Some initial thoughts and feelings on occupy London stock exchange

This weekend saw London join other parts of the world in occupying a major financial district of teh capital in protest to a growing feeling of injustice in the system we live under. I thought i'd just lay down a few of my own thoughts and feelings on it all as it appears to be a interesting developing movement. If you can call it a moveemnt i'm not sure.

It seems to have been something born out of the Arab spring the Egyptian and Tunisian revolutions where major squares in towns and cities were occupied and this gained big support. The big bit that many comrades out there are forgetting mainly due to the bourgeois medias attempt at trying to portray working class movements but not fully understanding it is that these revoulutions would not have been possible if it wasnt for large scale general strikes crippling major parts of the state to help remove these vicious brutal dictators. It was not as many seem to believe the result of sitting in town squares for ages lead to the falling of these regimes at all. This common misconception has spread to places like Spain and America where the feeling is if we occupy a place long enough change will happen.


It will not on its own i'm afraid. I dont mean to be cynical but the lack of any structure to this movement can also be its downfall aswell as its advantage.

Much of the media - the bourgeois media has ignored these protests up to now but due to the size of some of these occupations have been forced to cover them now. The conclusions many in the media have drawn are interesting. Making out that these protests are against so called corporate greed like it is in any sort of doubt at all.

Also many protesters and commentators alike seem to be loathed to say this is about capitalism. Saying it is about corporate greed is great but why are they so afraid to call it what it is, capitalism i wonder.


Whilst many trade unionists observe this movement growing it will be interesting how the wider working class react to this. So far the protests seem to be a wide range of protesters. Students, graduates, left wing activists the usual sorts you may think. But also some ordinary people have come out too. In america some of the trade unions have linked up with these occupations and offered solidarity. But if the same thing will happen in this country it is unclear as yet.

The success of these occupations will be judged on how well it can link up the struggles of workers those who are facing the cuts and pay cuts right now. Will they look to join with the public sector strikes on 30th of November ?

It is key to it spreading and growing if they link up the struggles to a wider movement of the whole class. One of the slogans popularised in America has been " we are the 99%" which is a clever slogan but i somewhat doubt these 1000 or so speak for the 99% the so called 99% is made up of lots of different parts of the working class and all have their own struggles day to day. The importance to relate to them all to form a clear list of demands will be key to this progressing into anything long lasting and meaningful.

Many who have fell out of love with mainstream politics which i can fully understand and sympathise with have claimed this is a fully autonomous movement with no leaders and this is encouraging more in. But this tactic made popular by the likes of UK uncut has its limitations. When decision making comes and decisions need to be made to root the movement in the working class quite often no one is held to account leaving the movement to stray in all sorts of directions. This can be an disadvantage if the wrong sorts of tactics and ideas are put forward. All ideas are good to hear but due to the lack of democracy and leadership this could fizzle out if not given a solid foundation in the struggles of ordinary working people.

The occupations which are in their 3rd or 4th week in Wall Street in America now have been analysed by socialist alternative our part in America part of the CWI here is a analysis they have made of the occupations and the directions so far.

How can we take the struggle forward?
Many are occupying to “liberate space” in order to build a new, more equal and just community, hoping it will inspire others to follow. While the Wall Street occupation is an example of a community based on democracy, cooperation and solidarity, unfortunately the occupation alone will not be enough to build a mass movement capable of changing society.

Many have alluded to Egypt saying that a growing occupation with one basic demand is how the dictator was overthrown. But in fact, the situation was more complicated than that. In the week before Egypt’s dictator Mubarak was ousted, the working class entered the scene with decisive strike action paralyzing key parts of the economy.



The occupations in Spain and Greece have been much bigger than Wall Street, but they too need the more powerful forces of the working class to move into action in order to win. In Wisconsin, a huge occupation of the Capitol lasted for over 3 weeks and was at the center of mass demonstrations of the workers and youth. They could have won if that movement had moved toward a general strike of public sector workers to shut the state economy down.

Instead the Wisconsin battle was consciously derailed by the Democratic Party and the top union leadership by diverting the mass movement into a campaign to recall the Republicans from power in order to elect Democrats in their place. However, the Democrats, like the Republicans, are a party of Wall Street and Big Business, and they offer no solutions. We need an independent struggle which seeks to draw in the widest layers of workers and youth. United we have the power to withdraw our labor, stop “business as usual,” and hit the banks, corporations and ruling elite where it counts.

We need to build up the confidence to take such bold measures. That’s why Occupy Wall Street needs to call for mass demonstrations around key demands that address the burning issues that working people and youth face like jobs, education, healthcare and so on.

System Change
Not only the economy but society as a whole is in a deep crisis. Global capitalism is a failed system that cannot overcome the problems of growing inequality, poverty, mass unemployment, environmental destruction, and war which it creates. The movement has to challenge Wall Street and both parties of big business. We must stand up to their policies where they try to solve their economic crisis on our backs in order to maintain a system which only benefits the elite in the first place.



But we must also provide a clear alternative. We need to fundamentally transform society to one not based on profit but instead on meeting everyone’s basic human needs. The only real alternative to corporate greed and capitalism is democratic socialism where the economy, workplaces, and society as a whole is democratically run by and for the vast majority of people.

Join Socialist Alternative! We Say:
•Spread the occupations across the U.S. and into schools and communities. For systematic, mass campaigning to mobilize the widest layer of workers, young people and labor unions into struggle.
•Organize weekend mass demonstrations that call for: No cuts to social services, A massive jobs creation program, Major tax hikes on the super-rich and big business, End the wars, Slash the military budget, and Defend union and democratic rights.
•Build up to the November 16-23 National Week of Action to combat the Congressional Super Committee plan for $1.5 trillion in cuts to social services. We demand jobs not cuts!
•Prepare to run independent anti-corporate, working-class candidates in 2012 to challenge the policies of the two parties of Wall Street as a first step towards forming a new party of the 99%, a mass workers’ party.
•End the dictatorship of Wall Street! Bring the big banks that dominate the U.S. economy into public ownership and run them under the democratic management of elected representatives of their workers and the public. Compensation to be paid on the basis of proven need to small investors, not millionaires.
•Build the movement to replace the rotten system of capitalism with democratic socialism and create a new society based on human need.



Committee for a Workers' International



Just a few initial thoughts i'm sure i'll be revisiting this growing idea and movement in the coming weeks and months as we move towards november the 30th where we ccould possibly see the biggest number of workers out on strike since the first day of the 1926 general strike. That to me will be far more key to winning the battles against the cuts and uniting the struggles in a organised way.

In defence of UK uncut

I just thought i'd throw some weight behind the Uk uncut pressure group in the UK. I feel personally the attacks and critisisms they have been getting after last saturdays protests in London on March 26th have been very unfair and blown way out of proportion.

I think what they are doing is excellent. They are leading the way when it comes to looking at alternatives to the huge savage cuts happening right now in front of our very eyes in this country. I feel that UK uncut practise civil disobedience and this should be commended. They were ahead of many anti cuts groups in teh UK out there on the streets at weekends occupying popular high street establishments highlighting the system and the tax evasion of many of the biggest capitalist business's and banks the country and world has to offer.
This is what UK uncut say about their organisation on their website i thought i'd share it here to give you more background on their actions. If you wish to visit their website and find out more it is
http://www.ukuncut.org.uk/


We are told that the only way to reduce the deficit is to cut to public services. This is certainly not the case. There are alternatives, but the government chooses to ignore them, highlighting the fact that the cuts are based on ideology, not necessity.


■One alternative is to clamp down on tax dodging by corporations and the rich, estimated to cost the state £95bn a year
■Another is to make the banks pay for a crisis they created: last year they paid out over £7bn in bonuses and just four banks made £24bn in profit

The tax avoided and evaded in a single year could pay for the £81bn, four-year cuts programme.


“We are all in this together.”

Since the banking crisis:

■average pay of FTSE 100 directors has risen 55%,
■corporation tax has been cut,
■the government have not delivered on a manifesto pledge to clamp down on tax avoidance, instead cutting staff at HMRC,
■bank profits and bonuses are back in the many billions,
■there has been no reform of the banks.
David Cameron himself has said that the cuts will change Britain's "whole way of life". Every aspect of what was fought for by generations seems under threat – from selling off the forests, privatising health provision, closing the libraries and swimming pools, to scrapping rural bus routes. What Cameron doesn't say is that the cuts will also disproportionately hit the poor and vulnerable, with cuts to housing benefit, disability living allowance, the childcare element of working tax credits, EMA, the Every Child a Reader programme, Sure Start and the Future Jobs Fund to name a few.

The facts speak for themselves; we are not all in this together, we are paying for the folly of reckless bankers whilst the rich profit.


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The government are forced to claim that there is no alternative to making drastic public sector cuts as they know that people would never accept their plan otherwise. By repeating the same lies over and over again, they hope to brainwash people into inaction.

There are alternatives to the cuts, and we are not all in this together. But unless we take action, and take the facts to our friends, our families and those around us, they will get away with it.


THis here underneath is another excellent blogpost posted on UK uncuts website earlier and focused on the march at the weekend and what a effect it had and the role of UK uncut. It also highlights how UK uncut can become more involved in the union movement something of which i agree with whole heartidly. I personally feel us in the trade union movement could do more to support these protesters who have taken it upon themselves to highlight the tax evasion. With the trade unions power and resources i feel that adding weight to UK uncut's stance would benifit both parties unions and UK uncut if they teamed up.


Here is the article posted here

This is a letter from a number of NGOs and unions in support of UK Uncut.


Protest has been a means for progressive change throughout human history - and it continues to play that role across the world today.

Through protest, people have won and defended their rights to a decent standard of living as well as control over their lives and the societies in which they live.

It should come as no surprise that in a world of vast and growing inequalities in wealth and power, protest is growing in this country as in many other parts of the world.

Protest is the legitimate right of everyone – and we believe it is right that people are protesting against some of the richest in the world failing to pay their taxes while others suffer serious and increasing levels of poverty and deprivation.

UK Uncut have played a significant part in changing the terms of debate around economic policy in the UK and have been praised by politicians and the media for doing so.

Indeed UK Uncut played a key role in ensuring that more people were at the march on Saturday than otherwise would have been. At all times they acted in a way which complemented and supported the TUC march.

However, in taking the type of peaceful action which UK Uncut routinely undertake on Saturday, targeting Fortnum and Mason on this occasion, they were treated in a political and deceptive manner by the police which sends an ominous message about the right to protest.

It would appear activists were misled by the police about not being arrested when asked to leave the Fortnum and Mason building, after which they were held for a significant length of time, their clothing was confiscated and they have been denied the right to protest in the near future.

This situation has now been seized on by the media and politicians to further threaten the right to protest. UK Uncut activists have been blamed for damage they did not cause and this story has become a substitute for discussion of the real issues raised by UK Uncut and the TUC march in general.

This does not represent a consistent approach to policing legitimate protest. Neither does it represent the sort of consistent approach to freedom of protest which the Government led us to believe they supported on entering office. We support the right to protest for a fairer and more equal world. As part of this, we condemn any politically motivated policing which provokes, intimidates or criminalises protestors. We will continue to support UK Uncut, alongside thousands of others, until tax justice is secured so the poorest do not have to pay the price of a financial crisis caused by the richest.


So all in all i realy feel UK uncut are bringing something new to the anti cuts movement i dont feel they should be put down straight away we should look at their motives and what they are saying and take what they are saying on board. Perhaps the trade union movement could learn something from these young vibrant activists too.

As far as the occupation of Fortnum and Mason goes which is the queens own marmalade shop apparently i feel their occupationa nd protest was legitimet persoanlly and the heavy handed tactics of the police to remove them by force and arrest protesters when they were clearly acting peacefully and not breaking any law as far as i know unlike the lot outside smashing windows and cash machines that i do condemn but as far as UK uncut goes i dont believe any of their activists to be violent or harmful to other members of the public that is not their aim at all.

Pay day in the UK calling on all tax dodgers

So as the UK currently sits under a blanket of snow and ice those brave hearty soles at UK Uncut and many others have joined together for a day of action closing down and protesting outiside many private companies who their owners illegally dodge tax. These shops include the likes of Top Shop which is owned by Phillip Green of Arcadia. Phillip green is one of the worst offenders going a cabinet minister filthy rich and avoids tax like it is the plague. Well i for one am glad people are showing this guy up. Of course an inconvenience to the public on one of the busiest shopping days of the year but would be a much greater inconvenience if these shoppers lost their jobs due to public spending cuts and job loss's to cover the fact people like Phillip green are not paying their tax's meaning the government go after the ordinary working person on the street instead.

It is a disgrace and i would just like to add my support for these people making a stand today for the good ofa ll of us on a very cold day.