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15 October 2010

Strikes continue as French government defends pension cuts

By Alex Lantier, 15 October 2010

Strikes by workers and students continued in France yesterday, as the government refuses to retract its pension cuts, and high school students carried out mass protests against the reform.

How the NPA disorients the struggle against Sarkozy’s cuts

By Alex Lantier, 15 October 2010

Despite their efforts to appear “left” in demonstrations and on television, the NPA’s politics are not based on preparing mass industrial action by the workers against the government, but on tying protest actions to pro-business forces in the political establishment.

US jobless claims rise

By Barry Grey, 15 October 2010

The number of Americans filing first-time applications for unemployment benefits rose unexpectedly last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

Two officers convicted for killing 15-year-old Greek student

By John Vassilopoulos, 15 October 2010

Epaminondas Korkoneas was found guilty of murder and his partner guilty of accessory to murder, for the killing of 15 year-old Greek student Alexis Grigoropoulos on December 6, 2008.

Leading German politicians take up Thilo Sarrazin’s anti-Islamic campaign

By Justus Leicht and Peter Schwarz, 15 October 2010

Prominent German politicians, including the chancellor, Angela Merkel, have defamed those practising the Muslim faith, thereby challenging the fundamental right to freedom of faith and conscience.

French Constitutional Council approves burqa ban

By Kumaran Ira, 15 October 2010

On October 7, the French Constitutional Council approved the anti-democratic ban on wearing full-face veils, such as the burqa or niqab, in all public places.

Sri Lanka: Opposition front formed to protest Fonseka’s jailing

By K. Ratnayake, 15 October 2010

Opposition parties, supported by the ex-lefts of the NSSP and JVP, have staged protests against the jailing of Sarath Fonseka, former army commander and opposition presidential candidate.

Australia: Austerity agenda hidden as Victorian state election campaign begins

By Susan Allan, 15 October 2010

In the Victorian election campaign, as with the federal election, there will be no mention of the worsening global economic breakdown, or of cutbacks to social spending to rein in government debt.

Seattle Schools win federal grant for teacher merit pay

By Angelo Bosworth, 15 October 2010

The Obama administration has awarded $12.5 million to the Seattle Public Schools from the Teacher Incentive Fund, set up to promote merit pay and other teacher “performance-based” incentive schemes.

New in German

Massenproteste erschüttern französische Regierung

Von Alex Lantier, 15. Oktober 2010

Mehr als drei Millionen Arbeiter nahmen gestern an einem Streik gegen die Rentenreform des französischen Präsidenten Nicolas Sarkozy teil. Arbeiter in mehreren Industriezweigen stimmten für eine Verlängerung des Streiks.

Cheerleader für die AFL-CIO:

Die Pseudo-Linke und die Demonstration in Washington am 2. Oktober

Von Patrick Martin, 15. Oktober 2010

Gewerkschaften und Bürgerrechtler demonstrierten am 2. Oktober in Washington zur Unterstützung der Demokraten, und die kleinbürgerliche Linke in Amerika schloss sich ihnen an.

Neu im Mehring Verlag:

Historische Grundlagen der Partei für Soziale Gleichheit

Von Peter Schwarz, 15. Oktober 2010

Das nun in Buchform vorliegende Dokument dient dazu, die historischen Erfahrungen der Arbeiterbewegung einer neuen Generation nahezubringen. Es richtet sich an Menschen, die nach einer tragfähigen Perspektive suchen und sich nicht mit einfachen Antworten und oberflächlichen Parolen zufriedengeben.

New in French

France: Les questions politiques qui se posent dans la lutte contre la politique d'austérité de Sarkozy

Par Alex Lantier, 15 octobre 2010

L'opposition croissante à la politique d'austérité du président Nicolas Sarkozy ne peut trouver son expression politique que dans une rébellion de la classe ouvrière contre les syndicats et les partis bourgeois "de gauche".

France: Des manifestations de masse secouent le gouvernement

Par Alex Lantier, 15 octobre 2010

Plus de trois millions de travailleurs ont défilé mardi contre les coupes impopulaires dans les retraites , tandis que l'establishment craint une radicalisation des luttes des travailleurs qui risquent d'échapper au contrôle des syndicats.

France: Des millions dans la rue contre les coupes dans les retraites

Par Kumaran Ira, 15 octobre 2010

Le WSWS s'est entretenu avec des travailleurs de toute la France lors de la journée d'action du 12 octobre contre les coupes dans les retraites, mises en place par le président Nicolas Sarkozy.

Pour des Comités d'action et non le Front populaire

Par Leon Trotsky, 26 novembre 1935

Dans cet article, écrit lors de son exil en Norvège en 1935, Léon Trotsky présente la politique du « Front Populaire » en France, une coalition comprenant le Parti radical bourgeois, le Parti socialiste et le Parti communiste stalinien.

Other Languages

Perspective

The White House and the US mortgage racket

15 October 2010

The Obama administration has rejected calls for a moratorium on home foreclosures despite revelations that banks illegally processed mortgage documents to speed up the eviction of families and seizure of their homes.

Earlier Perspectives »

Socialist Equality Party

An important series of meetings in Berlin
American historian Alexander Rabinowitch to speak in Berlin

By Ulrich Rippert, 18 September 2010

Professor Alexander Rabinowitch, the renowned American historian, will hold a public lecture at the Humboldt University in Berlin in mid-October.

Sri Lankan shanty dwellers form committee to fight evictions

Indianapolis Auto Workers’ Struggle

More letters on the Indianapolis GM Stamping Rank-and-File Committee

15 October 2010

The WSWS urges workers and other readers to send letters of support and solidarity to the Indianapolis rank-and-file committee.

For a united movement of the working class to oppose concessions and job cuts!
An open letter from the Indianapolis GM Stamping Rank-and-File Committee

11 October 2010

The following appeal from the Indianapolis GM Stamping Rank-and-File Committee was sent to the World Socialist Web Site.

Full coverage of Indianapolis GM workers struggle »

Arts Review

The Social Network: “Dot-com” myth-making

By Kevin Kearney, 15 October 2010

The Social Network, directed by David Fincher (Se7en, Fight Club, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), recounts the rapid enrichment of Mark Zuckerberg, a young Internet businessman and disputed creator of Facebook.

Toronto International Film Festival 2010—Part 5
What does it mean to take reality seriously?

By David Walsh, 14 October 2010

Films from Iran, China and Romania, including a conversation with Iranian filmmaker Rafi Pitts, director of The Hunter.

Toronto International Film Festival 2010
ANPO: Art X War—Art and opposition in postwar Japan

By Lee Parsons, 14 October 2010

ANPO: Art X War, a remarkable documentary from first-time director Linda Hoaglund, deals with the mass opposition that erupted in Japan in 1960 to the continuation of the US military presence in that country.

History

For Committees of Action―Not the People’s Front
November 26, 1935

By Leon Trotsky

In this article, written from exile in Norway in 1935, Leon Trotsky exposed the politics of the “People's Front” in France, a coalition comprising the bourgeois Radical Party, the Socialist Party and the Stalinist Communist Party.

Mehring Books

Mehring Books featured titles
Whither France by Leon Trotsky and French Workers in Revolt by David Walsh

14 October 2010

Whither France by Leon Trotsky and French Workers in Revolt by David Walsh are two titles that give readers important insights into the political questions raised by the mass strikes now taking place in France.

Workers Struggles

Strikes erupt over public worker pay cut in Romania

15 October 2010

A spontaneous strike by employees of the finance ministry has turned into a major crisis for the government.

Workers Struggles: Europe, Middle East & Africa

15 October 2010

The World Socialist Web Site invites workers and other readers to contribute to this regular feature.

Commentary

Political issues in the struggle against Sarkozy’s cuts

14 October 2010

The rising opposition to French President Nicolas Sarkozy's austerity policies can find political expression only through a rebellion by the working class against the trade unions and the bourgeois “left” parties.

Chilean miners rescued after ten-week ordeal

By Patrick Martin, 14 October 2010

Both the resilience of the miners, trapped underground for 69 days, and the energy and determination of their rescuers, have won well-deserved admiration.

Demagogy and duplicity: The Democrats in the 2010 elections

13 October 2010

The Democratic Party is seeking to stave off an electoral defeat by making a last-minute, fraudulent appeal to popular hostility towards Wall Street and big business.

Nobel Peace Prize: Another exercise in political cynicism

SEP Election Campaign in Michigan

SEP candidate D’Artagnan Collier offers support to striking DSO musicians

By Lawrence Porter, 13 October 2010

D’Artagnan Collier, SEP candidate for the Michigan state legislature, spoke to Detroit Symphony Orchestra strikers and supporters at an October 10 concert.

Full coverage of the SEP election campaign in Michigan »

Science

Scientist awarded Nobel Prize for developing IVF treatment

By Chris Talbot, 13 October 2010

Robert Edwards has been awarded the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in recognition of his pioneering work in the technique of in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Partei für Soziale Gleichheit Founding Congress

The Historical Foundations of the Partei für Soziale Gleichheit

12 October 2010

Published here in PDF format is the document adopted by the Founding Congress of the Partei für Soziale Gleichheit (Socialist Equality Party) of Germany on May 23, 2010.

25 years
50 years
75 years
100 years

25 years ago: 80,000 Chrysler workers strike

On October 15, 1985, 80,000 Chrysler workers in the US and Canada went out on strike upon the expiration of the concessions contract put in place during the bailout of the number three North American auto maker. The strike began after Chrysler submitted new concession demands one day before the old contract’s expiration.

More »

50 years ago: Turkish military regime seeks death penalty for former PM, 500 others

The Turkish provisional government began the trial of major figures removed in the May 27 military coup, including President Celal Baylar and Prime Minister Adnan Menderes and more than 500 other members of the Democratic Party.

More »

75 years ago: Craft and industrial unionism collide at AFL conference

Tensions within the American Federation of Labor (AFL) came to a head this week in 1935, as the union's “old guard” clashed with a minority faction calling for industrial unionism during the federation's convention in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

More »

100 years ago: Martial law imposed on week-long French railway strike

French unions called off a crippling strike of railway workers on October 17, 1910, after Prime Minister Aristide Briand declared the strike a “revolt” and therefore subject to harsh state repression. Among other measures, Briand ordered a large military intervention, conscripted the striking railway workers into the army reserve, thus subjecting them to military discipline, and ordered the arrest of dozens of strike leaders and socialists.

More »

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