UP-THE-ANTI.

     A date for December, it could be a talking shop, but in reality it will be what you make it, and what you take away from the event.

From Up-the-Anti:

Since the financial crisis broke we have seen a rising tide of protest, revolutions and resistance. One of the driving forces of these movements has been a desire to change the future: to reject the idea that we have no future outside of the logic of never ending austerity, declining living standards and the loss of public services to private profiteers.

     Up the Anti is a one day conference to think about and discuss  how we lay claim to the future that we want and deserve. It will host an eclectic mix of sessions, ranging from in-depth seminars and debates to participatory, facilitated discussions and workshops. There are many questions we need to ask, including:

• Is there an alternative to capitalism? What might it look like?
• How do we win popular support for new radical projects?
• What can we learn from the social struggles and new movements in Europe?
• And how do we overcome divisions within left and radical movements?

What next after the Occupy protests?

       We called the event ‘Up the Anti’ because we all agree that we need to build a bigger movement against social oppression and capitalism.  But we are not just against things, we also want to reclaim the future from those in power who seem intent on dragging us towards austerity, growing social inequality and environmental destruction.

      The conference will be held in London at Queen Mary university, not far from Mile End and Stepney Green underground stations.

But the day is not just all workshops and seminars, we also have time for a gig at Queen Mary Student Union with comedy, music and DJs. Highlights include the up and coming radical comedian Chris Coltrane and the critically acclaimed blues guitarist Sean Taylor.

      UP THE ANTI is a genuine movement event put on by a plurality of groups, websites, publishing houses, and networks. It is sponsored by New Left Project, Ceasefire, Occupied Times, Anticapitalist Initiative, Platypus and Globalise Resistance.

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WORKERS KNOW YOUR HISTORY - LOVE OR NOTHING.

    I know that I bore the shit out of you by going on about Greece, I can hear you say, "Not Greece again". But as far as I'm concerned, if you want to fly a kite, you have to know which way the wind is blowing, and Greece is telling us that.

    The following extract is from an article by Paul Mason, the full article is well worth a read. History can tell us so much and allow us to be ready and get organised to take control of events, rather than let others and/or the events take control of us.

      Of all the operas written during Germany's Weimar Republic (1919-33), probably the most haunting is the last. Kurt Weill's The Silver Lake, written with playwright Georg Kaiser, tells the story of two losers - a good-hearted provincial cop and the thief he has shot and wounded - as they make their way through a society ruined by unemployment, corruption and vice.
      After spending a week again in Greece - amid riots, hunger and far right violence - I finally understood it.
     The opera was meant to be Weill's path back into the mainstream. It was his first break from collaborating with Bertolt Brecht, and was scheduled to open simultaneously in three German cities on 18 February 1933. But on 30 January Adolf Hitler was appointed Germany's chancellor. The first performances of The Silver Lake were disrupted by Nazi activists in the audience and on 4 March 1933 it was banned. The score was torched, together with its set designs, in the infamous book-burning ceremony outside the opera house in Berlin.

The full article is well worth the read HERE:

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ROTTEN AT THE HEART.

      There is something rotten at the heart of the state. It is a system of repression, corruption, hypocrisy, greed, and stinks the air we breathe.
This from The Greek Streets:

Journalist Vaxevanis was just arrested after publicizing the list of Greek taxdodgers

Sunday, October 28, 2012

       Today is national day in Greece, forces of police and military police are guarding the army parades and the governmental politicians who will are watching them. At the same time, police one hour ago raided the house of a journalist who published a list with Greek tax-dodgers two days ago. The list that the  journalist Costas Vaxevanis published was available to the Minister of Economics for a couple of years now, who had decided to keep it secret and take no more actions.

       Greece, but it could be any where in the Western world, like I said, there is something rotten at the heart of the state.

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STRONGER TOGETHER.

     We all know that winter in Scotland means choices, choices between eating or heating. Winter in this country, because of the climate and "fuel poverty" brings with it misery and death, while the energy companies fatten their shareholders with bigger profits. There are ways and means of fighting the leeches that own the energy companies.

This from SNIFFER:

"Jam the gas meters or Stronger Together?

    Direct action on fuel poverty in Europe campaign ‘Samen Sterker’ or "Stronger Together" reports that thousands of people in Belgium and Netherlands have organised collectively against the power companies and won great deals.

   But here in the UK EDF Fuel prices for residential customers are to hike up by 10.8% from December 7, 2012 sending the average dual fuel bill to £1,251. Scottish Gas and Scottish Power will be more than this by up to £23. And we already know that means misery and death.

   Excess winter mortality statistics from the UK Office for National Statistics estimated there were 25,700 Excess Winter Deaths (WHO) in England and Wales in 2011, 3.4% higher in the North East. Scotland’s winter statistics at 2,450 are like the UK’s low temperature related deaths, not exclusively hypothermia but cerebrovascular disease and heart disease, pneumonia, stroke and respiratory diseases.

    Belgium and Netherlands have taken direct action on fuel bills by collective switching. Their groups of 10,000 people prepared to switch en-mass to a new supplier this means that these suppliers offer a decent price in order to get them as new clients. They have a trusted third party who's actually doing all the leg work, setting up the switch system so that it is minimal effort for us. Hundreds of thousands of consumers have benefited and on average saved some 200-250 euros a year.

   Earlier this year the UK consumer organisation Which? organised the firstcollective switch in the UK. Almost 40,000 people took part, with average savings of £223 a year.

     A pilot scheme is running in Cornwall, and South Lakeland District Council in Cumbria is finalising the first local authority project in the UK. Other local councils may follow suit soon.

Let’s do it in Scotland."

      Start to organise your own "energy switch" group in your own area, join the group nearest you and hit the energy companies with a mass switch deal and get the best price. Start today before the Scottish weather really bites.

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WILL IT BE A DIFFERENT XMAS THIS YEAR?

One person's opinion from Anarchist News:

       Many years ago the Mayans invented an ingenious time/calender system. This master calender had many precisely accurate cycles and one master cycle. The master cycle ends when all cycles end, to begin again. The end of the master cycle is enormously rare. We live in amazing, historical time not just for humans, but for the entire earth, solar system and universe. The end of this master cycle is on December 21, 2012... Which is in less the two months... The Mayans did not believe the world would end in 2012, they believed in the emergence of a different type of civilization on earth. I believe this new society will be one of harmony and Anarchy!
HOW WILL THIS COME ABOUT?

And I wouldn't get too excited about the rest of the article HERE:

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BREAKING THE SILENCE.

Israeli Soldiers Breaking The Silence 

on the Occupation of Palestine

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FROM THE EDGE OF BORDERLINE DEMOCRACY.

      This is an email I received recently and think it is worth posting to give it as much publicity as possible. I hope you all do likewise.

Greetings, I would like to bring a new project to your attention. We are journalists based in Greece, and we have created a new blog, "Reports from the Edge of Borderline Democracy". We will be posting some shorter texts, opinion pieces etc, but the main effort is to publish extensive reports, in English, on issues affecting politics and society in Greece, so they are as accessible as possible around the world. You can see our first report on the rise of Golden Dawn, Greece's neonazi party that is rapidly rising, here: http://borderlinereports.net/2012/10/25/report-golden-dawn-1980-2012-the-neonazis-road-to-parliament/ If you like the idea, we would like to ask you to spread the word as much as possible, particularly to non-Greek speakers in other countries. Best regards, Augustine *Augustine Zenakos* *Reports from the Edge of Borderline Democracy<http://borderlinereports.net/>

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WHERE HAVE ALL THE FLOWERS GONE?

      The "Arab Spring" so hailed by the West, certainly hasn't brought about a bed of flowers for the people of those countries involved. The state still rules with an iron fist or it has descended into religious/tribal factions each vying brutally for power. Somewhere in this mess people are still struggling for justice and freedom.

This from Amnesty International:

Egypt: Troops and Police acting above the law

In December 2011 49-year-old Azza Suleiman (pictured) attended a large protest near Tahrir Square. As she started to leave, she saw a group of soldiers violently beat and strip another female protestor. Act now to end the abuse

Concerned, Azza and some others tried to help carry the woman away. But the soldiers reacted violently: they beat Azza so severely that she lost consciousness. Even then they did not stop. Their attack was so vicious it left Azza with a fractured skull and impaired memory. To date, no one has been held accountable for this violence.

Azza’s treatment at the hands of the authorities is horrific but her story is not unique. Over 100 peaceful protestors have been killed by troops and police forces since early 2011 when Egyptians bravely took to the streets to demand political reform.

Despite President Morsi making some positive changes since taking power, troops and police remain above the law. Find out more

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MASTER OF ALL WE SURVEY???

        This sort of puts our squabbles in perspective and makes those god people's ideas of us as something special look very childish and rather stupid.

PINNACLE OF EVOLUTION.

There’s a crazy ape, who

by means of incredible intransigence

has mastered the art of carnage;

through dogged determination

in a ruthless rampage

raised the body-count beyond belief.

This crazy ape

creates the human chronicles

as a cruel callous calendar,

transforms our indulgent earth

into a primitive barbaric abattoir.

He struts across the land

with bumptious pride;

he’s destructive, he’s devious,

demands dominion

planet wide.

His claim to fame,

history immortalised in rivers of blood.

Even so,

this crazy ape called man, believes

he’s the GODS’ sublime solution,

progress’s perfection,

the pinnacle of evolution.

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AUSTERITY - NO PAY FOR THREE MONTHS!!!

    Not been paid for three months and then being put on part-time 20 hours a week at €200 a month, that's capitalism IMF (International Mankind Fuckers) style for you.

This from Teacher Dude's Grill and BBQ:

Unpaid for three months - 

shop assistants in Fokas department store protest

 

       Employees at the Fokas department stores, one of the most well-known retail outlets in Greece taking part in a 24 hour strike over unpaid wages dating back to June. In addition according to Union of Shop Workers, the company is in the process of replacing full time positions with part time ones paying just 200 Euros a month for a 20 hour week.
       (200 euros a month is just enough to cover rent on a modest one room apartment in the poorest parts of Thessaloniki.)

enosiemporiothess@gmail.com

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COMING TO A CITY NEAR YOU!!

       It could be Germany in the mid-1930's, but no, this is Greece 2012. Rampant neo-nazis backed up by the police beating up immigrants and all opposition to the state. Street violence is the last resort of any repressive regime in an attempt to break any opposition, organisation and resistance to the powers that be. It is not confined to Greece, all states have used violence to break the public's resistance and they will all use it again if and when they feel the need. So let's not be complacent and think that it can only happen over there somewhere. Read your history and look at the present, it is coming to a city near you.

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A NEW EUROPE.

From Red Pepper:

Joining forces for another Europe

      In November, European social movements will meet in Florence to plan continent-wide responses to austerity and the European crisis of democracy. Tommaso Fattori calls for us to make ‘Firenze 10+10’ a priority

      In Europe we are living in particularly dramatic times. Democracy is in death-agony and we are witnessing post-democratic processes taking over at the national and supranational level. EU leaders have further concentrated decision-making power on public and fiscal policies in the hands of an oligarchy of governments, technocrats and the European Central Bank (ECB), which are subject to the dictates of the financial markets. Neoliberalism, the real cause of the crisis, not only is not dead, but it appears to be in perfect health: it uses the crisis to destroy social rights and workers’ rights and to privatise commons, public goods and public services.
      Finally, the most incredible propaganda operation of our times is in full swing, in which states and ‘markets’ try to make people believe that public debt was caused by excessive social spending and high salaries. In fact the financial sector caused the crisis and the fiscal deficit in the EU is the result of the crisis, not its cause.
      A moment like this needs a strong social answer: it is urgent to act now, uniting our forces, creating the conditions for a common social response, for a pan-European mobilisation. There is an objective need to build a European space of ‘strategic alliances’: in order to elaborate common strategies and initiatives and to rebuild solidarity. When the attack on Greece by the great  economic powers and the ‘troika’ [the International Monetary Fund, the European commission and the ECB]  began, we, in Europe, were unable to organise a social response. Rather, each stayed wrapped up in their own crisis and their own national dimension, leaving the Greeks alone. It must never happen again. 

Continue reading HERE:

 

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DEMOCRACY'S BANKRUPT.

       Yea, it seems a good idea, just test their logic. I have no doubt that you will find it wanting. We vote for a system of crooks and liars, hypocrites and millionaires and pampered parasites, WHY?

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ZIONIST DEMOCRACY!!!

      Israel always touts itself as the only democracy in the Middle East in spite of what others inside and outside the area may think. However, though this is the message from the Zionist state of Israel, it seems to differ from the view held by those ordinary Jewish citizens of that state.

     In a recent poll held in Israel the findings point to anything but democratic aims of a society. The poll results found that the majority of Israeli Jews believe that the state practises apartheid. Also revealed in the findings of the poll was the fact that this was not against the wishes of the Jewish citizens. A third of those who took part in the poll believed that Israeli Arabs should be denied the vote, with 47% wanting the Israeli Arabs to be stripped of their citizenship rights. Another disturbing finding from the poll is that 59% of those polled believed that Jews should be given preference to public sector jobs over Israeli Arabs, with 50% stating that Jews should be better treated than Israeli Arabs. Even more disturbing is that 40% polled, believed that there should be separate housing and classrooms for Jews and Israeli Arabs. It should be noted that Israeli Arabs make up about 20% of the population of the Israeli state.

       So much for the only democratic state in the Middle East.

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THE BOOKFAIR.

         From Circled A, a talk on the coming London Anarchist Bookfair, which will be held this Saturday, 27 October, at Queen Mary, University of London. Plus a little bit of a tribute to the soon to be no more Chumbawamba (http://www.chumba.com/) at the start and end of the show.

 

(http://thecircleda.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/circled-a-show-october-23rd-2012.mp3)

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LONDON ANARCHIST BOOKFAIR.

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THE PAINFUL END TO AN EXPERIMENT!!!

 

       The plundering of the public purse by the financial Mafia and the resultant misery that falls on the ordinary people, forces people in all different directions. Some stay on the belief that things can only get better, others decide to stay and fight for something better, while others cut that bound with friends and family and leave for some foreign land. None of these options are easy, all inflict misery and hardship, some physical, others emotional, some both.

Another excellent article from Teacher Dude's Grill and BBQ.  

 

Is the European experiment grinding to halt? 

      Earlier this morning I got a call from a friend, saying that she'd found a job but I was at a loss whether to congratulate her or not, as she will not only leave her country but her two young children as well. For the next nine months my friend will be teaching English at a private school in the Gulf States. In doing so she'll be following a path trailed by many other friends and acquaintances over the last few years.

     Her children will remain here to be looked after by grandparents for the duration, a story reminiscent of the sacrifices that many Greeks were obliged to make in the 60's and 70's as guest workers who went north to find jobs in the booming economies of northern Europe and especially in German factories then powering the country's export led economic miracle.

     As with so many other Greeks six years of recession has forced my friend to consider working abroad as the only alternative to a slow slide into poverty at home so repeating a story that has been told and re-told so often here over the last 100 years. However, this latest generation is both luckier and unluckier than their parents and forebears.

Continue Reading HERE:

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PSYCHOPATHS IN UNIFORM.

Advice, before being arrested, go for a piss!!

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THE HEALTH OF PEOPLE V CORPORATE PROFIT.

 

       Do you remember the days when the City Councillors took the time, by means of smoke and mirrors, to weave the illusion of doing the people's bidding? Now however, they are so arrogant that they don't even bother with that thin veneer of illusion, they just ride roughshod over the will of the people in an attempt to appease big business. Today they see themselves as managing our city and its assets to suit the corporate world, the people are a bit of an inconvenience. What does the health of the people matter if there is money to be made for their corporate masters.

25 Years of Pollution and Congestion for Southside Residents

        This from a friend and comrade, C L: 

      It is now known that Glasgow City Council has already signed a 25 year contract with a company called Viridor to deal the City’s refuse, even before planning permission has been granted for the plant. They plan to build a recycling and gasification (yes a big incinerator to you and me) facility at Polmadie; but don’t worry, the planning authority is Glasgow City Council! At a time when other countries such as Sweden are moving away from incineration to deal with their rubbish, it seems the City Council is determined to commit us to having this toxic monstrosity on our doorstep for the next quarter of a century or more. Local people are understandably angry about this and have many valid objections to this scheme including the following:

     As the client and planning authority Glasgow City Council has a clear conflict of interest and must not decide the outcome of the planning application. The contract guarantees a minimum amount of waste that will be provided for the plant. This in itself will make recycling less attractive as it reduces the amount of waste for burning. Recycling is not only less wasteful of natural resources but will create many times more jobs locally than burning the rubbish will. If the Council can’t fulfil this commitment to provide enough waste, it will be liable for penalties or will have to bring in refuse from other areas increasing pollution and congestion.

    Local residents are very concerned about the pollution from the plant including highly toxic nitrous oxide (NOx) and dioxins resulting from combustion at the site as well as disturbance and traffic congestion from its 24 hour operation . Children are particularly susceptible to the effects of extremely low concentrations of these chemicals. There are many schools including Holyrood, the largest secondary in Scotland, in the surrounding area.

     This part of Glasgow already is an area of social deprivation, poor health and low life expectancy. It is also adjacent to the motorway network. To introduce another source of pollution and traffic will only serve to compound these factors and reduce further social and health inequalities.

    There has been no proper consultation by the company with the local population as required by law. Only a small proportion of households have received information from Viridor.

      A number of well attended public meetings have been held and a campaign group has formed. At present the effort is concentrating on written objections to the planning application and lobbying councillors. Whilst that is useful, I'm sure you all, like me, have previous experience with so called elected councillors who ignore the people that they claim to represent. If we really intend to stop this plant being built we must get ready to take direct action to stop it. We the people have the power, not these self-serving politicians and it is about time we showed them who decides these important matters!

   For more information search Facebook for Glasgow Alternatives to Incineration or email glasgowgain@gmail.com

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