Bijou Drains
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“They were letting down tyres of SUVs in Glasgows West End arguing this was a ‘posh’ bit of Glasgow. It is not necessarily so.
One motorist was chemist needing to travel to Ayrshire I think.”Another example of the environmental movement, missing the true cause of the environmental and instead attacking other workers.
It seems to be that you can tell people any far fetched claptrap and they will believe it (with the obvious exception of telling them that it would be possible to use the resources of the planet in an efficient, democratic, sustainable way, where all have access to meet their needs and avoid starvation, war, uncertainty, general unhappiness, etc.)
They’re right he is coming back. He’s organised a big come back party. He’s invited Elvis, Robin Hood, L Ron Hubbard, Jim Morrison, Amelia Earhart, Tupac, King Arthur, Adolph Hitler and Jesus. Going to be one hell of a party! (not).
I know for some members of the SPGB that it’s frowned upon to be too critical of non Socialists, but I hope we can all agree that these clowns are a bunch of fuck wits.
Although you characterise the CWO and it’s various sister organisations as somehow “post Leninist”, Alan, and that their Leninism is a historic quirk,I fear you are being far too kind to them.
As one simple example demonstrated in the article you quote, they follow the same failed, patronising, elitist strategy that the Leninists follow ad nausium, i.e. campaigning for something that cannot be achieved, in order to demonstrate to the working class that it cannot be achieved. I quote – “We argue that a fight for basic living conditions, which capitalism cannot grant, will be the basis on which the consciousness of the need to overthrow the system”
Another example of their elitist attitude is taken form the ICT platform 2020
“It is the task of the proletarian political organisation to return to the working class the lessons of its own historical experience, organising the better elements produced by the class and leading the working class struggle towards an internationalist revolutionary solution”
A further examination of their internal organisational history shows they have conspiratorial and democratic centralist roots that are deeply embedded. There is no transparent, accountable open and democratic processes similar to our internal democracy.
Their objective of a classless, moneyless society,based on common ownership may be one we share (alongside Lenin, Stalin, Trotsky, et al), but the means are as important as the objective. Sadly we differ from them in this way in many significant ways.
The Leninism and elitism they show, is not a historic quirk, it is deep within their organisational and theoretical DNA.
With regards to climate change and its causation you could say similar things about a miriad of Labour Supporters, all of the 57+ varieties of Trostskyist organisation, a plethora of Anarchist groups, the Green Party, and probably some members and supporters of the Tory Party, in fact there are some eco fascists who would not be unhappy with the analysis offered by Monbiat. However the issue is not spotting the problem, it is working out what the solution is and how to achieve it.
As the saying goes, if your not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. On that basis Monbiot is part of the problem. If he is proposing that a wealth tax is a way to solve climate change, he’s clearly got no understanding of the economic, social and historic circumstances that created our current issues and has even less understanding of how to resolve the issues.
Surely the role of the Socialist Party is to oppose and be politically hostile to those who are not part of the solution. If you used the anaalgy that climate change was like being in a burning building, I’d be pretty hostile towards those who, although recognising that the building was on fire, who understood what had caused the file, bit then put forward the solution of huddling together and soaking ourselves in petrol.
As to being an idiot, the word derives from the Greek word “idiotes”, effectively “a private person” and its most common use was simply a private citizen or amateur as opposed to a government official, professional, or expert. In terms of understanding the way to solve Climate Change and other environmental issues gorgeous George is certainly an amateur and is certainly not an expert, so to me idiot seems to describe him to a tee.
Whilst I acknowledge that some of Monbiot’s criticisms of capitalism and the smoke screen of small measures used by what he describes as “big business” to stop the examination of their impact on the environment, what he is saying is a far distance from our case. It is not “big business” that’s the problem, this impies that “small business” is somehow ok. As Monbiot acknowledges most of the polution in most of the world’s rivers are produced by farmers, who for the most part are small businesses
It is not the individuals and their practices which are the issue, it is the market system and the way that it works. Monbiot’s solution “wealth taxes strike at the heart of the issue. They should be high enough to break the spiral of accumulation and redistribute the riches accumulated by a few“, shows just how far he needs to learn.
If Monbidiot is one of the mythical “fellow travellers” we have heard so much about, then I think the appropriate intellectual response to their ideas should be political hostility!
But…. why did well known republican supporter, Jack Ruby, who was well connected to many mafiosa figures and in considerable debt to the mafia and others, seek out and kill Lee Harvey Oswald?
That’s interesting ALB. I’ve just completed a few manuscripts for publication:
“Gluten Free Marxism”,
“The Karl Marx 7 Day Diet”
“Karl Marx the Rock and Roll Days”
and
“Fredrich Engels Ate my Hamster”
looks like I could be on to a nice little earnerPerhaps it would be best to start a separate topic on this rather than further complicate the thread?
I have comments to make but don’t want to cause confusionDespite the disagreements, L Bird, I’m glad to hear you’re alive and kicking and haven’t succumbed to the virus.
I would have said affectionately “shine on you crazy diamond” but I didn’t, just in case you thought it was insulting (which it wouldn’t have been)My view as a football fan is pretty close to that put forward by Bobby Robson:
“ What is a club in any case? Not the buildings or the directors or the people who are paid to represent it. It’s not the television contracts, get-out clauses, marketing departments or executive boxes. It’s the noise, the passion, the feeling of belonging, the pride in your city. It’s a small boy clambering up stadium steps for the very first time, gripping his father’s hand, gawping at that hallowed stretch of turf beneath him and, without being able to do a thing about it, falling in love.”My first trip to St James was just like that. It’s hard to believe that a friendly match in 1967 would engender such feelings, but it was very like that. Ironically my football living father, who took me to that match was a Sunderland supporter!
To précis the previous replies, if a minority attempt to disrupt the majority and the overthrow of capitalism through violent means, we would organise a forceful response based on delegated, capable group of those willing and able to take on that role. As I have said before, real Socialists are not sheep, we do not need a leader to organise our selves and take necessary action.
In terms of who would take part in the “capable group” I strongly suspect that you won’t be part of that group so you can change your soiled undergarment, go back to the frat house and return to watching re runs of “friends”.
Another example of the Chinese State’s great concern for the toiling masses is shown by CNTC.
The Chinese tobacco industry is a powerful state-owned enterprise. The commercial arm called the China National Tobacco Corporation (CNTC) is managed by the government arm, the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration. CNTC is the largest tobacco company in the world, producing 40 per cent of the global cigarette supply. The company has a monopoly in China to supply more than 300 million Chinese smokers and makes vast profits for the Chinese state.
Rather attempt to develop programmes to stop smoking, CNTC has a long history of sponsorship of schools and educational programmes, the programmes used are advertised with slogans “genius is from hard work, tobacco helps you excel”.
The profit motive at work again.
