As I write this, I’m on a train to Sheffield, playing with WordPress on my phone. Which, I think, shows how far we’ve moved from the days of bearded radicals hand-writing pamphlets in a candle-lit basement. (I exaggerate somewhat.) It also offers me the flimsiest of excuses to write about the use of social networks … Read more
Filed under Anarchism · Tagged with facebook, organisation, activism, Twitter, blog, campaigning, grassroots, politics, social networks, face to face, email, internet, phones, medium for a message, taking over your life, life beyond the internet
There are innumerable hurdles in trying to build and maintain the momentum of a strong, libertarian, workers movement. From the fact that the first signs of success (or even visibility) with such a movement bring instant state attention and repression to the fact that there will always be far more people willing to sympathise with … Read more
Filed under Anarchism, Debate and discourse · Tagged with Anarchism, anarchist, unite against fascism, front groups, libertarian, Leninism, Trotskyism, Socialist Party, Socialist Workers' Party, Alliance For Workers' Liberty, Radical Workers Bloc, revolutionary leadership, Right to Work, Stop the War Coalition, Love Music Hate Racism, Campaign Against Climate Change, Globalise Resistance, Defend Council Housing, Youth Fight for Jobs, No2EU, Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition, Education not for Sale, Feminist Fightback, Workers Climate Action, No Sweat, sectarian, Liverpool Antifascists, Stop Racism and Fascism, Manchester AFA, Scottish Anti-Fascist Alliance, FAU, tail-ending the left, marginalisation, heckling from the sidelines, organising, educate agitate organise, demobilise from above
The fourth part of a series exploring anarcho-syndicalism, its aims and principles, and the practicalities of enacting them in the real world. There is one principle that organised workers of different tendencies all agree on. Ask trade unionists, syndicalists, anarcho-syndicalists, communists, and socialists of any stripe, and you’ll get the same answer. Never cross the … Read more
Filed under What is anarcho-syndicalism? · Tagged with an injury to one is an injury to all, anarcho-syndicalism, blackleg, Canadian anti-scab legislation, class consciousness, class traitor, crossing picket line, demobilised workers, Jack London, making amends for crossing the picket line, mass participation, organisation, organise the unemployed, picket line, rank-and-file control, scab jobs, scabs, solidarity, strike breakers, strike funds, Thatcher's children, the longer the picket line the shorter the strike, unemployed, United Auto Workers, Viggo Mortensen, war of ideas, workers assembly
A few days ago, human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell gave a speech to the Sex and Law Conference in Sheffield, where he called – not for the first time – for the age of consent to be lowered to 14. This is a controversial issue, but also one where I am broadly on Tatchell’s side, … Read more
Filed under Debate and discourse · Tagged with rape, sex, Peter Tatchell, Sex and Law, age of consent, 16, 14, teenagers, sex education, homosexuality, paedophilia, pederasty, STIs, unwanted pregnancy, sexual predators, consensual sex, Peter Hitchens, David Lindsay, religious wingnuts, abuse
On his recent visit to Britain, Pope Benedict XVI brought with him a stark warning; As we reflect on the sobering lessons of the atheist extremism of the Twentieth Century, let us never forget how the exclusion of God, religion and virtue from public life leads ultimately to a truncated vision of man and of … Read more
Filed under Religion · Tagged with terrorism, Imperialism, Religion, secularism, Noam Chomsky, atheism, faith, reactionary, Pope Benedict XVI, atheist extremism, New Atheism, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, Christopher Hitchens, moderation, social movement, faith-centric worldview, Johann Hari, superstition, Rational Response Squad, Blasphemy Challenge, talking shops, discrimination against atheism, neo-liberal, Iraq War, torture, nuclear first strike, rationalism, skepticism, politics defined by atheism
Amongst British antifascists, particularly those of an anarchist leaning, there has been considerable debate over the English Defence League (EDL). Specifically, over the nature of the beast and whether “fascist” is an appropriate label for them. If not – what is, and why? I have been meaning to write on this topic for quite some … Read more
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The third part of a series exploring anarcho-syndicalism, its aims and principles, and the practicalities of enacting them in the real world. Although it isn’t limited to workplace struggles as traditional syndicalism is, industry remains an important battleground for anarcho-syndicalism. After all, it is here that the working class create the wealth of the world, … Read more
Filed under What is anarcho-syndicalism? · Tagged with mikhail bakunin, trade unions, IWW, Russian Revolution, anarcho-syndicalism, anarchist communism, revolutionary unionism, Paris Commune, Spanish Revolution, bureaucracy, Kronstadt, Solidarity Federation, Starbucks union, FAU-B, ZSP, casualisation, workers' self-organisation, general strike, scabs, disposable workforces, workers' assemblies, mass meetings, industrial disputes, bread-and-butter issues, striving for the impossible
My article on anarcho-primitivsm, written in May, has of late sparked some quite interesting debate. In particular, a commenter called Cecil Curry has posted a lengthy response which has also appeared on his blog, Mysidian Dreams. Especially as it claimed to put forward an argument I had failed to address, I thought that this deserved … Read more
Filed under Anarchism, Debate and discourse · Tagged with Anarchism, Capitalism, markets, climate change, Vietnam, anarchist communism, war, anarcho-primitivism, John Zerzan, Jason Godesky, Cecil Curry, Mysidian Dreams, industrial civilisation, unsustainable, population growth, humanity, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Fallujah, sustainable alternatives, housing
It is, perhaps, the most vague and ill-defined term in sociopolitical discourse. At the same time, it’s one of the most commonly used. It can be everything from a badge of honour to the most callous insult. Something which defines your economic status or destroys your street cred. The term I’m talking about is “middle … Read more
Filed under Debate and discourse · Tagged with Anarchists, working class, class war, Howard Zinn, Vladimir Lenin, vanguard of the proletariat, Socialist Workers' Party, Solidarity Federation, Anarchist Federation, middle class, middle England, Daily Mail, Guardian, left-wing, student, liberal, Marxist, Trotskyite, Ian Bone, Radical Workers Bloc, Liberal Democrats, splitter, Libcom.org, Joseph Kay, revolutionary leadership, bourgeois
Charity, defined biblically, is an unlimited loving kindness towards others. It’s a virtue, and one that is recognised far beyond the Christian faith. After all, who could argue that giving to those less fortunate is wrong? Anarchist communism would seem to be precisely the philosophy that encourages charity. The basic mantra of “from each according … Read more
Filed under Debate and discourse · Tagged with Capitalism, mutual aid, radicalism, IWW, the Commune, reformism, anarchist communism, Spanish Revolution, PCS, Liverpool Solidarity Federation, LibCom, cooperatives, charity, Infoshop, Molly McClure, solidarity, Big Society, David Cameron, Merseyside Anarchists, Rolling Thunder, CrimeThinc, credit unions, workers collectives, abolish wage slavery, fire your boss, self-managed exploitation, libertarian communism, politicians, community organisation, vultures