I think the party has
I think the party has expressed its sympathies and support for the Occupy Movement on more than a few occasions but of course we are not in full agreement. [Occupy Movement ] “provided public places where political debate about this and other issues could take place – and did. Both worthwhile. There were two other pluses. It was a world-wide movement that understood that any solution had to be global. And it tried to organise itself democratically and without leaders…They need to continue.” from an editorial The issue some raised was that we should have a more uncritical approach to it and not offer prescriptive advice and also we should go beyond simply expressing sympathy to active material support. This led to the resignation, i believe of StuartW. We did donate our literature for free at St Pauls and other Occupy sites and at the up-coming Birmingham School will be offering a platform to Occupy Norwich. We have commended the Occupy Movement, not condemned it. Our common programme, our common interest, our common understanding, in the SPGB, is common ownership. For the majority in the Occupy Movement they still required convincing of this objective and that separated us. Some party members declare that the revolutionary consciousness displayed in Occupy Movement was more developed than our own, if i understood their posts correctly. I, however disagree. Occupy had not formulated an agreed aim, nor advocated a united means or method and it became more and more transparent as time passed that differences within the movement were manifesting itself and causing divisions in their earlier unity. To find faults and flaws and frailities in Occupy Movement may be viewed as demoralising and discouraging some of their participants and result in them distancing themselves from ourselves. It shouldn’t mean we should retaliate and retreat from making overtures towards them. Within the WSM we know disagreement can be conducted comradely…..well.. most of the time…a few cases excepted. We should focus on one particular part of our case, free access, describing it and detailing the mechanism of how it can be achieved. In this, someone in the Occupy Movement is to be treated like every other worker. Everybody is special and no-body is special. That’s common sense.