alanjjohnstone
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"Well, you British and Australian English speakers don't speak real English anyway." – Not so much don't speak real English but still insist on complicated ways of spelling words !!! Dropping the u is a good idea but why replace the s with z?After USA, the most numerous English speakers are in India. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_English-speaking_population "It would be nice if native English-speakers would reciprocate by learning another language too" ……or learning to play a musical instrument – the international language of music!
We should caution against being paranoid…otherwise how long will it be before we begin to think it was an inside job…
I am only too painfully aware of the Indian unions being divided between the CPI(ML) and Congress parties. There too i have seen unions acquiescing to government when there ruling party is the same. However, the stark reality of the class struggle often overcomes such problems as they do here in the UK when Labour affiliated unions strike against the Labour government wishes. The two main rival factions in India often have conducted joint strikes. I hazard to guess that SA resembles the UK more than the Indian situation since the NUM and NUMSA are divided on industry originally, not politics. although the NUMSA appears aspires to be more of industrial union and amalgamation type rather than one purely concerned with mining since metal-working comprises car workers too.If you are an hourly paid worker or a member of the salaried staff, regardless of your colour, creed or political affiliation as long as you work in the:engineering sector – if you manufacture steel, or if you manufacture things made from steel like car components, aluminium cans, bolts, nuts etc.motor sector – if you work in a garage as a mechanic or petrol attendant, or if you sell cars, or parts for motor cars and if you make car parts,auto/tyre sector – if you assemble cars, make tyres, electronics sector – if you assemble tvs, telephones and make the cables for telephones and computers then you can join Numsa.It does inded support government intervention in the economy as policy. ""Numsa’s long term vision is of a united South Africa where the minority will no longer exploit and oppress the majority. For many, this is the socialism that we are still striving for. An organised and united working class must make sure we achieve this goal."" While it is a worthy aim, we seen too often similar mission statements of our own unions mean little more than state-ownership. Another union, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union is already a breakaway union from the NUM which sees itself as "apolitical and noncommunist" which of course is a political position!.Justice Malala, writing recently in The Guardian, "The NUM has lost all credibility and is bleeding members…" while the pro-business press are trying to prop up its popularity. Business Day newspaper said "The NUM is the thoughtful, considered heart of the union movement here… It appreciates and values private capital and strong companies."The NUM offered in September 2013 to lower its wage increase demands to gold companies, after the gold strike by its own members started to have a negative effect on the producing companies. Striking was proving to be the success it is used for, causing the capitalist the pain of less profits!! Perhaps the NUM can be more described as a company union in some regards!But did the Party not also support Polish Solidarity as a trade union when it broke with the official state puppet trade union movement and set itself up as a rival workers organisation. Although it didn't , the situation could well have easy panned out in the same situation as you fear. unions divided along political grounds. Could this not be just as a valid comparison? Are NUMSA not simply cutting the puppet strings? NUMSA are still threatening to possibly withdraw from COSATU – their TUC – so there maybe a deeper rupture in union unity in the future. It is indeed a weakness of the World Socialiist Movement that we do not possess members around the world on the ground to keep us up to date on all the nuances of local political and economic affairs. No fault of the WSM and easy enough to solve…once membership grows to permit it !!!
“not keen on a trade union officially supporting one particular party.”Certainly not at the moment but surely as socialism approaches closer they will indeed reflect the political views of its members and support a socialist party. And nearer and nearer the proximity of socialism , the more blurred the demarcation lines become between political and economical, as the unions and party begin the process of preparing the re-structuring and administration of the world’s industry. Our current concern is ensuring that neither union nor party is controlled and directed by the other. i agree that it will moreorless be about nationalisation but my point was to relate it to what is going on all over the globe in various degrees and expressed sometimes positively and other times negatively – a re-appraisal and re-alignment of the working class. I may be wrong in my judgement but it does appear to be a new phase that begun a few years ago and is exhibiting itself more and more in small and large ways. Through these changes and the flux of political ideas developing, perhaps real socialism will be on the agenda in the not so distant future. i can only hope. Cyril Ramaphosa was the leader of the rival miners union the NUM which still supports the ANC/SACP alliance. Our African blog points out that the new approach of the NUMSA is to now to discard the gentleman’s agreement on not poaching members from one another and actively seek NUM members. Maybe the creation of a OBU? I have to do a lot more homework on the subject. It is not ideal but the anarchists have http://zabalaza.net/
This article offers links to counter the anti-technos or the eco-doomers as it calls themhttp://blogs.discovermagazine.com/collideascape/2013/12/20/misguided-solutions-well-intentioned-eco-doomers/#.UrT0MNIW2z4
Ahhh…but what about Peak Phosphorus http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_phosphorus
The chairman of the home affairs committee, Keith Vaz, said he would be at Luton airport at 7.40am on New Year's Day, along with a Conservative member of his committee, Mark Reckless, to see the first flight from Romania land. "We will be there for the first flight to see what arrangements have been put in place and how many people turn up." http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/dec/19/tory-mps-warn-immigration-bulgaria-rumania It is not a welcoming party but to ensure that Immigration put the new arrivals from Romania and Bulgaria through the wringer.
It makes you wonder just how many other gems there are that are still relevant in todays debates.I have now given up all hope of ever seeing the whole archive of the Socialist Standard on-line…another year passes, alas…but all credit to the two Darrens for doing the next best thing.
Coincidentally (?) DarrenO has posted a 1928 SS article that discusses the issue of local councils and the SPGB approach to them. http://socialiststandardmyspace.blogspot.com/2013/12/socialists-and-local-government.html "While the central government is in the hands of the capitalist class it is obvious that local bodies can act only within the limits which it suits the government to impose. Here again it is for the Socialist electors to decide whether in any given issue it is better to act within the law or defy it and have their powers taken away. The important point to bear in mind all the time is that while Socialism cannot be achieved by local Councils, whether they accept or reject these laws, neither the Socialist members of such Councils nor their electors would be under any illusion."
"I might even join if I was convinced that it was a better use of my time than drinking beer, browsing random political pages on the web"That would constitute ""positive socialist activity" – particularly the drinking beer part ""working to elect social democrats or social liberals." Thats the negative activity that is self destructive in the end. You should only help genuine socialists get elected and joining the Socialist Party of Canada or the World Socialist Party of the US would be helpful.
"no member should have their membership eligibility affected by openly discussing, disagreeing or criticising the SPGB.. "Someone with their finger on the actual source will help me out but we do possess a conference ruling that protects members raising objections and differences to party policy.It does, of course, carry the necessary caveat, that counter proposals still have to be compatible with the party's object and principles. The recent dispute on EC rejection of application for membership was not on political beliefs but on behaviour, rightly or wrongly.
Just to widen it a little, i think RL reflects a social democratic view as also espoused by Debs in America”There is but one issue that appeals to this conquering army-the unconditional surrender of the capitalistic class. To be sure this can not be achieved in a day and in the meantime the party enforces to the extent of its power its immediate demands and presses steadily onward toward the goal. It has its constructive program by means of which it develops its power and its capacity, step by step, seizing upon every bit of vantage to advance and strengthen its position, but never for a moment mistaking reform for revolution and never losing sight of the ultimate goal. Socialist reform must not be confounded with so-cared capitalist reform. The latter is shrewdly designed to buttress capitalism; the former to overthrow it. Socialist reform vitalizes and promotes the socialist revolution.” http://www.marxists.org/archive/debs/works/1912/twoparties.htm Both perceived the real possibility of substantial parliamentary foothold. (indeed the SPD had such numbers) but that for the time being not possessing political supremacy to achieve its goal. The SPC Canadian provincial assembly member expresses the policy – he or she will vote when it advances the workers interests. We of course can expect advocacy of certain reforms such as when a trade union puts forth a request for health and safety legislation to be introduced and moved in parliament. Would we reject such a plea? Would we stay quiet at every military and international diplomatic Commons debate. Surely in the current immigrations debate if May introduced her intentions of retrictions we would be vociferous in opposition. Would we also not put forward our own counter proposal of open door borders? So many occupational and professional socialist organisations affiliated to the Socialist Party will see opportunities to start the process of re-structuring and won’t we take upon their advice and begin proposing changes that can be achieved? These aren’t particularly questions facing us now but we should recognise that they will be issues that the party faces in the future if we acquire political strength. We can simply generalise at the moment, the particular answers can wait for the decisions of the party members whuch will have the responsibiliy of taking a position on individual reforms. There is no need for an immediate demands platform (a list of demands would be never ending and current leftists end up excluding many worthy aspirations) but when the time comes we will require a practical platform. But no-one here right now has the perogative of deciding what it should be.
One thing we have to be clear upon and what Luxemburg explicitly explains – the SPD will only be the party of opposition , regardless of the reformist position and won't enter parliament/council in coalition to take office or minority party to run capitalism' and end up in the same predicament as the Greens in Brighton. http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/dec/15/greens-blown-it-in-brighton Another opposition to reformism is that we do not want supporters of actual reforms to vote for us for those reforms rather than support for the goal .
At one time we had an internal magazine called Forum for dissent but it was discontinued long ago and there is a reluctance to resume anything like it due to the history of acrimony it caused. . So now it is just various internet sites, Spopen and here. http://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/spopen/infoWe have an annual conference and an annual delegate meeting where many items for discussion rather than motions are debated. Perhaps someone might download them for you and send off-list. One member has been collating critiques of the party over the 100 years of the Party's existence from non- and ex-members but again it is on files that aren't accessible to non-members, not because of any censorship, just the way Yahoo is set up. The really fruitful discussions of dissenting opinions are probably post-branch meetings when members re-locate to a local licensed hostelry to refresh themselves with an alcoholic beverage or few and indulge in some reflection and criticism — in vino veritas, as they say.
Another case of the Catholic clegy on the side of the angels. http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/dec/15/archbishop-westminster-vincent-nichols-attacks-immigration-targets "The most senior Catholic in England and Wales has branded the government's pursuit of immigration targets as "inhumane" and warned that rules preventing foreign spouses of UK citizens from settling here was damaging the development of thousands of British children." One could be cynical and argue that his support for increased immigration was because it was the recent influx of Polish catholic that helped boost declining congregation numbers.
