Comment on Kraft takeover of Cadbury

curly wurlys aren't as big as they used to be writes; The rather confused stance of 'The Evening Post' on neo-liberalism and the local economy were given another outing today as the Kraft takeover hits the headlines. Today's editorial stance seems to be: as the previous British owners were gonna close down the Somerdale Plant in Keynsham anyway, the Kraft takeover doesn't matter. In fact, the Post seems to be relishing the fact that The Old Directors will be out of a job - a rare bit of class warrorism from editor Mike Lowe. However, if the plant still closes, you can guarantee it won't be the Directors who will be hit the hardest. The Evening Post, if you have only just arrived in Bristol, ran a 'Save Somerdale' Campaign when redundancies were first announced in 2007. Of course, Local Newspapers advocacy of local economic protectionism is undermined by their (largely unspoken) support of free market Capitalism in general:Capitalists can close down factories, offices banks etc., anywhere, except in our own backyard. Full article.

| sourcewatch.org on Kraft | Socialism for the rich and capitalism for the poor (wikipedia.org) |

Bristol Antifa gatherers to honour murdered anti fascists

Fred of Bristol Antifa writes; Antifa holds memorial for murdered anti fascists... Today, on Sunday 17th January 2009, Bristol and Czech anti-fascists gathered beneath the Spanish Civil War memorial in Castle Park to honour these fallen comrades. Like others before them, they have paid the ultimate price for their beliefs. We will never forget the debt we owe to every one of these men and women who gave their lives in defence of freedom. But we do no justice to these heroes simply with words and monuments. While the cancer of fascism threatens, we will continue to attack and destroy it. And we will not stop until the disease is obliterated. Even as we remember our fallen, we resolve to fight harder for the future. Our message to the fascists is simple and defiant - YOU SHALL NOT PASS! Full article.

| http://www.bristolantifa.org/ | Antifa Benefit Gig; Sat 23rd Jan |

Entry £2/£3 (but nobody refused entry for a lack of funds.)

Now in it’s third year, Bristol Fawcett Society and Bristol Feminist Network’s Representation of Women in the Media project is inviting the Bristol public to explore and investigate the ways in which women are portrayed in the media, and to discover more about how women are represented, misrepresented or unrepresented in the media in 2009. We have looked at how women are represented in magazines, in films, on TV, on the radio, in the newspapers and in sport. We have explored the issues surrounding gender representation in children's media, from games to books, and we have asked questions about the way black and minority ethnic women are represented in magazines and newspapers. Sick of the way women are airbrushed to create an unrealstic view of women's bodies and faces, we took to the streets and protested against the use of airbushing in the media, and fought against sexist and unhelpful problem page columns... Full article.

| Bristol Indymedia Film Night: Women and the Media | Cube Cinema - directions | www.bristolfeministnetwork.com | www.bristolfawcett.org.uk |

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"Let's not beat around the bush; the radical left needs to wake up and treat these people like the fascists they are...The BNP and Islam4UK are two sides of the same hateful coin"

On the eve of radical fundamentalist group 'Islam4UK' being banned, Matt Banning writes; In recent weeks a lot has been made in the media of the antics of the far-right Muslim group 'Islam4UK'. Islam4UK are a pro-Sharia group who advocate the turning of Britain into an oppressive Muslim state. They advocate capital punishment, flogging for public drunkenness, and a whole raft of other oppressive policies, and have as one of their many slogans: “Freedom go to hell”. The group has recently proposed a demonstration in Wootton Bassett (the town where British war dead are repatriated), ostensibly to commemorate Afghan and Iraqi casualties in the two ongoing military occupations, but in reality they are just using it as a chance to publicise their deplorable fascist views (whilst great care must be taken when bandying about this much-abused phrase, in terms of Islam4UK's strong authoritarian slant, advocacy for a strong police state, and excessive punishment for minor crimes and acts of dissent, we feel the term is justified). While the reactionary forces of white nationalism have been quick to condemn the march and use it as a justification for their racist viewpoints, the radical left has been characteristically silent for fear of being labelled Islamophobic. It is with this silence in mind that we have decided to pen this open letter outlining why it is the duty of the radical left to oppose bigotry and injustice in all its forms, including Islam4UK and other far right Muslim groups... (Image: Radical fundamentalists protest against the Danish cartoons in London, February 2006) Full article.

| Islam4UK and the Silence of the Left | Wildcat strikes - an open letter to the anarchist/anti-authoritarian movement |

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