Pessimism or Hope
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Now ADM is over members and the workshop on producing key messages to assist communication has raised some suggestions, can I do my usual doom and gloom which you all dread hearing.
Our Austrian companion party became reformist and departed
Our Australian companion party disappeared
Our Swedish group disappeared
Our Jamaican group disappeared
Our Gambian group disappeared
Our Irish companion party is mothballed
Our Ukrainian group was a fraud
Our Kampala group in Uganda was a fraud
An expelled group of members still adhering to the Declaration of Principles seeks no reconciliation and refuses to have anything to do with us nor are they willing to share their resources of Party archive material.
Our existing companion parties are hanging on but are not in a particularly healthy state.
WSPUS (with its centenary approaching) had its website crash and only now being restored. The WSPNZ produced a new website and acquired a new e-mail address yet the WSM webpage for over two years still linked to the old one which I think reflects a lack of interest. The SPC website requires a good update, lacking even a search facility. The WSP(India) exists as one branch of a handful of comrades in Kolkata in a country where the population is over a billion.
Optimism for a growth of socialist ideas in Africa now seems premature now consisting of a few individuals and our African themed blog, although kept regularly updated, has no African-based contributor. We have i think one or two members in Latin America. A scattering of members throughout Europe but no longer receiving input from Denmark or Germany when at one time we did. A few isolated ex-pats in Asia.
Within the SPGB where at one time the majority of branches met weekly, (along with the EC) most now do so monthly or bi-monthly. Branches have been fused into regional branches to be viable entities, while quorums have been reduced to permit some branches to function. A once active branch declined to stand a candidate for the last election. We face difficulties to fill vacancies in our committees. The last new pamphlet was in 2010 (mitigated, I grant you, by the fact that we are now regularly uploading many videos of our public meetings and party talks to the web.) Sales of our literature is not increasing nor are outlets for purchase expanding. Our blog has light traffic and significantly even members do not visit it as often as they could. Many members still seem reluctant to interact online and a few seemingly deliberately desisting from engaging on our main discussion forum, which includes Party officers and members of committees, which means they are not receiving fellow members feedback and/or criticism.
Can someone offer a glimmer of hope that is not wishful thinking but actually shows an upswing?
Exactly, Alan. Which is why the SPGB cannot afford any longer to to continue as it has been doing. Amongst other things, it needs to fundamentally rethink its stand on a number of its policies and I wont say more than that for fear or risking the ire of some rather touchy members. People will know what I am talking about and I've said it often enough…But to be a bit more positive, there has been one proposal that has been bandied about from time to time, which has never really been taken up but which, I think, could make a bit of a difference , That is to create a kind of internet based socialist research centre which could over time become (hopefully) a widely referenced source of information, conveniently packaged from a socialist point of view. Those members who are presently reluctant to be physically active might well be inclined to contribute in this way.My late brother, Andy, had in fact started on something like this (see his website http://andycox1953.webs.com/database1.htm) Its an idea worth considering and could possibly help to improve the prospects of the Party a little.
Before anything can be changed there are a number of mental obstacles in order of descending significance1. The working-class are not interested, all efforts and potential efforts or suggestions are futile, forget about growth.2. The party needs to keep doing what it is doing, keep calm and carry on, wait and see.3. Everything the party does is a matter of principle and not strategy so cannot be altered. The case not the face? Iron principle! Ballot spoiling? Principle!
jondwhite wrote:How should the hostility clause be interpreted?As it was meant to be interpreted. Opposition to parties seeking to run capitalismIt should not be interpreted to mean hostility to individuals withe differing opinions such as Brand or workers taking to the streets to protest against capitalist attacks on them.We stand for socialism, we are not hostile to workers struggles under capitalism
alanjjohnstone wrote:Can someone offer a glimmer of hope that is not wishful thinking but actually shows an upswing?The party's twitter account is growing fast – 700 followers in April and 2272 today six months later
Another thread for Private Fraser, Cassandra, Jeremiah and Moaning Minnie but:this might prevent a few suicides:http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/forum/world-socialist-movement/are-physical-meetings-best-form-democratic-control-2015?page=5#comment-26497
Since the website was modernised visits have been increasing at a rate of at least 40% per year.This site went live on October 16th 2011 and between that date and October 15th 2012 the amount of sessions served was 204,583This year between October 16th 2014 and October 15th 2015 the amount was 631,997.That's a growth of 209%
ALB wrote:Private Fraser, Cassandra, Jeremiah and Moaning MinnieForgot about that one, Alb! There's a #4 for jondwhite's list in post #44. Anyone who criticises the way the SPGB does things is a shit stirring, moaning minnie.
Alan, itis something we cannot ignore at a time when we should be attracting interest.. Members and sympathisers are seen as shit stirrers for suggesting that we need to change.I mentioned the 'reemergence of Marxism' as a handle but i was moderated We are a class based party in the midst of an horrific period of class strugge. Did our euro-election video reflect this? It was more like a religious plea for peace and cooperation. Do we want peace and cooperation or do we want to take on the class war? Another problem is how some members interpret the 'hostility' clause.Our own members are attacked for not saying the right things (BBC)Have another look at the life of Brian. We should not be enemies of the working class just because they have made a decision to oppose poverty under capitalism.As an ex comrade wrote:In all battles between the capitalist class and the working class the Socialist Party is firmly on the side of the working class.How can we say this is true today?
DJP wrote:Since the website was modernised visits have been increasing at a rate of at least 40% per year.This site went live on October 16th 2011 and between that date and October 15th 2012 the amount of sessions served was 204,583This year between October 16th 2014 and October 15th 2015 the amount was 631,997.That's a growth of 209%encouraging!Perhaps we can compare these figures with figures from public meeting attendances and responses from flyers and the Socialist Standard.And compare value for money.Then make some rational decisions about future projects/propaganda
Vin wrote:Perhaps we can compare these figures with figures from public meeting attendances and responses from flyers and the Socialist Standard.Apples and pears. We should still be doing physical meetings and publications regardless.
ALB wrote:Another thread for Private Fraser, Cassandra, Jeremiah and Moaning Minnie but:this might prevent a few suicides:http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/forum/world-socialist-movement/are-physical-meetings-best-form-democratic-control-2015?page=5#comment-26497The slight growth in new members reported by the Membership Application Committee doesnt really tell us much about the overall situation. If more members are leaving than joining then the Party would still be declining in numbers. Also what about new members coming directly through branches . Is this up or down? I would imagine it is down if only becuase there are fewer branches around compared to a few years back My impression is that the Party has been shrinking and is certainly significantly smaller than when I first joined – probably about 200 members less. If this decline has bottomed out recently then that is welcome news but I dont think that is a reason for complacency at all.If it is the case that new members are increasingly joining via the internet then I put it to you again – why not tailor activities in such a way as to involve isolated members more directly (otherwise you will just lose them). I put forward the idea of a socialist research centre or website which could engage the collective efforts of many dispersed members but no one seems to have taken up the idea. Oh well.Another thing I find very surprising is that hardly any pamphlets seem to be published these days. You should be knocking out at least half a dozen each year, if not more , perhaps dealing with more specific and narrowly focussed topics e.g. the war in Syria. Ive made umpteen links to party pamphlets in various forums I have been engaged in but the lack of variety is very limiting, frankly
robbo203 wrote:I put forward the idea of a socialist research centre or website which could engage the collective efforts of many dispersed members but no one seems to have taken up the idea.How is that any different to what is in the education section of this website? And if you're so enthused by the idea why not rejoin and make it a reality? After all, it seems that "World in Common" is now defunct?
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