Showing posts with label grassroots. Show all posts
Showing posts with label grassroots. Show all posts

Wednesday, 21 November 2012

SCOTT CROW ON CIRCLED "A".


The latest from Circled A:


       Scott Crow is a community organizer, writer, strategist and speaker who advocates the philosophy and practices of anarchism for social, environmental, and economic aims. For almost two decades he has continued to use his experience and ideas in co-founding and co-organizing numerous radical grassroots projects in Texas, including Treasure City Thrift, Radical Encuentro Camp, UPROAR (United People Resisting Oppression and Racism), Dirty South Earth First! and the Common Ground Collective, the largest anarchist influenced organization in modern U.S. history to date. In addition to grassroots organizing, he has worked for regional and national organizations, including Greenpeace, Rainforest Action Network, Ruckus Society and A.C.O.R.N. With his partner, he produced the documentary film Angola 3: Black Panthers and the Last Slave Plantation. These political activities lead to him being labeled a “domestic terrorist” by the FBI beginning in the late 90s with investigations that continued for almost a decade.

(http://thecircleda.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/circleda_20_11_12.mp3)

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Thursday, 9 February 2012

HEALTH & PHARMACEUTICALS, PLC!!!



         In post after post I have went on about the ideological drive of this government to privatise everything in an attempt to recapitalise the corporate Mafia. This drive will change the way we live, will remove everything from public control into the hands of that corporate Mafia. It would appear that most people seem to think this means an array of businesses but don't connect this ideology to the health service. It's as if we are lulled into a sense of complacency believing that they can't privatise the health service. However we are just months away from having our National Health Service privatised for ever. The government's Health and Social Care Bill, if passed in to law, will mean the end of our free care at the point of need, Health Service. Our National Health Service will be opened up to market place competition between the big corporate beasts that seek profit before anything else. It means that those parts of the Health Service that don't make a profit will fall by the wayside, services like long term caring treatment, care of the elderly etc..

        Sixty years of free health care when you need it, will have been wiped out by a piece of legislation pushed through by a bunch of public school millionaire thugs who are working in the best interests of their millionaire friends in the corporate world. Neither the Conservatives or the Lib Dems had the privatising of the National Health Service in their manifestos. Neither of these parties have a mandate to privatise the National Health Service. No matter how they dress this bill up, it will not change the facts on the ground, big business will control the health service if this becomes law. Corporate this and corporate that, will control the shape, direction and content of the health service, it will no longer be OUR National Health Service, it will Health and Pharmaceuticals PLC.

          If you in any way think you live in a democracy, then this must be wrong on all counts. The public never asked for nor wants a corporate health service. The public never voted on or for a corporate health service, but that is what you are going to get unless you stop this bill becoming law. This can only be stopped by mass protests and mass lobbying of MPs, by the trade unions getting behind the public and organising to stop this decimation of our National Health Service. Grass roots organisations should for the time being, abandon other causes and direct their abilities and efforts to stopping this corporate grab to turn our National Health Service into a billion pounds gravy train for the shareholding parasites. This bill will become law in just a few months and then it will be too late, the National Health Service will be no more. Three months is not a lot of time but it is all we have.

Saturday, 28 January 2012

SKILL SHARING WITH GUERILLAS??


         Glasgow is a city with an army of activists all passionate about their particular “thing”, all of them working hard to further their cause. Well, in Glasgow we are also fortunate that we have Camcorder Guerillas. They have the credibility, experience, and technique to push forward any campaign and what is more they are offering their skills and experience for free. The following explains their latest event.

FREE VIDEO TRAINING FOR ACTIVISTS:
Are you involved in a grassroots or community struggle? Learn how to make short online films to boost your campaign. Book your place by February 10th!

Camcorder Guerillas are running a series of free video workshops aimed at small community or grassroots campaigners with little or no funding. The training takes place over two half days at the Centre for Contemporary Arts (CCA) in central Glasgow and it is organised according to different campaign themes.
TRAINING THEMES & DATES
1 ANTI-CUTS Monday 5th March & Wednesday 7th March
2 DISABILITY RIGHTS Monday 12th March & Wednesday 14th March
3 ENVIRONMENTAL & CLIMATE CHANGE Monday 19th March & Wednesday 21st March
4 ASYLUM SEEKER/REFUGEE RIGHTS Monday 2nd April & Wednesday 4th April

The training is over two half days from 1pm-5pm.
Mondays: Planning and Filming
Wednesdays: Editing and Online Distribution
See attached booking form for more details.
YOU MUST BE ABLE TO ATTEND BOTH DAYS
TO APPLY FOR A PLACE
Priority will be given to people who are campaigning on a voluntary basis or for organisations with little or no funding. Places on each course are limited to six, with a maximum of two people from any one campaign group. To apply, choose you theme and dates from the list above (making sure you can attend both days). Then complete the attached booking form and email it to info@camcorderguerillas.net or post it to
Camcorder Guerillas, CCA, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow G2 3JD.

If its easier for to apply over the phone please call Tim or Inigo on 0141 332 9775.
The deadline for applying FRIDAY 10 FEBRUARY and we'll get back shortly after this to confirm if you've got a space. To prevent people from booking and then not showing up, we will require those offered a place to pay a deposit of 20 per person to secure the booking. This deposit will only be refunded to those who attend both training days. If, as expected, the training is oversubscribed we will be keeping a reserve list in case we are able secure more funding to run repeat sessions.
IN-HOUSE TRAINING
For funded or larger organisations, we'd be happy to talk to you about the possibilities for buying in-house training which can be adapted to suit your needs. Please get in touch if you would like to discuss this.
CAMCORDER GUERILLAS GET IN TOUCH:

EMAIL info@camcorderguerillas.net
TEL 0141 332 9775
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @CamGuerillas
WATCH OUR FILMS ONLINE www.camcorderguerillas.net
CAMCORDER GUERILLAS
CCA, Centre for Contemporary Arts,
350 Sauchiehall Street. Glasgow, G2 3JD

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Thursday, 1 December 2011

THE CURSE OF CAPITALISM.


     In Europe all the bankers and their yes men the politicians, are running around trying to find ways to save their billions. They keep coming up with grand plan after grand plan, only to find that it isn't working. Though they can hold their meetings in luxurious hotels and wine and dine their way through a multitude of exotic menus, the people at the receiving end of the grand plans are sinking fast.



    Under the present system of bankers corporate fascism, what has Europe got to offer the people? Country after country is seeing unemployment soar, some countries are at the moment away ahead of the others. At the forefront is Greece with youth unemployment almost at the 50% level, while total unemployment is at 18.3% and rising. Spain is in a similar position with total unemployment running at 22.8% and youth unemployment also approaching the 50% mark. Portugal and Ireland have approximately 30% youth unemployment, here in the UK it running at about 20%. All other countries in Europe have varying degrees of this malaise.



    This is the stark reality of conditions for the next generation of young people growing up in Europe, poverty and unemployment. These figures are an indictment against a system that can pour unbelievable wealth into the coffers of the few, while the vast majority struggle to keep their heads above water. A system that, to protect the unearned wealth of the few, is quite prepared to sacrifice country after country to a life of deprivation.



      Unemployment never comes alone, it has constant companions, the obvious is poverty, less noted but just as cruel is mental health problems, then there is the usual rise in suicides, violence, drug addiction and malnutrition. All this brings about the destruction of our social society, but only at our level. The millionaire class responsible for all this misery and destruction, go unscathed and will continue to take their yacht to the Med. fly to Dubai, and soak up the sun at St Moritz.

CRISIS!!  What crisis?

      As across the continent unemployment and poverty rises to scales not seen since the 30s and the 1% parasite class continue living in luxury on the backs of the ordinary people, it is surely obvious that the system doesn't work for the majority of the people. If the people want an end to this corrupt, unjust and exploitative system, they have to take control away from the financial parasites, remove the corrupt political class, (the parasites' managers) and organise society from the grassroots, creating a society that sees to the needs of all our people. A society based on mutual aid and sustainability, one that is free from the profit motive. Capitalism doesn't work.


Thursday, 2 December 2010

WHY WIKILEAKS??


       The present time is one of total open corruption between the various governments and the corporate world. The discussions, arrangements, and back scratching, all for the benefit of that corporate world and its lackeys, the politicians, is so open and blatant that it is now deemed as normal. Anyone out there who still believes that, so called “representative democracy”, has anything to do with the welfare of the people, is living an illusion. Across the globe we are seeing a massive attack on the living standards of the ordinary people by governments, to save their friends in the banking casinos and the bond markets from losing some of their unearned wealth. We keep hearing about they are “too big to fail” but never that the welfare of the people is more important. Profit first, people anywhere down the scale that you can fit them in.

      The recent flood of Wikileaks is just lifting the curtain on the invisible world of corporatism and governments. The world that you and I are not meant to see or be part of in any shape or form. We live on the other side of the curtain and are meant to watch the authorised pantomime that the powers that be put on for our benefit. We are meant to live the illusion while they get on with the rape and plunder of our resources and all our public assets.

     If we want a better life for all our people then we have to remove the power structure that lurks behind that curtain. We have to bring an end to the political class, the state apparatus and the festering marriage between government and corporatism. We are no longer governed nationally but by international corporate bodies over which we have no control, they call the shots and dictate to the various governments what policies to implement. The people have to take control of society, power must lie at the grass roots level. Communities in control of their own communities, federated to all other communities, workers in control of their work places in federation with other workplaces and communities. Our society must be based on mutual aid that sees to the needs of all our people and not to the selfish, greedy desires of a bunch of parasitical shareholders and power hungry wealth seeking politicians. A society of co-operation based on sustainability freed from the profit motive.

The following is from Julian Assange's “State and Terrorist Conspiracies.”

      "Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people. To destroy this invisible government, to befoul this unholy alliance between corrupt business and corrupt politics is the first task of statesmanship." (President Theodore Roosevelt)

      To radically shift regime behavior we must think clearly and boldly for if we have learned anything, it is that regimes do not want to be changed. We must think beyond those who have gone before us, and discover technological changes that embolden us with ways to act in which our forebears could not.

      Firstly we must understand what aspect of government or neocorporatist behavior we wish to change or remove. Secondly we must develop a way of thinking about this behavior that is strong enough carry us through the mire of politically distorted language, and into a position of clarity. Finally must use these insights to inspire within us and others a course of ennobling, and effective action.
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