Socialist Party Head Office
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A sympathiser has emailed us this observation:
I cannot find in any mainstream press publication or show any critique of the recent action by Starmer’s government where £15 billion was pledged to provide more military hardware to Ukraine only a day before they announced a huge reduction in funds for welfare.
I have long held the belief that we live in a psychopathic system, in the sense that those in charge display maybe all or at least some of the traits of psychopathy: lack of empathy, superficial charm, manipulativeness, lack of remorse, grandiosity, impulsivity and poor behavioural control and this action surely displays this. No money for life and plenty of money for death.
The people of the world are being lied to. The increase in military funding for Ukraine is built on a lie or huge misinformation of the truth and this is happening through the national broadcaster the BBC. Repeatedly we are told that only a huge show of military strength in and on the borders of Ukraine with Russia, in Poland and in all of eastern europe will hold back Putin and deter Russia from expanding westward. This is utter nonsense. Russia has never held an intention of pushing westwards it just wants no NATO bases close to its country. Can we imagine for a moment that NATO was a Russian led military organisation and had bases all over mainland Europe pointing towards the UK and US? The reaction of the UK /US would likely be far worse than what Putin has pursued. Possibly we all wouldnt be here now, gone in a Nuclear explosion?
For the truth on the causes of the Ukraine conflict and much more I would urge all readers to listen to Jeffrey Sachs ‘Roaring Ukraine speech at EU’.
A comrade who is reviewing Nick Heath’s book The Idea: Anarchist Communism, Past, Present and Future points out that it is says this about “The emergence of the conception of Communism”:
“It should be remembered that neither Babeuf nor Maréchal had invented the term “communism”. The idea of a free and equal society brought about through the sharing of the fruits of the earth goes back to a multitude of religious and philosophical writings.
A first written mention of the word “communist” itself was found in the book of condolences of the parish of Guillestre (Hautes Alpes) in France in 1789. Babeuf, of course, never used the word himself, calling himself a communalist, believing that a community of goods would result from a community of work.
With the fall of Robespierre there is a mention of the word communism when Restif de la Bretonne talks about a general assembly of the Club du Pantheon, which was one of the most democratic in Paris. ‘A citizen demands the rejection of the Constitution and the establishment of communism. This eye-witness report was published in Paris in 1797’. (Marius Berou in an article in Le Peuple no 1537 20th November 2002 p 8-9)”.A reader wrote to the CPGB-ML asking, on the basis of this 50 Years Ago item:
“I wonder if you could help me fathom out what Chairman Mao meant, when he wrote the following:
‘Apart from their other characteristics, the outstanding thing about China’s 600 million people is that they are ‘poor and blank’. This may seem a bad thing, but in reality it is a good thing’
&
‘To make China rich and strong needs several decades of intense effort, which will include, among other things, the effort to practise strict economy and combat waste ie, the policy of building up our country through diligence and frugality’
The later sounds like something a capitalist politician would say. But surely he can’t have been happy that people were poor, to hard work hard and received little material reward for their labours.”They got the following reply:
“You are very correct that comrade Mao wasn’t happy with poverty or hardship that had been enforced on the Chinese people through a century of European colonialism and later Japanese aggression.
What was needed to eradicate that was to build up a strong system to meet the needs of the people and the industries to supply those needs. In short, changing property relations and increasing the means of production. Due to economic reasons (low productive base and lack of colonies) and socialist values (not willing to exploit their own people or other peoples ala the western building of capitalism) they by necessity had to rely on their own labour to accumulate the resources to better their living standards. This requires some curtailment of immediate consumption to better develop an increase in necessities later.
With regards to the ‘poor and blank’; any lifting of oppression to a people that had suffered much oppression and endless famine would be accepted glady, and it was! This enabled the Communist party to steadily increase living standards for the vast majority of the the Chinese people. They would educate (honestly!) the need for waste reduction and being frugal because as the means of production were held collectively, the sooner the ability to produce more was achieved (which requires investment of some surplus labour that would ordinarily be comsumed) the better the entire peoples’ lot would get.
And yes, capitalist politicians do advocate austerity and tightening belts for the ‘nation’. But their nation is led by the bourgois for the bourgois and we have seen clearly that the workers bear the cost of austerity while the capitalists claim the rewards. Compare China, who have made monumental strides in lessening poverty since their revolution, and here in Britain where aside from a short period after WW2, have seen nothing but lowering of living standards.
Often appeals from leadership can appear to be the same on the surface but the key is to ask “which class do the leadership serve?” and “what is the purpose of that appeal”.
That is how I understand it.
Regards,
J.
CPGB-ML”Our reader commented that they “wondered, who today would seek to defend the biggest mass murderer in history? Well, who else but the CPGB-ML.”
Email received at Head Office:
Just to let you know I put in a protest vote ‘Socialism SPGB’ at my local polling station in the Sunderland Central constituency. I could not think of voting for any of the other parties as they all support Capitalism.
The following letter has been sent to Gove today.
Mr Gove,
We notice that, in a speech to Parliament on 21 May, you referred to the Socialist Party as jostling to share a platform with islamists in support of the state-building activities of Hamas.
This is not true. We have been a political party using this name since 1904 and never in our history have we shared a platform with islamists nor have we ever supported an attempt to create new states. In fact we are opposed to all religion and any existing or nascent nation state as they are nothing other than tools of oppression in the service of the capitalist class, whose expropriation by the working class is our sole aim.
We would therefore request that you note this for future reference and take steps to correct the public record that is Hansard to remove your damaging misinformation.
For Socialism
Stephen Finch
Assistant SecretaryManchester branch report:
“A Manchester branch member distributed 95 antiwar leaflets at a smaill-ish demo in Bolton today.
Another member had intended to attend but was prevented from doing so by rail service disruption.”James, we are having a leaflet done to give out at demonstrations and meetings about the war. If you would like some to distribute can you contact Head Office: spgb[at]worldsocialism.org to let us know how many.
A sympathiser has sent in this contribution to this discussion:
I am Keir Starmer
a politician I may be
but I’m more a smarmy charmer
of that its plain to see
I’ll say whatever sounds good
to get myself on top
But 3 years of my team
and the country will go pop
I’ve got no new ideas
plans or strategies
I’m helping these right wing tories
bring the workers to their knees
A vote for me is a vote for business
of that you can be assured
The clue you see is in my name
I’m actually a Lord
So dont expect no changes or improvements
to your life
It’ll be much more of the same thing
lots of trouble and
lots of strifeDamian McCarthy
James, as you are in the Londoon area can you contact Head Office (spgb[at]worldsocialism.org) about leafletting the Uxbridge constituency during the by-election there on 20 July. We are not contesting but London branch wants to distribute the Party’s “It’s not the Tories or Labour that’s the problem. It’s capitalism” leaflet. It would be between now and 19 July if you are able to help.
[Transferred from Comments Section]
The UK government is making a huge issue out of the fact that refugees keep coming in ‘small boats’ across the English Channel. They bemoan that it’s costing £6 million per day to accommodate them. This is a problem that’s entirely manufactured by the government. First, because the only reason refugees are coming in ‘small boats’ is because the government has refused them entry by other safe means. So many lives could have been saved and could still be saved, if only refugees could apply safely for refugee status. This avenue has been denied by the government. Second, because if the Home Office had it’s house in order, refugees would be processed within a few weeks – not years – of arrival. Thus avoiding the cost and despair of putting them in the cost and anguish of sub standard accommodation. Let’s not forget that something like 90% of refugees are legally eventually permitted to stay. The result of the government’s incompetence (?)is that refugees from war, torture, persecution and death are treated like prisoners, to be sent to container ships/cheap and dodgy rooms until deportation. At huge cost to the taxpayer apparently (that’s another subject). I’m just leading up to this point: if a so-called ‘liberal democracy’ is incapable of treating refugees with compassion, is it a system worth supporting? Another point – who profits from this inhumane treatment of refugees? Here’s a clue – not you or me. (It’s given that it doesn’t profit the refugee.) And finally, I cannot help but compare the government’s treatment of today’s refugees with capitalism’s historic treatment of slaves, servants and workers.
PaulaA comrade has sent Head Office this email:
An interesting perspective on Ukraine sent from a friend in Australia
No wonder Russia wants to get their hands on it (again)Today, here is how Ukraine ranks in Europe and the world:
1st in Europe in proven recoverable reserves of uranium ores;
2nd place in Europe and 10th place in the world in terms of titanium ore reserves;
2nd place in the world in terms of explored reserves of manganese ores (2.3 billion tons, or 12% of the world’s reserves);
2nd largest iron ore reserves in the world (30 billion tons);
2nd place in Europe in terms of mercury ore reserves;
3rd place in Europe (13th place in the world) in shale gas reserves (22 trillion cubic meters)
4th in the world by the total value of natural resources;
7th place in the world in coal reserves (33.9 billion tons)Ukraine is an agricultural country:
1st in Europe in terms of arable land area;
3rd place in the world by the area of black soil (25% of world’s volume);
1st place in the world in exports of sunflower and sunflower oil;
2nd place in the world in barley production and 4th place in barley exports;
3rd largest producer and 4th largest exporter of corn in the world;
4th largest producer of potatoes in the world;
5th largest rye producer in the world;
5th place in the world in bee production (75,000 tons);
8th place in the world in wheat exports;
9th place in the world in the production of chicken eggs;
16th place in the world in cheese exports.Ukraine can meet the food needs of 600 million people.
Ukraine is an industrialized country:
1st in Europe in ammonia production;
2-е Europe’s and 4th largest natural gas pipeline system in the world (142.5 bln cubic meters of gas throughput capacity in the EU);
3rd largest in Europe and 8th largest in the world in terms of installed capacity of nuclear power plants;
3rd place in Europe and 11th in the world in terms of rail network length (21,700 km);
3rd place in the world (after the U.S. and France) in production of locators and locating equipment;
3rd largest iron exporter in the world
4th largest exporter of turbines for nuclear power plants in the world;
4th world’s largest manufacturer of rocket launchers;
4th place in the world in clay exports
4th place in the world in titanium exports
8th place in the world in exports of ores and concentrates;
9th place in the world in exports of defence industry products;
10th largest steel producer in the world (32.4 million tons).Report from Glasgow Branch:
On Thursday 4th of November I met up with comrade Peter Hendrie to collect pamphlets for distribution to this end comrade Hendrie had already been active in his home town of East Kilbride. On Saturday morning, I teamed up with comrade Andy Malone and we proceeded to distribute pamphlets and discuss the party case around Glasgow’s George Square. Unfortunately, due to the incessant rain this confined our activity to the partial shelter afforded at the entrance to Queen St Station. (Police wouldn’t allow distribution inside) but after two hours of relentless rain, we reluctantly headed home.
On Monday we had the pleasure of meeting up with fellow members at the Queen St location which comrade Paul Edwards, also in attendance, had secured for the party. Well, done Paul!
The Gazebo provided a welcome shelter from the still relentless rain but we still managed to dispense pamphlets and also engage people in discussion. Tuesday finally brought some relief from the rain, as did Wednesday, when we were more active in the surrounding streets, and after we finally packed up in the afternoon, we retired to a nearby hostelry where our travelling comrades had a well deserved meal, before we all said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. In conclusion, with limited resources, we gave a good account of ourselves and it was a pleasure discussing with other people who were surprisingly willing to listen to our unique case, even on occasion buying a Standard!
Kent & Sussex Branch report:
In the areas of Folkestone we are contesting, most of 18,000 election leaflets have now gone out ahead of the postal vote distribution. The wording of the leaflet can be found here.
A second leaflet will be printed to go out nearer polling day.
Volunteers to assist are most welcome (but must observe Covid precautions) up to election day on 6th May (including bank holiday Monday).Please call Rob on 07971 715569 or email spgb.ksrb[at]worldsocialism.org
