Helped By Taking Your Money Away.

       When on Job Seekers Allowance, you are living on/below the bread line, so life is tough and stressful. To be "sanctioned" (having your benefits stopped) is obviously a very serious event, so you would imagine those caring advisers, who are there to help you, would take the matter of "sanctioning" people as a last resort. However, the reality is they don't give a damn and carry out "sanctions" in an arbitrary, vindictive, callous and very mean low-life manner.

      The following are some of the reasons for people being "sanction" pushed into deprivation, taken from the site DWP Uspun:

Cruel, arbitrary and ridiculous reasons why people have their benefits stopped.

    You’re a 60-year-old army veteran who volunteers to sell poppies for the Royal British Legion in memory of fallen comrades. You’ve applied for dozens of jobs – including the supermarket where you sold the poppies – but without success. You are sanctioned for four weeks.

Source: Daily Mirror

    You get a job interview. It’s at the same time as your job centre appointment, so you reschedule the job centre. You attend your rearranged appointment and then get a letter saying your benefits will be stopped because going to a job interview isn’t a good enough reason to miss an appointment.

Source: Daily Mail

    Your gran dies during the night. The next morning your partner calls the job centre and asks if you can come in the following day instead. The centre agrees, and you sign in the next day. Then you get a letter stating that you failed to sign in and would be sanctioned if you don’t reply within seven days. You reply, explaining the situation. The job centre gives you a six-week sanction for not replying.

Source: Mari-claire M at Netmums

     You’ve signed in on time, been to interviews and applied for work. Your job centre advisor suggests you make a two-line change to your CV, which you do, but fail to give the updated CV to the job centre (you weren’t told you had to). You are sanctioned for four weeks.

Source: nciaw36 at MoneySavingExpert

    You work for 20 years and then miss a job centre appointment because you haven’t had the process clearly explained. You are sanctioned for 3 weeks.

Source: Councillor John O’Shea

     You get a job that starts in two weeks time. You don’t look for work while you are waiting for the job to start. You’re sanctioned.

Source: The Guardian

        You are forced to retire due to a heart condition, and you claim Employment and Support Allowance. During your assessment you have a heart attack. You are sanctioned for not completing your assessment.

Source: Debbie Abrahams MP

      It’s Christmas Day and you don’t fill in your job search evidence form to show that you’ve looked for all the new jobs that are advertised on Christmas Day. You are sanctioned. Merry Christmas. 

Source: Poverty Alliance

      You are given a training appointment that clashes with your job centre appointment. The job centre is unwilling to rearrange its appointment and tells you to get a letter from the training organisation. The training organisation says it doesn’t provide letters.

Source: Russell Brown MP

     You apply for three jobs one week and three jobs the following Sunday and Monday. Because the job centre week starts on a Tuesday it treats this as applying for six jobs in one week and none the following week. You are sanctioned for 13 weeks for failing to apply for three jobs each week.

Source: Pontefract and Castleford Express

    You miss your job centre appointment due to the funeral of a close family relative. You are sanctioned.

Source: Derek Twigg MP

        You’ve been unemployed for seven months and are forced onto a workfare scheme in a shop miles away, but can’t afford to travel. You offer to work in a nearer branch but are refused and get sanctioned for not attending your placement.

Source: Caroline Lucas MP

      You have a job interview which overruns so you arrive at your job centre appointment 9 minutes late. You get sanctioned for a month.

Source: jsdk at Consumer Action

      You can’t afford to travel to look for work so you get sanctioned.

Source: Citizens Advice Bureau

      Your job centre advisor suggests a job. When you go online to apply it says the job has “expired” so you don’t apply. You are sanctioned for 13 weeks.

Source: Penny at Yahoo! Answers

         There is more of these cruel, vindictive, callous, brutal actions on DWP Unspun. Though I'm sure if you ask around your friends and neighbours, you'll be ale to come up with a page or two of your own. That's capitalism for you.

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

Govan, And Common Goods.

      If you are in or around Glasgow on January 13th. there is an interesting event from Bob at Citystrolls:

 January 13th 2015 7:00 
Pearce Institute

      You are invited to a Common Good evening to find out about and discuss the Farmhouse project.

Idea:
     Take an old farmhouse part of Govan’s Common Good Fund and turn it into an independent community resource centre. Use the entire process from planning to building as a learning project and include as much of the community as possible.
      In this our first of many TownHall meeting. We will set out plans for the Farmhouse and discuss ways 
of how folk could become involved. Then open it to the floor for peoples
 input and ideas. 



What we will look at on the night is: 

- A short presentation of the farmhouse and ideas for future developments in 2015. 
- Why independent commons assets are important to our communities. 

- Why it is important to different organisations in the wider context. 

- The commons in helping to create new community models relevant to
 local people.

- How we protect the Common Good Fund for future generations, by 
understanding what it is and using it to empower communities.
Light refreshments and 
some snacks will be supplied during evening 
 



More info?  
Contact: Bob 07811 263 923 
bob@citystrolls.com

Project website: https://commgood.wordpress.com/ 

Short video: http://youtu.be/Oh-LJs6v-B0 



 


Common Good Awareness Project

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

A Monster FromThe Dark Corridors Of Power.

      The corporate monster TTIP is not yet killed off, but killed off it must be if we want any form of control over our lives. This is the total domination of all aspects of our lives controlled from the boardrooms of the greed driven corporate world. The power shifting arrangements are being secretly discussed in the dark corridors of corporate power, away from the prying eyes of the public, who will be the victims of this coup. Any sliver of the illusion of democracy will vanish if we don't stop this takeover bid by the profit driven greed merchants.

      Are you free on Saturday 31st January? 38 Degrees members in Glasgow are getting together to campaign on TTIP. That’s the dodgy EU-US trade deal that could further privatise our NHS and allow corporations to sue our government. [1]
     On the day, 38 Degrees members will be handing out leaflets and chatting to local people in Glasgow about TTIP. They’ll also be collecting signatures for the EU-wide petition. The group will be able to provide leaflets and petition sheets, so don’t worry about bringing anything!
    If you’d like to find out more about TTIP, so you can feel comfortable talking about it, there’s lots of information here:
http://38degrees.org.uk/ttip
     The idea on the day is to spread the word about TTIP and make sure it’s an issue local politicians can’t ignore. So the more of us that turn up, the more people we’ll be able to speak to, and the further we can spread this really important message.
Here are the details:
     What: Leafleting and talking to local people about TTIP and collecting signatures for the EU-wide petition
When: Saturday 31st January, 11am-2pm,
Where: Meet outside Hillhead library, 348 Byres Road, Glasgow, G12 8AP
      Please RSVP here so that local 38 Degrees members can get an idea of how many to expect:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/glasgow-ttip
Thanks for being involved,
Jen, Blanche & the 38 Degrees team

NOTES:
[1] Independent Voices: What is TTIP and six reasons why the answer should scare you:
http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/what-is-ttip-and-six-reasons-why-the-answer-should-scare-you-9779688.html
The Guardian: The TTIP deal hands British sovereignty to multinationals:
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/sep/14/ttip-deal-british-sovereignty-cameron-ukip-treaty

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

Spirit of Revolt In A Capitalist World.

     Spirit of Revolt is an entirely volunteer run archive, it gathers all Clydeside area, non-party, grass-roots material of struggle to improve the conditions of the ordinary people, and makes it easily accessible to the general public. However, like all archives, it requires funding for the day to day running, things like paper, printer cartridges, scanners, computers, pieces of internet equipment, web hosting, etc. In order to keep the cataloguing at international standard, and for training purposes, we also need the service of an archivist on a part-time basis. All this needs funding and we are grateful for any donations, large or small, one-of, or standing orders. So if you think we are doing a good job and would like to see us continue and expand, perhaps you could donate as you see fit, you can get details HERE or contact us at info@spiritofrevolt.info. We would also like to thank those who have set up standing orders and donated one-of payments in the past, it is all much appreciated and necessary.    On behave of  Spirit of Revolt,  John.

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

Another Look At "Western" Values.

       Not up to date news, and probably seen before, but well worth spreading as a critical look at "Western" values.

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

Homelessness Is An Indictment Against Society.

      A land of billionaires, Rolls Royce cars, fashionable restaurants and rising homeless, what a display of arrogance and hypocrisy, of greed and self interest in the midst of poverty and deprivation. This is all that capitalism can give us, an ever widening gap in living standards between the controlling pampered parasites, and the ordinary people of this world. Homelessness is a crime against humanity, an indictment against a system of economics that punishes the poor and the unfortunate. There are countless empty houses and still we push people onto the street in a country that has cold damp winters. Why should we tolerate such injustice? We produce all the wealth in this system, then abandon it to the vampire squids of the financial/corporate world, then proceed to try to scratch out a living from the crumbs they throw our way.

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

Democracy Doesn't Come In a Ballot Box.

     The people of Greece go to the polls on the 25th. January to elect a new governing party, and it looks likely, but not a certainty, that Syriza, a collection of left leaning groups, will win. There seems to be some considerable support from anarchists outside Greece, who are cheering on Syriza, should they be doing so? Is Syriza different, or is it just another contender in the monumental “Crooks and Liars” competition? The same competition that takes place at frequent intervals across the globe, our own home grown one takes place this coming May. If they don't get a majority, who will they go into coalition with? The Greek Communist Party has ruled itself out of any co-operation with Syriza, who else will step forward?

----Given the fact that the only other left-wing parliamentary party, the Greek Communist Party (KKE), has explicitly stated they would never support a “government of the left,” all the other potential allies for a coalition government are flanking SYRIZA from the right. There is no need to mention how a moderate governmental fraction could weaken Tsipras’ position inside the country, as well as during the crucial negotiations with the troika of creditors (EU, IMF and ECB), due to start the day after the elections.----

      Nor does Syriza represent a revolutionary stance, it will be trying to do a deal with the Troika, (EU, European Union, ECB, European Central Bank, IMF, International Mankind Fuckers) to get a more palatable arrangement for the people of Greece, a more moderate and compassionate capitalism, some crusts instead of crumbs. And so the system is perpetuated with a few moderate adjustments here and there.

----- A point that needs to be clarified is that, despite its name, SYRIZA’s program is not radical at all, at least in terms of economic issues. Proposals such as the incentives for “green development,” the relaxation of property taxation, increased public investment and food stamps for the extreme poor might have been dismissed by the European social democratic parties of the 1970s as “too moderate.” In the current European context, though, which is monopolized by the obsession of austerity, even SYRIZA’s neo-Keynesianism seems to represent some sort of radical rupture.------

 

The Obama of Greece??

 

      What the babbling brook of bullshit, the mainstream media keep pumping out is that this is a major revolutionary event in representative democracy, when in fact it is all about a bit of disruption in the financial Mafia's policy of grinding the people down to a sweatshop economy, an irritant, a nuisance factor, that might upset some profit margins in their bubble of finance. Don't expect the collapse of capitalism in Greece any time soon, when that happens, it will not be through the ballot box in the great “Crooks and Liars” competition.

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

 

Prisons, A Tool Of Oppression.

     Prisons, the state's answer to the cry for freedom. A necessary tool in the armoury of oppressors, the club held above your head, to demand you subservience.

An open letter from a Mexican prison, by Fernando Barcenos:

Fernando’s text December 15, 2014

      To free spirits and rebels To the oppressed and marginalized To people in general Today I officially completed one year in prison; on December 10, 2014 I was sentenced to five years and nine months’ prison on charges of breach of the peace and conspiracy to commit a crime.
      These accusations were argued with nothing but mere conjecture and without any real evidence to prove my guilt. As for the crime of conspiracy, the only thing that sustains the accusation is that I had with me protest material and anarchist statements, making it clear that this is an ideological criminalization aimed at defaming and discrediting anarchist and libertarian ideas. Historically, in all eras, a series of ideas, thoughts and information in general are suppressed, not allowed to be thought by the individuals of a given society.
       However there are always people and individuals who refuse to tow the line and who, not conforming to that which one is permitted to do, be and think, decided to risk our lives in search of authentic freedom. And when we have dealt with social ills, product of hierarchy, they have called us authors of disorder and sent us to populate the prisons.
      Without a doubt rebellion does not stop in jail, it is precisely in jail that the rebel is formed completely and any doubts or contradictions that might have existed in his ideas till then dissipate. He ends up strengthening himself and becoming ideologically more grounded. Entering prison ends one cycle of struggle to start a new one, but this time more radical, direct and complete. May the walls come down and freedom continue its inexorable course, until we are all free!

Read the full article HERE:

The Peasants Are Picking Up Their Pitchforks.

     From East to West, from North to South, people are standing up to authority and injustice. Pick your country and there will be trouble on the streets, the system is creaking, more and more power is needed to keep the "peasants" in line. the smoke is clearing, the illusion is fading, and the system is being seen for what it is, a punitive repressive system, held in place by brute force, to protect the parasitic pampered few. The force that holds it together is only temporary, as that same force will be its downfall. The harder you push down on a spring the higher it bounces up, so it is with violence against the people.

 

Here are just a few of the recent actions against that state brutality, look around and you will find many more:

Australia, Darwin: small riot in teenage prison

Algeria: movement against shale gas spreads to 3 towns

Haiti, Anse-a-Pitre: Haitian and Dominican Republic cops join forces to “restore calm” after fishermen attack Dominican Embassy,
India, Mumbai: commuters riot at railway stations “Violent crowds ran amok on Central Railway’s suburban network on Friday morning

Mexico: cops attacked during president’s convocation speech (video)

Australia, Pingelly: how to celebrate the new year, part 1
New Zealand, Gisborn: part 2
France: part 3 – cars burnt in Strasbourg, Selestat, Colmar, Macon, Toulouse and Trappes…but this says car burnings are down 12% due to heavy poicing after mad attacks
US, Oakland: Part 4 – bricks and bottles thrown at cops on New Year’s eve….Part 5 – Pittsburgh: teenage prisoners riot in “adolescent treatment centre”…Part 6: Santa Cruz: anti-cop protesters smash up County Jail vehicles
Germany, Leipzig: Part 7 – Deutsche Bank stoned in solidarity with anarchists in Spain
 US, Oakland: bricks and bottles thrown at cops
 US, …police officers were shot at Tuesday night, as they tried to investigate a burglary call at one of the town’s many buildings burned down in anti-cop riots.
Spain, Canary Islands: solidarity actions in solidarity with anarchists arrested in Spain

Burma: copper mine protesters clash with cops at Chinese embassy over killing of 50-year-old woman

Read in more detail HERE:

Repression,-- A sign Of The State's Power Slipping.

     When it comes to attempting to crush any resistance to the financial Mafia's dictates, Greece leads the way in Europe. It has just started to transfer prisoners to its new super security prison within a prison, Domokos. However that is only because to date, Greece is the European country where the anger and resistance of the people is at boiling point. As the people of other countries strengthen their resistance to this perpetual plundering of the public purse in aid of the financial Mafia, so the state will strengthen its repression. Greece today, tomorrow Spain, Italy Ireland----?

     The conditions in Domokos are intended to isolate those who are most vociferous and active in their resistance, more than anything, the state fears the spread of of freedom of thought and of expression among the people. Such things eroded the power of the state and it will attempt strangle and crush them before they spread to the general public. At this level the state has long since abandoned the illusion that prisons were for reforming, and now openly uses them for their original and real purpose, repression. They are an inhumanity, a scar on the face of any society, a cancer in any community, a symbol of punitive power.

This from Rabble:

     Domokos prison, in central Greece, is the first prison to be revamped and classified as “Type C” under a new law passed in July. Type C prisons are the first Greek prisons that will meet Europe-wide maximum security standards. The regime prohibits day release and rules out parole for those serving life sentences before prisoners have served at least 20 years behind bars. The general operation and supervision of the prison will be tightly controlled and prison access guarded by the police rather than screws. Visits and phone calls will be restricted.
      Type C prisons are specially made for ‘terrorist’ prisoners (urban guerrillas & revolutionaries), and other detainees deemed to pose a serious threat.
The new Domokos wing opens just as more fighters from the Conspiracy of Cells of Fire are handed prison sentences of up to 25 years.
     These are the actions of a state desperate to contain the spread of rebellion in Greece since the explosion of the economic crisis in 2008. One Domokos prisoner, Revolutionary Struggle fighter Nikos Maziotis, has already issued a call for the formation of an assembly in solidarity with political prisoners. Maziotis writes:
“the passing of legislation of the Type C prisons are an expected development in the repressive attack of the State against the armed Revolutionary Organizations and against armed direct action. Subsequently, the legislative changes and reforms that have been under way for about 14 years are directly linked to the political and economic conditions, applicable for years internationally, and none other than the “war on terror” and the neoliberal reforms intended to impose the dictatorship of the markets, and its doctorate of supranational capital.”

Read the full article HERE:

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

Solidarity Is Our Winning Weapon.

      The Spanish fascist government's Operation Pandora should not be dismissed as something minor and over there in a foreign country. It is the expected vicious reaction from any state that feels its power is being threatened. The greatest threat to the power of any state is from those think for themselves, and encourage others to do likewise. The power of the state relies on a subservient population. Hence, anarchist will always come in for the first and hardest of the state's repressive fight back.

         Over the last few years the Greek state has been trying to savagely crush any autonomous centres, social squats, etc. by a brutal attack on anarchists, and shutting down those centres. Spain is just following the authoritarian rules. If the people start to think for themselves and act accordingly, the repression will be stepped up, and as unrest and anger among the people of Europe grows, so we should expect more of the Greek state reaction and more "Operation Pandora" type scenarios. Solidarity is our winning weapon in this struggle to be free from the cancer of authority.

      On "Operation Pandora" here is an open letter from Brieva Prison, by anarchist Monica Caballero. It first appeared on Anarchist News:

Anarchist comrade Monica Caballero on Operation Pandora from Brieva prison (Spain)

If I were to choose a different life I would not change it for anything.

      I vividly remember the intoxicating feeling that came over me when I began to question authority; I remember the many contradictions and questions. In this discovery of ideas I found many people that made their ideas into practical material in their libraries, publications, social centres, etc. … in their everyday life … they lived their lives in the here and now. It did not take long for me to want to do the same.

     I remember the anxiety I felt when I heard there were comrades imprisoned for putting their ideas of freedom into practise; sisters of ideas in all corners of the world in the jaws of the panoptic beast. That distressing feeling never changed, but is accompanied by gestures of solidarity.

      We are many; the anarchists on the other side of the wall, and after Tuesday December 16 our numbers have grown.

     The tentacles of power dropped into anarchists´ spaces, libertarian social centres, a squatted house and homes of several anarchists in Catalonia and Madrid. The hunt captured eleven companions, of these, seven have been kept in prison, accused of belonging to an armed group of a terrorist nature. It is no coincidence that comrades arrested are part of my immediate circle; indeed, more than half of them frequently visited me in jail. The judicial hammer has punished solidarity.

     I cannot keep silent before such misery, the State´s repressive revenge borders on delirium. The media (spokesmen for the rulers) talks about bosses and subordinates, I stress to them and anyone who harbours any doubts – we are anti-authoritarian, no one is above me, nor am I above anyone!

     The spaces attacked in Catalonia, were not arbitrary, firstly, the Kasa de la Muntanya is an important symbol of the squatting movement, and with its 25 years distanced from capitalist logic they have made their contribution to many generations of dissidents to this system of terror. The libertarian social centres and anarchists spaces that were attacked never hid their ideals, providing fertile ground for sowing the seeds of freedom.

      The costs in this struggle for the recovery of our lives are very high, nobody said it would be easy, but undoubtedly if I were to choose a different life I would not change it for anything. In this fight against domination no cages or walls can silence our voices, but without you, comrades, our voices are transformed in echoes.

    If you, my recently jailed comrades, are ever able to read these words, I tell you that I’m certain you will remain incorruptible and rise to the occasion as you always have.

    I remember every time I read or heard “solidarity is a necessary weapon for anarchists”. Today I hope that those memories come true … making our ideas action.

Brieva prison, December 2014.

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

Designer Shoes From Blood!!!

         In the coming week, January 6th. two anti-militarists will be in Cardiff Magistrate s Court, for protesting against the 2014 DPRTE arms fair, held in Cardiff, having been driven out of Bristol, its previous venue. What they are charged with points to the type of life style these dealers in death live,  they are charged with damaging, among other things, a £400 suit and a pair of £200 designer shoes. No doubt, all paid for in blood.

          If you are in or near the Cardiff Magistrates Court on January 6th. You could go along and show solidarity with the defendants, though we all know who should be in the dock. 

Details from Radical Wales:
 

     There has been active opposition DPRTE since 2013. The arms fair had previously been hosted at the UWE campus in Bristol, but was subsequently driven out, hence the move to Cardiff. The protesters involved a variety of actions including blockading the UWE north entrance causing queues trailing back along the A4174.
      Having being driven out of Bristol, South Wales Anarchists, Stop NATO Cymru  and others resolved to show the arms dealers that there is no welcome for them in Wales either. Many felt it unjust that whilst ordinary people are struggling and having to turn to food banks or are on the brink of homelessness, these arms dealers are walking around in expensive clothes worth more than most local families’ entire monthly disposable income, all bought with the profits made from mass murder. What does a statistic like 100 000 dead civilians in Afghanistan mean to the arms dealers at DPRTE? In material terms it means a bit of financial security and a couple of nice holidays a year.
One of the defendants said:
       “Arms dealers are complicit in slaughter all over the world. Perpetual war is in this industry’s interest and this is what's become the norm. If the law really was a forum for justice, wouldn't it be them on trial?”
In a similar vein, Elliw from StopNATO Cymru said:
       “What I would like to know is when have the arms dealers ever had to justify their horrific choice of career? Have the arms dealers ever had to look a mother in the eye and explain why their expensive suits, luxury goods and nice big homes are so much more valuable than the lives of their children, brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers? These cowards never have to face the consequences of their career choice. It sickens me that we live in a society that rewards such abhorrent and frankly psychopathic behavior.”

Read the full article HERE:

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

They are accused of damaging the luxury goods of DPRTE arms dealers and organisers -including a £400 suit and a £200 pair of designer shoes - with childrens play paint. - See more at: http://www.radicalwales.org/2015/01/opposing-dprte-arms-fair-in-caridff.html#sthash.jgOLbDC2.dpuf

They are accused of damaging the luxury goods of DPRTE arms dealers and organisers -including a £400 suit and a £200 pair of designer shoes - with childrens play paint. - See more at: http://www.radicalwales.org/2015/01/opposing-dprte-arms-fair-in-caridff.html#sthash.jgOLbDC2.dpuf

Caesar Is Dead, Long Live-------!!!

     2015, what does it hold, how do you predict this in a world controlled by a ruthless financial Mafia? How will the festering Western imperialism shape up in a world of shifting powers? I have always believed that the collapse of American imperialism is much closer than most people think. Could this be the year, if so what next? Widespread mayhem and violence, continuous wars as the financial/corporate scum brutally fight for control of the ruins? Who will be calling the shots, will it be a new Caesar, a new Attila? Or will the people seize their moment and turn the wilderness into  garden? We have the imagination and the ability, the opportunity will present itself, do we have the will power?

 

Image from Doomsteaddiner

    A fascinating and insightful article on the subject of the collapse of what he calls Anglo-Imperialism,  from ClubOrlov:

Image by Leon Kuhn

• When the British got tossed out of their American Colonies, they did all they could, using a combination of import preferences and British “soft power,” to bolster the plantation economy of the American South, helping set it up as a sort of anti-United States, and the eventual result was the American Civil War.

• When the British got tossed out of Ireland, they set up Belfast as a sort of anti-Ireland, with much blood shed as a result.

• When the British got tossed out of the Middle East, they set up the State of Israel, then the US made it into its own protectorate, and it has been poisoning regional politics ever since. (Thanks to Kristina for pointing this out in the comments.)

• When the British got tossed out of India, they set up Pakistan, as a sort of anti-India, precipitating a nasty hot war, followed by a frozen conflict over Kashmir.

• When the US lost China to the Communists, they evacuated the Nationalists to Taiwan, and set it up as a sort of anti-China, and even gave it China's seat at the United Nations.

     The goal is always the same: if they can't have the run of the place, they make sure that nobody else can either, by setting up a conflict scenario that nobody there can ever hope to resolve. And so if you see Anglo-imperialists going out of their way and spending lots of money to poison the political well somewhere in the world, you can be sure that they are on their way out. Simply put, they don't spend lots of money to set up intractable problems for themselves to solve—it's always done for the benefit of others.

Well worth reading the full article:

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

What Is On Your Bookshelf???

      Spain's "Operation Pandora" is no more than the fascist state defending its corporate foundations. It was on December 16th. that the state moved in and kidnapped 11 comrades, in a wave of dawn raids in towns and cities across Spain (earlier articles here and here). Seven of those comrades are still held in captivity, you can find a list of their names and prison addresses here on actforfree, letters and cards of solidarity would show them that they are not alone.

   According to the prosecutor, the evidence against them includes finding numerous copies of the book, "Against Democracy", which is a theoretical critique of contemporary democracy rather than a “terror manual”. Be careful what you have on your bookshelf in this age of corporate power, we could be re-entering the era of book burning.

    Rabble has released an English translation of the preface of the book, the following is an extract from that translation: 

    ----------In democracy we give up our interests, the satisfaction of our needs and the organisation of human relations and of life, into the hands of others. By means of the vote we supposedly choose those who can better represent our interests, but here we collide with reality: the political parties defend their own interests in accordance with the rules they themselves have established, they seek to accumulate levels of economic and political power in order to maintain their domination and influence on the rest of society-----

     -------In this historical moment the various political leaders have no opposed interests, apart from gestures. All should promote the structure of the state in which capital develops, and apply policies according to the needs of the market not of people. Indeed, in many cases the politicians are direct beneficiaries as they themselves belong to the business class. We have all been silent witnesses of how the government has injected millions of euros to the banks while most people do not have work or are suffering from evictions. We are also accustomed to hearing how the webs of corruption directly tie together economics and politics. Without mincing words and with little concern to hide the reality from the population, Emilio Botín [chairman of Santander bank, died of a heart attack in September 2014] says: “above certain levels the relation between business and politics is direct, much more than people suspect, a direct phone call from mobile to mobile without any secretaries in between”. When it comes time to legislate, democracy is based not on common interest but on company interests.

       For these reasons we conclude that democracy is not the government of the people but the masquerade behind which hides the dictatorship of capital.

IF WE BELIEVE THAT DEMOCRACY IS FREEDOM WE WILL NEVER STOP BEING SLAVES.
LET’S UNMASK THIS GREAT LIE!
LET’S BUILD ANARCHY!

Read the full preface HERE: 

 The entire book (92 pages) is available in Spanish here.

     Here are links to some articles on the case, translated by contrainfo:
“Operation Pandora: Democracy imprisons 7 more anarchists” by Iberian Federation of Libertarian Youth 22 December
Letter from anarchist prisoner Monica Caballero to the imprisoned comrades “Pandora’s box and the hotchpotch of Spanish anti-terrorism” 18 December

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

This Time-----.

FROM GEORGE SQUARE TO TAHRIR SQUARE.

In a global square, in a global village the people are gathering,

They want to sort out their village once and for all.

They have had enough of wild beasts stealing their chickens,

Of war lords pillaging and plundering their crops.

Though they labour hard, they live poor

While the wild beasts and war lords grow fat.

This time they will take the time and do it right,

This time they will finally and forever banish,

Wild beasts and war lords from their village.

This time all our chickens will feed all the children of the village

This time our crops will see all our people through the winter,

This time, all the fruits of our labour will be ours.

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Workers, Know Your History, Sara Berenquer.

       We should know our history, it is our inspiration, and a tool-kit for tomorrow, it also allows us to pay homage to those who pushed our struggle forward.

      On this day January 1st. 1919, poet, anarchist and life long activist Sara Berenquer Laosa was born, she died 8th. June 2010. 

This from Christie Books

     Sara Berenguer Laosa (Barcelona, 1919 – Montady, Francia, 2010), the daughter of an anarchist militant (Francisco Berenguer, her father, was killed on the Aragon front fighting with ‘Los Aguiluchos’) was a leading figure in the Spanish anarchist ‘Free Women’ movement ‘Mujeres Libres’. After the ‘Events of May 1937’, in which she played a part, she was involved in various industrial committees of the CNT and in the Combatant Section of Solidaridad Internacional Antifascista (SIA), regularly visiting the front lines. At the end of 1938 she was elected secretary of the regional committee of ‘Mujeres Libres’. After the Francoist victory Sara escaped to France where she was interned for a time by the French. During WWII she and her partner, Jesús Guillén, moved to Bram, near Carcassone, where they were members of the clandestine Resistance groups operating in the ‘Black Mountain’ region. After the Liberation, Sara (who was made a Chevalier of the Légion d’honneur for her role in the Resistance) continued to provide logistical support for the anti-Francoist resistance groups until Franco’s death in 1975, as well as editing ‘Mujeres Libres’. A documentary, by ‘Zer Ikusi A’, made a few months before Sara’s death, includes her last interview, in which she retraces what she considered to be the key events in her life as an anarchist, anti-fascist — and as a ‘free woman’.

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There Is No Going Back.

      2014 was a year of rising unrest, across the globe, neo-liberal/corporatism ran wild, sparking wars, spawning devastation and creating poverty for millions. People lost faith with the usual channels of governance, and took to the streets, in many areas the establishment felt threatened and fanned the rise of fascism. States lurched violently to the right in an act of self preservation. What is becoming ever more obvious is that there can be no return to the "old ways", people have lost their fear, and are no longer demanding change, but creating that change. It will not be an easy road, as the avenues of the left grow in strength and confidence, so the establishment with fear at its heart will strengthen the forces of the right. Repression will be more open, the gloves will be off, the control structure of the existing system will not relinquish its power willingly.

     The choice is limited, we either buckle under and allow the power of the financial Mafia to control all aspects of our lives, or we strengthen our resolve to finally smash  this corrupt, repressive system that is a weaver of illusions, a cancer on humanity, and a destroyer of freedom and justice.

This extract from Roar Mag:

    In many respects, 2014 was a very dark year. Between Israel’s monstrous war on Gaza to the shooting down of a civilian aircraft over the Ukraine, and from the world’s appalling inaction in the face of the ebola outbreak in West Africa on to the thousands of migrants who drowned off the Mediterranean coast this year, there seemed to be little to be hopeful or excited about. Some of the most spectacular mobilizations, from the Euromaidan revolt in Ukraine and the royalist rebellion and military coup in Thailand to the middle class protests that rocked Venezuela, originated not from the left but from the right.
But 2014 also witnessed the steady rise of new progressive forces. In Greece, the conservative-led government just collapsed over its failure to appoint a new president, triggering snap elections to be held on January 25, with the radical left party Syriza slated to win. In Spain, meanwhile, the new leftist party Podemos was founded in January to compete in the European elections, and now, less than a year later, already finds itself catapulted into first position in the polls. Spanish activists hopefully observe that “the fear is changing sides.” In 2015, the European austerity doctrine will face its most serious challenge to date.

Read the full article HERE:

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