🎯 Main Thesis

• Western welfare states and the relative prosperity of the working class in imperialist countries are made possible by the exploitation of the Global South.
• Unequal exchange is the central mechanism by which value is transferred from poorer nations to richer ones, subsidizing the living standards of first-world workers and creating a labor aristocracy.
• As a result, revolutionary struggle must prioritize supporting liberation movements in the Global South, while re-proletarianizing the imperial core.

🛠️ Core Arguments

1. ⚖️ Reformism vs. Revolution

• Social democracy (e.g. Nordic models, or Bernie-style politics) relies on concessions from capital, not victories over it.
• These reforms are temporary and reversible, dependent on imperial profits rather than working-class power.
• Luxemburg’s critique of reformism is still relevant: without the working class in power, all gains are precarious.

2. 🌍 Imperialist Foundations of Western Welfare

• Welfare states in the Global North (e.g., France, Sweden, the US) are built not only on domestic labor but also:
  • Neocolonial extraction
  • Colonial taxes
  • Unequal exchange
  • Ethnic labor exploitation (e.g., apartheid South Africa, racialized poverty in the US)

3. 💰 The Labor Aristocracy

• There exists a materially privileged section of the working class in imperial countries that benefits from exploitation abroad.
• Quoting Marx, Engels, and Lenin, this group supports capitalism in practice, as their comforts depend on imperial plunder, not on the downfall of capitalism.
• This labor aristocracy often backs liberal parties or social democrats who ultimately support imperial policies, such as NATO interventions.

4. 📉 Unequal Exchange Theory