reformist measures related to racial justice, climate change, covid stimulus bills, etc. There is a chance to push these reforms as far as they will go. But that window will quickly close. After that, orienting ourselves towards Biden will not pull him left. Instead, it will pull us right and tear us apart. What should we do instead?

We should learn from the left under Obama, particularly Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter. These movements constructed themselves as autonomous grassroots forces with radical anti-systemic politics. They gave up on Obama’s promise of change and decided to forge their own paths. In doing so, they transformed the terrain of struggle. Capitalism and white supremacy were put at the center of political discourse. The US left came out of the Obama years stronger than at any time since the 1970s – not because of Obama, but in spite of him. 

Our lessons do not end there. In the past 6 months the political terrain has been transformed again. Defunding the police has become a real possibility. Police and prison abolition are being seriously discussed. This did not come from electoral work but rather from autonomous organizing and street rebellion. The Black-led uprising of 2020 has produced an astonishing social transformation. This should be our model for political work, not collaboration with the Democratic elite.

This is not to say that everyone must become an anarchist and completely reject electoral politics. There is real room for DSA to continue running local, state, and congressional candidates in the next four years. But we cannot put any faith into working with Biden or pushing him left. This will only distract and disempower us. Instead, we need to build our own politics, our own strategies, and our own material force from the ground up. We need to do the work to transform our own communities and build another world.