Re: [Marxism] Irish General Election Results 2016
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * On 29.02.2016 17:17, Paddy Hackett via Marxism wrote: Hi The Irish General Election results are showing that there has been no radical change in Irish politics. The general election results are evidence of the political and ideological stagnation within the working class. The evidence produced by the elections shows that the Irish working class is politically and ideologically stagnant. Despite its disastrous record leading up to and including the world 2008 financial crisis Fianna Fáil has electorally won back much of the working class and lower middle class. The increase in support for Sinn Fein is merely support for another bourgeois party by the working class and other social strata. It is ironical that the Socialist Party has been describing the Sinn Fein party as an “anti-establishment” party. There is nothing “anti-establishment” about Sinn Fein. Indeed it has been going out of its way to demonstrate how pro-establishment it is. Increased support for the mix bag of Independents is largely support for other bourgeois political elements. The modest support for the Left is of no real significance. Indeed much of this Left has been becoming increasingly more moderate. Much of their political interventions are little or no different from that of much of the Labour Party of yore. As it sniffs the power it will move further to the right. This Left is largely opportunist and will cut its cloth to increase its popularity. Given this, overall, there has been no significant shift to the Left. The politics and ideology of the Irish working class is as it was in the days before the 2008 financial crisis. Essentially taking place is a reconfiguration or recalibration of bourgeois politics in Ireland to meet the present class needs of the bourgeoisie. The effect of this is to block off the working class from becoming more politicised thereby posing an increasing challenge to the existing system. What a sad sectarian tract. I suspect I have been watching a completely different Irish election. The two traditional bourgeois parties now have the support of under 50% of the electorate for the first time in the history of the state. There is no stable coalition unless the two traditional right-wing parties overcome their historic enmity and form a coalition, which would probably be very unstable. There is a mass movement that took to the streets as recently as the weekend before the election and the radical left which is involved in organising this mass movement took 10 seats (11 if you include the maverick TD Mick Wallace) , the highest number of radical left has ever had. And the so-called bounce-back of Fianna Fail that this correspondent makes so much of - as does the bourgeois press - is a simply joke, and a very bad one at that. This is the traditional party of the Irish bourgeoisie, which managed to establish a base in the working class on a populist basis between the 1930s and the 1970s. For three generations it dominated Irish politics, often forming a majority government without needing to go into coalition with any other party. But in 2011 it lost half half its support, so the extra 5% or so it got this time is a spit in a pan and it didn't even succeed in regaining it's position as the largest party. There will probably be another election within the next 12 months - and the mass movement against the water charges isn't going to go away unless the whole Irish Water operation is closed down - but to do that the government would have to defy the EU diktat. So the crisis of bourgeois politics is set to continue and I expect the influence of the radical left, which is now larger than the Labour Party, will continue to grow. Of course, for some radical ultra-leftists the radical left may not be r-r-r-r-r-revolutionary enough and may not use the traditional catchphrases of the sectarian left, preferring to speak in language that the workers understand and respond to. But then the demands "Land, bread and peace" don't exactly sound remarkably r-r-r-r-revolutionary if they are divorced from the context in which they were raised. Einde O'Callaghan _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
Re: [Marxism] On the southern Irish election results, especially the drubbing of Labour
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * I broadly agree with Phil's assessment with some reservations and recommend people to read it. Einde O'Callaghan On 01.03.2016 04:36, Philip Ferguson via Marxism wrote: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2016/03/01/labour-receives-massive-drubbing-in-southern-irish-general-election/ _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Striking Russian Truckers: A Call for Solidarity
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Published at: https://therussianreader.wordpress.com/2016/03/01/striking-russian-truckers-a-call-for-solidarity/ Truck Drivers in Russia Urgently Need Your Solidarity In Russia, despite crackdowns against independent labour union activists, a group of truck drivers organized themselves in mid-November of last year to defend their labor rights and livelihoods. Their goal is to found a nationwide union of truckers that would be run on a non-hierarchical basis by its members. For the last three months, these truckers have been on strike against a draconian new system of cargo haulage tolls that would make it almost impossible for workers like themselves to earn a living. On December 3, 2015, truck drivers organized a protest camp in Khimki, a suburb of Moscow, that has served as a coordinating center for all striking truckers. At the moment, around ten thousand drivers are taking part in a nationwide strike, and since February 20 of this year, more than ten other protest camps have been set up in different regions of the country. The truckers would like to keep striking until the so-called Plato system has been abolished. The Plato system has introduced a new set of tolls for long-haul trucks, and it directly benefits the corrupt businessmen and officials who have profited the most from fifteen years of misrule by Vladimir Putin and his cronies. Russia has not seen such widespread and serious labor protests since the 1990s. The striking drivers are supported by many other downtrodden groups in Russia. In the course of the protests, new networks have emerged through which the truck drivers have issued other demands such as reforming housing policies and reinstating benefits for pensioners as well as abolishing the transport tax. In addition, many wage earners and other precarious groups have been inspired to join the new union of transport workers or form their own new associations or labor unions. Despite broad support from the Russian public, the Khimki camp is now in dire straits in terms of resources. Above all, the strikers need financial support for publicizing the strike and providing for their families, as they have no sources of income at the moment. Therefore, we are asking for any kind of solidarity (media, material or other kinds of support) from the international anticapitalist movement, and labor and trade unions around the world. If you can and want to help us, please write to: solidarity_truc...@yahoo.com Yours in solidarity, The Striking Truck Drivers of Russia For more information, see my previous posts on the strike ( https://therussianreader.wordpress.com/tag/russian-truckers/) and antiplaton.info (in Russian). _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Victorious Iran "reformers" to privatize, cut auto industry
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/189912/World/Region/After-Iran-elections,-Rouhani-aims-for-economic-re.aspx Which means, aside from being ready to act in solidarity with auto and other workers there, that we should remind people that Ahmedinejad's economic policies were every bit as pro-ruling class. (I can see the tankies churning out articles about the glorious utopia of his rein...) _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Fwd: The Chameleons of Rojava | Ben Davies
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Consequently anti-regime demonstrations that had previously raged in the Kurdish territories were repressed by the PYD. Anti-Assad graffiti was painted over, Syrian Air Force Intelligence (secret police) headquarters were allowed to continue operations unmolested, and anti-Assad activists were assassinated by the YPG. Kurdish opponents of the PYD are subject to arbitrary arrest (which has continued to this day) and media outlets which the PYD deems too critical are shut down. This month the PYD banned the Kurdish Rudaw network from Kobane. Kurds in Amuda protested against the YPG in 2013. The demonstration was reportedly fired upon and resulted in 7 fatalities and 40 injuries. The PYD/YPG became known as the “shabiha of the Kurds” for repressing demonstrations on Assad’s behalf. A 107-page report entitled, “Under Kurdish Rule: Abuses in PYD-Run Enclaves of Syria,” was released by Human Rights Watch in 2014, documenting arrests abuse in captivity, killings and the use of child soldiers. full: https://unfetteredfreedom.wordpress.com/2016/02/28/the-chameleons-of-rojava/ _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Fwd: What Do Russian Leftists Dream About?: A Collective Portrait | Lefteast
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * http://www.criticatac.ro/lefteast/2016/03/01/what-do-russian-leftists-dream-about-a-collective-portrait/ _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Fwd: Work now, Party later
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * If a leftwing group doesn’t make a practical difference in people’s lives, can you blame anybody for not taking them seriously when they claim to “fight for the interests of the working class?” http://www.thenorthstar.info/?p=12467 _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Fwd: Notes on the 2016 Academy Awards | Louis Proyect: The Unrepentant Marxist
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * My interest in the Academy Awards was heightened this year by nominations for a number of films I deemed exceptional such as “Carol”, “A Bridge of Spies” and above all “Trumbo”. I was also curious to see what Chris Rock would have to say about Hollywood racism. The Academy Awards are mostly of interest to me as a barometer of mainstream tastes, especially how it relates to a few categories that are more important to me than the “craft” awards such as special effects, etc. that the dreadful “Mad Max: Fury Road” swept up. For me, films are mostly about drama so naturally I would hone in on best picture, screenplays, foreign film, and documentary. I was not surprised to see “Spotlight” named best picture since it helped to burnish the the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) that had fallen on hard times in the wake of complaints about Black actors and directors being neglected. This is a film about how Boston Globe investigative reporters broke the story of Catholic Church sexual predation, just the kind of “message” movie Hollywood can show off. Not only did it win best picture, it also got the award for best screenplay based on original material. full: https://louisproyect.org/2016/03/01/notes-on-the-2016-academy-awards/ _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] Fwd: The left's false logic on Syria | SocialistWorker.org
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * http://socialistworker.org/2016/03/01/the-lefts-false-logic-on-syria _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] The PYD’s alliance with Russia against Free Aleppo: Evidence and analysis of a disaster
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * The Kurdish PYD’s alliance with Russia against Free Aleppo: Evidence and analysis of a disaster Above: Aleppo Free Syrian Army statement calls on “the honorable Kurds” in Efrin “to put pressure on those gangs to withdraw from those violated towns.” https://mkaradjis.wordpress.com/2016/02/28/the-kurdish-pyds-alliance-with-russia-against-free-aleppo-evidence-and-analysis-of-a-disaster/ by Michael Karadjis This piece deals with an aspect that many involved in the Syrian issue have strong views on, and no doubt will make some very unhappy – the issue of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its Peoples Protection Units (YPG) and their role in the current Russian-led Blitzkrieg against the Syrian rebels in Free Aleppo. As a long-time supporter of the Kurdish struggle for justice and self-determination, who formerly admired the PYD for the significant achievements it has made in Rojava, I had no interest in reaching such conclusions, but reality needs to be looked at in the face and analysed, not obscured by ideology and myths. I welcome comments and discussion, and if that includes a reasonable amount of hate mail, that will indicate more about the haters than about my attempt at honest, if forthright, discussion of this important issue. All constructive criticism, even if harsh, will be seriously taken on board. This piece is much too long, as much of it documents what exactly has been going on, and in particular which rebel groups are/were in control of various parts of Aleppo province that are under attack from the Russian-YPG alliance; both issues have been deliberately clouded by those defending this catastrophic course. Therefore, I have produced it more as a resource than an easy-reading essay. ……… Introduction Once the Russian Reich began its all-out Blitzkrieg against the Syrian revolutionary forces in Aleppo on behalf of the Assad regime – a massacre that has involved massive displacement, with tens or hundreds of thousands fleeing north towards Turkey, and the large-scale, deliberate targeting of hospitals, schools and other basic civilian infrastructure – a most unwelcome development occurred, that has led to much heated debate among supporters of the Syrian revolution. Namely, the Kurdish-based People’s Protection Units (YPG), based in the Kurdish canton of Efrin on the western side of Aleppo province, launched an all-out attack on the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and other rebels in Aleppo – ie, the very forces being bombed by the Russian imperialist onslaught – attacking and conquering rebel-held, Arab-majority towns throughout the region with the direct aid of Russian bombing. Whatever the ups and downs in the relationship between the Syrian revolution as a whole and the ‘Rojava revolution’ before this point (and I believe both Syrian opposition and Kurdish leaderships can be faulted on many points), the only possible conclusion at this point is that the PYD/YPG has joined the counterrevolution on a massive scale, at its most murderous moment, the biggest knife that could possibly be put through any chances of Arab-Kurdish unity against the regime. As many of the more progressive aspects of the Rojava revolution became apparent during 2014, I was as supportive and impressed as countless others were (though always holding back from the over-romanticisation of the process); I was also strongly supportive of what appeared to be a growing convergence between the YPG and the FSA during the defence of Kurdish Kobani against genocidal ISIS siege in late 2014. Subjectively, therefore, I had no reason to want to reach such conclusions. However, for the Syrian revolution, the Russian imperialist Armageddon in Aleppo is every bit as decisive as Kobani’s resistance to the ISIS siege was for Rojava; yet, in contrast to the solidarity that the FSA extended to Kobani, the PYD has become a direct participant in the counterrevolutionary siege of Free Aleppo. Of course, the YPG is a very small player in this act of mass homicide, whose major practitioners are Russia, Assad and Iran. Devoting an article to the role of the YPG does not suggest it bears the same level of responsibility. But these reactionary states do what reactionary states do; by contrast, when a supposedly revolutionary organisation claiming to be running a quasi-state on a radical-democratic basis joins the actions of imperialist invaders and the local fascist state, thatdeserves analysis. One final point: Turkey. For months now, the Turkish regime has been waging its own war of terror against the Kurdish population in
[Marxism] Fwd: Syria Ceasefire a Triumph
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * Interesting to see how Roger Annis has incorporated the talking points of the pro-Assad "left". It was only a matter of time, I suppose. Among a certain Trotskyist or ex-Trotskyist milieu like the Alan Woods sect, Socialist Action in the USA, CounterFire, Tariq Ali et al, there is a very strong gravitational pull toward a kind of post-Marcyite ideology. There is zero chance of this stance generating strong support among radicalizing youth. You want to know why anarchism is so attractive to so many young people? It is because of this warmed-over Stalinism. http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/03/01/syria-ceasefire-a-triumph/ _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
[Marxism] It is twenty years since the election of John Howard, class warrior for the rich in Australia
POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. * It is twenty years since the election of John Howard, class warrior for the rich History records that John Howard’s Liberals won government 20 years ago, in Australia on 2 March, 1996. His government had a ruthless class agenda, writes David Glanz in Solidarity, but it was Labor’s timid opposition that kept it in power. To read the whole article click here. 20 years since his election: John Howard—class warrior for the rich http://enpassant.com.au/2016/03/01/twenty-years-since-the-election-of-john-howard-class-warrior-for-the-rich/ _ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: http://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
