Marxsite Home Page
Marxsite Home Page The content of this new site is fresh and interesting. Wish I could say the same for the design. They do use one of my pictures though, as does the next issue of Socialist Campaign Group News. Hey, just noticed an interview with me is recommended by them (blushes).
:: | 5:08 pm |Save This Page | |
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Layout-o-matic
Layout-o-matic This is actually quite revolutionary. An easy way to generate basic table-free css layouts. And not forgetting list-a-matic 2
:: | 12:27 pm |
:: Monday, September 29, 2003 ::
The Appledore Work-In
The Appledore Work-In
Workers at the Appledore shipyard in Devon have occupied to defend their jobs. In a great example of using the web for online solidarity, a blog has been set up in their support. The blog was initially set up by SSP members in Scotland to help those running the sit-in keep people updated. It shows how the web helps people bring their skills to bear to bring solidarity regardless of distance. The site makes it easy to send messages of support and donations and also to fax the local MP.
Check it out at the link above, and spread the word.
:: | 11:54 am |
End the Occupations of Iraq and Palestine. Demonstration, Edinburgh 27.9.03
End the Occupations of Iraq and Palestine. Demonstration, Edinburgh 27.9.03
Pictures of Saturdays 1500 strong demonstration in Edinburgh can be seen here.
:: | 11:44 am |
:: Saturday, September 27, 2003 ::
To be perfectly Frank
Frank Black and the Catholics, Edinburgh Liquid Rooms, 26.09.2003
The Liquid Rooms was sold out for the return of Black Francis. His set had a Springsteenesque quality, which in this case was a good thing.
No mention of the Pixies reunion tour, but we did get Dress, Caribou and My Velouria alongside the solo greats like Headache.
:: | 11:21 pm |
:: Friday, September 26, 2003 ::
Stupid actor says stupid stuff
BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Showbiz | Actor Willis' $1m Saddam bounty: "During an interview Willis said: 'Peculiar thing back home is that the liberal media was trying to portray it as a bad war.
'But being over here just a couple of days, seeing how well our troops and the allied troops are being received here, (I) think the Iraqi people are happy we're here,' the Hollywood star said.
'Children are being taken care of, starting being inoculated, starting being looked after. Wherever these guys go they get thumbs up. They no longer have to contend with the terrorist leader,' Willis said.
But the star later admitted he had not met many Iraqis because he had been travelling the country by helicopter. "
:: | 3:35 pm |
:: Thursday, September 25, 2003 ::
The Scotsman - Politics - Seconds out in SNP leadership contest
The Scotsman - Politics - Seconds out in SNP leadership contest
And one of Mr Wilson’s supporters, who did not want to be named, said: "They are trying to New Labourise the party but they are not as good at it as New Labour. This party used to be radical, but not any more."
Further to yesterday's comments.
:: | 10:35 am |
:: Wednesday, September 24, 2003 ::
Where are the 'Tartan Tonies' taking the SNP?
Where are the 'Tartan Tonies' taking the SNP?
The Herald today sees Ian MacWhirter refer to Scottish National Party leader John Swinney as "the architect of Bradford and Bingley nationalism". He sure is a charisma free zone. But the uninspiring leadership of Mr Swinney is just one of the reasons for the current problems of the SNP. The SNP meet for their conference today in Inverness. Conferences can be used to rally parties who are doing well, witness the lib-dems this week basking in the glory of Brent East and record opinion polls. But they can also draw attention to the problems a party has.
John Swinney will surely win against Bill Wilson, who is challenging him from the left. But the current existential crisis of the SNP won't go away. The problem is that the SNP doesn't know what kind of party it is. It used to be to the left of centre, but Swinney and his acolytes like Sturgeon, MacAskill and the appalling Mike Russell, are dragging it to the right at a relentless pace.
They want to play up to the rural north-east political base of the party. They want to reposition the SNP as a safe pair of hands. "We want to be a party of government not a party of protest" is Swinneys current mantra, as if the two were mutually exclusive. Sound familiar? Yes it's 'the project' Caledonian style, the blairisation of the SNP, the birth of the "Tartan Tonies". They may even want to drop the idea of independence altogether and go for what is being called the "Catalonian option" of greater autonomy.
This could tear the party apart. The Scottish Socialist Party is certainly putting pressure on from the left, taking big chunks of the SNP vote away on May 1st and calling for an independence convention. Tommy Sheridan is speaking at a conference fringe meeting this week. The Tories and Labour are also piling in and kicking the SNP when it's down.
There is a generation of Scottish Nationalists who found their politics during the Thatcher era. They think Scotland should be independent so that it can pursue a more socially egalitarian political course. Many of them would describe themselves as socialists. Of course Thatcher damaged working class people in many parts of England too (the north-east and north-west particularly) but, for better or worse, Scotland has a national consciousness that these areas lack. Many of this generation now face membership in a right-wing party that does not even support independence. There is no doubt that many will find their way to the SSP.
In truth it is impossible to call for or deliver independence within the framework of modern capitalist globalisation. "Independence in Europe" is increasingly becoming a tautology. The EU has ever greater power over questions such as public spending and public ownership. EU accords enforce privatisation of public services such as phones and power. The euro sets limits on public spending. The European constitution will further erode democracy in the EU. It is against this background that the Swedes voted to stay out of the euro.
There can be no strategy for Scottish independence that does not include a strategy against big business, corporate globalisation and those who really wield power in Scotland, the UK and the EU.
There can be no independence which is based on isolation either. As well as a new vision of independence, a new type of internationalism needs to be reforged, an internationalism from below that respects national rights, that cherishes peace and justice.
:: | 2:52 pm |
:: Tuesday, September 23, 2003 ::
Cold day in hell
I liked this story in The Herald diary today.
SATANIC-MINDED teenage devotees of Norwegian black metal descended on Glasgow's Barfly in force on Sunday night for Mortiis's gig. As ever, the band's front man, Mortiis himself, was dressed as a scarey Scandic troll, his face obscured by an alarming mask featuring a huge pointed nose and grotesque ears. Having bellowed six evil anthems in an inhuman baritone, Mortiis suddenly roared: "Glasgow!" Mimicking Beezlebub's horns, fans extended their index and little fingers. However, they seemed unconcerned by the less-than-hellish nature of their hero's ultimate message. "I'm terribly sorry," Mortiis politely said in an everyday voice, "but I've a terrible cold."
:: | 11:15 am |
:: Monday, September 22, 2003 ::
List-o-matic - generate CSS-styled navigation based on list items
List-o-matic - generate CSS-styled navigation based on list items This rules.
:: | 1:29 pm |
:: Sunday, September 21, 2003 ::
Might Be Stars - Before and After
The Wannadies live, Edinburgh Liquid Rooms, Saturday 20th September
A disappointing turnout but a good gig from Swedish popsters The Wannadies. They were promoting their new album but played a set (chosen, they maintained, by the roadies) from across their career, even playing vintage songs at the behest of the audience. And of course those 'be a girl' favourites. "yeah they're mainstream, but they're good songs" opined Mr lead singer Wannadie.
You can find another pic from the gig here, might post another on the fotolog tomorrow.
:: | 5:11 pm |
:: Saturday, September 20, 2003 ::
Free Joe Higgins and Clare Daly!
Socialist Party - Beat the Bin Tax Homepage "THE JAILING of Joe Higgins T.D. and Cllr. Clare Daly for a month will not break the massive opposition in Dublin to the bin tax and to the draconian policy of leaving thousands of bins of householders boycotting the bin tax uncollected.How ironic that fighters for taxation justice should be imprisoned, while sitting in the Dáil and Councils around the country are many establishment representatives who were in the pockets of developers and speculators."
Irish TD Joe Higgins and Dublin councillor Clare Daly have been jailed for standing up for the poor. Check out the site above for details of where you can protest
:: | 3:57 pm |
:: Friday, September 19, 2003 ::
Brent East and the Left
Brent East By-Election Result
Sarah Teather (Lib Dem) 8,158 39.1%
Robert Evans (Labour) 7,040 33.8%
Uma Fernandes (Conservative) 3,368 16.2%
Noel Lynch (Green) 638 3.1%
Brian Butterworth (Socialist Alliance) 361 1.7 %
Khidori Fawzi Ibrahim (Public Services Not War) 219 1.1%
Winston McKenzie (Independent) 197 0.9%
Kelly McBride (Independent) 189 0.9%
Harold Immanuel (Independent Labour) 188 0.9%
Brian Hall (UK Independence Party) 140 0.7%
Iris Cremer (Socialist Labour Party) 111 0.5%
Neil Walsh (Independent) 101 0.5%
Alan Howling Lord Hope (Monster Raving Loony Party) 59 0.3%
Aaron Barschack (No description) 37 0.2%
Jiten Bardwaj (No description) 35 0.2%
Rainbow George Weiss (WWW.XAT.ORG) 11 0.1%
The victory of the lib-dems in Brent shows just how vulnerable Tony Blair has become. Whilst it is quite true that those voting in by-elections often choose to punish the incumbent government, this is Labour's first by-election defeat for 15 years. New Labour must have hoped for a win here, albeit a narrow one. After all, they must have reasoned that the economy is in a strong position with stable inflation and the lowest unemployment figures since 1975. Of course New Labour's neo-liberal economic policy means that whilst there is wealth in society, it is distributed unevenly, to the benefit of the rich. Many of the new jobs are low paid, often at the pitifully low national minimum wage.
But this result was not primarily about the economy. It was about the tarnished reputation of the government. Tarnished by their enthusiastic team-up with Bush's imperial project in Iraq, tarnished by their dismissal of mass popular opposition to the Iraq war and of course tarnished by Kelly, Hutton and the lies and spin about WMD's that were the pretext for war.
As the Guardian noted "In the shadow of Iraq and the Hutton inquiry, Labour found itself struggling against the perception that the government is untrustworthy, coupled with general disquiet over the state of public services." Yeah, plenty of money to bomb and occupy Iraq, not so much to sort out the health service or our appalling public transport system. And what investment there is comes in large part from PFI/PPP schemes, i.e. privatisation.
The criticisms made of the New Labour project by many at the TUC have struck a popular chord amongst a sector of the electorate who would like to see Labour go in a more traditional social-democratic direction, paying more attention to the poor than to big business, and keeping out of Bush's imperialist adventures.
A perfect recipe for the socialist left to do well one would think? Sadly not. The anti-war vote clearly went to the lib-dems, who made it a campaigning issue. Newsnight showed their glossy and attractive leaflets advising voters to punish Blair for Iraq by voting for them. The Socialist Alliance came fifth with 1.7% of the vote, beaten by the Greens. So the SA was not even the second choice of the anti-war voters.
The SA is led by many of the same people who lead the mass movement around the Stop the War Coalition, which saw millions take to the streets. But clearly not many of those from Brent who marched on February 15th voted SA.
It is true that voters in by-elections are more likely to back the opposition party who are best placed to win. Quite possibly many of those who sympathised with the SA voted lib-dem. But the low vote indicates that even this doesn't account for the poor showing of the socialist left. Quite simply, they lack credibility amongst the electorate.
Part of this can be explained by the fact that on that same February 15th demo Charles Kennedy, lib-dem leader, was one of the headline speakers, whilst there were no SA speakers. SWP members were discouraged from distributing SA material and told instead to concentrate on selling Socialist Worker. After all, this was the big chance for the "revolutionary party". The truth is that organisations that only exist at election time do nothing to earn people's trust or support. In fact the reality is that few voters will have heard of them.
Another factor is the continuing division amongst the English left. The Socialist Alliance and Socialist Labour Party both contested this seat and there were also individuals describing themselves as 'Independent Labour' and 'Anti-War and Anti-Privatisation'. Why should voters have any faith in groups who can't even get it together to agree amongst themselves? It's hardly inspiring. The contrast with the gains made in Scotland by the SSP couldn't be clearer, where a united left has made a breakthrough that has put socialist ideas back on the agenda and is forcing policy changes on issues like the detention of refugees.
No, we haven't got all the answers and yes there are significant differences in politics between England and Scotland. But without credibility there is no future for the English left. It's time to get serious about building a united, pluralistic party for ALL the left in England.
:: | 12:24 pm |
:: Thursday, September 18, 2003 ::
Aarhh, Jim Lad
Talk Like A Pirate Day - September 19
Better get some practice in for tomorrow.
Rum: Why should I let a stupid cockerel like you aboard me boat?
Blackadder: Perhaps for the money in my purse [holding it up]
Rum: Ha. -Aah! You have a woman's purse! [takes it from him and
examines it daintily] I'll wager that purse has never been
used as a rowing-boat. I'll wager it's never had sixteen
shipwrecked mariners tossing in it.
:: | 5:07 pm |
:: Tuesday, September 16, 2003 ::
Music News
Upcoming gigs, The Wannadies and Frank Black and hopefully the Dexys reunion tour. Pixies are reforming, or are they? Mark Kozeleck forming a new band, NME is going to be spoiled, aye things aren't like they used to be it wiz all fields round here when I wiz a laddie etc...
:: | 2:30 pm |
The Herald
The Herald has finally had a much needed facelift and no longer looks like it was designed in 1997. Still table-bound, but an improvement.
:: | 10:35 am |
:: Friday, September 12, 2003 ::
Cheating Bastards
What do the Young Tories have in common with Scotland's Christian Dailly? Via Nick Barlow
'VOTE RIGGING' ROW ROCKS YOUNG TORIES : - Daily Mirror, 11/9/03, p.20
The Tory party's youth wing is in crisis after allegations of vote rigging led to chaos at its conference.
Eight candidates for top posts resigned as outraged rivals called each other "cheating bastards" on stage.
A BBC documentary crew was asked to leave the floor in a bid to stop news of Sunday's row getting out...
One who those who quit, Andre Walker , said in an angry speech "We can now prove head of youth policy David Pugh is a cheating bastard. The system is so corrupt we must act."
Members of the Tory youth - known as Conservative Future - now plan a breakaway organisation.
Last night Central Office said: "We have faith in our senior officials who oversee internal elections".
David Pugh said yesterday he had no comment on claims he was a "cheating bastard". He added: "I'm not going to respond to that".
"Cheats, f***ing cheats" - Christian Dailly, loudly, on live TV following Scotland-Germany game.
:: | 5:00 pm |
Johnny Cash 1932-2003
The brilliant Johnny Cash, dead at the age of 71.
:: | 11:29 am |
:: Thursday, September 11, 2003 ::
Remember September 11th 1973
:: | 10:47 am |
:: Wednesday, September 10, 2003 ::
Terrorising Democracy
British police have used "emergency" terrorist legislation, which gives them draconian powers to stop and search demonstrators who were quite legally exercising their right to protest against an international arms fair being held in London.
The BBC reported:
Liberty director Shami Chakrabarti said: "Our complaint is that Terrorism Act powers - very draconian emergency powers that were passed through Parliament with a view to being used in very extreme situations - appear to have been used possibly to quell protest."
This is the problem with repressive legislation. It's always aimed against "bad guys" and ends up being used against whoever is around. Blunkett thinks they should have used some different repressive legislation.
The excuse the police used was that it was near to the anniversary of September 11th. Presumably they were referring to the destruction of the World Trade Centre in New York and not the fascist coup against a democratically elected government in Chile which happened on September 11th 1973.
:: | 5:00 pm |
Dotty
Some small changes made to my blogger template. Oooh, dotted underline on the links hover state.
:: | 4:13 pm |
:: Tuesday, September 09, 2003 ::
The Baghdad Blogger
Baghdad blogger Salam Pax has become a bit of a media star in the UK. The Guardian, who publish his work, have a piece on why he started blogging and how he played cat-and-mouse with the Iraqi secret police 'I became the profane pervert Arab blogger'. And he was on the Today programme this morning with a charming interview. You can read the Today webchat transcript too. Now he has a book out. Whether the immediacy and drama of a weblog can translate to the somewhat different media of books is an open question.
**UPDATE**
Check out the website for this book, including a sample chapter.
http://www.thebaghdadblog.com
:: | 12:23 pm |
The forgotten story of Chile's 'socialist internet'
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Andy Beckett: The forgotten story of Chile's 'socialist internet': "When Pinochet's military overthrew the Chilean government 30 years ago, they discovered a revolutionary communication system, a 'socialist internet' connecting the whole country. Its creator? An eccentric scientist from Surrey. Andy Beckett on the forgotten story of Stafford Beer "
I knew we invented it. I just knew.
:: | 10:17 am |
:: Monday, September 08, 2003 ::
People Have the Power. Close Dungavel.
Shut Down Dungavel! Demonstration 6th September 2003. A great turnout of over 2000 for this demo at the detention centre for asylum seekers in rural Ayrshire. It is a disgrace that in Scotland in the 21st Century, children are imprisoned for the crime of fleeing persecution. Let's hope that this protest will have a real effect on policy and that the Scottish Executive will distance themselves from the asylum-baiting of the Westminster government (and that includes the large majority of Scottish MP's too!)
To see more photos of the demo to shut Dungavel, Click here
:: | 12:11 pm |
:: Thursday, September 04, 2003 ::
Facing the truth about Iraq
A remarkable article by Boston Globe columnist James Carroll.
Boston Globe / Facing the truth about Iraq
: "THE WAR IS LOST. By most measures of what the Bush administration forecast for its adventure in Iraq, it is already a failure. The war was going to make the Middle East a more peaceful place. It was going to undercut terrorism. It was going to show the evil dictators of the world that American power is not to be resisted. It was going to improve the lives of ordinary Iraqis. It was going to stabilize oil markets. The American army was going to be greeted with flowers. None of that happened. The most radical elements of various fascist movements in the Arab world have been energized by the invasion of Iraq. The American occupation is a rallying point for terrorists. Instead of undermining extremism, Washington has sponsored its next phase, and now moderates in every Arab society are more on the defensive than ever...
No one could have predicted a year ago that the fall from the Bush high horse of American Empire would come so hard and so quickly. Where are the comparisons with Rome now? The rise and fall of imperial Washington took not hundreds of years, but a few hundred days...
The so-called "lessons" of Vietnam are often invoked by hawks and doves alike, but here is one that applies across the political spectrum. The American people saw that that war was lost in January 1968, even as the Tet Offensive was heralded as a victory by the Pentagon and the White House. But for five more years, Washington refused to face the truth of its situation, until at last it had no choice.
Because American leaders could not admit the nation's mistake, and move to undo it, hundreds of thousands of people died, or was it millions? The war in Iraq is lost. What will it take to face that truth this time?"
:: | 5:07 pm |
Brent East By-Election
BBC NEWS | England | London | Royal intruder to stand as MP As well as the un-amusing Mr Barschak, whose fringe show died a death, there seems to be no less than four candidates to the left of Labour standing in the Brent East by-election. And this at a time when Blair is at his weakest. I have got past the stage of being surprised or annoyed now I am just saddened by another squandered opportunity.
:: | 2:38 pm |
:: Wednesday, September 03, 2003 ::
Howard Dean Campaign shows the future for politics and the net
The Howard Dean campaign for the democratic nomination for the US Presidency is making brilliant and unprecedented use of the internet. He has now signed up over 100, 000 for Dean 'meet-ups'. He has harnessed a tremendous network of support using the internet as a tool to reach people and organise them, not as a substitute for real political campaigning and ideas. Something that politicians this side of the Atlantic should take not of.
:: | 12:06 pm |
:: Tuesday, September 02, 2003 ::
Stan Goff on 'Guerrilla War in Iraq'
FrontPage magazine.com Symposium: A Guerrilla War in Iraq?
"Goff: There is a disingenuous refusal afoot here to question the premises of the invasion, and with it a tacit acceptance that its purpose was to somehow transplant an American-style constitutional republic in Iraq. That not only has never been the intent, it is not possible. The trajectory of economic, political, and cultural development in Iraq is not that of the US. What is going on, and the intent of the invasion, is colonial occupation. The goal is to establish a Quisling government that bends to the US geopolitical and economic diktat, allowing US control over swing production of exported energy among other things. And while there are certainly dramatic differences between Vietnam and Iraq, there is one key similarity. The main force underwriting the resistance and the popular support for it - which will grow - is the desire for national sovereignty and self determination. And I never said the killing of Saddam's sons and grandson was irrelevant. In fact, the elimination of senior Ba'athists may broaden the resistance. Many anti-Ba'ath sectors, from a purely pragmatic point of view, would like to see the Americans finish the job of decapitating the Ba'ath Party before they begin the task of expelling the occupiers."
:: | 4:17 pm |
redkola`s fotolog
redkola`s Fotolog
I succumbed and have set up a fotolog at the site below. It's limited to one photo a day but the Fotolog.net site seems to be increasing in popularity particularly with Brazilians, wonder if it is based there?
:: | 2:12 pm |
Fireworks/Edinburgh Festival Closing 2003
From a poor vantage point.
:: | 2:07 pm |
:: Monday, September 01, 2003 ::
Women in Black - 22nd February 2003
Women in Black - 22nd February 2003
This is a really nice photo set of Edinburgh's Women in Black peace protestors.
From the photographer noted in the entry below.
:: | 1:53 pm |
Photo Blogging
Edinburgh photo-blogger Edinburgh St. has moved to two new locations.
Mono Street (black and white) and Found in the Street. Well worth checking out. Both at Fotolog. I also like this: is this you?.
:: | 11:07 am |