Have you ever heard people come out with such remarks as "any job is better than no job" or "you're lucky to have a job at all"? Another one is "work comes first" if a wage slave wishes to have some time off away from exploitation to enjoy some of the limited affordable pleasures in their misserable existence. These kind of crass statements are ussually promoted by the exploiter capitalist class and the media which they control in order to make the workers feel greatful for being allowed to graft and make profits for the robber barrons. These are the same thieves who exploit peoples labour power in order to amass mega profits under the 'fairest economic and political system available', to dissprove this latter pedalled myth I suggest anybody just looks around them every day or watches the news. If this is the finest, fairest and sensible system available to human kind I shudder to think of the worst.
The capitalist class, the owners of the means of production, distribution and exchange, the people responsible for what we have affectionately come to know as 'recession' are the very same people we are stupid enough to entrust with our affairs. Any government we elect to the Dail or any other parliament for that matter are there to govern the affairs and interests of this gang of exploiters and bankers often reffered to in Marxist terms as the bourgeoisie. These people create, through their private ownership of the means of production, distribution and exchange, 'recession', which is ultimately designed to reduce wages and increase profits purposely towards this end. Once the so called recession is over this gang can triumphantly report, through their media, to the rest of us that "the recession is over" or we "are coming out of recession", the latter statement usually to forewarn people that even though we are "in economic recovery" dont expect too much. This normally means don't expect a living wage or a return to the days "when we paid ourselves too much". In reality this means when we paid you too much therefore we had to create an atmosphere of fear, through recession, so that you won't ask for a larger slice of our cake again. Remember what happened last time when we "paid ourselves too much" we went, or more to the point we forced you wage slaves, to go through 'recession'.
In order that the capitalist class maintain their mega profits which can't be done to the same extent if the workers are being "paid too much" it is very important that the system has the fear factor in place. This fear factor can be in the form of a synthetic recession within an equally synthetic economic system, or the pretence fear of "international terrorism" reportedly by some trouble making theorists to be brought about by the larger echolons of the capitalist class and their agencies to maintain their grip on society. Fear is the major weapon in the armoury of the exploiter class and just in case this does not work they have a large police force who will batter the skulls to pulp of any group who step too far out of line and just in case this proves not to be sufficient they do of course have the army at their dispossal. Be under no illussions these latter two means of control would be used if the capitalist class believed their wonderful system was under any threat.
So the moral to this story is that when and if the exploiters of labour and their banking allies decide the time is right to annonce that we "are out of recession" don't ask for a decent wage in fact maybe, just maybe, it may be an idea for the workers to pay the capitalists wages for being allowed to work at all let alone share the same planet! Just a thought.
Con Gore-Booth
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Raffle Winners
Sorry for this delay but the last raffle prize winners of the Dublin IRSP competition were as follows.
1) Alisha
2)Leanne
3) James
1) Alisha
2)Leanne
3) James
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
SUPPORT THE DOCK WORKERS
This year, 2009, is the 96th anniversary of the 1913 Dublin Lockout. The lockout started at the Dublin United Tramways Company owned by William Martin Murphy, an Irish Nationalist MP. Murphy was also head of the Employers Federation (forerunner of todays IBEC) which represented 400 employers. In oppossition to Murphy and his draconian rules were the Irish Transport and General Workers Union led by Jim Larkin and James Connolly along with 36 other trade unions. The strike was initially about the rights of workers to be members of a trade union of their choice. Murphy refused to recognise the ITGWU and tried to force workers to sign a form denouncing this union or face dismissal. Other employers folluwed suit and locked out their workers.
Today in 2009 we see another employers offensive this time on the docks in Dublin. The employers, Peel Ports Group, are trying to force redundancies, not only in Dublin but also Belfast, and new contracts which include "pay cuts and worse working conditions". If the company is successful in their quest it will have serious repercusions for workers across the island of Ireland. The workers on the docks have held out for several weeks and have held a series of marches and rallies. On Monday 24th August 2009 a march left East Wall Road and East Link Bridge meeting up and converging on the Marine Terminal Depot. Around 800 dock workers, supported by their communities, along with trade unionists from several unions, the Independent Workers Union, SIPTU, Unite, the International Transport Workers Federation along with political activists from the Socialist Workers Party, the Socialist Party, the IRSP, Sinn Fein , the Communist Party of Ireland, Eirigi and various sympathetic individualls. Messages of support were read out from dockers across Europe where several ships have been prevented from leaving port by the International Transport Workers Federation. On arrival at the terminal the rally was addressed by several speakers including Peter Bunting ICTU (Northern Division), speakers from ICTU and various other trade unionists including a representative from Rotterdam, Holland, representing Dutch dock workers. The centre of many attacks were the scabs who have been imported from Belfast and perhaps the most hard hitting assault on these lowest forms of life came from a North of Irish trade unionist, Kevin Doherty. He described these peaople as "shameless" and informed them that "they are not welcome in their communities or anywhere else" he said they "should hang their heads in shame". The scabs continued to operate the terminals at the plant, echoes of Captain Boycott using scab labour in Co. Mayo in the late 19th century. After the speeches the demonstrators invaded an area of the port itself but unfortunately could not get to the scabs. A strong security presence was in evidence against working people fighting for their livelyhoods evidence of what this state is really all about, defending capital. The signitories of 1916 must turn in their grave at what is going on today in their name. This is not the kind of society those men and women were fighting for.
It is wildely reported that some of the strong arm security personell used by Peel Ports Group are former SAS people, obviously trained to a far higher degree of violence than your average security man. If these reports are true it suggests a serious shift in aggression by the employers and spells danger for all of us. If the employers are successful in their quest at destroying resistance on the docks the domino affect will undoubtedly be seen and felt by workers right across the island of Ireland in the months and years to come.
We would urge all workers, trade unionists and those down trodden employees who are forbidden from union membership by their employers, to send messages of support to the Dockers of Dublin and those who have been made redundant in Belfast in many ways thanks to the precedent set by their fellow towns people and other scabs.
Kevin Morley Branch Secretary IRSP Dublin.
Today in 2009 we see another employers offensive this time on the docks in Dublin. The employers, Peel Ports Group, are trying to force redundancies, not only in Dublin but also Belfast, and new contracts which include "pay cuts and worse working conditions". If the company is successful in their quest it will have serious repercusions for workers across the island of Ireland. The workers on the docks have held out for several weeks and have held a series of marches and rallies. On Monday 24th August 2009 a march left East Wall Road and East Link Bridge meeting up and converging on the Marine Terminal Depot. Around 800 dock workers, supported by their communities, along with trade unionists from several unions, the Independent Workers Union, SIPTU, Unite, the International Transport Workers Federation along with political activists from the Socialist Workers Party, the Socialist Party, the IRSP, Sinn Fein , the Communist Party of Ireland, Eirigi and various sympathetic individualls. Messages of support were read out from dockers across Europe where several ships have been prevented from leaving port by the International Transport Workers Federation. On arrival at the terminal the rally was addressed by several speakers including Peter Bunting ICTU (Northern Division), speakers from ICTU and various other trade unionists including a representative from Rotterdam, Holland, representing Dutch dock workers. The centre of many attacks were the scabs who have been imported from Belfast and perhaps the most hard hitting assault on these lowest forms of life came from a North of Irish trade unionist, Kevin Doherty. He described these peaople as "shameless" and informed them that "they are not welcome in their communities or anywhere else" he said they "should hang their heads in shame". The scabs continued to operate the terminals at the plant, echoes of Captain Boycott using scab labour in Co. Mayo in the late 19th century. After the speeches the demonstrators invaded an area of the port itself but unfortunately could not get to the scabs. A strong security presence was in evidence against working people fighting for their livelyhoods evidence of what this state is really all about, defending capital. The signitories of 1916 must turn in their grave at what is going on today in their name. This is not the kind of society those men and women were fighting for.
It is wildely reported that some of the strong arm security personell used by Peel Ports Group are former SAS people, obviously trained to a far higher degree of violence than your average security man. If these reports are true it suggests a serious shift in aggression by the employers and spells danger for all of us. If the employers are successful in their quest at destroying resistance on the docks the domino affect will undoubtedly be seen and felt by workers right across the island of Ireland in the months and years to come.
We would urge all workers, trade unionists and those down trodden employees who are forbidden from union membership by their employers, to send messages of support to the Dockers of Dublin and those who have been made redundant in Belfast in many ways thanks to the precedent set by their fellow towns people and other scabs.
Kevin Morley Branch Secretary IRSP Dublin.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Recession
Much clap trap has been preached by the modern owners of the means of production, the bourgeoisie, about the merits of the "private sector" within post modern industry and the demerits of the "public sector". These same hypocritical people will continue to inform us of the current recession within the bourgeois economy. They will often make refference to the so called "great slump", though it was anything but great in the words enjoyable sence, of 1929 and how bad things were. On this they are quite correct, times were difficult, very difficult, but not so much for the capitalist class as much as the working class.
In the United States of America where the "slump" started, when the capitalist Stock Exchange (Wall Street) crashed, conditions for the working class were atrocious to say the least. Many people of bourgeois origin joined gangster organisations led by such people as Al Capone. With this increase in organised crime were dragged a number of disposessed workers. However this is not the main theme of this brief argument.
As I said earlier the private sector are continuously knocking publicly funded industries and service providers. They do not, however, give the full picture after all why should they? One reason the present recession has not reached the levels of depravation of 1929 is simply because of the public sector. In 1929 only 5% of the economy in the United States consisted of state or semi-state concerns, today it is nearer 30% which may account largely as to why the US economy, dire as it may be, will not reach the 1929 levels. Such concerns are not dependant on profit making greed. This greed by the capitalist class, and all that goes with it, is wholly responsible for the mess the economies of the , what we refer to as developed countries, are in.
Broaden this argument out onto a more global basis and the next time you hear the likes of Michael O'Leary Chairman of Ryan Air, Denis O'Brien, or any other so called captain of industry slagging off the public sector in defence of their own narrow interests within the private arena consider the possibility that it could be this same public sector which is staving off the depths of depression of 1929. Don't be fooled by their lies of self preservation. Economic recessions like most other issues within the capitalist system are very much class issues. As it should not have escaped any sane thinking persons perception the rich lose very little while the working class lose, in many cases, everything.
The next time, which wont be very long, the so called "Captains of Industry" are heared trying to riddicule the public sector, on the idiotic grounds that they are not profitable, spare a thought for the possibility that it may be this same public sector which is saving the capitalist economy from even greater depression. The so called model of "perfect competition", of which there is very little perfection, is one of the major causes of working class misery and not the goods and services which are state or semi-state run. For example the health service and the local authorities which, so far, are not embroiled in this semi-imbecile system the bourgeoisie are pleased to inform us is the finest available. The proof of this capitalist lie is evident on a daily basis simply turn on the news or buy a newspaper.
William Thompson
In the United States of America where the "slump" started, when the capitalist Stock Exchange (Wall Street) crashed, conditions for the working class were atrocious to say the least. Many people of bourgeois origin joined gangster organisations led by such people as Al Capone. With this increase in organised crime were dragged a number of disposessed workers. However this is not the main theme of this brief argument.
As I said earlier the private sector are continuously knocking publicly funded industries and service providers. They do not, however, give the full picture after all why should they? One reason the present recession has not reached the levels of depravation of 1929 is simply because of the public sector. In 1929 only 5% of the economy in the United States consisted of state or semi-state concerns, today it is nearer 30% which may account largely as to why the US economy, dire as it may be, will not reach the 1929 levels. Such concerns are not dependant on profit making greed. This greed by the capitalist class, and all that goes with it, is wholly responsible for the mess the economies of the , what we refer to as developed countries, are in.
Broaden this argument out onto a more global basis and the next time you hear the likes of Michael O'Leary Chairman of Ryan Air, Denis O'Brien, or any other so called captain of industry slagging off the public sector in defence of their own narrow interests within the private arena consider the possibility that it could be this same public sector which is staving off the depths of depression of 1929. Don't be fooled by their lies of self preservation. Economic recessions like most other issues within the capitalist system are very much class issues. As it should not have escaped any sane thinking persons perception the rich lose very little while the working class lose, in many cases, everything.
The next time, which wont be very long, the so called "Captains of Industry" are heared trying to riddicule the public sector, on the idiotic grounds that they are not profitable, spare a thought for the possibility that it may be this same public sector which is saving the capitalist economy from even greater depression. The so called model of "perfect competition", of which there is very little perfection, is one of the major causes of working class misery and not the goods and services which are state or semi-state run. For example the health service and the local authorities which, so far, are not embroiled in this semi-imbecile system the bourgeoisie are pleased to inform us is the finest available. The proof of this capitalist lie is evident on a daily basis simply turn on the news or buy a newspaper.
William Thompson
Sunday, May 3, 2009
National Hunger Strike Commemoration 24th May.
The IRSP National Hungerstrike Commemoration will be taking place in Derry on Sunday 24th May, Assemble 2pm William Street. If you are interested in traveling to this do not hesitate to email the Dublin IRSP for contact details.Commemorate the Hunger Strikers, Do not let there death`s be in vain.
Monday, April 13, 2009
THE DEMOLITION OF NO. 16 MOORE STREET
On Easter Monday April 13th 2009 a march took place in Dublin to mark the 93rd anniversary of the Easter Rising. The march which began at Liberty Hall, the route taken by the men and women of the Irish Citizen Army, Irish Volunteers and the Cumann na mBann ninety three years ago, to the GPO was non party political and all were welcome. The attendance of around three hundred was encouraging considering the wintry conditions and the parade was headed by two pipers. The major themes of the oration, delivered at the GPO and Moore Street respectively, were the role of women in the struggle for Irish freedom 1916-1923, of which there were considerable and whom are often wrongly overlooked, and the states plans to demolish number 16 Moore Street. This building has been the centre of some controversy for some time because of its value as a historical monument. The argument is that number 16 Moore Street and the whole block of buildings thereafter was the last garrison to surrender on the 29th April 1916 and therefore is a site of national heritage, this argument is absolutely correct. This is the site where the petit figure of nurse Elizabeth O'Farrel, Cumann na mBann,l delivered a message to Brigadier-General William Lowe, Commander British forces Dublin, from Padraic Pearse, Commander In Chief Irish forces, wishing to "treat" on terms of surrender. This was to save Dublin for any furhter loss of life and destruction. It was this building where a seriously wounded James connolly had been moved to on a stretcher and despite many popular myths was the final stand of the rebel forces and not, as has often being sited the GPO.
It is the intention of the twenty six county government to destroy this block of buildings probably to make way for their friends in the property development business. As the speaker, from the National Graves Association, correctly pointed out "in any other European city this building would be protected for posterity"how right he was/is. Could anybody imagine the French pulling down buildings in Paris which had historical connections to 1789? or the Cubans destroying tributes to their revolution of 1959 and painting over the murals of Che Guevara? even the English maintain their sites of historical interest including a statue of Oliver Cromwell who had a kings head removed from his shoulders. However there are no such sentiments in Ireland, it is almost as if the state want to bury the events of Easter week 1916 and one must ask, if this is the case why? Is it because the very mention of 1916 evokes a feeling of national self determination and, regarding the six counties, unfinished business? , maybe.
Number 16 Moore Street and the accompanying block are not the first set of buildings connected to Irelands past and particularly the Easter Rising to be allowed to fall into a state of dereliction. But for the sturdy work of a team of volunters Kilmanham Gaol would have been left to collapse under its own weight due to neglect. Thanks to this work it is now a museum which attracts many tourists, republican and otherwise, who are interested in Irish history. How could any government of the twenty six counties allow a building like Kilmainham to fall into such a state. This is the place where fourteen of the sixteen men executed as a result of the Easter Rising met their executioners. It is the place, the spot marked by a cross, where James Connolly was shot strapped to a chair, being unable to stand due to the severity of his wounds, and yet it is the same site which was allowed to fall into disrepair by various free state governments. The team of volunteers who restored Kilmainham deserve praise and applause for their sturdy work. Now we witness the same attitude by government to number 16 Moore Street, but not without oppossition. There are still people, sane minded people, who care enough to volunteer their services towards the restoration of the building and opposse any government plans for demolition to benefit the interests of property developers or anybody else for that mater. The Irish Republican Socialist Party wish the campaign to save number 16 Moore Street the very best and every success.
Kevin Morley
Cumann Secretary IRSP Dublin
It is the intention of the twenty six county government to destroy this block of buildings probably to make way for their friends in the property development business. As the speaker, from the National Graves Association, correctly pointed out "in any other European city this building would be protected for posterity"how right he was/is. Could anybody imagine the French pulling down buildings in Paris which had historical connections to 1789? or the Cubans destroying tributes to their revolution of 1959 and painting over the murals of Che Guevara? even the English maintain their sites of historical interest including a statue of Oliver Cromwell who had a kings head removed from his shoulders. However there are no such sentiments in Ireland, it is almost as if the state want to bury the events of Easter week 1916 and one must ask, if this is the case why? Is it because the very mention of 1916 evokes a feeling of national self determination and, regarding the six counties, unfinished business? , maybe.
Number 16 Moore Street and the accompanying block are not the first set of buildings connected to Irelands past and particularly the Easter Rising to be allowed to fall into a state of dereliction. But for the sturdy work of a team of volunters Kilmanham Gaol would have been left to collapse under its own weight due to neglect. Thanks to this work it is now a museum which attracts many tourists, republican and otherwise, who are interested in Irish history. How could any government of the twenty six counties allow a building like Kilmainham to fall into such a state. This is the place where fourteen of the sixteen men executed as a result of the Easter Rising met their executioners. It is the place, the spot marked by a cross, where James Connolly was shot strapped to a chair, being unable to stand due to the severity of his wounds, and yet it is the same site which was allowed to fall into disrepair by various free state governments. The team of volunteers who restored Kilmainham deserve praise and applause for their sturdy work. Now we witness the same attitude by government to number 16 Moore Street, but not without oppossition. There are still people, sane minded people, who care enough to volunteer their services towards the restoration of the building and opposse any government plans for demolition to benefit the interests of property developers or anybody else for that mater. The Irish Republican Socialist Party wish the campaign to save number 16 Moore Street the very best and every success.
Kevin Morley
Cumann Secretary IRSP Dublin
Thursday, April 2, 2009
THE SYSTEM ISN'T WORKING: DON'T BE DIVIDED
Every day now we turn on our television sets and hear more of the HSE prescribed medicine of doom and gloom. We are constantly informed by congennitals about the "recession"and how if we are good boys and girls we may be out of the mess by the year 2011. These people choose their words carefully by emphasising we "may be out" of recession by the year 2011 and that is only if we are very good. By this they mean accepting lower wages leading to a lower living standards which, I might add, does not affect those who are doing the telling, accepting unemployment leading to, in many cases marriage breakup, in fact accepting anything the capitalist system deems fit to throw at us in order to maintain its existence. On many news bulletins we hear cases of unemployed people saying the such as "I've been out of work sinse Christmas, I look for work every day but there's nothing" we see ordinarily hard working people grovelling for such jobs as making hamburgers. We wittness homes being repossessed on an almost daily basis and in the extreme cases suicide. The irony is that many of these unfortunate people appear to a certain degree to blame themselves and not the capitalist system. Of course they do not actually say this but some of the orations they come out with appears to point in this direction. In february a large demonstration took place in Dublin, upwards of 120,000 people took part. Some of the participants were coming out with not very well thought out statements like "we don't mind taking a pay cut providing everybody does", music to the ears of any employer one would imagine. Others who had obviously given the subject a little more thought were coming out with the more sensible approach "why should we pay for the mess" and "we didn't cause the problem why should we pay for it". It is the latter of these approaches which bears the characteristics of sensibility. Why should working class people pay for the mess the capitalist benefactors of labour power have created. It is them and their system which is to blame, a system which we are constantly informed is the finest available to man kind. Well just look around you and make your own mind up on this ridiculous philosophy.
Unfortunately we have a minority within the ranks of the working class who are falling for the ideas of the employer sympathising far right. The "Irish jobs for Irish people" brigade who peddle ethnic and racial prejudice which divides workers up and serves the interests of the employing class. Blaming the recession on "non-nationals" or a workers skin colour is about as practical as blaming domestic cattle for climate change. The issue at stake is not what colour a workers skin may be because they are still a worker and, like their caucasian counterpart, they are still exploited and will end up, again just the same, on the scrap heap. The issue in question is the private ownership of the means of production, control and exchange. All the modern technology and machinery which should make life more pleasurable for all of us are in the private hands of a few greedy capitalists. They use these commodities, as they do that other great comodity workers labour power, to amass huge profits. This done the wealth creators, the working class, are surplus to requirements. It is not "non-nationals" who have created this mess but caucasian capitalists. A recent example of workers discriminating against workers on the grounds of ethnic or national origin and/or skin colour is the Cork branch of the taxi drivers. The taxi drivers are in dispute nationally over reductions in living standards, quite rightly so, and in Cork a minority of drivers are denying "non-nationals" membership of their trade union. This is shallow narrow minded bigotry to say the least and ethnocentricm and racism would paint a more descriptive picture. These taxi drivers are playing into their tormentors hands by dividing themselves on these grounds. The "non-nationals" have applied to join the union and have been refused membership on the grounds outlined. This suits the government down to the ground. Fortunately the taxi drivers nationally have distanced themselves from these political illiterates but nevertheless these minority views, or lack of, must not go unchecked. If society repatriated all "non-nationals" tomorrow and a situation of "Irish jobs for Irish people" evolved within three months there would be Irish workers looking for work again just the same as now. The reason for this is nothing to do with "non-nationals", how could it be under this scenario they would have all gone home, it is to do with the ownership of the means of production, control and exchange. The private ownership of. If under the above scenario an employer, now employing "Irish workers", aquired a technologically advanced computerised piece of equipment which could do the work of ten people, be it in an office, factory or building site, then these workers, Irish or otherwise would be surplus to requirements. Who then would these bigots blame, people with grey hair because they are too old? or perhaps women workers?, the age old arument about womens place being in the home! Eventually they would have run out of scapegoats when, unfortunately, it is too late. Then the employers come to make the bigots and racists redundant and they cry for help and there is nobody left to answer their call. Remember a worker is a worker, the exploited are the exploited and ethnic and national origin or skin colour is of no relavence to this fact. Dont allow yourselves to be divided.
The only aspect of everyday existence which is not working is capitalism itself. Capitalism "is not intelligent, it is not beautiful, it is not just, it is not virtuous and it does not deliver the goods" (John Maynard Keynes economist). Take a look around you and evidence of these words are apparent every day. There are times when the capitalist system requires the services of working class people, until they find an advanced machine when they don't, and that is in what we are suppossed to call boom times to amass huge profits for the parasite class. When enough profits have been made the result is what we are wittnessing now on a daily basis. We have produced ourselves out of a job simply because we have been instructed by the bosses to do so. The bosses are constantly telling us about the merits of what they call "perfect competition" which there is nothing perfect about at all. This insane system has firm competing against firm and, more importantly worker against worker and, like all competitions from football onwards there has to be a loser. These losers can be seen seeking new employment daily, some blaming themselves for asking a living wage from their previous employer. Some actually feel sorry for their former exploiters and apportion a certain amount of blame to themselves for him/her going out of business. The fact that they, the former employers, are still millionaires or, in some cases, billionaires does not enter the equation. Even now we can hear the employers saying such tried, tested and failed statements as "we must become more competative again" normally through their mouthpiece IBEC (Irish Business and Employers Confederation). Albert Einstein described insanity as trying the same failed method again and expecting a different result. Just look around you as evidence of this scientists words.
The services of working cl;ass people are once again required at that approximately five year event called election time. It is at this time when the democracy factor which partly comprises the formula called liberal democracy comes into play. Here for five minuets of one day we are allowed to partake in the political process by electing a government to run the affairs of, and for the benefit of, the capitalist class. As the former Lord Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, once said: "If voting changed anything they'd abolish it", very true. However this is not to say don't vote at all because it is your only very limited democratic right left. Liberal democracy must never be confused with the real thing, and this farce takes place in all countries which we for some reason are pleased to call "advanced", which would include democratic accountability for all those elected to positions of authority. Access to these people on a daily basis, be it at work or at a local and national level, the common ownership of the means of production, control and distribution under workers control. Production for the needs of the people as oppossed to the profits of the few. A better stable more harmonious world for all would be the order of the day. It is possible but the penny must drop first. Stop blaming straw men for the problems of capitalism, stop being appoligists for a system which from cradle to grave is geared to exploitation of the many by the few. If it has been good enough for you, foolishly, don't let it be good enough for your children and grandchildren. "THE GREAT APPEAR GREAT BECAUSE WE ARE ON OUR KNEES. LET US RISE", often quoted from Camille Desmoulins by James Connolly.
Bill Haywood
Unfortunately we have a minority within the ranks of the working class who are falling for the ideas of the employer sympathising far right. The "Irish jobs for Irish people" brigade who peddle ethnic and racial prejudice which divides workers up and serves the interests of the employing class. Blaming the recession on "non-nationals" or a workers skin colour is about as practical as blaming domestic cattle for climate change. The issue at stake is not what colour a workers skin may be because they are still a worker and, like their caucasian counterpart, they are still exploited and will end up, again just the same, on the scrap heap. The issue in question is the private ownership of the means of production, control and exchange. All the modern technology and machinery which should make life more pleasurable for all of us are in the private hands of a few greedy capitalists. They use these commodities, as they do that other great comodity workers labour power, to amass huge profits. This done the wealth creators, the working class, are surplus to requirements. It is not "non-nationals" who have created this mess but caucasian capitalists. A recent example of workers discriminating against workers on the grounds of ethnic or national origin and/or skin colour is the Cork branch of the taxi drivers. The taxi drivers are in dispute nationally over reductions in living standards, quite rightly so, and in Cork a minority of drivers are denying "non-nationals" membership of their trade union. This is shallow narrow minded bigotry to say the least and ethnocentricm and racism would paint a more descriptive picture. These taxi drivers are playing into their tormentors hands by dividing themselves on these grounds. The "non-nationals" have applied to join the union and have been refused membership on the grounds outlined. This suits the government down to the ground. Fortunately the taxi drivers nationally have distanced themselves from these political illiterates but nevertheless these minority views, or lack of, must not go unchecked. If society repatriated all "non-nationals" tomorrow and a situation of "Irish jobs for Irish people" evolved within three months there would be Irish workers looking for work again just the same as now. The reason for this is nothing to do with "non-nationals", how could it be under this scenario they would have all gone home, it is to do with the ownership of the means of production, control and exchange. The private ownership of. If under the above scenario an employer, now employing "Irish workers", aquired a technologically advanced computerised piece of equipment which could do the work of ten people, be it in an office, factory or building site, then these workers, Irish or otherwise would be surplus to requirements. Who then would these bigots blame, people with grey hair because they are too old? or perhaps women workers?, the age old arument about womens place being in the home! Eventually they would have run out of scapegoats when, unfortunately, it is too late. Then the employers come to make the bigots and racists redundant and they cry for help and there is nobody left to answer their call. Remember a worker is a worker, the exploited are the exploited and ethnic and national origin or skin colour is of no relavence to this fact. Dont allow yourselves to be divided.
The only aspect of everyday existence which is not working is capitalism itself. Capitalism "is not intelligent, it is not beautiful, it is not just, it is not virtuous and it does not deliver the goods" (John Maynard Keynes economist). Take a look around you and evidence of these words are apparent every day. There are times when the capitalist system requires the services of working class people, until they find an advanced machine when they don't, and that is in what we are suppossed to call boom times to amass huge profits for the parasite class. When enough profits have been made the result is what we are wittnessing now on a daily basis. We have produced ourselves out of a job simply because we have been instructed by the bosses to do so. The bosses are constantly telling us about the merits of what they call "perfect competition" which there is nothing perfect about at all. This insane system has firm competing against firm and, more importantly worker against worker and, like all competitions from football onwards there has to be a loser. These losers can be seen seeking new employment daily, some blaming themselves for asking a living wage from their previous employer. Some actually feel sorry for their former exploiters and apportion a certain amount of blame to themselves for him/her going out of business. The fact that they, the former employers, are still millionaires or, in some cases, billionaires does not enter the equation. Even now we can hear the employers saying such tried, tested and failed statements as "we must become more competative again" normally through their mouthpiece IBEC (Irish Business and Employers Confederation). Albert Einstein described insanity as trying the same failed method again and expecting a different result. Just look around you as evidence of this scientists words.
The services of working cl;ass people are once again required at that approximately five year event called election time. It is at this time when the democracy factor which partly comprises the formula called liberal democracy comes into play. Here for five minuets of one day we are allowed to partake in the political process by electing a government to run the affairs of, and for the benefit of, the capitalist class. As the former Lord Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, once said: "If voting changed anything they'd abolish it", very true. However this is not to say don't vote at all because it is your only very limited democratic right left. Liberal democracy must never be confused with the real thing, and this farce takes place in all countries which we for some reason are pleased to call "advanced", which would include democratic accountability for all those elected to positions of authority. Access to these people on a daily basis, be it at work or at a local and national level, the common ownership of the means of production, control and distribution under workers control. Production for the needs of the people as oppossed to the profits of the few. A better stable more harmonious world for all would be the order of the day. It is possible but the penny must drop first. Stop blaming straw men for the problems of capitalism, stop being appoligists for a system which from cradle to grave is geared to exploitation of the many by the few. If it has been good enough for you, foolishly, don't let it be good enough for your children and grandchildren. "THE GREAT APPEAR GREAT BECAUSE WE ARE ON OUR KNEES. LET US RISE", often quoted from Camille Desmoulins by James Connolly.
Bill Haywood
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
GET RID OF THIS LIABILITY
On Monday the 23rd of March, 2009, the bourgeois media could triumphantly inform us that one of the states largest trade unions, IMPACT, had failed to secure the required two thirds majority to take part in strike action on Mondy 30th March organised by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) . The strike which is schedueled for one day only, not really long enough to have any major impact, is to demonstrate workers anger at government and employers cuts in public spending resulting in even more inferiour public services, job losses, pension levies, pay cuts and freezes etc. etc . IMPACT received a 65% majority in favour of taking part in the strike which was a mere 1% short of the two thirds needed which is ridiculous.
This rule is a liability to any form of organised fight back and, noticibaly, is undemocratic. It is a liability because it is weighted towards the benefit of the employers who only need a 35% minority to vote against strike action thus cancelling out the will of the majority who are in favour. Could anybody imagine this rule reversed. Let us say that 35% voted for strike action and 65% against and the union went ahead with the action there would be cries of undemocratic, communist dictators, union barons holding the country and their own members to ransom and may more reactionary orations. This liability rule not only applies to this particular day of action it applies, unless there is a rule change, to all strikes in the future. ICTU and the IMPACT leadership should ignore the fact that a two thirds majority was not achieved and concentrate on the democratic will of the majority and go ahead with taking part in the strike. When the time comes that a 35% minority can dictate to the 65% majority then even by the limited democratic machinery of liberal democracy the word, democracy and its workings, must be called into question. Let us not forget the present capitalist system only pays lip service to democracy and only then when it suits the ruling class and their governmental puppets. Remember 65% is a far larger majority and therefore mandate than those who masquerade as government in the Dail have ever received.
Finally those unions who operate this ridiculous one sided two thirds rule should seriously consider revising their rule books. A simple majority of 50.5% should be adequate to call strike action, though this it could be argued is too close to call so let us say 53%. This would give clear daylight between those in favour of strike action and those oppossed. This rule amendment should apply to all unions, ICTU affiliated or not and whether the employers and government like it or not.
Joe Hill
This rule is a liability to any form of organised fight back and, noticibaly, is undemocratic. It is a liability because it is weighted towards the benefit of the employers who only need a 35% minority to vote against strike action thus cancelling out the will of the majority who are in favour. Could anybody imagine this rule reversed. Let us say that 35% voted for strike action and 65% against and the union went ahead with the action there would be cries of undemocratic, communist dictators, union barons holding the country and their own members to ransom and may more reactionary orations. This liability rule not only applies to this particular day of action it applies, unless there is a rule change, to all strikes in the future. ICTU and the IMPACT leadership should ignore the fact that a two thirds majority was not achieved and concentrate on the democratic will of the majority and go ahead with taking part in the strike. When the time comes that a 35% minority can dictate to the 65% majority then even by the limited democratic machinery of liberal democracy the word, democracy and its workings, must be called into question. Let us not forget the present capitalist system only pays lip service to democracy and only then when it suits the ruling class and their governmental puppets. Remember 65% is a far larger majority and therefore mandate than those who masquerade as government in the Dail have ever received.
Finally those unions who operate this ridiculous one sided two thirds rule should seriously consider revising their rule books. A simple majority of 50.5% should be adequate to call strike action, though this it could be argued is too close to call so let us say 53%. This would give clear daylight between those in favour of strike action and those oppossed. This rule amendment should apply to all unions, ICTU affiliated or not and whether the employers and government like it or not.
Joe Hill
Monday, March 23, 2009
RELIGION STILL THE OPIATE OF THE MASSES
I was interested to read in the March edition of the Catholic church magazine "alive" about a twelve year old girl supporting the pro-life stance on abortion using the youtube. The headline on page 16 read '12-yea-old Lia's oro-life talk a big hit on youtube'. The article went on to inform us triumphantly, 'Lia a twelve year old girl in Toronto, Canada, caused ructions in her school and has become a youtube sensation with a five minute pro-life talk'. The talk was part of a school topic which the school tried to talk the child out of on the grounds that it was 'too mature and controvercial', and that if she stuck to it she would be disqualified'. Her mother tried to talk her out of it but to no avail. In the end she relented saying "I really believe it's something that God put in her heart", does not sound much like talking her out of it . Much to the delight of the church Lia won the competition, after a great deal of comotion including one pro-life judge stepping down after she was initially disqualified. The rest of the panel then reversed their decision and declared her the winner.
What I can not understand is why a girl of twelve would choose such a subject without some form of brainwashing. Accepting that she is very academically advanced for her age, and this advancement should not be stifled, and given the state of the global economy would it not have been more appropriate to speak on something more topical, like the state of the world economy, which she could still have brought her religion into, after all did Jesus not kick out all the capitalists from the temple?, the very people who have caused the global economic crisis we are now witnessing. Of course this would not have gone down too well with the Catholic hierarchy, themselves pro-capitalist, and would perhaps not have been allowed to go out as her topic. A twelve year old girl, scientifically barely able to concieve, giving a talk on the de-merits of abortion does not ring true unless somebody, not divine intervention, was pulling the strings. In todays world it would have been expected that a twelve year old girl of such mental development would be more likely to speak about a womans right to choose, which would make more sense. One problem with this and that is the church would not approve but since when has this mattered to the planets twelve year olds?, unless some form of brainwashing has taken place.
It is perhaps time that the church, all religions and denominations, were stopped from filling childrens heads with something which may or may not have happened. It must be very confusing for children of impressionable ages coming out of one lesson on religion and then going into a class on Darwinism. You can not believe in both it is a total paradox and all the scientific evidence points to the correctness of Darwin.
There are other denominations of Christianity all equally guilty of the same system of brainwashing. The Protestant religion, for example decided to re-write the rules to suit the needs of a King who wanted a divorce and, more importantly, the new aspiring class in society the mercantile capitalists. If the original Bible was true how then can the re-written one with a few alterations be also true? Why, before the industrial revolution, was the Bible written in Latin which only the priests could understand? When it was decided that people needed to learn the basics of literacy they were tought to read selected pieces from the Bible, now written in English and other relavent languages. The reason for the need to read and write, very basic at that, was so they could understand how to operate the new machinery owned by the new industrialists. While learning to read and write they could brainwash themselves by learning from the Bible. The only day they got away from the eternal slavery of work was Sunday and guess what, to enable them to go to church. While at church these early proleterians, like their predecessors from feudalism, could learn how to be a poor man on this earth but be rich in the kingdom of heaven. If this was not programming not to question and accept their lot down here, that being poverty, what was?
Then we have our overpaid clergymen and in certain denominations women, who get paid a fortune to ensure this state of ignorance continues. However when the capitalist class found they could increase profits by making Sunday to all intents and purposes a "normal" day the fact that this was suppossed to be Gods day is conviniently forgotten, similar to all the other inconvinient things attached to religion which affects profits.
Marx was right with his description of "religion being the opiate of the masses" and the day it ceases to be is the day the capitalist system will disgard it.
Caoimhin
Dublin
What I can not understand is why a girl of twelve would choose such a subject without some form of brainwashing. Accepting that she is very academically advanced for her age, and this advancement should not be stifled, and given the state of the global economy would it not have been more appropriate to speak on something more topical, like the state of the world economy, which she could still have brought her religion into, after all did Jesus not kick out all the capitalists from the temple?, the very people who have caused the global economic crisis we are now witnessing. Of course this would not have gone down too well with the Catholic hierarchy, themselves pro-capitalist, and would perhaps not have been allowed to go out as her topic. A twelve year old girl, scientifically barely able to concieve, giving a talk on the de-merits of abortion does not ring true unless somebody, not divine intervention, was pulling the strings. In todays world it would have been expected that a twelve year old girl of such mental development would be more likely to speak about a womans right to choose, which would make more sense. One problem with this and that is the church would not approve but since when has this mattered to the planets twelve year olds?, unless some form of brainwashing has taken place.
It is perhaps time that the church, all religions and denominations, were stopped from filling childrens heads with something which may or may not have happened. It must be very confusing for children of impressionable ages coming out of one lesson on religion and then going into a class on Darwinism. You can not believe in both it is a total paradox and all the scientific evidence points to the correctness of Darwin.
There are other denominations of Christianity all equally guilty of the same system of brainwashing. The Protestant religion, for example decided to re-write the rules to suit the needs of a King who wanted a divorce and, more importantly, the new aspiring class in society the mercantile capitalists. If the original Bible was true how then can the re-written one with a few alterations be also true? Why, before the industrial revolution, was the Bible written in Latin which only the priests could understand? When it was decided that people needed to learn the basics of literacy they were tought to read selected pieces from the Bible, now written in English and other relavent languages. The reason for the need to read and write, very basic at that, was so they could understand how to operate the new machinery owned by the new industrialists. While learning to read and write they could brainwash themselves by learning from the Bible. The only day they got away from the eternal slavery of work was Sunday and guess what, to enable them to go to church. While at church these early proleterians, like their predecessors from feudalism, could learn how to be a poor man on this earth but be rich in the kingdom of heaven. If this was not programming not to question and accept their lot down here, that being poverty, what was?
Then we have our overpaid clergymen and in certain denominations women, who get paid a fortune to ensure this state of ignorance continues. However when the capitalist class found they could increase profits by making Sunday to all intents and purposes a "normal" day the fact that this was suppossed to be Gods day is conviniently forgotten, similar to all the other inconvinient things attached to religion which affects profits.
Marx was right with his description of "religion being the opiate of the masses" and the day it ceases to be is the day the capitalist system will disgard it.
Caoimhin
Dublin
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
The Permanent Crisis of Capitalism
As the world economic system staggers from crisis to crisis and the politicians try to tamper and reform the irreformable and come up with new words such as"recapitalisation" reffering to the banks it becomes increasingly more clear that they have not got a clue what to do. Workers are once again being asked to bail out a system by accepting pay reductions, pension levy's, another word for pay cuts, a system which in times of what passes for normality exploits them, denies them a sizable chunk of the wealth they have created under the name of profit, simply because the bourgeoisie have not got a clue what to do. The irony is the level of workers anger goes from mild indignation to radical protest, though still short at the moment of revolutionary fervour. Some workers have been heard to say we don't mind "paying our share" as long as everybody else does. This of course is the wrong argument and other workers take a more militant stance by stating the more radical view "why should we pay" which is somewhat more correct. Why should an already exploited proletariat bail out the ever hungry bourgeoisie out of the mess them and their imbecile system have got us all into? The answer is the working class should not bail the system out and our advice is don't. Instead of the ICTU unions calling one day strikes serious consideration should be given to calling an all out indefinate general stoppage. If the union leadership are unable, unwilling or both to give this lead then the proletariat should set up their own shop stewards committees over the heads of their collaborating leadership. Don't moan organise.
We are told there is going to be a "mini budget" in Ireland during April when those who masquerade as politicians will tamper with the system again, pretending to have some idea what they are dioing and fooling nobody. There is one thing they will not do, either through pretentions or reality, and that is question the validity of the capitalist economic system itself. They will never put it up to the exploiters of labour that it is their greed and constant pursuit of ever greater profits which are largely to blame for this mess. They will never critisise the theory of "perfect competition" of which there is very little if anything perfect about,just look around you. They certainly will not advocate complete nationalisation of the banks leading to one state controlled central bank, after all who needs all these small private banks? During the days of the Soviet Union, despite its grotesque distortions, did the State Bank of Moscow ever go bust? No it did not.
In the UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown keeps reliably informing us that the economy is in a problematic state because the problem is "global". If the British economy is in a state it may well be affected by the condition of international idiocity, capitalism, but this does not stop them spending millions of pounds per day waging war in other countries, Iraq and Afghanistan, fighting organisations they helped to put there in the first place. The United States are even more guilty of this crime, after all was it not them and, to a slightly lesser extent Britain, who supplied the mujaheddin when they were fighting the Soviet Union who, incidentally were there through invitation of the then socialist (of sorts) President of Afghanistan, and it was a CIA backed coup in Iraq 1978 which placed Saddam Hussein at the helm in that country. These operations and ventures tend to make a mockery of statements such as "there is no money" which we are now more than used to hearing.
What the 26 county government should be doing, but rest assured will not, is advocating a strong hands on economic policy based on planning. Drop the myth of perfect competition which sets firm against firm and therefore worker against worker, which it is designed to do and nationalise all large industry including the multinationals US or otherwise as well as indigenous companioes. It should be remembered that the profits of these multinationals are not calculated into the GDP of Ireland but the GNP of the sending country. This is money, like all wealth, is created through labour in Ireland and now Ireland needs that money therefore take it.
The Irish state are very good when it suits at remembering the 1916 leaders one of whom was a revolutionary marxist, James Connolly, yet they do everything which would have been an atithesis to everything Connolly stood for. After nationalisation all the means of production should be put under workers control and a system of production for the needs of the people as oppossed to the profit of the few adopted. Once again rest assured we will hear non of these sentiments from Brian Cowen (Biffo) in the budget, such a system will have to come from below, from the disspossesed working class through popular revolution the question is are we ready for such revolutionary change?
Kevin
IRSP Dublin
We are told there is going to be a "mini budget" in Ireland during April when those who masquerade as politicians will tamper with the system again, pretending to have some idea what they are dioing and fooling nobody. There is one thing they will not do, either through pretentions or reality, and that is question the validity of the capitalist economic system itself. They will never put it up to the exploiters of labour that it is their greed and constant pursuit of ever greater profits which are largely to blame for this mess. They will never critisise the theory of "perfect competition" of which there is very little if anything perfect about,just look around you. They certainly will not advocate complete nationalisation of the banks leading to one state controlled central bank, after all who needs all these small private banks? During the days of the Soviet Union, despite its grotesque distortions, did the State Bank of Moscow ever go bust? No it did not.
In the UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown keeps reliably informing us that the economy is in a problematic state because the problem is "global". If the British economy is in a state it may well be affected by the condition of international idiocity, capitalism, but this does not stop them spending millions of pounds per day waging war in other countries, Iraq and Afghanistan, fighting organisations they helped to put there in the first place. The United States are even more guilty of this crime, after all was it not them and, to a slightly lesser extent Britain, who supplied the mujaheddin when they were fighting the Soviet Union who, incidentally were there through invitation of the then socialist (of sorts) President of Afghanistan, and it was a CIA backed coup in Iraq 1978 which placed Saddam Hussein at the helm in that country. These operations and ventures tend to make a mockery of statements such as "there is no money" which we are now more than used to hearing.
What the 26 county government should be doing, but rest assured will not, is advocating a strong hands on economic policy based on planning. Drop the myth of perfect competition which sets firm against firm and therefore worker against worker, which it is designed to do and nationalise all large industry including the multinationals US or otherwise as well as indigenous companioes. It should be remembered that the profits of these multinationals are not calculated into the GDP of Ireland but the GNP of the sending country. This is money, like all wealth, is created through labour in Ireland and now Ireland needs that money therefore take it.
The Irish state are very good when it suits at remembering the 1916 leaders one of whom was a revolutionary marxist, James Connolly, yet they do everything which would have been an atithesis to everything Connolly stood for. After nationalisation all the means of production should be put under workers control and a system of production for the needs of the people as oppossed to the profit of the few adopted. Once again rest assured we will hear non of these sentiments from Brian Cowen (Biffo) in the budget, such a system will have to come from below, from the disspossesed working class through popular revolution the question is are we ready for such revolutionary change?
Kevin
IRSP Dublin
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