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Hello all!January 1st seems like a good time to change the pinned tweet on the SPGB Twitter account to one which points out what socialism is, and asks people to ‘like’ the tweet if it is something they would prefer to have. It is hoped that, over time, a sizeable number of likes will be achieved, which can then result in some media interest, one way or another.This graphic will be accompanied by the following three tweets:We want to know how many people aware of our account, or who chance upon it, would like genuine socialism (see graphic for explanation). If you would prefer to live and work in this new society, rather than continue living under capitalism, please like (and RT) this pinned tweet. 1/3Socialism can’t be achieved until a clear majority of people know what it is, and want this alternative to capitalism. Although we are only a small political party in Britain, the number of people liking the pinned tweet will provide some useful data about socialism’s popularity. 2/3Due to decades of anti-socialist propaganda by newspapers etc, there’ll be the usual replies mentioning Venezuela, Cuba, Soviet Union, N. Korea etc; or insisting that socialism is impossible due to “human nature” etc. We ask these people to see our website http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/questions-and-answers-about-socialism 3/3

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I will include the video in one of the accompanying tweets.

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Ah right, obliged for clarifying that.

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Bill Martin’s 46-second clip can be heard 42:30 secs into the David Vine programme here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08pvphx

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Further to my previous, what happened is the BBC's political correspondent Iain Watson stated in Tuesday's PM programme the following:“The Socialist Party, which includes ex-members of the Militant Tendency, they contacted me to say Jeremy Corbyn had been too right wing and they used one of the gravest insults in their lexicon. ‘He wasn’t a socialist, but a reformist’. Strong words indeed.”This can be heard at about 6:45secs into the programme on Tuesday here http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08p5l4dIain Watson had wrongly assumed tweets sent to him from our Twitter account had come from Militant.Presumably Militant (or someone else) complained, and the correction/clarification was given in next day's PM programme, as referred to above.Max

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Yes, here from about 43:10 into the programme http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08p5l7mIain Watson from the BBC is probably referring to a couple of tweets sent to him yesterday here https://twitter.com/OfficialSPGB/status/861902611435356161 and here https://twitter.com/OfficialSPGB/status/861902981716946944Max

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Twitter enquiry from someone living in Liverpool. Any suggestions who they could get in touch with, apart from Head Office, please?

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Galloway’s Respect party has deregistered as a political organisation in order to support Corbyn.

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Can I suggest you read the comment by Alan Johnstone under your article which wrongly calls us scarcity deniers.

— The Socialist Party (@OfficialSPGB) August 15, 2016

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@OfficialSPGB tweeted something to Paul Mason about ever-cheapening goods resulting in capitalists increasingly abandoning those and looking elsewhere for profits, to which he replied "Remind us what the profitable ones are?" Anyone want to suggest a suitable reply?

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SocialistPunk wrote:

Just been looking at Derek Wall's Twitter conversations about the SPGB. What strikes me is the view that the SPGB do nothing else but have a go at the "left".

It didn't strike you that leftist Derek Wall does nothing else but have a go at the SPGB?

Quote:

Here's an outrageous suggestion, why not leave the "left" alone for a change and conduct a sustained campaign against some "right wing" aspect of capitalism (there's plenty to choose from) and see what response you get.

Here's an outrageous suggestion, why not criticise both leftwing- and rightwing-managed capitalism the way a socialist party should do, until we achieve majority support? Since when has Derek Wall and the Green Party had the right to influence and decide what The Socialist Party does?

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I'd like to point out a few of the comments Derek Wall has been tweeting about The Socialist Party.For those who don't know, Derek Wall is a Green Party member and is their International Coordinator.This.And this.In response to being asked what the Socialist Party does in pursuit of socialism, he was informed about pamphlets, the Socialist Standard, electoral participation etc. His response was to criticise our "Jeremy is a reformist" position (assuming that is still our position), and to say "You are full of shit and do nothing, think nothing".Derek Wall also admits to being "extremely abusive" to the Socialist Party, and says it's because we refuse to "change". By that, he means change to doing what he'd like.Are we for or against reformism? I understood that we oppose it, and that's what the Twitter account does.Derek Wall wants the same thing as Jeremy Corbyn: capitalism managed by those on left. If the Labour Party implodes at a later date because of failed reformism, why shouldn't Derek Wall's Green Party, with lookalike reformist policies, then come under scrutiny? Maybe he knows this could happen.Would it be a bad thing if the Green Party imploded as well? If The Socialist Party wants to achieve something, then with both Labour and the Greens discredited, wouldn't that be our opportunity to become a serious opposition to the Tories?Derek Wall is hostile to The Socialist Party Twitter account because it rejects Corbyn's reformism, and in doing so, it rejects his and the Green Party's reformism, and so he just hurls endless abuse. Should we be intimated and cowed into going quite on reformism by this?The SPGB Twitter account is attracting followers with a pro-socialism anti-reformism stance. In a few years, it can obtain more followers than Derek Wall's 19,700. When he then demands to know, via Twitter, what we're doing to promote socialism, we can reply, more than him.

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Robert Cox has apparently saved Tory candidate, Julian Brazier, from certain death at Whitstable hustings! http://commie.f2s.com/robert-cox-saves-tory.jpg

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jondwhite wrote:

maxhess wrote:

Vin wrote:

'Independent' etc.We may not get an immediate response but the message is out there 

Now additionally tweeted to: @IndyPolitics @Peston @FalseEcon @jonsnowC @guidofawkes @mehdirhasan @paulmasonnews @38_degrees @krishgm @paulwaugh @adamboulton @toadmeister @iaindale @Kevin_MaguireTweets include link to "Let’s Stand Together for a Better World": http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/socialist-standard/2010s/2015/no-1328-april-2015/let%E2%80%99s-stand-together-better-worldMax

Do we follow these users?

We do now.Along with @LeftFootFwd @montie @ftwestminster @sunny_hundal @MichaelWhite @AndrewSparrow @JohnRentoul @IndyOnSunday @psbook @LibCon @MrHarryCole @CathElliott @mattwardman @CharlieBeckett @thefabians @PoliceStateUK @UCLanticuts who have also been contacted via Twitter.Only response so far has been from Kevin Maguire (Daily Mirror associate editor & New Statesman columnist) with a sarcastic "The Workers of the World aren't uniting with you when you've only 817 Twitter followers!"

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Vin wrote:

'Independent' etc.We may not get an immediate response but the message is out there 

Now additionally tweeted to: @IndyPolitics @Peston @FalseEcon @jonsnowC @guidofawkes @mehdirhasan @paulmasonnews @38_degrees @krishgm @paulwaugh @adamboulton @toadmeister @iaindale @Kevin_MaguireTweets include link to "Let’s Stand Together for a Better World": http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/socialist-standard/2010s/2015/no-1328-april-2015/let%E2%80%99s-stand-together-better-worldMax

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