ALB
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I have to confess that Vin, SP and JDW have been proved right. Some idiot sent this from our twitter account on 16 August:https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CMh5m2wWgAAxURh.jpgIt's been picked up by Private Eye who have replied in kind on p. 9 of this fortnight's issue.The EC needs to disavow it on Saturday but the damage has been done.
Just remembered. Someone who was at that meeting sent this report to us which gives some idea of the impact of Corbyn's campaign.
Quote:The day hope came to the old coalfield. Now it is May among the mountainsDays for speeches in the valley townsDays of dream and days of struggleDays of bitter denunciation The words of poetry are written by Idris Davies a miner and poet from the Rhymney valley , his piece was written in 1926 and comes from his book entitled “an angry summer” fast forward 79 years and an alteration to the month in the first line and we find ourselves in a similar position today.I stand on a mountainside at the very top of the valleys at the northern most point of the old south Wales coalfield, I stand at the spot where arguably the area’s most famous son Aneurin Bevan addressed the masses. Michael Foote was also known to speak at the location during his time as an MP for the area after Bevan’s death. I come here today to listen to Jeremy Corbyn on his whistle stop tour of Wales, this is an excellent choice of venue from the Corbyn team they stand at the head of a number of historically socialist valleys, the location itself is unremarkable but it is highly symbolic for the local population, just to the north lies the secret chartist cave where the marchers would hold secret meetings before their fateful march on Newport. Beside him stands a memorial to the men that left the mines to join the international brigades and fight the tyranny of Franco of which there was quite a considerable number.These valleys have always been labour area sometimes veering even further left with communists winning seats and majorities through the 1930’s, little Moscow is a few valleys over and Nantyglo and Blaina were regularly mentions on the front pages of the daily worker, the old industrial area also claims that workers first marched under the red flag for the first time in Merthyr Tydfil.The history and current social conditions seem to be ripe for Corbynmania, the area is deprived there is no other way to say it, the first foodbank in Wales was opened and now there are 6 in a 10 mile radius.Blaenau Gwent is top or near the top of nearly all undesirable league tables this is the situation it finds itself in today.A new movement may just be what this place needs to rekindle the fighting spirit of days gone by, large swathes of the population are politically inactive with the most common reason being cited as politicians appear to be all the same, career driven and interested in their advancement only, others say labour used to speak for us but have abandoned us and now the majority remain apathetic.Many are not wholly concerned about right or left wing many will not know what this even means , political idleness has led to a lack of understanding in these parts , Corbyn appears to be changing that.As I listen to the speech I understand the allure to him, I understand the valleys hope created by his campaign, and Corbyn seems to be a breath of fresh air on these isolated hills. For an area in steady decline with failed regeneration projects time after time a new direction is what these people seek, the message from Corbyn appears to hit direct at the core of valleys folk and their identity, of course community identity is in a constant state of flux and cannot be neatly packaged, but it is on the foundation of the pit village morals and ideals that have influenced the area from the very earliest settlements does this movement strike a chord. “we’ll keep a welcome in the hillside, we’ll keep a welcome in the vales” as the famous song goes and today with the humanitarian crises throughout the middle east and Europe there should be a great feeling of sympathy for these people and Jeremy articulates a widely held opinion that more needs to be done to help , we must have sympathy as we are all sons and daughters of migrants , our ancestors were all attracted by the prospect of work that the industrial revolution brought, it was for them as it is with the refugees and migrants today a chance to work and provide for their families a chance to provide for their families a chance to live in security with all the positive freedoms that accompany it , the Corbyn message promotes helping these people and is vehemently opposed to the disturbing language used which seeks to normalise fear and anger at these desperate people.We must however acknowledge the rise of the UK independence party in many working class areas and especially in the traditional labour strongholds of these constituencies, the people of the area see the widening inequality around them, a recent study shows an astonishing figure of up to 30.12% of children living in poverty that is just under one in three, an easy and effective way of answering way there is a widening gap between rich and poor is to apportion blame on migrants and asylum seekers, they see these people as the reason as to why they are working 40 hours a week for their poverty wages opposed to the real and more complex reason of our callous economic system whose god is mammon, Corbyns message is clear and true to labour values dearly held amongst the working class of these constituencies, principles such as equality of opportunity, provision of public services and, above all ensuring that poverty becomes a thing of the past, in such a deprived area you can see why corbynmania is expanding .Jeremy recently captured the attention of the locals with a bold almost unbelievable claim that the reopening of coal mines may be possible if markets once again become favourable. Every man, women and dog has an opinion on this and this is a great move again by team Corbyn to capture attention of the labour heartland and to get people talking about his campaign , the decline of industry and no alternative source of employment has made these towns what they are today , reasons given for the decline are many and include mismanagement by the national coal board , unfavourable geological conditions , the heroic Arthur or the Rogue Arthur , the downing street medusa or simply the flow of capitalism in its raw heartless search for profit take your pick.There is little doubt however about the reserves and the quality of coal still available in our coalfield, a handful of mines may well be economically viable but the question remains can it really be carbon neutral ? I firmly believe many communities would welcome back mines to the area despite the recent rejection of the opencast mine by Caerphilly council, we are of course talking hypothetically if prices one day rise again , but the idea to tap into the local psyche and talking direct to traditional labour in this area is a very savvy move.He appeals to the older generation of valley folk as he is well versed in our history of deprivation and struggle, where he especially captures attention is my own age bracket of 18-25 , I find myself asking myself what are the reasons for this , why do I find myself googling searching two or three times a day to read the latest articles.He is something we have never experienced before, positive policies, progressive policies of internationalism the aim to tackle injustices of the world in a sensible way, which my generation are ever more aware due to the internet , the more we see this the more socialist policies seem progressive and the only real way we will achieve peace , tackle inequality and create a more equal society.I believe what Jeremy offers to this area specifically is optimism we here in the past have little to be hopeful for but new transport links and an new motor racing circuit coming to the area along with a traditional labour leader who is very much a progressive movement creates a belief that a change is around the corner.The reference to some people there turning to UKIP is apt. It's surprisingly high given the history and nature of the area. At the general election in May UKIP came second in Blaneau Gwent with 18% of the vote. Many must have been ex-miners.
There's also the one I noticed about him wanting to re-open the mines in South Wales.Here the allegation: http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/jeremy-corbyns-backing-reopening-south-9866522And here's what he was reported as saying at one meeting (interesting report of meeting)
Quote:In response to reports that he would re-open coal mines, like the ones in Blaenau Gwent, he said: “No, I don’t think there’s any likelihood of mining being developed in the near future” and said he would instead invest in engineering and development jobs.The ironic thing is that Arab Muslims are supposed to have invented the cheque:
Quote:The modern cheque comes from the Arabic saqq, a written vow to pay for goods when they were delivered, to avoid money having to be transported across dangerous terrain. In the 9th century, a Muslim businessman could cash a cheque in China drawn on his bank in Baghdad.And from wikipedia:
Quote:Muslim traders are known to have used the cheque or ṣakk system since the time of Harun al-Rashid (9th century) of the Abbasid Caliphate.Transporting a paper saqq was more secure than transporting money. In the 9th century, a merchant in country A could cash a saqq drawn on his bank in country B.Maybe they will allow cheques too even if they are paper.Because it apparently preaches "debt-free money" Islamic monetary theory has been popular with some Western currency cranks. Here a famous photo of one Occupy protestor:
I suppose you're right. We have to defend the right of Islamists to free speech just as we do for fascists, even though they're worse than fascists. But we don't have to make a song and dance about it, just concede the principle if pressed. We must avoid at all costs showing any sympathy for islam.
I think you can watch part of the video here:http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/ISIS-Threat/Worth-their-weight-in-gold-ISIS-reveals-new-coins-to-replace-satanic-conception-of-banks-413689The words of the song at the end are revealing:
Quote:The video concluded with a three minute lyrical music video showing ISIS warriors fighting against different backdrops. The song runs through different reasons the warriors fight and each paragraph is inter-cut the chorus which sings, "For the sake of Allah we will march through the gates of paradise where our maidens will wait. We are men that love death just as you love your life, we are soldiers that fight in the day and the night."The good news is that when they commit suicide or get killed, that is. There's nothing there. No maidens (of either sex) waiting for the bastards.
Why is this McCarthyism? It seems more like some Muslims getting a taste of their own medicine. They don't just get plays withdrawn. They kill playrights, cartoonists and filmakers:http://www.international.ucla.edu/asia/article/16478
Don't forget the letter from a reader who doesn't think much of Ursula Le Guin The Dispossessed (scroll down):http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/socialist-standard/2010s/2013/no-1312-december-2013/letters
Just realised that this is a site you have to pay to read, so here's what it says:
Quote:Isis has waded into the economic debate amid fluctuating world markets with its own version of jihadinomics.The insurgent group has released an hour-long film attacking the "satanic" global financial system and explaining how it intends to create an "economic 9/11" by banning paper money.In the video, which features footage of Isis militants fighting in Iraq and the Twin Towers falling, the narrator claims: "One of the great forms of corruption that the Earth came to witness was the dark rise of banknotes, borne out of the satanic conception of banks, which mutated into a fraudulent system of enslavement orchestrated by the Federal Reserve in America, a private corporation and system that would, through the use of deceit and force, deprive people of their due, by imposing upon them the usage of the piece of paper, the dollar bill."Isis says that it will shortly issue its own gold, silver and copper coins, which it claims are minted in Mosul.Analysts doubt that Isis could obtain precious metals in sufficient quantities for the currency, however, and are sceptical that the militant group has the ability to mint it with the flexibility to be useful. "An Isis five gram gold dinar would be worth $139," says Tom Keat-inge, director of the centre for financial crime and security studies at the Royal United Services Institute. "Try buying a loaf of bread with it."He adds that gold prices are more volatile than dollar exchange rates and that the video offers a "compelling but rather naive" history of fractional reserve banking, by which economies operate with high levels of debt. Isis says a collapse of the global banking system will occur once the Muslim world returns to using only currency based on precious metals and stops buying US government bonds, leaving America with unsustainable debt.In the end he didn't describe himself as an anarchist either. And he wasn't against contesting local elections. Two more things in his favour.
steve colborn wrote:Personally, I could'nt give a flying fuck about Corbyn, I see him as another cul-de-sac that only results in workers being lead up a blind alley!I think you're being a bit over-protective of his supporters. People out there understand perfectly well Private Eye type covers are meant as amusing caricatures. I think he might prefer to be caricatured as a Back-to-the-70s-er than called a "cul de sac ". In fact, that's another charge his critics within the Labour Party are making. Here's Frank Field:
Quote:One only has to read the findings of Jon Cruddas’s research on the movement of voters away from Labour at the election to realise that Corbyn will be leading Labour into a political cul-de-sac.And here's another (anonymous) Labour MP:
Quote:“Unite have nailed their colors to the mast. They want to take the Labour Party down a Corbyn cul-de-sac."If you want more just type "Corbyn" + "cul de sac" into a search engine.Imgine the reaction of the critics here if the bubble on the front cover had said "Follow me down a cul de sac".
That's not denying that he wants to try to relaunch the economy by increasing government spending (via his neo-leynesian "People's QE") as was the prevailing view prior to the 1980s. In fact, it's got nothing to do with it.
At the Carshalton Environment Fair today our stall was next to the Tories'. They were handing out a card headed "Choose London. Your vote can help choose the next Mayor of London" which explained:
Quote:The Conservative Party will be holding an online primary to select its candidate for the 2016 London Mayoral Election. Anyone in London who is on the electoral roll will be able to register to help the party choose who will stand for the Conservatives in the election next year (…) Four candidates have been shortlisted to stand in the open primary the Conservative Party is holding to select its candidate for the 2016 London Mayoral Election. Andrew Boff, Zac Goldsmith, Stephen Greenhaigh and Syed Kamall.Those on the stall confirmed that you needn't sign any declaration saying you supported "the aims and values" of the Conservative Party but simply be on the electoral roll and pay £1, i.e it's an "open primary".I can see a risk of manipulation here. The strongest Tory on their shortlist is probably Zac Goldsmith, the billionaire. So, if you are a Labour supporter, you wouldn't want him to be selected. So you pay your £1 and vote for Andrew Boff on the grounds that nobody called Boff will have a chance of winning or if the vote 1, 2. 3, 4 place Goldsmith as No 4.
gnome wrote:No evidence whatever of this 'dissuasion' at the Kent Miners' Festival today. Four copies of the September Standard sold (besides other literature) and several amicable conversations held on the Corbyn 'phenomenon'.Our experience (and sales) in Carshalton was similar. People did want to talk about the Corbyn phenomenon, even the Tories on the stall next to ours. Met one former Labour member who signed up and paid his £3 to vote for him (even though he'd voted Green at the general election, but we're not telling). Others seemed to expect us to support him. Green Party members were rather sceptical.
