Patriotism and internationalism

This chapter and the next will explore conflicting Weberian and Marxian explanations and evaluations of two great, interrelated twentieth-century political issues: the conflict of imperialism and predatory nationalism with democratic internationalism, and the domestic interplay of class, status, and racism. Though Weberian and subsequent power-state “realisms” are often invoked by liberals, they are linked to nonliberal political and moral conclusions; their clash with radical claims is glaring. A comparison with Marxism highlights the core features of plausible liberal ethical and empirical claims against Weber's conclusions. Further, these Marxian positions are – at least in an intellectual climate dominated by international politics “realism” – unexpected and, prima facie, implausible. Once we clarify the theoretical contrast, however, we can find considerable evidence for them. In Popperian terms, good philosophy of science justifies exploration of radical claims: As they are surprising, so they are fruitful. Such theories are important, so far undefeated contenders for truth.

At the outset of the twentieth century, the German ruling class sparred with other capitalist powers for worldwide economic and political influence. In this “age of imperialism” and colonialism, European and American elites adopted domineering aims in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America.