YES, MORE ON THE OLYMPICS.

----and a little more on the Olympics, this time from A World to Win:

Olympic dream and reality

It’s exactly a year since inner-city riots swept London and other parts of the country. They were sparked by bottled-up anger at the arrogance of the police and rapidly spread into a brief orgy of looting and general destructiveness that took many, including the police, by surprise.
As the medals stack up, politicians backed up by the tabloids are hailing the London Olympics as a great British success story draped in endless Union Jacks. So does the hiatus as millions are drawn into the spectacle mean that the alienation which lay behind the riots has been replaced by a new sense of community, as some would have it?
It’s true that the London Olympics are a showcase for aspects of the British character and mass behaviour not normally apparent in the hardscrabble struggles of daily life. In addition to the prowess of the athletes, thousands of young people have made it as a chance to be friendly and helpful to visitors.
It may be asked where has this great surge of sporting talent and determination, which saw British athletes win six gold medals in one day, come from?

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AND YET MORE ON THE OLYMPICS.

      Below is a statement by singer Morrissey on the Olympics. I can just hear the roar of approval from our “free press”!! I also feel sick in my stomach at what seems to be mass hysteria whipped up by the media, much the same way that Hitler's Nazi regime, for its own imperial dreams, whipped up the illusion of “The Fatherland”. I have a vision of all those flag waving individuals going home and this winter trying to make the decision as to whether to eat or heat. Perhaps they can all wrap themselves in the flag to keep warm.

----And, yet! I am unable to watch the Olympics due to the blustering jingoism that drenches the event. Has England ever been quite so foul with patriotism? The "dazzling royals" have, quite naturally, hi-jacked the Olympics for their own empirical needs, and no oppositional voice is allowed in the free press. It is lethal to witness. As London is suddenly promoted as a super-wealth brand, the England outside London shivers beneath cutbacks, tight circumstances and economic disasters. Meanwhile the British media present 24-hour coverage of the "dazzling royals", laughing as they lavishly spend, as if such coverage is certain to make British society feel fully whole. In 2012, the British public is evidently assumed to be undersized pigmies, scarcely able to formulate thought.
As I recently drove through Greece I noticed repeated graffiti seemingly everywhere on every available wall. In large blue letters it said WAKE UP WAKE UP. It could almost have been written with the British public in mind, because although the spirit of 1939 Germany now pervades throughout media-brand Britain, the 2013 grotesque inevitability of Lord and Lady Beckham (with Sir Jamie Horrible close at heel) is, believe me, a fate worse than life. WAKE UP WAKE UP.

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KRAFT PLAYS HARD BALL.

An appeal from IUF:

 

     Kraft Foods owns 49% of one of the largest biscuit factories in Africa, Societé Tunisienne de Biscuits (SAIDA).

    SAIDA workers are discovering what it means to be faced with Kraft's influence and a hostile management determined to limit or strip workers and their representatives of their rights.

     With negotiations over working conditions deadlocked, SAIDA management began harassing and provoking union representatives. Following an assembly held to discuss next steps with the membership, Zed Naloufi, the general secretary of the local union, was disciplined and summarily dismissed. His crime? Representing and meeting the members who elected him!

Act now! To send a message please click here.

Ron Oswald
General Secretary, IUF
International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations (IUF)
8, rampe du Pont-Rouge
1213 Petit Lancy, Switzerland

Tel: +41 22 793 22 33
Fax: +41 22 793 22 38
web-site: www.iuf.org

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A MULTI COLOURED RAG.

        We are into the second week of the Olympics and nobody can deny, there has been a lot of excellent sport. Though we all know that the modern day Olympics has nothing to do with sport. It is all about corporate identity, a corporate greed feast with particular brands trying to dominate the market. It is also about giving a public subsidy of tax payers money to big business, we are talking billions here. However, its most important function is to get the public all behind the flag, all that flag waving and shouting, creating the illusion that we are all in this together, we are one big happy family. Patriotism, the foundation of wars, the keeper of the state, forget your poverty and injustice, forget the gulf between rich and poor, forget the austerity cuts, unemployment, benefit cuts, lower pensions and deteriorating education system and health service, we are all team GB.

PATRIOTISM.

No, I shall not die for the fluttering flag,

if truth be known, ‘tis nothing but a multi-coloured rag

held aloft by some foolish hand

inciting worker and peasant to kill

on some green and wooded hill,

peasant and worker from some other land.

Nor shall I shed blood for the fluttering rag

that brings out fools to stand and brag

of brutal deeds painted grand,

deeds where rustic and craftsman lie so still

killed by my brothers' misguided hand.

No allegiance have I for the Nation

this man made autocratic creation

that divides my brothers in a world so small,

binds us to a country's cause, right or wrong,

bids us follow its drum, sing its song,

then sheds our blood in some border brawl.

No, I'll be no slave to flag or nation,

have no ear for power oration,

though its iron heel is on my breast,

my back feels its leather thong,

at patriotism's barracoon, I'll be no guest.

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CORPORATE FASCISM IN ACTION.

     As the poverty and deprivation in Greece deepens the state is still working away at repression, protests are dealt with in brutal fashion and intimidation on the streets is wide spread. What is happening in Athens at the moment is probably reminiscent of the Nazi round ups before and during WW2. This is Europe 2012, this is democracy under the financial Mafia, this is corporate fascism on display, but will it be reported on mainstream media?

 

 From The Greek Streets, Sunday, August 5, 2012

      In the past few days, police have been conducting their largest ever pogrom operation in the centre of Athens. According to the released information, 1,500 people were detained by police in the first two days of the operation (August 2-3) and another 4,900 in its third day alone (August 4). The operation has been taking place in Athens and in Evros, at the NE border with Turkey. At least 1,630 people have been arrested and are facing deportation.

In an Orwellian twist, the racist pogrom operation has been named “Zeus Xenios” — the ancient god of travelers and hospitality.

     The racist operation is continuing for a fourth day today (Sunday, Aug 5). It appears that today’ s operation is centred around Omonoia Square, Monastiraki, Mars’ Fields (Pedion tou Areos) and Vathis Square, all in central Athens. We are getting reports that police stop, search and detain all migrants in their path, regardless of whether or not they carry documents.

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THOUGHTS ON M.Ps.

      Today politicians are not held in very high esteem, to put it mildly, but has it ever been different? They are seen for what they are, a bunch of self-centred, arrogant, duplicitous, power hungry careerists and yes men to the corporate world. Those who remember Glasgow's Year of Culture may have read Tom Leonard's The Moderate Member's Monologue, still relevant and worth a read.

The following are the opening lines:

Christ. Thank fuck I'm and M.P.  I mean naw, really. Majin been poor, eh. Majin been really poor. Majin no huvin a job ur sumthin. Ur been wan a they YTS people. Christ Almighty. Fuck me. Majin been under 25 eh. Fuckin hell. Aw jesus. Majin been really poor an a wummin ur sumhn, an yir man's left yi. (shakes his head) Majin livn ina council house. Christ. Ahv nuthn against council houses minji. loat a ma constituents live in thim. Aye. A wuz broat up in a council house. Thir aw right council houses. Yi ever seen a council house?---

(YTS was the 90's workfare.)

 

       Though I doubt that many of our present crop of M.Ps. were brought up in a council house. At the moment they seem to be a plague of millionaires.

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VALUABLE LIVESTOCK.

        Are you free, or are you owned by the livestock managers of the planet? In our era it is obvious that we are owned jointly by the financial Mafia and the corporate fascists. When you look at what is happening to the general public across the world it is difficult to find any evidence to support the contrary. Of course it doesn't have to be that way, we are creatures capable of rational thought and compassion, imagination, creativity and ability. We also have the inborn desire to be free, and the fences that corral us and the cabal that own us are not insurmountable objects, nor are they there by some divine order. We live under what is no more than a man made economic system, and it can be destroyed, and a system of compassion, mutual respect, sustainability, justice and mutual aid, can be built in its place. However, first we have to be aware of the truth, knowing the problem is more than 50% of the answer.

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THE EURO IS FINE.

     The latest Eurozone report is now available and is necessary reading for all Europeans.
Read the full report HERE:

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THE MEANING OF AUSTERITY.

       The word "austerity" is one we are all familiar with, but what exactly does it mean. Words always solicit meaning, they are not just designs on a piece of paper or noises that fall from our mouth. Say it "AUSTERITY" and try to visualise its meaning in the context of the capitalist world we live in. The word has pain, sorrow, it is a word that stifles potential and destroys creativity. It shreds the social fabric that is essential to be human, in a capitalist economy, this is the true meaning of that rather polite and simple word "AUSTERITY".

The following is an extract from John Halloway's Of Despair and Hope:

         To the misfits of the world, to all of us who do not conform to the closing of humanity: Now, more than ever, the world looks two ways at once. One face looks towards a dark, depressing world. A world of closing doors. A closing of lives, of possibilities, of hopes. These are times of austerity. You must learn to live with reality. You must obey if you want to survive, give up your dreams. Do not expect to live by doing what you like. You will be lucky to find a job at all. Perhaps you can study, but only if your parents have money. And, even then, do not think that you can study something critical. Criticism has fled from the universities and so much the better. What is the point of criticising when we all know that the world is set in its course? There is no alternative, just the reality of the rule of money, so forget your dreams. Obey, work hard in whatever scrap of employment you can find, or else look forward to a life of hunting through garbage cans, because there will be no welfare state to protect you. Look, look at Greece and be warned! That is the impoverishment you can expect, that is what will happen to you if you do not submit, that is the punishment meted out in this school of life to naughty children, to those who hope too much, to those who want too much. This lesson of despair was learnt very well, too well, by Dimitris Christoulas, who shot himself in Sintagma Square in the centre of Athens just a few weeks ago. A 77-year old ex-pharmacist whose pension was wiped out by the austerity measures imposed by the governments of Europe, he said “I can find no other solution than to put an end to my life before I start sifting through garbage cans for my food.” This is the meaning of austerity.

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THE STATE CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT REPRESSION.

        We all know the the state survives by repression, and in times of heightened unrest that repression becomes heavier on those who complain most. The economic crisis of the of the financial Mafia, that crisis being their attempts to get back from the public purse, all the money they lost gambling, is creating poverty and misery among the general population. This in turn triggers greater unrest, however, the state will not try to alleviate that poverty and misery, instead it will come down hard on that unrest. It will do this through the usual state apparatus, it will do it by intimidation and finding scapegoats. Today in America the unrest is spreading across all sections of the general public, so the state has decided to to use the bogeyman of “anarchists” and is seeking out those most vociferous in their argument against the present economic system, labelling them “anarchists” and will attempt to make an example of them. The hope of course will be to intimidate anyone from raising their voice in protest. It is not a new tactic but never the less brutal for that. That is why it is important that we continually show solidarity with all those who are at the receiving end of that brutal state repression, be it this country or some other state control population.

This from Committee Against Political Repression:

        This grand jury is a tool of political repression. It is attempting to turn individuals against each other by coercing those subpoenaed to testify against their communities. The secret nature of grand jury proceedings creates mistrust and can undermine solidarity. And imprisoning us takes us from our loved ones and our responsibilities.
       But our passion for freedom is stronger than the state’s prisons. Our refusal to cooperate with the grand jury is a reflection of our own desires for a liberated world and our support for others who are working to bring that world into being. We support the efforts of all those who will be resisting this grand jury.
    If you would like to join us, please visit: http://nopoliticalrepression.wordpress.com. There you can find out how to sign on to a solidarity statement, donate money to our defense and support campaign, and write us should we be imprisoned.

Read the full article HERE:

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BABY I'M AN ANARCHIST.

      A little bit of music goes a long way to lifting the spirit. So just enjoy.

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THE HUMAN STRUGGLE TO SURVIVE.

      A moving and personal tale from the one who is there. Teacher Dude's Grill and BBQ, is an insight into what happens when our political lords and masters follow the grand plan as dictated by the financial Mafia. It is a personal view of social disintegration and the struggle to survive.

         While for many outside, the main symptoms of the current economic crisis are the soup kitchens in central Athens, or perhaps the violent confrontations that light up TV screens from time to time,there is another quieter yet just as significant trend sweeping Greece. Thousands upon thousands of Greeks are on the move, leaving the larger cities for the countryside or smaller provincial towns or leaving the country to try their luck abroad. As with so many other economic and social upheavals the current one has forced people to move. However, there are no endless trails of refugees marching along dusty roads, or convoys of dispossessed Okies with their belonging strapped to the top of a car. Instead it's the steady rhythm of friends, neighbours and colleagues gradually slipping away.

        There are no firm figures for the numbers involved and those official statistics that do surface in the media often contradict themselves, however, the plan fact is that I see it with my own eyes every day. In every apartment block in every street no entrance hall is complete without a handful of For Rent or For Sale signs, apartments lay empty for months on end, even though the removal vans seem to be doing a roaring trade.

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ANAHEIM ARREST.

         Since the police in Anaheim in California shot an unarmed man in the back, there have been protests on a daily basis, and of course the usual arrests. It doesn't look much like democracy in the good ol' US of A.

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SHITHEADS HUMILIATED AGAIN.

         Once again the BNP "big guns", "big pricks" more like it, came to Scotland to show their strength and were out numbered, humiliated and sent home with their tails between the legs. After having to cancel their Glasgow "rally" they made for Dalkeith where Herr Fuhrer Nick Griffin and his band of shithead minders were seen to be the minuscule deranged minority that they have always been in Scotland. This little ragtag bunch of shit never gets to wave its flags in Scotland, let's keep it that way.

 This from The Commune:

“Rape is simply sex. Women
enjoy sex, so rape cannot be
such a terrible physical
ordeal….(it) is like suggesting
force-feeding a woman
chocolate cake is a heinous
offence.”
BNP London organiser Nick Ericksen.

BNP humiliated in Dalkeith

30 07 2012

     Our comrade in the Republican Communist Network saw the BNP fail to infiltrate an anti-rapist demonstration in Midlothian

     Nick Griffin and 5 others i.e. his driver and minders turned up outside Dalkeith Country Park after cancelling their planned rally in Glasgow earlier that day. Their stated aim was to support an intended rally against the presence of, convicted rapist, Robert Greens in our community. It was good that there was little spontaneous support for the BNP despite a lot of media coverage e.g. in The Sun newspaper. There was little visible presence from BNP supporters, one demonstrator counted 17, I thought there were less, but it was hard to tell, all were driven in by car. The BNP website promised 50 Nationalists would turn up and they urged other British nationalists to join them.

      The BNP presence was opposed by the majority of the anti-rapist protesters plus about 30-40 local anti-fascists who had been alerted via Midlothian Trades Council. There were groups from Palestinian Solidarity, Unite Against Fascism, current and ex SSP members, trade unionists representing, Unison, EIS, UCATT, and UCU, the local FE college, independent socialists, two members of Socialist Appeal and at least one other Labour Party member. There was no identifiable SNP presence but, we did receive a message from local SNP MSP Colin Beattie supporting Midlothian Trades Council stance, saying there was no place for BNP in Midlothian and that he would have liked to have been there to show his support but had a previous appointment. In the event no councillors, MSPs or our MP were present.

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MORE ON STATE REPRESSION.

      On the same theme of political prisoners, this time from Greece.
From Contra Info:

          As already reported, the First Three-Member Misdemeanor Court of Piraeus decided to discontinue the prison sentence of Savvas Xiros for a 5month period (under constant police custody), in order to receive a medical treatment for his serious health problems in his eyes, ears and legs at the AHEPA hospital in Thessaloniki.
         Even though the antiterrorist unit of the Greek police sought the assistance of the chief prosecutor of Piraeus, they both failed to rule out the court’s decision for the suspension of Savvas’ prison sentence. However, the repressive authorities chose once again to act behind the scenes and end the prisoner’s medical treatment with summary proceedings. So, after only ten days of hospital stay, Savvas was ordered to be held again into the dungeon of Koridallos prisons in Athens.

Read the full article HERE:

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SOLIDARITY WITH POLITICAL PRISONERS.

        Across the world state repression hits hard those who would actively work towards changing the present economic system to one of fairness and justice. One thing the powers that be, in this exploitative system want tolerate is the people trying to create a system that sees to the needs of all our people, free from the strangle hold of the corporate profit junkies. We should always remember, that it is not just in our own country or those far away lands under the grip of some despot dictator, that this repression takes place, it is in all the countries across the planet. We should always show solidarity with each and every one of those who sacrifice their own liberty to the cause of a fairer and better world for all.

This from International Prison Books Collective:

Hello Friends and Comrades,

      Here is the political prisoner birthday poster for August. As always, please post this poster publicly and/or use it to start a card writing night of your own.

      A hunger strike has begun at multiple prison facilities in North Carolina. Reports are still coming in as to the scope of the strike. A list of the strikers demands and phone numbers you can call can be found here.

       On Wednesday July 25^th, the FBI conducted a series of coordinated raids against activists in Portland, Olympia, and Seattle. They subpoenaed several people to a special federal grand jury, and seized computers, black clothing and anarchist literature. This comes after similar raids in Seattle in July and earlier raids of squats in Portland. A website has been created to spread information about the raids and to support the victim´s of the FBI´s Harrassment.

     Lastly, here is a link to the latest Political Prisoner/Prisoner Of War every-other week update by the NYC-Anarchist Black Cross. There are lots of good updates on many political prisoners.

Until Every Cage Is Empty,

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WHERE DOES ALL THE MONEY GO?

        So not only do the banks create money out of thin air, they steal your labour and then they still need a bailout?? where is all the money going? 

        This from Inquiring Minds:

The grand mortgage contract deception

         It was exposed in a recent ‘Independent’ article that 97% of, so-called ‘money’ is created ‘out of thin air’ with digits on your account, by the high street banks. The other 3% is mainly banknotes, which are loaned by the Bank of England to the high street banks at a small interest rate –point 5% at the moment. With this in mind I give the example below.

            Let’s look at a mortgage contract: before you signed a contract, allowing the bank to steal the principal sum of 200K plus, maybe 300K interest, from you and the working community collectively, they offered you a contract to sign for worthless digits. Upon signature you became the conduit for them to steal yours and the working community’s labour because all of us have to work to give the bank, not repay, the principal sum.

         The fraud is not just charging interest on the principal sum—it’s stealing the principal sum as well.

          Did they have the 200K at the time you signed the contract? No, they did not. So it comes from you and the working community when you pay it.

Am I right? If I am they are not just stealing interest, they are stealing the principal sum as well; a total of 500K.

Read the full article HERE:

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THE TROIKA HAS SPOKEN.

         Despite the savage slashing of the standard of living of the Greek people over the last few years, despite the resulting poverty, degradation and deprivation sweeping across the general population, the financial Mafia have insisted on more of the same. According to the “Troika” (the financial Mafia's hit team) the Greek people have not been crushed enough and the Greek state apparatus agrees. It's not for the Greek government to look out for the interests of the Greek people, they are there to manage the “austerity” plans of the financial Mafia. So on top of gross hardships the people of Greece are struggling under, on top of the “austerity” cuts that are already in place, they have to be hit with a further €11.5 billion in cuts for 2013. Among other degrading measures, this will entail further cuts in pensions, raising the pension age, more cuts to public sector wages, more public sector sackings and more privatisation. Of course we are told that all this transferring of public money to the bankers is for the benefit of the Greek people. To save the bankers and bond markets from suffering from their gambling losses, the people have to be stripped naked. While the financial Mafia recoup their gambled loot, the people are promised pie in the sky in the bye and bye. While this looting goes on, the people are expected to suffer in silence and feel better knowing that the coffers of the bankers are being replenished. All that matters in this crazy, unjust, economic system (corporate fascism) is that the billionaires of this world don't lose their ill gotten plunder, the people are of little or no concern. The world that the people live in can be shit, that's OK, just don't let the leeches and the parasites lose their power and wealth.

You have to cut wages, we need a bailout.

           Of course we have to accept that if we all sit back, sleeping in the illusion that it is all happening somewhere over there and we are all right Jack, we are in for a very rude awakening. It is not a matter of the Greek people done something wrong, so have to pay the price, the Greek people done nothing wrong. It is a pan-European policy and we are all going through the stages. Where Greece is going we are following. Spain and Italy teetering on the brink, Ireland and Portugal, slipping down the slope and several Eastern European countries beside them or not far behind. There is nothing in this process that will show compassion because the people are suffering, we are not in the equation. If we don't like being ripped off by a billionaire class, then we have to sort the problem, we have to take control, we have to shape the society we want. They are shaping it the way that they want it to be, we sit back and let them or we shape it the way we want, there is no compromise. 

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IN SOLIDARITY.

From the Greek streets:
 

      We make a call out for ten days of propaganda actions, in as many places as possible, aiming to promote struggles which are more or less known but also entirely unknown to many people. Individuals and/or groups who wish to join in these ten days will choose the thematic and the means according to their own criteria and dynamics, for the strengthening of international and reciprocal solidarity amongst the oppressed.

      We are mainly suggesting taking to the streets, painting slogans and dropping banners in solidarity with cases that we believe are important to be heard. We have done this in Athens in the past months, and you must have done it, too, in several occasions. But we need to go a step further and carry out such actions simultaneously at a European level and, hopefully, beyond. Some of us are in the UK, Germany, France, Spain, Serbia, Portugal, Greece, but also in America, therefore we can make out of a simple action something beautiful. For those that feel all alone in places where they live, it might seem harder… but all you need is a sheet, paint or spray, plus a nice location. Wherever you are, call your mates and spread the word.

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AUSTERITY ANONYMOUS.

New Group ‘Austerity Anonymous’

        A regular discussion group, on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month, which sometimes takes a written text as its starting point, sometimes another kind of text (a film, a tv show), and sometimes a more general theme for discussion.

     People take turns to propose material for the group to examine. The intention being to bring about a situation where we might begin to analyse and discuss current events collaboratively, while relating to theory.

      Sometimes we meet in the pub, sometimes in a community centre, sometimes the library. There are plans for fieldtrips, going for walks and exploring local histories.

Generally the group tries to introduce contemporary texts and situations to our discussions, aiming towards informed analysis & critique of current events.

August 7th

Venue Kinning Park Complex

Time 7pm

Text ‘Plaza-Riot-Commune’ by Research and Destroy

Link bayofrage.com/from-the-bay/plazariotcommune

August 21st

Venue Kinning Park Complex

Time 7pm

Text ‘Sex, Race and Class’ by Selma James

Link caringlabor.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/james-sexraceclass-read.pdf

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