3.5%, Is This The Tipping Point?

 Chile.

Ecuador.

        Across the world the young are turning against the enforced neo-liberalism that has brought so much hardship and misery to so many. From Chile, Haiti, Ecuador, to Lebanon, Iraq and Sudan and elsewhere, people are on the streets challenging the established authority and the symbols of this brutal exploitative system. In some states in is insurrection, and others growing mass protests. Can Chile be the spark that starts the fire?

 Lebanon.

Iraq.

    An interesting article By Medea Benjamin Nicolas J S Davies

         Uprisings against the decades long dominance of neoliberal “center-right” and “center-left” governments that benefit the wealthy and multinational corporations at the expense of working people are sweeping the world.
         In this Autumn of Discontent, people from Chile, Haiti and Honduras to Iraq, Egypt and Lebanon are rising up against neoliberalism, which has in many cases been imposed on them by US invasions, coups and other brutal uses of force. While the severe repression against these activists have led to more than 250 protesters killed in Iraq in October alone, the protests have continued to grow. Some movements, such as in Algeria and Sudan, have already forced the downfall of long-entrenched, corrupt governments.
        A country that is emblematic of the uprisings against neoliberalism is Chile. On October 25, 2019, a million Chileans – out of a population of about 18 million – took to the streets across the country, unbowed by government repression that has killed at least 20 and injured hundreds more. Two days later, Chile's billionaire president Sebastian Piñera fired his entire cabinet and declared, “We are in a new reality. Chile is different from what it was a week ago.”
        The people of Chile appear to have validated Erica Chenoweth’s research on non-violent protest movements, in which she found that once over 3.5% of a population rise up to non-violently demand political and economic change, no government can resist their demands. It remains to be seen whether Piñera’s response will be enough to save his own job, or whether he will be the next casualty of the 3.5% rule.
       It is fitting that Chile should be in the vanguard of protests sweeping the world in this Autumn of Discontent, since Chile served as the original neoliberal laboratory.
       When Chile’s socialist leader Salvador Allende was elected in 1970, after a six year covert CIA operation to prevent his election, President Nixon ordered U.S. sanctions to “make the economy scream.”
       In his first year in office, Allende’s progressive economic policies led to a 22% increase in real wages, as work began on 120,000 new housing units and the nationalization of copper mines and other industrial sectors. But growth slowed in 1972 and 1973 under the pressure of brutal US sanctions, as in Venezuela and Iran today.
        Allende was overthrown in a CIA-backed coup on September 11, 1973. The new US and Western backed leader, General Augusto Pinochet, executed or ‘disappeared’ at least 3,200 people, held 80,000 political prisoners in jail, and ruled as a brutal dictator until 1990.
         Under Pinochet, Chile’s economy was radically restructured by the “Chicago Boys”, a team of Chilean economics students trained at the University of Chicago under the supervision of Milton Friedman. US sanctions were quickly lifted and Pinochet sold off Chile’s public assets to US corporations and wealthy investors. The neoliberal program: tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations, together with mass privatization and cuts to pensions, healthcare, education and other public services, was soon duplicated across the world.
          While the Chicago Boys pointed to rising economic growth rates in Chile as evidence of the success of their neoliberal program, by 1988, 48% of Chileans were living below the poverty line. Chile is currently one of the wealthiest countries in Latin America, and one of the most unequal.
        The governments elected after Pinochet, from “center-right” to “center-left”, have abided by the neoliberal model. The needs of the poor and working class continue to be exploited, as they pay higher taxes than their tax-evading bosses, on top of ever-rising living costs, stagnant wages and limited access to voucherized education and a stratified public-private healthcare system. Indigenous communities are at the very bottom of this corrupt social and economic order.
        The neoliberal consensus following Pinochet has triggered a disillusionment with the traditional political process, as voter turnout declined from 95% in 1989 to 47% in the recent presidential election in 2017.
       If Chenoweth is right and the million Chileans in the street have breached the tipping point for successful non-violent popular democracy, Chile may be leading the way to a global political and economic revolution. 

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk 

Music, Poetry And The Rent Strike.

        Just a wee reminder, Monday 11th. November is the evening when you can enjoy  some music, poetry and a film based around the 1915 Glasgow/Clydeside rent strike followed by an open discussion of what relevance has that great victory for us today, and what can we learn from that successful struggle. What is more, this is a free event, it will be held in the CCA cinema, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow.

Details:

Date, Monday 11th. November, 2019.

Time, 7:30pm.

Venue. Cinema in CCA

Address, 350 Sauchiehall Street Glasgow.

Price, FREE.

    See you all there for a great and interesting night.

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk

The State's Cages Of Repression.

      It is a fact that across the globe, most prisons are grossly overcrowded, conditions a deplorable and nothing is on the horizon that is likely to improve matters. This on top of the fact the all prisons are a blight on humanity. Locking people up in cages is a dehumanising process, and any civilised society would not tolerate such abhorrent institutions. We must support all those who find themselves enmeshed in this state system of repression and violence.

     This is just one case, but it could be repeated in any country and in lots of cases treatment can be much more repressive and brutal, but every case should be made public in the hope that we can end this state savagery.    

 

 This from 325:

USA: A Message from Eric King – Imprisoned anarchist comrade

November 5th, 2019

October 8th, 2019

      Here are the things I hear most:

What are you doing, we heard this, I don’t think so, we’ll see, maybe, Chow!, Count!, who’s mess is this, who’s shaking the bars, lights out, mail call, rec call, you want a shower, clean this mess, nope not today, not happening, I’ll check on it, put in a cop-out request, doubt it, quit trashing my tier, cuff up…

      Sometimes I spend hours pondering revenge fantasies, most time I think of my wife and kiddos. Fourteen months in segregation minus 4 days at Grady County, plus 6 at McCreary. We haven’t been in the same room since August 11th, 2018. Now these bastards drag me back to Colorado to force more time, and have the audacity to block our family visits, due to a bad check from 15 years ago. Maybe people who read this will be disgusted by this news.

      That said, I’m hurting friends. Being attacked sucks. Being charged with new federal charges for that attack is sickening. Never forget how horrible these people are. This system exists from the top to the bottom which is why reform is such a joke. You don’t reform cancer, you destroy it. We must destroy this system.

Until all are free,

RIP Tom Manning & Willem, never forgotten

–EK

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk

The 1915 Rent Strike, Then And Now.

 

       The 1915 Glasgow and Clydeside rent strike was a tremendous victory for the ordinary people and was achieved by the coming together of the women of the area and the backing of the workers of the Clydeside industries. We should always remember and celebrate these victories. To that end a group are organising two events to mark the November victory of the rent strike and see what we can learn from that great event. A FREE film show and open discussion in the CCA 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow 11th November, and Walk of Pride, 17th. November.

 

The film show: From the 1915 rent strikes to Living Rent
      We will ask. What is rent, what does it mean? - 

      Why has it such a hold on people? - 

      Why does it consume so much of our time? - 

      Who invented it?
-     Who decides what it is and what it is worth? - 

      What are the alternatives? - 

      And essentially how do we dismantle the power of the landlords who control it.
CCA cinema 350 Suchiehall Street Monday 11 November 7:30

AND a Walk of Pride…
Sunday, 17 November, 1 pm
Buchanan Street Steps; walking to the old Sheriffs Court on Ingram Street for open mic and songs.
A tribute to the Clydeside women and workers whose mass march on 17 November, 1915-- from all corners of Glasgow-- brought victory to the Glasgow rent strikes through class unity and direct action.

      Both events co-hosted by members of the Industrial Workers of the World,
May Day on the Green, City Strolls/Radical Imagination, Scottish Peace
Network, Scottish Tenants Organisation, and Strong Women of Clydeside.

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk

Hail The New Messiah.

      So here we go again, another election, more promises of paradise, more shaking hands, more smiling at babies, the crooks and liars are in town. roll up, roll up to the greatest show on earth. I shudder at the amount of manifestos I have been hit with, and stand aghast at the number of messiahs I've seen take to the podium, but paradise never arrives. Despite the increasing wealth of this country over the years and the number of election promises to see a fairer distribution of wealth, nothing has changed that much. Yes we have mobile phones an TVs, but approximately 25% of our kids live in poverty, people are still homeless, parents are still distraught trying to feed their families, jobs are still precarious and wages are still crap. I still maintain that a parliamentary election is nothing more that a crooks and liars competition, each contender trying to out do the other and be crowned king of crooks and liars and take their place on the throne to perpetuate the same old exploitation of the people. So ends my only contribution to this latest crooks and liars competition.

       This from something I wrote a while ago:

       We all know that those who sit on the seat of government are in the pay of the corporate world, they call the shots, who gets invaded and when, where the tax payers money goes etc. So what’s next, new bums on seats, nicer smiles at the podium, while leaving the same corporate power in control? The system stinks from top to bottom, it is the system that should be criticised not the individuals that manage it, an Obama here a Blair there, so what, what changes. When the mass euphoria broke out at the election of Obama I reminded people of the same euphoria when Blair was elected which quickly turned to an effort to get him indicted. Over the years I have seen a multitude of smiling faces form governments and seen a library of election manifestos held aloft, but little changes, our standard of living goes up a little and goes down again, but we always struggle. We go to war on an alphabet of causes, we are always the just and the defenders of freedom, the other the evil enemy, the workers do the killing and get killed, the corporate world takes the bounty. It’s the system that needs to be destroyed, until that happens, we will struggle and we will go to war, we will kill ordinary people in the defence of those ordinary people and it will be the ordinary people that do the killing.

       Let's stop the babble and the pandering to the parasites that control and destroy our lives, Let's realise that we can make a better job of the world if we take control ourselves. Direct action, direct involvement, not delegation of our power to the millionaire parasite class that is going to screw you to the deck at every turn. 

ENDLESS BABBLE.

The questions arise. Why war and hunger?

Why does poverty continue to linger?

Why such need in a world of wealth?

Why put a price on a child’s health?

Confused and angry the public stand

gazing in disbelief at this pathetic band.

Those shiny politicians designed by spin

their street credibility paper thin,

the great persuaders looking the mood

struggling so hard just for our good!

Masters of the art of wheeling and dealing

exceptional experts at legal stealing.

Enter the Media, drowning us all in trivial text,

everything you need know

of scandal and sport, crime and sex.

Together they create a world of confusion

all fashion and style, a vicious illusion.

So no matter how often we point at need,

we always drown in a sea of greed,

no debate entered into, no answers found,

the waffle the babble goes round and round.

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk

A mixture Of Alice In Wonderland And George Orwell.

       The mainstream media is the biggest manufacturer of lies we have ever witnessed. It fills the role of the state's mouthpiece and through misinformation, lies and distortions, creates the reality the state wants you to believe. It is a fog creating machine to blind the public from the reality in which they live. In this fabricated reality, truth is a far away island that has yet to be discovered. I formed this point of view many many years ago, and since then have seen nothing except evidence that reinforces that view.

      The following is a little piece I wrote approximately ten years ago, in those passing ten years the mainstream media has sank further into the mire of the world of putrid lies, misinformation and distortions, it has become the proud prostitute of the state.

Picture by John Hartfield. 

 

Some everyday headlines, WE ARE SPREADING DEMOCRACY IN IRAQ. AFGHANISTAN IS A WESTERN SUCCESS. THE FREE MARKET SPREADS PROSPERITY. THIS YEAR WE WILL TACKLE AFRICA'S POVERTY.        

         Who so ever reads the bourgeois press will become blind. Slowly the fog rises, lies build on lies, lies spawn lies, lies shape your vision and reality is lost in a false consciousness. Trivia and mediocrity fill the mind, seek reality outside the putrid puss and you are deemed to be mad, a raving lunatic, possessed. The media teaches us all we need know of scandal and sport, crime and sex, who slept with who and where, depicting life as a smutty peepshow. Through the bourgeois press you’re fed your daily dose of loathsome lies, banal boring bromide, cliched crap, trivia and petty pulp. Our leaders are portrayed as heroes, supermen, and so the lies breed lies, and lies stretch back into the distant past, lies distort history until it is lost in a bizarre deformed fabrication. We then repeat the disasters of yesterday because the lies are everywhere blinding us. We can’t relate to reality, reality always takes us by surprise because we have no grip of reality, only the lies.

From ''Mein Kampf''
        "All this was inspired by the principle that in the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the (public) more readily fall victims to the big lie than the small lie, since they themselves often tell small lies in little matters but would be ashamed to resort to large-scale falsehoods. It would never come into their heads to fabricate colossal untruths, and they would not believe that others could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously. Even though the facts which prove this to be so may be brought clearly to their minds, they will still doubt and waver and will continue to think that there may be some other explanation."   Adolf Hitler.

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk 

The New Theory, "Holidayism".

          As the world gets more vilent and people get more angry and we try topick our way through the lies and confusion, it is difficult to find the right path to end this insanity. Perhaps Walter Wilkinson got it right away back some years ago. I wrote the following piece some time ago, but thought it worth repeating.

"Holidayism"

         "As capitalism lurches from one "crisis" to another, we get ever new theories, economic theories, social theories, some very complex, others not so, all pointing the way how to change the system, how to destroy the system, where we should be heading, and so on. Sometimes if we look back we find that somebody has said it all before, and in some cases in a very explicit fashion and very simply."

WalterWilkinson, 1888-1970, 

author, puppeteer, put it quite simply in his book, The Peep Show:

       "If I were a philosopher expounding a new theory of living, inventing a new "ism," I should call myself a holidayist, for it seems to me that the one thing the world needs to put it right is a holiday. There is no doubt whatever about the sort of life nice people want to lead. Whenever they get the chance, what do they do but go away to the country or the seaside, take off their collars and ties and have a good time playing at childish games and contriving to eat some simple food very happily without all the encumbrances of chairs and tables. This world might be quite a nice place if only simple people would be content to be simple and be proud of it; if only they would turn their backs on these pompous politicians and ridiculous Captains of Industry who, when you come to examine them, turn out to be very stupid, ignorant people, who are simply suffering from an unhappy mania of greediness; who are possessed with perverse and horrible devils which make them stick up smoky factories in glorious Alpine valleys, or spoil some simple country by digging up and exploiting its decently buried mineral resources; or whose moral philosophy is so patiently upside down when they attempt to persuade us that quarrelling, and fighting, and wars, or that these ridiculous accumulations of wealth are the most important, instead of the most undesirable things in life. If only simple people would ignore them and behave always in the jolly way they do on a seashore what a nice world we might have to live in. Luckily nature has a way with her, and we may rest assured that this wretched machine age will all be over in a few years' time. It has grown up as a mushroom, and like a mushroom it has no stability. It will die."

       "Of course Walter didn't see the strange new world that would spring from the madness of the old industrial world. The world of electronics, IT, artificial intelligence and mass surveillance, further alienating us from the simple world of "holidayism". However "holidayism" is still a road to be examined in detail."

      "Walter Wilkinson was the brother of Arthur Wilkinson, English born anarchist, puppeteer, artist, and conscientious objector during the first world war. Arthur married Scottish born woman anarchist, writer, translator, and artist, Lilly Gair Aitken, (Lilly Gair Wilkinson)".

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk

The Voice Of Victor Jara Breaks The Silence Curfew.

      Some, people live their life and when they die they leave a mark that lives on and continues to inspire that ongoing struggle for peace and justice across all borders. One such person was Victor Jara, Chilean poet, song writer, theatre producer, brutally tortured and murder by that rat bag of sewer creatures, the Pinochet regime.

Victo Jara, Wikipedia:

         Víctor Lidio Jara Martínez (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈβiktoɾ ˈliðjo ˈxaɾa maɾˈtines]; 28 September 1932 – 16 September 1973)[1] was a Chilean teacher, theater director, poet, singer-songwriter and communist[2] political activist tortured and killed during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. He developed Chilean theater by directing a broad array of works, ranging from locally produced plays to world classics, as well as the experimental work of playwrights such as Ann Jellicoe. He also played a pivotal role among neo-folkloric musicians who established the Nueva Canción Chilena (New Chilean Song) movement. This led to an uprising of new sounds in popular music during the administration of President Salvador Allende.
      Jara was arrested shortly after the Chilean coup of 11 September 1973, which overthrew Allende. He was tortured during interrogations and ultimately shot dead, and his body was thrown out on the street of a shantytown in Santiago.[3] The contrast between the themes of his songs—which focused on love, peace, and social justice—and the brutal way in which he was murdered transformed Jara into a "potent symbol of struggle for human rights and justice" for those killed during the Pinochet regime.[4][5] His preponderant role as an open admirer and propagandist for Che Guevara and Allende's government, under which he served as a cultural ambassador through the late 60's and until the early 70's crisis that ended in the coup against Allende, marked him for death.
      In June 2016, a Florida jury found former Chilean Army officer Pedro Barrientos liable for Jara's murder.[6][7] In July 2018, eight retired Chilean military officers were sentenced to 18 years and a day in prison for Jara's murder.[8]

       The people of Chile today are going through a struggle for real change in the face of fierce brutality from a state that supposedly stands under the flag of democracy, but like all states, shows its true character when challenged by the will of the people. However, Victor Jara's voice can still be heard in the face of this state repression and savagery, This from Loam:

       This is the chilling moment soprano Ayleen Jovita Romero defies the silence curfew, imposed under martial law by the government of Sebastián Piñera in Chile and sings the song “El derecho de vivir en paz”, (The right to live in peace) by Victor Jara.
      Such is the silence because of the martial law, that her voice echoes through the buildings, while people from their windows and balconies are “holding their breath” to the words of her song, until the moment she hits the final note and a wave of applause by dozens of people fills the night and space of a neighborhood under police siege.
      The video consists of two scenes of the moment from different angles, one of them being the point of view next to the singer's window.
        The soprano is singing a song from a guitar artist called Victor Jara, he was killed by the Pinochet dictatorship (imposed by the CIA back coup). Jara was taken prisoner along with thousands of others in the Chile Stadium, where guards tortured him, smashing his hands and fingers and then told to try playing his guitar. He was then shot over 40 times and killed. The song is called “The right to live in peace”.

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk

The Dear Green Place, Mired In Poverty.

      I was born in the slum of Garngad in Glasow in 1934, "The dear green place" and have lived in the city for most of my life. During that quite long spell I have seen a lot of changes in this city. However, one thing that persists is Glasgow's poverty. The once "Second City of the Empire" has known poverty from its inception right up to today. For a large part of my life I lived in Springburn, once known as a railway town in its own right, and for a while it held the dubious prize of having more children living in poverty than any other ward in Scotland, 52%. It has now lost that accolade and the prize now moves to Calton. One reason why the percentage has fallen in Springburn, is probably due to the inclusion of Robroyston a developing slightly more affluent area, not that the circumstances of the poor have changed dramatically.  
       Within the city as a whole the child poverty rate is approximately a 37% of all children, this is a crime against a vast section of the population, stunting health and potential. What makes this an even more devastating crime is the fact that the number of children living in poverty, in the city, is expected to rise by roughly, 50,000 over the next two years. Saying more than a third of children in Glasgow are living in poverty does not highlight the vast differences between one district and another, some districts are above that 37% figure.

      This chart from  Evening Times shows the disparity as you move from district to district in the city:

    
       Glasgow holds lots of prizes, some we can be very proud of, some that should have its citizens rising up in anger. Glasgow, Scotland's largest city, hosts the highest rates of poverty in Scotland, why?
        Chart from Understanding Glasgow:

 
    Aberdeen is the only city in Scotland that has shown a decrease in child poverty over this period. But we are told our GDP is growing, another crime against the system. Another damning statistic is that Edinburgh is the only city in Scotland where child poverty is below the national average, again Glasgow is top of the list.
      Chart from Understanding Glasgow:

     The number of millionaires in the country is growing, the number of children in poverty is growing, surely this must call into question the basic structure of our economic system. Every child in poverty is a life of stunted growth in health and a lost opportunity for a child to blossom to its full potential. These are unforgivable crimes in a very rich country where a pampered few live a life of opulence at the expense of the many. Where is your righteous anger?

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk

When Is The Time To Vent Your Righteous Anger?

        As a rule most people want to get on with their lives, see their friends and family, indulge in some sort of pastime, listen to a bit of music, whatever. What they don't want is to confront armed police, face brutal beatings, arrests and killings. However when a population comes on to the streets in vast numbers, and faces these situations, then you must accept they are very dissatisfied, angry and want something to change. 

This photo is actually from Catalunya, not Chile, but state treatment of protestors is the same.

 

      Even in the appearance of placidity that that goes as normal in most societies, for the ordinary people, in this capitalist society there is always struggle, and there is always a rumbling undercurrent of dissatisfaction and anger. Sometimes it doesn't take much of a spark for that anger to vent itself, in Chile it was the increase in fares on public transport. Once that anger is out, the original spark can fade into insignificance and all the other resentments and injustices come out into the open. That is what is happening in Chile today.

      If anyone wants to see who our so called democracies deals with those who show anger and discontent with the system, need look no further than what is happening in Chile right now, twenty first century representative democracy at work.

  This from Act For Freedom Now

        There is a State of emergency currently in Chile, decreed by the right-wing government of Sebastián Piñera as a result of the outbreak of a revolt that exploded on Friday October 18 2019.
        This text is born from the need to communicate the situation that currently exists in this territory with comrades in various latitudes of the world. We are sharing what we consider to be some of the main points to be made known to contribute to understanding the present moment from an anarchist viewpoint.
        PRELUDE: THE YOUTH IN STRUGGLE AND THE SPARK THAT LIT THE FIRE
     After a week of mass fare evasions of the underground train service, mainly by high school students during the month of October before the price increase in the transport services, multiple episodes of individual and collective disobedience spread through various parts of the city of Santiago that resulted in destruction of infrastructure and clashes with police forces inside and outside underground train stations. On Friday, October 18, the spread of these massive evasions and the level of radicality they reached was a surprise for many and unforeseen by the government which, along with its loyal journalists and social researchers, still can’t explain why these events led to a situation of widespread chaos that is still going on to this day.
       ACT ONE: OUTBREAK OF A REVOLT WITHOUT PRECEDENT IN POST-DICTORSHIP CHILE
       On Friday, October 18, the revolt radicalized at the moment when clashes with the police and the destruction of capitalist infrastructure took the streets of Santiago city centre. Initiated outside the government palace, actions of street violence quickly spread well into the night in various parts of the city. Faced with a situation of widespread rebellion and diffuse chaos in multiple urban sectors, the police forces were unable to contain the explosion of rage. Since that day this has infected broad sectors of a society that had seemed to be sleeping, tired by various forms of oppression and precariousness of life that originated in the continuity of the neoliberal economic system and from the police State installed in Chile during the recent civil and military dictatorship (1973-1990). These conditions of existence and domination were then strengthened by the centre left and right governments that have alternated in power since the return to democracy.
      To the disturbances that exploded in the city centre were soon added thousands of people demonstrating in the neighbourhoods, banging on empty pots as a form of protest. Outbreaks of rebellion, arson and destruction materialized concerning dozens of buses; public and commercial buildings were attacked, looted and burned, and, crucially, dozens of underground train stations were vandalized and set fire to by hordes of enraged individuals until late into the night.
       Clearly surpassed, the government did not lose much time before decreeing a State of emergency in the city of Santiago, a state of exception that includes the military in the streets and the armed forces in charge of order. However, a wild, inorganic, massive and unprecedented revolt in the post-dictatorship scenario was already underway, destroying in practice the obedience submission and fear imposed by decades of capitalist dominance in Chile.
   ACT TWO: EXTENSION OF DESTRUCTIVE INSUBMISSION AND BEGINNING OF THE CURFEW
      On Saturday, September 19, in the face of the persistence and heightening of the unrest the armed forces deploy in various points of the city. Soldiers guard the streets, commercial facilities and underground train stations in the centre of Santiago and suburbs. However, the protesters of every kind do not retreat and all repudiate the military presence with the vivid memory of the repression experienced a few decades ago during the years of the dictatorship. That same day the number of buses, cars and underground train stations burned by protesters increases. In parallel, the looting of supermarkets and huge shopping centres becomes uncontrollable and the image of hundreds of people taking back their lives by snatching goods in the centres of consumerism has been one of the most transcendent images of the days of revolt and were an important factor for the government, overwhelmed by the looting violence, imposing the curfew in the city of Santiago that same night.
      Quite unashamedly the President and the military chief in charge of the city communicate to the media that the restriction of “civil liberties” would take effect that day from 7 pm until 6 the next morning. That night, the demonstrations, riots, looting, fires and clashes with the repressive forces continued again into the small hours of the morning all over the city.
     Between Saturday and Sunday the spark of rage spread even more, igniting mass demonstrations and scenarios of wild violence in other parts of the country. This gave way to an ensuing moment of generalised chaos with multiple acts of rebellion and riots in various cities within a couple of days, leaving a good part of the urban infrastructure under siege, in ruins and ashes with barricades, vandalism and incendiary attacks on municipal dependencies, government buildings, shopping centres and official media premises.
      By that time the revolt had gone beyond any specific demands, meaning that people from diverse origins and places find themselves and others amid protests and riots opening up a huge critical fracture in the Chilean neoliberal system and its model of capitalist/ extractivist exploitation that affects the whole territory.
      From Sunday October 20, the State of Emergency and a curfew were decreed by the government against the cities in revolt, but nevertheless the riots continued to extend until late into the night, ignoring the impositions and demonstrating that the rage and violence unleashed by people against the established order had broken the fear and passivity that had reigned for decades in broad sectors of the Chilean population.
      ACT THREE: DIGNITY AND STRUGGLE AGAINST THE STATE’S STRATEGY OF REPRESSION
      Since the beginning of the state of emergency, State repression has heightened and has also spread openly to the various territories in revolt.
      As anarchists, we are clear that we do not hold a victimistic position, however, it is always good to share information about the tactics that dominion puts into practice as part of the confrontation with the insurgents, the rebels and the population in revolt generally.
      In the current context, the repressive arsenal of the Chilean State has materialised as:
        – More than two thousand people arrested and more than 15 people killed in addition to an unknown number of people reported missing.
      – Shooting with various types of projectiles, including tear gas bombs, rubber pellets and weapons of war against protesters leaving an increasing and not known number of people injured and killed in public roads in addition to animals and people living in the street also wounded and killed as shooting targets.
       – Beatings and physical, psychological and sexual torture in the road and inside police vehicles and police stations against people who were detained.
        – People kidnapped inside police and civilian vehicles. Images have been seen of persons being locked inside the trunks of police vehicles.
        – Shooting from behind of people in the street who are given a false chance to escape arrest.
        – False police and military authorizations to loot supermarkets that end with arrests and murders later reported as deaths from the riots.
        – Fires in large commercial premises caused by repressive forces so that companies can claim insurance. Burned corpses have appeared in some of these fires.
       – Throwing people out of moving police cars then shooting them.
       – Hanging of bodies of people killed in abandoned sites and of people alive in police barracks.
       The widespread use of social networks on the internet such as Instagram, Twitter and Facebook has allowed immediate circulation of massive audiovisual evidence of the situations described above, which is being disseminated by “alternative” groups and linked to struggles, succeeding in breaking through the communication strategy deployed by the government and historically supported by the official media in the service of power.

Read the full article HERE: 

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk  

Chile Today - Tmorrow----

 

        It doesn't get much, if any, coverage on our mainstream media, but what is happening in Chile is a mass popular uprising being met with fierce, brutal state repression. This is happening now, and across many other countries, how long can this festering sewer of an economic system last. Well it will last as long as the people tolerate its existence, it will collapse when the people say, "enough is enough".

      Some videos of what is happening in Chile, you don't have to know the language to understand what is going on. Videos from arrezafe.

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It's Our World, Let's Take It And Shape It The Way We Want.

        I think it is fair to say that a very large section of the world's population is in revolt. It is difficult to find a country where the people aren't taking to the streets in protest. From Hong Kong to Haiti, from Ecuador to Chile from Iraq to Uruguay, from Sudan to Bolivia, from France to Catalunya, and others. So it is obvious that there is something rotten at the heart of the economic system that dominates the world, capitalism,

       Of course our problem is how do we the ordinary people unify these protests into  a force for real change to create an economic system that works for the benefit of all, and in so doing destroys the planet destroying system of capitalism.  No mean task, however, I believe that the ideas for the foundation of that better world, lie in most people's hearts, justice, co-operation, respect for all humans, mutual aid and a desire to see an end to poverty and wars. Sooner or later we all have to see the root cause of most of the world's problem lie in the profit motive embedded in capitalism. This inevitably leads to vast wealth differences, and therefore power differences, corruption follows when all that wealth and power lies in the hands of the few. Capitalism cannot function any other way.

     Each protest against the machinations of the state and its bed partner capitalism, should demand our solidarity and support, and a forceful attempt to link up. Capitalism is never patriotic, it knows no borders, it is pan-continental, our protests have to be likewise, pan-continental. It is our brothers and sisters that are in protest, we must join them in what ever way we can. 

This from Anarchist News:

On the Front Lines in Chile

          Since October 18, a full-scale uprising has unfolded in Chile as people of all walks of life come together to protest austerity measures, fight police repression, destroy the symbols of capitalism, and defy a military occupation reminiscent of the years of the dictatorship. The following interview and firsthand accounts explore the character of the uprising and the experiences of those on its front lines.
        This is part of a global wave of revolts unfolding in Haiti, Lebanon, Sudan, Iraq, Hong Kong, Honduras, Catalunya, and elsewhere. The uprising in Chile was sparked in part by a social movement in Ecuador that occupied the parliament and forced the government to withdraw planned austerity measures. There are signs of the momentum spreading elsewhere in South America: clashes at the Chilean consulates in Mendoza and Buenos Aires, protests in Bolivia, unrest in Uruguay. All of these revolts are driven by the same fundamental conditions—the same disparities in wealth and power caused by capitalism and the same loss of faith in the institutions of the state.

           In a globally interlinked world, in which all governments—from the United States to Turkey, Russia, and China—are working together to coordinate the repression of all who struggle for freedom and dignity, it is essential that we understand our struggles as interlinked and interdependent. We must stand up for each other or else we will all be crushed one by one. As one comrade put it,

       “Solidarity is important. Even if you just hold a banner with some friends to post a photo expressing solidarity, even if you just hang that banner from a bridge over the highway, the tiniest gestures of solidarity can mean a lot to people who are struggling elsewhere, it can make them feel less alone. Even if you just shut down the security gate to show Turkish Airlines’ affiliates. Even if you just take over the Chilean consulate. Even if you just blockade a highway.”

Read Six Accounts From The Uprising:

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The Rent Strike, And what We Can Laern From It.

        During the first world war the landlords in Glasgow and else where, decided to increase the rents on the already struggle tenants. However, the Glasgow women were having none of it, and started to organise and resit the rent increases, so the great 1915 rent strike was born. By determination and community organising and a host of strategies they forced the government of the day to introduce the "Rent Restriction Act" freezing rents until after the war. 

      Today there is a lot we can learn from this grass-roots community action that brought victory to struggling tenants. It is also a victory worth remembering in its own right

    A group is trying to mark the anniversary of this great victory with events that can let us learn from that struggle, you can help this happen by coming along to the next organising meeting. 

      To all those interested in the 1915 rent strike and what we can learn from it regarding today's situation. The rent strike organising group are working to create events around this date and have already organised a film showing for November 11th, at CCA. There is another orgainsing meeting today at 1:30pm, in the Electron Club at the CCA, 350 Sauchiehall Street. Do come along and bring your ideas and thoughts on how we can capitalise from this great working class victory.
Hope to see you there:
November, 27th.
1:30pm
Electron Club
CCA
350 Sauchiehall Street
Glasgow.

     This is the details of the free film/discussion/music/poetry event we hope you will support and enjoy.  

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk

Occupation, No Pay We Stay.

       One of the principles of capitalism is that the CEO makes loads of cash and bonuses, share holders get regular bonuses for doing nothing and the workers get a pittance for doing all the work in producing that wealth. When the project has been milked to death CEO and the share holders walk away to their luxury mansions and the workers get dumped on the dole. This formula has been repeated for generations and is still part and parcel of the capitalist system.

     Sometimes workers walk away and accept their enforced poverty, other times the workers take a stand and fight back.

      On ongoing case of workers taking a stand and fighting back is the Harlan County Miners. They have occupied the mine and are stopping movement of coal, their slogan, "No Pay, We Stay". It is obvious that the coal mine should belong to thse who work the mine and the local community, as should all workplaces and communities, and owned for the equal benefit of all. They deserve our solidarity in their struggle.

This report from Freedom Socialist Party: 

       On July 1, U.S. Coal giant Blackjewel suddenly declared bankruptcy and fired 1,800 workers, mostly in Kentucky. One June paycheck bounced and the final checks never came. Blackjewel owes miners millions in earned wages, health insurance, retirement savings and coverage for Black Lung disease.
       On July 30, a train carrying a load of coal worth $1.4 million was blocked by Appalachian miners and their families. No coal train has moved since. In the brave 100-year tradition of Harlan County miners, “No pay, we stay,” they declared.
      A blockade encampment is now organized with a phone line, solar shower and collective kitchen. Unions, other workers and local businesses have donated food, raised money and helped block the tracks. A group of transgender anarchists arrived and spent a month helping organize work, meals and publicity.
     It’s a “which side are you on” moment. Blockaders are fighting against unscrupulous companies using bankruptcy to steal from healthcare funds, retirement and paychecks. Support from all organized labor is needed. Individuals and unions can donate by visiting gofundme.com/f/DonatetominersHarlanCAA.

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk