showrecentposts({"version":"1.0","encoding":"UTF-8","feed":{"xmlns":"http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom","xmlns$openSearch":"http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/","xmlns$georss":"http://www.georss.org/georss","id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045"},"updated":{"$t":"2009-11-24T01:35:16.965Z"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Southpawpunch"},"subtitle":{"type":"html","$t":"The revolutionary socialist column"},"link":[{"rel":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default?alt\u003djson-in-script\u0026orderby\u003dpublished"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/"},{"rel":"hub","href":"http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/"},{"rel":"next","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default?alt\u003djson-in-script\u0026start-index\u003d26\u0026max-results\u003d25\u0026orderby\u003dpublished"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"}}],"generator":{"version":"7.00","uri":"http://www.blogger.com","$t":"Blogger"},"openSearch$totalResults":{"$t":"77"},"openSearch$startIndex":{"$t":"1"},"openSearch$itemsPerPage":{"$t":"25"},"entry":[{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-4754181908362061579"},"published":{"$t":"2009-09-30T01:12:00.014+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2009-11-24T01:26:23.354Z"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Left Unity"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"journalism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"left parties"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Conservatives"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Labour"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"TUC"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"capitalism"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"LabourConservatives /  Main course / Journalist email lists /  Red money saving tips!"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLabourConservatives\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf you copied the forthcoming LibDem, Tory and Labour manifestos onto tracing paper and then put these copies on top of each other, you would see that the words don't completely line up. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Tories, for example, appear to not be quite so ‘Police endorsed’ on civil liberties issues as the other parties (although how long would that last, post them winning the election?) \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut fundamentally the manifestos are the same. It’s the Tory Conservatives and the Labour Conservatives. Their business sponsors write these documents, not politicians, unless the latter do through some sort of automatic writing. Mediums used to channel the thoughts of those who had ‘crossed over’ by this method, maybe   the kept politicians of businesses now use the same method to morph their own odd idea with the hard-nosed text transmitted to them by their paymasters’ policy teams. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd not only does business write the legislation, they are also a constant commanding presence in its day to day implementation. Deregulate and then deregulate again is the constant command of government, compliant to the never-ending litany of controls, rules and regulations that businesses push to be abolished.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI recently worked for a public body where I was often told that the communications angle we were to take would have to a pass a ‘business friendly’ test, although the legislation we supposedly worked to suggested a much more critical approach was obligated. Never once was I asked to apply a ‘worker friendly’ test to what we were going to pronounce. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e'Lesser evilism'\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo what are the reformist Left and Labour lackeys doing when presented with incontrovertible evidence that there is nothing good about Labour and no support to them should be offered? They are raising the perennial ‘lesser evilism’ argument; you must support 'our' branch of the enemy - Vote Labour to keep out the Tories. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis old and cowardly line - of 'realism', 'dented shields' and the like - has put the Left in Britain back decades. How far could we have got if these terminal depressives arguing this had made the break from Labour years ago; they are not unlike a battered woman who keeps telling herself she will give her partner another chance, even after he sets her hair on fire. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDo you want a 5% pay cut or loss of ten days' holiday? That's 'lesser evilism'. The choice of being hit round the head with a hammer or with a baseball bat. That's 'lesser evilism' too.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBollocks to all that; the old fake 'red pill or blue pill' choice when it is time to upend Nurse Ratched's whole tray of pharmaceuticals and head out through the locked doors and barred windows. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLabour is not worthy of a single vote. In the same way that Labour Left types rightly wouldn't vote LibDem, even when that would be the only likely way to stop a Tory MP be elected in their constituency, no socialist can vote Labour. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eLeft alternative\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt's a tragedy that there isn't a Left alternative to Labour. In no small part that's due to those political criminals who cling onto Labour's skirts, no matter what sewage that drags them through. But just because there isn't an alternative, doesn't mean you should support Labour.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen I was 20 (in 1983), it was taken as read that people hated the Tories (now 'taken as read' did mean it related to the sort of people that I'd hang around with, but clearly millions did vote for the blue scum; and they weren't all dagger-faced, power-dressing escaped Nazi war criminals living in Wilmslow, much as I may have thought so at the time.)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut then it was also a fair presumption to assume anyone Left you met was either in Labour or supported the Labour Left (to varying degrees).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut now I don't think there is an organisation for your average Lefty to consider joining. The SWP are very small and the SP even smaller (All cities and most large to medium sized town in the 80s had a Militant or an SWP paper stall, once a week. They don’t now). Respect doesn’t seem much of a draw and, I trust, the new age flim-flam of the Greens, now holding the attention of some radicals, won’t be able to maintain that mirage for long - look at the German Greens, or the Irish Green in a right-wing government, or the local Green coalitions with the Tories, LibDems and Labour in Britain.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHatred of Labour is palpable. A lot of this is right-wing but Labour are doing what to pander to such vermin, such as in Brown’s Labour conference speech today where be bigged up on keeping out illegals and praised the ridiculous UK Border Agency; those pigeon-chested clowns who enjoy half strutting around in their shiny new uniforms,   scanning your passports as you attempt to enter Stalag Britain.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut a fair bit of the hatred for Labour is criticism from its Left (and that’s a very large space). A contempt for the supplicants to the bankers and a complete disdain for the bombers of Baghdad.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo where will this Left go? There is little organised presence in this space.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIs what happened in places like Ireland, where the Left was always very small (post independence), a guide? Lefts got involved in other things, like the republican struggle in that island; \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOr will it be like in the USA, where you could move a lot rightwards and join the Democrats or oftentimes, just drop-out; \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOr even in Britain where you are a Left but live somewhere like Guildford or Harrogate. You may get involved in union activity but, unless you are interested in travelling, you may do nothing political.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eWhat will happen next?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWill Cruddas and co try and seize the moment and make their careerist bid in Labour by not being quite as right wing as Brown, and possibly thus create some very faint reverb of 30 years ago when lots of Lefts got enthused by the Bennite trend in Labour. Let's hope people aren't that gullible again, in what would not even be a whisper of an echo of what happened before.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWill the Muslim ghettos reach the level of cohesiveness that sustained the Provos for 30 odd years and launch a political and military campaign? I suspect Islamism is on the wane and, as the black ghettos didn't respond militantly or militarily 25 years ago when under a lesser police attack, I'm don’t think Newham and Bradford and other places will do so now.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCould a similar thing happen in the reforming oceans of poverty and despair that mass unemployment is bringing? It didn’t 25 years ago; I don’t see any indication  it will now. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCould the ever increasing pace and availability of technology lead to adaptations by the Left e.g. new ways to circulate publicity such as Left web radio stations, or even go on the offensive e.g. technological methods to disrupt mainstream or cop communications, sabotage the back offices of companies on strike or even launch armed offensives. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe British Left has never been very good at innovating - come across any mass txt campaigns or hard Left Twitterers with tens of thousands of followers? - but I hope we can wise up and take the lead from those, like the Silicon valley social media companies or the porn industry (the first with premium rate phone lines and many other innovations, and I know the first 3D comms will feature Jordan) to use technological progress to function in a world where people can’t be bothered, at the moment, to attend meetings or read (or sell) small circulation papers. But I don’t know that the Left will make these sort of advances anytime soon.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe best advance would be the formation of a Left alternative - a coalition of those Left of Labour – and which would tap into this wellspring of hatred for the poverty, disease and war of capitalism; and could also organise both the fightback and overthrow of this useless system.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut how do we do that? How can we get a momentum going? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe present misleaders of all the Left parties just haven’t got a clue about how to do this and they also don’t know, or even care, that the sum of their combined strength is greater than the constituent parts. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo will a generation just drop out, as they see no outlets? I think that is possible, but only for a while. Because events happen. A large scale war against Iran, an environmental disaster, calamitous events in Europe (or further away) leading to power for the far Right or Left, an offensive here to, say, abolish free healthcare or most benefits that could provoke a backlash in the way that the Poll Tax did. Things happen, history ain't finished; it's just the Left isn't savvy enough even to be a proper spectator, never mind take part. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut what form would such a fightback take? Unlike many of the Mystic Megs on the Left, I will not presume to guess to know and also, with modesty unknown amongst all the political committees of all the Left groups, think we could necessarily much influence such a movement.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut a form will be taken by any expression of outrage and resistance. And that's an opportunity.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m watching and waiting - and looking to do more.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eMain course\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI recently came across a notice about a fancy event being organised by the British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (BVCA).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf you updated the stereotypical capitalists of an Ealing comedy film, meeting in one of their own numbers’ stately homes, wrapped up in their fur-collared coats and silk scarves to co-ordinate throwing 20,000 Lancashire mill-workers out of work; and added in a similar group of people from a Graham Greene novel, discussing some fiendish stock market rigging plan in their London club, over cigars and brandy, you would arrive at something like the BVCA.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI read in the blurb that this BVCA soiree was taking place in some Sylvan retreat, and before summer was fully extinguished. A slap up meal was promised.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRonald Cohen, notorious capitalist slash-and burner, one of the founders of Apax Partners (\"one of three truly global venture capital firms\") and a major financial backer of Brown was speaking; so was someone from KKR (the SS of venture capitalism, sort of) and many more of their like. If capitalism is the Huns (which it is), then these speakers are Attila’s personal shock troops.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut amongst these titans of capital and industry, listed to address the event, stood one name that, at first glance, may have been thought to have been added  mistakenly. Maybe they mixed him up with a near namesake or something?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut no, I don’t doubt that he really was invited, and he was as pleased as Punch to go. I also don’t doubt that he sternly instructed his PA to get his Dinner Jacket pressed and his shoes spit-polished before the occasion; or that he kept his chauffeur waiting on the day, whilst he spent inordinately long checking the cleanliness of his fingernails so as to be sure he was all spick and span and so  would make a good impression.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFor it was the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress, Brenda Barber, who was listed to attend this event.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOnly maybe he had not read the details about the meal that was to be served. It was to be a barbeque, although obviously of the superior kind. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI wonder if Barber worked that out before, or after, they stuck the rotisserie skewers into him?   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eJournalist email lists\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI have recently obtained a list of political correspondents for both the UK national print media as well as for the UK local and regional print media. These lists contain names, email addresses, publication names, tel nos, etc. They would be useful both to email news releases, as well as to contact journalists to try and get your story covered. The lists were complied a few months ago.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’d be happy to send copies (Excel files) to any Lefts, people from single issue campaigns and the like. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI would need some proof that you are such if you want them (I don’t want to help non Lefts) but I also take, in this case, a liberal view of who is a Left or a Left supported campaign. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd if you do use such lists, I really suggest you don’t blanket send news releases, or send out non stories. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBe selective if you want anyone to take notice when you do have any news to report; and also try to localise content (especially for the sub-national media).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI am also happy to give advice about news releases and other media relations work to Lefts and associated campaigns (for free, naturally). It is what I do for a living.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eEmail me.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eRed money saving tips!\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e‘Tate’ Soviet Poster Art 2010 Calendar.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIncluding such delights as ‘Women Workers, Take up your Rifles’ (1918) \u003cbr /\u003eOr ‘Communism - This is Soviet Power Plus Electrification’ (1925)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOnly £2.99 at ‘Works’ bookshops.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI also see that the Tate, whose name features prominently on the front of the calendar, will get a “minimum of 3% of the selling price (excluding VAT)” i.e. about 10p a calendar.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf you are going to flog your good name to a bunch of cheap calendar makers, and for them to a link it to a collection of propaganda art that you would turn your nose up at, could you not do so at a better price (that way you would be able to buy even more tat to put into the Tate.)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eFrom Lenin's Tomb\u003c/span\u003e - http://leninology.blogspot.com/2009/09/note-to-labour-delegates.html\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd quite brilliant.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\"Face facts, (Labour Party conference) delegates: you've had it. You're about to get trampled by a bunch of spivvy public schoolboys who by rights should be watching their venture capital firms sink, not preparing to lead the country. And the sad thing is that when that does happen, and you're all lying face down in the mud, you will collectively sigh with your last breath: \"Mandelson was right - we should have privatised the Royal Mail!\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-4754181908362061579?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/4754181908362061579/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d4754181908362061579\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"0 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/4754181908362061579"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/4754181908362061579"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2009/09/labourconservatives-main-course.html","title":"LabourConservatives /  Main course / Journalist email lists /  Red money saving tips!"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"0"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-8386877199093929969"},"published":{"$t":"2009-04-15T06:53:00.007+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2009-11-24T01:28:32.868Z"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"On the death of a protestor / The time I almost felt sorry for a (minor) capitalist / Ho hum"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eOn the death of a protestor\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLate at night, a few hours after the first report of the death of a (then unnamed) protestor at the G20 demonstrations, I posted this at Lenin's Tomb -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e... My condolences to his family and friends...Scanty reports are suggesting he was beaten by the cops. Others say 'natural causes', which could be a host of things. e.g. what may have caused a heart attack or something else. I’m not going to point a finger yet.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut IF the cops are involved, or indeed if they don’t yet know whether they are involved, this is what has already happened.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAt an emergency meeting at Scotland Yard, their PR people will have already had it made clear to them that they need to leak whatever they have on the dead protester to the media, ASAP - he went there for a trouble, maybe a youth caution for shoplifting, that sort of thing. Spurious accusations - e.g. ‘was he my rapist?’ (as happened to Jean Charles de Menezes) will occur later.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eElsewhere, a cop detail will have destroyed all forensic evidence relating to the death, already met to collaborate on how they write it up and will have managed to 'lose' other bits of evidence.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSomewhere else, cops will desperately be trying to see from their intelligence video etc, which protesters or journalists may have captured events around the death as photos or video.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs soon as they identify them, they will seek straightaway to seize this video, and there is a possibility that this will later be destroyed, in an 'accidental fire' or similar. About as accidental as Steve Biko ‘falling out’ of police station window, that is.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI really, really advise anyone who may have such evidence to immediately post it, online and anonymously, at Flickr, YourTube, indymedia, etc so that we at least have a copy when the cops seize the originals. Post links to it in many Left and anarchist sites. Such photographers should do so from a web café and may also want to stay elsewhere for a few days.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf, and I stress if, the cops have killed, it will be the first time they have done this to a demonstrator in Britain (save NI) since they murdered Blair Peach in 1979 and Kevin Gatley in 1974. The time previous to that was in the 30s.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt will be a whole new ball game. It will be a declaration of war by the pigs. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLet us not be found wanting.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe should view any 'official version' with a healthy dose of scepticism, before making up our minds independently. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd then, in the early hours, I wrote -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\"\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eNews Front Pages, 0400 - Lead story headline:\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMan collapsed and died in G20 summit protest - Telegraph \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMan dies during G20 demonstrations in London - Guardian \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eG20 leaders get down to business – BBC (Britain’s most popular news website) No mention of the death, at all, on front page.\u003c/span\u003e\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNice one, Beeb. Are such actions what it takes to keep your government charter?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe police pump out a never-ending succession of arrests of young men with Pakistani origins, in which out heroes foil ever more elaborate master plots to slaughter us all in our beds. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe press fawn and regurgitate whatever the pig press officer has just vomited all over them. Meanwhile these ‘Al Qaeda desperados’ are all released without charge, nor with a column inch, a few days later.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eJust don’t let them play the usual ‘it was just a bad apple’ card, if anyone, in blue is ever done for the violence the state inflicted on the G20 protestors. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThey’re all guilty and the mainstream media (a front page story on the BBC News website as I write – ‘Barack Obama unveils the First Puppy’) are their accomplices. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eThe time I almost felt sorry for a (minor) capitalist.\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe as an excuse for activity, or, as I like to think, in addition to it, I make full use of whatever regulatory apparatus there is.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(Do you remember all that ‘light touch’ regulatory regime in Britain - the one that was keeping us nimble in contrast to our ‘over-regulated’ European competitors with their inflexible workforce and their banks tied up with red tape? I wonder if that worked out well - with the Pound sinking against the Euro, and unemployment rising a lot faster here).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m pleased that my reporting to the local authority has seen Tesco prosecuted at least twice for overcharging and selling unsafe goods. I’m pleased that action has also been taken against at least one dubious college (they are always called the Oxford or Cambridge College of Canning Town, or similar) that I reported for falsely claiming affiliation with prestigious universities; so as to attract and then fleece foreign students.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI should do more. Still at least a recent spam email to me started matters moving.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eFeb 17, 2009 at 4:29 PM\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDear Southpaw,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI am writing to you about...\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThen followed a long email that, in short, was trying to get me to pay for something that it is illegal to charge for – the standard services of an employment agency.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eBest regards,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAlan Ashley, Executive\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eTue, Feb 17, 2009 at 6:05 PM\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDear Mr Ashley,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThank-you for your brochure about your services. I may be interested in taking the matter further but I notice the document doesn't appear to give a contact address for your company.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI'd be grateful if you could supply same so that I may further consider the matter.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eKind regards,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSouthpawpunch\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eWed, Feb 18, 2009 at 5:32 AM\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHi Southpaw\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThanks for your reply.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe contact detail of our companies MD is given at the end of the broucher. i suggest that you should read the broucher for the payment system and let me about you decision to utilize our service asap so that i can forward your details to my manager who will contact you further process.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLooking forward to hear from you\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRegards \u003cbr /\u003eAlan Ashley\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eWed, Feb Mar 18, 2009 at 2:55 PM\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDear spammer,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThanks for confirming the details.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI will be passing them all to the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate and will be telling them that I suspect you are breaking the law by attempting to illegally charge job seekers.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNow just fuck off.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eThu, Mar 19, 2009 at 4:48 PM\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDear Southpaw, I just wanted to mail to say that how we work is entirely legal. We charge executives for various xxx services. There are many comapnies  that provide such services in the UK. - would be happy to discuss should you wish, We do the same thing as such firms as X. I am sorry that you have been upset by Alan’s approach, and if there is any way that I can compensate you for your time, I of course will. My personal mobile is X. Best regards, Bill, Managing Director.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eThu, Mar 19, 2009 at 5:31 PM \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCouple of examples.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHi Southpaw, just thought I'd send you a couple of examples of similar firms. (4 x websites) Many of these companies have been working for years. Even so I would like to send you a bottle of wine for your trouble. Best regards, Bill\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eThu, Mar 19, 2009 at 6:19 PM\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnother one – (another website). I'll leave it at that. All the best Southpaw. Another alternative would be to offer you inclusion in our services for gratis and you can see what we can deliver. Best regards, \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eThu, Mar 19, 2009 at 7:16 PM\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou were right...\u003cbr /\u003eSouthpawpunch, my huge apologies. You were right. I have contacted BERR and reread the employment regs, and although reg does mention X is ok, it is grey to say the least. We will now look at totally changing the way we work. I just assumed that as all these other companies were doing similar things, that it was ok. Please don't contact anyone - I would be grateful. We will change the way we work asap. Thank you for alerting me to this. Best regards, Bill. p.s. We are not scammers!\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI didn't reply. But sure enough, they completely changed what they were doing.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eHo-hum\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI find it quite strange that Labour are so amateurish as to allow liabilities like Derek Draper to play a role in their work. But that is the party that is sleepwalking towards electoral defeat, in part, because they can not see what a liability Brown is for them now and don’t even have the self-preservation instincts of the average sloth to jettison what damages them.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou’d have thought the prospect of losing all their second home mortgages, spouse’s salary and access to god knows what personal indignities they will expect their young interns to provide for them, would concentrate the minds of their MPs a bit more but, as I’ve said, I think parties lose power, not gain it, and Labour were just lucky, and soon, so will be the Tories.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI also don’t think we can leave Draper without mentioning, as others have, how non-news was the revelation that one political party was planning to tell lies about members of the other one. I think it is all these BBC political journalists, Tory bloggers, policy wonks and the like think that the whole country is interested when some in their charmed circle of a few hundred fall out with each other. We’re not.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSuch near non-news wouldn’t be so readily inflicted on us if these people didn’t have power. The whole of the Easter weekend news agenda was taken up with their tittle-tattle while stuff like the killing of Ian Tomlinson and whatever is happening in Sri Lanka (How many civilians are trapped there in the Tiger area?) didn’t get a look in, particularly on our loyal state broadcaster - the BBC.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI still think Draper could make the cabinet though, although I personally look forward to seeing him in a six-foot long wooden box instead.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-8386877199093929969?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/8386877199093929969/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d8386877199093929969\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"4 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/8386877199093929969"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/8386877199093929969"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2009/04/on-death-of-protestor-time-i-almost.html","title":"On the death of a protestor / The time I almost felt sorry for a (minor) capitalist / Ho hum"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"4"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-3760283278071438302"},"published":{"$t":"2008-12-14T23:41:00.018Z"},"updated":{"$t":"2009-01-21T00:07:24.911Z"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"cops"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"library"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Oswald Lee Harvey"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Kennedy J F"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"poetry"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"An unrecognised hero / Library snooping / Mission Statement muses"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SUWqIWeiA4I/AAAAAAAAAQ4/ujggqpEMbAg/s1600-h/Lee+Harvey+Oswald.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 308px; height: 320px;\" src\u003d\"http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SUWqIWeiA4I/AAAAAAAAAQ4/ujggqpEMbAg/s320/Lee+Harvey+Oswald.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5279813198611088258\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eAn unrecognised hero\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhat should be the attitude of Lefts to 'heros'? I think the word should have a restricted currency; to me it’s usually someone who risks their life to undertake a worthy task. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLike that ten year old girl who, long ago, ran back to try and get her sister out of that burning flat on a estate near me. She died with her younger sibling, arm in arm.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd whilst singers, writers and the like have their place, it’s only their end product that I may admire. I have never seen them as 'heros'. And why even bother reading an article about, say, a musician when you could listen to their music instead? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI find artists and the like generally often have no more than maybe four songs, three books or two films in them anyway. Dying in their 20s is the most sensible career option for many. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThose people that I do have the most time for are political activists - communists, of course. Many of those that I would list as people to be admired (although rarely as 'heroes') would be very familiar names, although many have never been known other than to their closet comrades - such as those who died defending the Bavarian communist revolution or strikers shot down by the Pinkertons in 20th century USA - and many others.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m also wary about making lists of people that I like, or even heroes. Things change over time. And I also think that sometimes we may invent, or project things, onto such people to fill our own gaps.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eMore heros?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve always had time for Victor Serge. I’ve bought and read many of his books and I have even thought, on two separate occasions, after reading his \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e'Memoirs of a Revolutionary'\u003c/span\u003e that it was the most interesting book that I had ever read.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut that was a long time ago. Does he deserve a place in the socialist Pantheon or is it that his reputation meets a particular need?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSerge was originally an anarchist. I have always had more time for some class struggle anarchists and anarcho-syndicalists than for many Trots. (Like those Trots from the Committee for a Marxist International whose Greek section has been fulminating about the 'hooligan' and 'anarchist' elements leading the current disturbances there - who the hell do they think started things going? It is also obvious to the best anarchists, without being patronisingly lectured by the CMI et al, that this movement will fail without the wider involvement of workers.) \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSerge was an internationalist with a trans-national life. He stood firm against Stalinism and paid the price but he also made some apt criticisms of Trotsky. So he can be the perfect instrument on which to place our reservations about Lenin and Trotsky (such as Kronstadt), as well as our condemnation of Stalin, but whilst still remaining rock hard defenders of the revolution, advocates of communism and scourges of backsliders. I fear this may now be the purpose of Serge and there are others who fill similar gaps.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut what was Serge the man like? Would we have agreed with him on other things? Would he have made an interesting companion and a solid comrade? In the absence of evidence otherwise, I would presume that he would but it is wrong to think you could ever know just how he was. Was he a hero?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eUnrecognised hero\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSerge will make many a list of Left 'heroes' but there’s one figure that never gets a mention in any Left list of notables. In fact I don’t recall him ever seeing him being written about in a Left context, or as a Left. But he undoubtedly was a communist and he also meets my definition of a ‘hero’ as well. That missing name is \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLee Harvey Oswald\u003c/span\u003e.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOswald wrote to the Socialist Party of America, aged 15, as a \"\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eMarxist\u003c/span\u003e\" asking for info. The photograph above, from March 1963, shows him holding copies of the publications, 'Militant' (US SWP) and 'The Worker' (CPUSA). He read Marx when young and joined the Young People's Socialist League. He later told a friend that his involvement in politics dated back to reading a pamphlet about the execution of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg. In summer 1963, Oswald distributed leaflets for the (US SWP) sponsored, pro-revolution, 'Fair Play for Cuba Committee'. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Warren Commission (which investigated JFK’s assassination in 1964) said Oswald attempted, in April 1963, to kill retired Major General Edwin Anderson Walker. The general was an extreme right-winger, a member of the John Birch society and an anti-communist. He was relieved of his command for distributing right-wing literature to his troops. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOswald's wife is reported to have said to him about that incident, 'I mean how dare you to go and claim somebody's life, and he said \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Well, what would you say if somebody got rid of Hitler at the right time? So if you don't know about General Walker, how can you speak up on his behalf?.\"\u003c/span\u003e Because he told me... \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ehe was something equal to what he called him a fascist.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOswald was though also a Marine from age 17 until his defection to the USSR aged 19. He stayed there for four years. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn Minsk, Belaraus he is said to have written the following in his diary; it vaguely reads to me like the thoughts of communist disillusioned with Stalinism. - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"The Communist Party of the United States has betrayed itself! It has turned itself into the tradional lever of a foreign power to overthrow the government of the United States; not in the name of freedom or high ideals, but in servile conformity to the wishes of the Soviet Union and in anticipation of Soviet Russia's complete domination of the American continent.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\"There can be no sympathy for those who have turned the idea of communism into a vile curse to western man. The Soviets have committed crimes unsurpassed even by their early day capitalist counterparts, the imprisonment of their own peoples, with the mass extermination so typical of Stalin, and the individual surpresstion and regimentation under Krushehev. The deportations, the purposeful curtailment of diet in the consumer slighted population of Russia, the murder of history, the prositution of art and culture.\"\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eLife - simpler than some think\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNow of course some will say that Oswald wasn’t what he seemed, or even that he didn’t kill Kennedy. Just about all the facts that I have written about him here are disputed by someone, including the photo above that some say was faked. (All the information I write here is derived from \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ewww.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk\u003c/span\u003e and \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ewww.wikipedia.org\u003c/span\u003e, with checks made elsewhere to ensure that these facts are \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003egenerally\u003c/span\u003e agreed.)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSuch inaccuracies in the record would, of course, be likely to change my view of him - especially if he was an agent of reactionaries, or if his Left record is a state smear, but I always think life is more straightforward than people think. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI remember once watching a 'serious' TV documentary - so serious that it convinced a couple of gullible 'Trots' that I was sat with watching it - that 'proved' that Kennedy was killed by the Corsican mafia. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou can just imagine the agenda of their planning meeting in Ajaccio - \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- Item 16: Liaison with farmers about olive oil adulteration.\u003cbr /\u003e- Item 17: Whip round for village square Xmas trees.\u003cbr /\u003e- Item 18: Assassination of US president. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA review in the latest Lobster magazine of a new book (\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"It’s one of the most important books on the subject in the last decade\u003c/span\u003e\") - 'JFK and the Unspeakable' by James W Douglass - claims that there was a Oswald double in the cinema where he was arrested and that this person was later seen in a car with switched plates that belonged to a friend of J. D. Tippit (the cop Oswald killed shortly after JFK and for whose murder he was arrested in the cinema). This friend was also a contractor for CIA boats smuggling guns into Cuba! \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe the 70s 'French Connection' was the result of said boatman later fleeing the Corsican mafia to Marseilles and there setting up heroin importing with the CIA, the New York mob and the Illuminati? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn fact I wonder whether I have spotted a book opening. I mean there have been thousands (or is it tens of thousands?)of books about the JFK assassination, like the thoughts of someone who was married to the barber who cut Oswald’s hair when he was a kid or analyses of bus tickets that Oswald may have used in the weeks leading up to the assassination. I am confident I pass that bar. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Fair Play for Cuba Committee is reported as being set up by the US SWP; an ostensibly Trotskyist organisation (although other reports say it was set up, as a trap, by the FBI or the CIA). Oswald unilaterally set up a branch of it in New Orleans and then sent guest membership cards to Gus Hall and Ben Davis, two leading figures in the CPUSA. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eTo expect these two figures, in the 'official' (or 'Stalinist') Left, to join a Trot lead organisation would only be contemplated by a political naïf and Oswald, with his long experience with the Left, would not have been that.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI don’t know what the meaning of this apparent contradiction is but I feel quite sure that I could pad it all out to a book, maybe by tying it in with all sorts of stuff about the early 60s US far Left which could be written up to have some sort of faint relevance. Book publishers (or film producers), with a fat advance only, are invited to contact me. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe synopsis I once read about another volume on the JFK killing, called 'Case Closed', sums up my view. ('Case Closed' - All the theories are just guff to sell books and I prove why. Oswald shot JFK and that’s it.) \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eJFK, the liberal?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOf course liberals mourn Kennedy but then liberals can be very stupid. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMemo: Obama to liberals (and even a few 'Trots') - Did you see how right wing my cabinet is? You cried at my victory; are you sobbing now, for real, you saps?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eJFK threatened nuclear war, supported an invasion of Cuba, supported the Ba’athist revolution in Iraq (where the new regime used a CIA supplied list to massacre Lefts) and, most murderously of all, sent 16,000 military 'advisors' and Special Forces into Vietnam and also agreed to the use there of free-fire zones, napalm, defoliants and jets. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLike the (true) Vietnamese heroes in the resistance, just maybe Kennedy got to learn, if only momentarily as his brain exited towards Jackie’s coat, about the awesome power of US weaponry and military force.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eThe communist\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Lobster book review makes a pertinent point, \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"In discussing the assassination, the most striking feature of those who propagate the official 'lone, crazed, assassin' line is the omission of the crucial, wider issue of motive?\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think that’s right. But I think the motive is very likely to be very straightforward. Oswald killed JFK because the president was a murderous scumbag and Lee Harvey Oswald was a communist hero.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOr as the Warren Commission stated, \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"his commitment to Marxism and communism appears to have been another important factor in his motivation (for killing Kennedy).\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt could be argued that Oswald should have realised that there are 'no short cuts to revolution' or reds should concentrate on being active in their trade union or that 'patient socialist propaganda work is the way forward'. In fact, I’m sure every identikit Trot would argue this. But then 'Oswald as a Left' has never occurred to any of them before.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe Oswald just thought - 'Fuck this, I can see 50 years hence and nothing’s fundamentally changed. Let’s just take out one of the bastards.'\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd don’t you wish that Iraqi had something other than shoes to throw, whilst exclaiming 'This is a farewell from the Iraqi people, you dog!' at war criminal Bush in Baghdad today?  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLibrary snooping\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThinking about reserving a book about Islamism in your local library? Using the Internet there to research a student project about hardcore Greens? Maybe you should think again.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals has \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.cilip.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/5D5E95C2-513C-48F2-BD2E-6B97DAC65AEA/0/CILIPPSLSurveyresultspublicjul08.pdf\"\u003esurveyed\u003c/a\u003e some of its members in the light of them having \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"received a number of reports concerning increased police or other security agency activity with regard to libraries and their users.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThey go on to say \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"The results of the questionnaire have revealed that libraries are experiencing legitimate police and security agency activity.\" \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"One library was asked to supply details of what Muslim patrons were reading. Another turned down a request for websites visited by library member as it was perceived to be a 'fishing expedition'.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Earlier in the year we had reports of Special Branch officers visiting our individual libraries to introduce themselves and to encourage staff to report any suspicious behaviour on the part of customers directly to them, particularly if it involved terrorism, political extremism and animal rights.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Only recent involvement with the police has been an enquiry from them about our policies and guidelines for internet use. The officer enquiring spoke to one of my colleagues and said his particular interest was extremist religious sites. He asked that we contacted him direct with any incidences of this nature, should we ever get any.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt would appear clear, from the above responses, that libraries are keeping records of the websites visited by each user. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI have commentated before that when web access was first introduced in libraries, the system was that you would just put down any name on a list to book a time to access the Internet but this has changed so that now you need to be registered and use your library card to get on the web in a library.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI speculated that the introduction of this new system was to be enable records to be kept of the sites you visit - the new system doesn’t give advantages over the previous one for the library or for its users, in fact it’s more hassle for all. This speculation would appear (\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"turned down a request for websites visited\"\u003c/span\u003e) to be confirmed.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIndeed libraries seem quite happy with these arrangements - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"We have found the police to be entirely considerate and helpful on each occasion and have had no cause to question the procedures they have followed.\"\u003c/span\u003e Yes, officer; no, officer; three bags full, officer. Can I tell you who has being taking out the 'Communist Manifesto' and 'Lady Chatterley’s Lover' as well, please, officer?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThese procedures will be called something like 'local service providers in a joined up, multi-agency approach to community safety' or other such spiel. Communists call it police snooping, added and abetted by the council.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDid it ever occur to the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals body to ask why they are doing this, and should they be doing this, instead of just pondering how frequently the cops do tap them for info?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(Prompted by a reference to the report in \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.lobster-magazine.co.uk\"\u003e'Lobster'\u003c/a\u003e 56, Winter 2008/2009.)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eMission Statement muses\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI have had to spend too long going through 'mission statements' and other corporate twaddle. I have even, for my sins, written some. Whilst ploughing through this treacle, I have thought many things and have started having visions such has been my utter boredom - but I have never seen the beauty that lies therein.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.nickasbury.com/corpoetics.html\"\u003eNick Astbury\u003c/a\u003e, has managed this and gone beyond that which is immediately apparent. He has seen the poetry in the proprietary prose and has produced some verse from the texts.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI like his reworking of corporate statements from \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eLastminute\u003c/span\u003e -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eYou’ve got that dreamy look on your face.\u003cbr /\u003eYou want to career down a mountainside\u003cbr /\u003ein a perspex ball: shake up the days,\u003cbr /\u003edazzle the world with your escapades.\u003cbr /\u003eYou wake up here, in a shabby career,\u003cbr /\u003ein a perspex ball, not travelling at all.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd from \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eKPMG\u003c/span\u003e - \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eI am strong.\u003cbr /\u003eI am vibrant.\u003cbr /\u003eI am committed to a vision.\u003cbr /\u003eI am tremendous.\u003cbr /\u003eI am quality.\u003cbr /\u003eI will lead people to excellence.\u003cbr /\u003eI am delighted.\u003cbr /\u003eI am respected.\u003cbr /\u003eI am very greatly valued.\u003cbr /\u003eWhat am I?\u003cbr /\u003eI am the best.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-3760283278071438302?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/3760283278071438302/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d3760283278071438302\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"6 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/3760283278071438302"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/3760283278071438302"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2008/12/unrecognised-hero-library-snooping.html","title":"An unrecognised hero / Library snooping / Mission Statement muses"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SUWqIWeiA4I/AAAAAAAAAQ4/ujggqpEMbAg/s72-c/Lee+Harvey+Oswald.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"6"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-5035704034432536425"},"published":{"$t":"2008-10-07T23:52:00.025+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-11-30T03:09:17.332Z"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"De Menezes Jean Charles"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"credit crisis"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"police"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Let the banks go bust / The honest copper"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SOvrijHQ0HI/AAAAAAAAAME/X0OHXSp7Hm8/s1600-h/bankcrisis.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SOvrijHQ0HI/AAAAAAAAAME/X0OHXSp7Hm8/s320/bankcrisis.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254552369031598194\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLet the banks go bust\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere's little that demonstrates better a communist critique of capitalism than the current banking crisis. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eEvents are clearly showing how business sucks the lifeblood from people through their surplus labour, but then also purloins public money as well. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Chancellor of the Exchequer, as first \u003ca href\u003d\"http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7657422.stm\"\u003ereported\u003c/a\u003e by the BBC’s crime correspondent, is planning a daring daylight robbery on the Treasury tomorrow. The planned proceeds of this heist - £50bn - will then be ‘invested’ in Britain’s banks. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’d imagine they’ll make him Chair for Life of RBS, etc., when he retires from politics; maybe they will even rename a shopping centre, or town that they own, after him.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDid anyone notice the banks gifting billions to the public purse when they were flush with cash? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI have no doubt that the banks' PR machines are working overtime to get across their message - For the good of Britain, pay us the fucking money - although maybe they're working on saying that with a bit more subtlety.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e£50bn is getting on for a grand from everyone in Britain. Can I put in a request to Alistair Darling for £1000 for the Southpawpunch website - or just for my holidays?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis £50bn is also proportionally very similar to the £400bn ($700bn) giveaway, sorry ‘investment’, that the US government has just bunged the US banks (the American economy is 7x bigger than Britain’s). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOf course billions have been given away there, here and everywhere else already. And will doubtless be so again in future. Once a burglar has worked out you don’t lock your back door; he’ll keep on returning.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn Brown’s banana Britain there’s not even a parliamentary debate about the £50bn ‘investment’ before it's gifted - as happened in the US Congress about the $700bn, and where legislators even dared to reject the bail-out, for a few days - although I’d imagine they’ll chew over the deal in the UK - after it has been done, of course. I can imagine already the pained look of angst on the face of Diane Abbott Portillo or John McDoughnut in the parliamentary committee. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt's ludicrous to see this gifting megabucks to businesses as 'socialism', as some American rightwingers have claimed, but nonetheless I was kind of hoping that these 'pure' free market advocates, who are using such a term, would have put up more of a fight for their politics. If you're going to argue for capitalism, it's only reasonable you accept its flip side as well.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eJump!\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m so far a bit disappointed that no bank directors has yet made use of that readily available commodity in Canary Wharf - height - to toss themselves, 1929 style, from the top of one of the buildings. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt may well be the sealed windows in the skyscrapers there that defeat them (is that the real reason why they don’t open?) as these types are often a bit thick (as I know from school). So can I suggest that they could chuck a chair through first; and then quickly follow? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI'm enjoying the meltdown spectacle but I also think it's instructive about the  often random nature of capitalism. That system’s defenders will pretend it to be the most rational system but it’s all clearly just wild and unpredictable. It’s ludicrous that an company can, just like that, become worth half or what it was worth the day before - it’s not as though half its buildings have burnt down overnight.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eBritish Banking Corporation\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe British state broadcaster, the BBC, is super loyal to the British ruling class at the best of times. But it turns to bootlicking at times of ‘crisis’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eToday we had - the City, that “symbol of this buccaneering island spirit” from Nick Robinson, Political Editor and a summit today between the banks and government to agree the £50bn deal was described by Robert Peston, Business Editor as “the meeting to rescue our banking system, and the British economy”. And of course the money being injected into the banks is being “invested”. Lickspittle, lapdog journalism.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWill the banking system 'collapse'?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou pay a mortgage (or payments on a business loan, or other) to RBS and they go bust; you then find yourself paying the same to the China Overseas Bank after they buy your bank for £4.30. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou have savings of £3000 with RBS and you get a compensation cheque from the government when they go bust. You then move this to a new Mittal Bank. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Channel Tunnel went bust (or nearly did). It didn’t mean it stopped working, or evaporated, but it did mean that whoever took it over acquired an asset without the debts incurred in building that link. They maybe got a bargain in the process. Imagine how well set a bank could be getting lots of paying mortgage holders (with the defaults taken care of elsewhere) at a knock-down price.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBritain used to have a car industry and a coal industry. It has been cleansed of both as these industries collapsed - but people still drive cars in Britain and some of its power stations burn coal. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere have been bank collapses since the first moneyman put his money out to ‘work’. Scores of these companies have collapsed before. But it's ludicrous to think the banking system, as a whole, will collapse. There’s nowhere on the planet that is cleansed of banks, nor will there be under present arrangements - if  capitalists have spare cash, they will always will seek to get the biggest return, be it via a bank based in a grand looking building lending to the government or bank of gangsters' monies collecting their vig. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSure, there'd be some dislocation if the current banks were just left to burn. Maybe rates would increase for a while and funds dry up, in part - but market pressures will come to bear, the funds will return if the return on investment is enough. The losers would be financial services workers and those who have a lot of money in troubled banks (which I presume they are now withdrawing).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe alternative to letting the banks burn and that is currently being undertaken by their agents in government is giving £Xbn (X being a very large number) to their banks. This makes a lot of bank shareholders happy (and a lot of very big shareholders, very happy indeed). The knock-on effect of this will, however, be minus £Xbn in state funds - so less hospitals, roads, fat rail companies, soldiers etc. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can't really see one course being worse than the other in terms of the number of jobs lost; the former may even mean limited numbers lost as replacement banks pick up staff (but doubtless more 'efficiently' - e.g. not picking up bank employees at the top of their grade).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA variation on this strategy seems to be governments taking a stake in banks, that stake often just being the losses, but not always. So a forced nationalisation of a company - a bank - that will be obliged to act like a bank when the market returns? Very socialist.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOther variations on this appear to be such as has happened with banks like Fortis (whose arrogance was personally very apparent to me, not long ago, during a job interview. I don’t suppose there’s much point me putting in a belated travel expenses claim now.) They were bought up, in large part, by governments who then appear to have sold this Benelux bank to one of its rivals. Lucky BNP Paribas.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLucky other banks as well. Lloyds TSB have taken over HBOS. This would have been rejected as ‘anti-competitive’ in ‘normal’ times but when this deal was recently announced it was also stated that they had been in talks for sometime before (for how long? even before the crisis, when such a deal would not have been sanctioned?). How very convenient for Lloyds TSB; I read that they will now have 30% of the British mortgage market. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eSlumpism\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s a cod form of communism that indulges in 'primitive slumpism’. Its proponents think ‘the worse it is, the better’ (just ask your local anarchist - oh dear, there’s none left). I’m opposed to such thinking because, for example, more unemployment will make strikes harder (a greater reserve pool of labour) - but then it was hardly sparking during the boom time either.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo, thinking the playing of a joker or two, even if just to break up the monotony, may lead to unexpected opportunities. I’m just wondering whether we should welcome the appearance of, say, modern soup kitchens (Pot Noodle kitchens sponsored by Golden Wonder, maybe?) and the like, as a harbinger of depression and more - which may yet lead us to be able to inherit the ruins, like the 30s repeated but with a different epilogue?  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo to that end, can I start a web rumour right here (supposedly a lot of this starts from such baseless rumours).  Goldman Sachs is in secret talks to be taken over by a Wrexham based chain of pound stores and Merrill Lynch’s board will, next week, reveal themselves to be really be the Twelve Apostles of the Age of Aquarius.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSell, sell, sell! \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eSo what we should do?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNow could be a great time for communists to organise against the ravages - current and soon forthcoming - the capitalists will be sure to try and force us to pay for their crisis.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe should go on the offensive and argue for - \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eExpropriate (i.e. seize, don't buy) the banks - pay compensation only in the case of proven need. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNot a penny to businesses, no bank bailout - let them go to the wall. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe state to provide banking services (mortgages, etc.) to those requiring such. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA workers government to execute all present and former directors of FTSE100 companies, and all individual shareholders holding 5% of more of these companies, as well as those having assets currently valued at £10M plus.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eDemo\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSome public minded citizens are getting together a posse to try and run the Bank Bros gang out of town before they do over the main safe. If I have time, I will be there with a placard saying ‘Jump’.\u003cbr /\u003e   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eMarch on the City\u003cbr /\u003eWe won’t bail out the bankers\u003cbr /\u003eFriday 10 October 4-6pm\u003cbr /\u003eAssemble at the Bank of England, Threadneedle St, London EC2R\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(demo details from \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/art.php?id\u003d16146\"\u003eSocialist Worker\u003c/a\u003e - I don’t know who is organising the protest.)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eThe honest copper\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“I don’t think anything went wrong”.\u003c/span\u003e - Response at the inquest when Jon Boucher, who had been Anti-Terrorist squad officer in the control room at Scotland Yard, advising Cressida Dick, was asked about the events including the holding down and killing of Jean Charles de Menezes on a tube train by a police execution squad. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"And equally, I pray it doesn't happen, but it is possible that an innocent member of the public might die in circumstances like this\"\u003c/span\u003e - Cressida Dick, ‘designated senior officer’ in charge of the operation.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-5035704034432536425?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/5035704034432536425/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d5035704034432536425\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"1 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/5035704034432536425"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/5035704034432536425"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2008/10/let-banks-go-bust-honest-copper.html","title":"Let the banks go bust / The honest copper"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SOvrijHQ0HI/AAAAAAAAAME/X0OHXSp7Hm8/s72-c/bankcrisis.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"1"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-2075600692839698327"},"published":{"$t":"2008-06-17T04:16:00.016+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-11-30T04:10:40.159Z"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Thatcher Margaret"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"journalism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Trade Unions"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Unions"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Labour"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Afghanistan"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Pakistan"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Vietnam"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Compass"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Investigate! / Thatcher - the Tory cut / Good Morning for Vietnam? / Strike Three /  All points right"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp1.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SFnOTpBA-BI/AAAAAAAAAL8/iZ778ZYX3SI/s1600-h/man+magnifying+glass.JPG\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp1.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SFnOTpBA-BI/AAAAAAAAAL8/iZ778ZYX3SI/s200/man+magnifying+glass.JPG\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213424880481007634\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eInvestigate!\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve written extensively before about how the Left could use the net to do a lot more than it does now. We could organise, report and agitate - and not just pontificate. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut why is no-one Left using the web to do that other necessary task - to investigate?  Why can’t Left bloggers not just say who and what it is that they dislike, but also provide some facts - and dig up some background - to expose their prey as well?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMany a current print title started life as a muck-raking, small budget newspaper. Many more never made it. I remember, in my youth, visiting 'Grassroots' bookshop in Manchester where I used to pick up a badly printed, but well written investigative small newspaper whose name I can’t now remember. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI do remember that it (most unusually) managed to attract some mainstream advertising. So there would be incongruous display ads - for BabyBio - next to muck raking articles about the Manchester elites - such as James Anderton, God’s copper. The paper doesn't exist anymore.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNeither does one that was based a few miles further down the road - the 'Rochdale Alternative Press'. RAP got some good scoops. For example, it alleged in 1979 that \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“during the 1960s, Cyril Smith (then Liberal MP for the town - Southpawpunch) was using his position to get lads (in childrens’ homes - Southpawpunch) aged 15 – 18 to undress in front of him in order that he could get them to bend over his knee while he spanked their bare bottoms or let him hold their testicles in a bizarre ‘medical inspection’\u003c/span\u003e. Smith never sued RAP - or was prosecuted. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSwansea council's corrupt Labour administration was done over by another crusading and investigative paper, 'Rebecca', in the late 70s. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere were other similar papers elsewhere. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhere are their modern day equivalents? Draconian libel laws remain in place but print bills and distribution hassles don't exist for online journals. Useful legislation to help such journalism, like the Freedom of Information Act, is also now with us. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAmongst the big boys there’s a paucity of investigative journalism. The 'Guardian' will sometimes put resources into an in-depth investigation into, say, supermarket practices. The 'Evening Standard' did some good investigations into that 'Left' fraud Livingstone during the recent London mayoral election (but something tells me we’ll be waiting a long time for them to do the same to their boy Boris.) \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe 'Daily Mirror' may occasionally put the boat out and reel in a few small businessmen running web scams and the like. The 'Sun' had a good story yesterday on its front page about one of the last wanted war-time Nazis being espied at a football match.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSome Sunday tabloids also do welcome investigations into pimps and politicians or executives and excesses but they’re far more likely to waste ink on coked up celebrities or sybarite sportsmen.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eChannel 4’s 'Despatches' can be watchable but the BBC’s 'Panorama' doesn’t usually deliver. Local papers and radio mainly report what the PR release tells them to but local TV news can sometimes make an effort to meet the terms of their licence.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e'Private Eye's news pages can be a real draw although they do have a skewed interest in the unimportant - such as hacks - and some stories only contain spurious stuff about who’s shagging who. (I also wonder why that magazine bothers with the humour pages; they’re somewhat worse than the Victorian era 'Punch' witticisms that they used to mock.)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut most media - including the above, most of the time - don’t dig like they did or could. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI recently read a former editor, Peter Wilby, of the 'New Statesman' implying that a good outcome of a Tory General Election victory could be a revival of his former magazine.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe 'New Statesman' is now full of dull policy prose from one of the identikit think thanks. It all comes wrapped around an insert called something like 'Community Policing (published in association with Taser)’ with a forward by the Home Secretary. The magazine lives off the advertising of multinationals that pay them in the hope of influencing the government connected readership.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I remember enjoying reading a very different NS in my school library. I fondly  recall the exploits of the investigative journalist, Duncan Campbell (who was harassed by the state for his journalism in the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://jya.com/justice-dc.htm\"\u003eABC Trial\u003c/a\u003e). Campbell would often burrow away under Whitehall - quite literally - exploring the capital’s secret spy tunnels. (Where has he been these last twenty years - bricked in round a bend under Belgravia?)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve also seen some good exposes in 'Socialist Worker'. I think usually a member of theirs has got hold of something that they’d rather see published in their own paper than in the mainstream media.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis week’s 'Weekly Worker' also has an interesting investigative \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.cpgb.org.uk/worker/725/damnedlies.html\"\u003earticle\u003c/a\u003e about Tower Hamlet council’s manipulation of opinion polling to support their privatisation schemes. I emailed the author and urged he try and get a wider audience for his research. He replied that he had tried the mainstream and trade press, but that they generally weren’t interested.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I have seen one blog that does do investigative journalism and does it well - \u003ca href\u003d\"http://postmanpatel.blogspot.com/2008/06/mod-splashing-out-billions-on-more-toys.html\"\u003e‘Postman Patel’\u003c/a\u003e. That link takes you to an interesting recent article from that blog about Britain’s latest Military satellite - delivered under PFI, naturally. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe author of that blog, 'Postman Patel' told me that he publishes a thousand words a day. I think most of them are interesting.  It was no surprise to me to find that, as I understand it, he was connected with the 'Rochdale Alternative Press'.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo why can’t Left bloggers investigate? Make a name for yourself - get on the net, in the council minutes, in the planning approvals - and start digging.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eThatcher - the Tory cut\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHave you seen the latest recut of the Story of Margaret Thatcher (on now, all channels) - the ex PM as an early feminist and a principled fighter; an admirable figure and smasher of glass ceilings but whom previous TV directors have misunderstood? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe this trend is the media catching on that the Tories are on the rise, and that their latest draft of history needs to be rewritten once more.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut Southpawpunch hasn’t forgotten the bastard offspring of Attila the Hun and Elizabeth Báthory. In fact that bottle of Cava has been hanging around near my fridge for a while now. Could it be that these belated tributes to Thatcher instead mean that they know what we don’t yet - but that we earnestly hope and pray for - that she’ll not be with us anymore, sometime soon? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI look forward to a celebratory drink when that happens - and a lot \u003ca href\u003d\"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2006/09/death-of-thatcher-speed-day.html\"\u003emore\u003c/a\u003e.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eGood morning for Vietnam?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs an orthodox Trot (how can there be any type?) I considered Vietnam, and other places, to be a degenerated workers state. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI am near enough sure that it, like all the rest (except Cuba?), have reverted back to capitalism but my lack of time to sit in the British Library and, of course, my lack of economic knowledge, precludes me from saying when this took place.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOne of the reasons for being sure of this change is a report about that country that I read in my 'Wall Street Journal' this week - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“new labour laws …make workers liable to compensate the employers if they walk off the job illegally.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou would expect that move may have led to a cooling down in the number of strikes in Vietnam, not least because many of them are illegal. Certainly such rules in Britain led to a downward pressure on strikes - no end of trade union professionals are all too pleased to have to kowtow to this employer’s law. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf Vietnam is no longer a workers state I don’t rule out the possibility that it can be so again - and a healthy one, this time. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Vietnamese showed how you can defeat the strongest imperialist force on the planet, just a generation ago. And their response to this latest offensive against them? The number of strikes there after this legislation was introduced increased by almost 300%.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eStrike Three\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e'Kapoom' or similar noise doubtless echoed along the mountains as an attack from the USAF hit home last week in the latest country to suffer their advances. Has that foresight from the Left (and many others), organising in defence of the next likely target, Iran, been shown to be on the ball?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNo, it was 11 Pakistani soldiers who were obliterated last week when the United States destroyed one of that country's border posts on their frontier with Afghanistan.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Pakistani government has gone very quiet since its election a few months ago. Doubtless it’s been spending most of its efforts deciding exactly who will be receiving which kickback in the ruling coalition. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it’d better hurry up with governing - because far from being able to get rid of their hangman in waiting (the former dictator Musharraf) as they’ve intended, they may yet be answering to him again. Last month the US said that \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“(Bush) looks forward to President Musharraf’s continuing role in further strengthening US - Pakistani relations.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSince the birth of that state, its armed forces have engorged themselves on the product of Pakistanis. The army is perhaps that country’s biggest business. But that body has the characteristics of a military midget if it can’t stop its troops being killed in cross border attacks. And now the Afghani president (and American puppet) Karzai is threatening more of the same. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI wonder what the response of the Chinese (who also share a border with Afghanistan) would be if the US blew up one of their border posts? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eAll points right\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI suppose if you’re a swimmer trapped underwater, your desperate thinking may make you imagine every movement around you in the inkyness to be someone coming to your rescue. Anyone Left has to have had that feeling, from time to time, of solitary abandonment and of running out of oxygen but still with hope alive. That's why you may not appreciate that the motion near you may be something dangerous coming towards you instead. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd the sea in which all the Left swims is certainly hard to fathom. But still why, in the full glare of daylight, is the Labour ex Left knowingly diving into a tub full of sharks? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s just plain sad to see Labour ex Lefts - such as 'Labour Briefing' - pandering to the sharp suited careerists in Compass and jumping into their tub. Why do these Labour ex Lefts let themselves be pulled ever rightwards like a rudderless tugboat? Why are they so incapable of dragging Compass in \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003etheir\u003c/span\u003e direction?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think it’s because, without Compass, these Labour losers would drift even further - right out to sea, they've no anchor left at all. They’ll do anything to break from the monotony of having wave after wave crash down onto them. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Labour ex Lefts remind me of all those ‘in the know’ who just 'knew' that Brown was going to be noticeably different from Blair. Well, I suppose they were right - Brown is sending more troops to occupy Afghanistan than his predecessor. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd like those idiots without insight - the acolytes who saw in Brown what plainly wasn’t there - so if it wasn’t for Compass, these Labour ex Lefts would instead now be watching out for any slight Left trick of the light emanating from the Cabinet, not unlike a collection of Cold War Kremlinologists overinterpreting the angle at which every member of the Politburo was wearing their fur hat.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI could imagine what the witterings of the Labour ex Lefts would be - 'Was Harman pulling a face at that fringe meeting, and so should we be supporting her to run for Leader?' - 'Was Blears actually answering the question (and for the very first time!) about mistakes on Question Time indicative that she may be worth supporting as someone who may develop new policies?'\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut the Labour ex Lefts think they don’t have to go quite that low now - they are doing ok, they have Compass. But why do they think that the wannabe Labour ministers in that outfit offer anything better than how things are now? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDo they really think a ‘kinder’ capitalism is on offer from their betters in the Compass leadership? What might their programme be - maybe no prescription charges (as Labour did in 1945-50 government) but with Travelodge hospitals and Virgin GPs running alongside. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIs this all the one time Trots, amongst the Labour ex Lefts, will settle for? Have they no principles? Have they no politics? Or do they just want to become a Commander of the British Empire, like former ostensible Trotskyist - and now member of the Compass coterie - Ruth Lister?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Cruddases and co. of this world are just positioning themselves ‘Leftish’ for a fight for their party after Labour’s defeat. These putative ministers want to replace the old guard - just like the ‘Lefts’ Harman, Blunkett, Hodge etc did in the 80s - and Wilson, Attlee and more did before them. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo Compass won’t just drag the Labour ex Lefts north, south, east and west, as well as backwards through a hedge, it won’t even notice them clinging on to its shoelaces as it walks onwards - but never leftwards - towards whatever prize will sate the personal gluttony of the wannabe members.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-2075600692839698327?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/2075600692839698327/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d2075600692839698327\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"13 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/2075600692839698327"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/2075600692839698327"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2008/06/investigate-thatcher-tory-cut-good.html","title":"Investigate! / Thatcher - the Tory cut / Good Morning for Vietnam? / Strike Three /  All points right"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp1.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SFnOTpBA-BI/AAAAAAAAAL8/iZ778ZYX3SI/s72-c/man+magnifying+glass.JPG","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"13"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-5807152352287660863"},"published":{"$t":"2008-06-02T13:21:00.011+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-06-19T04:16:35.222+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Newman Andy"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"security guard"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"police"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Cop it! / Southpawpunch is"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SEP0R9aeMHI/AAAAAAAAALk/LtS9YdajvjU/s1600-h/security-guard.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SEP0R9aeMHI/AAAAAAAAALk/LtS9YdajvjU/s320/security-guard.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5207274183550972018\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eCop it!\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA security guard, probably on minimum wage (or thereabouts), threatens to kill you. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHow do you react to him? The best response is to point out that your argument isn’t with him, personally. You might also stand your ground and ignore him; decide to beat a tactical retreat or go on the offensive and threaten something back. It all depends on the circumstances.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhat you don’t do is go to the cops to try and get the guy prosecuted for what he has allegedly done.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut that’s just what Andy Newman, proprietor of the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.socialistunity.com/?p\u003d2402\"\u003eSocialist Unity\u003c/a\u003e blog, is doing. Indeed he’s also trying to get the support of his MP, the Leader of the Council and others to help out with this dirty work. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHe alleges that a security guard made a threat to kill him - a serious criminal offence - when he was recently handing out political leaflets in Swindon, and that this guy did this in front of witnesses. Such an incident would be pretty unpleasant although it also hardly sounds like a credible threat.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can understand, to a degree, how someone may think all sorts, with the adrenalin rushing, in the immediate aftermath of such a moment. I can also appreciate how someone may act initially in an unthinking manner, in an aggrieved response to a nasty incident. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut writing coldly later about such an occurrence; and reporting how you are taking the issue up with the state - including with the cops - suggests at least a serious misfiring in any socialist DNA sequence.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eCops - no and yes\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere can be reasons why you \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003edo\u003c/span\u003e need to report incidents to the cops - such as if your ex-partner makes a credible (or possible) violent threat towards you. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA few times I’ve had to call the cops myself, such as when yet another violent affray broke out in the nether world that's the heaving mass of bodies in the bend of an overfilled bendy nightbus. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFor want of a telephone number for a 'Workers Militia - Psychiatric Wing', I also dialled 999 not so long ago when I spotted a bloke sat on the very top of a sloping roof - and who was babbling away incoherently.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn general though, you don’t go to the cops to put other workers in the soup. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou don’t shop workers to managers either. The enemy is the bosses - those who give the orders. It’s tragic that Jobcentre workers, council staff, ticket inspectors, debt collectors and many more workers are obliged to work against the masses to protect the millions of their masters but workers such people remain - and deserving of our basic solidarity.\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003eI remember once being astonished, in a supermarket with whom I thought was a rather hardcore red, when she took umbrage with an error made by the person working on the checkout. She then insisted on making a formal complaint about him to management, despite my strongly expressed disdain for what she was doing.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eAndy Newman\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve disagreed with Newman before, but in his defence, he’s no Left hobbyist (those many bloggers who think that tap tap tapping away their bon mots gives them a pass on having to do any trade union, single issue campaigning - or other left activity that involves doing more than just arguing the toss with like thinkers). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHe does stuff. A \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.socialistunity.com/?p\u003d1306\"\u003eleaflet\u003c/a\u003e distributed (and organised?) by him as part of the Swindon Stop The War Group and that is aimed at convincing young people not sign up for the armed forces is a great initiative. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m not sure whether such a record makes his error worse or better. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLeft malaise\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it’s not him that’s the issue; it’s the basic lack of awareness by British Lefts of a class approach towards the state, its representative and those obliged to work for same. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhat’s more alarming is that no reader of his article about the Swindon incident, on what is reputed to be the most widely read Left blog in Britain (claimed near 200,000 unique visits last month) has pointed out what's wrong with Newman’s actions.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe comments left even include advice on what law he can use against the hapless security guard! Is it the herd mentality of many witless blog reader and writers; the lack of capacity for independent thought amongst the Left or just sheer rightward thinking that provokes such dross - or a combination of all of these?   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOne commentator even wonders whether the security guard is ex-forces, as though that makes his conduct more explainable and with the implication of ‘what can you expect from such?’ \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s a socialist viewpoint to consider volunteer soldiers (and pigs) to be the inveterate enemy. But when they (or cops) ditch that uniform, they (nearly always) rejoin the ranks of workers. It’s certainly true, that brutalised and indoctrinated as they will be, they'll often maintain reactionary views - but then so do millions of others.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn uniform\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve been thinking about the position of some others working for the cops, such as Police Community Support Officers or civilian police photographers, in the class lines. My view is that if, at least, they wear the uniform, they are fair game. More fool them for signing up for the brickbats without getting the pay and benefits of the standard cop.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut security guards \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eare\u003c/span\u003e fellow workers (in a uniform). Maybe Newman can do a victory post if he gets the security guard sacked or convicted.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\"Southpawpunch is\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI often list comments made about this website - good and bad - on the right, under \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Southpawpunch is\"\u003c/span\u003e.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy favourite comment has to be one I found recently appended to a block of text that had been copied from one of my articles here by \u003ca href\u003d\"http://http://people.tribe.net/call8me8jim/blog/09f3b0d6-cb80-4d43-9281-1c0095d09fcd\"\u003eCall me Jim\u003c/a\u003e \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e“WHEN I TRY TO READ ABOUT FORIEGHN POLITICS IT MAKES ME FEEL STUPID. but i do it anyways becals it make me feel smart to know i tryed. :)”a nd that is a sumery of my entire life. god bless my brain, it'll need it by the time i'm done with it.“\u003c/span\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-5807152352287660863?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/5807152352287660863/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d5807152352287660863\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"7 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/5807152352287660863"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/5807152352287660863"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2008/06/cop-it.html","title":"Cop it! / Southpawpunch is"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SEP0R9aeMHI/AAAAAAAAALk/LtS9YdajvjU/s72-c/security-guard.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"7"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-6007960656634237971"},"published":{"$t":"2008-05-23T06:19:00.012+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2009-08-22T20:45:47.855+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"citizenship"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Queen"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Return / Overheard in a library"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SDZVFoGY_kI/AAAAAAAAALI/KLxEfL5Rj5M/s1600-h/queen.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SDZVFoGY_kI/AAAAAAAAALI/KLxEfL5Rj5M/s320/queen.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5203439974625115714\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eReturn\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI won’t be posting weekly (as before) and in fact there may be very lengthy periods between publication. I also can’t see myself knocking out the lengthy posts as I did once but I am returning to this website. (But then if things did pick up, and this website could relate to that; matters could change.) \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI do think that whilst it’s good to analyse, argue, debate and record; the point isn’t to interpret, it’s to force change. I suspect in such circumstances the efforts of all Lefts would be best expended on bigger fish elsewhere rather than  writing websites such as this which gets more hits now, with people looking at one particular photo, than it has ever done from those who wanted to read something I wrote.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve also just punted a guest article at \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.davidosler.com/2008/05/left_list_does_my_068_look_big.html#comments\"\u003eDave’s Part\u003c/a\u003e on my recent experience, and my continuing views, about the Left List. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eOverheard in a library\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e“And the Queen has two birthdays. Who has been doing their homework and can tell me when they are?”\u003c/span\u003e I’d wandered again into some training session in the library - they had put the screens up but that didn't stop the teacher’s forceful monotone banging on my brain as I tried get to grips with one of the magazines on the tables. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI suppose I don’t mind the new uses for libraries; web access, for example, certainly gets the punters in although it’s noticeable that you now need to have a web card to go online in every library (which presumably could record all the sites you look at) whereas just a few years ago you just put down any old name on a list to use the internet facilities there. (But then it used to be claimed that the details of anyone who borrowed the 'Anarchist Cookbook', or similar, from a library were forwarded to Special Branch).    \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYes, it’s good to see all these new and non-traditional uses of libraries (although not so for stations - a few less non-traditional shopping arcades and a few more traditional seats would be nice. Reading station is now a shopping centre with a few attached platforms).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo I decided it was the content of the lesson that was grating, not the noise. Those assembled were going through a course that is designed to meet the new requirements imposed upon those seeking British citizenship. I’d already become ill disposed to this citizenship test and ceremony initiative when I saw a photo and report about it in a council magazine on a previous visit to the library. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe photo in that magazine featured the Mayor centre stage. He was stood there with as much dignity as could muster - a dubious small businessman, with legendary sharp elbows, and always with eye open for an opportunity to switch and pocket his valuable civic chain. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHe stood portentously in front of the largest Union Flag I have ever seen with a portrait of Elizabeth Windsor placed over the middle of the Butcher’s Apron. The photo gave the impression of being a still from a film set in a South American police station using that stereotypical large image of El Presidente that is to be found on the wall of every public building in a dictatorship.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd under the Mayor in that photo were gathered a carefully colour co-ordinated coterie of supplicants, obliged to display themselves such to receive their passports.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBack in the library the teacher was going on. He was now talking about the central role of the Queen and the oath of loyalty that all potential British citizens have to take. Likewise back in that article, I remember various migrants waxed effusively about their gratitude to Britain, and their acceptance of ‘our’ values (that'd be an interesting list).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis is all a big sham. The smiling faces from every continent that were being patronised by the civic leader did so because they had no choice to receive a British passport and an end to the hassles that living as a non EU citizen in Britain entails. A day trip to Calais with an Third world passport? Sure, with a week long visa process thrown in as well.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn the photo they were taking the oath to Her Majesty after being obliged to listen to chapter and verse on their responsibilities as new Brits. I understand that you can’t just send off for a passport in the post after proving your knowledge and loyalty - you also have to go through this charade as well.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut the most insidious side of it all was the lies that were being told to our new or potential compatriots - such as the necessity of being loyal to the Queen. I’ve never taken an oath to Elizabeth Windsor - this Brit says fuck Her Maj.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI also don’t have to accept a list of responsibilities as though I rest here by the grace and leave of some authority. I and everyone else, from wherever they may originate, have as much right to walk these streets as anyone else.     \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s an attempt to force a revived patriotism on us all. Maybe they will start playing the National Anthem again in cinemas. But first they target the vulnerable; forcing those seeking a surer status to act in their little performances, recite their little lines and learn superbly useless stuff like when are the birthdays of the Queen. Stuff the citizenship tests, oath, ceremonies and all. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd don’t they know anything? Everyone already knows when Elizabeth Windsor’s birthdays fall. Every day is her birthday; she has a party, with presents from us and a day off from work, 365 days a year.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-6007960656634237971?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/6007960656634237971/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d6007960656634237971\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"4 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/6007960656634237971"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/6007960656634237971"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2008/05/return-overheard-in-library.html","title":"Return / Overheard in a library"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/SDZVFoGY_kI/AAAAAAAAALI/KLxEfL5Rj5M/s72-c/queen.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"4"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-680078869280821500"},"published":{"$t":"2007-10-29T16:17:00.000Z"},"updated":{"$t":"2007-12-16T06:32:20.732Z"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Facebook"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"RCP"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Respect"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Respect cracks / No Football, No Free Speech - By Order /  Battle of IDs"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RyiQ0bDz3nI/AAAAAAAAAKc/bbHzO_nRRMI/s1600-h/IMGP0004.JPG\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RyiQ0bDz3nI/AAAAAAAAAKc/bbHzO_nRRMI/s320/IMGP0004.JPG\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5127507406052646514\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eRespect cracks\u003c/span\u003e  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s a picture of a crack in the ground, right? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNo it isn’t. Why do I have such philistines as readers?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s in the Tate Modern, so it’s Art.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut in fact it’s a lot more than just art. According to the leaflet issued to those who view the (sculpture?) -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“First, and most obviously, the contemplative nature of such a venue allows the gesture to resonate in its widest sense. Walking down (the artist, Salcedo) incised line, particularly if you know about her previous work, might well prompt a broader consideration of power’s divisive operations as encoded in the brutal narratives of colonialism, their unhappy aftermaths in postcolonial nations, and in the stand off between rich and poor, northern and southern hemispheres…For Salcedo, the crack reveals a ‘colonial and imperial history [that] has been disregarded, marginalised or simply obliterated… the history of racism, running parallel to the history of modernity and… its untold dark side.’\"\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it’s also clearly a lot more than that description. It’s not just a leftist commentary on \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“colonial and imperial history”\u003c/span\u003e for this piece of art is called no less than \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eShibboleth\u003c/span\u003e.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYes, that’s right, the very term, one of a million words used by Respect members,  that is the touchstone of how that party’s rightist critics express their disdain about the organisation - Lindsey German reportedly said that gay rights are not a shibboleth. Lindsey German, long-time socialist feminist, turns homophobe? - only in the ravings of the Labour liquidationists.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWith four SWP or SWP sympathetic councillors splitting from the Respect group on Tower Hamlets council, there’s an almighty crack in Respect as well as in the Tate Modern. I think it’s only a matter of time before the two wings of that party permanently split asunder. Coincidence that Salcedo called her work, denoting a small fissure that turns into a gaping division, Shibboleth? I think not. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut the artist does seems a bit coy in commentating further on what she clearly devised her work to describe. I haven't yet read her views about John Rees, George Galloway and the other major (no, that’s not the right word) players in Respect, so let me add my view instead.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA measure of contempt should be ladled on both sides in this looming divorce. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe disdain with which the SWP treated its leftist critics, when the latter remarked upon the often reactionary nature of some of Respect’s members (such as was well reported in devastating interview after devastating interview with Respect candidates in the \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eWeekly Worker\u003c/span\u003e) makes the SWP’s late discovery of the true nature of their allies beyond pitiful.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe SWP is accused of bureaucratic manoeuvrings against its foes in Respect (and to be fair, accuses them back). This charge against the Socialist Workers Party is more than credible to anyone with experience of how they work. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI thought it noteworthy that the SWP criticised the raising of a petition, amongst its members, that complains about the recent expulsion of three of their comrades for siding with the anti-SWPers, in Respect, and against their own party.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThose members (wrongly) concerned about this decision were criticised by their leaders for acting not in the culture of the party, by raising such a national petition, rather than arguing the issue at their branch meetings.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt says a lot, about the reported culture in the SWP, that aggrieved members don’t feel confident enough to follow this formally correct advice from their Central Committee. All I’ve ever heard from ex members of the SWP is that if you did do as the CC advised, you’d pretty soon find yourself consigned to outer darkness, if not beyond membership.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut worse than the SWPers are the rightward movers, including the supposed Trots (in fact, in the ‘Fourth International’ [sic] itself) who have found themselves on the side of the small businessmen and Galloway against the ostensible Marxists of the SWP. Huh?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eGlyn Robbins chair of Tower Hamlets Respect writes well about a common Leftist mindset. \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“I am not now, nor have I ever been, a member of the SWP. The very fact that I feel the need to make this statement and in those words should alarm anyone who is serious about left wing politics. For as long as I’ve been involved in the labour movement (over 25 years) there has been a neurosis about the SWP that, at its most extreme, almost requires medical treatment. I am sorry to say that there are some people within our movement who are far more interested in fighting the SWP than our enemies”\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA prime example of this is the recent reporting on a Left blog that the East London Advertiser has reported that the 6 Respect-SWP councillors on Tower Hamlets council are in discussion about joining in an alliance with the Liberal Democrats. It is beyond the realms of possibility that SWP members, in this or any other parallel universe, would undertake such a move. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt is completely scurrilous for any Left to repeat such garbage. When the SWP leadership tell their membership, falsely, that all other far Lefts out there are sectarian losers out to destroy their party, they sadly have now been given another piece of ammunition supporting their tainted worldview.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou can read chapter and verse, if you so desire, about the slow-burning implosion of Respect on websites like \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.davidosler.com\"\u003eDave’s Part\u003c/a\u003e (from Dave Osler). From there, you can go to lesser sites where there are \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ehundreds\u003c/span\u003e of comments about the minutiae of this particular small candyfloss stall in the long running carnival fairground that is British Leftism. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s a strong culture of Leftist trainspotting in Britain. So on Osler’s site, there are more than three times as many comments on the SWP expelling three members than on another article about the Left and Saudi Arabia. It’s hard not to feel scorn for the over excited Lefts dedicating endless bytes to the politicking of other Left parties.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think that, on the whole, these developments in Respect are positive. It was never going to last unless the SWP (and Socialist Outlook, etc) really did break completely with their history.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe SWP will walk away (or be pushed out) with six (?) councillors and the experience of having Lindsey German come fifth (and beating the BNP and the Greens) in the last London Mayoral election. (No I don’t think electoral strength is the be all and end all - but neither do I treat it with disdain. It’s good, not bad).   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSimilar in support, at least in terms electoral terms, is the Socialist Party with, I think, also about six councillors.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHow about a lash up between both of them, the CPB (with the Morning Star - and the SLP), the small Trot groups (which I would loosely define as Workers Power, Permanent Revolution, AWL, etc) and any remaining ex (and it must be ‘ex’) Labour Lefts? Add in a few hundred (possibly four figures?) unaligneds (like me) who are in this general political area and we may have a goer.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFantasy politics? Doubtless. But why should it be?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Netherlands has the Dutch Socialist Party (which started life as a Maoist organisation), the Scots had the SSP (born from various Trot groups), the Germans have the Linkspartei (coming from ‘official’ communism and social democracy) and the Italians have the Partito della Rifondazione Comunista (starting life in ‘official’ communism) (or maybe had, in terms of Leftism able to be supported). There are other such formulations in Scandinavia, eastern Europe and elsewhere.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAre we so incompetent, in Britain, that we can’t at least have the same? It’s hardly as though the Labour Party is attracting the support of Lefts that it did, in say, the 80s.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSure, such a group wouldn’t be a perfect party. Those looking for an excuse not to join could always find one. I’d have a fair few differences with any of the above European parties myself - but I’d also join them if I lived there and argue my politics inside. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLet’s have a British (or if we must and English and Welsh) Socialist Alliance / Party / Organisation - whatever.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOr, like the Whigs, Gnostic Christianity and the Temperance movement; be prepared to fall permanently down a crack, just like in Salcedo’s work.    \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eUpdate - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eI see that a \"Solomon (\"Simon\") Punt\" described as a \"Respect supporter, Hoyland Nether (West Riding)\" has signed the SWP's \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.swp.org.uk/respect_appeal.php\"\u003e\"An Appeal to Respect Members\"\u003c/a\u003e.  This isn't me. I do wonder whether there is such a person - do people still say they live in 'West Riding'? - maybe. I live in London and I'm not called \"Solomon Punt\" - that's just a nom-de-plume to keep my Facebook account - or even Southpawpunch, in real life.\u003c/span\u003e    \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eNo Football, No Free Speech - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eBy Order\u003c/span\u003e \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis week I read an article in a London council publication that was bemoaning the way that kids nowadays play football. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe writer correctly reported that it’s very rare indeed that you’ll see an informal and spontaneous game of football, as I took part in as a kid in my local park or even across my street. Just about all young players now have to take part in organised (and paid for) games - arranged and timetabled for them by businesses. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAn obvious consequence of this degradation in the quality of the lives of these children is that, as reported by the article, fewer kids now play soccer outside school.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt was a good point that the council was making. They were wondering what they could do about it.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn the same publication I also read that the same council would be stepping up its activities against those engaging in unauthorised leafleting in its streets. This initiative follows on from its activities in breaking up (and having arrested) those setting up leaflet stalls (primarily Islamists) in some of its shopping areas. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThen add into this mix it’s scathing reply to me, ridiculing my concerns that I expressed in a letter to them, when its staff refused me access to leaflet one of its old people homes during an election - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eAny legitimate political party will issue photo ID to its members, without this and a prior appointment and approval, you will not be given access to any of these premises in line with our duty to protect those in our care.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFurther infuse the council’s stated determination to stop ‘doorstep calling’ in its borough and the result is pretty much that anyone with a view to express better hope that what they want to say is in line with the view of the editor of the local rag. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat is, if they hold any hope of being able to locally disseminate their message. It’s that culture of control, compliance (and censorship) that also contributes to keeping kids indoors.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBattle of IDs\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s interesting when you recognise a few names, from long ago, on Facebook and note how many of them have either reinvented themselves or at least obliterated their Left past.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve seen not a few former members of Militant who are now firmly ensconced as  ‘petit bourgeois’ small (and even big) business types. And so are now guilty of that ‘crime’ of which they often accused me - being a ‘PB’ - and levelled at me when I was in fact an unemployed squatter. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI haven’t yet managed to find the guy in Militant to whom I, in a sarcastic manner (but that was completely beyond him), offered a (completely fictitious) job to as my dad’s chauffeur - and the tale of which mutated to me supposedly sacking his dad as my family’s (completely fictitious) butler - by the time I went along to a threatening reception at the next Greater Manchester meeting of the Labour Party Young Socialists. I hear that he’s nowadays joined the Satanists; he’s a Director of Human Resources.     \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s a few former SWPers on Facebook, who, from reading their profiles, not only no longer have a political thought in their head but little else in way of thoughts about anything else.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it’s the alumni of the Revolutionary Communist Party that brought the most wry smile to my lips. (You remember them, the ‘Party of the Future’ as they described themselves in the 80s - including on a near inaccessible bit of flyposting that blighted for years one of the few bits of pleasant decoration, amongst the general dinghiness, of the communal areas in my council tower block).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf you look up former RCPers on Facebook, they’ll often make mention of how they met some of their Facebook Friends (and former RCP comrades). ‘We took part in this great project to reshape the world’. ‘We met whilst thinking big big thoughts’ ‘We went on a journey together.’ No one on the Left could patronise like they could.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSome of what I read in their modern incarnation as \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.spiked-online.com/\"\u003eSpiked Online\u003c/a\u003e can give pause for thought, especially when they comment upon the ridiculousness of some aspects of modern life. They’re big on criticising risk adverse cultures and the mealy mouthed pandering to the censorship of the elites or the 'easily offended'. They can sometimes be correct.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI thought of them when I recently lost or had stolen (I’m not sure which) a wallet. I reported this at the local cop shop (God knows why). I was surprised not to receive a letter noting the ‘crime’ that I had reported but also to get lengthy advice about how I could make use of Victim Support services and counselling to contemplate the misfortune that had befallen me.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(It was a deep relationship, counsellor. I first saw her on a market stall in Hoxton. I overlooked her minor faults, such as her loose clasp, and I grew used to her leathery skin. I was devastated when she left, I haven’t yet found a worthy replacement and, in dark moments, sometimes think about her now - inside the trousers of some other bloke).\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe offer to me of counselling also reminded me of one of the most cringeworthy exchanges (there were a few) that I had to witness when working in the NHS.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eMental Health Patient’s sister\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eShe was never right after she lost Terry in the Bethnal Green tube disaster. I was with her.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ePatient Care Coordination Liaison Officer\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e (or similar Mickey Mouse title) - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eWhat was that? Terry got lost on the tube?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ePatient’s sister\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eA lot of people died, it was in the War, dear. It was her son, he was crushed. \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(On March 3 1943 at Bethnal Green Tube station, a nearby anti-aircraft battery opened up with a deafening roar. Some people, heading down to shelter from a  bombing raid, slipped on the stairwell and 173 people - including 62 children  - suffocated or were crushed to death in the ensuing panic. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThink of how you’re walking through where all their bodies lay, if the lift is ever out and you need to take the stairs).  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ePCCL\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e (to patient) - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eOh dear. That must have been a bad time for you. Did you access proper counselling? It helps to talk about these things.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ePatient\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eThe council never did nothing. They didn’t even get us a prefab after the war. I couldn’t talk to him, he was dead.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe ex RCPers don’t like ludicrous self-indulgence masquerading as social concern but then neither do I. But I don’t go from laughing at the muddy thinking (or cynical manipulations) of the caring and controlling professions to writing right-wing political manifestos for their business sponsors that favour decimating regulations and laws so as to promote their joint vision of a laissez-faire economy.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-680078869280821500?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/680078869280821500/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d680078869280821500\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"3 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/680078869280821500"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/680078869280821500"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/10/post.html","title":"Respect cracks / No Football, No Free Speech - By Order /  Battle of IDs"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RyiQ0bDz3nI/AAAAAAAAAKc/bbHzO_nRRMI/s72-c/IMGP0004.JPG","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"3"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-1757782617926139690"},"published":{"$t":"2007-10-22T22:23:00.001+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-06-19T04:20:34.355+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Punt Solomon"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"corporate"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Southpawpunch goes corporate"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rx6ej8AhwwI/AAAAAAAAAKU/mbfq-UeTbGU/s1600-h/email+corporate.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rx6ej8AhwwI/AAAAAAAAAKU/mbfq-UeTbGU/s320/email+corporate.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5124707766235153154\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eThis website has an account at Facebook but I’ve had to change my account name there from “Southpaw Punch” to \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/srch.php?nm\u003dSolomon+Punt\"\u003eSolomon Punt\u003c/a\u003e (Solomon seemed to scan [?] better than Simon).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBoth account names bear the same relation to my real name  - very little - but I’ve already been befriended on Facebook by another Punt who wants me to sign up to some Punt family network.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis reminded me of other occasions when someone has got me confused with a 'namesake'. I don’t have that common a name but there are a few of us\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI received an interesting email last year, addressed to ‘me’, and that was sent to one of my accounts (my name at gmail.com). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLet me call myself ‘Solomon Punt’ in my report below of what happened.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Solomon Punt - Financial Controller - Europe\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Big Boss Andrew (Blackberry)\u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 9\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Big Big Boss Alan and 19 others Bosses at BadBank\u003cbr /\u003eCc:    Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDear Colleagues,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis is to let you all know that Rajesh left the company yesterday and Solomon Punt has joined BadBank with effect, and with full operational responsibility, from today as Financial Controller - Europe.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSolomon will be responsible for all Financial and corporate (non Legal) matters for all the European Markets and will be based in the London Office.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI hope that you all join me in welcoming Solomon onboard the group.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAn email account and mobile phone number is being setup for Solomon and will be  active on Monday.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWelcome onboard the group Solomon...\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThanks \u0026 Kind Regards\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBig Boss Andrew\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- Sent from my Blackberry -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eSo I looked up BadBank, I was interested to find out more about where I was going to be working. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe company is the UK subsidiary of a US ‘financial services company’. It specialises in providing sub prime mortgages (at crippling interest rates) as well as credit cards to the ‘financially vulnerable’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat’s not credit cards that maybe give you a 1% cashback to help you a little bit with your financial plight. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat’s credit cards where you pay a fee for the credit card, are not given any credit (you have to top them up before you use them) and where you also pay a fee every time you use your card. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it’s ok - your card looks flash and has a fancy name - ‘Portfolio’ or  ‘Prestige’ or similar.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e -------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Solomon Punt - Financial Controller - Europe\u003cbr /\u003eFrom: Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 9\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Big Big Boss Alan, Big Boss Andrew and 19 others Bosses at BadBank\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHello everybody,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI'm really pleased to hear about my new job. There I was thinking I was a PR consultant on London but now I'm appointed financial controller for some financial services company even though I failed my Maths A Level and didn't apply for the job. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePlease remind how much I am getting and make sure my salary is in the bank at the end of the month - I can send the details. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs the new Financial Controller - Europe of BadBank, one of my first decisions is for some radical financial restructuring. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI note that we claimed, in our recent response to our trade body’s request for information for their submission to the Parliamentary Select Committee investigating our sort of company, that BadBank \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“at all times operates with the highest ethical considerations. We are proud to provide financial services to those who may be otherwise disadvantaged and we are also proud of our entrepreneurial ability to grow our company whilst dealing with clients who may be high credit risks…we are leaders in treating our staff well, we beat the rest in our industry.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m making these changes to bring us fully in line with this declared ethical policy.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI am awarding all our mortgage holders a six-month holiday from their payments.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAll directors will no longer be paid. The next quarter of staff paid immediately between the level of the directors will be subject to a 90% pay cut. All the lowest 60 percent of staff (by pay) will have their pay increased by 400% with immediate effect and their holiday entitlement will likewise be increased to 100 days.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can see no mention of trade unions in any of the corporate information that we put online, so I’ve taken the initiative. I’ll be involved in a quick discussion with the TUC to ask them to get the appropriate trade union to set up a branch in our company - we will then recognise this body.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAlternatively you may wish to change your contact details so you have the correct email address for the real (or is it the fake?) Solomon Punt and so you don't send me any more emails - although if you do send me more, such as your secret plans, maybe I can sell them to your rivals? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnother thing. It’s all a bit sudden isn’t it, making the announcement the same day as Rajesh has been unpersoned? What have you done with him? Was it a case of \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘It's not personal, Rajesh. It's strictly business.’\u003c/span\u003e Has his wife been told where to find his body? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBest Rgds,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- Not sent from a Blackberry -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSolomon Punt\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Solomon Punt - Financial Controller - Europe\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Big Big Boss Alan (Blackberry)\u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 9\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Big Boss Andrew and 19 others Bosses at BadBank, Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAndrew\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think yu sent to wrong address!\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCheck with Solomon...\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRgds\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eAlan\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- Sent from my Blackberry -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Solomon Punt - Financial Controller - Europe\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Boss Dave \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 9\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Big Big Boss Alan, Big Boss Andrew, 19 other Bosses at BadBank\u003cbr /\u003eCc:    Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSure Alan, to what extent I remember Solomon was never so funny!!!...\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Solomon Punt - Financial Controller - Europe\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Big Big Alan \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 9\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Big Boss Andrew, 19 other Bosses at BadBank, Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAll, \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m concerned that confidential information like this is so easily getting sent beyond the company... \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI have found there can be a particular probelm that once an email address is uesd it can be hard to weed it out. Make sure you do that now. I’ve copied Solomon Punt in (the real one, not the joker!!) and weeded our ‘friend’ out on this to explain what happened.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMore attention all...\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRgds\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eAlan\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- Sent from my Blackberry -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Solomon Punt - Financial Controller - Europe\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Boss Dave \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 9\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Big Big Boss Alan, Big Boss Andrew, 19 other Bosses at BadBank\u003cbr /\u003eCc:    Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eURGENT\u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAlan, I’m sorry to tell you that you are still copying in the ‘joker’ in on your emails. I’ll get Skip from IS to sort for you...  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- Sent from my Blackberry -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Solomon Punt - Financial Controller - Europe\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Solomon Punt  - Financial Controller - Europe \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 9\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Big Big Boss Alan, Big Boss Andrew, 19 other Bosses at BadBank\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHi all again,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHey, I’m pleased that I am getting all my emails and you’re clearly taking measures to eliminate the other ‘joker’ who is pretending to be me.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnyway - a few more initial financial decisions: \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e1. Donation of 100% of last year’s net profits to the International Red Cross\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e2. I’ve arranged an early meeting with HM Revenue and Customs to put our arrangements with them on an ethical basis (as per our stated policy). I am going to insist we pay at least 70% of our gross profit as tax but I would also like a full declaration from all of you of all the ‘scams’ regarding tax - legal and illegal - that we pull so I can inform them. We appear, from perusing our Annual Report online to have paid an astonishingly low level of tax last year - 2%? - some error, surely?  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLook forward to seeing you all in the office, tomorrow. I’m sure I’ll have a warm reception.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePS. Why do us corporate types end every email message with ...?\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSolomon Punt\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e - Sent from a dubious Internet café in Portsmouth (with no food) but who’s complaining at 50p per hour? - \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Solomon Punt - Financial Controller - Europe\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Boss Mary \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 10\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003eCc:    Big Big Boss Alan, Big Boss Andrew, 18 other Bosses at BadBank\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSolomon Punt -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWho the hell are you to give us the benefit of your ‘wisdom’?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou are a sad joker. Doubtless your only other activity is to wander down to the dole office every two weeks to collect the payment that I and the rest of our staff here (on whatever wages) are paying towards. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHow dare you consider emailing the top executives of this company with your asinine ‘witty’ commentary? Grow up.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBoss Mary\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Emails\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Legal, BadBank \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 11\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003eCc:    Big Big Boss Alan, Big Boss Andrew, 19 other Bosses at BadBank\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDear Mr Punt,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt would appear that employees of BadBank might have sent you emails in error. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs the legal representative of BadBank, I would like to inform you that BadBank has not, and does not, intend to offer any form of contract of employment or any other undertaking to yourself.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWith Regards,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLegal, BadBank\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: Payment in lieu of notice\u003cbr /\u003eFrom: Solomon Punt\u003cbr /\u003eDate:   April 12 \u003cbr /\u003eTo:     Legal, BadBank \u003cbr /\u003eCc:    Big Big Boss Alan, Big Boss Andrew   \u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------- \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDear Legal, BadBank,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDamn, That must be my shortest job ever. Just over three days between the notice of my appointment and my sacking by you. Oh well.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnyway, can you advise me on how much you will be paying me in lieu of notice and when can I expect payment?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRegards,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSolomon Punch\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e- SILENCE -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThen, four months later I started being copied in again on a series of emails concerning mundane financial and corporate matters of BadBank. Sadly nothing was particularly confidential (that I could sell) and it was all rather tiresome reading. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo, getting bored... (Damn, I’m doing it now...)\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e--------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: BadBank, financial status\u003cbr /\u003eFrom: Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   September 10\u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Big Big Boss Alan, Big Boss Andrew and 19 others Bosses at BadBank\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDear colleagues,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWell I’ve been ploughing through all the financial strategy stuff that you’ve kindly been sending to me recently. It’s the most turgid task I’ve ever done. When they said it’s the dullest witted automatons with a paperweight for a heart that become accountants, they weren’t wrong.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut even just flicking through this stuff I see that my impostor ‘Solomon’ (no relation) predicted a 1.6% increase in C3 outturn over the last quarter but, in fact, there’s been a 0.2% decrease. Likewise, the predicted uplift rate expected for non-complaint conversions was 300% out - it’s 16%, not the 4% Solomon predicted.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eReally, you’ve got the wrong Solomon. Surely you can see that now? Give me my job back and all will be forgotten.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSolomon Punt\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- Not sent from a Blackberry -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------- Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: unsolicited emails\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Legal \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   September 13 \u003cbr /\u003eTo:    Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003eCc:    Big Boss Andrew\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDear Mr. Punt,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eWithout prejudice.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI am writing to you to insist that you do not further contact anyone working for BadBank by email, or by other means.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI would also draw your attention to the legal provisions under which you may have accidentally received copies of emails originating from BadBank. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eThis email and its attachments could be  confidential  If you are not the intended recipient of this communication and its attachments, you must take no action based upon them, nor must you copy or disclose them to anyone. Any views or opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of BadBank. Please contact the sender if you believe you have received this email wrongly.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI must ask for an undertaking from you that you will forward copies of all emails from BadBank employees and/or relating to the business of BadBank and that are in your possession or control to us without delay. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI must also insist upon written acknowledgement by you that you have destroyed all copies of these emails and which may have been stored by electronic, paper or other means. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe reserve our rights in connection with the above matter.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eJudith Name,\u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eLegal Counsel, BadBank\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-----------------------Original Message ----------------------------\u003cbr /\u003eSubject: unsolicited emails\u003cbr /\u003eFrom:  Solomon Punt \u003cbr /\u003eDate:   September 15  \u003cbr /\u003eTo:     Judith Name, Legal Counsel\u003cbr /\u003eCc:    Big Boss Andrew, BadBank\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHiya Jude, How are you doing?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’d also like to draw your attention to the legal text that has accompanied my emails to you and the rest of you working for BadBank. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eThis email and its attachments could be confidential. Sacco and Vanzetti were innocent. It is for the purposes of satire and can be copied freely. Does anyone ever read this stuff? Any views expressed here are those of revolutionary socialism and represent the views of Karl Marx. If you are the intended recipient of this communication and its attachments, you must send a PayPal payment of £1000 to the sender (the details of which will be given on request), you must also copy them to all the staff that report to you and post them on the public area of your company’s website.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’d always considered the spiel written at the bottom of corporate emails - threatening all sorts of dire consequences - to be just ‘legal’ hot air that types like you use to try and scare the gullible.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut clearly you believe that the act of simply receiving an email actually imposes a legal contract on the recipient. Well who I am to argue with you, I mean you’re the lawyer?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo I must insist that you fulfil your obligations arising from receiving emails from me - I reckon BadBank owe me about £84,000. If you could pay up quick - I’ve got a bookie breathing down my neck and nine kids with 4 different women to support - I’ll be sure to send you back your emails pronto.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWarm Rgds, \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSolomon Punt \u003c/span\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-1757782617926139690?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/1757782617926139690/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d1757782617926139690\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"5 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/1757782617926139690"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/1757782617926139690"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/10/southpawpunch-goes-corporate.html","title":"Southpawpunch goes corporate"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rx6ej8AhwwI/AAAAAAAAAKU/mbfq-UeTbGU/s72-c/email+corporate.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"5"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-4055145124985188890"},"published":{"$t":"2007-10-08T22:57:00.001+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-06-19T04:31:37.699+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"guerrillaism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Cuba"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Stalinism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Guevara Che"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Trotskyism"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Socialism and Stalinism / Competition - book"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp3.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RwyjiMAhwvI/AAAAAAAAAKM/0gg-MTN8DDQ/s1600-h/che.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp3.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RwyjiMAhwvI/AAAAAAAAAKM/0gg-MTN8DDQ/s320/che.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5119646684147729138\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eSocialism and Stalinism\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eChe Guevara’s been dead forty years. He was maybe the most radical; the most to be admired in what some still call ‘Stalinism’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut how much did the Left lose when he was executed, what losses were endured when no end of ‘Stalinist’ liberation movements \u0026 parties slowly strangled themselves and what damage was done when various ‘socialist’ states - generally ruled by homburg wearing geriatrics - expired during the night from their own decrepitude?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eStalinism\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFirst - on terms. It’s traditional amongst Trots to describe all those in membership (or close to) the ‘official’ communist parties - those that were in fraternal relations with the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, as led by Stalin - and those latter descendents or splits by parties from this tendency (and which still kept much of the politics, even if only to bury them deep) - as ‘Stalinists’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo today this terminology may be still be used about those expressing widely differing politics - from the Parti Communiste Français to the rulers of China to Naxalite guerrillas in India.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eEven just in Britain, the term Stalinist was and still could be used about some collaborationist, drippy, reformist feminist separatist from the ‘Eurocommunist’ end of the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) right through to a member of the ‘Tankie’ faction of that organisation - the sort of person who didn’t think Beria went far enough in the 30s purges of oppositionists (including Trotskyists) in the USSR. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt may still be appropriate to use the word ‘Stalinist’ about some historical figures or in referring to the very few who really do argue for the politics of Uncle Joe today. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eStalinism is also, perhaps with a small ‘s’, used to describe undemocratic manoeuvres of Left parties. Be it meeting packing, political slurring or the spreading of disinformation, the Stalinist left in Britain once certainly excelled at this practice e.g. Trotskyists \u003d fascist collaborators. But I’ve no doubt, that given a bigger stage, some of today’s Trots would also excel in ensuring compliance with their line in ways which would get more and more degenerate as their influence grew.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo I much now prefer the term ‘official communist’ to ‘Stalinist’. With their Left influence near dead in the UK, these ‘official communists’, such as those in the Communist Party of Britain are now no more than just Left reformists anyway - no worse and sometimes even better than not dissimilar thinkers to them in the Labour and nearby Left.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eCuba\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve yet to see a good Marxist analysis of present day Cuba. Everything I’ve ever read, including from Trots, bases its view on present day Cuba on the events of 50 years ago e.g. because it was a peasant supported guerrilla army that seized power, with relatively little involvement from workers, it could never have developed into socialist regime. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhilst all that may be true, I’d be interested to know a lot more about, for example, what would happen to you if you tried to organise a political party there now that was in favour of communism - in defence of the Revolution but in opposition to the current regime. I suspect you’d end up in a prison cell.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut that’s not to say that Cuba’s all bad. I’d defend the revolution against its overturn but I suspect the most progressive elements of it died long before its true hero did.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen Che Guevara was captured In Bolivia and was awaiting execution, he was asked by one of his tormentors whether he was Argentinean or Cuban? The way I remember his answer (or possibly a myth that was later created?) is that he replied along the lines of 'I’m Argentinean, Algerian, American, Australian etc etc, you understand?' \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWould that I’d have the wit to think of such a correct reply at such a time. I’d rather spend an hour reading about the ‘Stalinist’ Che than spend a few minutes in the company of some ‘Trotskyists’ of my acquaintance. He was someone to be admired.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eTrotskyism\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eTrotskyists supported the ‘defence of the deformed workers state’ i.e. the Soviet Union. The USSR was a healthy workers state at the start but became deformed at some time in the 20s. We’d also support the defence of ‘degenerated workers states’ - that is those countries that became ‘workers states’, but in a stillborn manner, in the period after World War II and which included all of the Eastern bloc, China, Indochina, Cuba and, according to some, a few other places such as Syria (and Burma?). But in all these countries we thought a revolution was needed - a political revolution to otherthrow the rulers - who were a caste, not a class (they couldn’t pass on inheritances, etc) - rather than a social revolution. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere was a fault line between those of the ‘The USSR etc. is state capitalist’ view - and whose best known proponent in Britain was the SWP with their slogan 'Neither Washington or Moscow’ - and other Trots. It’s also why that tendency wrongly didn’t support North Korea (and its official communist allies) in the Korean War, although it doesn’t explain why they then (correctly) later supported North Vietnam in the Vietnam War. This division is sometimes defined as that between ‘Orthodox Trotskyism’ and ‘State Capitalist Trotskyism’. There are also a few ostensible Trots who subscribe to different formulations. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(Orthodox) Trotskyists would defend all workers states to the hilt against attempts to restore capitalism and so would support them, unconditionally, in any wars against capitalist countries, regardless of cause, or even would support them in dealing with internal elements that supported the return of capitalism (even if the demands of such oppositionists - such as for national self determination - were formally justified). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI do still hold to those views - I was convinced at the time, and remain convinced by the arguments made by those such as Trotsky in his ‘In Defence of Marxism’ (even though that text was written before World War II). But this argument is now just academic, save for a couple of places. And despite being reflected and distorted through no end of crazy mirrors, I think today’s Cuba and probably North Korea (despite being a monarchy!) still meet the criteria - as would anywhere else where capitalism hasn’t been restored (although I think there probably aren’t any other such states). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI remember the way that we’d look with contempt at the politically naïf amongst us - or close to us - who’d sometimes politely query the uncompromising line of ‘Defend the Soviet Union’ that was one of the main points in the programme of ‘Classfighter’ - the youth movement of Socialist Organiser and Workers Power in the 80s. Thinking of it now, I’m reminded of the not too dissimilar way that immature school student members of the NF would flick Nazi salutes at all and sundry, just to give the appearance of being uncompromisingly hardcore. I’m sure you’d have been considered suspect by them even for suggesting you’d be interested in an explanation for their conduct and is was the same for us about that particular slogan.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eEvents intervene\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut events can stretch or even break what looks good on paper. The above was the policy - but could it always be held to? In the eyes of the Spartacists, who are correctly accused of Stalinophilia by most other ostensible Trotskyists, I was on the “\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eside of the CIA and the Madonna\u003c/span\u003e” in supporting Solidarity in Poland in its actions against that country’s regime. Likewise I would’ve supported the uprisings against the Stalinist regimes that occurred in Hungary in 1956 and in Czechoslovakia in 1968. These movements were originally workers movements, despite the misreporting of, for example, the Hungarian events as being purely nationalistic. It wasn’t written in stone that Solidarity would help restore capitalism to Poland and that its leaders, like Wałęsa would play the reactionary role that they later did. It was right - and consistent with Trotskyism - to support them.     \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eWhen the Stalinist Left mattered\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSome of my convincing, about these arguments about the nature of the workers states, was supplied by the empirical evidence before my eyes. Whole swathes of the planet were liberated by these regimes - Cuba, in particular, committed large resources to fight the troops of the apartheid regime in southern Africa. No end of national liberation movements, and ruling classes in developing countries whose policies put them in the crosshairs of the major capitalist countries, benefited from the largess of the Soviet Union and its allies.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNonetheless I have always concluded that the prime motivations - the reasons why the Eastern bloc correctly supported Nasser during the Suez War or various Palestinian guerrillas in their actions against Israel - were near always because of the geopolitical advantages in doing so for Moscow and the rest - and rarely because of the progressive nature of that which they supported. There is some grit in the smoothness of this argument  - what could the Cubans have gained in Africa? - but I think it’s generally true.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eGuerrillaism\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI wouldn’t be as hard on guerrillaism as many other Trotskyists. Without the guerrillaism of the IRA and the INLA, Catholics in Northern Ireland may still just be organising petitions and peace marches protesting against their latest clubbing by the RUC. Ian Smith could still be lording it over Rhodesia. Indeed sometimes not more that guerrilla formations bore major fruit - such as in the despatch of the British colonial rulers from Aden. But like all cross class liberation movements, these forces are bound to unravel once the immediate objective is realised - the removal of the Brits, French etc and those who have taken power then need to decide how Algeria or Angola or wherever is to be run.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLife under ‘socialism’ \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt was always wrong that somebody couldn’t have easily just got up and relocated from Karl Marx Stadt in the German Democratic Republic to Köln in the Federal Republic. The building of the Wall through the middle of Berlin was a demonstration both of the weakness of the GDR and also its anti-democratic tendencies. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut ‘socialist’ countries were also never fairly judged by the standards applying elsewhere. I don’t know if you’d have been shot at if you’d been seen by border guards attempting to skip over the border, say between Austria and Italy, before Schengen, but I’m pretty sure that if you’d been, say a British or American nuclear scientist, with access to military secrets, and you’d announced your intention to give it all up and go and live in a Russian Orthodox monastery in Crimea during the period of the Cold War - you’d instead have ended up being framed for something, or been killed - you'd have never got to leave the West. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s no denying that near all in the workers states voted to move westwards - politically and sometimes literally - once they had the chance, such as from East to West Germany. If we’re socialists, we pride ourselves on being the best democrats and supporting the rights of workers to change their society. It’s when they clearly also want to overthrow ‘socialism’ as they will have seen it, or reintroduce capitalism, as it actually was - such as in the dying days of the Soviet Union  - that holes in orthodox Trotskyism theory start opening. I don’t have any Polyfilla to fill in that particular question.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eGravediggers\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNeither as the makers of shoddy consumer goods nor as places that promoted free expression did the Stalinist regimes excel. But it was as the gravediggers of revolutions that they did beat all comers.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThese actions included telling the Greek communists (at the end of World War II) to submit instead of going for it; the collaborationist policies of the postwar French and Italian official communists and the inability to either move beyond supporting guerrillaism (amongst what were usually splits from official communism) or, conversely, the inability to support the same guerrillaism (as one of a few tactics) by the official communists in the same country. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe above all it was simply the murderous turning on revolutionaries, even on their own side - such as during the Spanish Civil War - that shows how distant from Marxism were the policies of that branch of ‘communism’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eOfficial communism in Britain - from rabid reformists to poodle pups  \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI saw the tail end of the above tendency. CPGB members at union meetings and elsewhere would happily combine, even with the Right, in order to defeat the ‘ultraleft’ Trots and all in a futile hope of building broad ‘across class’ coalitions. Their former magazine, ‘Marxism Today’, was the epitome of the defeat of Leftism. In its pages they’d scrabble around in a vain attempt to try and stitch up some sort of popular front with which to move Britain even just slightly towards the Left - this got no traction except with a few media types. It was no great step for Sue Slipman OBE, a former president of the National Union of Students to move quickly from being a member of the Executive Committee of the CPGB to joining the Social Democratic Party in the early 1980s.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eTwo-way traffic\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhilst some official communists were recruited to the ranks of Trotskyism, after the hard face of their master was occasionally exposed - such as in the brutal crushing of the Hungarian uprising in 1956 - the traffic was more in the other direction. This pressure to drop revolution, and move instead to the militant sounding Left reformism of the ‘official communists’, has always caused damage amongst Trots. It’s always an easier option to capitulate. Pablo and more wrongly bought the idea that tension with the ruling castes of what was the Soviet Bloc meant that some of these official communist parties could move in the direction of socialism. What was probably once the largest Trotskyist party in the West, the SWP (US), passed over into official communism and that explains their current day praisesinging for ‘socialism’ in Cuba. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis pole of attraction is now all but gone but that still doesn’t stop the weaker Trots moving toward the hole in the ground that it left behind. So Alan Woods, leader of Socialist Appeal / International Marxist Tendency, and a former leader of Militant \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.marxist.com/forty-years-death-che-guevara091007.htm\"\u003ewrites\u003c/a\u003e this week that, \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“We have no doubt that had (Che Guevara) lived he would have moved towards Trotskyism and in fact he was already doing so before his life was cut short.”\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn fact these words (which remind me very much of how the SWP US claim that Malcolm X was moving towards them before his assassination) demonstrate instead the  continuing uncomfortable position of Trotskyists. We’re hanging on by our fingertips to the undercarriage of the Left whilst being severely battered by every bump in the road. This leads to the flakier end of the movement rashly letting go, whence they’re crushed by the following truck - the one driven by Chávez, in the case of Woods.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eA gamble untaken\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’d be interested to know how Stalin personally set on the course that he did. His early Bolshevik career included some work that is still well regarded by Marxists, such as on nationalism, and his early activities including time spent expropriating banks for the party. But individuals don’t make history. It’s events that made Stalin, not vice versa. The Soviet Union was, early on, faced with a harsh choice - it could go all out to spread revolution throughout the world or it could play it safe. If it went for broke it’d either be successful - and its communism would remain healthy - or the capitalist world would combine and commit everything and manage to destroy this mortal threat to them. Stalin and co. decided not to gamble. They raised the drawbridge and engaged in a futile attempt to build socialism in one country. Whilst the former course could have led to the early extinguishing of socialism, the latter just delayed the inevitable demise of their regime for 70 years.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut the making of that decision probably wasn’t the most significant moment in helping capitalism survive. Capitalism had been overthrown in Russia - the imperative was to spread it quickly, particularly to another major country. I know such a view could be criticised as being terribly determinist but if ever I was asked the question ‘Communism, where (and why) did it all go wrong? I’d answer like this. I’d reply on the ‘why’ - There is a necessity of ideological purity. The correct line is important above all else - small differences in actions now can have fundamental impacts in the long term, as the slow death of Stalinism demonstrated (the fact that it is near impossible to sometimes work out the correct line is perhaps our most fundamental problem). But on the ‘where’ - I’d say this would’ve been in a room in Berlin. It would’ve been where some Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands (or predecessor party) faction was meeting on some date in the period after the end of World War I. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd in that room they made whatever wrong decisions that meant there was to be no German socialist revolution. When I work out the address, I'll erect a plaque. Amongst the sauerkraut, a few squabbling comrades determined the course of the rest of the 20th century. If only Che Guevara or, a lot better, some Trots had been at that meeting - then maybe the Daily Worker would be selling a lot more than the Daily Mail.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eCompetition - book\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe first Southpawpunch book will be published in a few weeks - in good time for Christmas. The book will contain both some of the highlights from what I've written in these columns, a few of my comments from elsewhere and some exclusive content that’ll only be available in this publication.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe name I am running with at the moment for this book is ‘Uppercuts’ but I’d also be grateful for your suggestions for what it should be called. If you do put forward an idea that I use (or a variation of it), then I’ll send you a copy of the book. Please either add your suggestion in the comments box below or, if you prefer, email it to me via the link given on the profile page.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd talking of competitions, the Prize Draw and Survey about this site will draw to its scheduled close at the end of this year. Thank-you to the many of you who have completed this survey about the Southpawpunch site. I’ve already made quite a few changes here to reflect the views and ideas expressed by readers but I’d be grateful if some more of you could spare some time - less than five minutes - to complete the Survey. I designed and run the Survey and Prize Draw myself. Your responses are completely confidential and, if you reply, you can also enter a competition with a chance of winning an Amazon £20 (or local currency equivalent) voucher. Thanks. Just click \u003ca href\u003d\"http://southpawpunch.googlepages.com/surveyandprizedraw\"\u003ehere\u003c/a\u003e.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-4055145124985188890?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/4055145124985188890/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d4055145124985188890\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"1 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/4055145124985188890"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/4055145124985188890"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/10/socialism-and-stalinism-competition.html","title":"Socialism and Stalinism / Competition - book"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp3.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RwyjiMAhwvI/AAAAAAAAAKM/0gg-MTN8DDQ/s72-c/che.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"1"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-389107204974894382"},"published":{"$t":"2007-10-01T23:47:00.003+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-10-08T23:23:09.774+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Facebook"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"municipal socialism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"public transport"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Brutalism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"De Menezes Jean Charles"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"buses"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"regeneration"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Preston Bus Station / More De Menezes / Facebook"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp3.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RwMd_cAhwtI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/pZlNShxO4xc/s1600-h/Preston+Bus+Station.jpeg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp3.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RwMd_cAhwtI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/pZlNShxO4xc/s320/Preston+Bus+Station.jpeg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5116966577310384850\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ePreston Bus Station\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e‘Preston Bus Station’ are probably not the three most enticing words with which to start writing something that you want people to read, and indeed that particular combination of text may never have been used before in a socialist article. But it’s also a sequence of words that will seldom be used again, in any context, as the forthcoming demolition of this magnificent Lancashire colossus has been \u003ca href\u003d\"http://arts.guardian.co.uk/art/architecture/story/0,,2180884,00.html\"\u003eannounced\u003c/a\u003e.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut this article isn’t a paean to backwaters in the North West of England from which Trotskyists, entrepreneurs, professional footballers or even junior under assistant branch librarians all escape through a combination of pure Darwinian evolution and self-interest. This article is about architecture and councillors, public services and lost visions - and the way that capitalist politics screw them all up.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003ePublic transport?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn the traditional bombastic style of local journalism, the bus station has variously been described as the ‘biggest bus station in the world’, the ‘second biggest in Europe’ or just ‘one of the largest in the North West of England’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI travelled many a time through Preston Bus Station’s roadways and bays, often at dawn on a National Express coach heading north. On quite a few occasions I also ambled in on a Ribble Bus and headed onwards to Blackpool, Blackburn or Lancaster. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI remember the pale blue light there, similar to that which you occasionally see in public toilets (to prevent drug injectors finding a vein) but also quite close to the colour that, rather more prosaically, filled the screen as Robert de Niro’s character rode into Los Angeles, on their newish metro service, at the commencement of the armed car robbery scenes in that excellent film, ‘Heat’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDe Niro’s ride was delayed by decades because rail public transport provision by Californian municipal authorities was suppressed for so long by the auto industry - although things did eventually get better. But my journeys into Preston Bus Station were before British public transport infrastructure got worse. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLast week I waited at a bus stop, on a windswept street in Reading, that was tantalisingly within sight of the now disused, covered bus station that once served the town. Like bus stations up and down the country, it'd been sold off, along with the bus companies, to the pariah dogs, like Stagecoach, who then sold on the infrastructure. These private companies have left bus passengers standing in the street or standing around in railway stations with few seats because of their wish to cram in as many retail outlets as possible. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBrutalism\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePreston Bus Station, built in 1968 and 1969, is a tremendous example of Brutalism - a now near totally discredited movement - this was architecture that ‘encompassed a new way of thinking about construction’…fundamentally aimed at architectural honesty - a way of building that exposes the rawness or roughness of the materials and the construction.’ \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eExposed pipes, open drains and even windows just attached onto the surrounding wall rather than built in flush. And lots of lovely undressed concrete, coated just with pigeon droppings and spray can obscenities - not the white sheen that covered all the faults of its predecessor - and short-lived pretender to the road to the future - Modernism. Brutalism was a fitting, work-a-day architecture utilised by those borough leaders who still thought of building a better Britain. It contained a desire by some councillors to give you somewhere to wait for your bus away from the drizzle - and in some sort of style.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMunicipal socialism goes building\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBefore and during the time of Brutalism, there was a zeitgeist amongst some councillors (right-wing Labour councillors in the main) to think big (developing town centres with public facilities - transport interchanges, shopping centres), run services themselves (like the buses) spend money (on things like council housing) and, on occasion, even tell the government to go hang when it wanted to truncate their big, big plans.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePreston Bus Station can fit a whole fleet of buses into its cavernous interior. The city council owned bus fleet and the state owned local and long distance bus company would disgorge their passengers into this concrete behemoth and from here you could travel further afield via the state owned railway or with the state owned coach company, all the while seeing that Brutalist testament linger behind you for quite some time.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis same strand of architecture was the leitmotif behind many a council housing estate built in this period. Local authorities - from London boroughs, like Islington and Southwark (that were then run by rancid right wing castes) to a few Leftish authorities in the North - acted to ensure the availability of cheap housing but also to keep this provision under their control rather than to subject it to the tender mercies of private landlords. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThroughout inner London, the next largest group of housing estates after the former London County Council’s distinctive set of dark brick estates, are the complexes built in the 60s and 70s by the borough councils - places like the Aylesbury or North Peckham estates in south London. No one now defends the forward thinking that these housing estates once represented. But there’s no reason why such architecture should fail on its own merits. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI lived high in the sky for a long time in a south London 60s council tower block. It was poor maintenance and the social conditions (which made me install steel plate behind the door, to stop it getting kicked in) that made these blocks hard to let in the 80s, not the concept itself. The rich of Mumbai, with a lackey opening every door, don’t mind living a long way above the ground.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eHomogenised privatised Britain\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSwindon’s a town that once would have looked different. The railway buildings - both for the trains and for the railway workers, as well as the underworld passage that links them under the mainline, make that side of the town different to others. But the commercial heart of the town could now just as easily be Salisbury, Shrewsbury or Sheffield - save for its glorious Brutalist car park, with a spiral car ramp, that picks out the skyline from the morass. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFor what came later, under the rule of private developers who now run the show in every borough, was the homogenisation of near every town in Britain - the same shops, the same pastel coloured buildings and the same pastel flavoured food from the same pastel themed chains of pastel selling shops.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut this isn't a whinge about the way the distinctive look of so many towns has gone. It’s reporting how the rule of capital causes that but also screws up towns in so many more profound ways. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOne of its offences is its attempt to squeeze out every last bit of public space. A favourite trick, that I’ve noticed in London’s Docklands, is to put a barrier half across a public footpath (so not actually blocking the right of way) and erect railings right up to the edge of the public domain to which 'private property' notices are affixed. So, even if you think it’s a right of way, you’re not sure. You're pushed off your right of way through being unsure whether you can go past.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eUnfulfilled vision\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePost-war municipal socialism was no wonderland. It was the podium of no end of ne’er do wells, like one time Trotskyist, T Dan ‘Mr Newcastle’ Smith - that city’s Council Leader in the 60s who got fat on backhanders from those who rebuilt his city.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis almost, save for the river Tyne, included that sublime bit of Brutalist architecture, Trinity Centre Multi-Storey Car Park, built just across the river in Gateshead - a car park famous from its appearance in \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘Get Carter’\u003c/span\u003e, (just about the only decent British crime film ever made) and a movie in which corrupt councillors are an unseen presence.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe standards of these Brutalist and other municipal buildings could be poor, the utopian vision of the architect would often never be even half realised but touches, like putting a challenging Henry Moore sculpture amidst some edge of town council housing, showed a vision and occasional expectation of the best that few modern day councillors would now even be able to conceive how to aspire towards. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eNot just buildings\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd it wasn’t just the physical infrastructure that interested these councillors and aldermen. There’s no point in building world-class bus stations if no one's going to be riding the buses anymore.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI grew up in various backwater edges of conurbations that were near culturally bereft save for a few amateur dramatics performances and Scout shows in church halls. But even just getting to these venues - well, it was an escape from watching wall to wall Wendy Craig and Richard O'Sullivan - was a lot longer a trek than would be calculated by an overflying sparrow.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAll the streets in the suburbs in which I was incarcerated as a kid seemed to be laid out as crescents. It was as if a society of Islamic proselytisers had undertaken secret missionary work through acting as the developers of so many petit bourgeois post-war estates. Rose Crescent would slowly flow into Park Crescent that would lazily turn into Yew Crescent. This all meant that what would’ve been a ten minute cut through some estates in the city, was a 25 minute meander through suburban doppelganger roads. The route that I’d be obliged to follow would map out a strange, multi-sided shape whose name would fox most postgraduate maths students. Yet more ‘Crescents’, interspersed with an occasional  ‘Rise’ or a ‘Close’ led back into yet another ‘Crescent’, all in the way on the route to get from home to somewhere interesting.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOn the buses\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo, like all kids heading towards or just having entered their teenage years, I took the bus. And in that day of council bus fleets, cheap fares and services to places that have now been abandoned, the desire by those councillors to have reasonable public transport made a tangible difference to my quality of life.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFirst I travelled to the local town (and on my first occasion, ended up getting very lost, following the intuitively correct 'rule' of getting back on the bus at the same stop where I had alighted) and then I went on into the city. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘What do you want to go to London for’\u003c/span\u003e asked my mother. \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘There’s all you could ever need in Croydon’\u003c/span\u003e).\u003cbr /\u003e  \u003cbr /\u003eAnd then it was as far as I could get on a rover ticket. I kept on going like this until new horizons arose - an interest in music, politics and making longer distance trips, travelling by thumb.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(Did I miss the passing of the law that has apparently made hitchhiking illegal in Britain  - or did it just fall victim to paranoia and dirty tactics, such as those used by the US authorities who erect roadside signs saying things like - ‘Hitchhikers may be escaped convicts’). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eUntil those new interests did beckon, travelling from Croydon I did glimpse the last of the post-war vision before it died. My travels by bus and coach would take me in ever increasing rings to the places just beyond the edges of London - the extensive post-war council housing of Harlow; the cycle ways and open spaces of Crawley and the industrial estates, still full of manufacturers, in Stevenage. These were all post-war New Towns, built to house the Blitzed population of London.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLater, returning to the North West, the 10p kids bus fares in the metropolitan counties would get me, by local bus, from Stockport to Sheffield or to Wigan or to Liverpool. I developed an encyclopaedic knowledge of good record shops across the North (including the one in Liverpool where I was served by an amazingly-dressed young Pete Burns -and who was surprisingly later beaten in the unconventional dress stakes by George Galloway on Celebrity Big Brother). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut that’s not something a kid could do now. South Yorkshire was famous for its low bus fares in the mid to late 70s - pennies from Sheffield to Doncaster or from Barnsley to Rotherham. It was also famous for the resistance its Labour councillors put up when the Labour government of that period forced them to jack up these fares. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFor most kids now, it’s high bus fares (although not in London), privately owned town centres that frown on non paying customers or corporate owned leisure centres that squeeze the last penny. When a little older, it's staying at your mum and dads for ever with no chance of being able to rent or buy somewhere to live with the prospect of being given just social housing being hopelessly remote.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eWhen Labour fought\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe 1974-1979 Labour government was not, by any means, a time when the Labour Left had much of base. It was to be a few more years until the rise of Bennism. But still some Labour councils then actually tried to fight back against cuts - from the earlier period of the Clay Cross councillors right up until after the IMF intervention in 1976. Conferences against these first cuts happened in places like Lambeth, then under the leadership of Ted Knight. A few then would fight back.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen’s the last time you heard of a Labour council that decided it was going to defy the government or even the advice of the Audit Commission? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhere are the Left councillors engaging in internecine warfare against the rightwing leadership of their Labour groups? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(This happened for years and years, in places like Manchester, where the old manual worker right was gradually driven out by the once Bennite left, but which in fact was the progenitor of the professional class right-wingers who run nearly all Labour councils nowadays.) \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eEven in the old right-wing Labour fiefs during the first days of Thatcherism, councillors would be expelled from the council Labour Group for buying their council house. Nowadays such a councillor not doing this would probably be removed from any positions they have for not showing enough entrepreneurial savvy.\u003cbr /\u003e  \u003cbr /\u003eWhilst the icons of municipal Brutalist architecture are slowly felled - from Preston to Portsmouth - also spare a thought for the strong willed right wing Labour councillors of thirty and forty years ago who wanted and acquired innovative architecture and provided a wide range of council owned services for the population  of their towns.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd compare them to political pygmies who now follow them - they may share the social democracy of their predecessors but the modern councillors also now just a cipher for business interests, they’ve an overwhelming identification with the bourgeoisie and they’ve never had the guts to stand up to their national party leaders. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eMore de Menezes\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen the pigs executed Jean Charles de Menezes on a London tube train in July 2005, does anyone remember being reported what is now transpiring in the prosecution of the Metropolitan Police for, er, allegedly breaking Health and Safety laws?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe BBC reports from the trial that - At the same time, (as executing de Menezes), one of the armed officers physically dragged 'Ivor' (who was the cop first cornering de Menezes on the tube train) onto the platform while holding a gun against his chest. 'Ivor' shouted he was a policeman and heard more shots in the carriage. Terrified, the tube driver fled his cab - but was chased by another armed officer into the tunnel. I’ve furthermore seen it reported elsewhere that the driver was threatened with a gun.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNever mind shooting de Menezes seven times - I understand professional killers generally find one to the head and one to the chest to be sufficient - was that cop ever prosecuted for whatever crime he committed in threatening the tube driver with a loaded gun - you would have thought the driver’s uniform and the fact that he was driving the train would have alerted even the most atavistic pig to that fact that he didn’t need to pursue him. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eFacebook\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve set up a \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/p/Southpaw_Punch/766784752\"\u003eFacebook\u003c/a\u003e account as Southpaw Punch (I’m unable to use the correct term - Southpawpunch) - also see link, top right. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis account will carry each post from this site and a few that are immediately previous. It’s aimed at distributing Southpawpunch content to members of the ‘Facebook Left’  (what a term!) who don’t otherwise visit this site. So whilst it’s possible to read my website there, it’ll remain a better experience to follow it here - better design, comments, side features, etc. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’d be happy to make ‘friend’ links on Facebook with anyone who wants to. If I stick to just those with communist politics, I’ll only be talking to myself. Or put another way, when the revolutionary period unfolds, it’ll be useful to have the fine detail on where the counter-revolutionaries are and what they’re doing, so that arrangements for their 're-education' can be quickly implemented.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can assure all that there won’t be any of the puerile and inane behaviour on my account that bedevils the Facebook presence of even ostensible Marxists. It appears that those members of Left groups - who throw virtual sheep at each other or post the modern equivalent of saucy seaside postcards on each other’s profiles - are not being given harsh enough paper selling targets by their organisations.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think it's interesting to observe the large amount of time, that is being invested by some, in writing user generated content for commercially owned sites like Facebook, MySpace, Flickr, etc. There’s nothing to stop these companies setting up a pay wall around any of their property on which we squat. People could yet find themselves investing a lot of time and effort in their ‘own’ profile only to find they’ll have to pay, or others will have to pay, to access ‘their’ content.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eEven now you’re obliged to sign up to the service to get access to content. If you click on the Facebook link I have given above, you won’t see content unless you're a Facebook member. If it was a ‘normal’ web page, you would.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis parallel has flaws, but it’s almost as if you rent a flat and then fix it up for free for the landlord. Companies like Facebook should be treated like any other utility. Would people go online and contribute to forums and join communities to promote and preach for their telephone company or electricity provider? I hope people will learn to treat Facebook, and the other Web 2.0 sites,  with less naivety and adopt a greater awareness of the sassiness of newer forms of capitalism.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-389107204974894382?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/389107204974894382/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d389107204974894382\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"3 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/389107204974894382"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/389107204974894382"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/10/xyz.html","title":"Preston Bus Station / More De Menezes / Facebook"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp3.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RwMd_cAhwtI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/pZlNShxO4xc/s72-c/Preston+Bus+Station.jpeg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"3"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-8714042031103016361"},"published":{"$t":"2007-09-24T21:45:00.000+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2007-10-09T16:45:14.879+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"revolution"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Labour"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Justin"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Burma"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Justin's adventures in Bournemouth"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rvnw8MAhwsI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/E-djEjH8WmM/s1600-h/toffs.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rvnw8MAhwsI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/E-djEjH8WmM/s320/toffs.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5114383768662164162\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003eHi all!\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eListen, there I was off to the Labour Party exhibition (my first big job at Smoothly Connected Public Affairs Consultants since I came down from Cambridge in the Summer) when I got into my usual tizz wazz and ended up lost somewhere near Waterloo station in a place called, can you believe it, ‘The Cut’ (my first time in South London - scareee!!).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnyway I asked some bloke, passing by in the shadows, for directions. He turned out to be called Mr Southpawpunch and he accompanied me towards the station whilst I made the small talk. However, when Mr Southpawpunch found out what I do to make a humble crust, I got the strong impression that he was going to stab me and throw me into the Thames!! \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA bit of fast talking from me (I was a regular in the Cambridge Floodlights) did get me out of that difficult situation but not before me having to agree that I'd write a report about Bournemouth for him - so here we go.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eThe exhibition\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI thought I might start by giving those of you - not connected into the political mainspring, unlike myself - a flavour of the Labour Party exhibition by telling you about some of the stalls that I blagged my way around.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhilst being rather squiffy on my first afternoon there from all the Pimms I’d consumed at various socials and fringe meetings, I came across Saveco’s large stand at the front of the exhibition hall. I was pleased to find Abigail (from my tutorial group) stood under their large sign (‘Your Saveco store - the heart of your community’). She’s apparently slumming it working for the retailing giant in some glorified glad-handing role that she secured through contacts she acquired when she was Protocol Secretary of the University Labour Club.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eShe showed me round the reproduction they'd built on site of part of one of their megastores. There were mock ups of council enquiry counters, a mini police station, a small chapel and more - all located inside one of their shops. There was some blurb about how Saveco could provide this package as a ‘total link solution, providing all the public services for your community’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhilst chatting with Abigail I noticed that the Saveco staff just looked on benignly at the visitors to their stand blatantly shovelling up as much as they could of the jars of Paraguayan upland olives, packets of Mongolian unpasteurised cheeses, flagons of Belgian First Pressing Damson beers and more besides; from the large mounds of Saveco ‘Uppercut’ products that were on display. The visitors squirreled their bounty away into large sacks that all exhibition attendees seemed to be carrying round all the stalls for this very purpose.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo anyway, still rather groggy on my feet, yours truly pressed something I shouldn’t have and this damn alarm started going off, just besides one of those detector things that you see at the entrance to Saveco stores. I then noticed a pair of wall mounted shackles opening and a blue flashing light going off along with a metallic voice saying: \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘Attention. You’ve passed in breach of the unresolved payment protocol. Place both your legs now in the shackles. They’ll close to ensure your safety and so that Security can attend to your under resourced customer revenue situation’\u003c/span\u003e.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAll the Saveco staff tried to stop this palaver that I’d caused, and they walked over to where I was to try and turn off that part of the display. But whilst they did this I saw a dozen or so visitors take the opportunity to strip the Saveco stand bare. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA large, under the table, stash of champagne bottles, three small flat screen monitors and two large boxes of Saveco £100 vouchers (they were only being given out to those who had credentials to prove that they were members of council planning committees) swiftly disappeared into various sacks. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA model, wearing items from Saveco’s ethical (all items edible) lingerie range, was also carted off by a couple of staff accompanying a former minister. He walked swiftly away in front of them all, with both a threatening gait and his beer belly obscuring his upper thighs. He looked back over his shoulder to tell his aides to make sure that they didn’t ruffle his captive’s underwear.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAmongst the other interesting stalls that I visited were some in the ‘community safety’ enclosure. There was a rather fine device for deterring anti-social behaviour - a shopkeeper mounts a cylinder-like object above his door that he can then use to spray skunk scent over anyone hanging around and thus ‘negatively conflicting his retail revenues’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere was also a great gadget that could be a big help in educating slower children. If they type in too many wrong answers in an online spelling test, delivered on a specially adapted computer monitor, the keyboard delivers a small electric shock.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eCasecon\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI was also quite taken by some of the service providers who demonstrated how they could bring 'leading edge innovation to the heart of the political process.' There was an exhibiting company there, Casecon, who are specialists in providing outsourcing solutions to MPs and councillors.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs well as handling the arrangements for making surgery appointments with elected representatives, Casecon will actually conduct the casework - right through from the initial query to the eventual outcome. Somewhere offshore they have computer servers that generate one of several proforma letters that deal with all possible issues that might be raised. These can then electronically interact - and for an indefinite period - with parallel letters that are generated by those companies providing the same services to councils, the NHS, etc. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd in a clever twist, more often than not it’s actually the same company working for both sides and thus creating a virtuous circle - promoting efficiency by just communicating with itself. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it gets better. The guy showing me around explained how much of a councillor’s or an MP’s time is spent dealing with mundane issues - constituents complaining about the local hospice shutting down or some chav parents whinging that a foundation school is refusing to enrol their kid despite them living next door to the school playground. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThose who we elect shouldn’t be dealing with this grind but instead could spend their time better - developing their policy awareness, e.g. going on parliamentary delegations to research winter sports resort development in Dubai or participating in events like the ‘Promoting Growth Through Building a Moral City’ jamboree that was recently held in Las Vegas.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eTo resolve this conflict, Casecon have now introduced online avatars - they represent the MP or councillor - and which can ‘meet’ with a constituent who wishes to raise an issue. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe trials of these new services have demonstrated that both sides are satisfied with this innovation. In a survey conducted with those who have undertaken online consultations with a Casecon computer avatar, the percentage of electors who thought that the simulation was more intelligent or more interested in their problems than their real life elected representative was 97% and 94% respectively. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd likewise, both MPs and councillors were confident that this computer application was proving a great help to them - for example, various MPs found that they now never needed to make the long journey to their constituency and this was proving to be a big help in their push towards meeting their carbon neutral targets.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFurthermore the introduction of 0870 numbers to access these virtual MP or councillor surgeries, along with nationality entitlement checks and fingerprint scanning beforehand, had worked well in reducing the number of frivolous enquiries that Casecon was needing to handle on behalf of their politician clients.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eThe rise of Justin\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve got myself into a bit of a sticky situation on the ladyfriend front in Bournemouth. I went to several social events the other night (photo - featuring top totty - from the 'Fund Managers for Labour' shindig shown above) finishing with the  McSparran Whisky Scottish Trade Union Ceilidh night - Kilt, Dinner Jacket and Black Tie obligatory. Free Bar. (Pay bar for the press).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAfter having sampled a glass from every distillery that they’ve got, I found myself doing the crossed hand dance with a 40s something, rather weather-beaten former  Mayor from some place in east London that I’ve never heard of. We’d both been knocking them back since early morning and I’m afraid that I fell for her line about \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘going back to her room at the Grand Hotel to see my chain of office - you don't get to keep it after serving your term of office.’\u003c/span\u003e It turns out that she’s 3 years older than my mother.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnyway, she’s clearly taken quite a shine to me and, to be frank, I need to be making contacts so as to be sure of meeting my client acquisition targets. The councillor appears keen to act in a mentoring way towards me and I have also become quite interested in the possible career path that she’s been mapping out for me.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy new friend has told me that it used to be that being called to the Bar was the surest route to selection as a Labour candidate. However my work as a political consultant, perhaps to be followed by an in-house role with a venture or a vulture capitalist fund, was now perhaps the most common route to political success. It would even enable me to overcome the disadvantage of having gone to Cambridge rather than to Oxford.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eShe’s made it clear, that if I’m wiling to play ball with her, or rather play with her... then there’s a lot she can do for me. As well as a guarantee of regular work for my consultancy from her council and from various Quangos on which she sits, she’s said that she could also fast track my political career by getting me selected as a councillor, appointed to various public bodies, grant-aid funded and generally given a boost. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI hadn’t quite realised the fair sums that you can make by sitting on some Quango, or as a cabinet councillor, but the real financial jackpot is when you become an MP and receive not just a salary but you also benefit from the endless legal fiddles that MPs pull.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy ladyfriend has apparently previously blown her own chances of selection as an MP (and she also had to stand down as a magistrate) after an episode last year. She admitted that she had threatened some copper with the sack (\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘I have known - personally, and biblically - your boss, your boss’s boss and the Mayor of fucking London’\u003c/span\u003e) if he didn't let her go after he nicked her for drunkenly driving the Mayoral limo into the Town Hall fountain. The policeman recorded all of her tirade on the video camera mounted in his cop car.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eShe does get rather maudlin at times. Last night in bed, when particularly pissed, she was self pityingly going on about how she has become all that she once hated and she also mentioned her youthful involvement with the ‘Trots’. The latter is a new one on me, maybe it was a dance craze that she was into - like the ‘Tango’ or the ‘Twist, maybe?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eShe said that it's apparently useful if I join a thing called a 'trade union'. She did explain what one was but I do admit that I switched off at this point. I’ve scribbled down a list of contacts she gave me when she was talking about people I should be getting to know, but they all sound so similar - Accenture, Capita, Connect, Unite etc. I’d be very grateful if someone could drop me a line and tell me which ones of these are trade unions and what is it that they actually do?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eFringe meeting\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s a bit of a rush on tonight. Our key account manager, Jeremy, has been called back to London to twist some arms for a bank client of ours that needs heavyweight political input to stop the Bank of England revealing that they’ve also been funnelling millions to them just like they did for Northern Rock. (I’m not sure if I should be writing this bit down).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnyway, I’m going to need to cover tonight and chair the fringe meeting that my firm is sponsoring - ‘Local Government: Let’s put the governor back locally’. Also speaking at our event will be the Entrepreneur Partnership Facilitation Officer from Unison, the Sales Manager for Sponsors from the New Local Government Network think tank and various MPs who are on our payrolls.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOnly Jeremy shot off up to London with the only copy of tonight’s speech! I was rather concerned until, after talking to my colleagues, I’ve learnt that that all I need to do is name check all the relevant buzzwords: multi-partnership, customer centred, engaged, diversity, community, sustainable and many more (they go on for two whole pages!) and then add in some appropriate link words - and, they, we, etc - and can then be sure that my address will go down a storm! \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003ePolitical karaoke\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI didn’t realise that there’s also some sort of debating club that holds meetings during the Labour Party exhibition. I wandered by mistake into a large hall in which there were masses of empty red chairs. There was also a few ageing eccentrics and some sharp suited corporate types huddled near the front of the hall listening to some old crone with a lesbian haircut droning on about bus services in Donchester (or somewhere ‘up North’ anyway)’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe degenerate (?), delegate (?), desperado (?) - sorry, I couldn’t quite hear how she was called by the Lady Chairman - even made a few, almost barbed, references to the Prime Minister in her speech but she was then very careful to completely smoother these comments with endless wittering about the many benefits that the government had brought to former Tory voters. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eShe ended her speech by saying that soundings, taken amongst all the seventeen Labour Party members in her constituency, had showed unanimous support for the proposed new British national slogan to be \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘In Gord We Trust’\u003c/span\u003e. This remark raised a small cheer from the audience, most of whom I’d previously assumed had fallen asleep.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen I left the hall I wasn’t surprised to overhear someone say that some ‘conference’ had just decided that this was to be the last year that would allow  such potential valuable exhibition space to be wasted on this political karaoke. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eMr. Southpawpunch\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMr. Southpawpunch was very unhappy with what I’d written when I gave him the above report about Bournemouth to  He said strongly that it \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘wasn’t what the sort of intelligence that I’d promised him’\u003c/span\u003e. He was also with some swarthy moustachioed bloke, who talks with one of those foreign accents and who declined to give me his name and who also nodded his head in vigorous agreement with Mr. Southpawpunch. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBoth of them then started quizzing me intently about the security arrangements at the Labour Party exhibition - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e'did I see how many snipers there were, how closely did they look at the photo on your ID card, were there any police dogs sniffing your bags?'\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI asked him why he was interested in this stuff and he said that they might be paying a ‘special’ visit there next year and they wanted to be forewarned. He then had some whispered conversations with the swarthy bloke that I couldn't catch although I did manage to hear them say something like \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘they’d all be legitimate - from the consultants staffing the stalls to the delegates snoozing through the ‘debates’\u003c/span\u003e.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI hope that the readers of Mr Southpawpunch’s website find this report more useful than he did. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e---\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBurma\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMr. Southpawpunch has asked me to add something further to this week’s article. He wants me to write that -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘The pathetic fallacy of those gutless Labour reformists who say that revolutionary change is impossible, will, with any luck, be blown apart in the next few days in Burma.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAny heroic actions, mass activity and possible revolutionary change in that country won’t take place in defiance of the usual bugbears of the Labourites - low levels of political participation, court injunctions, etc. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf these actions do occur in Burma - and they’ve already started - they’ll occur despite a decades old dictatorship. And they’ll also take place - not in fear of breaching minor legalities - but directly against planes, tanks and machine guns.’ \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHe said a lot more besides but I couldn’t get it all down. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd then he and the swarthy bloke got quite agitated again, and looked some more at both the Burma websites and the Burma page in their atlas that they’ve poring over. They then chanted some political slogans about that country whilst both jabbered on a bit, followed by them making gesticulations towards enemies that only they can see.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eJustin\u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-8714042031103016361?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/8714042031103016361/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d8714042031103016361\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"6 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/8714042031103016361"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/8714042031103016361"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/09/justins-adventures-in-bournemouth.html","title":"Justin's adventures in Bournemouth"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rvnw8MAhwsI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/E-djEjH8WmM/s72-c/toffs.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"6"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-2637867713510502752"},"published":{"$t":"2007-09-17T23:00:00.000+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2007-09-23T17:21:15.111+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"left parties"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"crime"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"futurism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"capitalism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Islamists"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"In the Year 2035"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RvBXDwKnEGI/AAAAAAAAAJs/iSs4lHSamuE/s1600-h/spacemen3.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RvBXDwKnEGI/AAAAAAAAAJs/iSs4lHSamuE/s320/spacemen3.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5111681299046142050\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eTo coincide with my retirement this week, I want to draw some lessons from my  involvement with the British and European Left over the last 55 years since 1980.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m also going to draw this blog to a close. I suppose I could keep it going from my retirement flat in Nice but I think I’ll find better things to do there after I escape from snow ridden and sodden Britain to a place where at least there is a chance of sun in the summer. (Whatever happened to Global Warming?). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI had expected, at various times in my career, to be able to retire on a full pension at the age of 60, 65 and then at 70. I‘ve had to wait until I am 72 - it’s worse for many more. Whilst I have worked longer than I expected, like many I'm also now in a position to know how much longer I have to live. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSome of my health treatments, including the arterial unclogging and the installation of a heart support filter, have added a bit over five years to my lifespan. My latest gene analysis and inner body scan predicts (with a 96% probability) that I have eight years left to my death (barring accidents). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI do admit to wondering whether I should give up the idea of watching the seals and polar bears from the window of a flat besides the Mediterranean and use that money to instead buy another couple of years of life. In fact, for just a bit more than the cost of the flat, I'm told that I could be sure of a further 26 months.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOf course how long you live is pretty much now directly related to how much money you have. God knows what percentage of the Cuban national economy is being spent on ensuring President Castro gets to see 110 - all the sugar crop, claim some.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut once, long ago I wanted to live fast and die young. So now I would be happy to surrender a few months for better food, a decent cafe and the forlorn hope of meeting another Hélène or a Thérèse.        \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m unsure whether one of the early pensioners, some time after World War I, was in a better or worse situation than myself with their similar expected period of retirement. Is the ten more years of my life, compared to theirs, an extra decade of Christmases or just a further ten years of having to sell my labour power?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eCapitalism still rules\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCapitalism has been responsible for a fantastic wave of human advancement. It took just 63 years from the Wright brothers’ first powered flight to landing a man on the moon. I recall, at the start of my working life in 1985, that it cost £1.60 a minute to telephone India. The last time I remember it being separately charged was in 2007, when I could make a call for just an eightieth of that first figure. Now, of course, utility costs are bundled together in whatever package you buy, but analysts generally say that the telecommunications costs of your provider are practically zero. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt's been clear, for over 150 years, that capitalism wasn’t overcooked when prodded by Marx, it was barely starting to simmer - even now I wouldn’t like to say when it might be done. But who has enjoyed the benefits of the great technological advances (that seem to have accelerated even more in the last decade or two)? Did the widespread computerisation and automation of the 1980s and 1990s lead to less work for all? Why is there now an effective treatment to completely reverse baldness but still no cure for malaria?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eTreading water\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhilst in the mid 21st Century we’re certainly not galley slaves or fishing in canals for food, nevertheless our just treading water hasn’t prevented us from being pulled backwards by the tide. One of the major, yet strangely unnoticed, defeats in the last decade has been the increase in the working week. With the general use of NoSleep pills from about fifteen years ago, we’ve seen the average working week drift up to 90 hours. If we'd organised, those extra 56 hours could have been ours.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOf course no-one is forced to work all those hours that were once lost through sleep - I have been part time, working just days, for a few years now and I have learnt to get by. In the same way a gun wasn’t put to your head, when I signed on in the early 1980s, to force you to work at all - you could get by subsisting on the dole for long periods. If you don’t want to take a job with these hours, others are happy to be employed, not least because of the illusion of a greater standard of living earned through working longer. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Work Club associates even point out that the 90-hour working week is actually an advance - it means a few more leisure hours than we would have enjoyed before the pill. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIncidentally, I’m sure their predecessors, the Trade Union leaders, would have said similar if they were still around. But only a very few now see the need for such 'dinosaur' organisations as Trade Unions. Most consider themselves as their own bosses these days - contracting daily to work at places like WHWoolworths or TescoM\u0026S.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe jury’s out on whether we have 'progressed' in how much we get from our lives. Last year, I had a great time staring down at Earth, floating on a wire, on my first space flight but I’m not sure that the sense of wonder was anymore than that I experienced going to a neighbour's, aged 5, to watch my first colour TV programme. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eConstantly fluctuating market pricing of so much of our expenditure - our bus journey or lunchtime sandwich could, in extreme examples, cost 75 % less or maybe four times as more as it did the day before - means that we pay more? or is it less? - than some ill remembered ‘before’. I do know that I seem to spend time doing calculations - such as working out which day it is financially less painful to take a sickie - that I didn’t once need to undertake. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eWaiting, not watching \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePredictions from earlier this century about the ever encroaching state were true - to a degree. But the clocks still don’t strike thirteen, not least because the cost of watching, catching and preventing ‘crime’, though marginal (with technology), is nonetheless a burden that the state sometimes won’t bear. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe state will never deploy its resources to do things like stop street robbery in poor areas. A PCSO may use his immobiliser on the likely suspect to do anything from incapacitate him and make him lose bowel control right through to ensuring his hospitalisation - it much depends on the officer’s mood and the perceived seriousness of the offence. And it’s informally accepted that this action - no trial, no paperwork and no criminal record - suits both sides.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMany have been happy to give up their privacy for small benefits - lost wallets, drunk drivers, or waiting for late trains are things of the past for most - due to radio tagged devices, Alcohol Consumption Monitoring Orders and Daily Route Tracking. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut if you do give them a reason to get on their radar, the complete surveillance network and other monitoring will give a pretty much 24/7 record of what you do and with whom to those watching. You may even then get to meet a police officer; they're generally now only seen on TV.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLeft without direction\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe last Left print publication must have been distributed at least 20 years ago. A few Left groups have adapted well to new circumstances - I zapped over a Left group’s sample broadcast today onto my phone from a fly download point outside a station - but the greater entry price to political activity has proved burdensome to those with few members or little initiative.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s the easiest thing in the world to be a ‘web party’ (there are now 28 mutually antagonistic outfits claiming to be ‘the’ Communist Party of Great Britain on the web, three of which I set up myself whilst on the bus home the other night). Anyone can use Talkwriteback software to populate their 'party' outlets with authentic looking, but entirely computer generated footage of well attended meetings, conferences and the like. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSoftware to write articles, conduct online arguments, flame wars, etc. is also used by many Left parties who only need to undertake minimal customisation to make it look authentic. Indeed some of the 100% software generated ‘discussions’ are a lot better argued than those I remember being made by real life socialists in the early days of blogging. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut the biggest advance, such as it has been, has not occurred through strike waves, wars or cultural change but by a judicial fiat. It was the unexpected fallout of a corrective action taken in the interests of efficient government in the bastions of cronyism in east Europe that led to the introduction of proportional representation in all elections in the European Area.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCoupled with the later abolition of the 4% minimum vote for representation, this   lead to a splurge of small Left parties and who did enjoy some early successes. I was bemused to become reacquainted with many whom I thought to be Ex Lefts, and who apparently hadn’t withdrawn from activity because they’d become senior managers (as I had mistakenly thought) but instead had been working abroad for years or had suffered from long term ME, etc. - or so we were led to believe. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThese little Napoleons retook their previous prominent positions in the parties.  A few of them even walked into slots as 'United Left' Council Leaders and MPs. But the political world had changed - no longer were they facing Tory ministers across the floor but StrongWomenTogether members of the Cabinet or Secretary of States from Tories-21, after the Conservatives split first into the latter - a socially liberal and economically conservative party - and the rump, which was the same but even more rancid.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOn occasion I even found our great returned Left leaders quoting back to me some of the arguments that I have become known for - the need to start out all over again. Only I don’t ever recall writing that we needed to ditch the old politics, I’ve always said it’s the presentation that’s at fault.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNothing is ever new under the sun. Most of our representatives went along the predicted route rightwards, often to a career in the 'Coalition' as LeftLabour MPs - implementing the capitalist knife, but with a cheery smile. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThose too stupid to jump right have generally lost their seats as the Left parties representation slipped behind that of other small parties - Football Fans United, In Christ and The Sexyparty.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe go on, but barely. Whilst Marx may have once been a Hegelist, all of today’s Left leaders are too young ever to seriously have been a Marxist. The conditions for communism remain as ripe as ever but the organisation of society doesn’t easily throw up its assassin - most of human history has seen grudging compliance rather than fractious rebellion and that’s how it is now.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt's just 100 years since the last bloom of anarchism - when masses flocked to the red and black in Spain. It was a current that had seen large support for some of its variants in Mexico, Russia and elsewhere. Indeed around the turn of the 20th century, kings and presidents were assassinated by those in favour of the propaganda of the deed. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI remember the remnants of this tendency in 1980s London - in squats, Class War, walking to Stonehenge, the Poll Tax Riot and Stop the City. I knew quite a few and some did want to overturn society rather than just live in an alternative manner. After the death of the last anarchist a couple of years ago, I was asked to record an 'oral history' piece at a museum, explaining what all these events were. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn this century 'anarchism' has only resurfaced as a hackneyed motif on the clothes      of an avant-garde designer or as a term grossly misapplied to events like buccaneering banking arrangements that have come to grief. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd so for Marxism. It's only kept alive as a memory by those with a sentimental attachment to their youth. Like some of the ancient truths of the Greeks it will also disappear beneath the waves but with no guarantee that there will be the equivalent of the Arabs to rediscover it anytime this millenia. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eIssue after issue \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Greenyfundys did score a ‘spectacular’ last year with their destruction of ten nuclear power stations around the world. In what passes for the Left web these days, you can’t get away from overheated discussions about what ‘our’ attitude should be towards them. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCan you be a socialist if you court Greenyfundys with their quack ‘science’ that claims organic food is better? Or are you sectarian if you don’t make common cause with those making the non-rational demand for the 'return of bedrooms' especially as it can synch with our demand for a 80 hour working week?   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI see no reason to believe that the Greenyfundys particular brand of radicalism won’t also decay with a short half-life, like all the rest. Anything that doesn’t seek to kick over the table of class society but just seeks to rearrange the silver service place settings will always mutate or fade away. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut then I’m old enough to remember many of the earlier ‘issues’ that interested the Left and also kept many a spouting capitalist columnist in print. In the early 1980s, after the small uprisings that occurred in places like Liverpool and Manchester; it was ‘Toxic Toxteth’ in the Sunday Telegraph or ‘Black to Basics’ in the Guardian. The issue then was - what to do with inner city black youth? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eApparently the adoption of a Rasta lifestyle by an urban hardcore was going to lead to an explosion in illegal drug use and the evolution of dens of social inequity that would turn places like Islington and Hackney into twilight criminal territories, disconnected from the rest of London. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat issue was neutralised. The last young black with dreads cut them off sometime in the 1990s. Whilst a small number of blacks have established themselves in middle England, the large majority remain moribund on the Fixed Profit Company estates at the edge of the conurbations - no longer with a critique of society, but just a rarely scratched itch towards it.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd so the ‘Islamism’ scare of the early years of the century has, in Britain as in the rest of the West, pretty much gone the way of the Victorian Christian revival - many of the former mosques in Bradford, Brick Lane and Basingstoke now serve as 3Dtheques, carpet warehouses or StormSupply stores.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRetired\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Left lost. If only I had passed that ‘Socialist Youth’ seller in Mersey Square, Stockport in my youth and paid another visit out of curiosity to the Christian Science Reading Room on Greek Street, I may have ended up in a tradition that claims both scientific underpinning and an assured victory but is actually big enough to have an infrastructure. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNext week I intend to start repeating my weekly articles, starting from 24 September 2007.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf only I knew then what I know now. The horror.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-2637867713510502752?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/2637867713510502752/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d2637867713510502752\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"5 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/2637867713510502752"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/2637867713510502752"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/09/monday-september-12-2035.html","title":"In the Year 2035"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RvBXDwKnEGI/AAAAAAAAAJs/iSs4lHSamuE/s72-c/spacemen3.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"5"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-5602577623865519243"},"published":{"$t":"2007-09-10T23:48:00.001+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-10-08T23:16:27.802+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"partition"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"India"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Bose Subhas Chandra"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Pakistan"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Bangladesh"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"India - history rewritten"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp1.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RuXjyWBx5KI/AAAAAAAAAJk/5ARBL5cf04s/s1600-h/Bose.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp1.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RuXjyWBx5KI/AAAAAAAAAJk/5ARBL5cf04s/s320/Bose.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5108739806367704226\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003eBack from a summer break, I’ve been torn between revising something I wrote about the Independence of India and Pakistan or addressing the state of those countries (and Bangladesh) today. I’ll go with the history and leave my comments about the present day until after my next visits. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m not that much interested in ‘history’ per se but I want to counter some of the ever ongoing rewriting of what actually happened there and who did what and compare that fight for Independence with present struggles to remove imperialist overlords.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e60 years \u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe BBC, the Mayor of London and many other arms of the state - museums, schools, etc - have taken the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the bloody Partition of the Sub Continent as an opportunity to go big on celebrating the culture of present day India (and to a lesser extent, Pakistan. All but forgotten is Bangladesh). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs India booms and threatens to follow China in overtaking the size of the British economy, so those in charge are alive to the need to understand well the locations for the generation of profit. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eTheir draft of history\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAlthough ‘history’ is a guide as to why many tens of millions in the Sub Continent still need to survive in absolute poverty, very little that is historical (save the ramblings of Michael Wood who nods in agreement with whatever spurious history some mystic, devotee or just uninformed passer-by is dispensing to him) has passed through the wall-to-wall inanity that is this current ‘festival of India’. It’s mainly ‘Bollywood’ and other light entertainment (I think Bollywood is such a craven term and likewise says Amitabh Bachan, India’s biggest film star.) \u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003eNow it’s true that if you persevere and look past the lowbrow and go to the special exhibitions in obscure museums or look out for the themed series on BBC Radio 3 and the like, more may be made of the past. You can discover the most intricate detail about the position of agricultural labourers in the Ashoka Empire or information about the pigments used in Mughal miniatures. But you’d search in vain for programming about the history of the underdevelopment of India and why this still continues.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd when the Independence struggle itself does make it to the mainstream, it’s generally the last Raj relics, like Mountbatten’s daughter (\"after we arrived and father was made Viceroy, I had to curtsey to him\") who make the running. She repeated also what her father always maintained about Partition (there was nothing we could do to stop the violence, he would say, except for one interview in the 70s - “I fucked it up badly”). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe hegemony of this draft of history reminds me of the recent trashing of the true story of the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. A generation have recently been told that the end of slavery was mainly the work of concerned liberals, like Wilberforce, near ignoring the self-activity by the slaves to terminate this practice. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCongress\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut what did happen in India? Did that saint in sandals, Gandhi, lead noble natives to ‘freedom at the Midnight hour’ through negotiation with the colonial rulers and by saying no to anything violent? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s never a restful state where a people realise that they exist as just the factotums of others who differ from them in a combination of their language, culture and place of origin. Similarly it’s a great tragedy for humanity that many will be convinced that it’s acceptable to have those - who stripped of their riches or superior education would share their appearance, language and culture - to ‘naturally’ rule over them.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA few decades after the bloody crushing of the freedom fight in 1857, a thin echo of a desire to not have the nation held in bondage was demonstrated by the founding of Congress in 1885. The organisation was set up as a loyal group of supplicants to the Raj - they simply wanted a ginger group to press for a few concessions from the mother country. Many of its early members were British. And later supporters, including those such as the Birla and Tata family, were astute enough to see how their ‘generosity’ would be paid back many times if they disposed of the foreign competition to their businesses.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut Congress wasn’t destined from the beginning to lead the fight for Independence. Indigenous business leaders and representatives of burgeoning professional classes who wanted equal treatment with the colonialists did not generally lead the later African independence movements. Indeed a large component of the liberation movements - from Algeria to Angola - were armed groups representing workers and peasants. Arms often drove out the Dutch and the French imperialists.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSadly Congress did prove to be especially adroit at subverting the outrage of the Indian masses into support for its softly softly approach. One of its biggest spurts of growth occurred after the Amritsar Massacre.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eAmritsar Massacre\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe history of British rule follows that of most other occupying powers. I dare say you can point to periods when as long as the average subject did not protest about his status and was able to bear the discrimination against him in both where he worked and how he was treated before the law, he could enjoy some benefits that would never have occurred under the previous despotic rule of maharajahs. \u003cbr /\u003eBut when people feel that living like that is not living at all, and resolve to try and improve matters, they will then feel the full force of the powers held in reserve by those who are in charge. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIndia holds many mass religious gatherings. One of these melas is the biggest human gathering on Earth. Colonial authorities generally weren’t bothered by these countless large gatherings of pilgrims and devotees. But when 20,000 gathered in Amritsar at Jallanwalah Nagh in 1919 with a political purpose - to protest against colonial rule - the Raj response was very different. Without warning the crowd to disperse, troops opened fire and also blocked the only exit from this walled park. The official figure dead was 379 killed. Unofficial estimates put the death toll between 1000 and 1800. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe perpetrators of the killing suffered little - The ‘Morning Post’ started a fund for the solider in charge although Udham Singh later shot dead the governor of the region in London. (Singh is often portrayed by Sikh organisations as a turbaned fellow member of their religion - in fact he was a clean-shaven communist).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLost revolutionaries\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut tragically, on the nationalist side, most of the political capital through actions such as this didn’t accrue to those who realised that as well as mass activity; strike activity and military activity would quickest remove the Brits - as it has done from the United States to Aden. Instead Congress went from strength to strength but with a communalist organisation, the Muslim League, also increasingly attracting support from Muslims. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd this was the theme throughout the Independence struggle. Sidelined were more militant strands that had a lot better clue of how to remove imperialist rule. Ghadar was a party with a large membership of expatriate Indian in places like Canada and the USA. The group said that it \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Wanted brave soldiers\", \"to stir up rebellion in India. Pay-death; Price-martyrdom; Pension-liberty; Field of battle-India\"\u003c/span\u003e. The ideology of the party was strongly secular. Their influence waned.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBhagat Singh was one of the first Marxists in India and was one of the leaders and founders of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association. Singh gained support when he underwent a 63 day fast in jail, demanding equal rights for Indian and British political prisoners whilst waiting to be hanged for shooting a police officer in response to the killing of veteran activist. Before dying he also wrote a pamphlet entitled ‘Why I am an atheist’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt was only in the years after Independence that Nehru would come round to recognising the contribution of those, such as Bhagat Singh, who had raised arms against the British, and had died for the cause, whilst providing no explanation as to why Congress did not flex its large body of support in their favour when they were alive.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut sometimes the broken political compass of Left forces made them move to the right of Congress without any need of assistance from the leaders of the latter organisation. To their eternal shame, and in an action that caused damage for many years to come, the Communist Party of India (the later CPM was originally a Maoist split from the above party but is now a larger than its ‘parent’) opposed the ‘Quit India’ movement of Congress in WWII through prioritising the defeat of the German and Japanese imperialism over that of the Western imperialists.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBose\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003eThere was somebody else that I was going to feature here as probably the best lost hope of those who weren’t constitutionally driven to sell out. That was before I saw a good article written about him at \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.splinteredsunrise.wordpress.com/2007/08/08/subhas-chandra-bose-on-radio-3/#comment-1273\"\u003eSplintered Sunrise\u003c/a\u003e.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSplintered Sunrise sums up Bose (or ‘Netaji’ - ‘Leader’ as he is known in India) well when he writes that his view was that ‘the British must be pushed into leaving, because moral persuasion wasn’t going to work’ although to be clear, pushing is about the least violent tactic that he thought necessary to remove India from the rule of foreigners.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut the article is also instructive when it goes on to express reservations about some of Bose’s actions and does this in a way that shows how the Left is so incapable of offering the correct support to the modern equivalents of the Indian Freedom Fighters of the first half of the 20th Century. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSplintered Sunrise's describes Bose’s actions in WW2 as - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘misguided as they may have been’\u003c/span\u003e. And a member of the right wing Left organisation, the Alliance for Workers Liberty, comments that Bose’s view \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"my enemy’s enemy is my friend position with regard to Nazism was not just mistaken: it was politically criminal.\"\u003c/span\u003e  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI presume that Splintered Sunrise is saying that taking the support of the Japanese in World War II wasn’t correct. To expand upon this, Bose was the head of a Japanese supported army, the Indian National Army (INA). As well as running the Indian islands of the Andamans and Nicobars in World War II, the INA also did make brief inroads into British occupied India in the far North East of the country.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut Bose wasn’t either a gullible dupe or a malign collaborator with Japanese imperialism. He knew that the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere of Nippon would mean no more than replacing the British rulers with the Japanese. He had previously been to Germany and met Hitler. Through this time in Germany he could hardly have missed that Asians like himself would barely make it into the ‘untermenschen’ category of the Nazis. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBose was completely correct in his tactics. He sought to profit from the current difficulties of the main enemy from fashioning a temporary alliance with their strongest foes. This was done with a full knowledge of the baseness of the Japanese regime but also with an understanding of the full horror of the Raj - an occupation that had reduced much of the Sub Continent to penury over the decades (Dhaka was described, in the time of Clive, as being grander than London) and that also oversaw events like the Bengal Famine during World War II in which 1-3 million died.\u003cbr /\u003e   \u003cbr /\u003eAnd so now despite their sometimes fascistic politics, any class conscious fighter in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere will seek to combine with the best placed foes against the colonial rulers. More Afghanis are dying from American violence than from that of the Taliban. What sort of credibility would Left forces have in place like Iraq, after the expulsion of the invaders, if they had played no part in forcing them to go - I suggest it would be even less than that of the Communist Party of India post Partition.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBose was more than a questionable character. His writings included comments along the lines that India was too anarchistic for a period of full democracy and would benefit from strong direction (presumably by him) for a while. But on supping with one devil to fight another, he was right. And on his determination to prevent the communal division of India, Bose was correct as well as prescient in imagining the enormous backward step that the dismembering of India on religious grounds would entail. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf only more Indian POWs had heeded the call in Singapore and in other places to take up arms again - but this time in the INA and against their former masters - the better could have been the future.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePartition\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe communalists won and cleft in three, the Sub Continent remains. This land mass is a collection of many nations, such as the Kashmiris whose possible desire for an independent country is being ridden roughshod by those who currently occupy parts of its land. Some in the far North East beyond Bangladesh have a lot more in common with similar peoples in South East Asia than they do with those from the central area. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere are many national groups, like Hungarians, Albanians and Kurds; that history hasn’t favoured. They have found their national brethren on either side of minefields and mountainous fences. It’s a good measure of how weak was the national bourgeoisie of Bengal, Kashmir, Punjab and more that their homelands were cut in two. Great could be the moment that the fences are ripped down in Bengal, Baja California, Benin and along borders everywhere.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eUnder developed\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi rulers have never recovered from having their country just given to them and that split asunder. They can’t even ensure street lighting, never mind provide state education for all.    \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt can be murky walking around even the main streets of Kolkata after the sun goes down at that earlier time that it does in the tropics. But in that gloom you may just espy a moving object that’s even darker than the surrounding blackness. If you go closer you may chance upon an almost medieval sight. A man dressed completely in dirt-ridden rags that are as black as the ashes of hell. His long matted hair and beard are scarred onto his face and he may stoop near the ground as he propels himself along in a manner recalling Gollum.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHe’s not even a bikriwallah - a sort of rag and bone man - he works for the bikriwallah as a rag picker. He scoots around alleyways looking for any bits of discarded paper or plastic that he can gather to sell. He will live in one of those sort of lean-to awnings that pepper many urban streets.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s a bit of sport amongst the Kolkata rich in demolishing these residences by driving their car a little on the kerb as they pass by. On finding his home demolished, the ragpicker may well express a view from that indoctrinated mindset that is a dead end for too many living in the East - it’s my fate.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Indian bourgeoisie are some of the most deserving of a bullet on the planet. Living in a state of permanently shutting their eyes to people living in utter destitution around them, they have a technique to deal with anyone uppity enough to approach them for baksheesh. If approached by a rickets riven beggar seeking a few rupees they have a well rehearsed semi circular motion of the wrist that warns the beggar that they will have serious trouble if they don’t just disappear. They also walk around with the permanent disposition of someone too important for their surroundings, as the photo above of Bose demonstrates well.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe rulers of these countries - the political class engorged by systematic corruption and the business class trying to turn themselves from floggers of adulterated milk to the bigger crimes of the household name multinationals - are starkly obvious in the parasitical weight that they bear on the mass of the Sub Continent’s inhabitants. I do hope to see the day when hordes of ragpickers get to strip that corpulent section of humanity of their crores of gold.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-5602577623865519243?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/5602577623865519243/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d5602577623865519243\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"3 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/5602577623865519243"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/5602577623865519243"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/09/india-history-rewritten.html","title":"India - history rewritten"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp1.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RuXjyWBx5KI/AAAAAAAAAJk/5ARBL5cf04s/s72-c/Bose.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"3"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-1580579348710027361"},"published":{"$t":"2007-08-06T23:54:00.000+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2007-08-13T15:39:21.870+01:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Facebook faux-pas /  Bang bang /  No photos /  The screw turns futher / Christmas present problem solved"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RrfVzc3SoHI/AAAAAAAAAJc/JI_p57JykS0/s1600-h/facebook.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RrfVzc3SoHI/AAAAAAAAAJc/JI_p57JykS0/s320/facebook.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5095776583291150450\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eFacebook faux-pas \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e(NB - the Facebook links in the following first article will only work if you’re a member of that site and signed in.)\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs someone who works in Public Relations, I can confirm that there’s at least one aspect of the PR world that does live up to its public perception. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePR, and in particular the Public Affairs section of same, does provide many a perch for political hacks on the make in the period between their post-education student union sabbatical year and their selection as a parliamentary candidate. There’s no end of our aspirant political rulers honing their spin skills in the dark arts - either in-house for companies or at PR agencies. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSome of these hacks of a Labour tint may now have to twiddle their thumbs for longer than they’d hoped - the high tide of their party may have passed by for now - but politicos from all parties can make PR a convivial long-term career if party members and electors never get to award them the positions that they’re sure they deserve. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo looking at the Facebook profile of a Public Affairs person that I know, I wasn’t surprised to be linked from them - within a click or two - to a plethora of putative politicians such as wannabe Labour candidates \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/s.php?q\u003d%22luke+akehurst%22\"\u003eLuke Akehurst\u003c/a\u003e,  \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id\u003d506231369\u0026hiq\u003ddawber%2Choward\"\u003eHoward Dawber\u003c/a\u003e and \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id\u003d731595634\u0026hiq\u003dpaul%2Crichards\"\u003ePaul Richards\u003c/a\u003e. If you glance at their photos, you'll see that they’re clearly three parasites that spend far too much time at corporate lunches.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePaul Richards used to write affectionate clerihews about Hazel Blears. His politics remain just as rank. One of the Facebook groups of which he is a member is called \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid\u003d2244995185\"\u003e‘You'll Never Beat John Golding’\u003c/a\u003e (\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eDescription: A group for fans of the sheer political prowess and organizational genius of John Golding, MP for Newcastle-under-Lyme 1969-198\u003c/span\u003e6).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn this group, Luke Akehurst writes about the time he spoke to Golding. \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘I asked if he was \"THE John Golding who had smashed the left on the NEC\" and he said, \"I thought everyone at HQ had forgotten about me.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd then there are the entry-level hacks that link to (and ape) people like the above three. Rather pathetic student age saddos joining Facebook groups like the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid\u003d2680390376\"\u003e‘Herbert Morrison Memorial Society’\u003c/a\u003e (created by Akehurst). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eEven more stomach churning is the networking in groups like \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid\u003d2510923351\"\u003e‘I'm going to Labour Party Annual Conference - Bournemouth, Sept07’\u003c/a\u003e (sample excerpt from a post in that group - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘I've just ordered the Champagne, so there should be plenty to taste’\u003c/span\u003e) or ‘I’m going to a Labour Penal Colony in September of Year Zero’ as that group will one day be renamed. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd then just a click or two away from Dawber and the like you reach those who currently have some clout rather than just seeking such.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThese include people like \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/s.php?k\u003d10080\u0026id\u003d608237326\"\u003eColin Byrne\u003c/a\u003e (former Chief Press Officer for Labour, now UK CEO of major PR firm Weber Shandwick), \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id\u003d604063763\u0026hiq\u003dbamping%2Chobsbawm%2Cjulia\"\u003eJulia Hobsbawm Bamping\u003c/a\u003e, (CEO of ‘Editorial (Un) Intelligence’ and former business partner of our new ‘First Lady’), \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id\u003d685462815\u0026hiq\u003dhodge%2Cmargaret\"\u003eMargaret Hodge MP\u003c/a\u003e (one immigrant who should have been refused entry), \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id\u003d715361979\u0026hiq\u003dmatt%2Ctee\"\u003eMatt Tee\u003c/a\u003e (former government health news spinner, now NHS Direct CE. Will the NHS ever learn that they need those from outside their senior ranks to critically evaluate their peers  - or else more like the NPSA - and they shouldn’t use PR people to actually run things?) and more - Jon Snow, Nick Cohen, Mark Borkowski, etc. Paul Mason, BBC Newsnight journalist, is apparently friends with Hazel Blears. Hmm. I remember…well, maybe it’s for work.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eNetworking - Facebook style\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI didn’t quite realise just how much the above types would reveal to the rest of us in both their actions and their conversations that they record in their Facebook pages (although I suppose they could be showing off). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThey’re not yet astute enough to hide their lists of friends and the conversations between them all - so you can still read Julia Hobsbawm Bamping saying, in true ‘Nathan Barley’ style, that she was off to Aldeburgh (favourite seaside resort for Londonistas) and she thinks that \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e'Maggie Hambling 'scallop' on the beach (there) is fab'\u003c/span\u003e. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s no particular reason to think that communist revolution would break out first in Britain. But when it does, we clearly need to secure both the movable assets and the moving and shaking asses before they both try and flee the country to any remaining oases of capitalism. Clearly having minor members of the establishment writing whether they are currently at Aldeburgh or at Glyndebourne or in Grasse will be helpful when we need to round them up in mobile execution buses. Let’s just hope the Facebook (or similar) trend catches on and more significant people, like FTSE100 company directors, also keep us up to date on their movements.\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eAll that glitters...\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMany, particularly those who are younger, appear to often use Facebook in a light-hearted way - to both be boastful and to mock others. But New Labour linked commentator \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id\u003d589187782\"\u003eMary-Ann Sieghart\u003c/a\u003e is approaching Facebook in a very serious manner. Sieghart has a small list of Facebook friends - mainly colleagues and family. Our Mary-Ann tells us that she’s about to spend \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘a month in the country’ \u003c/span\u003eand she recently used Facebook to arrange a meet up with Julia Hobsbawm Bamping in Aldeburgh.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I think Sieghart, whose self-regard and intelligence is the butt of many a joke in Private Eye, may have become a bit befuddled in Facebook land. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLast week she had a good networking day. At 10.33 on 30 July she and Margaret Hodge MP became friends. And then at 12.19, on the same day, she and \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/friends.php?id\u003d760849281\"\u003eDavid Cameron MP\u003c/a\u003e did the same. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere have been claims that some people on Facebook, such as the ‘David Miliband’ there, may not be who they purport to be. I do like the idea that possibly some of those players send private messages to Miliband - doubtless expressing their continuing support for him and the Blairite project - and could instead unknowingly be communicating with a sixteen-year-old Sunderland school student or the like.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think Sieghart should consider whether the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id\u003d632606359\u0026hiq\u003djeremy%2Cpaxman\"\u003eJeremy Paxman\u003c/a\u003e, with whom she is a Facebook friend, is the genuine article? Is Paxo likely to be Facebook friends with Linford Christie, Ronnie Corbett and some young woman who claims to have hooked up with him?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf I were in Sieghart’s position, I’d also want to be ‘friends’ with David Cameron. If the Tories should win the new election then there’ll be no end of media types who will either bury or claim as grossly exaggerated any reports that they previously had any links to Labour. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut Facebook users need to use their wits and be in contact with the \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ereal\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e David Cameron.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe large bulk of the friends that the ‘David Cameron’ to which Sieghart is linked appear to be university students; well, apart from Noel Gallagher. I saw next to nobody in ‘David Cameron’s’ list who was over 30. \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e(\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003esince I posted this article 'David Cameron' has hidden his list of friends and thus hidden his/her clearly bogus nature)\u003c/span\u003e.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNow of course, his friends may be the new Shadow Cabinet. If you’re going to have a Labour supporting businessman as a Tory parliamentary candidate, why not just appoint your shadow ministers based on what they are currently studying. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I’m sure it’s not the real David Cameron.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOh, and I’m sure that it's the real Mary-Ann Sieghart; well, as sure as one can be in a virtual world. I followed links into her from people who it wouldn’t be worth impersonating. But I suppose it’s possible that it’s all but a conspiracy of lies and one guy in South Dakota with a very large computer has manufactured all the names and all the conversations on Facebook.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eWannabe friends?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve also been thinking that Facebook is - if you want to get on - a lot more democratic than joining the Groucho Club or the Carlton Club. Never mind being a lot more affordable. It looks as though we can all join in as one big happy family. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s not as though I don’t already interact with the notable. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI once espied Boris Johnson on his bike, and was going to say ‘hello’, but didn’t have the presence of mind (or nearby supply of throwable stuff) that made coming across some Tories campaigning on the back of a flat bed lorry such a fun experience for me, and for a few other passers-by, a long time ago. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI remember Sieghart herself once asking me, \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e'Is this the smoking carriage?'\u003c/span\u003e when she got on my train at Peterborough and then, as I had hoped, tutting and walking off to the next carriage after I falsely told her that it was. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI was busy and was worried I may be distracted by feeling the need to make some tart comments to her if she sat nearby, as I once felt obliged to direct abuse towards war apologist Christopher Hitchens as he smiled at me as we passed on Chowringhee Road, next to Kolkata’s Grand Hotel. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(I had a girlfriend who would either hold onto me very tightly and close her eyes, or preferably scarper, when she saw me notice the likes of David Owen or Rodney Bickerstaffe or Claire Short walking down the road towards us. She knew I was going to say something unpleasant to them. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhich was all rather hypocritical of her. Every time she saw someone wearing fur she would approach them and stridently complain. She did this wherever we were - including during a service in Southwark Cathedral - and she would either get back looks of puzzled apprehension from bewildered Russian women or else have some feisty woman scream at her ‘\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eIt’s fake fur, you stupid cow.’\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs a vegan, she’d also lecture me about my cruel diet - both before and after I found a Mars Bars hidden in her clothing for her to secretly eat later.)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWell, anyway, I suspect my brushes with some of the movers and shakers are somewhat more substantive than those of some who have become their 'friends' on Facebook. If only it were credible, I’d create a fake Gordon Brown on Facebook. If I did, I wonder how many oleaginous networkers would soon be in touch? Shall I see if David wants to become my friend? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBang bang \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen Jean Charles de Menezes was forced down on the floor of a tube train and coldly executed by a police killer who put several bullets into the Brazilian's head, I wrote a parody of what would happen with this case over the next two years. I based my guesses about the future course of events upon what happened in other recent police killings, such as their gunning down of Harry Stanley.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI don’t now recall all the details in my list but my predicted course of events included coroners instructing juries to return police acceptable verdicts; high court reviews collapsing into farce; disappearing CCTV footage; suspicious fires that destroy police notebooks and other evidence; cops silencing their critics with threats of legal action and Queens Police Medals for Gallantry all round. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eTo be fair, I’m not yet aware of any medals having been handed out.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNow, and as no surprise to anyone, the malicious lies told by the cops about how they killed de Menezes are all but forgotten with the announcement last week of the result of an Inquiry into police actions that was undertaken by the ludicrously named ‘Independent’ Police Complaints Committee. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe suspicious bulky jacket that the cops said he wore (he didn’t), his jumping over the ticket barrier that they said he did (he didn’t), the warnings that they gave him (they said nothing) have all been wiped from the record along with the rail union claim that the cops pulled a gun on the tube train driver and the tube station staff claim that CCTV footage was removed from the station by the cops - and then subsequently ‘lost’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ePaul Page\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOver at \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.epuk.org/News-snippets/643/gun-attack-cop-walks-free\"\u003eEditorial Photographers UK\u003c/a\u003e (EPUK) there’s yet more news about our bobbies with bullets. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePolice officer Paul Page was charged with possessing a pistol with intent to cause fear, dangerous driving, false imprisonment and possessing a prohibited weapon following an incident last year, but was cleared of all these charges after telling the court that he thought the person he pulled a gun on, was a hitman.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"The court was told that during a high-speed chase he rammed a photographer’s car with his own to get it to stop before forcing Sun freelance Scott Hornby out of his car at gunpoint. Page then put Hornby face down on the ground until a police armed response unit arrived on the scene.\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\"At the time Hornby had not been told why he had been sent to stake out Page’s house on November 21st last year, which was in connection with a Sun investigation into alleged failed property venture. Police colleagues of Page were believed to have lost £1.3m in the venture.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs EPUK comment \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Chasing a photographer, ramming his car repeatedly until he stops, forcing him out of the car at gunpoint...and walking free from court on all charges. What does a cop have to do to get convicted these days?\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe British state swims boldly along as a mainstream liberal democracy. There’s no reason to think that it’s set on branching off to less calmer waters anytime soon. But there are a few groups within, dragging their hands Cro-Magnum Man style, that dip more than a knuckle into the adjoining stream of fascism - the cops being prominent amongst them.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eNo photos\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd in further news from the world of photography, I see reported in the \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.bjp-online.com/public/showPage.html?page\u003d460641\"\u003eBritish Journal of Photography\u003c/a\u003e that the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) is trying to make sure that independent reporting, or at least that of the photographic kind, never gets to see the light in relation to the construction of the 2012 London Olympics site. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMagnum Photos have refused to tender for an ODA contract to photograph the site's construction. Magnum point out clauses that insist that the ODA be handed \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"all image rights ... and associated copyright\"\u003c/span\u003e; a 'gagging clause', that insists that bidders refrain from doing anything \"\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ewhich would have an adverse effect on or embarrass any games body or any official sponsor of the Games\"\u003c/span\u003e and another clause that would mean the ODA could \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"edit, alter, adapt, modify or deal with the work in any manner in which we see fit\"\u003c/span\u003e. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAn ODA spokesman added that it is confident that it will find a photographer happy to sign to its terms.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eThe screw turns further\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDespite \u003ca href\u003d\"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/07/free-speech-and-expensive-speech-their.html\"\u003ereporting\u003c/a\u003e recently on the British state’s vicious offensive against Islamists and free speech,  I let pass by the recent convictions of five more Islamists who were sent down for apparently no more than youthful bravado and dreaming because of my wish to cover other subjects. But I hadn’t then seen the details of that case that have now been reported on the World Socialist Web Site \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.wsws.org/articles/2007/jul2007/terr-j31.shtml\"\u003e(WSWS).\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAitzaz Zafar, Usman Malik and Awaab Iqbaal were each jailed for three years, Akbar Butt was jailed for 27 months and a school student, Mohammed Irfan Raja, was also convicted in the first example of a successful prosecution under the Terrorism Act 2000 for 'possessing material useful for terrorism'.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e17-year-old Raja said he was planning to go and fight in Afghanistan but as WSWS report \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"no serious evidence that this was anything more than an adolescent fantasy is reported.\"\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRaja was in contact with the other four, one of whom - Zafar - was asked why he had the video of a beheading? Zafar said that he had downloaded a zipped file containing more than 200 documents. \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I never read all of them and in court they cherry-picked one document\".\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWSWS are right when the report that these are \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"police state measures - the jailing of these youths merely for downloading material readily available on the Internet.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003eIn fact even some of the state’s apparatchiks appear to have slight twinges of doubt about the present jackboot course of the government. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Royal Institute of International Affairs, or ‘Chatham House’ as it is known, is a think-tank specialising in working out foreign policies for Britain’s murderous imperialist rulers. This place is also the originator of the phrase ‘under Chatham House rules’ - a protocol of slimy duplicity that  means ‘we’ll tell this interesting information to all you important people assembled here - but don’t tell anyone who told you.’\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDavid Livingstone is an associate fellow in international security at Chatham House. He appeared as a witness - for the defence. He told the BBC Today programme that there was no evidence that the five had planned to instigate a terrorist attack. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m sorry I passed by on reporting this case. But not as sorry as I feel for those British ‘revolutionary socialists’ who never report on the British state's war against supporters of the resistance in Iraq and Afghanistan - be they reds or Islamists - but instead fill their pages with page after page denouncing the reactionary views of Islamists. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eChristmas present problem solved \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe one you've been waiting for. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘Uppercuts - The Best of Southpawpunch’\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e (provisional title) will be published in November. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs well as the highlights from this column, my book will also feature exclusive original material.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMore details to follow.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-1580579348710027361?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/1580579348710027361/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d1580579348710027361\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"6 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/1580579348710027361"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/1580579348710027361"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/08/facebook-faux-pas-bang-bang-no-photos.html","title":"Facebook faux-pas /  Bang bang /  No photos /  The screw turns futher / Christmas present problem solved"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RrfVzc3SoHI/AAAAAAAAAJc/JI_p57JykS0/s72-c/facebook.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"6"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-7513087594205149064"},"published":{"$t":"2007-07-30T23:51:00.002+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-06-19T04:19:57.900+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"planning gain"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"council leader"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"fountain"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"supermarket"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Leading nowhere / Fountains of folly"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rq-6Yc3SoDI/AAAAAAAAAI8/KUbhiAdKsBg/s1600-h/Council+Chamber.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rq-6Yc3SoDI/AAAAAAAAAI8/KUbhiAdKsBg/s320/Council+Chamber.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5093494632807047218\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLeading nowhere\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs a kid travelling in the back of a Ford Cortina Estate on the way to visit my relatives, I’d watch the tame Cheshire pasture fall away as we crossed the A6 and headed into wilder terrain where the Peak District gave way to the more prominent peaks of the Pennines. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy aunts, uncles and my half cousins twice removed - one by under-age ‘marriage’, one by being sectioned under the Mental Health Act - would scrape a living doing things like running petrol stations equipped with pumps from the pre-war period or working with bobbins in mills undertaking tasks that are now just the preserve of re-enactors in National Trust Industrial Heritage Centres. I remember always feeling rather glad that I was adopted.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThese places where they lived, from near Hyde to near Glossop and then further north by Saddleworth Moor, are locations that do attract a few day-trippers from the big city. But that’s not because of the view, it’s because it’s as far as their Greater Manchester pensioner travelcards will get them without paying any extra. This area is bleak but boring. It’s at the edge of the mighty Manchester metropolis but without even a murmur of edginess.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eUs children would especially look forward to visiting our relatives there during Winter. It was guaranteed that we’d be able to sledge, although there was always the concern that we’d get snowed in again. It’s hard to predict who’d have been the survivors - us or the relatives - if we’d been snowed in for longer than a day or two as cannibalism would've been sure to have quickly broken out. The Moors Murderers and Dr. Harold Shipman both operated nearby. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd sometimes, when the conversation got just too bizarre with those who are now dead - or at least last seen in their coffins - I’d absent myself from their lounge and head down the hill from Charlesworth and the like to places like Mottram-in-Longdendale.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eVillage life\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve read that a new bronze plaque has just been installed by the council - Tameside MBC - in Mottram to serve inquisitive intruders ignorant enough to actually be seeking out local ‘tourist attractions’. It’s good to know that this plaque, which  is a map of the village showing all the local sites of interest, is pressed out as little images in the metal. That’ll help illiterate locals to either simply look at the pretty pictures or even just run their fingers over the burnished bronze if they're incapable of computing shapes. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can’t imagine that there can be much that could figure on this map. The highlight must be the former cottage of the artist Lowry. Other places reported as being listed include a former (supposedly historical) post office. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut there’s also another local feature that’s been pressed into the bronze undulations. It depicts a little lane and the house that is at No. 8. No, it’s not the site of yet some other terrible murder or even a house whose front room was where sheep were first crossbred with different species. This ‘tourist attraction’ is no less than the home of the Leader of the Council, Councillor Roy Oldham CBE. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou’d think that the councillor might have proved a little shy when the local paper asked for a comment about his entry on the bronze plaque. Maybe one of those ‘the councillor wasn’t available for comment’ responses. But you don’t get to rule a Metropolitan Borough continuously for 27 years - and earn an allowance of £50,000 a year (along with a good car) - through being coy.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe confusingly named Councillor Oldham (if he is that dedicated, you’d think that he’d change his name to something more appropriate - Councillor Ashton under Lyne maybe or, better still, Councillor Broadbottom) replied, \"\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eIt’s like when a carpenter works in a church and carves a little church mouse on the bottom for an emblem. I don’t see why anyone should make a problem but there are sad people in all walks of life.\u003c/span\u003e\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eLeading in the wrong direction\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003eI’ve met many council leaders, not a few of whom got to take their apolitical mediocrity all the way from chairing an Allotments Sub Committee to membership of parliamentary select committees. I’ve never had time for any of them.\u003cbr /\u003e     \u003cbr /\u003eI do however remember a period when you could tell the difference between leading councillors and leading council officers. For a start, they’d look different. Could Councillor Oldham then have been distinguishable from his council's chief executive through the former sporting a few stickers supporting some cause, or perhaps he may have worn a CND badge when he first took political control of that local authority in those early Thatcher years? I remember a London council leader who shaved her head, leaving just a star covering the top part of her skull that she then dyed red, before she attended an important council budget meeting. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe brief flowering of the Labour Left - of which she was part - was always anaemic and with short life prospects. The dye ran out and she grew her hair back quick. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eJust a few years later I was present when a scruffily attired Labour councillor stood up at full council meeting at mayor making time and argued for the process to be abandoned. He proposed some radical sounding alternative measures including installing a ‘peoples mayor’ and the distribution of the mayoral hospitality budget to better causes. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen that councillor had finished speaking, he discovered that no-one would second his motion. He looked round to see that all of his many fellow Labour councillors were either closely examining their hands for possible calluses or taking an interest in the design of the very plain council chamber ceiling above their heads.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnother council leader of my acquaintance started his working life flogging seafood on a stall. He was well known for both his stentorian fund raising efforts in the local market for miners on strike in 1984/5 and his always shambolic appearance. The guy had also amassed a large collection of labour movement badges over the years. He was well known to his fellow train-spotters or 'collectors of Labour and TU movement ephemera' - who were the sort of blokes who’d sell Tribune and wear a red shirt and red tie to go with their ginger beard if they were ever to speak at Labour Party conference - for the breadth and depth of his collection.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut that was long before. When I last saw him he was now a suited and expensively shod council leader. I passed him in the Town Hall corridor as I was leaving for a lunch hour visit to the nearby picket line of a large strike that had just broken out. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAlmost in jest, I asked him whether I could pass on the support of the council leader to the strikers. I did think I saw a short flash of the old spark on his face until the rigour set in and he shook head dismissively - either from the very notion of the idea or my impertinence in making such a request. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI walked a few paces down the corridor but he then called me back. \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Yes?\"\u003c/span\u003e I asked. \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Do you think you could see if you could get hold of any of their strike badges?\"\u003c/span\u003e he replied. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eFountains of folly\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s hot. So if I’m out locally and I want a drink, what’s on offer? In the Spar, Londis or similar owner-managed shops located within easy walking distance of where I live, the range on sale there is poor. Their soft drinks are usually simply sugar solutions with added flavourings or there is expensive tap water that was bottled on Huddersfield trading estates. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOur market economy clearly isn’t going to deliver cheap and good quality drinks for sale in local shops. So what measures could be used to protect kids’ teeth and stop us either being obliged to lug around bottles of water filled at home or pay through the nose for H2O. Or will retailers continue to coin cash from increasingly porky punters paying hand over fist for corporation pop? Why can’t drinking fountains be provided?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI remember seeing many working public drinking fountains in Italy. A measure that maybe helps contribute to the noticeable sveltness of Italians? I was told that the fascists installed them. Can we just have the drinking water but without a Duce?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOccasionally when a new park is built, or refurbished, a drinking fountain will be installed. But when you return six months later you find that it’s no longer functioning - petty vandalism has been allowed to wreck the facility and no attempt has been made to either undertake routine maintenance or repair any damage. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003ePlanning gain\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCouncils are sometimes partially paid for their awarding of planning permission by the developer of the land providing ‘planning gain’. Maybe a housebuilder will be allowed to build properties on parkland as long as they contribute a pittance to a new community centre. These fountains can also be ‘planning gain’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe benefits of planning gain are often no more than a line in a planning officers report or a quickly taken photo (before the facility is removed or falls apart) in the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) section of a company’s annual report.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(The CSR section in an annual report is the part that stretches across more pages than the details of the company’s biggest division but is reporting on just an exceedingly small fraction of the company’s annual expenditure.) \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve never worked out whether the poor and often temporary nature of much planning gain is because of local authority incompetence, their legal powerlessness or simple corruption.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen a new Safeways supermarket was built in Stratford in east London, a sizeable area at the front of the new store was devoted to a crèche. This facility lasted about a year. The store now uses that area to sell newspapers, magazines and confectionery.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf you look around some supermarkets that have been built in the last few years you may still see the words ‘Bus Stop’ painted on the road where the taxis pick up. But quite possibly the only sign you will see of a bus service will be the remnants of a broken timetable holder. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen these supermarkets opened the company provided a free bus service - to local hard to reach estates, or to the locality where they shut a predecessor store - as part of the planning gain for the new site. But six months later, or a year perhaps, these bus service were quietly dropped in much the same way the fountains fall into disuse. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eFree and clean\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it wasn’t always so. You can still become acquainted with the priorities of some of the Victorian industrialist philanthropists (and I suspect that these priorities haven’t changed in the values of their descendants) when you look at their funding of charities that ensured the availability of free drinking water in the streets. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou can still rarely see the remnants of the installations that performed this task. There are just a few left and nearly all are abandoned and derelict. They all seem to have the name of the charity lettered on their side in those distinctive fonts from a century or more ago and which you now only generally see on graves from that period. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eUnlike other Victorian and Edwardian structures, such as railway stations which are still in use and so hide their age well, these fountains are one of the last remnants of something that no longer exists. A relic from a different life not unlike those Edwardian style ‘pointing finger’ signs that have been recently removed from use at polling stations.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut these fountains weren’t built at the normal height. They are just troughs resting on the ground, no higher than a person's knee. All that Victorian era charity wasn’t spent to enable a passing street urchin or costermonger to refresh themselves. They were there to provide water to those with more value - the horses - in much the same way rich widows dying in Prestatyn still leave all their fortune to the RSPCA rather than to relieve any human suffering.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-7513087594205149064?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/7513087594205149064/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d7513087594205149064\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"2 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/7513087594205149064"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/7513087594205149064"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/07/z.html","title":"Leading nowhere / Fountains of folly"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rq-6Yc3SoDI/AAAAAAAAAI8/KUbhiAdKsBg/s72-c/Council+Chamber.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"2"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-8570507779326500598"},"published":{"$t":"2007-07-23T23:44:00.001+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-06-19T04:08:17.198+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Geras Norman"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Barot Dhiren"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"crime"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"SDP"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"drugs"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Eight criminals / Who said this? / Web names / Fade to Barot / Ex Lefts / For later use?"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RqU2W83SoCI/AAAAAAAAAI0/ps5TVCywzs0/s1600-h/Prison+cell.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RqU2W83SoCI/AAAAAAAAAI0/ps5TVCywzs0/s320/Prison+cell.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5090534721735270434\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eEight criminals\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eEight confessions. Eight criminals. No arrests.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eEight members of the Cabinet have recently admitted that they've taken cannabis in the past. They've put their hands up to having, in the main, so indulged when they were students. These miscreants include Jacqui Smith - as Home Secretary, she's in charge of the cops. No criminal action is going to ensue against any of them for this law breaking.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut there’s no statute of limitations in the UK. When the police find a mummified child’s body from the 50s, hidden in a loft, they launch a murder enquiry. When Ronnie Biggs returned after thirty-five years on the run he was put back inside to start serving the rest of his sentence. So why haven’t the cops arrested these MPs? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNot long ago, a young bloke in Manchester made a ‘shooting a gun’ sign with his hands behind the back of David Cameron. This guy then boasted about his actions on TV and also admitted to using cannabis. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSure enough, the Manchester filth went straight round to his flat and found a fiver’s worth of the drug. When he came to court for this offence even the magistrate was prompted to say \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"He has been kept in custody while robbers and dwelling house burglars are at large - for £5 worth of cannabis. If you make a silly gesture behind Mr Cameron’s back then you are remanded in custody.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn India, there’s a practice whereby Jasprit or Jitender Public is able to apply to a court to have someone, usually a public figure, charge-sheeted. Members of the public will use the system to maybe seek the prosecution of a film star for showing too much leg - contrary to obscenity laws - or perhaps try and get the Prime Minister arrested for acting contrary to treason laws by not nuking Pakistan.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI regret that there’s no such provision in Britain, otherwise maybe I’d be down the High Court trying to get a lot of the Cabinet put away. I mean ‘the law is the law’, isn’t it and it must be obeyed to the letter, as Inspector Javert said? I wonder what would happen if I go along to the local cop shop, march up to the front desk and tell that I want to report some crimes?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOr do some - from Cabinet Ministers to BAE Systems - receive ‘Get out of Jail Free’ cards to go with their job?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eWho said this?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“We favour competitive public enterprise, co-operative ventures and profit-sharing. There must be more decentralisation of decision-making in industry and government, together with an effective and practical system of democracy at work. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe quality of our public and community services must be improved and they must be made more responsive to people’s needs.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe you’d like to guess from where I copied the above?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRespect’s manifesto? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNo.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSome more from the text -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“Our economy needs a healthy public sector and a healthy private sector without frequent frontier changes.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe want to eliminate poverty and promote greater equality without stifling enterprise or imposing bureaucracy from the centre. We need the innovating strength of a competitive economy with a fair distribution of rewards.\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003eWe want to create an open, classless and more equal society, one which rejects ugly prejudices based upon sex, race or religion.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIs it an extract from John McDonnell’s manifesto for his bid to stand for the leadership of the Labour Party? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNo.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA bit more. This will also give a clue as to when it was formulated -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“We do not accept that mass unemployment is inevitable. We seek to reverse Britain's economic decline.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eTony Benn’s manifesto from when he stood for election as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party in 1981? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNo, not quite, but it’s from the same year.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe above passages are all taken from the ‘Limehouse Declaration’ - the founding statement of the SDP.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe SDP were the last significant split from a major British political party. Their founders, the rightwing ‘Gang of Four’, walked out of Labour. The Labour Left were pleased to see them go. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis new party flowered briefly, especially I think with those who agreed with the Tories but thought that they were too unstable a star onto which to hitch - the government was then very unpopular and could have only lasted one term. The SDP were swallowed, pretty much whole, by the Liberals a few years later.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI remember quite a few clapping me but the large majority of the audience booing, or even shouting abuse, as I used my then tender years to get myself called by Shirley Williams (one of the Gang of Four) - and then asking her an ambush question about private schools - at a SDP lovefest that they organised in their early days at Bramhall High School, Stockport. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSchool assemblies, at my previous public school in Croydon, had sometimes featured raging polemics by the Headmaster against ‘Socialist Shirley’ and the reforms that she had half promoted as Education Secretary. But now, just a few years later, Williams was being taken into the bosom of bourgeois Bramhall, as the sensible face of social democracy and the State. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe the Labour Left got the SDP wrong. If only they’d hitched their wagon to them they wouldn’t now be in a party that is, in some respects, more rightwing than that Tory government. Thatcher didn’t introduce ID cards. Thatcher allowed councils to  tender only a small selection of their services.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eWeb Names\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eJust like in the commercial world, there was also an Internet address name grab for Left names in the early days of the web.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.marxism.com\"\u003ewww.marxism.com\u003c/a\u003e is in the hands of a capitalist speculator. I doubt he'll even recover the cost of his registration fee.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.communist.org \"\u003ewww.communist.org \u003c/a\u003eis likewise. For sale at $1500. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.communist.org \"\u003ewww.marxists.org\u003c/a\u003e is the very fine 'Marxists Internet Archive'.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.socialism.com\"\u003ewww.socialism.com\u003c/a\u003e belongs to the (US) Freedom Socialist Party.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://socialism.org\"\u003ehttp://socialism.org\u003c/a\u003e tells us that project/socialism will be re-opening soon. Which is good news.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut what about that which we need to get from here to there. Who has the blueprint for the UK? Have a look at the following - it’s worth a click.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.revolution.org.uk/\"\u003ehttp://www.revolution.org.uk/\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eFade to Barot\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDhiren Barot is currently doing a 30 year stretch. He was convicted in London for planning to bomb and use radioactive and other weapons in the UK and USA as part of an Islamist campaign - or \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.stefzucconi.blogspot.com/2006/11/eeeek-has-anyone-seen-my-camel.html \"\u003enot\u003c/a\u003e. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHis original 40 year sentence was reduced as it was reported that this would be appropriate for a terrorist who planned murder by a \"viable\" means and that Barot's plot did not amount to an actual attempt and it was uncertain whether it would have succeeded and what the consequences might have been. He’s likely to spend most of the rest of his life in the prison netherworld.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHe's just spent five days in Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary after being badly assaulted in prison. But we didn’t get to hear about this until after he was retuned to his cell. The media was instructed? advised? agreed? not to mention the story. So, of course, they didn’t. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn these circumstances maybe the press could get a ‘News Content Approved by the Cops’ logo that they could put on their front page in much the same way a select few shops are awarded a coveted ‘By Appointment to Her Majesty’ label. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd if any of the media didn’t know about the attack on Barot, they surely would've   done once the hobnailed boots of the cops arrived on their doormat to tell them to keep schtum.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA police spokeswoman said the news blackout was aimed at protecting the safety of patients, hospital staff, prison staff and members of the public. In fact the suppression of this news was for their own operational convenience. Who attacked Barot - prisoners, prison officers? What were his injuries? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe current capacity of Islamists in the UK seems to be at the level of starting a car fire at an airport. I suppose, in theory, if they knew were Barot was, they could try and free him. But if you used that as a reason to cover up the news, then why mention the trial - after all, the IRA did free prisoners on trial and they also bombed the Old Bailey.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePerhaps they won’t mention these trials at all in future - for ‘security reasons’. Perhaps they already don’t.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eEx Lefts\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI was rather surprised to be informed that Norman Geras was once a member of the ‘United Secretariat of the Fourth International’, or the ‘Fourth International’ as they now wrongly call themselves - as if Castro admirer Besancenot is a present day Bolshevik and Respect is the road to revolution in Britain.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eGeras, the originator of the Euston Manifesto, laughably claims on his \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.normblog.typepad.com/normblog/2007/07/why-i-am-not-a-.html.\"\u003eblog\u003c/a\u003e that he’s a Marxist. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s hard ploughing his academic over-writing but the whole rationale of his blog is how craven you can become to ruling ideologies whilst still pretending to hold a candle for radicalism. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m still wondering whether it can be true that he was a Trot. The USFI have a lot better record than, for example, the AWL, in not providing so many people to the ranks of political capitalism.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOf course size is a factor in the number of renegades produced by an organisation although I’m not aware of many former members of Militant who've made that jump. I wonder which UK Left organisation has provided the most personnel, on a proportional basis, to capitalist politics?   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSomeone did tell me that he saw a New Labour MP who he was sure was an ex-Millie. He said they were smoothing out all the usual Blairite platitudes but in that very distinctive style of the former Grantites. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDerek Hatton, back in the Labour Party, was said, in a mad sounding recent intervention (if reported accurately) to have been seeking selection as by-election candidate, early in 2007, so as to stand for the deputy leadership of the Labour Party. But he was at least reported to have wanted to stand as the most Left candidate in that election. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut who did he think would both select and nominate him? I remember listening to someone, who later became a Labour MP, exclaiming, \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘Let’s hope they fix the trial so that that Trot fucker goes down this time’\u003c/span\u003e when it was announced that Hatton was to prosecuted for a second time as part of the ruling class’s revenge on him for the half-cocked defiance of them by Liverpool City Council’s ruling group.    \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eFor later use?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI remember reading that the CPGB (no, the real one - and it’s annoying to have to explain that every time you mention them) were punctilious about immediately recording the details of all new members at their headquarters. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis would stop anyone, like Graham Greene, denying years later that they’d ever signed up to push for the dictatorship of the proletariat. They’d instead have to dismiss their temporary Communist party membership as an Oxford jolly jape, on par with debagging an uppity townie.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it’s now come to pass that a history of activism in Trotskyism, or other far Leftism, is no bar to achieving the highest levels of political office in the West - such as being a French Prime Minister, a British cabinet member or a German Foreign Minister. There’s really no greater measure of how paltry is our power than it now matters not that the ‘Right Honourable’ was once a ‘revolutionary hardliner’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think we should improve upon the practice of the CPGB and also hold a hostage to fortune that could thwart the later rightwing careers of those who are but passing through our ranks.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think some embarrassing photos and film of them engaging in illegal behaviour should be taken of all new members of Left organisations. It’d be made clear to comrades, that if they do later turn right, this footage will be released to the media. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’d obviously need to be something that’d make them unelectable, or will mean they’re ineligible to be on the Board, but it can’t be anything that breaches communist morality.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou may want to pass by on the next few paragraphs if you’re of a sensitive disposition. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNow we could film new members throwing a brick through a cop car window or skedaddling out of Sainsbury’s without paying for several bottles of Scotch but such footage could backfire - the public standing of these miscreants could rise when they are known to have carried out these activities. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy interest in animal rights is near zero. There’ll be steak for tea every night in a communist Britain.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m sorry if this seems a bit unseemly but I think recording comrades engaging in an act of bestiality would best serve our purposes. Once Jane and Jasprit Public have seen a video of someone masturbating a pony they’re not going to elect that person to be their Member of Parliament. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m sorry for that comment readers, but needs must. I’m also sure it would only be a few dilettantes amongst putative pinkos who would demur from providing the party with such pictures.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-8570507779326500598?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/8570507779326500598/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d8570507779326500598\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"11 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/8570507779326500598"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/8570507779326500598"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/07/eight-criminals-who-said-this-web-names.html","title":"Eight criminals / Who said this? / Web names / Fade to Barot / Ex Lefts / For later use?"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RqU2W83SoCI/AAAAAAAAAI0/ps5TVCywzs0/s72-c/Prison+cell.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"11"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-7194414353771160169"},"published":{"$t":"2007-07-09T23:46:00.001+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-06-19T04:19:20.130+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"terrorism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"free speech"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Islamists"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Free Speech and expensive speech / Their laws and ours /  Site survey and Prize Draw"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp1.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RpK_g4bSr5I/AAAAAAAAAIc/uQ3-g7Kz-eU/s1600-h/free+speech.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp1.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RpK_g4bSr5I/AAAAAAAAAIc/uQ3-g7Kz-eU/s320/free+speech.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5085337500878286738\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eFree Speech and  expensive speech\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFour Islamists have been convicted for saying what they think about Britain’s current imperialist wars - and for choosing the rebel side. They committed their 'crimes' when attending an Islamist protest in London against the Danish publication of the Mohammed cartoons.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMizanur Rahman, on the microphone at the rally, was found guilty of inciting both murder and racial hatred. He was reporting as saying \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"We want to see them coming home in body bags. We want to see their blood running in the streets of Baghdad...We want to see the Mujahideen shoot down their planes the way we shoot down birds. We want to see their tanks burn in the way we burn their flags.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRahman adopted a novel sounding defence at his trial. He said he was just repeating the chants that he could hear around him but also stated that he didn't think anyone would take him seriously. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can see how the State considers him guilty of incitement to 'murder'. But how he incited ‘racial hatred’ - through calling for the death of those, possibly fellow Muslims or Asians, who insult Islam - is something that you clearly need to be a highly intelligent barrister or judge to understand. Unless, of course, it was the other issue he addressed and it’s ‘racist’ to kill enemy soldiers.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHis three co-defendants were convicted a few months ago. All four will be sentenced later. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eUmran Javed, shouted: \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Bomb, bomb Denmark. Bomb, bomb USA.\"\u003c/span\u003e He was found guilty of soliciting murder and stirring up racial hatred. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAbdul Saleem was convicted of stirring up racial hatred. He chanted \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"7/7 on its way\" and \"Europe, you will pay with your blood\". \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAbdul Muhid, was found guilty of two charges of soliciting murder. He said \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Bomb, bomb the UK\"\u003c/span\u003e and had a placard saying \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Annihilate those who insult Islam\". \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eWhen you can incite murder \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAny day of the week you can read a British newspaper, or hear a British politician, espousing a mirror image of what caused these men to be convicted. You can say what you like about Iraqi or Afghani ‘terrorists’ without any fear of having your collar felt for ‘inciting murder’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe way that you call for the ‘terrorists’ to be killed is likely to be determined only by the medium in which you transmit your message. Maybe ‘Better equipped British troops could bring hope’ in ‘The Times’ or ‘Give our boys the tools to terminate the Taliban' in 'The Sun'.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThese four Islamists are clearly small-minded bigots with their unpleasant religious frenzy. But they’re also political prisoners who were convicted for taking an anti-imperialist line on the wars. They’ve been locked up because they stand opposed to the murderous frenzy of ‘their’ country. They should be freed, although I’m sure you’d wait forever for Amnesty International to take up their cases. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn a fully totalitarian society, I suppose that everyone would be obliged to express public support for whatever murderous military adventure their rulers were currently undertaking. Such a regime would need to be very well organised to ensure this - so it’s a lot more probable that whilst every opportunity would be given for you to express your gung-ho patriotism, you wouldn't often have to take part. But if you ever argued for the other side, a fascist or similar regime would doubtless deal with you in a terminal manner. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eWhite Rose\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe White Rose movement was a brave group of students in wartime Germany who distributed leaflets attacking the Nazis. They weren’t the pacifists that is popularly supposed - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Support the resistance movement!…it must be the sole and first duty, the holiest duty of every German to destroy these beasts…The dead of Stalingrad implore us to take action. Up, up, my people, let smoke and flame be our sign!”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe leaders were caught. Four days later they were sentenced to death and immediately beheaded. Britain is a long way from being such a totalitarian country. People aren’t executed for supporting the other side - they’re just locked up for a few years instead.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eProvocations\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs an aside, there’s also a lesson in the above. There’s an organisation called \u003ca href\u003d\"http://vigilexposed.blogspot.com/2006/11/vigil-exposed_23.html\"\u003e‘Vigil.’\u003c/a\u003e who are an unpleasant group of state touts who get a lot of media coverage through  setting up agent provocateur websites with which to entrap Islamists into making illegal remarks and for their other 'amateur spy’ work. They boast about their supposed links with hardened reactionaries, from the FBI to the Saudi government. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s clear that it doesn’t take much for someone to break British censorship laws. Over in Left blogland there are several people who expend a lot of effort trying to provoke people into saying something illegal.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt can be tempting to argue the full detail of what you think. You don’t wish to not be forthright and indeed there are occasions when it's necessary to hold nothing back. But save such events, I do urge comrades to consider that it may well be Vigil or some other similar group trying to provoke you. I see no reason to walk into any trap that they may have set.    \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eTheir laws, not ours\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s been reported to me that a Labour Party branch - a unit that’ll include quite a few prominent councillors - has recently started holding its monthly meetings at a local restaurant and all those attending are fed for free. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe restaurateur, a well-known local entrepreneur with his fingers in many a pie, has a history of having some of his controversial planning applications turned down by the council.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLooking to undertake a bit of reporting for this column, I’ve been trying to investigate further. I thought maybe I could find out the right day and go along and order a Lamb Bhuna whilst hoping to do a bit of earwigging. But I might be recognised by a few of the Labourites with whom I’ve previously crossed swords. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’d also need to break my rule of never eating in an Indian restaurant where the food is made for whites in the same way that I’d never set foot in a Chinatown restaurant unless at least 75% of the clients are Oriental.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(I did have a rule about never entering a Pie’n’Mash shop unless I saw both Chas’n’Dave and Mike Read inside slurping down jellied eels. If I’d kept to that promise, I’d never have had to enjoy having green ‘liquor’ sprayed over lumpy mashed potato alongside the smallest ‘meat’ pie I’ve ever eaten.)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI suppose I could just give all that I know to the local paper - but why should I support that rubbishy rag? And besides, I’m sure there’s nothing illegal in giving away free meals to whomever you chose. I’ve no evidence to suggest that this guy isn’t just doing this out of the goodness of his heart - a course of conduct that I’m sure capitalists, big and small, constantly undertake.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo I decided to approach the restaurant owner to ask him some questions. After failing to get the guy on the phone three times, I emailed him. There was no reply, so I tried emailing again.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eHarassment and hidebound laws\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe response from the restaurant owner was interesting. He threatened to report me to the police for breaching the 'Protection from Harassment Act 1997'. He (correctly) pointed out that that this law says it’s illegal ‘on at least two occasions (to subject a person) to behaviour causing harassment, alarm or distress outside existing civil and criminal law’. I’m sure being asked a difficult question does cause ‘alarm’ or ‘distress’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis law was introduced to combat stalkers and sees thousands convicted each year for behaviour that ranges from the sinister and dangerous to doubtless sad attempts to stay in touch by the lovelorn. It only takes two forms of contact, after someone has told you to desist, to break this law and be subject to up to six months inside. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo I suppose my friend, for making six drunken and pleading phone calls to his g/f after she had dumped him (yet again), and each time having put the phone down on him, is now a ‘stalker’, or at least was until they got back together again the following night.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn fact, like all laws it's a class law that will be interpreted and implemented in ways that suit our rulers. I can’t see those ‘harassing’ me - though repeated junk phone calls, or cops wasting my time - are ever going to be done under such legislation. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eInstead laws like this will often be used in such a way as to protect the interests of the powerful. Adrian Arbib, a freelance photographer, received a High Court injunction under the Protection from Harassment Act. Two solicitors and four black clad security guards, all working for Npower, served this injunction on Arib to stop  his press photography work that was covering the energy company’s controversial activities at an Oxfordshire beauty spot.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLaws will also sometimes fail to protect those who aren’t powerful. Despite being convicted of offences under this Act, Michael Pech shot dead Clare Bernal - the victim of his harassment - whilst awaiting sentence.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eProtesting and complaining\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWorking at public meetings or on statutory consultations, I’ve seen quite a difference in the ways that different classes of people can act when something’s been done that they don’t like. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAt meetings on council estates, or in other poor areas, you can get threats made directly towards you at (or after) a meeting. ‘You just try and get this Channel Tunnel Link through here and you’ll be sorry. I’m not threatening anything but it’s just a warning, let's calls it that mate, you understand.’\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe person making such threats knows his options are limited and sees his only hope as a bit of 'direct action' although only has the bottle to indulge in a bit of ridiculous bluster.\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003eThe middle classes, however, will often express their disagreement by means of a lot of pompous sounding legalese in reply to the most minor 'encroachments' on their ‘rights’. So I've seen them claim that proposals, such as to build sheltered housing for people with learning disabilities nearby, are against the ‘European Convention on Human Rights’ as it apparently disrupts ‘their right to family life’, or have heard them shout that 'they have been advised by their friend', a QC, that such housing is in direct breach of the Magna Carta.' \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf they are upper middle class or wealthy (or are representing some organisations) they may actually be able to afford a lawyer to take up their complaints.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe more sophisticated type of complainer will also sometimes try and disguise their naked intolerance with a manufactured concern for those who would benefit from the proposals they’re opposing. ‘I want the very best for asylum seekers. This country rightly has a proud history of providing refuge for those unfortunate enough not to British. But they wouldn’t be happy here in our very traditional village. We’d be quite unable to cater for their cosmopolitan tastes in food and women.’ \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(It really is the Guardian types that we need to shoot first. Damn - is that ‘incitement to murder’?)  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLaws and legalese\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLaws like the Protection from Harassment Act also appear to have sometimes become a refuge for those who should maybe just get on with their lives and rise about petty unpleasantness. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRachel North is a well-known blogger. She was on one of the tube trains that was blown up on the 7 July 2007 and has became known for her writing about that incident and the call for a Public Inquiry. She’s also revealed in her blog that she's been raped.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eShe suffered a year long campaign of unpleasant emails, blog posts and phone calls  to her by Felicity Jane Lowde. The emails, etc. to North were undoubtedly nasty - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘I fully believe you are capable of lying about being raped.’\u003c/span\u003e But neither woman covers herself in glory. Both reported the other to the cops - North’s replies to Lowde are full of ‘my partner is a lawyer, I’m very important and I warn you that you are breaching this and that legislation.’ \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLowde also asked difficult, if not unpleasant, questions of her nemesis \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘Why did you not stay to help the dying (on the tube train)’.\u003c/span\u003e There’s doubtless a thousand good answers to that question - because there was nothing I could do, I was scared, I was injured and reckoned I needed to get help for myself - as well as more difficult responses.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMadeleine McCann’s parents were recently asked a question by a journalist at a German news conference that implied they might be responsible for ‘disappearing’ their daughter. The following day’s Daily Mirror attacked that journalist for daring to ask such an ‘impertinent’ question as though a newspaper is completely unfamiliar with any obligation to breach difficult subjects. This possibly is beyond the Mirror’s idea of news investigation but no question should ever be off limits, no matter how baseless and so needlessly offensive it may be, as this query doubtless was. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNorth comes across as rather precious on her site. She makes the ludicrous claim that it’s illegal to quote from her blog without her permission and that, as a rape victim, it’s also against the law to report her personal details despite her waiving her anonymity in revealing the attack.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eShe describes her contact with Lowde as \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“psychological war, and in some ways it was worse than the rape and the bomb.”\u003c/span\u003e Amongst the comments that she says made her feel harassed was Lowde’s claim that she is \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“making a living on the backs of the dead”\u003c/span\u003e. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNorth says this in her new persona as a writer, and that after she claimed a few weeks ago that she wanted to put the Lowde matter completely behind her. She now has her first book out - about the bomb - an extract of which (including her relating the  Lowde incidents) was published as a double page spread in Saturday's Daily Mail.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLowde, meanwhile, is serving a six month sentence because of her actions and North's complaint.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eRape and rapists\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSome laws just don't deliver. The conviction rate for rapists is shocking. Just 5.6% of those making a rape allegation to the police see a conviction result. Sure, a few allegations will be malicious, but that leaves many women suffering rape without any comeback.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhilst communists don’t think locking people up is an answer to crime - we need to address why crimes happen and why violence against women is so prevalent - I certainly think rapists should be imprisoned for lack of any present day alternative.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo the government wants to make it easier to convict accused rapists - such as restricting the way that an alleged victim can be cross examined. Surely communists will support such moves? 'I mean, you're not in favour of rape, are you?' I could hear them asking. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe answer is no. Take the case of \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.legalbanter.co.uk/uk-legal-moderated-legal-topics/27281-digging-up-past-truth.html\"\u003eClifford Francombe\u003c/a\u003e. He was jailed in 2006 for 8 years for a rape committed 21 years previously. From all that I've read about this case there was no forensic evidence - the woman says he did, he says he didn’t - and I can find no mention of any circumstantial evidence. Any case that is just someone’s word against someone else’s, for whatever crime, should never come to court. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eWhose laws?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLaws aren’t neutral. They're there to be used to maintain the domination of the ruling class. Even progressive laws, such as those for the protection of women from violence, can be worthwhile reforms but unless they're implemented by a socialist regime, they can also be misused to protect the powerful or to indiscriminately oppress the innocent or the insignificant. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou should be careful what laws you wish for. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eSite survey and Prize Draw\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWant to make this site better? Why not fill in a \u003ca href\u003d\"http://southpawpunch.googlepages.com/surveyandprizedraw\"\u003esurvey\u003c/a\u003e so you can tell me what you think is good and bad. It’ll take you five minutes. And you'll be entered into a Prize Draw for a £20 (or local currency equivalent) Amazon voucher that'll be drawn at the end of the year. Thanks.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-7194414353771160169?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/7194414353771160169/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d7194414353771160169\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"10 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/7194414353771160169"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/7194414353771160169"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/07/free-speech-and-expensive-speech-their.html","title":"Free Speech and expensive speech / Their laws and ours /  Site survey and Prize Draw"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp1.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RpK_g4bSr5I/AAAAAAAAAIc/uQ3-g7Kz-eU/s72-c/free+speech.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"10"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-450100025617220447"},"published":{"$t":"2007-07-02T23:33:00.001+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-06-19T04:18:34.054+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Brown Gordon"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Royalty"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Islamists"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Brown and Blue / Bang Bang - or not / Royal inbreeding / Bloggers gone bad"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp3.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RomCfobSr4I/AAAAAAAAAIU/40_dBChkA8E/s1600-h/gordon+brown.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp3.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RomCfobSr4I/AAAAAAAAAIU/40_dBChkA8E/s320/gordon+brown.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082737134403760002\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBrown and Blue\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe ‘Line to Take’ (LTT) was ‘Brown, our new Prime Minister - he’s dispensed with the spin’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s hard to say whether that LTT was decided by the Prime Minister’s office, in the upper echelons of the BBC or in the boardrooms of the media barons. It doesn’t matter who promoted that tack, they all went along.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut then last week there was an interesting peek through the curtain at the real Gordon Brown. The BBC news programme, Panorama, released some footage of our new Prime Minister that had been taken shortly after Labour came to power in 1997. The euphoria, or more likely the then amateurishness of Labour’s administration, had seen them allow the filming of some unguarded moments.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat hapless buffoon of a press officer, Charlie Whelan, was recorded nervously on the phone leaking the news to the BBC that his boss Brown was about to remove the  Bank of England from its role as regulator of banking insurance and pensions.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I shouldn't really have told you this. They'll go mental if they've found out that I've told you.\" whined Whelan on the phone. \"You won’t say it was me, will you\" warbled that right Charlie - and all in front of a camera.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s a myth that New Labour were the master of the rebuttal and the soundbite - and that this helped get them elected. Knowing not a few of the nomarks who actually did these jobs, I can state that many were jobbing jokers who were simply in the right place at an opportune moment. Not that this stopped many of them then selling themselves to the gullible as ‘insider people’ that you needed to write your newspaper column or work for your Public Affairs agency. Any boss with wits would have walked a press officer like Whelan out the door.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThen there was Brown himself, caught on camera at the same time, paying very little interest to financial issues but instead engrossed in a discussion about how to ensure that tomorrow’s news was dominated by his point of view - and not that of the Bank of England complaining about its reduced role. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd then later in the programme you saw the Chancellor being quizzed by MPs who were annoyed that this news had been leaked without them being told first. ‘Did you leak this news - yes or no?’ A slimy politician to his socks and shoes, Brown replied in a smart aleck reply - ‘I understand there is no proof that the news was leaked.’ \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAll said with him knowing it was all recorded on film. But that was footage that the Treasury later tried to stop the BBC from using and this was only after the government had also managed to squash it for a decade.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eBrown - all front\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBrown goes though the motions. There’s an image to maintain - the serious and solemn Scotsman quietly committed to socialism and a place in the sun for all. He’s beyond fripperies - like influencing news coverage - they'd have you think.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e‘I don’t like to talk about my religious beliefs’, he sternly intoned which his team just happened to make sure was filmed with a backdrop of the kirk where his father was a priest.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHis cabinet says it all. The preponderance of Oxbridge ogres. The nascent nepotism with two brothers as well as a husband and wife  - or are some families just naturally blessed with more intellect than others in our egalitarian world? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOr the sheer right wing politics of them all. Really, it makes precious little difference if the PM is Blair, Cameron or Brown. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd the appointments of new ‘talent’ to the ministerial benches. One is the appropriately named Shriti Vadera. She's got a just fabulous track record -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- involvement in flogging off the state’s Defence and Evaluation and Research Agency, now QinetiQ, for but a small fraction of its value.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e- being a prime mover in the forced privatisation of a large part of the London tube network - a process that has seen its programme of work slip years behind timetable and that's likely to see either the company responsible going bust (with farepayers picking up the engorged tab) or a lot more farepayers money being given to those parasites to keep them in the pink.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eVadera is now the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department for International Development. Perhaps she can arrange the sale of the whole of an African country to one of the merchant banks?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s unclear whether she is in the Labour Party. But then, what’s £30 (?) if you want to get on? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHowever someone with just a smidgen of principle is another new minister, the also unelected Sir Digby Jones. His previous work included heading the bosses’ organisation, the CBI. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eJones has insisted he won’t be joining the Labour Party - so I suppose that makes it a coalition government without coalition parties. It’ll be interesting - well maybe just a little - to see at what point all the ExTrots and other Lefts in this Uniparty realise that their organisation is consistently to the right of the Liberal Democrats. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe they never will.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBang Bang - or not\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAlready the failed car bomb attacks in London and Glasgow have led to many an excited editorial and ministerial musing calling for eternal vigilance as well as a ramping up of the war on terror. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eInternment may well be extended to ninety days. Asians heading to Heathrow are  finding themselves forced from their car on approach roads and subjected to a once-over by grim faced, machine-gun toting paramilitary pigs.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it’s clear that in the six years since 9/11 the threat from Islamists undertaking operations in the West is a lot less deadly than that from influenza or ingrowing toenails. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Islamist 'spectaculars' in the West since 2001 were Madrid in 2005 (191 dead) and London in 2004 (52 dead). There have been claims of some foiled attacks, such as those supposed to have plotted by Dhiren Barot, but most of these superhyped arrests have either involved people who seemed to have been dreamers who were simply  fantasising about doing something, or were incidents that ended with the accused being quietly released for lack of any substance to the allegations about them. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eConsider the level of sophistication the IRA had developed over a similar time frame.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve little time for conspiracy theories - ‘it was all done by the state to pass legislation X, etc.’ The state can do this with very little opposition anyway. The mad conspiracy theories about 9/11 are just a diversion.   \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHaving said that, the ineptitude on display was interesting. I don’t know whether the car bombs contained detonators but it was common for the British forces to interfere with the materiel of the IRA so that bombs didn’t go off and I suppose it’s possible that the same may have happened here. Why did the bombers not attempt something in the hours between them abandoning their cars and the discovery of the vehicles - why wait to detonate? Perhaps they tried but were unable to make them work.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think incompetence is a more likely explanation. Parking your car bomb illegally, so that it ends up being towed away, sounds like the mark of the disorganised.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut none of the above means that the State won’t make full use of these opportunities to push forward what it wants to achieve. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e‘How can you be opposed to new 'security' measures,' they'll ask, ‘are you are in favour of the murder of innocent civilians?'  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt may only be developing technology that'll prevent the spreading of current widespread, but lowish-tech solutions, that could assist them in better monitoring and controlling the population. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’d be interested to see how my PR ‘colleagues’ would react to a brief calling for ideas for a campaign to raise the level of public acceptance of any such new methods of control.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e‘Celebs have gone for pinks as well as for highlighted yellows and blues on their forehead barcodes as seen outside Café de Clubb last night as many of them turned out for the launch of the new range - Monitor by Moss.'\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e'An exclusive line of insertable barcode strips are also available that react to your moods (as measured by the precipitation rate at your hairline) by changing colour.'\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“Fashion has always led” \u003c/span\u003esaid Sophia de Soichamps \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“and it’s only right we now show how you can have security with style.” \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOr, for the masses, how about \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e‘Combine your forehead barcode with a branded Tesco Clubcard and receive an extra 15% off acne treatments and moisturising creams.’\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eRoyal inbreeding\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e‘Just 62p a year they cost us’, doubtless said the news release attached when the annual accounts of the Windsor family were distributed last week. So ‘just 62p a year they cost us’ faithfully reported the craven British media.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eTo be fair, the press is at least evolving slightly from their time-honoured reporting of this item. It always used to be ‘they cost us no more than the price of a cup of tea.’ Personally I’d settle for just a 1p a year from each Brit and would wallow in the £600,000 annual salary that this would entail.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI recall when the first Rich Lists were produced. I thought it very considerate of the media to draw up these execution tables, although the big flaw remains that while you may be able to value shares held in traded companies, there’s no way of knowing what has been squirreled away in banks, never mind hidden from the taxman.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Queen and the Duke of Westminster were always named as the two richest Brits in these early lists. But the Queen has fallen right down the rankings and is now probably somewhere between Jamie Olivier and Sharon Osbourne.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo what happened? Has Her Maj been giving away her millions? No, as part of the fix there's been a large rewriting of what Elizabeth Windsor owns and what's only hers ‘on behalf of the nation.’  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo we own Buckingham Palace, apparently. I wonder how much rent we charge her? And I realise that it must be quite a burden for her to care for all those priceless works of art on our behalf. I’d be happy to help out and hang a Holbein or a Hogarth in my hallway.    \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m hoping that when she is done with grasping from us (which may be decades yet - as her mother showed, a lifetime without work lasts a long time) the prospect of the Tampon Twitterer himself, King Charles III, ascending to the throne will be a tad too much for the residents of both Tunbridge Wells and Tottenham. Although they will proclaim him king before Liz is cold, the coronation would take a while - enough for us to push for their removal.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut then maybe the world is more monarchist than we think. The Royal family of the French Socialist Party has split apart and will fight each over for the crown. The wife of a former king may well succeed the House of Bush in the United States. North Korean socialism goes on through the house of Kim. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBloggers gone bad \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s yet another ‘Southpawpunch’ site. Well sort of. I see it as a homage. Its authors will see it differently. \u003ca href\u003d\"http://southpawpunchisafuckingwanker.blogspot.com/\"\u003e‘Southpawpunch is a fucking wanker’\u003c/a\u003e is this sad - rather than satirical - blog. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s usual in satire to make fun of the point that your target is making. Perhaps use the same methodology as they do in a different case to show how ludicrous something they say may be, or point up some unintended consequences of their views. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut just making stuff up is a lot different. It’s a lesson from the Stalin school of falsification. It’s simply smearing or in plain language - lying.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo this blog posts on my supposed support for the Red Army Faction (aka the Baader-Meinhof Group or the Rote Armee Fraktion). That’s complete bollocks, as well they know from looking at the comments on that organisation that I recently reposted at \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.southpawpunchcomments.blogspot.com\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch Comments\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd it’s just malicious to put links on their blog to suggest that I have any interest or agreement with reactionary stuff such as the philosophy of the North Korean monarchy.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut then the method of these besmirchers is that of hypocrisy. They make a lot of my frank comments on the unfortunate necessity of violence. That's the view of communists but also happens to be the view of capitalist politicians as well - Brown and Bush are clear that they also support force.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd in fact it’s also the view of these jerks. They may seek to ridicule and exaggerate what I write about violence, and mock my support for the relatively ineffective efforts of those fighting imperialism in Iraq and Afghanistan, but those behind that blog - \u003ca href\u003d\"http://blog.hakmao.com/\"\u003eHak Mao\u003c/a\u003e and \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.gentheoryrubbish.com/\"\u003eWill\u003c/a\u003e - are both signatories to the 'Euston Manifesto'!\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat’s big-time hypocrisy. They support this manifesto - full of ‘intellectual’ ‘Left’ excuses for the imperialist warmongers - whilst criticising those who call them out. But they also hide their support for this imperialist violence or ‘B52s good, AK47s bad’ as they would proclaim, if they'd any guts. I’ve wasted enough words on these wastrels. Contempt is too thin a word for them. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere is, however, one redeeming feature on their blog - a single sublime article, (reproduced below). There's also a fine picture with this - a cat with a rifle - that you can see on the lower righthand side of my site.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eMy cat and the so called 'left'\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“Even my cat Cheka is more revolutionary than the so called left that inhabit the blogs and attack me. They are rightly the subject of my disdain, beyond dead for all revolutionary purposes, incapable of acting politically. They are but apolitical detritus.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat’d be ace. ‘Officer, it wasn’t me, it was the cat. She even hid the bullets in her litter tray.’ I’d like a cat like that.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNew in \u003ca href\u003d\"http://southpawpunchcomments.blogspot.com/\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch Comments\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e - click through for more.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“there is both that level of (off-key) intellectualism of an overeducated lumpen” \u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“Imagine if a paper’s gossip column just published every titbit that each PR person whispered to them… So to allow such rubbish on your site is just crap journalism that allows you to be used to spread lies and will turn your blog into a joke.\" \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“I was at a party last night at which there were several LP types who, like social inadequates, put on the News at 10 and either fluttered approvingly or turned up their noses and twittered disdain when news of each member of the cabinet was announced. One bloke did a sort of mini pirouette to release tension as he learnt his hero had not been selected.” \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“in other words she acted in exactly the same undemocratic way that they did. Maybe we all have a little Stalin inside us.” \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“Irish peasants, during what is wrongly called the Irish Famine and what was a deep as a Depression as can be, didn't turn Left and combine to force the end to the exporting food but instead were atomised into just trying to keep their own family alive.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“probably best of all, the defeat of the strongest imperial power in Vietnam. These showed the ongoing benefits, despite their non- socialist nature, of the deformed and degenerated workers states. You all stick with your comfortable bourgeois democracies.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-450100025617220447?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/450100025617220447/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d450100025617220447\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"4 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/450100025617220447"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/450100025617220447"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/07/brown-and-blue-bang-bang-or-not-royal.html","title":"Brown and Blue / Bang Bang - or not / Royal inbreeding / Bloggers gone bad"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp3.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RomCfobSr4I/AAAAAAAAAIU/40_dBChkA8E/s72-c/gordon+brown.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"4"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-8333258037785128598"},"published":{"$t":"2007-06-25T22:39:00.002+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2008-10-08T23:50:20.590+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"internationalism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Greens"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"racism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Israel"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Kronstadt"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Trotsky Leon"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Left Unity"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"terrorism"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"punk"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"MI5"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"revolution"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Arabia"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Islamists"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"police"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Southpawpunch Comments 2 - The best of my comments from my site"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://southpawpunch.googlepages.com/Mr.Punch.gif\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;\" src\u003d\"http://southpawpunch.googlepages.com/Mr.Punch.gif\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs mentioned last week, this week’s post is another joint post with my new subsidary site \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.southpawpunchcomments.blogspot.com\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch Comments\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e and features what I think are the most interesting of my comments that I have left on my site (in reply to others). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs I said, \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"pulling them out to the main site will make them easier to find.\"\u003c/span\u003e This post also includes some of comments that I have made this week on other blogs (at bottom).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ll resume with the usual format for this column next week whilst \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch Comments\u003c/span\u003e will continue as the place for the best of my comments. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAll from \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.southpawpunch.blogspot.com\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch\u003c/span\u003e:\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe SPGB’s internationalism\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Well, I’m not sure that I have ever mentioned the SPGB before but yes, you deserve credit for your call for a borderless world – but aren’t the only Lefts to do so.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I think you’re wrong in ‘criticising all the self determination and national liberation movements.’ For example, the great wave of African movements, from the 50s onwards, could have brought socialism but instead at least liberated millions from direct occupation.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e08/05/07\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eThe long 80s\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I remember, say in 1985, promising that when the Tories were finally removed (which I thought would be far into the future, say 1988?) we were going to drive round the posh area in Cheshire, where I partially grew up, playing the Red Flag out loud and generally annoying the locals.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt didn't quite turn out like that.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e19/03/07\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eKronstadt\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I knew my Kronstadt stuff once enough to debate - read all the Goldman etc\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can only say principles now. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf, despite being good revolutionaries, the Kronstadters were aiding the Whites, and even if they were completely unaware of this, or were doing it unknowingly - then the repression was legitimate.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf they weren't, it wasn't.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe it's a London thing, in particular, but most 'anarchists' I knew were just interested in (their own) alternative lifestyle and had a very snooty (would be the correct word) attitude to anyone who didn't, say, dye their hair pink. I have met some good ones, though.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e19/03/07\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eRacism \u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"It’s interesting that ALL the UK media is now officially ‘anti-racist’ on issues like this, so Jade Goody was Public Enemy No.1 for a day, even with the rightwing press like The Sun and despite her quite mild, but none the less bigoted, comments. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf you rang any talk radio station in the UK and said, ‘I think Jade may have a point about Indians’ they would doubtless just cut you.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNow to be clear, there is acceptable racism in the media on other issues e.g. against asylum seekers, Roma, east European immigrants, Muslims, etc. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePersonally I think such censorship is bad. If you want to fight with ideas you need them to be expressed, it makes stuff like EastEnders unrealistic and also, call me a liberal, but I also do think censorship is just wrong.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e26/01/07\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eThe future of communism\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I don't know that I am advocating post Trotskyism. I am certainly not arguing for any dilution in revolutionary socialism. I am arguing that Trotskyism, let's call it revolutionary socialism in C21 won't necessary solely be based upon the 'unbroken thread' upheld by a few thousand (mainly) Westerners.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e- \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I suppose two passing people with political views will inevitably agree on a few things - if you gave me 100 statements by Cameron (the Tory leader), I may agree with a couple.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI used to think that the very sharp denunciations of, for example, Pabloism, made by people I knew - 25 years ago in Stockport and Manchester, to keep in the theme of my article - could be a bit sectarian. I still do.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut another way of looking at it is a bit like something else that happened then - being smacked in the mouth ('Are you looking me, pal? - smack! Which was just a northern way of saying 'Nothing personal, mate, I just feel a bit violent').\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy tooth developed a small crack that I thought nothing of but which gradually lengthened and deepened over the years. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe I should have realised then that small differences can grow. Not long ago, the whole part of that tooth fell away and left a raging infection underneath.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLikewise whilst discussions at present, on whether to join the LP or not can, at worse, just lead to potshots across blogs. But if things ever do kick off they would be machine gun fire across opposing barricades.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e(From \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eDave Osle\u003c/span\u003er - \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eBut Southpawpunch, what shines through from your post is that you know - in your heart of hearts - that Trotskyism is finished. You just haven't got the balls to say it.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\"First I think Trotskyism \u003d revolutionary socialism \u003d communism. I don’t think you do. But finished how? You give no detail.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFew supporters of revolutionary socialism? Yes, but then maybe more than 10% of the French electorate may again vote for ostensible Trots in the first round of the Presidential election.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFinished organisationally? Yes, there is no credible international but that could possibly change.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFinished policy wise i.e. it’s wrong - No, It’s right. Clearly many areas need new thinking e.g. green issues but I think the fundamentals are as true now as before.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt doesn’t matter that the Aztec chocolate bar became very unpopular and was discontinued long ago. It still remains the finest chocolate bar and could again reconquer the confectionery shelves. You may have changed to Snickers but that doesn’t change the iron law on what delivers and what just gets you through as few pangs of hunger.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"It's the name of the thing we propose but still we must change it.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSocialism – Gordon Brown supports it, so does Ségolène Royal and so did Stalin. It's clearly not the same as what we support and they have custody of the name. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI agree we don't have the power to change it - if I made up a name now it would just be an eccentric quirk at Southpawpunch (but then again may get me first mention in the Oxford English Dictionary's etymology section - immortality) but the movement must.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e11/01/07 \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eTrotsky’s long dead\u003c/span\u003e and \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003epublications\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Your mentioning of the long dead Ukrainian is disingenuous. You’ll find no pre-war statement here or similar. I much prefer the term ‘revolutionary socialism’ to 'Trotskyism'.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs you will know, there's a big difference between publication such as yours and agitational ones that are written by communists. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYour magazine (\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eNotes from the Border\u003c/span\u003e) makes an interesting stab at explaining how things are. I don't need to tell you that the point of this blog (and similar) is what are we going to do about it? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou can read page after page on what David Shayler’s real agenda is - or in \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLobster\u003c/span\u003e you may have read endless stuff about who really shot JFK. It is interesting to have a glimpse through whatever lies may be commonly believed - and I enjoy reading the findings - but it changes little. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePersonally, I am not overly concerned on the exact level of deviousness of the state – whether it is just honestly brutal or slippery malicious - it still needs to be taken on and it’s that I prefer to write about.\"\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e17/01/07 \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSaudi Arabia\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I think that any Saudi revolution would be different to Gulf ones, as the native Arab population would be key. So I am not sure Indians, Filipinos and others may play the role that you suggest. As you say, there are 18m Saudis and 5m foreigners in the country. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI enjoyed reading your article but note you say the regime could fall in a moment. I think it could but such comments have been made for decades. I also think that Saudi Arabia is a good example of what’s wrong with left reformism. Unless you smash the rulers in Saudi with no sign of weakness, they would certainly eliminate you permanently and ruthlessly.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI agree with you completely about the lack of any Left impact there. We all look forward to that changing. I wonder whether this has always been the case e.g. have the large CPM or CPI (Indian communist parties) ever tried (they have reasonable influence amongst south Indians, who form a fair part of their expats)? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWas there any Left organisation in the more liberal city of Jeddah before the conservative measures in the 80s that banned women from driving and forced the veil on some (although some women, near Yemen, still don’t wear it)? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere are lots of unanswered questions about Saudi e.g. what happened to the once numerous Jews? I suspect there may be a fair bit of hidden history or destroyed history. An ancient church discovered near Jubail was ‘disappeared’ not long ago.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e23/11/06\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWill the cops be oppressive in a socialist state?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"It’s a fair point. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy view is that I wouldn’t care if some equivalent of the cops checked my ID in a socialist state. I don’t object to the role and in any revolutionary situation, I would expect heightened surveillance. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe ‘cops’ would be different e.g. preventing private trading. I’d support them doing this in the same way I would point out the direction a fleeing hit and run driver has gone to any present day cops chasing him.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I do want the state to whither away and I’m sure there would be abuses until it did. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m confident any problems are much more likely to be solved when you have, for example, delegates who implement laws answerable to you (as a delegates, not ‘representatives’) and who are immediately recallable. There would, I think, be a lot less likelihood of crime when people have enough or are less inclined to commit anti-social behaviour (e.g. vandalism) through having worthwhile activities to occupy them.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e16/11/06\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eHow could Lefts be in the same organisation, with such wide differences between them?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Yes, I would support the Taliban in their fight against the occupiers. That's support for their military struggle and not for any of their reactionary policies. In the same way I would indeed give any spare RPGs I might happen to have to Hezbollah at the present time.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI am guessing you wouldn't agree with such support but that's a good example that relates to the call for unity. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI don't think there would be a problem at all being in the same organisation in the UK with such opposed views - it would make no or very little practical difference and, if the organisation was asked the question you pose, the response would be that 'we have different views on this.' \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNow of course if you are in Lebanon, Israel, etc. you need a strategy. There, ideally you would work to the majority line (which would of course be best determined internationally - but not essential). I know that's not always going to happen, but I think that can be lived with, as the alternative is a lot worse. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo yes, in extremis, you could even end up on different sides of the barricades but I personally think I could work with comrades in the afternoon after exchanging shots with them in the morning! \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat really would be the very worst-case scenario. I can see the holes in my arguments BUT I don't think this should distract from the very large majority of work that can be done with broad agreement. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis may sound unlikely but I think the pull of a hegemonic and accepted international (or national) organisation would make you not want to put yourself outside of that.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAlthough I have heard of the Socialist Green Unity Coalition I am not familiar with the detail. My view on any unity is that we should work with any socialist from left LP members leftwards. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWith Greens it would depend. If there is agreement on a minimum set of policy, then yes. So no to rightwing Greens and yes to left Greens. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI don't buy the classic answer that only movements based on or from workers or their bodies like TUs can be worked with as bodies like Greens can turn right. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt is correct that Greens can go such (e.g. in Germany) but then workers parties can head even further right e.g. JVP in Sri Lanka, endless 'official communist' parties that were in power, Labour, etc. I judge them on what they argue for in the here and now, not some spurious dated 'analysis' of whom they supposedly represent.\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e28/07/06\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch on other blogs - this week:\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIslamists\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I’m also sure that there are also various fundamentalist sects - Christian, ‘New Age’ and more that threaten death or at least very bad things to those who leave. \u003cbr /\u003eBut none of that would interest you would it? It’s just Muslim this or Islam that in your monomaniacal obsession with just one of countless superstitious belief systems that maybe the majority of the planet participate in.”\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou are, as always, selective in your information, Modernity. The Taliban have undertaken many vicious activities, I fully acknowledge it and support them in full knowledge of this.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut you make no mention of the much higher level of imperialist murderous activities e.g. the very rare apology this week by the US forces for a deadly 10-mile random highway-killing spree by their troops. Who do you think can kill more - Taliban AK47s or US aircraft?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd you can indeed be in the same camp as fascists and correct, as Marxists acknowledge. For example, the Indian National Army was worthy of support. They were a Japanese funded army that used captured POWs and pre-war Indian nationalists to fight to kick the British out of India. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOf course the Japanese, whilst promising a free India to the INA, intended no such thing. The INA knew that - they expected to try and come through the middle to remove both invaders - they were right to do so and were a 100 times better than the Congress collaborators in their idea of how to free India.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt can be hard having the courage to be against your own country or even the majority view of Lefts. When the heat turns up and the social chauvinism runs riot, many a former left will capitulate. But it’s ‘moral’ to stay focussed on the big picture, despite all this pressure - such as the 650,000 dead because of the invasion of Iraq.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://shirazsocialist.wordpress.com/2007/06/19/a-hero-under-threat/#comments\"\u003eShiraz Socialist\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eState monitoring of Lefts\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"If I had to guess, I'd think that the intelligence services probably used electronic monitoring more than informants - cheaper and more reliable, but I also think that there may be more active than people think. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf there's one set of people who have an exaggerated impression of the importance of left groups, apart from the left itself, it's the cops/MI5 etc. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eInformation that we have on the state’s activities is slender but what I take to be true, snippets have been uncovered - such as MI5 agents in caravans in Skegness monitoring the adjoining SWP summer event and cops under the stage recording proceedings at a Militant conference.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe former WRP and groups like the Spartacists take one wrong approach to this - they were/are paranoid and have both taken mad actions because of their perception of the threat and have smeared rivals as touts. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe SWP take the other wrong approach - they laugh at the threat and malign any suggesting basic security as being toytown politicos playing at being counter-spies.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think there is also a danger from the social gnomes who do things like become special constables and are not a million miles from the 'corbeaux' who wrote many letters to the authorities in wartime France denouncing their neighbours as communists and Jews, etc. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA modern day incarnation of these sorts of people, those who like to suck up to authority, are those in organisations like 'Vigil'. They got a lot of glowing media coverage a little while ago, their method was interesting - they infiltrated Islamist web boards and both acted as agent provocateurs and tried to entrap Islamists.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think it only sensible to conclude that such lowlifes operate on Left boards as well. I think comrades should exercise more self-restraint. It may be hard not to respond to someone who is trying to paint you as being not left at all but you need to think that the 'militant' questioning your commitment may in fact be a sad individual looking to ingratiate themselves with the authorities by seeking to set you up.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere's a correct third route. Use basic security that may thwart some of the more amateur attempts of the state but also will help if things do ever turn left and what today seems just a lifestyle becomes a matter of life and death\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI recommend a couple of article about security - http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/static/security.html\u003cbr /\u003eand http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/static/security.html\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.davidosler.com/2007/06/the_cia_and_the_us_left.html#comments\"\u003eDave's Part\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eFlickr, Yahoo’s photosharing network, is criticised for censoring\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I think it's an interesting wake up call. Flickr are superb at the Bodyshop school of capitalism – ‘we’re just doing it for love and to help people and our ethics are beyond reproach.’ \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo on Flickr, you see endless naive posts by people very politely taking up customer service issues on their forums. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt's time people realised they are just like your phone company - you pay them for a service, they do as little as they can get away with and make a bundle off you. Your attitude to them should be the same as any other company. They’re not your ‘friends’.\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://letstakeover.blogspot.com/2007/06/beating-flickrs-censorship.html\"\u003eLet's Take Over\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eA celebration (by some) of 30 years of punk with a chance to win commemorative t-shirts\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I can do no better than reproduce what I wrote elsewhere on that band (The Clash).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e‘I’ve always found the cult of Joe Strummer, on the Left, strange. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI remember people would do things like carrying Beatboxes playing Clash songs in the mid/late 80s on demos. I thought it had gone but I have seen some revival recently...\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA little of the music is ace, much so-so - … the political line throughout is soft Left or third-worldist (so admittedly better than the present all non-political stuff).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy memory of the Clash, growing up, was a very few good tunes but also the laughable posing - the 'guerrilla' ' style photos in scenes of urban deprivation which even us 14 years olds could see through … and, when I did see the band, them being worse than the (lamentable) Theatre of Hate who supported them at The Manchester Apollo in 1980. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut the life - Strummer was a Chilterns dwelling Squire with kids in public school. A hypocrite.’\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I can do better in talking about punk as a whole and people who wear t-shirts like that. I can quote Jah Wobble, writing in the Independent on Sunday, yesterday. He was talking about an Alan Parker (a hack biographer of Sid Vicious). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHe said that he is “is one of a coterie of blokes that eke out a living by stripping the last remains from the carcass of punk. Most of them are from the provinces and the majority of them seems to be in their late thirties/early forties and therefore would have been no more than 12 or 13 when it happened…They all gather at the funerals of punk luminaries, where they adopt the personae of old soldiers attending the wakes of fallen heroes…Rest assured Sid would have hatred them all… It is the absolute antithesis of the punk scene in 1977.’ \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe past has gone. Out with old and in with new. Burn it down and start again. The pleadings by others to win the t-shirts are both risible and very fucking sad. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf awarded the shirts I promise to BURN all of them straightaway, photograph the whole process and publish a comprehensive set of photos of the action on my website or a linked one.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ll even throw in a shot (if I can get it sent to me in time) of me, aged 15, pogoing to a long forgotten Manchester punk / new wave band to conclude the ‘Who is Southpawpunch? Poll’ on my site.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://letstakeover.blogspot.com/2007/06/beating-flickrs-censorship.html\"\u003eDave's Part\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eA call for even more Southpawpunch websites?\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Yes, Strappy as it happens I was thinking along the same lines. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMaybe ‘Southpawpunch Energy’ - switch your energy supplier to Southpawpunch and get discounted subscriptions to various left publications and a complete refund of all your energy payments once the utility companies have been expropriated.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOr perhaps ‘Southpawpunch Dating’? Are you Billy No Marx? Do women laugh at you when you invite them back to your bed-sit to have a look through old copies of Socialist Challenge? Join ‘Southpawpunch Dating’ to get the details of 3 hot trot women. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBe aware though that, as the Left ever shrinks, you may well have expelled your prospective date, already slept with her or she could be your sister.\"\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.haloscan.com/comments/mandel/3544048740802942010/#46288\"\u003eStroppyblog\u003c/a\u003e\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-8333258037785128598?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/8333258037785128598/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d8333258037785128598\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"1 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/8333258037785128598"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/8333258037785128598"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/06/southpawpunch-comments-best-of-my.html","title":"Southpawpunch Comments 2 - The best of my comments from my site"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"1"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-1285613869025048909"},"published":{"$t":"2007-06-18T23:42:00.000+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2007-06-20T04:55:30.747+01:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Southpawpunch Comments - The best of my comments that I make elsewhere"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rnhqm_h52LI/AAAAAAAAAHU/m4xhEdbdCaY/s1600-h/knife+in+figure.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rnhqm_h52LI/AAAAAAAAAHU/m4xhEdbdCaY/s320/knife+in+figure.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077925797981444274\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m pleased to be making this week’s article a joint post with my new subsidary site \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.southpawpunchcomments.blogspot.com\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch Comments.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch Comments \u003c/span\u003ewill publish what I think are the most interesting comments that I make on other sites.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve been thinking that some of what I write isn’t easily available to those who may wish to read it - unless they go to the same sites as I do. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd points I make elsewhere can be hard to find later - comments usually aren’t picked up by search engines and it can be hard keeping track of all the different threads to which I may post. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd let's be frank - many are sharp, acerbic, deal with difficult topics and are a lot bolder than the mush and mess littering both 'Marxist' and moderate sites.  Maybe some of my comments are worth more than evaporating when the historical work of the reformist sites is finally done and they are forced off the stage of history.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMainly from memory, I’ve collected a few of my previous comments (below) under the name of the blog where I first made them. (If you remember anything else you think worth including, please do let me know by sending me a link).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNext week I shall also publish some of my previous comments made on Southpawpunch and that are currently just hidden away in the comments boxes. Pulling them out to the main site will make them easier to find.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut in future I’ll be adding comments on a chronological basis, not by blog - I’ll post maybe a weekly article or a less frequent round-up (when I don’t say much) of my most recent comments at Southpawpunch Comments. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI won’t publish anything there until the original thread appears to have finished. Some comments that I will publish there will have minor edits - for clarity, spelling or grammar.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOf course, this is all rather one-sided. I will give a little background about the issue that was being discussed but I won’t be including the comments and the original posts of others - articles will just get far too long if I include everyone else’s text.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI also won’t be allowing comments on Southpawpunch Comments. I think debates read better when they continue where they started. I’ll publish a link (detailed links will be find on the Southpawlinks site) - if you want to make a point, or find out more, you can go to the original site. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’d love to combine \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch Comments\u003c/span\u003e and \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch Life\u003c/span\u003e into one website with a multi-stranded front page that included all of these and more. If anyone knows how to do this, incorporating these blogs in a cheap (or free) and simple way, please do let me know.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI don’t know of anyone else who has published a site to report the comments that they make elsewhere. Can you copyright an idea like this? I’m sure many a multi-national has protected far more nebulous concepts. I intend ensuring that all the Southpawpunch sites are as innovative as the technology allows - this new site is one of the many new ideas that I try.  \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(Oh, and I’m looking forward to publishing my next article at \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.southpawpunchlife.blogspot.com\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch Life\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e, my arts,  culture \u0026 more site. I’ve written a full-length arts article, drawing on my visit last month to many Amsterdam museums. However an unexpected visit this week to Antwerp should give me a chance to look at their museum and maybe add some more to what I have drafted. I hope to publish this article in the next week).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eSouthpawpunch comments\u003c/span\u003e:-\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://stroppyblog.blogspot.com\"\u003eStroppyblog\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eStrappybird welcomes Paris Hilton’s re-imprisonment.\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"100% wrong.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSocialists don't celebrate some person being sent to jail for 45 days for driving on a suspended licence.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSocialists don't dismiss out of hand any manifestation of mental illness as 'making it up'.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSocialists don't support unfair treatment of even the super rich for reasons like this - I read it's common for people to just serve 10% of their jail time because of prison overcrowding in LA.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI don't know that much about her but someone living the life she does probably would find prison especially harsh - a million miles away from the live she normally leads so it's not that surprising that it lead to tears, like a child. Liberate Paris (and on to Berlin!)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYour political trajectory is clear - Sussex Womens Institute beckons.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e13 June 2007\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eLouisefeminista looks back on 2006 and namechecks Southpawpunch as an ‘ultraleft’.\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Southpawpunch - Ultra-left adventurist or consistent revolutionary socialist who is not swayed by the vagaries of the ever-changing face of capitalist exploitation?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s interesting that you look back on your first year of blogging in which you have frequently looked askance at the ‘ultra left’ ‘Trotskyism’ of your ‘yoof’. From being an ostensible 4th to a ‘Labour Less Blairite’ is a long road but a path well travelled.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut how will you look back in 10 years?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e‘Colleagues,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m sorry that this will be last annual review at the StroppyBlogLouiseFeminista Multimodal Communications Portal™ following our successful sale to Murdoch \u0026 Sons ‘WomenTalk2Women’ platform.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt ’s time to look back. 6 promotions on the ‘Trot’ (sic) in the mid 00s enabled me to empower myself and set up in business as a ‘workers co-operative’ with Stroppy and establish ‘Revanch™ - by women, 4 women.’ No more exploitation of me by men!\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe combination of woman manufactured product (sourced at 29c per hour in Uganda), women management through a workers co-operative (net profits of £1.3M each trousered last year by the co-operative - me and Stroppy) and our sassy initial marketing (following the trail of many successful Brighton gay entrepreneurs and that other Sussex woman who made a difference - Anita Roddick) we marketed initially to the BDSM crowd; greenies (all our rubber is sourced from land indigenous to native Indian tribes) and the ‘socially concerned’ through utilising our famous pledge ‘I promise to give to Oxfam every time Revanch™ makes me cum!’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNow that I am a successful businesswoman whose microchipped sexual fulfilment tools can be found in the high street, from Mothercare to Starbucks, I have more time to return to my first love - radical politics!\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo I am very pleased to confirm that, following my stellar performance as a Liberal peer, Lembit (as Prime Minister) has personally recommended me to replace his 7th wife, Lady Cheeky-Opik of Transylvania as Chair of the Blood Transfusion Service following the unfortunate theft of 2.3 million litres of donated blood serum by his 1st wife, the sister of the 7th.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo with your Revanch™ product in your bag and myself heading the Blood Transfusion Service, there really is no need for women ever to exchange bodily secretions ever again with men!!\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e29 December 2006 \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.davidosler.com\"\u003eDave's Part\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eDespite McDonnell’s humiliation, Labour Lefts play hard to get with desperate Reds.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“When I first moved to London long ago, my idiot North West friends and relatives asked, ‘isn’t it dangerous, when you go out to clubs and the like?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd I replied, no, it’s a lot worse in small town England. Places like Lefttown.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn London, there’s no history. You’re not going to come across someone who you had a fight with in the bus station a few years ago. There’s no chance that you will meet your Ex’s now b/f who you used to know from the terraces and who is after your blood. There’s also no chance that you will meet those renegades you expelled or have your former Bennite friends pretend that night together ever happened.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd you know you’ve got to stop going to those small town clubs. But still you go. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo now you may reckon your chances with Labour Left man or woman, hanging around near the dance floor. But they are only here, most probably temporarily, because the bouncers denied them entry into Gordon’s Wine Bar. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s too early to tell whether they will be let back in there later or are permanently excluded but that’s where they want to be. They hate slumming it here with you and whilst they may make conversation, any number you get from them will be fake.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThey even tell you to your face ‘We're not joining in for some no-mark sex’. They wouldn’t if you were God’s Gift, either (a mass Left or even communist party). They’re incurable reformists. Go and chat up someone else.\" \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I’d say Left Labour isn’t (at say 15,000) 10x bigger than the non-Labour left. Maybe 6000 in all other organisations. And the average SWP member, for example, works 3x as hard as a LP type. And how Left is the Labour Left that includes cuts-making councillors and where McDonnell’s platform was no more left than Meacher’s?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd sure, there are very few Lefts anywhere, but electoral support isn’t a perfect measure of this, e.g. richer parties have the resources to do better than they would.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd yes, Dave, the end of revolutionary socialism (like the once large Temperance movement) is more likely than John Rees, Peter Taaffe, Alan Clinton et al getting into bed together. The conditions of capitalism will always create a fightback although that doesn’t mean a thinking and organised fightback will exist. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve written a strategy - Organisational unity for starters. Sure, no-one’s listening but how is LP membership a means to a socialist world?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt may feel like onanism at present, being a Red, but maybe some foreign siren - speaking French, Italian or Spanish maybe, - will be along to rescue us Reds if we just hold out.\" \u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"What I meant by \"It may feel like onanism at present, being a Red, but maybe some foreign siren - speaking French, Italian or Spanish maybe, - will be along to rescue us Reds if we just hold out.\" was the possibility that revolution or similar, in say Argentina, could come to the rescue of us very isolated British reds.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI thought that would be clear but maybe it wasn't.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e26 May 2007\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eDave criticises Workers Power for being ultraleft\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“I think Dave is correct in his criticisms of both the language and method that Workers Power are using. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s nothing wrong with ‘demanding’ but it’s not the best language to use unless there are lots of you and you are powerful enough to attempt to put your words into action. The desired outcome is reasonable enough - if you had muscle - and I don’t see anything wrong in having a goal but, yes, it’s currently unachievable and it reads silly to raise it like this. I think the WP comrades might (they might not) rethink their language if this was pointed out to them. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I think it’s telling of comrades, to look at the sort of venom they will use against those who aren’t - in the whole gamut of politics, from fascism to communism - that far away from them. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn the same way that Right Labour or Centre Labour will act in way that shows they think Left Labour is from the Ark or beyond the pale, (e.g. I’ve seen them call Campaign Group types ‘mad Trot wreckers’, scum etc) so those commenting here who have made their peace with capitalism now sound just the same as the other commentators who have never contemplated the revolutionary alternative.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe’ve probably all worked in places where people have thought our politics are ‘mad’ - where we were very politically isolated - and I mean that for all of us, from Trotskyists to Labour types. I‘ve heard terms such as ‘bunch of kids’, ‘pathetic’, ‘saddos’ ‘hilarious’ used in my workplaces by the non-political against Labour party types who have argued for a trade union. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think of all these terms used here, criticising people for being young or suggesting something must have been written by someone young (with the implication of them being gullible) debars that person from any description of them being a communist. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWorkers Power argument is wrong, possibly ultra-left. But they acquit themselves a lot better, with this over enthusiastic dreaming, compared to the jaded and sneering cynicism displayed by so many here. That’s one of the reasons I’ve generally stopped commenting here. I need to go and wash out my mouth, there’s bad taste.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e19 May 2007\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eThose wanted to be (and their sock puppets) the Labour candidate in Bethnal Green and Bow at the next election, scramble to anonymously slur their rivals.\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“The above just says it all about Labour Party types.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eVarious acolytes of the 'important', here to dish the dirt on the 'opposition' or big up those that they hope will be or are in political relationships with them. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMeanwhile the hooded wannabe assassins look up to various careerist hopefuls who are scrambling overthemselves to see who can get the selection jackpot and its associated largesse.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eVery little has changed since Hogarth drew it.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA pox on them all.\" \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\"How much effect has the (pitiful) minimum wage had in Tower Hamlets? Many of the employers would have to pay above this level anyway, in London, because of wage competition - even incl. people like McDonalds.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere are, of course, a fair number of people still working below the NMW level. As I - reported - numerous employers openly advertise non-NMW compliant jobs in ads, with little fear of enforcement so what chance for a worker toiling in a garment sweatshop of them getting his/her legal minimums?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut the big lie is about Galloway. He’s one of yours (an old style Labour left) than one of ours (a Trot) - as he’d be the first to point out.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s a shame that the SWP still give that opportunist cover he doesn’t deserve, and so tar all of us revolutionary socialists (he’s always mentioned to me as the number one example of what’s wrong with ‘far lefties’, like ‘Red Ken’ once was). If Trots do turn right wing, then criticise those right-wingers (such as Byers) but that’s no rebuttal to their politics 20 years previously.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhat’s Labour ever done for Tower Hamlets? It’s a sea of poverty between two of the wealthiest places on the planet, the City and Canary Wharf. I don’t think you understand just how hated Labour are, and just that fact could get a Respect MP elected again. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI look forward to that, if only to put a spoke in the career aspirations of all those slugs scrabbling for selection. Or as they’d put it - feeling bound to put myself forward to see whether one might be of service?\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(Galloway claimed to be a ‘child of the 60s’)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e“He is a child of the 60s in a Saturday Night, Sunday Morning way. That woman, from what I recall, was a child of the 60s in a Woodstock way. Whilst all the Easy Rider kids may have bought a Mondeo, there may still be one or two old style Labour MPs left with the Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut all those films are poor. We need a Battleship Potyomkin.\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(One of the failed candidates, Rupa Huq, posts further - “I am prepared to say that I am resopnsible for comment at www.rupahuq.co.uk on it all”).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e“But you're not though, are you?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYour post uses a very dishonest method of casting aspersions on the selected candidate. It’s as bitter as bitter can be, doubtless the frustration of thwarted career advancement. I’ve copied your post and would consider posting it on my blog if your career sensibilities kick in and you later remove it.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou state a 'Mike Smith' (who he?) answered a survey that includes allegations of privileged access to membership lists and other inane slurs such as 'having appeared on screen in tacky underwear'. Anyone reading this will presume these comments are about the successful candidate.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAfter reporting all this, you sign off with the incredibly weasel words - 'Dunno if I agree with all of the above but undoubtedly Rushanara will make a brilliant candidate and MP.'\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf you are going to make allegations, put your name to them. I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if they are all true and that there are similar black marks against all the candidates. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd how close are you to BGB Bitch? Are you BGB Bitch?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf I may offer you some advice, if you want to advance your LP career you obviously need to play even dirtier than your opponents, in future. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI mean you're no worse than the rest. But revolutionary socialists will always oppose you and your ilk. Those who offer no more than a few temporary reforms when there is a whole world to be won.”\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e16 April 2007\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eDave Osler compares the Red Army Faction (often called the ‘Baader-Meinhof’ gang) and the IRA. \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“It’s misleading to compare the two - the RAF and the IRA. One was a ‘communist’ fighting group, the other is/was the main component of a national liberation movement.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe former included a few who believed pretty much in the (anarchist) theory of ‘propaganda of the deed’ - their actions would be a catalyst for communism; the latter were (and are) a mass movement who believed in the Armalite and the Ballot Box to remove the remaining part of Ireland from British control. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo it’s not surprising that revolutionary socialists have different views on each organisation - we would point out the limitations of the former (as the RAF claimed wrongly to be communists) but also not be displeased by their execution of a few oppressors. We would defend the actions of the latter. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRevolutionary socialists support national liberation struggles despite the politics of those leading them. If Congress had taken up arms against the British in India, their liberal support in the UK would have fallen away but they would have achieved their aims a lot quicker - Afghanistan spent little time then under imperialist rule because of its violent resistance. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s always been the excuse of hand wringing spectators to say - ‘labour can’t wait’ or ‘you’re not proper socialists’ or to vaguely quote Marx out of context, ‘the emancipation of the working class must be the act of the workers themselves’. Marx (and Trotsky) were clear in their support for violent Irish nationalists. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBeing a communist means supporting many things that may not be core to the class relations of society. We support the rights of gays for full equality but it isn’t because that necessarily relates to socialism - a capitalist society could treat gays completely equally.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe support gay rights simply because this equality is just. And if the only way gay equality could be achieved was to shoot e.g. those who hang homosexuals (in some countries) then we would support this violent tactic. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s silly to suggest that the politics of the RAF may lead to fascism. Many of the former members of the Weather Underground (the nearest US equivalent) are now greeny types.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it’s good to know where types like you stand. As the bullets fly and the bombs explode; as Iraqis and Afghanistan’s desperately seek to expel the foreign occupier; you appear to be telling them to go read their, I don’t know what, Labour Left Briefing? And learn about socialism.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCommunists don’t take that view, we take sides. We said victory to the IRA and we now say victory to the Iraqi and Afghani (and Iranian?) resistance. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy current article happens to deal with just this issue. Click my link if you want to read more.\" \u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"There's nothing wrong with a word like 'just' (I didn't use the word 'justice').\u003cbr /\u003eYou're right that some Trots may think such terms are 'moralism' or similar but I demur. Some would argue that we fight against e.g. racism because to do so is to attack capitalism. Again, I demur, you could have a non-racist capitalism (but never had had). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThese struggles are 'just'(and, yes, also attack present day capitalism). Marxists are the best democrats, the most fervent partisans against inequality. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eKilling industrialists in 1970s Germany did little, as I stated. But some of it e.g. killing NATO functionaries was, indeed, justice.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnyway who supported the IRA needs to support it as a whole. So on e.g. Warrington I would have taken the view that I'm sure the IRA took. It would have been regrettable either that they screwed up or the state ignored the warning. It sounds blasé to say there will be civilian casualties in war, but it's true.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd indeed you don't need to take sides in a war. You can just leave people to die in the street. You can just stroll on by. I recommend that course to you.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"It's funny how only Republican 'atrocities' get remembered.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou know as well as I do that IRA policy has never been killing people for 'mixing' or other such reactionary reasons. It's a complete red herring. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf an IRA volunteer did it, then I hope s/he was shot for such a sectarian act. And even if it happened (rather than just reported like that in the Daily Mail), it would be one of a few grim examples amongst many killings of perfectly ‘legitimate targets’.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd on 'legitimate targets' - why was the woman killed? I recall someone like that - maybe her - who was killed for 'assisting the enemy' or similar in the Divis Flats, I think - although she may not have done so at all.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf people do collaborate, if they do inform, it would be good to imprison them. But in a guerrilla campaign, you can only kill them (or sometimes exile, in minor cases). And that's just.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOh how you exTrots slip away in national chauvinism as LP members and as your retirement from revolutionary politics lengthens. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut, kids, it wasn't always so. Some of these 'reds' once were in organisations with principled anti-imperialist lines. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Red_Mole.jpg\u003cbr /\u003eI hope any youth reading will seek to maintain the continuity of revolutionary support for those who realise that just writing petitions will get them nowhere.\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Indeed I do mean the Taliban and all the others even when they would (and do) fight one another.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eVictory to the resistance is the correct slogan. It means victory to the resistors - as a group - against occupation. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e'Troops out' would be fine, and I would use any tactic to get them out but I would rather see the imperialists defeated, like in Vietnam.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn the same way that the French resistance contained everyone from Trotskyists to Royalists, so does the 'resistance' in Iraq (although doubtless no Trots). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCommunists obviously never offer political support for the Taliban but offer military support in this period. And once the occupiers are gone, the Taliban, Mahdi army, etc becomes the/a main enemy.”\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e12 February 2007\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eDoes Britain need nuclear weapons?\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Ditto Alex on GDP - and - it's a long way down the reformist path to argue about who deserves a seat on the UN.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd it's not the case that we don't not want nukes because 'Britain's place in the world is diminished'. We don't want the bosses to have weapons because they may use them against our brothers and sisters in Iran, N Korea, etc. They would use them against us, if they could, as well. Basic, ABC, revolutionary socialism.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe UK's nuclear strategy also seems very odd. They are going to stick them all on three submarines, one of which may be seaborne at any one time.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo if anyone is going to attack then just find (hard, I know, but surely not impossible) the sub and sink it and nuke Portsmouth(?) to destroy the other two.\u003cbr /\u003eI hope it's the French who work this out first - 35 hour weeks, decent food, better football team, women who don't buy their underwear in Asda.\" \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e11 November 2006 \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eOn supporting anti-imperialist resistance\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Look, what I'm arguing is pretty standard Trotskyism i.e. revolutionary socialism (and that's in London, Leeds or Luanda).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can appreciate the arguments of genuine pacifists - you punch me in the face, I won't punch back - but find the hypocricy of the rest of you breathtaking.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou support imperalism directly or you take a 'plague on both their houses' position - which means in short, we'll look the other way while the e.g, Brits et al (and certainly not just the USA - I've no time for anti-Americanism) kick in your door. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut we've had this debate before, repeatedly. I'm sorry it's come to dominate this post - my fault - and will say no more or indeed take up the cause of Marxism on this issue, on this blog for some time. I only post in the hope that a few (young, probably) socialists may be amenable to communism and repulsed by the pro-imperialist, Labour supporting talk here. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere is an alternative - a route to human liberation. \"Life is beautiful. Let the future generations cleanse it of all evil, oppression and violence, and enjoy it to the full.\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m taken to task for arguing for the road that leads to ‘heaven on earth’.\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"Ed -‘heaven on earth’ I mean it in a few ways.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs a reverse to religious doctrine - especially to those that tell you to be content with your lot on earth, as your labour will be rewarded in the afterlife. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd I do think life on earth could be ‘heavenly’ in the way that life now would seem like this to someone from 1000AD. For example, I think the scourge of AIDS would be eliminated a lot quicker with one, international medical research charged with finding the answer, rather than many competing pharmaceutical companies currently duplicating each others work in the race to find a cure that works and makes money (which is why there is not yet a malaria cure).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI don’t mean that things will be all fluffy and we will be sitting around playing lutes all day but I also mean it a riposte to those with a corrosive cynicism. There is a big picture that many have lost sight of over time. It’s a shame, sometimes, that commentators here will praise the music of their youth but are embarrassed by their politics from then.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe situation is now as it was and their politics should have remained the same. Distant as the prospect may be, advances are possible – even revolution. I may not agree with the politics of this group but they are at least trying. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd if you also think that curing AIDS, stopping all preventable diseases, taking music and art to unheard of levels are targets to be aimed for, I would suggest to you that reformism has never got anywhere near this, only revolutionary socialism would take us towards this.\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://squirrelcommunism.blogspot.com/\"\u003eRed Squirrel's Lair\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eKorakious argues against the Union of England \u0026 Wales and Scotland. I disagree.\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“Your argument appears to be (‘by extension’) that if parasites like the CE of Tesco’s are unionists, them Marxists should be opposed to unionism. That’s no argument, I can think of many issues on which Marxists and millionaires are agreed - e.g. the world is round. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou are simply reversing that which you mock - ‘if the bourgeoisie wants something, there is zero chance that the working class might benefit for it.’\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s just wrong to argue that the RBS would benefit from an independent Scotland. It is the biggest bank in Scotland but it’s also the 2nd biggest bank in the UK. It might benefit from better access to the ‘levers of power’ in an Edinburgh based state but the vast majority of its UK customers are in England. It would lose some weight if lobbying Whitehall as a foreign bank. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou make only a (flawed) case for why an independent Scotland would be better for some Scottish capitalists but none about why it would be better for Scottish (and indeed British) workers. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNationalism, for those other than oppressed nationalities, is poison. Socialists don’t want people wrapping themselves in the Saltire anymore than the want them to drape the Union Flag.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eScots aren’t oppressed nationally; they’re not denied democratic rights anymore than someone English, and unlike how the Irish were. They don’t yet (although may yet do) have a majority support for independence that is being denied. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn these circumstances, I’m as oppressed identically in London by the rate on my RBS Credit Card, or by my Hull headquartered employer, as is a worker in Lossiemouth or Lockerbie.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt makes absolutely no sense for workers to break up a cross-national united fightback against Capital. Let’s expropriate RBS together. Indeed I also look forward to British workers unity being subsumed into European, if not World Workers Unity.”\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e30 April 2007\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e---\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eAnd then, more in the next post \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e“Comrade,\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat was an interesting article.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI first wanted to say that I know the mood must be pretty downbeat in Scotland after the recent elections. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I still feel that you have made that quantative step forward, ahead of the rest of Britain, and you should seek to maintain that. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve been arguing with English comrades for a while that there is no place for Lefts in the Labour Party.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen, as expected, McDonnell doesn’t get on the ballot paper (or does, and is crushed) a lot of those people, I think will say - what are we doing in Labour? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut they will also think that there is nothing outside Labour (in England and Wales) to join. They see Respect (somewhat understandably) as beyond the pale. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s to our disadvantage that there isn’t an English Socialist Party (or rather better a British Socialist Party, or even better a Word Socialist Party) like there is the SSP (and rather that than Solidarity). \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOn the article \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou say (I) understood that (your) rationale was that if large capital is in favour of the union, then we should be against it. I don’t think I do say that but people can read your previous article and make up their own minds.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI would agree with independence as a tactic if it were demonstrably clear that the Left movement in Scotland was being held back a more right wing England but I don’t see any great proof that there is much red water between the level of political and socialist support in the two countries. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYes, there may be a far greater concentration of Labour MPs in the Central Belt than England as a whole but I imagine the area shares the similar characteristics to say London or the North East. It was only 50 years ago or so that, I believe, Scotland had a majority of Tory MPs. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou state by first attempting to knock down the usual ‘Left Unionist’ arguments. Although you make the case for independence later it’s noticeable you can’t make the case for separation when you deal with these initial matters.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI thought your summing up of the usual case against nationalism was correct (e.g. The most common points Brit lefties...) save Lefts do support the rights of oppressed nations to secede e.g. Chechnya.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I’d also say British capitalism (and, even more so, Scottish capitalism) is a misnomer - they are just subsets of international capitalism with the differences being deleted daily. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s not much, looking around my desk, that hasn’t been produced by a Multi National Company (MNC) rather than a ‘British’ company. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI very much doubt that the Scottish economy is based on ‘small to medium sized businesses’. I think it’s based on the public sector and then MNC oil, transport, banking, food and drink, media and other large companies employing the large majority of workers. I’m going to guess that even in tourism a large number of workers are employed by MNCs. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt doesn’t advance things when you say - don’t worry, if we part, the unions will stay united (well they may not - there are UK and Ireland unions but also purely Irish unions and purely Scottish unions) but that’s not an argument saying why there should be a parting - what advantage is there to trade union organisation in Scottish independence? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou claim “Nationalist groups are a small minority in the independence movement” That’s hard to swallow. What is the independence movement if it is not a nationalist movement? I accept it doesn’t indulge in anti-English rhetoric but again your noting a problem that doesn’t exist makes no movement in arguing the case for.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo what is the reason that many Scottish workers support independence? I suspect few think they may be better off in an independent Scotland. I suspect a lot feel that they are somehow disadvantaged, discriminated against or oppressed by ‘England’ and doubtless it’s mixed with some (non aggressive) national pride of a Tartan Army type. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s not a national feeling, but you will get a resonance of that view expressed by people in places like the North East of England or even in my home place of Manchester (‘them down in the Smoke’) where they will see their region as ignored or discriminated against by the capital dwellers. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut that’s all a big con. It’s like when the workers in a regional office complain to the management and are fobbed off. Their local bosses say, ‘don’t blame us, head office just make the decisions and we have to implement them - whether they are right or wrong.’ Scottish bosses, with independence leanings, are leading Scottish workers’ anger down a blind alley. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAll national identities are ‘artificially constructed’. As I recall, English national identity was most made in the (9th Century?) by Alfred the Great. I imagine the Scottish nation was formed at about the same time - although the Shetlands and Orkneys didn’t join the country until 1468.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd just because (and only arguably) British national identity was established by a ‘conservative ruling class that was threatened by both the radical elements of the bourgeoisie’ makes it no better or worse a national feeling. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe article is correct in saying ‘the links that English, Scottish and Welsh workers have built in decades of struggle are not subject to the existence of the British repressive apparatus’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAgreed, although presumably it could become harder (e.g. through increasing different legislation) but how does break-up move forward, in any way, such struggles? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou claim ‘Setting up an independent Scottish state would give us the chance here (provided of course that we are actively involved) to establish an apparatus that is far more representative and with considerably less authoritarian powers, thus providing considerably more fertile ground for socialists to organize and agitate.’ \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNo such event took place when most of Ireland wasn’t just given its independence, but took it. Such a scenario, as you envisage, is possible but the most likely scenario would be just Scotland detaching as it is - with no major representational changes in either country. I’m not aware that the end of Yugoslavia or Czechoslovakia led to any more democratic regimes in any of the successor countries. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe loss of, perhaps, a seventh of the UK’s economy if Scotland seceded - and when the USA’s economy is seven times that of Britain - is no great potatoes. It may reduce Britain in the GDP rankings down two places to below France and Italy. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOnce Britain would have directed the use of Australian troops. The fact that both countries now do this independently makes no difference to the actual outcome. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo Scotland could go a Scandinavian or Irish route (which isn’t neutral - they’re NATO members) but it would hardly affect the balance of forces.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs you say ‘The movement for Scottish independence must have a specifically defined goal of setting up a republic that is not servile to imperialist interests, a republic that adopts radical solutions to poverty and other social ills; a social republic if you will.” \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAgreed. And if it were tactically easier to do this on a Scottish basis than a British basis, then I would support Scottish independence. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I’m not convinced at all you have outlined that it is - a more likely outcome is to unleash the poison of nationalism.”\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e13 May 2007\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://shirazsocialist.wordpress.com/\"\u003eShiraz Socialist\u003c/a\u003e \u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eIn response to Alliance for Workers Liberty arguments on Palestine/Israel - and then onto the Malvinas/Falklands.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I was also as a member of Socialist Organiser a bit before this time I do remember how this programme that you claim Sean Matgamna was supporting had it fact changed a lot from supporting the Hunger Strikes etc and national self determination to eventually the two state stuff that it is now. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo Matgamna would now see the national rights of the 43% of NI that is Catholic and the population of the South being subverted by the Protestant population of the North (in broad terms). Maybe they would support a White State in parts of South Africa, too. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd so with Israel. Is there any other state in the Middle East that comprehensively discriminates against a section of its population (the Arabs) with many theocratic underpinnings, is built on land stolen from those still alive and displaced, regularly attacks neighbours with overwhelming brutality and still seeks to conquer new territory (e.g. with the wall). Even a Shia'a in Saudi or in Saddam's Iraq would be unlikely to get his house bulldozed or denied the right to internal travel \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eTo allow Israel to continue would have been like sending NI on a course from the late 60s in which the B Specials weren't disbanded but furnished with jet fighters, in which Republicans had their houses burnt down and were kicked across the border or shot, where the SDLP was banned and Iain Paisley's church took over the education system.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWith no concessions at all to the anti-semites and those who really would want to push the Jews into the sea, a democratic and secular (and hopefully socialist) state is what we should argue for.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAlways supporting national groups' or more famously the Kelpers in the Malvinas - hence my exit from SO.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIndeed Lenin did as you say, he supported the national rights of the Irish minority in the (then) UK of GB and Ireland to achieve national independence, not 26/32 independence. Remember the comments of Trotsky (and Lenin) on 1916.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI don't think for a moment that you think that people who argue like me are anti-Semitic or anti 'Unionist people' but you are very flawed when you argue there are 'people' we don't much like - e.g. Israelis, White South Africans as though there is some bigotry. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eNaturally we don't like Israeli bosses or indeed Arab rulers but have every degree of worker solidarity and think equally of Jewish workers as of the Arab 'in the street'. I am sure that 'two-state' people do, too.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut in the same way that we would have supported every progressive struggle of Dixie whites against their employers in the USA, we would have also needed to oppose our class brothers and sisters when they acted as a 'national group' (and of course, in concert with their 'own' national group rulers) in asserting their 'independence' from (in their eyes)a different national group, e.g. burning out blacks or lynching them.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e--\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003eIt’s kind of interesting how a few innocuous comments provoke such debate.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eKelpers aren’t a nation in themselves but British and the conflict was Britain and it’s desire to maintain its colony v Argentina. It wasn’t 1500 Kelpers v Argentina. The Malvinas are like if some Spanish Costa, full of Fish ‘n’ Chip pubs, suddenly declared itself a detached part of Essex. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs you are no doubt proud, the AWL is far removed from most of the left on these issues. Have you ever thought that your distance from the rest of the pack is not clever foresight but an ever increasing flawed deviation from the collective wisdom of most revolutionary socialists? \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo Workers Liberty’s current front web page starts well - Stop the Israeli assault on Gaza and Lebanon! But then, in an incredible article, directs most of its fire on Hamas and Hezbollah. What’s the current Palestinian and Lebanese v Israeli death toll since the first prisoner capture?!\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe article includes ‘Hamas would rather play with the lives of Palestinian people’ Any organisation that follows a military strategy “plays with the lives of … people”. Only a pacifist can have a problems with this although all note it with regret. Israel is hardly going to take notice of polite requests and whilst it would be welcome, Palestinians can’t wait for mass action by Israeli workers in their support.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe article also states, “Once again senseless small-scale provocative guerrilla action by the militias of Hamas and Hezbollah.” Capturing Israeli soldiers is a good strategy. Past experience suggest the Israelis will pay a high price of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in exchange. Or should Palestinian prisoners be left to rot?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs you head where Jane Ashworth (There’s a name I never thought I would hear again) and the like have trail blazed the path for you, spare a thought for people like me who never mention their once membership of SO because I then have to spend a further ten minutes explaining they were very different then and distancing myself from your current politics.\" \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMonday, July 17, 2006\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003d\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://nation-of-duncan.blogspot.com/\"\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eNation of Duncan\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight:bold;\"\u003eOn killing\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style:italic;\"\u003e\"I'm not aware of instances of IMG members celebrating deaths of soldiers - it would be an unsocialist thing to do - but they certainly, and correctly, supported the IRA in their fight.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd in the same way, I want the defeat of the occupiers in Iraq which means, sadly, I want US and British troops to be killed. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo whilst I am pleased with any military successes of the resistance, I don't in anyway celebrate the deaths of the troops.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can't speak for Workers Power, etc but I agree with their slogan and have never met any of them - or other lefts - who actually revel in the deaths of soldiers. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ec.f. that to some footage I have seen of former British squaddies, speaking years after the events, mocking or laughing about the dying moments of IRA volunteers or relating how they would taunt they as they lay dying whilst denying them medical aid. Of course such a squaddie may have seen his friends killed the week before.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI can't say a Provo would never do that but I have never seen any say they had - in fact, the reverse, they have said they said prayers for them as they died, etc.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eVery grim either way, of course, but I differentiate completely between the violence of the oppressor and that of the oppressed.\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMarch 08, 2007\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-1285613869025048909?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/1285613869025048909/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d1285613869025048909\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"3 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/1285613869025048909"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/1285613869025048909"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/06/xy.html","title":"Southpawpunch Comments - The best of my comments that I make elsewhere"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp2.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/Rnhqm_h52LI/AAAAAAAAAHU/m4xhEdbdCaY/s72-c/knife+in+figure.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"3"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-6316489172445093355"},"published":{"$t":"2007-06-11T21:30:00.000+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2007-06-17T02:33:16.537+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"religion"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Reds and Religion"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca href\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RnSLJfh52FI/AAAAAAAAAGk/ZAL1vySNQ5c/s1600-h/goddd.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RnSLJfh52FI/AAAAAAAAAGk/ZAL1vySNQ5c/s400/goddd.jpg\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5076835675152177234\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cem\u003e“Religious suffering is, at one and the same time, the expression of real suffering and a protest against real suffering. Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is”...\u003c/em\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDo you know which famous Left quote ends the above paragraph, and which rather takes on a new meaning when read with this rarely mentioned text that prefaces it?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cem\u003e“(Religion)… It is the opium of the people.”\u003c/em\u003e(Introduction to A Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right - Karl Marx - 1844)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMany of the hardest working and lowest paid workers in London - the African women cleaners you see on the early morning nightbuses on their long commute into central London, sat with their drawn faces as they fall asleep in their seats - will seem almost joyous when you then come across them dressed up in their finery on Sundays as they travel to their church.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eReligious belief has sustained and encouraged those under the heel throughout human existence. Those African women are a good example.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut religious belief has often also been the fog of perception which coloured the way that reformers, or even revolutionaries, have perceived and sought to change the world. Revolutionary socialists need to understand religion, not dismiss it out of hand.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn the English Peasant Revolts of 1381, one of the heroic leaders of the uprising, a priest called John Ball, put the question in Christian terms - \u003cem\u003e“When Adam delved and Eve span, who was then the Gentleman?\"\u003c/em\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA few hundred years later, many of the rebels in the English Civil War also saw their strategic aims in Christian terms. Some of best fighters saw a just England as being a Christian theocracy - based upon the communal and brotherly love sections of the Bible.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo it’s no great surprise that many fighters in the current Afghani resistance will often be trying to produce an Islamic state. That’s their worldview, it’s their perception of justice and there are doubtless some progressive (but also many regressive aspects) in that aim.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt is fatally flawed - the Spartacists sometimes print a photo of street life in Kabul in 1980 - it looks a little like London in the fashions, only not a headscarf in sight on the women - but it’d be very wrong to see religious belief as necessarily always reactionary.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMany a secular red will see the religious observances of some other socialists as being unacceptable. A lot of the flack directed at Respect is based upon these concerns. And many an Indian and Indonesian socialist will be scathing about Left religious organisations for their mystical component, despite these bodies occupying more radical ground than they do.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHaving religious belief should be no disbar to joining organisations that fight for communism. To contradict what I write below about those who quote ‘holy texts’, I’d still use something from Lenin, if only I could find it. I’ll have to do it from memory -\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBolshevik acolyte:\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/em\u003e \u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-family:arial;\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eOi, Vlad, we’ve got this geezer who’s a good communist but we’ve found out he’s also in the Holy Church of the fucking Original Believers! Can you believe this muppet? Do we get rid of him, sharpish like, or what?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/em\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLenin:\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/em\u003e \u003cem\u003eDo me a favour. If he accepts the programme, argues the politics and is otherwise a good communist, what’s the fucking problem? Leave him alone.\u003c/em\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe heart of a heartless world\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s many wonderful words (such as some of the Psalms of David) and much glorious music (including the Qawwali of Abida Parveen) that has been written in the cause of religion.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIf you listen carefully to some preaching their beliefs, you can still sometimes hear a barely audible, but deeply corrupted echo, of the social movements with progressive features that they may once have been.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThese would have included the relative advances that the Koran introduced regarding womens’ entitlement to maintenance or the formal equality that Sikhs afforded women or the possibly sensible prohibitions on eating shellfish and certain other foods in a tropical climate - to prevent food poisoning - that may have been the basis for Jewish dietary restrictions.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd if you ever saunter along the serene marble floors of one of the grand Delhi gurdwaras, maybe watching people sitting around contemplating or possibly arranging marriages, you may be taken in by the peaceful and ‘spiritual’ air of the place.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s all so very pious now. But this temple may the one that was the execution ground where their guru was beheaded for leading the Sikhs in their original purpose - as an armed resistance against the fierce oppression of the ruling Mughals.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAlthough they will always have been infused with the mystical gibberish that now consumes the whole of the Sikhism (and every other religion), it’s no accident that their symbols are martial ones - the dagger that all Sikh men are supposed to wear, the iron bracelet that all wear and that was adopted to fend off sword blows or the turban and long hair that identified the devotee and made desertion harder.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSocialism and religion\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA socialist society would be tolerant of people’s religious beliefs. People would be able to worship as they wished if they didn’t harm others in doing so. Street preachers would be free to promulgate and not be harassed like they are presently. I’d be in favour of taking a majority vote, of those within earshot, to determine whether a church’s bells can keep ringing.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAdequate facilities would be provided for those who wish to practice religion. I’d imagine some reallocation of resources would occur - the state’s newly owned churches, etc., may well be swopped around so that a few well attended black churches suddenly find themselves given large former CofE churches whilst the scanty congregations of Anglican pensioners may find themselves with the occasional use of a Portakabin behind a scout hut. Whether worshippers should pay for the cost of their use of these state resources may be a moot point, I'd guess they should.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn theory, it’d be good for practices such as circumcision to be restricted to those who are old enough to make an informed choice. But in practice it would continue, as it would be an attack on certain religious groups and would also still be widely practiced (even if banned) which would cause health problems. But reds would hope and expect that religious practices, as well as religion generally and the state itself, would fall away.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe end of superstition\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eChristianity, Islam, Judaism and the rest mean many different things to their followers. Even a short perusal of the Bible will give you endless contradictory phrases. One of the most famous is \u003cem\u003e'an eye for an eye'\u003c/em\u003e versus \u003cem\u003e'turn the other cheek'.\u003c/em\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd whilst religion is sometimes the voice of the oppressed, it only grew to its tremendous former period of strength through state support - such as the Spanish Conquistadors or the legislative and administrative powers of the CofE in medieval and later England.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI was reading an interview with an observant Muslim who mentioned his acceptance of the constant pain that had been caused by an accident and from which he still suffered. He said that his religion promised rewards in the afterlife to compensate him for his present suffering.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis argument will be familiar to those indoctrinated with Christianity. I bet Judaism and more say the same. And it’s a reason why religion is such a favourite of many bosses - suffer now, accept your miserable lot. It’ll all be better in the afterlife.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt should also be remembered on what shallow ground religious doctrine rests. Take Christianity - there are, I believe, no contemporary accounts of Christ. He wasn’t mentioned by those who reported on the minor disturbances that he was said to have caused. The Gospels, the accounts of the life of Christ, were written much later by those with no small interest in the franchise - they were the first leaders of the Christian church - but even their accounts contradict each other.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd let’s not forget the centuries of translation and revision, of what someone may have written millennia before, which have followed. But then if the Roman emperor Constantine hadn’t adopted Christianity as the state religion, maybe that particular set of beliefs would have waned and died like many other forgotten creeds.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo whilst the basis of say Scientology (some of your past traumas may have been deliberately inflicted in the form of implants used by extraterrestrial dictatorships such as Helatrobus to brainwash and control humans) or of the Mormons (the Book of Mormon was written on golden plates in the 4th Century and given to Joseph Smith by an angel 1500 years later) are ludicrous, they’re no madder than those of Christianity (there was this bloke, the son of god, who fed 5000 people with five loaves and a few fish, razed Lazarus from the dead and himself came back to life three days after he was crucified).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCommunists are clear in their demands. No to any state supported religion or privileges for the superstitious. No state assistance for its propaganda - in schools and elsewhere. No faith schools. Freedom to practice and believe.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLooking in the mirror?\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI sometimes worry that revolutionary socialists take on some of the characteristics of being a modern religion.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI mean, we do love out holy writ. Although there was a lot more quoting of the texts back in the day, I did recently see someone recently trying to crush a detractor by saying 'as Lenin wrote in 1927'.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA few years ago I contemplated trying to draw a family tree of just the different branches of the Trotskyist ‘family’. I realised it’d be a tough job - too many gnarled branches, far too many broken twigs. It’d be even harder now to do this task. But to try and draw such a thing for all the different Christian sects would be a lifetime’s work.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eClear parallels can be seen between the strange and wonderful mutant strains of Christianity that have cross-fertilised, been broken off by storms or were cast asunder over the last two millennia and the twisted and incestuous lineage of today’s wild variety of revolutionary Left groups.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIs there a quantifiable law of all organisations? Maybe there needs to be a critical mass of membership that is a multiple of the percentage acceleration (where war \u003d100% and Britain in 2007 \u003d 4%) of the ‘change in society’ so as to prevent splits.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd if less than a third of the critical mass is present, does a pandemic of general craziness break out?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhich Trot organisation - with a few decades further percolation and decay - will be the first to produce eccentricities like the Anabaptist 'Harmony Society'?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis Christian commune, led by George Rapp, in 19th Century Indiana believed in chastity, communal living, hard work and the forthcoming imminent collapse of capitalism - sorry, the return of the Messiah.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s said that Rapp caused his son to bleed to death after castrating him to help with the celibacy obligation. A major split occurred when a Bernhard Muller (who liked to call himself Count Maximilian de Leon) incongruously joined the commune despite his penchant for wild parties and group sex. The Count lost a vote against the 'no sex' rule - 250 to 500 - but in true Bolshevik style, declared himself as having the majority and split.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Harmony Society lasted about 100 years, which is pretty good going considering a presumed lack of kids. The SWP and its predecessors have been going a bit less than 60 years, the AWL about 40. Let’s see if they make it to a century.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(In the thorough research you know I do before I write each article, I came across what I believe to be the present day site of the Count’s followers.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s a very conservative and mainstream American church website featuring photos of their many suburban churches - along with girls with plaits baking cakes, details of some of the Church members who are in elected office and photos of ‘Dads and Lads’ doing voluntary work clearing up a local park. If only they knew.)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOr which Trot guru is most like the British prophet, Joanna Southcott? She was active at the end of the 18th century and saw herself as a figure from the Book of Revelations. She sold places in heaven to an elect 144,000 and promised to give birth to the Messiah shortly before she died at the age of 64.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eShe left a wooden box of prophecies that was only to be opened in the presence of 24 Anglican bishops. Eventually opened, in front of one bishop in 1927, the box was found to contain items such as a lottery ticket, a pistol and some scrap paper.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Communist Party of Great Britain, at its height, had 50,00 members and lasted 71 years. It’s estimated that, at its height, there were 100,000 followers of Joanna Southcott.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd the Southcottites are still going. They advertised in the Sunday Express, in the 70s, that \"War, disease, crime and banditry will increase until the Bishops open Joanna Southcott's box.\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eYou see, it wasn’t the true box that was opened. Only they, the Panacea Society, are the true inheritors of ‘Joanna Southcott thought’, not those 1920s counter-revolutionaries. They’ve got the real box, listed assets of £20 million in their 2005 Charity Commission accounts (now there’s a worthy target for ‘entryism’) and maintain a mansion that’ll be the residence of the shortly to be returned Messiah. In Bedford.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe unknown\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt may be suggestive of an enquiring mind, those who think beyond the mundane and seek answers - be they secular or mystical - but no such credit attaches to those who just follow the faith of their fathers.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo if asked, I’m maybe a bit pedantic. I say I’m an agnostic, not an atheist. But do this pretty much in the way that I am also an agnostic communist in that I can’t say 100% that feudalism isn’t a superior system to socialism (although maybe 99.99%).\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd there are unanswerable questions. If the universe started with a Big Bang, from where did all that matter originate? And what was the origin of the origin of that matter - ad infinitum.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m not saying these questions suggest any divine element, maybe the reverse e.g. who was god’s mother? But they are all points that are beyond a response and demonstrate our unknowing. It’s good to know your limitations.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-6316489172445093355?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/6316489172445093355/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d6316489172445093355\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"6 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/6316489172445093355"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/6316489172445093355"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/06/religion-of-right.html","title":"Reds and Religion"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RnSLJfh52FI/AAAAAAAAAGk/ZAL1vySNQ5c/s72-c/goddd.jpg","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"6"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-7813468956169734674"},"published":{"$t":"2007-06-04T21:55:00.000+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2007-06-17T03:00:08.300+01:00"},"category":[{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"Rostock"},{"scheme":"http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#","term":"violence"}],"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Rostock route"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca href\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RnSVWfh52GI/AAAAAAAAAGs/ZzyWELV0GOo/s1600-h/Internet+Explorer+Wallpaper.bmp\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;\" src\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RnSVWfh52GI/AAAAAAAAAGs/ZzyWELV0GOo/s400/Internet+Explorer+Wallpaper.bmp\" border\u003d\"0\" alt\u003d\"\"id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5076846893606754402\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMy spirits were raised watching protestors taking on the paramilitary arm of the state in Rostock a few days ago, ahead of this week’s G8 summit\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I’ll bet a penny to a pound that the eyes of many British (and other) Lefts eyes glazed over when watching this footage. I know many would have seen little link between this ‘adventurism’ in a Baltic seaport and what they think revolutionary socialists should do.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAdapt\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA lot of Lefts will counterpose work in trade unions, participation in tenants associations and activity in similar bodies to mobilising offensively against the state on the streets in situations like Rostock\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA few will even see a willingness to work in mass social democratic or Labour parties as being necessary for someone not to be considered as being a dilettante on the margins of the socialist movement. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThat'd be an archaic view of what makes for a good communist. It was quite possibly never true but any such arguments would now be unsupportable - with low levels of union density, greater movement of workers, mass casualisation of labour and more. People still organise but not in the ways that they did\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSome Left leaders still see anyone with pink hair, a liking for consuming illegal substances or a penchant for participating in unconventional sexual arrangements as being unreliable. Outward revolutionary views can sometimes mask a conservative thinking on how people should live.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe result of such myopia can be to pass by the opportunities that new and emerging social movements can offer. The large scale violent resistance at Seattle kickstarted the anti-globalisation or anti-capitalism movement in a way that no end of Oxfam campaigns, celebrity endorsed initiatives or UN resolutions had previously managed. It also inducted a swathe of new people into protest politics\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOrientate\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s correct to orientate to such movements - the cause is just, the politics are correct. We should celebrate, participate and adopt as part of our strategy those mobilisations that seek to directly confront capitalism. Any communist organisation needs a street fighting ability presence - we want to overthrow capitalism, not play hopscotch with it. And we also want to attract to our communist politics the best elements of those who fight back.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd it’s amongst such people that new and innovative ways of resistance will develop. Revolutionary socialists may have some concerns about a few anarchist inspired developments - such as consensus decisions - but these are also a good example of a welcome rethinking of the basics, such as what form should meetings take, that augur well for the sharp thinking of the originators of these ideas. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo a banner that I saw displayed in Rostock and that was based on the computer message - 'System Error:--\u003eRestart/Quit' - had a lot more punch than a turgid banner displaying just a organisation’s name could ever display. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSeattle inspired many. And the movement of which it was part wasn’t fated to degenerate into just being a support movement for the Naomi Kleins or Susan Georges of this world. That initiative didn’t need to have petered out into the insipid shambles that were events like the London European Social Forum. Communist politics and organisation can develop and sustain these strands of resistance.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRostock\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe violence at Rostock seemed quite extensive. Cops claim that 25,000 marched, organisers said 80,000. There was reported to be battles \u003cem\u003e“between some 2,000 protesters and 5,000 baton-wielding riot police using tear gas and water cannon. At least three cars were set on fire. Police were pelted with Molotov cocktails and cobblestones ripped up from the streets and ferried to a front line in stolen supermarket trolleys.”\u003c/em\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003ePolice claim 433 of their officers were injured, 33 of them seriously, although I don’t know if the German cops go sick with a few scratches, like British cops do, to get a few days off. 520 demonstrators are reported to have been injured with 20 severely affected. An estimated 165 protesters were arrested.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s a credible argument that the cops provoked the trouble in Rostock. A protestor commented \u003cem\u003e“You have to ask why the Police would want to kick things off when the demo had been so peaceful? No one had deviated from the route of the march. No banks or corporate concerns had been scrawled on or attacked. In fact nothing illegal had happened at all.”\u003c/em\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s hard to say what really happened but it doesn’t matter. Revolutionary socialists don’t care who started the aggro first (and I mean in any current confrontation - who did actually start all the trouble? The first caveman who started trying to sell ‘his’ surplus to the rest?)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut that’s not to say that we are indifferent to the reporting of events. We are keen to point out when the state attacks first, particularly when the media reports the contrary. We seek to expose the way that the cops and similar will quickly turn to violence. We do this as a lesson both to those who think peaceful change is possible and also to undermine the common caricature that it's always us who seek to provoke trouble. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe press reported that the biggest ‘aggressive’ group was the Black Bloc. Certainly the mass I saw of those taking on the cops were dressed all in that colour. My understanding is that most of them would be of an anarchist disposition but I also believe the Bloc to be a fluid organisation - it contains those with disparate anti-capitalist views.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI was a little surprised to see that the flags I saw, in a few brief TV clips, were mainly red including some from the Trotskyist youth group ‘Revolution’. There were also some with hammer and sickles as well as a few red and black (anarcho-syndicalist) banners. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs per usual, a diversionary concert had been organised. What are protestors doing, after travelling hundreds or thousands of miles, allowing themselves be fobbed off with the chance to listen to some bands instead of marching and more?\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCommunists and violence\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCommunists differentiate between the violence of the state and that used to seek to overthrow those who rule. We support comrades’ violence, whether its ‘reactive’ or ‘proactive’. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe may or may not think that going on the offensive is a sensible tactic at a particular juncture. We also realise that such violence is only a small part of a total strategy to overthrow a regime (and I’m sure even the most hard-line anarchist streetfighter also sees their actions as just one of many tactics). But once things kick off, we know which side we are on. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eCommunists and anarchists and other comrades need to follow tactics and marshal their demos. Provocations will be made by glory hunters and stupid moves undertaken by the naïve. I remember being slightly injured on a demo in London when members of the Revolutionary Communist Party threw sticks and bottles at the cops from the second rank and then scarpered leaving us exposed at the front to bear the brunt of the cops’ reaction.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnyone sussed sees that street organisation has its limitations. A large percentage of those involved in such activities are in their teens or twenties. No or very few women are there. But such mobilisations are a necessary part of our fightback. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s also true that, for every brick lobbed, the more the likelihood that the Towcester Christians at Prayer Together for Peace Group won't book a coach and travel down to the demo. It’d be sectarian to not want concerned social activists to come along but it'd also be suicidal to our politics to let them determine the agenda.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eClose the 'arms gap'\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBetter organisation is also needed to maintain a street presence. The ‘arms gap’ between the agents of the rulers and those who are ruled has been increasing. We need to think about how we deal with new challenges like the following.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI previously predicted that police drones would soon be flying overhead in Britain to watch and record. It was \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/21/black_helicopters_over_merseyside/\"\u003ereported\u003c/a\u003e\u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/05/21/black_helicopters_over_merseyside/\"\u003e \u003c/a\u003elast month that these have now started flying in Liverpool. Let’s see where they are first armed in Britain, like they are now in Afghanistan and elsewhere.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eGerman cops have developed a technique of recording peoples’ odours. A few weeks ago they conducted raids to collect the smell signature of various activists. They obliged them to hold bundle of metal tubes in their clenched fists for several minutes to absorb their odour. The cops said that they were doing this to look for suspects for a crime but it has been reported that they would be likely to use these techniques to get police dogs to single out individuals. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e(I’m always wary of being spun a line by the state, as they like to install fear and dread by bigging up their technical capabilities. Would they be able to easily manufacture a smell that is a close enough match to that of their target to waft under the nose of a police dog? Or can they preserve original samples well enough to be reused?)\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe opposition\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe BBC report on the Rostock trouble that I saw appeared to have planned in advance between the news team and the spokesperson from Oxfam who was their interviewee. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe NGO person was just there to ritually condemn the violence - that’s the violence of the protestors, of course. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eFed line after line by the BBC journalist like ‘these protestors aren't helping, are they?’ or ‘what do you have to say about these people who are ruining it for everybody?’ the Oxfam person wouldn’t allow herself to be bettered by anyone in her forceful condemnation of those who want to fight capitalism rather than make it just seem a little fluffier. She also claimed that the only way that change can be achieved is through dialogue with politicians - if people are violent, ministers won't listen.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWell, be as on message and engaged with politicians as you like, Ms. NGO. Let them humour you and give you the time of day. But they are paying next to no attention to your arguments or advancing anything more than a mite from their Treasury. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAt the Gleneagles G8 meeting two years ago, the assembled prime ministers and presidents agreed that aid to Africa should be doubled. A report last month said that the G7 countries had increased aid by less than half the amount of what would be needed to reach this target - indeed Italian aid has fallen 30% in this period. NGOs also claim there’s a gap of $10bn between what was promised at Gleneagles and what has been delivered.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd the Independent on Sunday reported last week that \u003cem\u003e“nine out of 10 HIV positive pregnant women in the poorest countries do not get drugs to stop them passing on the disease to their foetus despite the G7 countries pledged universal access by 2010 at the Gleneagles summit.”\u003c/em\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWhy on the streets?\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s doubtless hard to put a finger on exactly why the USA gave up on supporting the South Vietnamese regime. Many a book has been written proclaiming why, with the reasons coloured by what the writer wanted to impart in way of their political analysis.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut it seems pretty clear to me that the mass mobilisations - sometimes violent, sometimes not; often student based, sometimes wider - helped deal this body blow to the world’s strongest power. \u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere never was a point were the US rulers thought that the protestors would overrun Washington or make New York ungovernable but the attrition of these mobilisations had a powerful effect on the ruling class in the States. It influenced a whole culture and percolated through a generation.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWhen Congressmen went back to their constituencies, their peers argued with them for US withdrawal from Indo China. The American rulers were collectively ground down and pushed into despondency by the resistance to their war undertaken by their own compatriots.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe're in no position to beat the state on the street. Only in very few places could we even force it into a stalemate. But we can inflict major damage, advance our cause and both inspire \u0026amp; induct new fighters for justice by following such a path in the same way that the anti Vietnam War protests rejuvenated the American Left.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd so we should seek to mobilise. Yes, in our trade unions. Yes, in our community organisations. Yes, amongst ‘affinity' groups.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd, yes, on the streets.\u003cdiv class\u003d\"blogger-post-footer\"\u003e\u003cimg width\u003d'1' height\u003d'1' src\u003d'https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/20713045-7813468956169734674?l\u003dsouthpawpunch.blogspot.com' alt\u003d'' /\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},"link":[{"rel":"replies","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/feeds/7813468956169734674/comments/default","title":"Post Comments"},{"rel":"replies","type":"text/html","href":"https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID\u003d20713045\u0026postID\u003d7813468956169734674\u0026isPopup\u003dtrue","title":"13 Comments"},{"rel":"edit","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/7813468956169734674"},{"rel":"self","type":"application/atom+xml","href":"http://www.blogger.com/feeds/20713045/posts/default/7813468956169734674"},{"rel":"alternate","type":"text/html","href":"http://southpawpunch.blogspot.com/2007/06/rostock-route.html","title":"Rostock route"}],"author":[{"name":{"$t":"Southpawpunch"},"uri":{"$t":"http://www.blogger.com/profile/16983582539891307841"},"email":{"$t":"southpawpunch@gmail.com"},"gd$extendedProperty":{"xmlns$gd":"http://schemas.google.com/g/2005","name":"OpenSocialUserId","value":"17429153367638969080"}}],"media$thumbnail":{"xmlns$media":"http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/","url":"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RnSVWfh52GI/AAAAAAAAAGs/ZzyWELV0GOo/s72-c/Internet+Explorer+Wallpaper.bmp","height":"72","width":"72"},"thr$total":{"xmlns$thr":"http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0","$t":"13"}},{"id":{"$t":"tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20713045.post-3795674574640840966"},"published":{"$t":"2007-05-21T23:53:00.000+01:00"},"updated":{"$t":"2007-06-10T16:51:46.038+01:00"},"title":{"type":"text","$t":"Hodge on Housing /  Damp Squibs / High Rise Hysteria / Recommended Blogs / Website"},"content":{"type":"html","$t":"\u003ca onblur\u003d\"try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}\" href\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RlImpdHfQcI/AAAAAAAAAFY/Fn4NfeoSwCA/s1600-h/fire.jpg\"\u003e\u003cimg style\u003d\"margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;\" src\u003d\"http://bp0.blogger.com/_KB3h9XkZ9cQ/RlImpdHfQcI/AAAAAAAAAFY/Fn4NfeoSwCA/s400/fire.jpg\" alt\u003d\"\" id\u003d\"BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5067155024377758146\" border\u003d\"0\" /\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003eHodge on Housing\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eA government minister, Margaret Hodge MP, has broken with political convention and come out in support of a policy that cannot be disguised as being anything other than discriminatory against non-Brits.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eShe's said that British people should get priority over immigrants for council housing. She wants the allocation system - which works through using a points system - to give weight to length of residence, citizenship and payment of National Insurance contributions. At present, council housing is allocated on a points system that is geared towards prioritising those in most need through awarding priority to those in bad health, currently living in poor conditions, overcrowded, etc.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRevealing his usually ill disguised ‘liberalism’, President of the Liberal Democrats, Simon Hughes MP, appears to be endorsing Hodge’s approach by saying that housing allocation was among the biggest causes of racism - \"The worst cause of racial strife and antagonism is when new property is built, social property, and then people who appear to have no link with the community move into it, when other people who may be desperately needing to move, can't get a move.\" Hughes has a long history of bending to reactionary attitudes displayed by some of his constituents.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThis is also one initiative where the ‘new’ Tories aren’t going to make much effort to maintain their recent ‘cuddly’ veneer. They’ve jumped in and said that they've been saying all along that the problems of immigration needs to be seriously addressed by measures such as this.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMargaret Hodge, who as the BBC points out was born in Egypt, said rules should \"promote tolerance rather than inviting division\". But there’s little that can be imagined to ‘invite division’ such as giving the 'native' population - usually white, but not always so - priority for public housing over those residents with greater need.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s no accident that Hodge is the MP for one of the last remaining (until recently) near all-white and poor areas in London. Barking has also seen more electoral support for the BNP than anywhere else in the country. The policy she proposes could have been written by that party.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI think it may be significant that it would be hard for anyone, with a straight face, to argue that her proposals are anything other than open discrimination. All the major parties, for the last thirty or forty years, have always swore blind that they are opposed to all forms of discrimination and will argue, sometimes in the face of all evidence, that they don’t support bigotry.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOnce these politicians don’t feel the need to ‘cover’ themselves anymore, what other festering policies might they pull out of their party wheelie bins? It'll be interesting to see whether this may be a harbinger of new ‘common-sense’ policies that will no longer feel the need to be in line with the ‘equalities’ consensus.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDamp Squibs\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI saw a programme about the different approaches to fighting forest fires in the extensive woodlands of the western USA and in the endless tree cover of Siberia.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn the States, the fire-fighters were fully resourced and sent out with all the latest kit. They travelled to the fires in helicopters, in All Terrain Vehicles and by light plane. They were in constant touch with base and worked in teams to tackle the blaze.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe Russians were unceremoniously parachuted out of passing plane with nothing but a few tools - an axe, a saw, etc - to fight the fire. They needed to improvise. They set to work hacking down trees to make firebreaks. They weren’t in touch with their base and no back up was available.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt strikes me that the task of Lefts is not dissimilar to these firefighters, but with a twist - we want to help spread these blazes that have already broken out or even do a bit of arson.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLefts in this country have never been organised like those American firefighters. We’re also in somewhat a worse position than those Russians tackling blazes in the far easterly Tundra. It's like we’re stuck in Moscow trying to cadge the fare to get on the Trans Siberian Express to work.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eWe have next to no equipment or little experience in teamwork but we clearly aren’t very good at the improvisation either - it may be obvious that if you deny a forest fire of trees to burn, it will die out but we have no clue about where to buy accelerants, never mind where to use them.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIt’s hard work racing around looking for a few embers that may be past saving or that will never get going. If we do get to a few sparks, we may often find that we can only make a futile attempt to reignite them with half a box full of safety matches but no striker or, more usually, with a handful of damp tinder and no means of a light.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ve covered this theme before. I’m even running out of metaphors to describe it - as the above laboured paragraph demonstrates.  I would have left it alone for a while, if it wasn’t for the outpouring of directionless frenzy and then mournful despair that was a result of the brief flowering and then wilting of John McDonnell’s bid to be Leader of the Labour Party.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eDave Osler sums up some of the issues well when he \u003ca href\u003d\"http://www.davidosler.com/2007/05/after_mcdonnell_whats_next.html\"\u003esays.\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-style: italic;\"\u003e\"Based on my involvement with the Socialist Labour Party and the Socialist Alliance, it doesn’t look like there is currently any possibility of building a meaningful left political formation outside of Labour.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAs the electoral wipeout of the Scottish Socialist Party underlines, even if Respect or the CNWP were to make limited headway, it is most unlikely that they would be able to consolidate it.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThen again, the McDonnell campaign illustrates that it is currently impossible to build any meaningful left current within the Labour Party, either.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eLet me just sum all that up. All tactics have been tried; all have been shown to fail. Not only are there no short cuts, there isn't even a long way round.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAbout the only useful work Marxists in Britain can undertake right now is to utilise whatever limited avenues for activism are available– which might be the Labour Party, the Greens or leftwing parties that have a local base, or more likely the trade unions or single issue campaign based - …\"\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI endorse his views that much everything - a Left Labour Party (SLP), a Left of Labour Party (Socialist Alliance) - and more - have been tried and have failed. Whether they didn’t work because of the concrete circumstances then or because of the way these putative parties were led - and whether they would work if tried again now, but in a better manner - can be but moot points.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eSo I have no answers. The Campaign for a New Workers Party is worth supporting but it’s also a small formation based on the Socialist Party (with some support from other organisations) that hasn’t yet shown it can grow.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eRespect is both a Left AND Right popular front that would be liable to being instantly dismissed if it wasn’t also the home of the largest British Left party, the SWP. It's seen both Lefts and Rights elected as councillors!\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI don’t know what to do. I’m sitting, waiting but also doing whatever I can to support a regroupment of British Left forces. Apart from that, work in the trade unions and in single-issue campaigns is also a necessary tactic for all. Comrades did succeed in establishing a party in Scotland. They’ve suffered major recent setbacks but are still going on, even if now split in two.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut I know what I’m not going to do. The Labour Party has not once turned leftwards since 1981 or 1982. It’s either being turning right or maintaining a steady course for those last twenty-five years or so.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eMcDonnell dropped all the Leftism, hyped his campaign relentlessly and was despatched with just a slight movement of Gordon Brown’s languorous eyelids.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eAnd still ‘Lefts’ say, ‘never mind, we must go back and reorganise’. The Labour Party will very probably never again be home to the sort of politics that these Labour Lefts want. Left Labour types often don't realise that parties change, sentiment deceives. But if they can’t see that, after a few decades of its recent history, they really are dead for all useful political purposes.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eHigh Rise Hysteria \u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI haven’t bought a local newspaper for a long time. Their poor diet of stern looking Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinators (always with arms crossed) surveying their patch; regurgitated advertorial dressed up as restaurant reviews and council PR output masquerading as news isn’t often anymore worth reading than random pages in a telephone directory.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eBut my eye was taken by the photo on a front page of local rag in north east London. It reminded me a little of the shot taken in the immediate aftermath of the assassination of Martin Luther King when shocked bystanders were all looking up towards the presumed firing position of the shooter.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThere’s a local paper tradition were a victim is asked to recreate the look on their face they were displaying when they first became newsworthy. So a few days after being mugged in her home, a compliant pensioner will be requested to repeat the look of fear, as well as the shying away, as though the photographer is demanding her life savings rather than asking her to pose for a picture. The photo that caught my eye was very much in that tradition.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIn this shot, everyone is also looking in the same direction and grimacing. But that look of great apprehension on their faces was about a ‘problem’ that's just in their fertile imagination and is unlikely ever to escape from there.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe story is that a high rise block of flats is being erected near an infants school. And, horror of horrors, the youngsters’ playground will be overlooked by these new residences.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eOne of those pictured in the paper, beadily looking upper stage right towards fantasy miscreants, is the local MP (and former Conservative party leader) Iain Duncan-Smith.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eIDS’s quoted in the article as saying the new development could become a \"paedophile's paradise\". And, he also goes on to say \"It raises questions about who is going to be living in these flats, and for all we know it is people with a motive for living near a school.\"\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI know that fear. I recently visited a school. After signing in, I needed to wait whilst someone scurried away to a back office to check my bona fides. Then on passing through this outer citadel, I had that woman from the office rubbernecking my further progress from behind whilst I was under the watchful eye of someone else who had been despatched from the inner sanctum to stand near the door, so as to monitor my walk across the playground. I can only presume that their actions were to ensure that I didn’t break step and make use of any blind spots to dash into a classroom and go on a rampage.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’ll update you here when IDS succeeds in raising a posse of locals - whose eyebrows meet in the middle - and manages to burn out anyone who moves into the new block.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cspan style\u003d\"font-weight: bold;\"\u003eRecommended Blogs\u003cbr /\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI’m pleased to be adding a couple of new websites to my select list of \u003ca href\u003d\"http://southpawpunch.googlepages.com/recommendedblogs\"\u003erecommended blogs\u003c/a\u003e that are written by revolutionary socialists.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eI first heard of \u003ca href\u003d\"http://louisproyect.wordpress.com/\"\u003eLouis Proyect\u003c/a\u003e when I signed up a few years ago, rather rashly, for a Marxist email discussion list. I was new to those kinds of things and I probably didn’t set up my account very well.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eEvery time I looked at my email account there would be various new Marxist messages from around the globe. These messages mainly seemed written to take apart previous contributions to the discussion list - and to do so with a blunt cleaver. And then when I logged in later, these messages had bred further and  mutated. These mongrel posts then spawned no end of rabid puppies that fought to the death in subscribers’ email boxes. I unsubscribed.\u003cbr /\u003e\u003cbr /\u003eThe quality of many Left blogs in the USA appears to