Erika3sis [she/her, xe/xem]

Owing to their historical position, it became the vocation of the aristocracies of France and England to write pamphlets against modern bourgeois society. In the French Revolution of July 1830, and in the English reform agitation, these aristocracies again succumbed to the hateful upstart. Thenceforth, a serious political struggle was altogether out of the question. A literary battle alone remained possible. But even in the domain of literature the old cries of the restoration period had become impossible.

In order to arouse sympathy, the aristocracy was obliged to lose sight, apparently, of its own interests, and to formulate their indictment against the bourgeoisie in the interest of the exploited working class alone. Thus, the aristocracy took their revenge by singing lampoons on their new masters and whispering in his ears sinister prophesies of coming catastrophe.

In this way arose feudal Socialism: half lamentation, half lampoon; half an echo of the past, half menace of the future; at times, by its bitter, witty and incisive criticism, striking the bourgeoisie to the very heart’s core; but always ludicrous in its effect, through total incapacity to comprehend the march of modern history.

The aristocracy, in order to rally the people to them, waved the proletarian alms-bag in front for a banner. But the people, so often as it joined them, saw on their hindquarters the old feudal coats of arms, and deserted with loud and irreverent laughter.

One section of the French Legitimists and “Young England” exhibited this spectacle.

In pointing out that their mode of exploitation was different to that of the bourgeoisie, the feudalists forget that they exploited under circumstances and conditions that were quite different and that are now antiquated. In showing that, under their rule, the modern proletariat never existed, they forget that the modern bourgeoisie is the necessary offspring of their own form of society.

For the rest, so little do they conceal the reactionary character of their criticism that their chief accusation against the bourgeois amounts to this, that under the bourgeois régime a class is being developed which is destined to cut up root and branch the old order of society.

What they upbraid the bourgeoisie with is not so much that it creates a proletariat as that it creates a revolutionary proletariat.

In political practice, therefore, they join in all coercive measures against the working class; and in ordinary life, despite their high-falutin phrases, they stoop to pick up the golden apples dropped from the tree of industry, and to barter truth, love, and honour, for traffic in wool, beetroot-sugar, and potato spirits. […]

— Manifesto of the Communist Party chapter 3 (Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, 1848)

With articles like these berating “Chinese state propaganda” at the same time as Sinclair Broadcast Group with its conservative “must-run” segments holds a monopoly on local news broadcasting in Seppoland, or this article accusing the Chinese state of “constraining and delaying” information on the COVID-19 pandemic when the Western press’ systemic and semi-deliberate fumbling of the pandemic leads most people in this part of the world to not even believe that the pandemic is ongoing, well… It rings of throwing stones in glass houses, doesn’t it? Of pots calling kettles black, of taking a mote out of a brother’s eye without first taking the beam out of one’s own; how many phrases exist to convey the idea of that good word hypocrisy.

Articles like these are the projection of a moribund system’s beneficiaries — in the old days it was feudalism turning into capitalism, and at present it’s capitalism turning into socialism.

The Untied States? In the next presidential election, this fall, it’s predicted to be Andon Knot (Republican Order–Popular Emancipation) vs Trip Lacey (Community-Oriented Rally–Democrats), right? These candidates are both said to play fast and loose, but I don’t think it’ll be very different from the incumbent.

Fantastic Planet stands out, as do the Flåklypa movies. Once Upon a Time… is nostalgic for me. Birdboy was a doozy I watched a few months ago, I can certainly recommend that one.

There were a lot of good animations from the USSR, but the one nearest to my heart has to be Polygon. The USSR didn’t produce many animated series but there is Vesyolaya Karusel’ and Nu Pogodi and stuff.

The DPRK is best known for Squirrel & Hedgehog. Otherwise, anilist.co actually lets you search for animation from Mainland China, Taiwan, and South Korea. I’ve personally seen Look, I Can See Your Ears! which I think was actually a Chinese-Japanese co-production, and I saw the film Nezha recently.

I guess I can also mention, like, '90s Tintin and Aardman stuff but like, everybody knows those already.

The UK generally has a lot of good stop motion, though. You might already know Bumper Films’ Fireman Sam, but did you know Bumper Films also made a show called Joshua Jones? It’s cute, it’s fun, it’s positive Romani representation in nineteen-ninety-friggin-two, it’s a neat little historical artifact.

I started writing a response to this, but it ended up exceeding Lemmy’s maximum comment length, so I had to make it as a separate post. I invite you to hear my piece, though I frankly doubt you will.

https://reddthat.com/post/38167040