I Intend To Escape ......................And Come Back

Feeling Charitable?

The case for charity changing the world for the better is pretty weak. No matter how many more years of Comic Relief we are forced to endure, I can't help feeling Africa will look rather similar to how it looked when the campaign started.

Charity has become an industry like any other. The charity industry (much of it based in N1 or EC1) creates a fat, bloated bureacracy (both here and abroad) and stimulates corruption. I am unsure of the extent to which charity encourages dependency (who is going to come out and say it does?) but there can be little doubt that it encourages racism - if only because it shows the developing world, and in particular its elites, at their grasping worst. Finally, if charity worked - why do we hear so rarely of charities who have disbanded, their good work done?

Yet there is very little critique, from either Anarchist or Socialist currents, about charity as an industry, or charity as a concept. When we do hear something, it is often a sort of weak liberal praise, that appears to be speaking more in hope than expectation. Which leaves me to rely on The Spectator of 21 May for this gem of a quote:

"It is by no means clear why David Cameron believes that, in the middle of a fiscal crisis, he should extract a further £4 billion from us through the tax system and give the money to charities of his choice"

The Con-Dems decision to freeze government budgets, save for the NHS, was presumeably a mixture of political realism and the need to erect a smokescreen to deflect attention from their reforms in that field. The second department to see an increase in spending is - the Department for International Development. Such madness could almost be designed to foster sentiments along the lines of "Our local school has no money for X, yet we can spend money on schools in Pakistan"

I hesitate to call such sentiments racist, because I don't believe they are - they sound pretty much like fair comment - but you really wonder what goes through the Con-Dems minds when they establish such policies?

Class War Chanelled and Reinterpreted?

Way back in 2006, Robin Ramsay of Lobster magazine beautifully pulled the rug from under David Icke's feet.

Ramsay started with this quote from Icke in The Observer of 22 January 2006:

"In 1989, before the European elections, I was asked to go on Sky News. I went into make-up and sitting next to me was Ted Heath. He turned and scanned me and the whole of both his eyes went jet black. Was he part of the reptilian cabal? Absolutely."

Ramsay then added:

"1989 it should be noted, was two years before Icke had his encounter with the 'channeller' which began his journey towards the alien reptile thesis. He is reinterpreting his earlier life in the light, not of experience, but of his more recent beliefs"

I am reminded of the tendency for people to do the above, when reading the article by David Harvie about Class War on the Freely Associating blog. Harvie was one of those involved in Leeds Class War in the mid-1990s, and writes of the split in Class War in 1997:

"In short, we decided that Class War was incapable of making sense of the changed social and political terrain of Britain in the 1990s. It was incapable of understanding new movements, such as Reclaim the Streets and the anti-roads struggles more generally, not to mention the problematics and possibilities opened up by the Zapatistas."

I was as active as anyone in Class War in that period, and barely missed a London CW or national Federation meeting. It simply is not true to say that people fretted about 'the problematics and possibilities opened up by the Zapatistas'. The issues cited were not present in the debates at that moment in time. If anyone had wanted to hear about the anti-roads movement, they could have spoken to the London CW members active in Leytonstone in the campaign against the M11 link road.

David Harvie is reinterpreting his earlier belief, in the light of his more recent experiences. Rather like David Icke.

 

A Question For Anti-Fascist Historians

I am currently reading, and greatly enjoying, Diary of a Man In Despair by Friedrich Reck-Malleczewen. Regarded as the classic Conservative critique of Nazi Germany, the diary runs from the 1930s through to 1944, a few months before the author's execution in Dachau.

One particularly intriguing line raises an interesting nugget for those with an interest in anti-fascist history. On 9 September 1937, Fred Reck wrote of Munich:

"The outlying districts of Haidhausen and Giesing, Munich's lively and alley-filled versions of Whitechapel, have for some time been made unsafe by a group of adolescents banded together under the sign of the 'Red Anchor', who have launched a campaign of terror against all wearing Nazi uniforms. Providing one does not break the taboo against speaking north German dialect here, he can with a quiet heart traverse Giesing wearing a fur coat and top hat, and he will not be troubled - the 'Red Anchor' lays hands only on uniformed Nazis, and especially members of the SS. All this is in no wise to be dismissed as harmless rowdyism, since the 'Red Anchor' is said to be responsible for a number of killings". (p.65).

I have never heard of the Red Anchor. Such a description may fit with the Edelweiss Pirates, but the timescale is not really correct. Does anyone have any further information on anti-fascism in Munich in this period, and the Red Anchor in particular?

 

Last Day of the Season Shenanigans

I am a little surprised by all the talk of the sanctity of the Premiership, and how it is not credible to claim Manc hester United could field a weakened side against Blackpool at Old Trafford.

Lets rewind to 2006-7. On the final day United were at home to West Ham, with the Premiership won, and a Cup Final to look forward to the following week. The Premiership was paraded. West Ham needed a point to stay up, whilst rivals Sheffield United, with Neil Warnock moaning more loudly than ever, were at home to Wigan.

United fielded a weakened team, and missed a score of chances. As the teams came out for the second half, the Stretford End, having no love for barrow boys, demanded "Send them down, send them down" - United did nothing of the sort, West Ham winning 1-0, and Sheffield United were relegated. From my seat, United did not even try. The positive thing to come from that day was this You Tube classic

 

My tip for tommorow is a weakened United side, and Blackpool to gain a 1-1 draw.

British Islamism: Towards An Anarchist Response?

Libcom have published the article I wrote last year for Shift Magazine on British Islamism: Towards An Anarchist Response.  

Libcom being Libcom they cannot simply publish the article and allow people to make up their own minds, but have to preface it with the comment that "we do not agree with it but reproduce it as a contribution to discussion". I suppose I should feel lucky that I did not get the treatment Larry O'Hara did, where they bizarrely publish one of his pamphlets but preface it with the claim that it contains unproved assertions and wild speculation, and should be taken with a large pinch of salt. If Libcom really believe this, why publish such work? Other than ensuring that in search engines their critiques of X author or groups appear above the original, it is hard to see what their motivations are at times.

Anyway, a response from Libcom to my article arrives right on cue with Steven Johns "Anarchism and British Islamism: Putting Things In Perspective" which you can read here. As usual, comments on these issues are welcome.

Comments Policy?

I have never developed a formal comments policy for this site.

Comments that have been deliberately inaccurate or threatening to individuals have at times been removed - at other times they have not, as they sometimes tell you more about the author than anything else. I will continue to look at comments on an ad-hoc basis.

One of the downsides of blogging is that whilst the blogger goes on the record, as a named individual accountable for their own actions, those who comment are usually anonymous and frequently unknown to anyone else. Their motivations may range from the desire for an exchange of views, through to doing maximum political and personal damage to another individual or group. The distance and anonymity of the Internet can also encourage a combativity that would be unlikely in a face to face setting - an issue well known to anyone who crossed swords on the Libcom forums a few years back.

Over time I have grown more sympathetic to Ian Bone's view of 'never complain, never explain'. In Class War I was for many years a fanatical corrector of slurs and snidey comments against the Federation, but as Ian correctly points out, once you start doing that, you will never do anything else. It is interesting that the Stalinist school of falsification has prospered long after Stalinism itself. Reading certain posts and comments on Socialist Unity about Anarchists or at its worst Libcom on Class War or Libcom on Larry O'Hara, such method can be adopted by those who would normally run a mile from old school Stalinist political currents.

What I would encourage those who comment on this blog is to:

1. Keep the threats and abuse to a minimum
2. Try to make your comments shorter than the piece you are commenting upon
3. Avoid posting up scores of links to youtube clips and Google vids. It is one of the traits of the 9/11 truth movement - a link is believed to trump a concise argument. It does not.
4. Remember this blog is paid for and run by Mossad/New Labour/Zionist-Rothschildism/Me, and that all posts should be viewed in that light.

MMA Versus K1

I spent yesterday evening at the Kudzu Mixed Martial Arts and K1 Cage Fighting show in Epsom, Surrey.

It was a really well organised night, but reminded once again that MMA as a spectacle does not really do it for me. 11 fights were UFC style mixed martial arts contests, one a K1 rules kickboxing match, held in the cage. This was the best fight of the night.

Why? Because fights that go to the ground, and stay there, are simply not a great spectacle for the viewing spectator. The technique and fitness on display may be of a very high standard - but for me it does not work as much as stand up action.

A European Union Joke

There has not been many posts on here for a while as I have been away working in Brussels.

I have returned from that small but perfectly formed European city with several bottles of beer, and less commonly, a joke about the European Union. Here goes:

Henry Kissinger famously asked "Who do I call when I want to call Europe?". Knowing this, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Baroness Ashton, decided to address this failing when she met Hilary Clinton. At the end of their talk, she handed Hilary her business card. "When you want to call Europe, call me".

A few weeks later Colonel Gadaffi is about to send his troops into Misratah. With the President cool on intervention, Hilary reaches into her handbag and calls Europe. The phone rings - and rings. Then instead of Baroness Ashton's voice, the ansaphone comes on

"For the French position on Libya, please press 1. For the German position on Libya, please press 2. For the United Kingdom's position on Libya, please press 3..............

 

On Bin Laden's Death.....

Well, it is always nice to wake to good news.............

The death of Osama Bin Laden brings into focus what is, globally, a key question. In political terms, the Muslim world has been convulsed this year - not by Al Qaeda, not by jihad, not by the Taliban, but by rebellion across many of the Arab nations. In those uprisings Al Qaeda and its affiliates have played little or no role.

The extent to which the Arab spring is a movement for democracy is unclear. Traditionally Islam and democracy have not been bedfellows - it is no coincidence that broadly speaking the only permanent democracy in the Muslim world - Turkey - has been characterised by a structure designed to keep religion and government separate. Democracy requires plurality of practice and belief, not a system based on a book written in the seventh century.

Whatever is happening, a shift has occurred. Pakistan and Afghanistan suddenly appear a lot less important, ideologically, than Egypt or Tunisia. And that in a way illustrates Bin Laden's failure - those looking for political change may or may not want to build the type of societies we see in the West. It is very obvious however that the majority do not wish to see the society Bin Laden knew in Saudi Arabia, that he tried to build in Sudan, or that he did help build in Afghanistan. Such a society is being constructed in large parts of Pakistan - but like Bin Laden, it will be anathema.

Stalin's Diary

What better way to mark international workers day, then promoting Stalin's Diary?

This Wordpress blog gives us the low down on exactly what Stalin (plus Lenin, Trotsky and Mao) got up to in their heady days of exile in London. For the pedantic amongst you, I am informed that any inaccuracies concerning dates, spelling or grammar have occurred because this diary has been translated from Georgian into Russian and then into English.

Thank you Uncle Joe!