The Budget, A Carve Up For The Rich.

         Wednesday sees that familiar episode in our political farce, “the budget”. This is when that millionaire product of the Oxbridge sausage factory, Osborne, tells us how he is going to carve up the nation's wealth. Of course being a multi-millionaire and moving in those circles, he is totally divorced from that place we, the ordinary people call “the real world”. His circle of fiends and associates will all hail from that exclusive little club of over privileged parasites, and no doubt he will take good care of them. 

       Do you think that he will be sitting burning the midnight oil over the statistics that tell us that 28% of children in the UK live in poverty? Do you think it will cause him sleepless nights that this translates into 9 children in every class of 30 go hungry, and that means that a staggering 3.7 million children in the UK will have their life potential stunted because of poverty?
       The Institute for Fiscal Studies states that because of tax and benefit adjustments since 2010, the number of children living in relative poverty will have increased from 3.6 million to 4.3 million by 2020.
         This same chancellor is always bumming about how his bunch of cronies are getting more people into work, but fails to mention that in this type of economic system, work is not the solution to poverty. The facts are that 64%, almost two thirds, of children growing up in poverty live in a household where at least one person works. Also, 60% of families in the bottom end of income can't afford to take the children for one weeks holiday a year. 

         Child poverty is life damaging, shortens life's, in blunts their education, and deprives them from joining activities with their school friends. Regarding achieving in education there is a 28% gap in achieving 5 A-C GCSE grades between those of free school meals and their wealthier friends. 

        At the other end of the scale, Oxfam states that since 2000, the richest 1% of Britons, a cabal made up completely of millionaires, took more than a quarter of the £4 trillion increase of the UK's increase in national wealth. Each parasitic member of this 1%, saw their average wealth grow to a staggering £3.7 million in 2015. By contrast, only 7% of that national wealth increase went to around 30 million people. Today the average wealth of those in the bottom 10% is £1.600.
         The hints coming out from the “budget” is that there are more severe cuts coming the way of us at the bottom half of the income range, while there are talk of tax cuts for the better off. 

         They know there is a class war, and they fight accordingly, they know who their friends are. What about us, do we accept we are in a class war, will we fight accordingly, do we know who our friends are?

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The Lie We Live.

Just a thought:

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Anarchist Ladies In Leadershiop Positions!!!

        A recent article on the Anarchist News, How the FBI monitored Crust Punks, gives a insight to the gross waste of tax payers money, as highly paid "agents" scurry about the country keeping tags on such radical threats as organic food growers, punk bands, and growers markets. If the article was not so serious it could be a good script for a comedy movie. Following unknown people driving to a place where anarchists hang out. Such major threats as two cars meeting a bus and driving to a destination and  then seen getting out carrying what looked like placards and then forming up in a protest outside a bank.

        Though you can read this stuff and smile, it is deadly serious, it is all part of the surveillance society, where if you look, act, or speak different from their accepted norm, you are deemed to be a threat. Therefore worthy of constant monitoring. Though the article is about America, I have absolutely no doubt the same thing is going on here. Remember the undercover cops in environmentalist groups etc.

         Since International Women's Day has just passed, I thought this piece of FBI information from the article was worthy of repeating:

        Finally, an October 2002 memo warns agents that Lady Anarchists can be a whole mess of trouble:

   Source advised that the females of the anarchist's movement are in leadership positions in Eugene, Oregon. These females are described as being very feminist and militant.

Anarchist Ladies or Gentlemen, in leadership positions???

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The Fukushima Anniversary.

         It is five years since Fukushima nuclear reactor disaster, and still the horror is there. As the man said, nuclear is forever. What do you do with all that radioactive material you have taken from the disaster area? This is a disaster that we will hand to our children and our grandchildren.

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Summer Creeps Closer.

       Another wee run out on the dream machine on Thursday afternoon, still tooooo cold for me, but lovely afternoon. Though I did misjudge the weather, I left a bit early and it was overcast, and by the time I was heading home, the sun had come out and it looked great, but still cold. The end of the month and the clock gives us an extra hour of light, hopefully an extra few degrees in temperature.

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May Day On Glasgow Green.

 

 

       Just a reminder, to all those interested in May Day on The Green. We are hoping to get loads of those people who think they can contribute in some way, or who are just interested in seeing this event happen  to come to Sunday's meeting. It will happen if we want it to happen.

So this is a re-posting of a previous article:

        Further to our desire to end the monotony of the May Day shuffle through town, culminating in boring speeches by the ballerinas of the political scene, we are holding a second meeting to flesh out our ideas. The May Day on The Green has created quite a widespread interest, so we are asking all you who wish to see this idea become a reality, please come along to the next meeting and throw your ideas into the hat. The shape it takes will depend on what we all want, and how much we want it, it is up to us. Nothing will happen unless we make it happen. 
Details of the next meeting:
PLACE: Electron Club room at the CCA 350, Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow
DATE: Sunday, 13 March 2016
START TIME: 14:00:00

PLANNED DURATION: 3 hours

END TIME: 17:00:00

Please come along and show your support, May Day belongs on The Green.

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In This Mad World, All Depravity Is Possible.

       Saw this on arrezafe, it is haunting, it transfixed me, and it all seemed so possible, I think it epitomises the value structure of Western imperialism,

      A Comment: This scene includes a message to Swedish mining and smelting company Boliden, which sold thousands of tonnes of smelting residue to Chile in the 1980s, only to face a lawsuit claiming hundreds of people, including children who played on the waste sites, had been poisoned - The guardian.

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The World Is Ours For The Taking.

           The world is one big corporate market place, where deals for profit for the few, shape the lives of the entire population. The quality of our lives depends on the decisions taken in the various boardrooms of the multi-billionaires. Needs of the people are not on their balance sheets. In most of the world's countries, charades are played out, called elections, where, if you fall for the illusion, you are lost in the fog of fantasy promises and pie-in-the-sky. The onslaught of mind-numbing propaganda leads you to believe that your "X" on a piece of paper will sort out your day to day problems.

          However, across the world, the charade is looking shabby, the smoke and mirrors of illusion is fading fast. Pick your country, and there are thousands on the streets, from the affluent West to the ultra-deprived, people are showing their anger at a system that syphons all our wealth up to a small cabal of parasites. As the numbers and the anger grows, the various so called "democratic" states show their raw brutality against their own people by savage repression. The states are punishing the people for the heinous crime of demanding change.

         If you can't see this as class war, you're living with your eyes closed, and your fingers in your ears. This growing anger can and will change this world for the better, but only if we link hands across those imaginary state created borders. A struggle against capitalism in some far flung corner of this planet, is our struggle, a student uprising in the East, is our struggle, a workers protest in the South, is our struggle. We are one people, the world is ours for the taking. The one thing that stops us enjoying all the fruits of our labour, the one thing that is the greatest attack on our conditions and our very survival, comes from this insane economic system called capitalism.

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Bread And Roses Strike,1912.

Still on International Women's Day

From Wikipedia:

         "Bread and Roses" is a political slogan as well as the name of an associated poem and song. It originated from a speech given by Rose Schneiderman; a line in that speech ("The worker must have bread, but she must have roses, too."^[1]:32) inspired the title of the poem Bread and Roses by James Oppenheim. The poem was first published in The American Magazine in December 1911, with the attribution line "'Bread for all, and Roses, too'—a slogan of the women in the West."^[2] The poem has been translated into other languages and has been set to music by at least three composers.
       It is commonly associated with the successful textile strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts during January–March 1912, now often known as the "Bread and Roses strike".
        The slogan pairing bread and roses, appealing for both fair wages and dignified conditions, found resonance as transcending "the sometimes tedious struggles for marginal economic advances" in the "light of labor struggles as based on striving for dignity and respect", as Robert J. S. Ross wrote in 2013.^[3]

As we come marching, marching, in the beauty of the day,
A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill-lofts gray
Are touched with all the radiance that a sudden sun discloses,
For the people hear us singing, "Bread and Roses, Bread and Roses."

As we come marching, marching, we battle, too, for men--
For they are women's children and we mother them again.
Our lives shall not be sweated from birth until life closes--
Hearts starve as well as bodies: Give us Bread, but give us Roses!

As we come marching, marching, unnumbered women dead
Go crying through our singing their ancient song of Bread;
Small art and love and beauty their drudging spirits knew--
Yes, bread we fight for--but we fight for Roses, too.

As we come marching, marching, we bring the Greater Days--
The rising of the women means the rising of the race--
No more the drudge and idler--ten that toil where one reposes--
But sharing of life's glories: Bread and Roses, Bread and Roses!

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International Women's Day.

           I wrote this for the blog away back in 2011, there have been changes, but sadly, there is still a long way to go, to have that desired equality across our society.

 

          March 8 is celebrated across the world as International Women's Day (IWD), a day when we can come together to honour women world wide. In 1910, the Second International held the first international women's conference in Copenhagen and an 'International Women's Day' was established. It was suggested by the German Socialist Clara Zetkin, although no date was specified. The first IWD was observed on March 19, 1911 in Germany.
        It is a day when we can pay homage to all those women who selflessly fought to improve the conditions of not just women, but all humankind. Women who struggled to improve working conditions, for justice, for peace, for unity of all ordinary people.
         Every country, every city, has its role of honour of such women, perhaps not publicly displayed but it will be there, in folklore, in song, in theatre and poem. Glasgow can be proud of its list of women who fought injustice where they saw it, some struggled away in obscurity, some in the limelight of publicity, all played their part in improving our lives. Today more than ever we need our women heroes, we need the unity of all men and women to combat the savage onslaught against our living standards. Today more than ever people have to stand up and join hands in solidarity with all people's across the globe.

          Here are just a few of Glasgow's women from our recent past that are worthy of being honoured today. 

 Mary Barbour,   Ethel MacDonald,    Helen Crawfurd,    Agnes Dollan,    Jenny Patrick,  Rita Milton, who would you add to this list, there are hundreds from which to choose. Where are our modern Mary Barbour's, where is today's Ethel MacDonald? Can you name them? 

          "It is not by changing ministers - such guilty men! - or issuing declarations that fascism will be conquered. The problem is more complex than that. We do not intend to add our voice to those who delude the workers that their 'leaders' will get them out of the mess. The problems need a complete transformation in the present attitude of the working class."  Marie Louise Berneri From; War Commentary, December 1940.

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Joining Acts To Words.

          Today we live in a world of multifaceted wars, there is the global war of the oppressors against the oppressed, then there are those wars between oppressors. These latter wars are the most bloody and destructive, as states destroy cities, towns and villages, killing millions, and washing the land in rivers of blood. All this destruction, blood and fury, in an attempt to be the dominant oppressor on the planet.
          The war of the oppressor against the oppressed is all encompassing, it affects the entire world's population of ordinary people. It is an ongoing daily war, to extract as much bounty from the people as is humanly possible. More and more the oppressed are organising and fighting back against this brutal exploitation, and the oppressors are feeling the pain. In an attempt to keep control of this rising hatred of the oppressor, we are seeing our societies becoming more militarised. Here in the supposedly democratic and free opulent West, we feel increase legislation, the tightening of security, the increase in surveillance, the presence of guns at airports and elsewhere. All this is to to create a garrison in defence of the corporate world's domination over our lives. It is not there to protect the people, it is there to protect commerce and property.
          This massive increase in militarisation is delivered with an instruction label that tries to make it easily digestible and acceptable to the public at large, attempting to make it appear as a good government's duty of care. However, even the most subservient mind is beginning to feel the noose tighten around their world. This tightening will continue as long as we tolerate the present economic system. We can start by refusing to fight in the wars between oppressors, and join the army of those who fight the oppressors.

 

 

       Western societies and states are moving inexorably toward conditions resembling barbarism; structural changes are reversing decades of social welfare and subjecting labor, natural resources and the wealth of nations to raw exploitation, pillage and plunder, driving living standards downward and provoking unprecedented levels of discontent.

Read the full article HERE: 

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We Have Loads Of Money!!!

        We keep getting told that austerity is the only way, and our Bullingdon boy millionaire, product of the Oxbridge sausage factory, Osborne, informs us that we face even more severe cuts next year. But we can find the money to bomb Syria and Iraq, and then there is Hinkley Point. the planned nuclear power station. If this goes ahead it will be the most expensive power station in the world, estimated cost at £25 billion plus. This of course does not take into consideration the astronomical costs of decommissioning at the end of its life. The only people that are enthusiastic about nuclear power are the big corporations as they see shovels full of tax payers money coming their way. We are still trying to clean up Dounray, costing billions. There always seems to be plenty money for all manner of things except health, education and social services. 

Artist's impression of how Hinkley Point nuclear power station could look. 

Photograph: EDF Energy/PA

This from greenpeace:

George Osborne could be about to make a huge mistake.
         He's preparing to spend billions on a new nuclear plant at Hinkley in Somerset. If it goes ahead, Hinkley is set to be the most expensive object on Earth [1] – sucking up huge amounts of money that could be spent on renewable energy instead.
        But right now we’ve got a chance to stop him. The finance director of EDF -- the energy firm that plans to build the reactor -- just resigned amid concerns that Hinkley could plunge the company into a financial black hole.
         It’s going to be pretty embarrassing for George Osborne if he ploughs on when Hinkley’s cost could bankrupt the company building it. So let's seize this moment to turn up the pressure on the chancellor. Let's tell him now’s the time to scrap Hinkley -- and spend consumers’ cash on renewable energy instead.
Sign the petition:
https://secure.greenpeace.org.uk/stop-hinkley
         If George Osborne pushes ahead, Hinkley will be the first nuclear plant built in the UK in two decades. But the chancellor's plans are going nowhere fast. The reactor design is so complicated that no one's sure if it will even work. One nuclear expert went so far as to call it "unconstructable" [2]. And three other power stations -- in France, Finland and China -- that are trying to use the same type of reactor are suffering from huge delays too.
        The cost of the project is staggering. Best guesses say Hinkley could pass £24 billion -- easily making it the most expensive power station in world history.
          Personally I'm shocked that George 'Austerity' Osborne can keep on backing Hinkley, even as the cost keeps going up and up. Can you help tell him that thousands of us think that backing renewable energy is a better use of our cash? Sign the petition here:
https://secure.greenpeace.org.uk/stop-hinkley
         While Hinkley nuclear plant has spent almost a decade in limbo, renewable power projects have been far quicker to build. The London Array -- the world's biggest offshore wind farm -- took less than three years to construct. And even if building Hinkley was to begin tomorrow, by the time it's up and running the cost of renewable energy will have dropped even further.
        Though George Osborne might tell us we need Hinkley to keep the lights on, we know this is far from the truth. Recent research showed that as soon as 2030, the UK could be powered almost entirely by renewables [3]. The UK is one of the windiest places in Europe, we’ve got huge untapped potential in solar power, and we're surrounded by sea too. If you agree that natural sources of energy like these should top government investment, not more risky and expensive nuclear power, please sign the petition now:
https://secure.greenpeace.org.uk/stop-hinkley

Thanks for being involved,
Richard Casson
Greenpeace UK
NOTES
1. http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2014/12/why-is-britain-building-the-most-expensive-object-ever/
2. http://energydesk.greenpeace.org/2014/11/20/comment-trouble-hinkleys-reactor-design/
3. http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/blog/climate/replace-coal-power-without-trashing-planet-20151124

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Union Official, A Dangerous Occupation!!!

        Most of us take it for granted that we can join a union and even be an official without fearing for our life. It is as it should be, but it is not like that in certain parts of this insane world. To actively participate in union affairs for the betterment of your fellow worker, can at times, be very dangerous, this should not be tolerated. The state will always protect its corporate bosses and their profits, at the expense of the workers, even to the point of death.

An appeal from Labour Start:

     Last month, the president of Gambia responded to trade union protests against customs tax increases and fuel prices by banning union activities. Three union leaders were arrested.
        One of them, Sheriff Diba of the Gambian National Transport Control Association, died in prison. This followed reports of brutal treatment at the hands of the National Intelligence Agency.
          At the request of the International Transport Workers Federation, we have launched an online campaign demanding justice for Sheriff and an end to repression.

Please support it by clicking here:

http://www.labourstart.org/go/gambia

Please share this message with your friends, family, and fellow trade union members.

Thank you!



Eric Lee

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Cold, But Magic.

         As I have said before, I'm a fair weather cyclist, when the weather is cold and/or damp, it plays havoc with my wee bronchial tubes. However, on Sunday the sun was shining, and the cabin fever was driving we daft, I had to make a dash for freedom. So I took my trusty steed, the dream machine, and headed out. Gee, it was cold, then it clouded over and the temperature seem to take a distinctive dip. Thankfully I didn't suffer too badly and really enjoyed my escape. It wasn't much of a run, but the pedals were spinning and the wheels were whirring and their magic filled the air. Come on summer, all us old fogey's are anxiously waiting.

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War Is The Poor Killing The Poor, Ordered By The Rich.

        As collapsing capitalism blunders on with its “endless wars” policy, in an attempt to revive its failing, brutal system of profitable exploitation, more and more people are seeing wars for what they are. Gone are the illusions of defending democracy, fighting terrorism, and the host of other phoney propaganda spouted by the various states, it is now accepted that wars are capitalisms way of defending and expanding the various imperialist powers' assets. States are the opposing corporate world's hit men. 

       We are seeing more and more people taking a stand against this slaughter of the innocent, this stand has many strands. Here in Scotland, The Scottish Peace Network, a coalition of peace and anti-militarist organisations, is attempting to give a public face to this growing anti-war movement. They are organising a open gathering at the Donald Dewar statue at the top of Buchanan Street Glasgow, on Wednesday, March 16th at 6:30pm. The main theme will be. “stop the bombing of Syria and Iraq” and oppose militarism. Everybody is welcome, please come along, even for a short period, to show your anger and disgust at this continual destruction and waste of human life. Bring banners, placards and leaflets if you can, but please bring yourself. The idea is to make this a monthly event, to continually raise awareness of our country's militarist stance, with your help this will happen. 

       Another aspect of the state's love and need of war, is its attempt to send its military representatives into our schools, especially the schools in the more deprived areas. With their glossy pictures and fancy uniforms and talk of free travel, adventure and training, they hope to mesmerise the young susceptible kids, kids whose potential is already being stunted by their environment, into believing this is a career choice. There are no photos of the maimed and dead soldiers, there are no facts about the young lives destroyed by the trauma of war, no mention about the suicides of ex-soldiers, no discussion about the ex-soldiers who end up in prison and/or homeless.
     This is an insidious and callous recruiting exercise by the state, of our poorest and most vulnerable young people, to fill the ever increasing gap in the needs of their imperialist war machine. We have to put an end to this sweeping up of our young to be sacrificed on the altar of capitalist's wars. 

Challenging Military Visits to Schools in Scotland.
March,15th. At 6:00pm
STUC in Glasgow Scotland.
       This public meeting at Glasgow's Scotland Trade Union Congress (STUC) from 7-9pm on Tuesday 15 March is to raise awareness about a petition to scrutinise Armed Forces visits to schools in Scotland.

        Another strand of this world wide disgust at the the endless war policies of the world's powers is A World Beyond War who are organising a global campaign against the destructive waste of the world's military spending.
        World Beyond War encourages everyone to take part in the Global Day of Action on Military Spending (actually multiple days: April 5 - 18, and in the United States April 16-18 in particular).
       Resources for planning a World Beyond War event are here, including a Prezi and a Powerpoint that make it easy.
        Upcoming events all over the world are here. To tell us about more events we should be listing contact Sandra Osei at Soseitwumasi@gmail.com. For help planning your event, contact Bob Fantina at wbwcanada@gmail.com.
        And here's something to celebrate:
Japan PM suspends work on U.S. base on Okinawa.

Sign the Declaration of Peace.

Join us on Facebook and Twitter.    

       Ordinary people don't want to kill ordinary people, which is the basic essence of war. So why tolerate it, why take part in it? War is the poor killing the poor, ordered by the rich. There are a myriad of avenues to suit everybody to take a stand against this insanity. A world without war is possible. 

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