Howie's Corner has moved!

Regular readers will have noticed that the recent posts on this blog were originally published on Howie's Corner 2 my new blog following the site being blocked by Facebook for "spamming". Given that my main efforts are being put into influencing Labour Party members I needed the facility of a blog to post in the Facebook groups I belong to.

In the past this was never a problem but FB have cracked down on a lot of activities in recent months and I am not alone in falling foul of their harder regime. It is still possible for me to campaign but posts need to be spaced out time-wise and each preceded by a different introduction to avoid any breach of their rules.

Whilst this original blog still receives a lot of hits, much of this is on older posts of which there are well over 2,000 and will continue to do so. I have decided that the best route for me is to ask readers to switch to the new site Howie's Corner 2 which will replace this site.

This has not been an easy decision for me to make given the work put in over the years and though I have broke no record the fact is Howie's Corner has had a modicum of success at times and attracted well over a million hits. I would like to thank all my readers for coming here and hope that you will join me as I continue this enterprise at:

Howie's Corner 2 

This will cover Politics. Music nostalgia and whatever else takes my fancy except for Comics, fantasy sci-fi & horror which will be at the expanded:

Howie's World of Comics

My Facebook & Twitter accounts will continue as normal.

I hope to see you all return soon! Stay safe!

Shalom Aleichem,

Howie

Jewish Labour Movement: Statement on Labour's EHRC Action Plan

 

The Labour Party has finally published the long awaited action plan to eradicate antisemitism, it's enablers and deniers from their ranks. Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner made it quite clear in their introduction that:

The Equality and Human Rights Commission report on antisemitism in the Labour Party is incredibly difficult reading for everyone who loves our Party and wants it to be a force for good. But its findings were clear and stark: the Labour Party breached the Equality Act 2010 in terms of unlawful harassment and indirect discrimination towards our Jewish members. 

We failed the Jewish community, our members, our supporters and the country. That is why we must act to drive antisemitism out of our Party and change the processes, structures and the culture of the Party to ensure Jewish people feel safe to return to their political home. 

That requires more than just words. It requires action. The Action Plan for Driving out Antisemitism from the Labour Party published today sets out concrete steps and a timetable to do this.

The Jewish Labour Movement response:

Today the Labour Party has published their Action Plan based on the EHRC's report into antisemitism in the Party. This significant document that lays out how the Labour Party is going to implement the EHRC's recommendations. It includes an independent complaints process for antisemitism and discrimination based on all protected characteristics, education and training and monitoring the progress the Party. You can read the full Action Plan here. 

Formal Statement:

Jewish Labour members want to see Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner continue to set out clear and decisive actions in tackling anti-Jewish racism within our Party.

Many of the steps set out in this Action Plan are those that JLM has been asking the Party to implement for years. We are disappointed that it took the intervention of the EHRC to secure them, but pleased that we now have a new leadership committed to act.

As the centenary year of our affiliation to the Labour Party draws to an end, we will continue to play our part in being a loyal but critical friend to the Labour Party in resolving these challenges. Our expectations will be however, as they always have been, for strong actions to follow positive words.

Whilst we welcome the reform of processes, by itself it is not enough. Recent events have shown a toxic culture persists in many parts of the Party. Solving this is as essential as introducing an independent disciplinary process.

________________

Further information: jewishlabour.uk

Peace & Justice: Appeasement Soviet Style?

 

The launch of Corbyn's new vanity project Project for Peace and Justice is reminiscent of the old Cold War style British-Soviet Friendship Societies and their like. Even the one sided Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament was dominated by Stalinists and their allies who like Corbyn saw the Western democracies as the enemy either excusing or totally ignoring atrocities and human rights violations by the Communist Party.

There were similar bodies set up to defend several of the Eastern bloc or other Communist regimes of old. There still exists a "Friends of Korea" run by the likes of the New Communist Party and others (1) who support the brutal North Korean regime which has developed the world's first hereditory Communist dictatorship.

There are parallels with these groups and Corbyn's so-called "anti-imperialism". Last year Jeremy Corbyn and Yasmin Dar (a Labour Party NEC member) appeared at a rally to support and praise the Iranian "Revolution "and defend it from "imperialist" attacks. 

Corbyn and many of his supporters have and continue to appear of the now banned in the UK Press TV, a propaganda channel run by the clerical dictatorship and notorious for interviewing a political prisoner under the supervision of his torturers (2). 

The leaders of the Stop the War Coalition Lyndsey German and John Rees still get paid work for this bogus news channel, You won't see any criticism of Iran from them. Of course their idea of "peace and justice" is similar to Corbyn's and only condemn Western intervention ignoring the indiscriminate bombing of the Russians and barrel bombing by the Assad government.

In fact Corbyn's whole approach to peace has always been one sided. His supporters have defended his links with the IRA Sinn Fein saying this was to "assist the peace process". Yet Corbyn along with his former sidekick John McDonnell were notorious for supporting the armed struggle. 

The Corbynistas often point out that Thatchers Government amongst others had meetings with these people but ignore the simple fact governments met both sides something Corbyn never did. His peace simply meant total victory for the republicans regardless of the consequences for the protestant population.

It's the same with the Middle East conflict. Corbyn and his supporters claim that meeting and supporting Hamas, Fatah and Hezbollah (all his "friends" even though these groups all hate each other) is for peace but once again Corbyn has never met with the Israeli's and disgustingly when the disputes over antisemitism arose under his leadership refused to go to the Holocaust Museum in Israel when invited by Labour's sister organisation.

Corbyn had no excuse. He's managed to find time for Hamas and their ilk. He just isn't interested in peace and for the Corbynistas that means "from the river to the sea" a genocidal threat to the millions of Jews living in Israel.

If Corbyn was genuinely interested in peace he would meet both sides, attempt negotiation and compromise along with reconciliation and understanding but neither he nor his supporters are either capable of or interested in such things. Only bringing down "Western imperialism" is their concern.

Abuses of the Palestinians by Hamas and Fatah oppression of minorities and imprisonment of trade unionists and the torture of political prisoners including rape of women in Iran is ignored. Every Iranian sponsored "Al-Quds day Corbyn and his allies will be seen ignoring all this on a march and event paid for by Iranian blood money. 

The hypocrisy of Corbyn and his movement is endless. They condemn foreign intervention in conflict only if it comes from the West. The Russians and Iranians involvement in places like Syria and Yemen is ignored.

Examining the bland platitudes of the "mission statement" written for the Project for Peace and Justice we can expect more of the same. Like the old British-Soviet Friendships of old Corbyn will only see the world  as it suits his ideology and desire to follow the latest trends and slogans that his followers decide is the priority of the day.

As for peace and justice neither Corbyn or his movement will ever achieve anything except appropriate other peoples conflicts to massage their ideological mores.

________________________-

Notes:

(1) New Communist Party a breakaway from the official CPGB in the seventies led by Sid French who opposed Eurocommunism and was a hard-line Stalinist. Current General Secretary is Andy Brookes. The other group involved is the Revolutionary Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist) a Maoist sect.

(2) "The broadcaster was fined £100,000 after the channel aired an interview with Maziar Bahari, an imprisoned Newsweek journalist, that had been conducted under duress." (Guardian 20/12/2012)

(Originally published on: Howie's Corner 2)

Labour Against the Witch Hunt attacks everyone......

 

It seems there is no love lost between the supporters of the far-left and wrongly named Labour Against the Witch Hunt group as they issue statements attacking their rivals. The following statement appears on LAW's Facebook page and attacks not just us rabid right-wingers and Zionists but also lays into Momentum as they respond to the recent Labour Party NEC meeting:

According to today’s Times and Labour List, the Labour Party’s NEC yesterday voted “unanimously” in favour of implementing the demand by the EHRC (and, of course the Board of Deputies) to outsource the disciplinary process for antisemitism complaints. That means that the five ‘left wingers’ on the CLGA slate voted to have a non-Labour agency (who???) decide the fate of all of those who get reported for antisemitism. Starmer is already planning to make the whole disciplinary process “independent” – and the ‘left’ will probably support him in that too.

While we don’t know yet who that agency will be, it is clearly entirely absurd to let people who are potential opponents (not to say enemies) of the Labour movement decide, in the last analysis, who should and who shouldn’t be a member of OUR party! This is beyond shocking.

The EHRC and the Board of Deputies have no business meddling in our affairs. "Independent" will mean just one thing: Independent of ANY democratic oversight by the membership. The current disciplinary system was unfair and has been exploited by the right - but outsourcing it will make matters much, much worse. That is of course why Starmer is doing it. 

Where is the left opposition? What on earth are the 'new' Momentum, CLPD and now also the Labour Representation Committee (whose member Nadia Jama sits on the NEC) are doing?

The hypocrisy of the author  (Tina Werkmann) is astounding. Labour Against the Witch Hunt is a product of the intervention of the Communist Party of Great Britain (Weekly Worker) group. Werkman (who apparently "works" for LAW) was am member of the CPGB when she joined the Labour Party along with a number of others but left earlier this year after some ideological infighting within the party.

In other words Werkman was in clear breach of the rules when she joined Labour whilst still a member of another rival political party.  The CPGB may be small but by it's decision to use antisemitism as a weapon has caused much trouble by supporting miscreants such as Tony Greenstein & Jackie Walker now expelled from the Labour Party.

The connections and loyalties of the supporters of LAW are questionable. Roger Day in supporting this statement from LAW chooses to link to two articles from guess what.. the Weekly Worker! What a surprise! Another fan Geoffrey Turner decides an article from yet another rival group Counterfire (a breakaway from the SWP led by the leaders of the misnamed Stop the War Coalition) is "good advice.

Some of the comments are very disturbing:

Ray Hicks writes: 
Shekel Starmer is a zionist stooge. Time for all socialist to leave the Labour Party before they are the last socialist in the Labour Party. You can't support Israel and be a socialist.

David Bullock muses:

Full of 5th columnist snakes like Streeting, Ashworth and Hodge who are either very heavily influenced by the Israel lobby or worse still, indirectly financially incentivised by them. 

Cindy Bryant forthrightly tells her comrades:

It will be the JLM or LFI as the so called independent disciplinary body. You wait!

Everything is a "Zionist" conspiracy. It's Zionist money, Zionist paymasters. They sound just like the National Socialists and Tsarist secret police. Just old fashioned antisemitic tropes. 

Labour is a parliamentary party and has an obligation to obey the law including the legal requirements as outlined by the ECHR. The comrades do not understand this or even see themselves as subject to the rule of law. They are beyond and above it and one would hate to see these followers of Lenin in any form of power & influence.

Momentum can defend itself (I'm not going to) but one thing is for sure Labour Against the Witch Hunt is beyond the realms of reason and respectability. It should be proscribed and it's supporters suspended and hopefully expelled. 

_____________________________

Originally published on Howie's Corner 2

Labour's hard left lies, hides and denies

It must be the cold weather as Labour's far left continues to decline into farce as first up NEC member and Unite representative tweeted that:

My NEC report for Unite will record being denied access to submissions to the EHRC; denied a debate on suspensions; denied debate on the importance of protecting lawful freedom of speech. And no debate on wealth taxes paying for the crisis. A single agenda NEC Keir Starmer?

Beckett of course is telling porkies though it is possible he is to stupid to read the NEC Standing Orders for such meetings which explicitly reject any other business being discussed. If he was so anxious to get his points of view across perhaps he and his playmates shouldn't have had walked out of the last NEC when they didn't get their way.

Mind you Beckett doesn't exactly believe in democracy. He failed to get the United Left's nomination for general Secretary (I can see why) so decided to run anyway. Beckett is hardly a party loyalist and made a contribution to an event held by the rival Socialist Party attacking Labour hardly behaviour one would expect from any member let alone someone on the NEC. A breach of party rules that is certain and a complaint has been duly made.

The there's Apsana Begum the Corbynite MP for Poplar & Limehouse who appeared in Court today facing charges of Housing Fraud. The East London Advertiser reports:

Apsana Begum, 30, applied to go on Tower Hamlets Council’s social housing register on July 22, 2011 because she was living in “overcrowded accommodation”, Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard on Tuesday, December 8.

The Labour politician is accused of failing to notify the housing service during three periods between January 18, 2013 and March 31, 2016 after she moved address.

The council, which is bringing the prosecution, allege the cost to the authority was £63,928 because someone else on the housing list had to be given accommodation elsewhere.

Ms Begum, who won her seat in the general election last December, denied each of the three charges when they were read in court.

Then comes the conspiratorial rub:

Raj Chada, defending, told the judge there are heightened security concerns since the death of MP Jo Cox, and there had been a “campaign of harassment” against Ms Begum over issues with “a member of the Labour Party and his supporters”.

Begum now goes to full trial and becomes the third left-wing MP to have the Labour Whip removed as she joins Claudia Webbe (facing harassment charges) and Jeremy Corbyn on the rear benches.

Finally joining this line-up today is John McDonell who has offered to act as a character witness to the vile JVL leader Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi hardly surprising but shows how shallow his public statements were under the Corbyn leadership about  wanting to "deal" with antisemitism.

A full and comprehensive expose of the JVL can be found here:

Go To: JVL: a vehicle to normalise antisemitism

Worth taking the time to read.

The left are clearly in disarray. The cronyism of the old Corbyn regime of allowing these cranks to thrive under their leadership has shows once again how shallow their claims to either creating a "kinder, gentler form of politics" or a better world for all" really was.

These cranks, fools and charlatans should never be allowed near the reigns of power again. Time for the party to make Labour a place of reason and show these fakes the door.

__________________

Originally published on Howie's Corner 2

The hard left get a taste of their own medicine....

 

You may have seen the far/had-left protesting about their comrades accounts being closed by Twitter on Sunday. Some remain suspended but the left's outcry about free speech is somewhat hypocritical both now and historically.

When I first opened a Twitter account (to replace the now defunct Google Plus function I relied on as a blogger) I managed to clash with a couple of hard left activists within days one of whom Abby Hoffman a rather unpleasant JVL activist said that "they should report my staus" which was supported by someone (no longer on Twitter) that used a false a name. Nothing came of it as I doubt Twitter could find anything that even remotely broke their rules. 

However the intent was there. This was all part and parcel of what was happening in the Labour Party at the time. Anyone who didn't agree with the "Dear Leader" was roundly denounced, told to go jin the Tories etc. You all know the drift by now, especially if like me you were a Zionist Jew.

The rise of the Corbynite and Identity politics left has led to a massive increase in to attacks on the right to free speech. It began in universities as arguments arose over gender vs sex-based (women's) rights those that dared challenge the new orthodoxy found themselves bullied, harassed, attacked, banned," no-platformed" and even sacked just because they wanted to present an alternative point of view. 

Most of the victims (but far from all) were women. To see life long feminists and champions of women's rights banned from speaking just because she doesn't believe in the modern mantra that trans-women are actually women and women like JK Rowling threatened with vile tweets from trans-activists telling her to "suck their lady-dicks along with rape threats from err.."trans-women" and their "allies " was an absolute disgrace.

The right to challenge ideas about transitioning (especially when those demanding rights infringe on the rights of others) along with whether children should be given puberty blockers or beginning the process before adjusting to their actual bodies as an adult like everyone else has resulted in attacks on Lesbians in particular. 

I have always been disturbed by the trans-notion of the "cotton ceiling" where men identifying as "women" but retain male genitalia call lesbians "transphobic" because they won't sleep with them is male entitlement's equivalent to rape as it demands women's submission to them.

The Government has withdrawn the proposed legislation that allows for "self-identification" and there remains a very complex debate to be had though the hard left and their allies have mostly aligned themselves with the inquisitors of the trans-activist movement.

That aside the hard left has no history of actually being democratic or allowing free speech. Most of these activists are influenced to one degree or another by the politics of Marxism, in particular those of of Lenin &Trotsky. They claim this "tradition" is anti-Stalinist when in fact so many of the methods used  by Uncle Joe to suppress opposition were in fact developed by old Trotsky himself.

During Kropotkin's funeral the Bolsheviks went around smashing the Anarchists printing presses. All non Bolshevik (later Communist Party) socialist opposition was banned, let alone the rest. Trotsjy even moved against internal party opposition groups such as The Trade Union Opposition and others all of whom were systematically suppressed.

Even the Gulags were opened by Trotsky and don't mention Kronstadt. In fact nowhere any form of Marxism took hold democracy was never on the agenda. From Cuba to Venezuela, China and North Korea dissent is not allowed. The party is always right. the line is always held. 

The comrades always claim that these countries were either "deformed workers states" or not socialist at all. In fact many say that their socialism has not been tried and it will be different. Really? If that were the case why is all these far left group continually split asunder because their leaderships cannot tolerate dissent. 

Older readers may remember that the far-left was once likened to Heinz's "57 varieties" but that advertising campaign has been defunct for many years. The divisions within the far-left to dissidence let alone outsiders remains violently hostile. Free speech for these people is only for them.

_____________________

Originally published on: Howie's Corner 2

"Sitting in nowhere land making nowhere plans for nobody"

 

When I saw the notice (see above) for an organisation that was supposed to be a "Constituency Labour Party" for members expelled from the Labour Party I was astonished, fascinated and horrified all at the same time. The far-left love setting up new "front" or "campaign" organisations but this one well was one of the strangest efforts they have undertaken in a very long time.

First of all some background to the individual who seems to be one of the major driving forces behind this project, one Tina Werkman a communist from Germany.  Werkman entered the labour Party via the Labour Party Marxists ( a front for the Communist Party of Great Britain/Weekly Worker) during the rise of Corbynism. 

The CPGB along with the LPM established  Labour Against the Witch Hunt which is responsible for organising the defence of those expelled for mostly antisemitism and is associated with figures like Jackie Walker and Chris Williamson. One of the other projects this group threw themselves behind was the "Labour Left Alliance" which manages to unite many of the worst that the far left have to offer.

However Werkman (along with fellow CPGB member Lee Rock) went seemingly "native" in the Labour Party following an obscure "split" inside the Communist group they belonged to. Currently she works for Labour Left Alliance according to her Facebook profile.

Werkman invites former Labour members to join this formation:

We are sick and tired of being silenced, sidelined and slandered. If you too have been suspended or expelled from the Labour Party as part of the witch-hunt against the left, come and join us in setting up an unofficial CLP, where we can discuss issues around the Labour Party. This is the first planning meeting. Please come with ideas on how to organise! Please forward to other comrades who you think might be interested. Time to fight back!

At the time of writing around 19 people have said they re "going" and a further 100 are interested. It will be interesting to see not how many but who actually turns up because there is another campaign for "free speech" being launched by the various sects which has a platform of the real hard core haters. They have just added Kerry-Anne Mendoza (recently banned for hate speech on Twitter) to their lineup.

It's worth reading a selection of comments of some of their supporters to see why these people not only don't belong in the Labour Party you wouldn't want them in decent company either:

Maggie writes:

This is what Starmer s Labour looks like! I left, as soon as he became Leader, funded by Trevor Chinn,a wealthy prozionist, as, I knew what this would mean for Labour!

Labour Friends of Israel, plotted against JC from day one, with support from the BBC and our sad media and its even worse now, with a rabidly proIsrael Leader. Starmer vowed, to his funders, that “ I will stand with zionism whatever happens” and the job was his! So, if Israel bombs and completely destroys Gaza, that will be ok with Starmer! If Israel demolishes, all Palestinian homes, in West Bank...thats ok with Starmer and indeed, anything, Israel does, is ok with Starmer, sadly!

While Eamon tells us firmly:

...the Israeli lobby has clearly infiltrated the Party from top to bottom.

Pass the tin foil please...

____________________

Originally published on: Howie's Corner 2 

Corbyn's supporters breakaway in Lancaster

 

Photo: By Robin Madge

Keir Starmer has committed his leadership to ridding the Labour Party of antisemitism which frankly given how deeply this pernicious form of racism embedded itself under Jeremy Corbyn isn't going to be an easy task and will cause ructions, resignations and expulsions. Angela Rayner has made clear the latter is more than just an option.

In the current climate the former supporters of the Corbyn tendency are having quite an apoplectic fit  about their failures. A huge number of these people came into the Labour Party to purge those they did not agree with. Mark Serwotka the vainglorious General Secretary of the PCS union made it quite clear that he joined to "help deselect" MPs. 

Then there were all the attacks on "Red Tories", Blue labour" "Centrists" and of course Zionists all lumped together as the "right-wing". Bullying, intimidation misogyny and of course antisemitism. As far as the latter goes there were always a handful of these types in Labour's ranks along with the same in other political parties.

However the influx of the self proclaimed anti-imperialists brought with them a very toxic form of "anti-Zionism that has morphed into clear antisemitism which the hard core don't even care about and campaign to claim these are false interpretations of their bigotry which would never be aimed at any other ethnic minority. Jews simply don't count in their blinkered world view.

That takes us to Lancashire where lancs.live reports

A Rossendale councillor expelled by Labour earlier this year claimed this week she was the victim of 'a smear campaign' after she was named in a human rights report into antisemitism in the party.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) report found that Whitewell ward councillor Pam Bromley ‘used antisemitic tropes’ in social media posts, which amounted to unlawful harassment.

It comes as no surprise that the Corbynistas continue their departure. Five Councillors in Lancaster have declared that:

 "Humanity faces a future of spiralling inequality and climate catastrophe. The world needs strong socialist movements to fundamentally challenge the capitalist system that is destroying our planet.

"For a brief time, a ‘moment’, the Labour Party offered hope to millions, to the many not the few. Today under Starmer, it is offering a return to ‘business as usual’. The country and the world doesn’t have time for this. The climate extinction clock is ticking. So, we cannot in good conscience remain as representatives of this Labour Party with which we now hold so little in common.”

How they think five councillors sitting now under the name of an Eco-Socialist" group isolated from mainstream politics will achieve anything is a mystery. They'll just end up like the Socialist Workers party and their ilk becoming an irrelevance to all and everyone around them. 

One wonders what they had in common with the Labour Party in the first place.....

__________________________

(Originally published on my other blog: Howie's Corner Too established due to Facebook censorship.)

Join the Global Flag Raising for West Papua on 1st December!

 

On the 59th anniversary of the first raising of West Papua’s symbol of independence, the Morning Star Flag, we invite you to take part in this year’s Global Flag Raising action to show your solidarity for West Papua’s freedom and right to self-determination.

To help show the growing worldwide support for West Papua, each year we ask supporters to send in photos of themselves raising the West Papuan flag in their area. When people publicly display the Morning Star, they not only show their solidarity with the West Papuan people, but also acknowledge their rightful path to freedom; a process that was interrupted by Indonesian occupation.

We encourage as many groups and individuals to take part on this day by themselves if they would like to, but there are also a number of events which are being officially already organised by solidarity groups worldwide.

Spokesperson for the Free West Papua Campaign, Raki Ap, explains;

“The land of West Papua will always be remembered as the birth place of the Morning Star, which is the last glimpse of night as the sun rises. The Morning Star has guided seafarers to West Papua’s shores for thousands of years, and so too it will also guide us to freedom. The Morning Star is the symbol of our home, and represents our dream to live independently and in peace. This is why we will keep calling on our friends around the world to participate in raising the Morning Star flag alongside us, and continue asking then to show Indonesia they affirm our path to freedom and right to self-determination.”

Please join us today:

• Take a photo of you and/or your group raising the Morning Star Flag
• Tag us with your photos @freewestpapua and by using the hashtags #GlobalFlagRaising #FreeWestPapua and #LetWestPapuaVote

More information: freewestpapua.org

ACT NOW: Ban Chen Quangou from the UK!

 

Mass detention. Systematic surveillance. Widespread torture. Millions in forced labour camps. And the attempt to erase a people’s history and culture.

These abuses are the product of one man, Chen Quanguo.

Today, we have launched a campaign to demand the UK Government hold Chen responsible for these widespread abuses.

Let the government, and the world, know that we will not stay silent. Now is the time for action!

Sign the Petition

The USA has already imposed sanctions on Chen, and it is time for the UK to follow suit. This will set a precedent that other countries can and must follow. Whether you are in the UK or elsewhere in the world, we urge you to sign this petition today.

Please take action and sign our petition to the Foreign Secretary, demanding that Chen is banned from travelling to the UK.

More info: freetibet.org

Porridge Radio - Rice, Pasta and Other Fillers (Re-release)

Given that Porridge Radio were nominated for the Mercury Prize with their excellent Every Bad album it's hardly surprising to see some of their earlier material re-released. This particular album Rice, Pasta and Other Fillers was apparently recorded in a garden shed! It's certainly got that kind of "indie edge" to it as a result and proves an excellent album for this still small time Brighton band.

The band started by Dana Margolin was the result of singing and song writing in her bedroom and she went on to form a band with keyboardist Georgie Stott, bass guitarist Maddie Ryall and drummer Sam Yardley.

This track Enugh is a good example of their early work.

Available from: porridgeradio.bandcamp.com

Porridge Radio: Facebook

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More music with the new Iron Maiden live album over at Howie's Corner 2

Labour Against Antisemitism: Statement on the Withholding of the Whip from Jeremy Corbyn

 

LAAS Statement on the Continuing Withholding of the Whip from Jeremy Corbyn

“The decision to continue to withhold the whip from Jeremy Corbyn is a welcome gesture. However, it must not be used to obscure the disgraceful events of the last 24 hours or the calamity of institutional antisemitism in the Labour Party.

Having announced that his leadership signalled new management of the Labour Party, Keir Starmer’s authority has been completely undermined by the lifting of Mr Corbyn’s suspension yesterday. Less than three weeks on from the publication of the damning EHRC report into anti-Jewish racism in the Labour Party, the Jewish community has again been ignored and failed.

Until an independent complaints process is introduced, and all historical cases of antisemitism from 2015 onwards are reviewed in full, the Labour Party will not be a safe space for British Jews."

LAAS website: labouragainstas.org.

___________________________________

Please note: Further posts and statements can be found on my other blog Howie's Corner 2

Board of Deputies calls on Labour Party to reject Corbyn’s ‘pathetic non-apology’

 

Board of Deputies President Marie van der Zyl has condemned Jeremy Corbyn’s statement made today and called on the Labour Party to reject it.

Marie said: 

 “The Jewish community does not accept this pathetic non-apology from Jeremy Corbyn. Keir Starmer rightly called the day of the release of the EHRC report a “day of shame”. Jeremy Corbyn’s response, by contrast, was shameless. Keir Starmer said, “Those who deny there is a problem are part of the problem. 

Those who pretend it is exaggerated or factional are part of the problem”. Yet Jeremy Corbyn questioned the findings of the report which showed that, under his watch, the Party had acted unlawfully in respect of its treatment of Jews. 

If the Party wants to show it is serious about tackling anti-Jewish racism, it will consign this statement, just like the culture which led to the EHRC’s damning findings, to the dustbin of history. To do otherwise would be a failure of leadership which would risk the Party slipping backwards.”

Website: www.bod.org.uk

Labour Against Antisemitism statement on Labour NEC election results

 

Labour's ... "NEC election results, which delivered a moderate majority after years of hard left dominance, is a positive step for the Labour Party. Keir Starmer should find it considerably easier to implement the vital reforms required to address the institutional anti-Jewish racism described in the recent Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) report. 

During the coming weeks and months we hope Sir Keir will engage widely to ensure that not just the letter but also the spirit of the EHRC’s recommendations are followed. This is an important opportunity for the Labour Party leadership to move on constructively from the shame of the last four years, and we hope it will not be wasted.”

More from LAAS: labouragainstas.org.uk

NEC results – moderates tighten grip

The NEC election results saw supporters of Keir Starmer’s leadership increase our grip on the National Executive Committee and secure a working majority for the first time.

The balance of the committee has gone from 18 solid supporters of the leadership out of 37 before the election to 21 out of 39 (with the 2 GMB reps as swing votes and just 16 from the Hard Left) now.

In the CLP Section Labour to Win got three candidates elected (Luke Akehurst, Johanna Baxter and Gurinder Singh Josan) plus Ann Black who we had recommended transferring to. Momentum took the remaining five, down four from their 2018 clean 9-0 clean sweep.

Carwyn Jones, supported by Labour to Win, gained the Welsh Labour Rep seat from the left.

Both the incumbents supported by Labour to Win, Alice Perry and Nick Forbes, were comfortably re-elected as Councillors’ Reps.

Unfortunately, we failed to gain the Youth Rep and the new Disabled Members’ Rep, where we missed out by just 0.3%.

Commiserations to defeated candidates Terry Paul, Michael Payne, Shama Tatler, Kira Lewis and George Lindars-Hammond who all ran great campaigns and showed they have a huge amount to offer the Labour Party in the future.

In the CLP section the nine winning candidates were elected by Single Transferable Vote in the following order:

Order Elected in	Name	Slate	First Preference Votes
1	Luke Akehurst	Labour to Win	21,355
2	Laura Pidcock	Momentum/Grassroots Voice	15,668
3	Johanna Baxter	Labour to Win	9,803
4	Gemma Bolton	Momentum/Grassroots Voice	9,596
5	Gurinder Singh Josan	Labour to Win	4,624
6	Ann Black	Open Labour	7,813
7	Yasmin Dar	Momentum/Grassroots Voice	6,322
8	Nadia Jama	Momentum/Grassroots Voice	5,707
9	Mish Rahman	Momentum/Grassroots Voice	5,879

The vote share by slate with change since last full NEC elections in 2018 was as follows:

Momentum/GRV 37% (down 19%)

Labour to Win 31% (up 1%)

Open Labour 9% (up 5%)

Labour Left Alliance 5% (up 5%)

Tribune 4% (up 4%)

Independents: 14% (up 5%)

There was therefore a swing of 10% from Momentum to Labour to Win since 2018.

Further detailed results are on the party website.

Thank you to everyone who voted, volunteered and campaigned for us.

This is another significant step forward in returning Labour to being a decent, mainstream, election-winning party and ridding the party of extremism and the moral stain of antisemitism. The membership of the party is starting to change.

But it shows we remain up against formidable Hard Left opponents who have deep reserves of cash, data and support that they can deploy in OMOV elections. Their control of many CLPs is disturbing and needs to be tackled. 

Luke Akehurst
Secretary, Labour First

More information: www.labourtowin.org 

Act Now! Belarus: Release 42 trade unionists!

 

A few days ago I wrote about the good news that four union leaders who had been jailed in Belarus were now free. 

We know that our campaign helped. They told us so in a video. [*]

But this afternoon we received some terrible news: some of those very same union leaders, together with around 40 other union members, were arrested by the police and are now being held in a local police station.

They are likely to be held until Monday and possibly much longer.

The independent trade unions of Belarus and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) have called for a global campaign of protest.

Please join us in sending an urgent message to the local and national police demanding their release. 

Click here to learn more and send your message today.

Free the 42 jailed trade unionists now!

Eric Lee

*The video with the 4 trade union leaders who were released -- and now. re-arrested -- is here.

Kylie Minogue - Say Something (Official Video)

Kylie Minogue has just released her fifteenth studio album and it's not just a complete departure from her previous country music inspired effort but a revival of the pop princess that we have all come to love and enjoy. 

Being a Kylie fan has always been a rather open "guilty secret" of this ageing Rock fan but when pop music is done well and there's a beautiful woman involved then this old man is happy. 

There's not just some good music on this 12 track album but it's also "happy"and uplifting stuff to potter around the flat durring this boring but necessary lock-down. 

I've chosen my favourite track to feature and encourage you all to grab a piece of Kylie while you can.

Website: www.kylie.com

Labour's "Jewish problem" in Brighton

 

It seems that despite the lock-down and the focus on the US Presidential elections that hard left continues to ply it's tired old mores this time down in Brighton home to many of the worst that Labour has to offer. The meeting includes expelled and former members speaking in defence of Corbyn their martyr apparently crucified in the name of "socialism".

Brighton is a hotbed of far left and in particular ant-Zionist activity. The fixation on the issue by so many of the local party has caused huge frictions, splits, suspensions and expulsions. The Labour MP for Brighton Kemptown is Lloyd Russell-Moyle who as the local paper The Argus reports: 

(The Campaign Against Antisemitism)....complaints against Mr Russell-Moyle include, but are not limited to, allegations he intervened on behalf of a party members facing disciplinary action for anti-Semitic comments –namely Brighton activists Melanie Melvin and Rebecca Massey.

Labour Party member Melanie Melvin was suspended for actions including a tweet which read: “Breaking: Sarin gas was filmed by the BBC at Pinewood on the orders of Mrs May and the Israeli lobby.”

It was alleged that Mr Russell-Moyle wrote to Labour Party general secretary Iain McNicol to say her tweet seemed “unhinged at best” but had, he believed, been made as a parody of online conspiracy theorists.

In July, The Sunday Times reported that Lloyd Russell-Moyle wrote letter in support of Rebecca Massey, an activist who said Israel had Labour and the Tories “under control”, to party headquarters.

These charming individuals are not alone. Brighton and Hove News reported back in July this year:

A Brighton Labour councillor has quit the party after becoming the third member to be investigated for alleged anti-semitism.

Councillor Kate Knight announced that she had quit today (Monday 20 July) after being reported for a slew of recently unearthed posts on Facebook. Brighton and Hove News understands that she had been facing suspension......

Council leader Nancy Platts today said that it brought shame on the whole Labour Party to see these posts. She said: “On behalf of the Labour group, I am truly sorry to the Jewish community for the hurt these posts have caused.

Then there was Amanda Bishop who wanted to march on a Synagogue to defend someone suspended for err..antisemitism.

A Labour member in Brighton suggested that the local party “march to" a local Synagogue to protest against the suspension of a fellow Labour party member over alleged antisemitism, with an MP calling on the police to investigate her for "incitement".

Amanda Bishop was writing in the Brighton and Hove Labour party forum Facebook group in response to news that local council candidate Alex Braithwaite had been suspended from the party.

Miss Braithwaite was suspended two weeks ago over her posts to social media.

One such post claimed that Israel was “giving African migrants 90 days to leave the country so they don’t effect [sic] Israeli bloodline. They must leave or they will be jailed or murdered.”

How anyone can claim there is "no evidence" of antisemitism or "it's only a small number of people" need look no further than the Brighton CLPs for evidence to the contrary.

Tonights' meeting sees Tony Greenstein, Jewish but no friend of his own people on any level given his lifetime obsession with anti-Zionism who was expelled from the Labour Party for his appalling behaviour. Also present is Nichole Brennan:

Brighton & Hove city councillor Nichole Brennan resigned from her council cabinet posts after photos of her holding up a sign calling Israel a “racist, apartheid state” were given to The Argus.

The pictures were taken two years ago at a Hove Town Hall rally against the city council’s adoption of the International Holocaust Recognition Association’s definition of anti-Semitism.

The association defines claims the state of Israel is racist.

Jewish Labour Movement vice-chairman Stephane Sarvery said Cllr Brennan’s sign was “disturbing”.

“What these photos seems to suggest is that for Cllr Brennan the adoption of the IHRA definition by Brightoncouncil was somehow linked to Israel,” he said.

“The fact she associated both is disturbing to say the least.

“It raises the question as to why Cllr Brennan thought it was appropriate to link the fight against anti-Semitism in the UK with the conflict between Israel and Palestine.

If antisemitism is going to be rooted out of the Labour Party Brighton would seem a good place to start.

Statement following third meeting between Jewish community leaders and Labour Leader Keir Starmer

 

The publication of the EHRC Report was welcomed by the Jewish community as it vindicated their concerns. The Jewish Labour Movement (an affiliate of the Labour Party) has already stated:

Members have been subjected to persistent levels of abuse that passed criminal thresholds, whilst Jewish women Members of Parliament such as Luciana Berger and Dame Louise Ellman were left little choice but to resign under extreme duress. Jewish Labour members, our friends and allies have far too often faced the perverse insinuation that we have ‘weaponised’ antisemitism by the very same individuals who have perpetrated it against us, with little if inadequate intervention by those who could have stopped it.

Now the British Board of Deputies the main organisation representation has issued the following Statement following meetings held with Sir Keir Starmer, leader of the Labour Party: 

Marie van der Zyl, President of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Jonathan Goldstein, Chair of the Jewish Leadership Council, Mark Gardner, Chief Executive of the Community Security Trust and Mike Katz, Chair of the Jewish Labour Movement said: “We thanked Keir Starmer and the Labour Party for their firm and constructive response to the damning verdict delivered by the Equality and Human Rights Commission last week.

“We expressed our disgust that his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn had, by contrast, responded by diminishing and dismissing the legal findings of the report, thereby challenging the Labour Party’s new commitment to rooting out the problem and giving the Party no choice but to suspend him.

“While we discussed a constructive means of Labour delivering the technical recommendations of the EHRC report, a crucial element of the way forward is about culture.

“Those who are responsible for obstructing the new, positive direction set for the Party around antisemitism and undermining the confidence of the Jewish community and Jewish Labour Party members are part of the problem and the Labour leadership will need to find a way to put a stop to it.

“Calls for leniency on the basis of party unity are misplaced when the issue at hand is antisemitism. If the Party is to show zero tolerance to antisemitism, there can be no unity with antisemites or their enablers. Indeed, the EHRC rightly dismissed such political considerations as being inappropriate for an issue in which Labour has moral and legal responsibilities.

“Recognising the progress made, but that there is still a long way to go, we expressed our ongoing willingness to work with Keir Starmer and Labour to return the Party to being proudly and unequivocally anti-racist once more.”

British Board of Deputies website: www.bod.org.uk

Colombia: Condemn death threats against leaders of the education union

 

In the three decades until 2016, Colombian trade unions report that 990 of their members were murdered. Another 3,000 were threatened with assassination.

And despite the peace process in the country, such threats against trade unionists continue.

On 26 October, death threats were sent to all 15 members of the Executive Committee of FECODE, the Colombian Federation of Education Workers, as well as to the President of the Trade Union Confederation CUT.

The threats took the form of a funeral wreath with the words 'rest in peace'.

Sixteen candles and 16 obituary notices with the name of each targeted union leader were also delivered to the home of Carlos Rivas, FECODE's Secretary for legal affairs.

The threats come in the aftermath of national actions led by trade unions over the social, health, education and economic crisis in the country.

FECODE is also leading an initiative to promote schools as 'zones of peace' through community dialogues.

Enough is enough.

FECODE and the Education International have launched a major new online campaign on LabourStart demanding that the Colombian authorities act to ensure immediate protection measures for the entire FECODE leadership, and for all union and social leaders and activists.

Those trade unionists must be allow to exercise their right to express opinions, to demonstrate and to organise to defend the public education system.

Please take a moment to show your support for this campaign - click here.

Thank you!

Eric Lee

The strange world of Corbyn's supporters

 

As the infighting continues it's interesting to look at the reactions of those individuals who support Jeremy Corbyn. Their views range from sheer blind devotees to completely deranged if not sinister.

One Corbyn supporter, Jamie Harwood from Hexham (whose local Constituency Labour Party is a hotbed of extremism of all sorts) strangely muses:

Starmer's suspending of Corbyn, a man of principal and integrity is weak, cowardly and shows how dangerous media manipulation of truth is right now..

Putting aside the hero worship of Corbyn and obvious hatred of Keir Starmer the remarks Corbyn made were in a televised interview for all to see and Corbyn knew exactly what he was doing. Paying the rebel, making himself the martyr and centre of attention in order to distract from the antisemitism that flourished under his watch.

Maureen Carney writes on Labour Outlook's Facebook Page in response to Richard Burgon heir apparent of the Corbynista movement:

I think it is a truly shocking thing to do to a man who has spent his life fighting for good justice and equality. A shameful act and unforgivable. Sinister forces are at play here. I am increasingly finding Starmer revolting !!!

In this case I did ask her the obvious question:

Which sinister forces are you referring to out of interest? 

I got no reply though one could make an intelligent guess especially as further down she is followed by

Ian Finlay who may give us a clue as to what "sinister" forces are at play in their view:

Richard it is not antisemitism we have to worry about it is the fascism and Keir et al are the worst. Taking money from Israel to ensure a socialist government will never happen. Jeremy Corbyn grew the membership of labour far more than any other leader. At the last election Jeremy still got 3m votes more than Blair’s last election. The right of the Labour Party will never win . He wouldn’t be bought by anyone which is why he has been persecuted. Love you JC keep safe and keep battling . Xxx g and I xx

Those pesky Jews Zionists are at it. again  No antisemitism here. Nothing to see. Move along....

Meanwhile that old accusation about opponents raises it's silly head again as Ricky tells us:

You cannot and will not defeat the Tories until you have cleaned the Labour Party of Tories and those infected with thier idiology. (sic)

I seem to remember these people telling everyone to go join the Tories over the years old Compo was in charge and they wonder why so many Labour voters did, "Red Wall" and all that. The worst defeat Labour has had in decades.

Perhaps Burgon and friends should take Jackie's advice when she requests:

Can you break away and create a new party? I would happily join any Socialist Party.

She is one of many Corbyn supporters who want to break away and more than a few have buggered off already.  If there is one thing that is abundantly clear these so-called "socialists" or whatever they are do not belong in the Labour Party and should be encouraged to leave.

George Galloway's Workers Party of Britain has vacancies I am led to understand!

Labour First, Labour to Win & Progress Joint Statement on the EHRC Report

 

Labour First, Labour to Win & Progress write:

The publication of the EHRC report into antisemitism in the Labour Party is a dark day in our party’s history. No democratic socialist party, with our values committed to equality and anti-racism, should ever allow anti-Jewish hatred to gain any ground within its ranks. It is a matter of shame for all of us, and there can be no excuses for, the spread of antisemitism within Labour after 2015 and the party’s failure to swiftly deal with this.

Today is a day for those impacted by antisemitic harassment, discrimination and victimisation – both Jewish members and former members of Labour, and the wider Jewish Community – to have their say about what they experienced.

We have stood in solidarity with our Jewish comrades during the disgraceful events of the last five years and we are committed to supporting Keir Starmer as he implements all the recommendations of the EHRC report, and to a zero tolerance approach which removes antisemitism from the Labour Party.

More at my other blog: Howie's Corner Too:

The worst the left has to offer rallies to defend Corbyn

The revolutionary left fall behind Corbyn

Labour Against Antisemitism (LAAS) on the EHRC Report

Denny Taylor, founder of Labour Against Antisemitism said:


“We welcome the publication of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission report into the Labour Party. 

In our view the report’s conclusion that the Labour Party has acted unlawfully is a vindication both of our decision to ask for an EHRC inquiry and of our three-year campaign against institutional anti-Jewish racism in the Labour Party. It is also a victory for those who believe in a viable mainstream Labour Party that the Jewish community can support without fear.

The responsibility now falls on Keir Starmer and the Labour movement not only to follow the recommendations of the report, but to ask serious questions about how the British Left has found itself in this situation. Antisemitism has also flourished in our trade unions, our universities and in our media, and this must also be tackled. 

In the meantime we will continue to report instances of antisemitism in the Labour Party and hold its behaviour to account - as we have always done.”

Website: labouragainstas.org.uk