Rumpole of the Bailey (1975)

Slacking like a bad yin

Weekly Bulletin of The Socialist Party of Great Britain (82)

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the 82nd of our weekly bulletins to keep you informed of changes at Socialist Party of Great Britain @ MySpace.

We now have 1429 friends!

Recent blogs:

Obama: No real change

From poverty to power

The War in Gaza

Quote for the week:

"It is more dangerous to be a great prophet or poet than to promote twenty companies for swindling simple folk out of their savings." George Bernard Shaw, Misalliance, 1910.

Continuing luck with your MySpace adventures!

Robert and Piers

Socialist Party of Great Britain

6:06

Via the 101 Goals website, and from last night's Scottish League Cup semi final, one of the sweetest penalty kicks you'll ever have the privilege to witness. It occurs around about the six minutes six seconds mark in the clip and, believe or not, it was Boruc who was taking the spot kick.

What do you mean that he sliced it?

Flood for Celtic?

"Heartbreak for Flood, who had a terrific match, as his spot-kick clips the bar and sails over."

Final pieces in a couple of jigsaws?

Not surprised by this signing. It's been on the cards for a few days but I wonder if Benitez will live to regret not going for the signature himself?

Could Villa be genuine title contenders next season? They're on the up and up, whilst it could be argued that neither Arsenal nor Chelski will be as strong next season as they are this season or recent seasons past. Throw into the mix that if Liverpool do a bottle job this year, and that will scupper their chances for another couple of years. Could get interesting.

Villa to qualify for this year's Championship League. Arsenal of the big four to miss out.

Is now the right time that I remind blog readers that Villa were my favourite English team back in the early eighties? Just happened to coincide with their last League Championship and European Cup. Honest, I wasn't glory hunting. Just rather taken by that Tony Morley goal against Everton in their championship season.

To be honest, my flabber is ghasted by this signing also hitting the BBC Sport headlines today. Cracking player and a cracking signing for Hull City but I'm genuinely surprised no bigger club came in for Bullard. Man City should have thrown some spare change Fulham's way. If they can pay well over the odds for Bellamy and Bridge, signing Eric Stoltz's doppleganger would have been a tidy bit of business.

I'd love Hull to stay up despite their recent blip in firm but good bloke that Phil Brown is, I wish he wouldn't speak of himself in the third person. Who the hell does he think he is?

Shots across the world

Via the Boston Globe website, some amazing pictures from around the world documenting the impact of Tuesday's inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States.

A few of my favourites are reproduced below (click on the images to enlarge) but go to the website to check out all the images. Whatever your politics there's some powerful images on display.

Hat tip to Glynnis M.

"President-elect Barack Obama takes the oath of office from Chief Justice John Roberts to become the 44th President of the United States on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) "

"Residents of Kibera, one of the poorest quarters in Nairobi gather to watch the inauguration ceremony of US President Barack Obama in Nairobi on January 20, 2009. (YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP/Getty Images)"

"40 years after their silent protest at the 1968 Olympics, Gold Medalist Tommie Smith hugs Bronze Medalist John Carlos, and their wives Delois Smith and Charlene Carlos after Barack Obama is officially sworn in as the President of the United States. Photo taken in the Smith room at the Sheraton Boston in Boston, MA. (Boston Globe/Stan Grossfeld)"

Twisted sisters and a bandy legged brother*

Via Next Left Notes video footage of the IWW's March Against Wage Slavery on MLK Day:

"NEW YORK -- January 19, 2009. On Martin Luther King Jr Day 2009, the IWW rallied outside Starbucks' regional headquarters on Fifth Avenue before marching to Wild Edibles, to demand justice for the truck drivers who were fired by the food supplier after attempting to start a union. Along the way - the Rude Mechanical Orchestra provided the backbeat."

*The 'brother' bit is a sure indication that I've been watching far too much Celebrity Big Brother this year.

Pavement Dare

Weekly Bulletin of The Socialist Party of Great Britain (81)

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the 81st of our weekly bulletins to keep you informed of changes at Socialist Party of Great Britain @ MySpace.

We now have 1434 friends!

Recent blogs:

Five more benefits of not having money

Reformist dead–ends

Peace in Palestine

Coming Events:

Tuesday 20 January, 8pm

WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THAILAND?

Chiswick Town Hall, Heathfield Terrace, W4.(nearest tube: Chiswick Park)

Wednesday 21 January, 8.30pm

BANKS, BOOM AND BURST.

Speaker: Vic Vanni

Community Central Halls, 304 Maryhill Road, Glasgow.

Saturday 24 January, 3pm to 5pm.

PUBLIC DEBATE: DID TROTSKY POINT THE WAY TO SOCIALISM?

Yes: Hillel Ticktin, editor of Critique; No: Adam Buick, Socialist Party.

Hillhead Public Library, Byres Road, Glasgow. (next to Hillhead subway)

Saturday 24 January, 12 noon to 4pm

EAST ANGLIAN REGIONAL BRANCH MEETING

12pm informal chat, 1pm meal, 2pm to 4pm Discussion

The Conservertory, back room of Rosary Tavern, Rosary Road, Norwich.

Monday 26 January, 8.30pm

‘IS A WORLD OF ABUNDANCE FEASIBLE?’

Unicorn, Church Street, Manchester City Centre.

Saturday 31 January, 6pm

Film: ZEITGEIST ADDENDUM

Socialist Party Head Office, 52 Clapham High St, London SW4.

Quote for the week:

"Money is a new form of slavery, and distinguishable from the old simply by the fact that it is impersonal – that there is no human relation between master and slave." Leo Tolstoy, What shall We Do Then? 1886

Continuing luck with your MySpace adventures!

Robert and Piers

Socialist Party of Great Britain

Socialist Party Debate: Did Trotsky Point The Way To Socialism?

Hat tip to Fraser for the poster.

2 minutes 38 seconds in

Woody Allen will be using that line in his next film.

H'Elland Road

You can't get the novel in the States so I'll just have to wait for the film . . . and then, of course, the book will be published in the States as a movie tie in. That figures.

After playing Tony Blair twice - on both the small screen and the big screen - Michael Sheen's just happy that he finally got to play the part of a Labour Party supporter.

Btw, any chance of Denise Mina working on the follow up to Peace's book, 'Jock Stein - was it 44 or 45 days?'?

Addendum

Impossibilist Bill penned a review of the novel on his blog a couple of years back. Jump over to see what I'm havering on about.

Quote of the Day

. . . even if it is from an article from last Tuesday:

" As Charlie Brooker – one of the first people to donate to the Atheist Bus Campaign – says: "Public transport in Britain suggests there isn't a God anyway, but in case anyone hasn't noticed, or feels isolated for thinking such a thing, this campaign should help."

All arising out of the Atheist Bus publicity campaign, which has never previously been mentioned on the blog because I've set my heart on going underground.

Counting Down 6 - 4 - 2

Weekly Bulletin of The Socialist Party of Great Britain (80)

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the 80th of our weekly bulletins to keep you informed of changes at Socialist Party of Great Britain @ MySpace.

We now have 1430 friends!

Recent blogs:

Education, politics and language

Changing the System

The Price of Everything

Coming Events:

Saturday 10 January, 6pm

DID YOU ENJOY YOUR CHRISTMAS?

Speaker: Jim Lawrie

Socialist Party Head Office, 52 Clapham High St, London SW4 (nearest tube: Clapham North)

Tuesday 20 January, 8pm

WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THAILAND?

Chiswick Town Hall, Heathfield Terrace, W4.(nearest tube: Chiswick Park)

Wednesday 21 January, 8.30pm

BANKS, BOOM AND BURST.

Speaker: Vic Vanni

Community Central Halls, 304 Maryhill Road, Glasgow.

Saturday 24 January, 3pm to 5pm.

PUBLIC DEBATE: DID TROTSKY POINT THE WAY TO SOCIALISM?

Yes: Hillel Ticktin, editor of Critique; No: Adam Buick, Socialist Party.

Hillhead Public Library, Byres Road, Glasgow. (next to Hillhead subway)

Saturday 24 January, 12 noon to 4pm

EAST ANGLIAN REGIONAL BRANCH MEETING

12pm informal chat, 1pm meal, 2pm to 4pm Discussion

The Conservertory, back room of Rosary Tavern, Rosary Road, Norwich.

Monday 26 January, 8.30pm

‘IS A WORLD OF ABUNDANCE FEASIBLE?’

Unicorn, Church Street, Manchester City Centre.

Saturday 31 January, 6pm

Film: ZEITGEIST ADDENDUM

Socialist Party Head Office, 52 Clapham High St, London SW4.

Quote for the week:

"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. The world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children." Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1953, a speech to the American Society of Newspaper Editors.

Continuing luck with your MySpace adventures!

Robert and Piers

Socialist Party of Great Britain

Manchester Branch - So much to answer for

Via the SPGB's discussion forum comes the questions from the quiz at the 2008 Manchester Branch Social:

1. 'Look around the mountains, in the mud and rain,/ You'll find the scattered crosses, some that have no name./ Heartbreak and toil and suffering gone,/ The boys beneath them slumber on.'

Which song?

2. What is the origin of the word 'boycott'?

3. Which Party member had a picture of Marx on his wall and told Special Branch it was Johannes Brahms?

4. With which industrial dispute is the song 'Which Side Are You On?' associated?

5. From which novel is the following exchange taken?

'... you sound just like my old man.'
'Is he a socialist?' Reid asked. He sounded incredulous. 'Lifelong SPGB member,' I said.

'SPGB? Oh, brilliant!' Reid said.

'What's the SPGB?' Myra asked.

6. Who killed Hattie Carroll, and when?

7. Which current Party branch (excluding Central Branch) is the longest-surviving?

(a) under the same name

(b) allowing for changes of name

8. What is 2807 Karl Marx?

9. Who or what is the Spartak Moscow football club named after?

I've been out the mix too long. Off the top of my head - and without resorting to google - I think I know two four of the answers.

They're promising the answers tomorrow, and I'll post them in the comments box alongside my excuses.

For my next trick, I'll be solving cryptic crosswords . . .

Bill Shankly Socialism T Shirt update

I was (half) right. Quick blogsearch reveals that it was Sheridan who was wearing the T shirt in the CBB house:

"Tommy has already been using the show to promote his left-wing beliefs.

Yesterday he wore a sweatshirt with legendary Liverpool boss Bill Shankly's famous socialism quote.

His jumper read: "The socialism I believe in is everybody working for the same goal and everybody having a share in the rewards.

"That's how I see football, that's how I see life." (Via The Sunday Mail)

Philosophy Football will be minted after that wee plug from TS.

Hunting four Shankly

Has Bill Shankly died or something?

The sitemeter keeps throwing up hits from people who've found the blog via typing in 'bill shankly t shirt socialism' into the google search engine. Poor bastards are looking for this, but instead they're stumbling across this past doggerel from the vaults of the blog.

Yes, I did have the t shirt - the long sleeved version - and rather than it making the intended everyman political statement, it looked more like I was going to a fancy dress party dressed as a post box.

A Thought

What's the odds that either Tommy Sheridan or Terry Christian have been talking about or wearing the Shankly socialist T shirt in the Celebrity Big Brother Household? I'm guessing the former as Sheridan's a hun by all accounts and TC is a Man Utd supporter.

Warning to the Saturday Kids: Don't look yourself up on blogsearch. It can cause heartache

I really didn't think through the ramifications of my going into light blogging mode for the month of December.

If I'd known he was going to take the discontinuation of the blog's PaulWellerMonth so badly, I wouldn't have let the posts fester in draft.

Luckily a young lady was on hand to help Paul find the beach under the pavement.

More on Paul Weller's 'When in Prague, do as Jaroslav Hašek would have done' moment via the Daily Mail getting all snotty and moralising on pages 1,3,4 & 7.

A man of great promises

Whatever happened to PaulWellerMonth?

Apologies. Some great ideas in the planning stages stymied by some bogus excuses and maybe attempted again sometime after I complete the promised RickParfittMonth.

Itty Bitty Titty Committee (2007)