Escape The Games.

       Trying to find somewhere to escape "The Games"? Well you can do that and at the same time be informed on what is behind the corporate spectacle that pumps public money into the coffers of the big-business world.

Glasgow Autonomous Updates:

Glasgow Games Monitor invite you to a critical intervention into the Commonwealth Games. Free talks, film screenings and the Games Monitor Library………23rd July to 3rd August at Stereo and The Old Hairdressers

http://gamesmonitor2014.org/no-wealth-for-the-commons-glasgow-games-monitor-events/

 

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

Gentrification, Eviction And Big Money.

       Council capers, gentrification, eviction and big money. An update from Glasgow games Monitor 2014.

       1. "Commonwealth City" was on BBC 1 Scotland last night and shown some of the impacts of the games plus footage of the brutal eviction of the Jaconelli family: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0444wqv/commonwealth-city-episode-1 

       2. A new Primer is on the website on sport and participation impacts: http://gamesmonitor2014.org/2014/05/20/sport-and-participation-primer-5/ 3. We are co-organising a film showing and discussion about Glasgow's social/environmental history at Kinning Park on Sunday, 2-4pm, all welcome. For more details see: http://gamesmonitor2014.org/2014/05/16/glasgow-1982-film-screening-2-2/ Please share this information widely. Cheers, http://gamesmonitor2014.org/

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

Important Diary Dates.

    A couple of dates for next week, the first is on Tuesday, April 22 and is hosted by Glasgow Games Monitor 2014. The subject matter, "housing", focusing on Glasgow's East End, though not exclusively. The East End of Glasgow has seen approximately 3,000 resident shunted out to make way for "The Games". A spectacle to feed the corporate greed machine with an estimated £524 million. Of course we all know what happens to the "estimates" in all these types of affairs, they are just the starting point of the rip-off. What would £524 million do if spent on simple improving the housing and social conditions of the East End?

From Glasgow Games Monitor:

Hi all,

     Two new posts online:

(1) 'THE MEETING THEY TRIED TO BAN! HOUSING IS IN CRISIS: WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT IT?'

     Public Meeting, Speakers and Discussion, 7-9pm, Tuesday 22nd April, St.Mungo's Academy, 235 Crownpoint Road, Bridgeton, Glasgow, G40 2RA. All Welcome!

http://gamesmonitor2014.org/2014/04/15/public-housing-meeting-tuesday-22nd-april/

    (2) 'Games Monitor on Newsnight

Scotland':http://gamesmonitor2014.org/2014/04/15/games-monitor-on-newsnight-scotland/

     Please circulate news of the housing meeting widely if possible. We want to engage with local people's experience in particular, but housing for the games and clyde gateway is a citywide issue and we welcome all those with an interest in housing issues.

Cheers,http://gamesmonitor2014.org/

       The other date is Friday, April 25, the monthly picket outside the ATOS offices in Cadogan street Glasgow. It is important that this picket continues and gains in strength. ATOS may have decided to withdraw early from its contract with the government, mainly due to the unpleasant publicity created by such pickets up and down the country. However, that doesn't mean that the government will abandon its attack on the sick and disabled. The millionaire cabal at the Westminster Houses of Hypocrisy and Corruption, have a bucketful of leeches ready and waiting to be unleashed on the vulnerable, when ATOS leaves by the back door, having made millions at the expense of the sick and disabled. 
This from Glasgow Against ATOS:

Friday April 25, 12:30 - 15:00

ATOS Assessment Centre

Carunna House

29 Cadogan Street

Glasgow.

     We are Glasgow Against Atos, a dynamic campaign group, defending the sick and disabled. We have been picketing the Atos, Glasgow assessment centre since early 2012.
     Please come and join us in fighting Atos, the DWP and the government cuts against disabled people, their families and carers.
        The weather is getting better – so no excuses, and we’ll see you all outside the assessment centre. All welcome!

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

Glasgow Diary Date.

From Glasgow Games Monitor:

       Neil Gray is doing a talk at the centre for human ecology 6.30, tomorrow night (wednesday), Pearce Institute, Govan: http://www.che.ac.uk/2014/02/beyond-post-politics/
      The talk will include discussion on the games and the wider gentrification of Glasgow so may be of interest to people on this list. come along add to the discussion (RSVP essential - see below).
cheers, neil http://gamesmonitor2014.org/

      Beyond Post-Politics and ‘Soft’ Urban Fixes: Developing A Politics of Space- with Neil Gray Wednesday 5th March 6.30pm The Pearce Institute, 840-860 Govan Rd, Glasgow G51 3UU (near Govan underground station)
    Join us for our latest ‘library chat’, an informal roundtable conversation in the convivial surroundings of our library in the Pearce Institute.There will be space and time for general discussion and input from all participants. Light refreshments provided.Please email info@che.ac.uk to confirm attendance. RSVP essential

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

Glasgow Diary Date.

A reminder from Glasgow Games Monitor 2014: 
Hi all,

    Our next group meeting is on Monday 3rd March, 7-9pm, Unite the Union offices, John Smith House, 145/165 West Regent Street, Glasgow G2 4RZ. Meeting Dates:

http://gamesmonitor2014.org/meetings/Contact: gamesmonitor2014@googlemail.com 

      Also, giving advance notice that we will be holding a joint HOUSING CRISIS meeting with Unite the Community Union at the Bridgeton Community Learning Campus, on Tuesday March 18th, 7-9pm: http://www.bclc.org.uk/ We will be examining the promises of housing made for the Games and Clyde Gateway and more generally drawing attention to the annihilation of social housing in Glasgow, Scotland and the UK more generally. More details to follow soon, please add to your diaries and let others know if interested. Cheers,http://gamesmonitor2014.org/

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

Glasgow Games Monitor.

This from Glasgow Games Monitor

Unmasking the myths of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games

East End Eye

     The ‘East End Eye’ is the paper voice of Glasgow Games Monitor 2014. On top of our online presence, we distribute 5,000 copies per issue in the East End and across Glasgow.

     If you know of anything which you think should be reported, or if you would like to contribute yourself, then please contact: gamesmonitor2014@googlemail.com

Issue One: eastendeye_issue 1
Issue Two: eastendeye_issue 2
Issue Three: eastendeye_issue 3
Issue Four: eastendeye_edition4
Issue Five: eastendeye_issue5
Issue Six: eastendeye_edition6

A new post, and issue 6 of the East End Eye now online!
http://gamesmonitor2014.org/2013/09/20/councillors-fury-at-controversial-games-sponsor/

http://gamesmonitor2014.org/east-end-eye-paper/

    Anyone who would like to help distribute and support the Save the Accord campaign for a new day care centre, please let us know!

     We also have a meeting at Kinning Park Complex at 7.00 on Tuesday 1st October. All welcome:

 http://www.kinningparkcomplex.org/how-to-find-us/
http://gamesmonitor2014.org/
gamesmonitor2014@googlemail.com

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

Care Of Those With Disabilities, Or A Bus Park?

       The Accord Centre in the East End of Glasgow was a day centre for people with severe learning difficulties and their carers, it satisfied a need in the area. Recently it was demolished to make way for a bus park to serve the Commonwealth Games. Their was a promise of an alternative centre, but to date--NOTHING.

     Those involved in the Accord Centre have written an open letter to Alex Salmond.

 

Dear Mr. Salmond,
       We are writing this open public letter to you because a solution has still not been found to what you have described, in a letter to City Council leader Gordon Matheson, as our “legitimate concerns” over the closure of The Accord day centre in Dalmarnock for people with severe learning disabilities. In the letter, you said you were “very concerned” about the closure of the centre, stressing that “no group should feel dispossessed” as a result of the Commonwealth Games. Previously, when you visited the users and carers at the Accord centre in May 2011, you emphasised the fact that the Scottish Government – “all of us […] every taxpayer in Scotland” – is paying 80% of the costs of the Games and you therefore have a “locus” on the issue. You also said that people in Scotland should have a “good feeling” about the Games. We assure you that we do not have a ‘good feeling’ about the Games at present.

Read the full letter HERE: 

There is also an open letter to Gordon matheson

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

ATOS KILLS - TIME TO KILL ATOS.

Tom Gordon
Scottish Political Editor Herald

        DEPUTY First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is being targeted by protesters who want the controversial "fit-for-work" benefits test company Atos dropped as a sponsor of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. Around 15 demonstrators carrying "Atos Kills" posters invaded a constituency surgery in Sturgeon's Glasgow Southside seat on Friday to demand an end to the deal.
       The peaceful protest ended after police were called to the Larkfield Centre in Govanhill but there were no arrests. Sturgeon personally welcomed Atos as an official sponsor of Glasgow 2014 last year, calling the French IT giant's involvement "a significant step forward for the Games".
       The company will supply the software to accredit up to 70,000 athletes, volunteers and officials, and run the Glasgow 2014 website. Sturgeon is also the Scottish Government's leading voice on welfare issues – last week she announced an expert group to help devise a welfare system reflecting "Scottish values" and fairness under independence instead of the cuts being imposed by Westminster.
        Protesters say Atos could not be further from those Scottish values, given its central role in the UK government's welfare reforms. Atos Healthcare has a £110 million annual contract with the Department of Work and Pensions to run work capability assessments of the sick and disabled, and a £400m deal to assess mobility benefits. Critics say the tests are flawed, degrading and inefficient, with one in six passed as fit to work winning an appeal against the decision.
        The Atos sponsorship of the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics led to protests, and similar actions are now planned in Glasgow. The 2014 HQ was occupied last month, and protesters have threatened to disrupt the Scottish equivalent of the Olympic torch relay if Atos is still a sponsor.
        The SNP Government is funding about 80% of the £550m price tag for the Games. However, a video of Friday's protest shows Sturgeon denying any say over the sponsorship: "Obviously the benefits side of this is not a matter for the Scottish Government, it's a UK Government issue ... I will take on board what you said to the Commonwealth Games. Obviously, it's not my decision in terms of sponsors."

        Protester David Churchley, co-founder of the Black Triangle disability rights group, said Atos sponsorship was "absolutely scandalous and beyond belief" and that Sturgeon had tried to give protesters the brush off. He said: "They have learned nothing from the Olympics. They're just riding roughshod over disabled people and those who support us. But Friday will be just one of many stunts we will be mounting up to the Games."
      Sean Clerkin of Citizens United said: "The SNP Government is being hypocritical. They criticise the Tory-led Coalition for what they're doing to welfare, while welcoming Atos as sponsors of the Commonwealth Games. "Nicola Sturgeon is the person talking about a welfare system with
Scottish values. If she's going to live up to those values, she should ensure Atos is dropped as a sponsor."
         An Atos spokesman said: "While we fully respect people's right to peaceful protest and understand this is a highly emotive issue, Atos is proud to be an official supporter of the Glasgow 2014 organising committee." An SNP spokeswoman added: "We are opposed to the criteria and tests set by the UK Government that Atos deliver, and have made clear that they should reconsider this approach. "We are looking forward to a positive Commonwealth Games that will be a great opportunity to showcase Scotland to the world."

Info first obtained from CityStrolls:

ann arky's home.

GLASGOW'S EASTEND RIP-OFF.

        The people of Glasgow are being conned, millions of pounds of taxpayers money is being poured into an elaborate party for athletes and VIP's, it goes by the name of the 2014 Commonwealth Games, of course there is the promise that there will be a legacy for the citizens of Glasgow. That legacy will most likely be a mountain of debt with a handful of land speculators making millions. The East End of Glasgow, as far as I am concerned, is one of the many rich areas in our city. Not rich in material wealth, but rich in the resilience, diversity and ingenuity of its ordinary people, priceless wealth. Materially it is one of the most deprived areas in the country and has been for many years. Having been ignored by the city council for years, the East End now finds itself surrounded by multi-million pound developments. Vast amounts of money are changing hands but the ordinary people of the area are not involved. Instead they are being removed and on occasion forcibly, by eviction order. Apart from the money being poured in to the massive construction in the area there has been the money shuffling between the old boys network. Former CEO of Glasgow East Regeneration Agency, (Labour MSP Ronnie Saez and friend of Frank McAveety) was made redundant from his post with a pay-off of £500,000, approved by Glasgow councillors Catherine McMasters, James Coleman and George Redmond. Councillor Redmond was the arrogant guy who told Margaret Jaconelli and her family when they were forcibly evicted from their home, to “take it on the chin”. Other councillors have made a wee killing from this conman's bonanza, One Graham Duffy of Grantly Developments (Parkhead) since 1988 he has been holding on to a piece of derelict land in Millerfield Street, Dalmarnock. The site was named as the site for the Athlete's Village and Duffy done a deal with the council and sold them the land for a tidy little sum of £5.5 million, a stratospheric rise in its value of 12,000%. Former Glasgow Rangers boss David Murray's company a few years ago bought a piece of land for £375,000 and out of the goodness of his heart, to help the development of the Commonwealth Games sold it on for £5.1 million. And so it goes on, millions changing hands among the sharks, public money ending up in developers pockets, while the residents of the East End and evicted and scattered to the winds, in most cases taking their deprivation with them as it is all they have ever received from the council.

This film tells the story of one East End family and what the “games” means to them.

ann arky's home.

POVERTY GAMES TORCH, GLASGOW

           Between the Commonwealth Games and the Olympics, billions of pounds of public money is being handed over to the corporate world, so that they can can have a bean feast at our expense, while at the same time councils are being forced by the government, to cut vital services, increase unemployment and are being party to a deepening housing crisis. We are supposed to get excited at the sight of “VIPs” being chauffeured around, wined and dine, while we are meant to stand at the roadside waving flags. Hooray for the council, they're having a party, and we are paying. Of course you might get a chance to see some of the sports on tele, and when the party's over we will still be sitting in crap houses, with no social services and facing unemployment, if you have a job, and fuel poverty if you don't or if you're a pensioner. Rise up Glaswegians and show your anger and disgust at a system that has all the money in the world for a 10 day party and overseas wars, but nothing for the ordinary people.

"Poverty Games” torch comes to Glasgow –

Thurs 15 March, 1pm Dalmarnock

        Glasgow Games Monitor is hosting visitors from the Vancouver Poverty Olympics campaign here next week, to ‘hand over’ their Poverty Olympics Torch. The purpose of the event is to highlight the gross inequity produced by Games events: while millions in public money is spent on a 10 day party, the city faces massive cuts in local services, increasing unemployment and a deepening housing crisis.

        The event is a mock ‘torch relay’, to take the Poverty Torch through the worst affected streets of Dalmarnock. Starting at the Velodrome on London Road, the torch will be ‘handed over’ to Glasgow by visitors from Vancouver and taken down Springfield Road to pass the sites of massive land speculation as well as brutal evictions of residents, shopkeepers and local service users from the Accord Centre.

         Meet at 12.45pm for a 1pm start outside the new Velodrome on London Road (opposite Celtic Park), finish by 2.30 at the Accord Centre.

All welcome, please circulate widely.

http://povertyolympics.ca/?page_id=87

ann arky's home.