The TUSC joins UKIP in a carnival of reaction

The failing flagship project of the Socialist Party, the Trade Union and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) is set to try and revive its' fortunes by intervening in the European elections next year. They will be joined in this with the support of Bob Crows RMT union, though what their members will actually make of this is another matter.

The Socialist Party along with a number of other organisations (including the rump Liberal Party amongst others) contested the last Euro elections under the No to EU banner, which as I recall was not taken seriously by the electorate coming behind the virtually non-existent  Socialist Labour Party led by Arthur Scargill.

Apparently the name being mooted for this new project in some quarters is the rather unwieldley ‘Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts-No2EU No to Austerity’. Not very snappy or memorable except to inveterate "Trot Watchers". Efforts are being made by the Socialist Party Grandees to get the Communist Party of Britain on board. At least they'll get the backing of a daily newspaper in the form of the dreadful Morning Star, circulation not really worth bothering about.

In an unrelated development they have managed (or allowed) the remnants of the old International Marxist Group now known as Socialist Resistance on board the TUSC steering committee. Although this is "without the power of veto" afforded to the other groups that form the coalition of the absurd.

However all is not well in the TUSC camp. The establishment of the Left Unity project has attracted a lot of attention from non-aligned socialists and activists that the SP has longed to draw into their orbit. It is currently difficult to see where LU is going. Despite obtaining some 8000 "likes" on Face Book this has only currently resulted in just over 1,000 people turning up to their meetings with some of the 90 groups being admitted to be "one one bands".

A lot of people confine their "activism to the keyboard" these days it would seem.

It isn't possible for individuals to join the TUSC, though you can "sign up" as a "supporter" pay your dues and not get any say in what the organisation gets up to. In order to do that you have to join one of the constituent organisations, three of which (the Socialist Party, Socialist Workers Party and Socialist Resistance) are tiny, very dictatorial groups that would force you to "toe the line" they want regardless of how anyone else might feel.

The alternative to this is to join the Independent Socialist Network (not to be confused with the recently established International Socialist Network set up by dissidents from the SWP). They have their own website where you get a better "flavour" of what is actually going on inside the TUSC.

There was quite a discussion at the meeting of the last TUSC Steering Committee in which according to the ISN version of events included the following points:

• It is ridiculous that it is still not possible to join TUSC – we must push for individual membership
• The ISN had hoped TUSC would be a stepping stone to a new Party – that is now not looking likely
• TUSC being an umbrella group for trade unions is even less likely now that LU has been launched

There were others, these are the pertinent ones that caught my attention.

Nick Wrack a leading figure in the TUSC has this to say about the marriage of the TUSC and No 2 EU brands:

I thought it would spell the death-knell of TUSC if this proposal was implemented, as TUSC would fail to appear in major elections, with a section of the left contesting the elections yet again with a change of name. This continues to be my view, notwithstanding the suggestion from Clive Heemskerk to marry the names of No2EU and TUSC in the electoral description, which seems to be a marriage made in hell.

Some comments from ISN supporters suggest the ISN may end up throwing its lot in with Left Unity at some stage in the future. Neil Williams argues that:

...a real problem for the Left in general (and if any kills of TUSC this is likely to be it). Can you imagine an anti EU campaign with the title “Trade Unionists and Socialists Against Cuts-No2EUNo to Austerity’ – bloody daft to say the least. We have to be seen to be different, Socialist and internationalist on this issue and not line up alongside UKIP and the right wing of the Tory Party in some sort of imaginary “little England” sort of fantasy where we can cut ourselves of from the rest of the world and have no relationship with workers in Europe who are fighting like us against austerity – it is this urgent need for unity of working people across Europe that we should emphasise in any campaign. I for one will not be joining a “No2EU Mark 2″ campaign (the first one was very badly run campaign anyway) nor should the ISN.

The only reason I can see for the ISN to even consider remaining in TUSC for even a few more months would be to encourage talks between TUSC and Left Unity and the RMT and Left Unity. TUSC under the control of the SP and the inaction of the SWP has no future and we have seen no real attempt by the key players in TUSC to change anything – its one reason that so many Socialists are turning to Left Unity ....

Of course at the end of the day this matters little when the Euro elections actually take place. The anti-European vote will go en-mass to the UKIP, the "little-Englanders" of the far left won't even manage a "shoe-in" with the electorate. So they shouldn't in my opinion.

One of the reasons the Tory right wing and UKIP supporters hate the EU is that membership affords certain rights to workers under European legislation. All that would be lost at a time when there is a major offensive against trade union and workers rights under the current Coalition Government.

According the TUSC comrades leaving the European Union will lead to some kind of socialist Nirvana. The heck it won't! 

Leaving the EU would take this country into a reactionary circus, let alone the economic downturn that would inevitably  come with departure.

The EU is not perfect, there are huge problems with the way it is structured and controlled but it does represent a small step forward to a more united world. The economic crisis has seen the revival of petty nationalism across many European countries. UKIP is the manifestation of this process in Britain, there are other examples such as the rise of Catalan nationalism in Spain.

Withdrawing from the EU would be a backwards step and the far-left have shown themselves to be unable to adapt to the modern world. But then that should be no surprise to anyone as they continue to bang on about the failed ideas of long dead Russians.

Time to move on comrades. There is a real world out there. Join it.

Hat tip: http://tendancecoatesy.wordpress.com/ 

Time to fight the proponents of hate

The disgusting news that a French soldier was stabbed in the neck in a copycat attack in Paris yesterday  is a sign that there are those whose views and actions take them beyond the pale in a democratic society.  At the same time there have been a small number of minor attacks on Mosques in the UK in "revenge" for the atrocity in Woolich.


A number of people have been arrested for "hate" messages about Muslims/Islam on social media, twitter in particular. Whilst people should learn to control their "inner-rages" on the "twitter-sphere" (something Sally Bercow learnt to her detriment yesterday in an unrelated court case), their treatment does stand in contrast to the continuing freedom of extremists like Anjem Choudary who remain seemingly "untouchable" in their campaign to spread Jihadist hate messages.

As I wrote a couple of days ago the law must be applied equally to all, regardless of race, religion or colour. Prosecuting a handful of angry tweeters whilst allowing the preachers of hate a free-hand to continue corrupting the weak-minded and vulnerable into acts of barbaric violence will fuel mistrust between the communities and possibly inflame the situation.

As a democracy we have to allow free speech, but such rights come with responsibilities, the latter the proponents of "rights" sometimes forget.

No one has the right to spread a message inciting violence, racial or religious hatred that could or actually does result in someone getting hurt or as in this case killed. Enough is enough.

Blaming a whole community as some are trying to do is reminiscent of the Kristalnacht in 1930s Germany. We must condemn the attacks on places of worship and the ordinary Muslims like the couple in a fast food take-away recently (by men of Romanian origin for some odd reason).

There are 2.7 Million Muslims in the UK and only a tiny proportion of these are involved in the extremist circles that undertake terrorism. We didn't blame all the Irish community for the actions of the IRA and the same must apply here and now as well.

The Security Services must be allowed to do their jobs in monitoring and dealing with the criminals who perpetrate these acts, but it will take a political and cultural campaign by those of us who believe in democracy to undermine the communal base from which they spring. There is a precedent for the type of campaign needed.

The Hope not Hate campaign has proved hugely successful in opposing and undermining the neo-Nazi far-right over the past few years, so that groups like the BNP are now in total decline. In recent times they have begun focusing on the Islamist extremists, but are currently focusing on the rise of the UKIP which I consider to be a major error on their part.

UKIP (for all it's faults and yes they are legion) is not an inherently racist party and is certainly not fascist in shape or form. Yes there are people within it that need to be exposed from time to time, but the vast majority of UKIPs base is simply the more traditional anti-European Tory types that are disillusioned by David Cameron and fret about immigration in general.

Hope not Hate should focus its resources on combating the Islamist extremists that are simply fascists of a clerical nature. Rather than organise consultation about what should be done about UKIP (as they are planning at the moment), Nick Lowles and the others must change their direction to taking on the real fascist threat that is arising on the fundamentalist Islamist front.

Their website is beginning to tackle the issues arising out of the Woolich tragedy but more remains to be done otherwise the far-right in this country will start getting a boost that it should not do if we are up to the task. Evidence of this was seen yesterday as 1500 (three times the number expected) EDL supporters turned out on the streets of Newcastle.

British Muslims must do more to combat the rise of extremism within their own communities. Dare I say that some if not many will have to re-adjust themselves to accepting that they are living in a secular society and the attitudes of many will need to change especially on such issues as the rights of women and gay and lesbian people.

Tolerance works two ways. If we can get people to accept this then we are part of the way to reaching a solution.

The Hope not Hate website can be found here: http://www.hopenothate.org.uk/

Is purple the new anti-Semitism?

The world is full of people with strange ideas. David Ike, the former Sports commentator, Green Party activist turned conspiracy theorist certainly has some of the wackier ideas one can come across. His ideas are usefully (if such a word really applies in his case) summed up by Wikepedia who inform us that:

Icke introduced the reptoid hypothesis in The Biggest Secret (1999), which identified the Brotherhood as descendants of reptilians from the constellation Draco, who walk on two legs and appear human, and who live in tunnels and caverns inside the earth. He argues that the reptilians are the race of gods known as the Anunnaki in the Babylonian creation myth, Enûma Eliš. According to Barkun, Icke's idea of "inner-earth reptilians" is not new, though he has done more than most to expand it.

Icke has accused many prominent people of being "reptoids," including Brian Mulroney, George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, Queen Elizabeth II, The Queen Mother, Al Gore, Kris Kristofferson, Boxcar Willie, and the steering committee of the Bilderberg Group. It is Icke's contention that none of these people are suing him for his statements because they are all, in reality, twelve-foot lizards.

Right. Maybe they actually know nobody will take such nonsense seriously, will they? Actually there are some it would seem.

Alice Walker, the author of The Colour Purple has been in the news recently for refusing to allow a new edition of her book to be published in Israel which she wrongly describes as being an "Apartheid state". She also believes that the world is run by the same shape shifting aliens of the David Ike variety. She is so impressed by Ike that she compares him to Malcolm X. Dunno what his followers would have thought of that since I know very little about the man.

Ms Walker reviews David Ike's book Human Race Get Off Your Knees on her official website she says:

What I was remembering was how he called our oppressors “blue eyed devils.” Now who could that have been? Well, we see them here in David Icke’s book as the descendants of the reptilian race that landed on our sweet planet the moment they could get a glimpse of it through the mist that used to cover it (before there was a moon). No kidding. Deep breath! Yes, before there was a moon!

and concludes

It’s an amazing book, HUMAN RACE GET OFF YOUR KNEES, and reading it was the ultimate reading adventure. I felt it was the first time I was able to observe, and mostly imagine and comprehend, the root of the incredible evil that has engulfed our planet. 

Incredible indeed.

Readers may be interested to know that these reptiles were created by "interbreeding" in the Middle East  and two of those key bloodlines are the Rothchilds and the Rockerfellers. Hmm, is he talking about Jews by any chance? Maybe the clue is to be found in another one of David Ikes masterpieces The Robots Rebellion (published in 1994). The Global Elite (Lizards to you and me, Jews in the minds of the dumb-witted) outlined their plans for global domination in the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, the hoax Tsarist anti-Semitic provocation published in Russia in 1903.

Purple according to Ike stands for Royalty in the form of the Windsors and the Queen in particular. She is the Queen to the Rothchilds..... I could go on about his rantings but they don't even make for a good laugh any more.

I wonder if the colour purple in Walker's book title has a deeper, hidden meaning? Of course not that would be a conspiracy theory wouldn't it?

Anyway must go. I hear the children hatching.

Shalom!

No need to "tread on eggshells" when confronting issues in the Muslim "Community"

Yesterdays terrorist attack and the brutal murder of an off duty soldier on the streets of Woolich has inevitably led to a widespread discussion not only on the Internet and in the general media about the place and presence of Islam in society, but also took place in workplaces, pubs and peoples homes. The questions that are being asked include a debate on how, in a modern, open and democratic society how such a sadistic act could have even been contemplated when there are so many legitimate and peaceful ways to make a political protest.

Its' not as if this kind of act is limited in Britain to the extremist sections of "Islamism". There was also the Soho "nail bomber" who targeted gays as part of a campaign of hate inspired by the indigenous far-right around the BNP and other neo-Nazi boneheads who inhabit the political fringe.

And then of course in Norway there was Brevik. Norway is probably one of the most tolerant and inclusive nations on the planet. Where did he spring from?

With this in mind I read at first with concern and then with a sense of relief about the publication of an Independent report on the Rochdale child sex scandal in The Times this morning. Given the current climate it might have been considered a little imprudent with the inevitable backlash against the Muslim community which invariably accompanies terrorist atrocities.

Whilst child abuse takes place in all communities regardless of religion race or colour, it is important to note that the failure to act was in part due to the fear of a racial backlash motivated by so-called "political correctness" on the part of some council staff. If we are to truly integrate the various communities into mainstream society then we must not be afraid to tackle difficult and criminal activities undertaken by men (and women) just because of ill thought out "value judgements" made by those who are responsible for the welfare of others.

The girls in this case (and others that have come to light) have been let down by the politically correct crowd that seem to predominate in social services and other parts of the state and political establishment. This must not happen again.

A crime is a crime no matter what race, religion or colour an individual is. The law must apply equally to all or it will lose general acceptability.

The reason I find myself with hope this evening is because of something that was going on whilst travelling home from work. Stuck in the inevitable traffic jam that stretches between Putney and Hammersmith there was a quiet, but audible discussion going on behind me between two young Muslim women (hijabs et al) about the nature of the soul and quoting from the Koran about "Gods" role with humanity.

As an atheist I would normally despair as I do when approached by the Jehovah Witnesses or suchlike but this time it occurred to me that actually Britain is predominately a tolerant society and these two women felt able to discuss such views without fear in the public place. And so they should.

I was proud to be reminded that we do have a broad society which whilst far from perfect (will it ever be) is a place people feel free to talk.

That means we need to stand up against those who wish to destroy such freedoms. No one has a problem campaigning against the BNP or the EDL, so isn't it time we also campaign against the Islamists, the Salafists and their ilk that spread a message of hate that is just as bad . if not worse as they hijack a religion to do so?

If we truly are to tackle the very real issue of Islamic extremism then we must not be afraid to tackle the criminal activity (i.e. hate speech and racism) promoted by these bigots (and that is what they are).  That means there is no need to tread on eggshells around the Muslim "community" (and there is not just one, there are many) and do some straight talking.

Freedom of speech means that everyone has a right to their own opinion. We all have a right to express ourselves without fear of retribution by either the state or the self appointed zealots who seek to impose their distorted world views on the rest of us.

Promotion of hate and violence is criminal. Those who promote such views must be combated. There can be no appeasement. Remember what happened last time we tried that.

Facing up to Islamic (and other) extremism

There can be no justification, religious, political or moral for the absolutely brutal murder of a British soldier by two men claiming to be acting on behalf of "Muslims"on the streets of London yesterday. Our thoughts and condolences are obviously with the family and friends of Lee Rigby at this difficult time.

The time has come to face up to the fact that there are those in our midst who are being attracted to, and acting on behalf of Preachers of hate whose twisted views brainwash the weak and vulnerable minds of their followers. I was impressed by a post which appeared on Harry's Place an excellent blog which regularly covers and exposes such extremists in which Mehrdad Amanpour outlines his case as a British Muslim against these men. He writes:

....surely it’s time for Muslims everywhere to confront some of the extreme views held within their communities and face up to the fact that such views may act as stepping-stones for some ignorant and impressionable people who go on to carry out atrocious acts of violence.

It is a fact that far too many Muslim scholars promote, and far too many Muslims believe, interpretations of Islam that are anything but moderate– for example, that non-Muslims are morally and spiritually ‘inferior’ beings to Muslims or that in an ideal ‘Islamic’ society, the death penalty should apply for a Muslim who leaves Islam, for anyone who insults the Prophet, has sex outside of marriage or takes part in a homosexual act.

Whilst I’m not suggesting that any significant number of the Muslims holding such views would ever commit or even condone the events we saw in Woolwich, I am suggesting that if someone already believes such interpretations of Islam, it would be easier for them to believe that it’s morally acceptable to behead an off-duty soldier in the street.

He continues by urging that Universities ban "hate groups" from their premises and mosques, madrassas  and Islamic faith schools that promote such hate should be closed down. Mr Amanpour continues:

Stating that non-Muslims are inferior to Muslims or that people should be killed for leaving a religion or having gay sex is simple hate speech, whether or not the speaker believes that it is ordained by Allah. The fact that hate speech is illegal under English law recognises the fact that hateful speech can sometimes promote hateful action.

Surely it’s time for the people who promote the views outlined above are treated as the criminals they are.

This is a brave view which everyone should both applaud and frankly support.

At the same time there are those who will always try to make political capital out of such tragedies as we have seen in the form of George Galloway whose disgraceful tweet was widely reported last night as were the violent reaction of the boneheads of the English Defence League rioting on the streets last night.

Some of the far-left have avoided condemning the barbaric actions of these two terrorist criminals. The Socialist Workers Party (who incidentally refused to condemn 9/11, they simply stated they "understood why it happened) have issued an equally pathetic response today. Charlie Kimber avoids using the phrase "condemn" in his on-line statement published this afternoon;

For the Tories this is an opportunity to divert attention from austerity and their party splits. Instead all the talk is of “emergency committees”, “terrorist incidents” and “national unity”.

We should not allow them to get away with such hypocrisy.

Nor should the imperialist policies of successive British governments be forgotten. 

The SWP are part of a wide swathe of the far-left who have operated in an unholy alliance with the "islamist" movement world-wide. They are cheerleaders for groups such as the Hefezat-e-islam who wanted to kill atheist bloggers in Bangladesh and destroy women's rights at the same time. 

The far-left live under the illusion that the so called "anti-imperialism" of the islamists (which is actually more of a "islamic imperialism" with their talk of a world -wide "Caliphate") will help them build the world revolution.

Nothing could be further from the truth. They like those of us who believe in democracy and free speech will be the first against the wall if these dangerous cultists ever gained power.

There needs to be an ideological offensive against all forms of extremism whether it comes from the Islamists, the far-left or the far-right.

This means eternal vigilance against the enemies of democracy. In this we cannot and must not fail.

Time to end the politics of hate.

Not so comradely on the far-left it would seem

Stories about the Socialist Workers Party and their on-going crisis have been few and far between of late, but all is still not well for the Professor and his crew as the establishment of yet another opposition group inside the SWP shows.

A blog, The Fault Lines has been established by a "group of comrades" who opposed the leaderships handling of the crisis. Their opening gambit makes quite an astonishing claim:

It was the experience of being part of the opposition that kept many of us as members.  We were energised by the comradely spirit, inspired by the debate and discussion, welcomed as people who could make valuable contributions regardless of length of time spent in the party.  It felt like an organisation we wanted to be part of.

Really? A comradely spirit? That would be the one whereby their leader, Professor Callinicos warned of "lynch mobs" to deal with opposition! Not quite, even from their perspective it would seem:

Many of us felt as though we couldn’t return to our branches, where CC loyalists fulminated with indignation and resentment.  The space available for discussion and debate inevitably closed and we are left with a choice of wait in silence or quietly leave the organisation.  We intend to do neither.

Doesn't sound like an organisation that anyone would want to be part of to be quite honest.

The latest post by Simon W refers to the loss of "the aura of competence" and in doing so re-iterates what has now become common knowledge, the false membership figures the SWP used to try and present themselves as the biggest fish in the very small pond that Trotskyists inhabit. The 7,000 plus members turned out to be just 2,300 subscription paying members of which 350 apparently quit in March alone. 

Given the two factions added up to just 1,100, even allowing for "fence sitters" that are found in most factional fights the real figure was probably much lower. Its not easy to give estimates of "quitters" as many of them have simply wandered off without joining anything else.

Meanwhile the annual Marxism 2013 bash that was once the biggest gathering of comrades on the far-left is clearly in trouble. With hardly anyone agreeing to speak they have started scraping the barrel. Disgraced Scottish trot Tommy Sheridan is unikley to to improve their tarnished image and neither will digging up ex PCS would-be-Grandees like Jane Aitchison who has been trying to revive her fortunes by appearing around the country on the SWPs "Unite the Resistance" platforms. With less than 40 people attending the Wales event, Jane has got a long way to go.

Speaking of quitters the breakaway International Socialist Network continues to amaze with the publication of its recent Steering Committee minutes on-line in which they tell us in all seriousness that:

·         It was agreed we start from the position that everything we say is for everyone in the organisation to hear, if not it has to be raised and agreed.

·         It was pointed out that sometimes the minutes could be too exhaustive. Keith F pointed out that it would be difficult, for instance to call Alex Callinicos a wanker on the Steering Committee without it being made public in the minutes.

So now you know. 

The "Dear Leader" of PCS claims he is "heads and shoulders" above the rest

Speaking to the HMRC Group Conference in Brighton yesterday Mark Serwotka made an astonishing and rather vainglorious remark about the PCS union in stating that:

"Our union still stands head and shoulders above every public sector union in the UK - so there is every reason to be optimistic."

Such arrogance has become the hallmark of the far-left led PCS union it would seem. This came at the end of a speech in which he had also claimed that:

"Our range of tactics have so far been very effective, demonstrated in efforts management have tried to make to disrupt our action.

Really? Don't think the rest of us have noticed that. Rather that the action has been ignored not only by the Government, but by the vast majority of members as well. The action has barely attracted a third of members even at its height, and support, particularly in some departments has been declining exponentially ever since.

Yet his followers who now dominate events at the annual bash in Brighton have decided the time has come to launch extra strikes and "increase the pressure" (as they like to see it) on the Government. A report republished on the Socialist Party website claims:

The conference opened today against the backdrop of the union's three-month national campaign that has led to strikes and walkouts involving up to 250,000 public servants nationally and in government departments and agencies.

Passing the first motion of the day delegates agreed the next phase of the campaign will include a new national strike towards the end of June and further walkouts and protests across civil and public services, alongside other unions where possible. Dates will be set at a later date.

Moving the motion Mark Serwotka said: "We should be in no doubt that we are in the fight of our lives.

More strikes? There is little appetite for those that have already been held let alone more. Some reps have complained about the lack of further consultation, not that the unions "consultative" meetings are anything of the sort. These meetings are held to lay down the "line" rather than genuine opinion gathering, and are usually packed with political activists vying to be the most militant in order to achieve "brownie points" with their various faction leaders.

The political activists who run the union are clearly living in an ideological cul-de-sac oblivious to the world around them. Recognising reality isn't and never has been one of their strong-points.

Neither is free speech either. Following their disgraceful witch-hunting of PCS reps in SOCA (see previous reports on this blog), Mark Serwotka had this to say about the UKIP:

He congratulated the protesters who drove UKIP leader Nigel Farage out of Edinburgh when he visited the city earlier this month.

Whys that then?  The actions of the so-called "Radical Independence" group were an affront to free speech and democracy. Serwotka should be ashamed of himself  for aligning himself with these reprobates. He also backs the UK Uncut protesters whose actions helped wreck the biggest TUC demo in years when we were fighting for pensions.

The PCS leadership is out of touch with the real world. Their priorities are their own political agendas. SOCA members have shown they have had enough, the majority of members have switched off from voting in elections or taking part in ballots, let alone striking for what is clearly a lost campaign.

PCS is not "heads and shoulders above the other public sector unions" as he claims. In fact the actions of Serwotka and his cronies have made life more difficult for everybody else. If this shower continue on their current course more people will begin to question their membership of the union.

The time has come for a complete change of direction for PCS, with new ideas for the 21st Century, lets  hope its not too late.