An old revolutionary walks across the Brooklyn Bridge one day, and he sees man of a similar age standing on the edge, about to jump. He runs over and says: "Stop. Don't do it."
"Why shouldn't I?" he asked.
"Well, there's so much to live for!"
"I'm just so depressed, I've been a communist all my life and the revolution seems as far away as ever"
"You're a communist?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"I am as well!! Did you originally join the Communist Party USA?"
"Yeah."
"Me too! Did you join the pro-Trotsky Communist League of America in 1928, which later merged with the American Workers Party to form the Workers Party of America in 1934?"
"Yeah."
"Spooky, Me too! After the WPA was expelled from the Socialist Party of America in 1936 did you then go on to join the Socialist Workers Party USA and the Fourth International?"
"I did actually…"
"Me too! In the 1940 dispute did you side with Cannon or Shachtman?"
"Cannon."
"Me too! In 1962 did you join Robertson's opposition caucus, the Revolutionary Tendency?"
"Yep."
" Holy shit! And of course like me you were expelled and went on to join the International Communist League (Spartacist)."
"Well ... that goes without saying!"
"In 1985 did you join the International Bolshevik Tendency who claimed that the Sparts have degenerated into an 'obedience cult'?"
"No way!"
"Nah, me neither. In 1998 did you join the Internationalist Group after the Permanent Revolution Faction were expelled from the ICL?"
"Yeah! I can't believe this! Maybe I won't ..."
"Die, counterrevolutionary scum!". And he pushes him off the edge.
[Stolen from Red Left Review]
Posted at 23:17, 1 May 2007
Comments (10)
oh man that was brill
Dave is it my imagination but when I first heard this joke (oh, about twenty years ago) it was a bit shorter?
Like who were the Internationalist Group - answers on the back of a postage stamp please...
You don't remember the 1998 split in the Spartacists? Maybe east anglia didn't have proper communications back then. However, the Sparts expelled the editor of their paper because he wouldn't give his phone bill to the treasurer for payment. I expect there were more important underlying issues but the postage stamp wouldn't big enough
Andrew, the joke is only a couple of years old. Its a spin on a joke about splits in the catholic church. Its origins are on UKLN. See here:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/UK_Left_Network/message/65634
That should be protestant church...
ok, you made me laugh, satisfied?
Good stuff.
Typical Trot behaviour! They even argue about the origins of a joke! Expel, exterminate, exterminate (Dalek blows up...)
I stand corrected Simon - you really mean that the UKLN has not existed for over twenty years?
It's actually adapted from a 20 odd year old gag by US stand up Emo Philips and is endlessly altered by all kinds of groups to fit their context, originally it was religious.
Emo on his gag being voted best religious joke-
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,3604,1580452,00.html