The key, however, is their belief that capitalism is inherently statist. In fact, Marxists, in general, are not apt to equate "capitalism" and "the free market." It is practically defined as that cluster of social relations marked by economic exploitation and the political rule of the capitalist class. They view market and state as co-extensive, and their ultimate utopia is one in which both the market and the state wither away. That they choose to use the state as an instrument to help in the withering away... well, it "doesn't make sense," as you put it. Talk about internal contradictions. :)
I should point out that not all Marxists have argued this; some follow the work of Antonio Gramsci, who thought that the institutions of civil society needed to be changed culturally so that a political revolution would be superfluous.
by Chris Matthew Sciabarra on January 29, 2005 at 9:13 PM