A Message to Our Readers:
THIS PAPER, AND REVCOM.US, CANNOT CONTINUE WITHOUT YOUR FINANCIAL SUPPORT!
December 23, 2012 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us
There really is nothing out there like Revolution newspaper, and the new, radically transformed revcom.us website.
Where else do you find the work of Bob Avakian, week in and week out—work that ranged, just over this past year, from the interview What Humanity Needs: Revolution, and the New Synthesis of Communism… to commentary on the ruling class’ media and the railroad of the Central Park 5… to getting to the bottom of the Thomas Jefferson controversy… to a unique perspective on “Tebow-Mania”… and much more! Check out the list on the facing page of this issue for a list of BA’s works that appeared for the first time in the pages of Revolution or at revcom.us just this year. And there is much more to come!
Where else, in print or online, do you get a radical analysis that calls out the crimes of a whole system built on plunder and profit, and that cuts through and breaks out of the whole mindset and terms this system sets on things? Where else do you get a lofty and exciting, but extremely concrete vision of a world established on the foundation of people working together in common, for the common good of all humanity? And where else do you get a picture of all of what it would take to get to that world, and how you and others can be a part of that?
When people are being conditioned to silently go along with the mass incarceration of Black and Latino people… when they are being programmed to accept U.S. murder by drone in large swaths of the world… when they are being lulled into accepting environmental disaster… Revolution and revcom.us expose why these things are not tolerable. And why they are not necessary! That a whole other world is possible.
At the heart of this project, Revolution and revcom.us are the main way that the world connects with the work and the leadership of Bob Avakian, and BA’s new synthesis of communism—a source of hope and daring, on a scientific basis, for everyone who wants to see a world without oppression of any kind.
And Revolution, and revcom.us, are the hub and pivot of a movement for revolution—a way that that movement gets guidance, shares experiences, and keeps track of “where we are in the game” in terms of preparing for, while hastening the moment when a real chance at a successful revolution emerges.
Our current readership and online audience gives—in embryo—a picture of the forces that could lead a revolution in this country: a hardcore readership among the 2.4 million people locked down in the hellish prisons of the U.S.... reaching onto college campuses, into inner-city projects… stretching at moments into the crowds at concerts, and into scientific and artistic scenes.
The launching of the radically revitalized revcom.us opens potential to reach a much larger audience in the U.S. and around the world. And this readership, and audience, is key to forging a network of thousands now who can lead millions when a chance at revolution emerges.
You may agree with all of the above. Or you may be actively engaging with it, and figuring out what you think. Or you might just be glad this is out there in the world as a real and living challenge to the horrendous terms of political discourse and the continued crimes of imperialist rule, but you can see how important it is that this is out in the world.
But here’s the situation: THIS PAPER, AND REVCOM.US, CANNOT CONTINUE WITHOUT YOUR FINANCIAL SUPPORT.
It costs money to create the quality of content for the newspaper and website that our readers, and the times, demand. It costs money to print and distribute the newspaper. And despite illusions to the contrary, the Internet is not “free”—in the sense of being outside the domination of the ruling class and its ideas, but also, it costs money to have an accessible, inviting and reliable web presence, and to be found online.
Over the past year, and more, we have been making readers aware—to an extent—of the emergency funding crisis we face in continuing to put out this paper and maintain revcom.us. But that situation is more dire than we have fully communicated. We’ll say it again: THIS PAPER, AND REVCOM.US, CANNOT CONTINUE WITHOUT YOUR FINANCIAL SUPPORT. And this is not a situation that can continue. It would really be a disaster if this paper, and revcom.us, were unable to continue to operate. And that is a real danger.
So here’s the plan: Starting right now, we are challenging everyone who looks to revcom.us and Revolution to become a financial sustainer. For this paper and website to continue in the short-term, everyone reading this—yes, you—needs to sign up. Your contribution—sent by mail, paid online by credit card, or turned in to your local distributor every month, quarterly, semi-annually, or in a lump sum—will allow us to continue to operate. And to expand our audience, and thus the potential financial base for Revolution and revcom.us.
The basic timeline for transforming our financial base over the coming year will be periodic “pledge drives.” The first one STARTS NOW!
Fill out the coupon on this page and send it in, or get it to your local distributor or sign up with your credit card or PayPal account at revcom.us. For a pledge of $120/year received by the end of January, we’ll send you a “greatest hits” DVD of audio and video files available at revcom.us packaged onto a disc that you can play on your computer or copy to a mobile device. This DVD offers convenient access to selected audio and video that you can listen to and watch without Internet, without waiting for downloads, in the subway, at family gatherings, in classrooms, or on an airplane.
So, pledge now. And send in your ideas for forging a community of sustainers for Revolution and revcom.us. Stay tuned each week for developments, ideas, and new initiatives.
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