The Methodology for a New Politics Changing the ‘Operating System’ of the Left after the 2015 Greek Experience Andreas Karitzis has a MSc in Mechanical Engineering and a PhD in Philosophy. He is the author of Logic and Method of a Left Government (in Greek) and a founding member of the “Hub” for social economy, empowerment and innovation. He was a member of the Political Secretariat of SYRIZA and of its Programme Committee until April of 2014. He was also a member of the SYRIZA’s Central Committee until August of 2015.

1. 2016 PHYLLIS CLARKE MEMORIAL LECTURE
Met hodology f or a New Polit ics:
Changing the "Operating System" of the Left
af t er t he Greek experience of 2015
Andreas Karit zis (Dr)
Former member of SYRI ZA (Cent ral Commit t ee, Polit ical Secret ariat )
Founding member of “HUB” f or human economy, empower ment and
innovat ion

2. St ruct ur e
Rising up from
the ruins
Stay in orbit
It' s the
implementati
on stupid!
Redesign
the
“Operating
System” of
The clock
is ticking
Prepare
for
landing

3. 2016 PHYLLIS CLARKE MEMORIAL LECTURE

4. 1. Rising up f rom t he ruins
The st rat egy of represent ing
popular demands at t he polit ical
level is not enough.
Set up a new concept ual f ramework
of doing politics bot h wit hin t he
st at e and out side of it which is
relevant t o t he current sit uat ion.
“Novel” t asks require dif f erent
ment alit y and operat ional
qualit ies t han t he ones we used t o
obt ain t hrough t radit ional
polit ical act ion.

5. 2. The clock is t icking
The time lag of
the Left
One of t he
premises t hat
shaped t he
st r at egy of
SYRI ZA
Forget it people!
Maj or shif t s of
European power
assembly and t heir
implicat ions in t he case
of Greece
The “Squeeze
Effect”
The current mode
of f unct ioning of
t he Greek polit ical
syst em
Mind the gap
Focusing on SYRI ZA' s
choice, we may hide
f rom our selves our
impot ence t o challenge
f inancial despot ism.
The t radit ional
Lef t met hodology
and pract ice is not
suf f icient t o meet
t he requirement s
of t he t oday' s
ant agonisms.
2.1 2.2. 2.3 2.4 Conclusion

6. 2.1. The t ime lag of t he Lef t
The elit es are commit t ed t o accept t he
democrat ically shaped mandat e of an elect ed
government (subj ect t o milit ary coups).
The post -war global balance of f orces inscribed in
t he st at e inst it ut ions a considerable amount of
popular power, rendering t hem quasi-democrat ic.
I n t he last decades t he elit es made decisive st eps
t owards limit ing t he abilit y of t he popular classes t o
inf luence crucial decisions.
The elit es are no longer commit t ed t o t he post -war
quasi-democrat ic rules.

7. 2.1. The t ime lag of t he Lef t
 SYRI ZA' s st rat egic premise: inst it ut ionalized past popular power is not
exhaust ed.
 By winning t he elect ions, t he remaining inst it ut ional power would be
enough and it would be used t o st op aust erit y.
 SYRI ZA did what t he t radit ional way of doing polit ics dict at es: support
social movement s, build alliances, win maj orit y in t he parliament , f orm of a
government .

8. 2.1. The t ime lag of t he Lef t
BUT
There was virt ually no change of
policy.

9. 2.2. For get it people!
I n EU and Eurozone, people' s democrat ic will has been successf ully limit ed
Ant i-
democrat ic
inst it ut ion
s
Bourgeoi
s st at e
People' s
will
The elites have managed to gain unchecked control over the
basic functions of the society

10. 2.3. The “Squeeze Ef f ect ”
I nst it ut ionalizat ion of neoliberal order
Concentra
tion of
power into
anti-
democrati
c
institution
s
Control
over
vital
functions
of Greek
society
Excision of
key funding
and
liquidity
functions
from the
state
Perplexin
g and
hazardou
s political
functionin
g

11. 2.3. The “Squeeze Ef f ect ”
Dif f erent poles
overlap and
poke t hrough
each ot her
I rrelevant t o
t he crucial
economic
& social
issues
Forced t o
f unct ion
wit hin
nearly
non-exist ent
space
System of
political
parties

12. 2.3. The “Squeeze Ef f ect ”
Neoliberalism
institutionalized
Neoliberal
consensus
Before
neoliberal consensus
Quasi-
democrat ic
polit ical
f unct ioning
(subj ect t o
milit ary coups)
A new circle of
polit ical
def ormat ion has
been launched
Right -wing and
social-democrat ic
part ies adopt
neoliberalism as
politicalprogramme

13. 2.3. The “Squeeze Ef f ect ”
ConsequenciesConsequencies
The social and
psychic wounds
cannot anymore
be reflected at
t he polit ical level,
t hey cannot be
represented &
democrat ically
expressed.
The social and
psychic wounds are
spread across all
social net works of
int erpersonal
relat ions shaking
social cohesion in a
deeper way.
The polit ical personnel
is becoming
sterile/impenetrable
regarding t he real lif e
condit ions of t he
populat ion.
The polit ical
spect rum is explicit ly
incoherent,
amplif ying t he
conf usion and
despair of t he
people.

14. 2.4. Mind t he gap
SYRI ZA was t he last gat ekeeper of t he polit ical
f unct ioning
t hrough it ' s non- compliance with financial
despotism.
The implosion of t he polit ical syst em
via SYRIZA' S choice to remain in power
was t he key f act or in shaking social cohesion in a
deeper way.
Focusing on SYRI ZA' s choice, we may hide f rom
ourselves our impotence t o challenge f inancial
despot ism.
The choice SYRI ZA made is – among ot her t hings – a
sympt om of t he deeper, st ruct ural weaknesses of
t he lef t .

15. 3. Prepar e f or landing
I n order t o
meet t he
requirement s
of t oday' s
ant agonisms
we need t o
obt ain a
degree of
autonomy
in t erms of
perf orming
basic social
f unct ions.
I n order t o
obt ain a
degree of
aut onomy
we must shift
the balance
bet ween
representing
& building
power at t he
prof iling of
t he Lef t .
3.2
Expand the
solution
space
3.1
Flawed
design

16. 3.1. Flawed design
I f a st at e-
orient ed
st rat egy f ails, a
movement -
orient ed
st rat egy
prevails
and vice versa
Doing politics in
each case is
considered t o be
given
But , our know-how
of doing politics is
seriously out dat ed,
undermining all our
st rat egies
Danger of const ant
oscillat ion bet ween
st rat egies of flawed
design
Set up a new
f ramework of doing
politics both within
the state and
outside of it, which
is relevant t o t he
current sit uat ion
INSTEAD

17. 3.1. Flawed design
Wit hout it we will not be able
t o conf ront t he host ile
act ions of t he elit es
Hence, in order t o pursue
any kind of policy one may
consider as being t he right
one
The elit es shif t ed t he
cent er of gravit y of polit ical
power (ant i-democrat ic
inst it ut ions)
01
We need a degree ofWe need a degree of
aut onomy in t erms ofaut onomy in t erms of
perf orming basic socialperf orming basic social
f unct ionsf unct ions
The elit es have managed t o
gain unchecked cont rol over
basic social f unct ions
The horizon of our polit ical
pract ice sit uat es t he st at e
at t he cent er of polit ical
power

18. 3.2. Expand t he solut ion space
The ground of t he bat t le has shif t ed, undermining our st rat egies
SO
We need t o reshape t he ground.
HOW?
By expanding t he solut ion space
HOW?
 By shif t ing priorit ies: f rom polit ical represent at ion t o building
popular power
 By shif t ing t he balance bet ween represent ing people' s demands

19. 3.2. Expand t he solut ion space
Ways of gaining a degree of aut onomy
infrast
r.
faciliti
es distributio
n
networks
energy
syste
ms
digital
massive
data
We must set up an
aut onomous Net work
of product ion of
Economic and Social
Power (NESP)
I nst ead of being t he
polit ical represent at ive
of t he popular classes in
a European f ramework
designed t o be int olerant
t o people' s needs
Alternative
financial tools
Co-
operatives
Communal
control
over
Local cells
of self-
governanc
e

20. 3.2. Expand t he solut ion space
Is a short description of
our duty
Τheir gradual absorpt ion in
an alt ernat ive paradigm
These element s may not be
f ully developed, t hey may
have been nurt ured in
mainst ream cont ext s
01
Τheir f unct ionalΤheir f unct ional
art iculat ion in alt ernat iveart iculat ion in alt ernat ive
pat t erns of perf ormingpat t erns of perf orming
basic social f unct ionsbasic social f unct ions
The support of t heir f urt her
development
Human act ivit y produces
element s t hat inherent ly
cont radict t he logic of
capit al

21. 3.2. Expand t he solut ion space
Our organizat ions are indif f erent even host ile t o
what humans achieve in a capit alist societ y,
misint erpret ing t hem as st emming solely f rom t he
logic of capit al.
The level of our evolut ion is t he exist ing ground f or
any f ut ure societ y.
I t is ut t erly self -def eat ing t o f ight f or social change
ignoring t he st at e of t he art of t he very same
societ y we want t o change.
Collective political imagination slip:

22. 4. Redesign t he “Oper at ing Syst em” of
t he Lef t
Transf ormat ion
st rat egy
4.3
Polit ical
represent at
ion
4.2
Building
power
4.1

23. 4.1. Building power
I t ' s not
import ant what
we t hink, it ' s
what we know
how t o do t hat
mat t ers
We need t o
build relevant
inst it ut ions
and
organizat ions
The const it ut ion and
expansion of NESP
requires qualities
relevant to the
current, highly
diversified and
rapidly changing
social field
What we know how
t o do is a product
of our
collective
imagination,
methodology and
organizational
principles

24. 4.1. Building power

25. 4.1. Building power

26. 4.1. Building power

27. 4.1. Building power

28. 4.1. Building power
I nt ernal Ext ernal
Best practices,
methods &
regulations
(collect ive
experience,
management ,
psychology,
organizat ional
t heories et c)
Processes & nodes
of connection
(f lows of expert ise
& inf o, dat abases,
complexit y &
net work syst ems
t heories et c)
Our init iat ives are
f ragment ed and
isolat ed, dest ined t o
f ace t he same
dif f icult ies again and
again
Our organizat ions have
poor perf ormance in
t erms of cooperat ion &
democracy
I nt ernal Ext ernal

29. 4.1. Building power
Advantages of large corporations
Powerf ul
dat abas
es
Vast
social
net work
I nst ead of
being
blind &
disarrayed
Tools t o
plan and
pursue
t heir
goals
We need t hese
qualit ies if we want
t o be relevant t o
t he t oday' s
escallat ion of
ant agonisms

30. The “t ask”
here is t o
explore
novel ways
of
perf orming
t he f unct ion
of polit ical
represent at i
on
I n order
t o
restruct
ure
exist ing
ways
The
expansion of
NESP could
and shouldshould
be reflected
on t he
f unct ion of
polit ical
represent at i
on it self .
And
upgrade
t he
polit ical
leverage
of t he
popular
classes
4.2. Polit ical
r epresent at ion

31. 4.3. Transf ormat ion st rat egy
The expansion
of NESP can
f urt her unlock
our
imagination
t owards
targeted
ref orms of
st at e
inst it ut ions
The
t ransf ormat io
n of t he st at e
is a
complementar
y move t o t he
self -organized
collect ivit ies
of t he people
out side of it ,
driven by
t hese f orms
of self -
governance.By shif t ing our priorit ies we may be
able t o revive old but usef ul ideas
t hat have been f orgot t en in pract ice

32. 5. I t ' s t he implement at ion st upid!
The level of
t he st at e:
t here is
not hing t here
t hat in
principle
excludes t he
Lef t .
Approaching
government power,
st ruct ural
inadequacies can be
disast rous.
The
administ rat ion of
t he st at e poses
quest ions and
“t asks” t hat we
cannot avoid.
There is no way t o
t ranscend capit alism
if we do not address
large-scale
quest ions.
We miss a mode
of
governmentality
st emming f rom
our own logic and
values.
The question
What kind of Lef t is capable t o engage wit h t he st at e in such a way t hat
will promot e even f urt her people' s leverage against t he elit es' host ilit y?

33. 5. I t ' s t he implement at ion st upid!
One aspect of t his lack in t he case of SYRI ZA was
t he ignorance but mainly t he indif f erence t owards
issues t hat are relat ed wit h t he implementation
process.
The fact t hat a current of t he Lef t which includes
government power wit hin it s st rat egy has such a low
level of awareness regarding t he import ance of
implement at ion processes
reflects t he degree of obsolescence of t he Lef t and
justifies f ully t he need f or a radical redesign of t he
“Operat ing Syst em” of t he Lef t .

34. 5. I t ' s t he implement at ion st upid!
 The implement at ion process is
not a “t echnicalit y” but t he
mat erialmat erial basis of one' s polit ical
st rat egy in being in t he
government .
 The general, st rat egic
decisions is j ust t he “t ip of t he
iceberg” of st at e-polit ics.
 The implement at ion process is
t he “iceberg” of st at e-polit ics
beneatht he surf ace.

35. 5. I t ' s t he implement at ion st upid!
 The implement at ion process is where
t he polit ical st ruggle wit hin t he st at e
becomes hard and t he class
adversaries bat t le t o prevail over
shaping realit y.
 The t ip is not going t o move t he
iceberg as long as it is not support ed
by a mult i-level and mult i-personal
implement at ion st rat egy.
 This is t he int egrat ed concept of
st at e-polit ics t hat we have f orgot t en

36. 5. I t ' s t he implement at ion st upid!

37. 6. St ay in or bit
We are ent ering
an era in which
our societ ies will
f ace t remendous
challenges.
Redesigning
t he “OS” of
t he Lef t could
cont ribut e t o
t he new
survival
st rat egy.
Our societ ies need
a new survival
strategy.
While at t he
same t ime t hey
are undergoing
const ant
neoliberal
t ransf ormat ion.

38. 6. St ay in orbit
Embrace t he emergency of our
condit ion and push ourselves t o
get over our common problem
which is what we know how t o do.
We must push ourselves t o
“t hink” dif f erent ly and spot
what prevent s us f rom being
ef f ect ive.
Maybe we are more st ronger
t han we t hink and event ually
deploy a survival st rat egy t hat
act ually can work.
We must push our collect ivit ies
t o “see” dif f erent ly what lies
around and spot pot ent ialit ies
and “mat erials” we had never
t hought of being usef ul t o us.
START

39. 6. St ay in orbit
Choices
like these
The failure
of SYRIZA
The “SYRIZA
experience”
will be wort hless
if we do not
resist t he
t empt at ion t o
replace one
mist ake wit h
anot her.
are j ust
symmet ric t o
what SYRI ZA did
j ust if ying f ully
our opponent s:
eit her you will be
marginal or you
will become like
us!
creat es
f avorable
condit ions f or
ment alit ies like
“self -ref erent ial
alt ernat ivism”
and “vanguard
isolat ionism” t o
emerge.

40. 6. St ay in or bit
Ent ering t he ominous bat t lef ield of t he 21st cent ury, t he Lef t will
eit her be relevant & usef ul f or t he def ense & survival of human
societ ies or it will be obsolet e