Obscene.

                                               Image courtesy of Luxury Launches

           “Ultra high net worth individuals” — the wealth management industry’s term for people worth more than $30 million — hold an astoundingly disproportionate share of global wealth. These wealth owners held 6.2 percent of total global wealth, yet represent only a tiny fraction (0.002%) of the world population, based on Institute for Policy Studies analysis of Capgemini and Credit Suisse wealth data and Census Bureau population estimates.

         Inequality is not a natural flow of events, nor is it an unalterable progression, inequality is the result of political and economic decisions. 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. If these political and economic decisions are left to be made by the rich and powerful, then it is obvious how the world's wealth will be distributed. The results of this power in the hands of the few is poverty for the many.
          Since 1995 that 1% of humanity have grabbed 38% of all new wealth, at the other end the poorest 50% of humanity have gained just 2% of that new wealth. Creating an unbridgeable chasm between the privileged few and the poverty stricken many, if we allow this economic insanity to continue.
          By now it is blatantly obvious that obscene inequality is on a trajectory to continue, unless we take the decision making out of the hands of the rich, powerful and privileged few. We live in a world where there are more billionaires than ever before, with their fortunes growing ever faster than before. While hundreds of millions struggle to survive in extreme poverty. All based on political and economic decisions, we can reverse that inhumanity by taking the necessary political and economic decisions on a community and co-operative basis. We the ordinary people, the real wealth creators, have the right to decide how our wealth will be distributed, with a fair and just system that sees to the needs of all our people.
       Some horrifying facts that should motivate us to bring the existing system down and replace it with justice, and equality.
         According to the latest  World Inequality Report,

        The world’s richest 1% have more than twice as much wealth as 6.9 billion people.
       Almost half of humanity is living on less than $5.50 a day.
       Only 4 cents in every dollar of tax revenue comes from taxes on wealth.
       The super-rich avoid as much as 30 percent of their tax liability.
       Every day 10,000 people die because they lack access to affordable healthcare.
        Each year, 100 million people are forced into extreme poverty due to healthcare costs.
        Most governments fuel this inequality crisis by massively under taxing corporations and wealthy individuals, and at the same time underfunding vital public services like healthcare and education. It is our choice, accept this injustice and inequality or reverse the process by organising, solidarity and direct action to take control of our wealth and our lives.

Image courtesy of Do Something.

 

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Anger.

Protests marking the murder of 15 year old Alexis Grigoropoulos by the police

              Young Alexis Grigoropoulos, shortly before he was gunned down by police.

          I happen to be in Athens on December 6th. 2008 when 15 year old Alexis Grigoropoulos was murdered by police, shot dead at a cafe in Exarchia, he died in the arms of his young friend Nikos Romanos Two then teenagers whose lives were defined by state violence. I joined some of the protests in Athens that followed this brutal murder. It was awe inspiring to see so many ordinary people on the streets displaying their righteous anger, thousands day after day, prepared to face down the brutal authority of the state. This event should never be forgotten and never be forgiven. No youth should ever be shot dead while out with friends for an evening coffee. Sadly, that is the society we live under and to date, tolerate.

Nikos Romanos after his arrest by state enforcers.

This from Act For Freedom Now: 

         ‘A bullet in the heart of Alexandros to close the circle of the statist machine’s omnipotence. A bloodstain on the Messolonghiou pedestrian street to open the circle of rebellion that wrecked the legal order and sowed chaos and anarchy in all cities throughout Greece.’
– Nikos Romanos, Requiem for a Journey of No Return.
         As of today, 6/12/2021, it has been 13 years since the Greek state murdered the anarchist Alexis Grigoropoulos. Alexis was shot by two cops, E. Korkoneas and V. Saraliotis, in the neighbourhood of Exarcheia, following minor clashes with the police. As soon as the news of Alexis’s murder broke, a spontaneous insurrection began. Protests, riots, expropriations and occupations of public buildings were but some of the collective expressions of rage. Despite the attempts of state and capital to depoliticise the murder, we must not forget that Alexis was killed because of his political beliefs – he challenged in practice the authority of the police and, by extension, that of the state. This is the violence faced every day by those whose existence the state deems undesirable, those who are a threat to their social order.
          13 years later, the spirit of the December revolt is alive in the resistance of the Anarchist/Anti-Authoritarian movement. As anarchists, we stand in solidarity with all insurrections against the state apparatus worldwide, present and future. Our struggles take place in our streets and neighbourhoods, in our workplaces, schools and universities. We will reclaim our space and our lives.
FROM ATHENS TO SCOTLAND, INSURRECTIONS ARE NOT A UTOPIA.
COPS-FASCISTS-MURDERERS
    Clydeside Anarchist Noise.

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The Street.

         I am always spouting on about anarchist literature on the streets and moaning that there is not near enough. Just so that people don't think that I just spite out these words, I did try to do my bit for a number of years. Over a period of more years than I care to remember, I produced a small free paper called "The Anarchist Critic". I would stomp the streets of Glasgow handing it out, leave it on buses and cafes etc.. Sometimes greeted with a smile, sometimes abuse and sometimes ignored, but it was always with the thought that I was doing my small bit in getting that word "anarchist" on the streets. Sadly age and other disabilities have curtailed that activity somewhat. I still produce the odd issue to hand out at an event. The last one being issue 123 on the cop-out-26.

 

      At one point I tried to put them online, but again that fell by the wayside, other activities and it would have meant meant too much time at the computer and not on the street. However there are some issues on line, so if you are interested in reading those old sheets that found their way onto the streets of Glasgow, you can find them HERE.

This is the latest issue, 123, on the Cop-Out_26 Carnival of Illusions.

 

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Paper.

 

        In keeping with my love of anarchist leaflets/pamphlets/serials etc. being distributed on the street, handed out to the stranger, perhaps a new convert to the principles of anarchism, I endorse and post these words from one such journal Romear.

       "For us the choice to write and to print real paper copies could never be casual decisions, nor would this project be able to exist in the digital realm. The internet is too momentary and seems to relate poorly to the reality of everyday life. By publishing on paper, we want to break away from daily news cycle, bombardment of information and updates and chatter, to find a different time, space, and rhythm on which to connect to each other. Quite apart from the latest instagram post from one’s favorite internet celebrity or would-be politician whose opinion can be summed up in a 20 second snippet, we want to find ways to communicate our ideas, desires, and frustrations with this world with all the complexities and difficulties they entail, and to give the required attention and care to this, never competing with trendy slogans or easy answers. We also want these ideas to end up in strangers’ hands, not decided according to algorithms of google or facebook whether they are meant for you or not. We like chance encounters, hearing via-via that someone got handed a copy of RUMOER or found one in a folder on the street."

               From Anarchist News some of the paper that ended up on our streets, not a definitive list, I'm sure you will be aware of many others, but obviously not enough. 

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Event.

 

     An event not to be missed, two great minds come together James Kelman, activist, and famous author from Glasgow and Noam Chomsky, world renowned philosopher to discuss anthropology and social change, "Between Thought and Expression". Presented by PM Press. December 6th.

https://youtu.be/7iR_BMCOZ6A

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Tomorrow!

       Sometimes a few verses can say more than a few volumes. Poetry is a wonderful way of expressing those deeper emotions and thoughts, that halfway house between music and conversation.

                                                   Image courtesy of libcom.

 Not So Long Ago

Woke one bright morning not so long ago;
Heard the sound of shooting out on the street below;
Went to the window and saw the barricade
Of paving stones the working people made not so long ago.

Met a man that morning not so long ago;
Handed me a leaflet on the street below;
Lean and hard-faced working man with a close-cropped head;
Held me for a moment, eye to eye, then said,
“Read it. Read it. Read it and learn
What it is we fight for and why the churches burn.”

Out on the Ramblas, she passed me on her way,
Weapon cradled in her arm; it was but yesterday.
“Not just for wages now and not alone for bread.
We’re fighting for a whole new world, a whole new world,” she said.

On the barricades all over town not so long ago,
The time had come to answer with simple “Yes” or “No.”

They, too, were storming heaven. Do you think they fought in vain?
That because they lost a battle they would never rise again?
That the man with the leaflets, the woman with the gun,
Did not have a daughter? Did not have a son?

Hugo Dewar. 

                                          Image courtesy of Stand Up And Spit:

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Fascism.

         Democracy is a fragile thing, slowly and silently it disappears if we don't exercise the freedoms it offers. That old statement about our world, "use it or lose it" applies to democracy as it does to other things in our life. Today we quietly see democracy being whittled down by an authoritarian cabal who hold sway over our lives, and our anger is just a ripple. The government's new police, crime, sentencing and courts bill is simply an over dose of anaesthetic to our freedoms and any semblance of democracy we might have had, yet still no real anger from the populace. By ignoring the vile authoritarian aspects of this bill we are quietly putting the states handcuffs on ourselves, putting their shackles on our own ankles. Taking these appendages off will be far more difficult than putting them on.

Image courtesy of The Canary.

The following article was written by George Monbiot:

        December 03, 202: Information Clearing House -- "The Guardian" - This is proper police state stuff. The last-minute amendments crowbarred by the government into the police, crime, sentencing and courts bill are a blatant attempt to stifle protest, of the kind you might expect in Russia or Egypt. Priti Patel, the home secretary, shoved 18 extra pages into the bill after it had passed through the Commons, and after the second reading in the House of Lords. It looks like a deliberate ploy to avoid effective parliamentary scrutiny. Yet in most of the media there’s a resounding silence.
       Among the new amendments are measures that would ban protesters from attaching themselves to another person, to an object, or to land. Not only would they make locking on – a crucial tool of protest the world over – illegal, but they are so loosely drafted that they could apply to anyone holding on to anything, on pain of up to 51 weeks’ imprisonment.
       It would also become a criminal offence to obstruct in any way major transport works from being carried out, again with a maximum sentence of 51 weeks. This looks like an attempt to end meaningful protest against road-building and airport expansion. Other amendments would greatly expand police stop and search powers. The police would be entitled to stop and search people or vehicles if they suspect they might be carrying any article that could be used in the newly prohibited protests, presumably including placards, flyers and banners. Other new powers would grant police the right to stop and search people without suspicion, if they believe that protest will occur “in that area”. Anyone who resists being searched could be imprisoned for – you guessed it – up to 51 weeks.
      Existing stop and search powers are used disproportionately against Black and Brown people, who are six times as likely to be stopped as white people. The new powers would create an even greater disincentive for people of colour to protest. Then the media can continue to berate protest movements for being overwhelmingly white and unrepresentative.
      Perhaps most outrageously, the amendments contain new powers to ban named people from protesting. The grounds are extraordinary, in a nation that claims to be democratic. We can be banned if we have previously committed “protest-related offences”. Thanks to the draconian measures in the rest of the bill – many of which pre-date these amendments – it will now be difficult to attend a protest without committing an offence. Or we can be banned if we have attended or “contributed to” a protest that was “likely to result in serious disruption”. Serious disruption, as the bill stands, could mean almost anything, including being noisy. If you post something on social media that encourages people to turn up, you could find yourself on the list. Anyone subject to one of these orders, like a paroled prisoner, might be required to present themselves to the authorities at “particular times on particular days”. You can also be banned from associating with particular people or “using the internet to facilitate or encourage” a “protest-related offence”.
       These are dictators’ powers. The country should be in uproar over them, but we hear barely a squeak. The Kill the Bill protesters have tried valiantly to draw our attention to this tyrant’s gambit, and have been demonised for their pains. Otherwise, you would barely know it was happening.
       Protest is an essential corrective to the mistakes of government. Had it not been for the tactics Patel now seeks to ban, the pointless and destructive road-building programme the government began in the early 1990s would have continued: eventually John Major’s government conceded it was a mistake, and dropped it. Now governments are making the greatest mistake in human history – driving us towards systemic environmental collapse – and Boris Johnson’s administration is seeking to ensure that there is nothing we can do to stop it.
       The government knows the new powers are illegitimate, otherwise it would not have tried to avoid parliamentary scrutiny. These brutal amendments sit alongside Johnson’s other attacks on democracy, such as the proposed requirement for voter ID, which could deter 2 million potential electors, most of whom are poor and marginalised; the planned curtailment of the Electoral Commission; the assault on citizens’ rights to mount legal challenges to government policy; and the proposed “civil orders” that could see journalists treated as spies and banned from meeting certain people and visiting certain places.
       So where is everyone? Why isn’t this all over the front pages? Why aren’t we out on the streets in our millions, protesting while we still can? We use our freedoms or we lose them. And we are very close to losing them.

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Anarchy.

 

         Still not able to function fully because of the pandemic, Spirit of Revolt still try to reach our friends and supporters with little gems from the archive, hence "Read of the Month". Another month and another Spirit of Revolt offering of “Read of the Month”. For December we have chosen a serial well know in anarchist circles, but there are still those who may not have read the older issues. So here is Anarchy, A Journal of Desire Armed, Volume 14, No. 2, spring/summer, 1994.

 Read on line HERE:

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Bookfair.

        Anarchist Bookfairs, those wonderful gatherings that pop up in towns and cities across the planet, though not enough of them. Some come round faithfully  year after year, others pop up then fade, perhaps to rise again at some time in the future. They are important events, they bring together anarchists and like minded people in debate, exploring ideas, renewing old contacts and making new contacts and friends. They are events for swapping ideas and experiences and helping to bring the family of anarchists closer together helping us be aware of how other anarchists are involved in the struggle for freedom and justice. In my over active imagination I see a world with anarchist bookfairs in every village, town and city across the globe. We are allowed to dream, sometimes that's where we see that better world for all, anarchist try to make it a reality.

The following from Anarchist News:

 

        XIX Anarchist Book Gathering in Madrid, December 3, 4, and 5, 2021
WHERE?
Escuela Popular de Prosperidad (La Prospe) C/ Luis Cabrera 19
Metros: Prosperidad y Avenida de América

Buses: 1, 9, 29, 52, 73
Telephone: 91 562 70 19
Email: prospe [AT] nodo50 [DOT] org

      SCHEDULE OF THE PRESENTATION OF THE XIX ANARCHIST BOOK GATHERING IN MADRID
SATURDAY NOVEMBER 6
       18H PRESENTATION OF THE NEXT EDITION OF THE ANARCHIST BOOK GATHERING IN MADRID. Doubts, proposals and everything you may think of asking.
      19H DEBATE: «THE PURPOSE OF ANARCHIST EVENTS». How do we use these tools? Do we make the best of them so that they truly contribute to our struggles?
       21H DINNER FOR THE SELF-MANAGEMENT OF THE GATHERING. Tasty menu, R.S.V.P. (write to confirm info@encuentrodellibroanarquista.org)

WHERE?
LA BRECHA SOCIAL CENTER
Calle picos de Europa 11i (local) , Vallekas, Madrid, Nueva Numancia 

 

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Insanity.

 Image courtesy of AEON.

 

         Across the world places called countries are run as states, and sadly vast numbers of ordinary people accept this cruel psychopathic system of insanity. It is deemed normal by so many that it's frightening that humans can accept such drastic failure in running their lives. In the last couple of hundred years this system has produced two world wars and the killing of millions of innocent men women and children and a swath of regional wars killing millions more, plus the aftermath of war and destruction. It has resulted in millions living in poverty and destitution, while a small group live in unimaginable opulence. and today we are seeing an ever growing army of refugees, fleeing everything from persecution, death, war, deprivation and now being added to by those trying to escape the result of the system created climate emergency. All they seek is a decent life for them and their children and yet they are treated as criminals to be stigmatised and receive harsh, brutal and inhumane treatment from those states responsible for their plight. 

 Image courtesy of UNHCR.

 

          The latest report from UNHCR state that there are well over 84 million people displaced by conflict, persecution and climate change disasters. 84 million, that is more than the entire population of the following countries, UK, 67.22 million, Spain, 47.35 million, Italy, 59.55 million and France, 67.39 million. Can you imagine the entire population of the UK being displaced persons and still approximately 15 million more waiting in the queue? That is the size of the problem that this state system has spawned, in complete co-operation with corporate capitalist economics.
         There can be no more appealing to the system to please be fairer, no more marching with colourful banners asking for a better world for all, the system hasn't listened or changed in the last two hundred or more years and shows no sign of listening or changing at the present time. It is going to take our righteous anger organised in solidarity and openly displayed throughout every fibre of this rotten, corrupt, cruel inhumane system until we bring it crashing down and replace it with that better world for all, that we know we can create.

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disconnect

            It is now becoming ever more obvious that the system is falling apart, for generations we have been subject to our rulers rampant aggression and utter contempt, yet the populace at large, continued to hold onto that mythical thought of some sort of alliance between rulers and ruled. Now the truth is so blatantly obvious that this myth has evaporated, leaving bare the true nature of this incompatible relationship. The powerful rulers of society are aware of this now complete disconnect between ruled and ruler, aware that the illusion no longer holds, and the populace see the glaring truth. This makes them extremely dangerous, if they can’t hold onto their power by smoke and mirrors, by weaving illusions, then they will try to do so by force, we must prepare for this inevitability. The disconnect between ruled and ruler is now complete, the glaring inequality and disparity inherent in the system shows that their reality and ours is completely incompatible. We the public can no longer march to their tune, no longer pick up the sword to defend their wealth, no longer shed our blood in their petty power struggles, no longer sweat our lives away cementing their privileged position. Across the globe people are showing that they have finally grasped this irrefutable truth, open rebellion is in the air. The attempted containment will become more brutal, ever increasing restrictions, ever greater surveillance, ever greater punishments for dissent. We organise in solidarity and face it full on, or we revert to that illusion that there is compatibility between rich and powerful rulers and the ruled and once again accept our serfdom, in a tighter and more frightening new world order.

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Action.

              Those who call and struggle for a society where autonomy is the norm, where mutual aid is the accepted pattern, rather than profit, who call for the end of exploitation and authority over another individual, will always feel the wrath of the state. Anarchists openly make that demand and openly struggle for that eventuality. So anarchists are hounded and incarcerated in state after state, to survive the state needs control of the population and has developed an integrated apparatus to stifle, intimidate and eradicate those who would dare to challenge its drive for omnipotence. Those who find themselves enmeshed in the state's repression strategy, deserve our full unstinting support, they struggle and suffer for us all. A free society and the state can't live together, it has to be one or the other, there is no in-between arrangement, where you are half free, and half governed.  

The following from Act for Freedom Now:

Photo: Embassy of Chile in Montevideo-Uruguay
Medical attention to FRAN SOLAR Prisoners to the streets!

            Last Saturday October 30 comrades and friends of Francisco Solar gathered in front of the $hilean embassy to express our hatred for the Chilean state and our unconditional solidarity with our comrade.
The state and the capitalist enterprise that profits from the business of prison in a perverse alliance of negligence and annihilation are currently denying Francisco essential medical attention with the clear purpose of breaking him.
          With this gesture we salute our comrade and send him strength and resistance.
          May the gestures of solidarity expand through the internationalist call for the prisoners in struggle.
AGAINST PRISON SOCIETY!
DEATH TO THE STATE AND LONG LIVE ANARCHY! 

Chile: ‘The risks of multiformity’ – Words of anarchist prisoner Francisco Solar EN/ES

 

 

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Obey!

 

        I find it odd that on the main, the anarchist groupings have fallen in line with the state's dictate of isolation, separation, wait for further orders from the state before you decide how to live your life. Yes I am aware that we are still in a pandemic and have been for approximately two years, but was there really no alternative? No possibility of communities organising to protect themselves and in co-operation with other communities in a manner deemed best for them? Did it have to a state decision which in lots of instances was based on political ideology rather than medical expertise. The state will always have priorities that don't put the well-being of the people first, but somehow it convinced us to obey and to show solidarity with the state and its agenda. The state will always seek ways to control the population, our acceptance of its dictates in this case of the pandemic and our submissiveness gave the state an open door and straight road for population control, and they have seized it with both hands and vigour. Despite what we might be fed, this was and is a medical emergency, so why did we allow the politicians to be the main controllers of the decisions?

The following is an extract from an article in Act For Freedom Now:

         While “we” stay #home, the state offers the only alternative out of the lock-down, managing the situation and organizing the “solidarity”, with “our” tacit consent. Since when has delegating – especially to the state – been part of the anarchist toolbox? The gap left by the “radical left” in not criticizing and opposing the state measures is now mostly filled by fascist and other reactionary bullshit propaganda.
         In this context, the question arises for us whether people in the circles of the “radical left” are aware of the real consequences of the often used slogans? “Against capitalism” “Against the authorities” “for a self-organized and self-determined life” (for some also “destruction of state, borders, prisons”). Are these things that people want to fight for and stand by, whatever happens? Or are they empty words that look cool on stickers or t-shirts and are just a required part of a subculture?
         Because dear people, the struggle for another world, a revolution or revolutionary moments, in real life, will probably be so beautiful and full of emotions, but also full of suffering, difficult moments, losses, and will force us out of our comfort zones. Making the proposal to #Stayathome or to isolate ourselves and rely on the measures prescribed by the state, in our opinion, is not a good start if we want to learn how to struggle, live a self-determined and self-organized life and how to support each other in “times of crisis”.

Read the full article HERE: 

 

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Victory.

        

  

        I received this as a comment from comrade Loam, but thought it worthy of a post rather than a comment. Laid bare is the blatant corruption of the state apparatus thugs, even their own loaded judicial system couldn't swallow the crap they produced as "evidence". Today our flag flies that bit higher, our voice that bit louder.

          Today we are experiencing a magnificent, complete and definitive victory in this trial which has turned out to be a conspiracy by the State against two members of Rouvikonas.
          Giorgos and Nikos risked life imprisonment this morning for murder, based on false testimony. But the prosecution witnesses have exposed the police manipulations and the prosecution has changed sides: the power has unmasked itself in its desire to violently neutralize the Greek anarchist group by classifying it as criminal organizations.
         Today, Giorgos and Nikos are free and the Rouvikonas group grows stronger. As the numerous messages that reach us show, the entire social movement recognizes itself in this victory, which is also theirs, against a Machiavellian and unscrupulous power. This victory also has no borders: it is also yours, you who, more than 2000 km away, mobilize in various ways in support of this crucial fight.
          A big thank you to all the support we receive from around the world, prove once again that we are everywhere!
          Our utopias are alive, resistant and persevering! The day will come when thieves of lives will be stripped of their pedestal and common interest will guide our thoughtful and concerted decisions. The day will come when we will go from the noun "power" to the verb "power", from the domination of others to the ability to freely choose our lives. The day will come when collective intelligence will end the agony of the Earth and those who inhabit it.
         Only those who give up have already lost. There is no reason to despair, but to act with determination to denounce the absurdity of authoritarian society and the collective suicide that is capitalism. We are the side of life against the side of death. We are the ones who authentically carry the motto Liberty-Equality-Fraternity, and not the political leaders who usurp these words, because we propose concrete freedom, real equality and universal brotherhood.
         This morning, at the end of the three trial sessions, the 3 judges and the 4 jurors found Giorgos and Nikos innocent: our comrades were unanimously acquitted. This 7-0 victory allows us to eliminate any possibility of appeal from the prosecution. Therefore, victory is final. We will celebrate tonight and tomorrow thinking of you!

Thanks again! The fight continues!

The international support committee of Giorgos and Nikos, Exarcheia on November 25, 2021.

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Links.

         For those who know the UK establishment for what it is, are well aware that it was never really against Nazism. It quite liked the idea of a subjugated population that salutes the flag and follows the leader. Nazi Germany was showing them the way, and they tried to follow.
        The following article reveals the connection between the high-end schools in UK and the Nazi youth moulding schools of Nazi Germany. 

The following from The Conversation: 

 

 Image courtesy of Conversation.

 
        In spring 1936, teenage schoolboy – and later war hero – Dick Hargreaves was given the chance to go on an all-expenses-paid exchange trip to Germany. But this was no ordinary school exchange – Hargreaves’ destination was Oranienstein, one of a system of new elite boarding schools known as National Political Education Institutes (“Napolas” for short).
        These Nazi colleges were explicitly modelled on an amalgam of the British public schools, the Prussian cadet corps, and the harsh educational practices of ancient Sparta. The schools educated boys from the age of ten upwards, training them as future leaders of the Third Reich. By taking part in the exchange, Hargreaves and his ten companions from Dauntsey’s School in Wiltshire, England, would soon be exposed to the Napolas’ “total” programme of education, indoctrination and National Socialist propaganda.
        Hargreaves’ initial impressions, recorded in his diary at the time, are overwhelmingly favourable. The school, situated in the town of Diez an der Lahn, near Koblenz, is described as “a damn good place … a huge castle, done up modern and very posh – armchairs, super labs, stables … school bicycles and heaven [knows] what!” According to the diary, everyone is “extraordinarily decent”, and the boys’ Nazi uniforms are “very smart indeed – light khaki corduroy breeches, black riding boots, khaki coat, red arm band with swastika, brown coat lapels, blue shoulder straps and a dagger thing”.

Image courtesy of Conversation.

 

         ‘Very smart indeed’: young German schoolboys reading a Nazi newspaper at NPEA Rügen, 1943. Dietrich Schulz
        Most interesting, though, is Dick’s dispassionate observation of the Nazi Mayday celebrations in the neighbouring town of Diez. On April 30, 1936, his diary records a trip “with our Kameraden” to watch the Maypole being hoisted and folk dances by the Hitler Youth. The boys heard speeches by some of the “big bugs of the town”. There was also community singing in which they all took part.
    There was a good bit of ‘Heiling’ which we also did because we were in a huge crowd. It was a magnificent scene – the old castle towering above the market place in which were thousands of enthusiastic peasants lit by torch and candle light…
       The following Friday, May 1, which was the spring festival or “Frühlingsfest”, Hargreaves’ diary records that the boys had to get up at six o’clock to salute the flag and parade. They then marched to Diez where they assembled with the local Hitler Youth to listen to a 90-minute speech by Hitler being broadcast on the radio.
       The same afternoon, the boys returned to Diez to hear another lengthy speech by “der Führer”. Hargreaves noted:
    He worked himself into such a frenzy and was able to move the crowd so tremendously that we saw three people faint. Not from fatigue or crush but just by his amazing oratory powers. Then after Hitler had been ‘Heiled’ off the earth Goering spoke for ½ hour!
      Here, the way in which foreign observers could easily be swept up in the fervour of “heiling” and Hitlerism around them is made poignantly clear – although the interminable speeches by Hitler and his henchmen seem to have palled soon enough.
        My decade-long research project on the history of the Napolas – just published as the book The Third Reich’s Elite Schools: A History of the Napolas – has shown that, during the 1930s, hundreds of pupils took part in this programme of exchanges and sporting tournaments.
          Just to take one example, between 1935 and 1938, Napola Oranienstein took part in exchanges with British private schools, including Westminster, St Paul’s, Tonbridge School, Dauntsey’s and Bingley School in Yorkshire. The school also entertained headmasters and exchange teachers from Shrewsbury School, Dauntsey’s and Bolton School, and was also involved in sports tournaments with Eton, Harrow, Westminster, Winchester, Shrewsbury, Bradfield and Bryanston.

Read the full article HERE: 

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