More on Brexit
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A useful read
https://libcom.org/blog/brexit-or-not-workers-have-their-own-battles-fight-25032019
“…the whole issue is diverting attention from the dire situation experienced by the working class…”
I agree Robbo. A class based analysis elucidates a debate between capitalists over the best way to manage the socio-economic conditions in their interests.
The political messages at the surface level are what most workers engage with, European Internationalism/Liberalism versus British Protectionism. What is amusing in my eyes is that both political messages hide the opposite economic fundamentals. The EU has fundamentally protectionist economic institutions, whilst the ERG types support opening up British businesses and the British Labour market to a large scale devaluation, not a shoring up.
This I suppose is the difference between right wing brexiteers and left wing Eurosceptics, leaving the EU to degrade or elevate the economic conditions of workers in Britain respectively. The issue is that this left wing eurosceptism presumes that British workers deserve better material conditions than workers overseas, and also presumes that it is even possible for “revolution” to be achieved by one “working class” in isolation. It is as if capifalist businesses will just follow suit and operate only in one country. In response to this you often read of Unions of Socialist Republics, but I’d sooner sell snow to the inuits. To me, it all just smells of a nostalgia for the past, where in their eyes there was a more tangible class struggle before joining the EEC. Of course, it doesn’t really matter if it’s tangible or not, and if it isn’t, you’ve probably failed to move with the times (Excuse my rambling).
Either way, Brexit is a converse opportunity to break and be distinct from an unpopular capitalist binary. There appear to be no illusions that a “socialist” controlled EU, “socialist” british State or “Union of Socialist States” can change the inherent realities for workers under capitalism. Many voted for Brexit due to nationalistic tendencies and anti austerity sentiment (perhaps both) but I guess it’s our cause to insist upon capitalism as being the biggest problem for workers.
I suppose it is worth self reflecting that a lot of workers may not easily engage with what I just wrote. The task then must be condensing it down and having further material there for those whose attention we do manage to attain.
Although the line I included about “opening up British businesses” is not really what I meant, a tired sentence.
Logical follow-up to James Heatfield’s nationalistic defence of Brexit at that meetimng I went to in New Cross last month. Clare Fox, another ex-RCP Trotskyist, is standing for the Brexit Party:
Sturgeon pledges another independence referendum by May 2021
Brexit will be the spur that changes the outcome from 2014 according to political analysts
So the Brexiteers accomplished something unintended – the possible break up of the UK…. First it was the Irish border backstop…
Isn’t it time for the England’s shires to hold their referendum on leaving the UK?
And London to become an independent city-state?
If the UK withdraws from the EU and Scotland withdraws from the UK and joins the EU then there’d have to be border controls on trade between Scotland and England. Unless there’s a Scottish backstop … This could go on till we get socialism by which time the British capitalist class could well have put Cameron on trial for high treason for breaking up the UK (Wales won’t breakaway because there aren’t enough Welsh-speakers there) — mind you, the LibDems also supported that referendum because like him they thought they’d win.
Lesson for the capitalist class: don’t let the working class vote on your trade policy, just do it.
I’ve not seen any comment yet on the irony of the party projecting itself as the main one in favour of Remain calling themselves the Change Party when what they want is No Change.
This is quite a good side show. Better than some of the soaps on tv.
It certainly would be amusing for Brexit to be the catalyst of the UK’s break up.
In the short term, there are going to be a lot of parties standing in the prospective EU election who will be splitting their own vote.
Brexit (by the way have you seen about Anne Widdecombe…) and UKIP
LibDem, ChangeUK, Green and the SNP (on Europe anyway)
The two major parties are also taking a relatively similar stance in the grand scheme of things, but it appears to be very contested on a political level. I suppose it always will be where political power and domestic profitability are at stake!
I wonder whether this multi party election – especially given that it’s PR – will be fruitful or tricky ground for the SPGB at a prospective EU election, going by your experience?
Actually, while competing Remain parties may reduce the number of seats Remain get it will increase the number of votes. This because some people might not vote for a unity candidate, e.g a Green not vote for Change or Change for a Nationalist. If the Remainers want to use the elections as a proxy referendum, fielding separate lists would be the intelligent strategy. It’s probably because they are not used to PR elections that they haven’t realised this. Anyway, if the elections actually take place, expect arguments over who won. It will be “we won because we got more seats” versus “we won because we got more votes”.
As to us and PR elections, it depends on what sort of PR. The one for the European elections is based on voting for party lists. In one sense this suits us as people are voting for parties and not individuals so, as we put it, “for the case not the face”. The other PR system, the Single Transferable Vote, which is used in local elections in Northern Ireland and Scotland, is fairer from the point of view of pure democratic theory, is more problematic for us as we would have no control over our second, third, etc preference votes.
We say we only want people to vote for us if they agree with us (and on occasions have told me not to vote if they don’t fully agree with us) and so would want people to express only a first preference vote. But we know that in practice this won’t happen: those who voted for us first will express other preferences, using them to votes for the Greens or a leftwing Labour candidate or even a Trotskyist (could be embarrassing too if the second preference went to the Natural Law Party). Would we regard these as votes for socialism? Depends on how purist you want to be.
Do you pick further preferences in the EU election? I can’t remember. Are there any elections where you have to pick other preferences, or is it always optional?
Where a first preference vote has been cast we convinced a voter that we are the party most representing their interests? Their other preferences would be recorded in second or even third seperate ballot? Of course if a majority was achieved these may not even be counted? And of course if they only select one preference, which is ideal I suppose.
I’m not sure on the intricacies of all of these elections but some may well fill in the other boxes just because they can. I don’t think it should detract too much, voting for us as a first preference would show class consciousness in my eyes.
I have heard the South East may be contested, are there any other branches considering contesting? Or will this all be decided at the Conference and after?
I’m aware the election is not confirmed, but the electoral commission are already advertising it as a reason to register to vote.
“I have heard the South East may be contested, are there any other branches considering contesting? Or will this all be decided at the Conference and after?”
See here, James.
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