subscribe to this blog:
Posts
All Comments
Showing posts with label mass movements. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mass movements. Show all posts
Saturday, 20 September 2014
Scotland say ney for now, Dont mourn organise !
Yesterday Scotland voted against independence. Today half the country are mourning, their hopes of a new state and it’s social democratic promise dashed. The other half are relieved, if perhaps not enthusiastically celebrating, the potential uncertainty removed; things will persist as before.
We neither mourn nor celebrate. The scaremongering of the No campaign would likely have proved largely unfounded. So too would the promises of the Yes campaign. In reality our lives would have continued mostly as they did before in either event. We will trudge to the same jobs we hate along the same roads, through the same congestion on the same expensive transport. We’ll do so so we can pay our wages back to the capitalist class in the same shops, to pay rent to the same landlords and mortgages to the same banks. We’ll take our kids to the same schools with the same education system, when we’re ill we’ll wait to use the same hospitals. We’ll escape our jobs to the same parks, beaches, museums and pubs.
An independent Scotland would in most respects have resembled the Scotland of the UK, a patriarchal, capitalist, environmentally destructive society. A country with the most unequal land ownership in the developed world – where 50% of the land is owned by just 432 individuals. A country dependent on North Sea oil for much of its exports – oil that must be left in the ground to prevent climate catastrophe. A country with huge poverty and huge wealth and little in the way of organised working class action to change that dynamic.
And in so continuing to uphold the same institutions, the same structures of power, the same business interests, and the same political configuration, our fight against the state, capital and oppression continues.
Social Movements
It has become popular amongst some on the pro-independence to claim that even in defeat politics has been radically altered. People are engaged with politics for the first time, turnout was 85%. A new broad popular social movement is born, the referendum was never about a vote for the Nationalists (capital N1). The campaign they built to push for independence will now re-orient itself against the Scottish and British governments and push for material concessions, emboldened by how close they came and bringing newly radicalised people with them. But a high turnout in itself tells us very little of what will come next, the complacency that we have already changed politics is dangerous.
Leaving aside the tactical mistake of offering the SNP the support they wanted to pass the referendum and then hoping to win concessions rather than making those concessions a precondition of support, this seems at best an optimistic prediction, which is far from certain to be realised. It is highly probable that the movement built to advance a radical case for independence will fail to maintain the unity it has shown pre-referendum in a post-referendum situation. A new left unity party (perhaps Left Unity itself) seems likely to form out of the Radical Independence Campaign and will have to compete for votes with the Scottish Green Party. The disintegration of the SSP last decade bodes ill for the lasting chances of that configuration. If the parliamentary left can regain even the position it held from 2003-2007 it will have done exceedingly well (in its own terms).
Undoubtedly many from the radical independence movement will want to maintain extra-parliamentary organisation, though how much of it is truly independent of the parliamentary parties will be an open question. But as with the referendum itself elections have a tendency to draw activists away from direct struggle and towards themselves however good peoples’ intentions are. Perhaps the most debilitating effect of the referendum campaign was its draw away from other, more meaningful, sites of struggle – the boycott workfare campaign, anti-deportations and pro migrant work, environmental organising and so on. Of course, that is not to say that no independence campaigners continued their engagement with these causes, but no one has unlimited time and energy to contribute, and that expended on the referendum could have been better placed elsewhere.
Ecology
As the independence referendum moves into the past, other issues may start to regain their prominence. Foremost must be the commitment of politicians in Westminster and Holyrood to continuing extraction of Scotland’s share of North Sea oil.
The independence debate was consistently shaped by the prospects for oil production and how the proceeds will be distributed. Even where criticism did exist and a call for a “green new deal” was made, the focus was to argue for renewables. Whilst greater use of renewable energy is to be welcomed, it is far from sufficient. As Jason Moore has highlighted energy revolutions of the past have always been additive and substitutive. Market logic plus intervention for renewables will only give us both renewables and fossil fuels. As alternative grow fossil fuels prices will fall and maintain their use alongside. Real decarbonisation of society requires the fuels be left in the ground and their value written off.
You cannot build a “green” capitalism. You certainly cannot create it in time. There is too much money invested in fossil fuels – in drilling, in mining, in fracking. The ruling class will never voluntarily give up this wealth, or allow it to be simply voted away. “To survive we must act now” and “couple bleak reality with the utopian impulse” to demand a complete transformation of our society2.
An independent Scotland would have relied heavily on fossil fuels – not least to maintain currency reserves and a positive balance of trade. The extraction of North Sea oil will instead continue to prop up the UK’s trade deficit. As part of a larger economy that dependence may now not be brought as clearly to the fore. But that reliance must be exposed, and it must be broken. That will be an expensive and difficult task, but one which we have no choice but to take up – there will be no future for Scotland or the UK if we do nothing. We must create the movement which makes that possible. Too much time has been spent on bourgeois constitutional questions while the rich consolidate their wealth and power, impose austerity and hardship and leave the planet to burn safe that adaptation will be good enough for them.
So tonight, drown your sorrows. Take time to regain your energy and when you’re ready come back to join us. The better society that had been pinned on independence doesn’t need a new state. Keep talking to your neighbours and your workmates. We have a world to win and only our own working class self-activity and organisation will secure it.
1. We’ve discussed previously the obfuscation of “good” and “bad” nationalism and the left’s claim that independence has nothing to do with nationalism. In our opinion both yes and no campaigns de facto represent competing nationalisms, whatever their intentions to the contrary.
with thanks and solidarity with statement from Edinburgh Anarchist Federation
Tuesday, 21 August 2012
Keep profiteers out of our NHS! Mass movement needed now!
High-profile NHS hospitals in England are to be encouraged by the government to set up profit-making branches abroad to help fund services in the UK.
An agency will aim to link hospitals such as Great Ormond Street with foreign governments that want access to British-run health services.
Investment would have to be drawn from hospitals' private UK work, but with profits ploughed back into the NHS.
A patients' group said the move was a "distraction" at a time of "upheaval".
The drive, building on an initiative first started under the Labour government, is set to be be launched by the Department of Health and UK Trade and Investment this autumn.
The BBC understands the initiative is unlikely to involve regular district or general hospitals but would target world-renowned hospitals like children's hospital Great Ormond Street, the Royal Marsden and Guy's and St Thomas'.
'Benefit patients'
It would mirror schemes such as that of Moorfields Eye Hospital in London, which in 2007 built a unit of the same name in Dubai.
In 2010, Labour's Health Secretary Andy Burnham set up NHS Global to help the health service make the most of the global market for healthcare and the coalition now wants to build on t
This is a continuation and a first sign of what the health and social care bill passed this year by the con-dem government is going to do to our health service. Quite clearly many capitalists here in Britain and around the globe see the NHS as a world institution and a huge opening for a big profiteering exercise here.
Take no notice of labour either though they were the ones who brought in such ideas of a global NHS and Andy Burnham their shadow health secretary was the one who over saw this so we will take no support or lectures off labor they are up to their eyes in PFI and marketisation of the NHS.
We must be aware of what is going on arm ourselves with the facts and join up local campaigns with a national campaign to save our NHS which truly is under threat now.
If it wasn’t before it is now. Trade unions have been pathetic on this so far a national campaign linking up all unions’ workers, anti cuts groups, save NHS groups and anyone else who wishes to throw their weight behind saving this. But be under no illusion this is going to take a huge effort.
As I tweeted on twitter last night it was mass working class pressure and action which won the NHS for the working class it’s going to take a similar mass pressure and militant action to win this back. This must be part of the NSSN’s calls for a 24 hour public + private general strike. It’s time to step up the fight now redouble our efforts to save the NHS and stop all the cuts and remove this government intent on taking back all the gains we’ve ever made.
Saturday, 8 October 2011
Occupy Wall Street: how can we take the struggle forward ?
All around the world attention has been drawn to the occupation of Wall Street. The protests have captured the imagination of thousands and inspired new occupations which are spreading across the U.S.
The police crackdown in New York, intended to intimidate this movement, completely failed to break our spirit. Now we are more determined than ever to fight. Inspired by the revolutionary upheavals in Egypt and across North Africa, as well as the mass youth occupations in Spain and Greece, protestors have taken to the streets of New York and cities across the U.S. to stand up to the domination of Wall Street and Big Business over our lives.
Below the surface there is deep anger in U.S. society which only seemed to be getting a twisted expression in the right-wing lunatics of the Tea Party. But the mass movement in Wisconsin this spring, and now the occupation of Wall Street provide a glimpse of the enormous potential to turn that anger into a progressive social movement.
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.
The police crackdown in New York, intended to intimidate this movement, completely failed to break our spirit. Now we are more determined than ever to fight. Inspired by the revolutionary upheavals in Egypt and across North Africa, as well as the mass youth occupations in Spain and Greece, protestors have taken to the streets of New York and cities across the U.S. to stand up to the domination of Wall Street and Big Business over our lives.
Below the surface there is deep anger in U.S. society which only seemed to be getting a twisted expression in the right-wing lunatics of the Tea Party. But the mass movement in Wisconsin this spring, and now the occupation of Wall Street provide a glimpse of the enormous potential to turn that anger into a progressive social movement.
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.
Friday, 3 December 2010
Stevenage against the cuts
So tonight i attended a stevenage meeting held by the trades union council and the local branch in conjunction with teh socialist party. With me being a labour party member i was fully expecting labour bashing and it didnt disapoint. There were great speechs tonight from Martin- Powell Davies from the NUT and Billy hayes from the CWu and a guy who stepped in for the guy who could not get here from teh PCSU who are the public sector union.
Now as many of you may or may not know i'm hugely in favour of the union movement so tonight encouraged me greatly that the unions are starting to move once again. The government consisting of the tories and the lib dems keep on poking the sleeping giant taht is the trade union movement putting out policy after policy against the working class's and the middle class's i might add as i dont think this is purely a attack on the working class anymore its escalated.
But waht the tory lead coalition as that is what i firmly believe it is, the role of the lib dems is to just take the flack of the tory policies almost like a human shield for the tories. A very clever tactic i must admit. But tonight i felt a start of something new. From small acons grow big trees was the line that struck me as meaning the most. A movement from the left organised and strong can take down this government of ours. They are weak, weak i tell you many many cracks are appearing in this tory lead coalition. We must aim to exploit their lies and their broken promises. Boy the lib dems could fill a whole parliament with broken promises already and we are not even a year into this sham.
There was call for a day of general strike which was debated like a hot potato, some for it heavily some not so sure. Me myself are for it and think that a day of co-ordinated strike action in the public sector hopefully followed up in the private sector too is what we are heading towards. I think labour will have nothing to do with this. Just as Ed miliband has kept out of all demo's and student protests so far i can only see that continueing.
People like John Mcdonald in the labour party have the right idea but get hammered any time they talk up a mass movement against the cuts which is unfair as he is entitled to his opinion. Even if it doesnt follow labours plan of a 4 year deficit reduction. John recognises that cuts are not nessesary and there is another way.
Ed balls also recognised this but was shouted down by other labour members and MP's sadly.
The meeting tonight was very inspirational with many gettting up and talking passionatly about their situations.
A post office worker spoke passionatly of his struggle to keep his job and the proposed threat to stevenage post office and how it is set to close. There was anger directed to the union rep of the CWu present Billy hayes. But it is difficult when your facing a situation of 69 post office sorting centres across the country and a lot needing to go. That is the situation facing the post office and its workers across teh united Kingdom right now. Billy Hayes- a labour party member and having his union still affiliated to the labour party is in a difficult situation. He wants to keep his members on side but also protect his affiliation with the labour party.
There were calls for a break away from the labour party by the unions who recognise that labour no longer represent the mass workers party it once was and going back to a post i made earlier in the week that some labour MP's have become career polititians and no longer represent the working class.
I myself am a labour party member for the time being so have to be careful what i say but i myself am becoming increasingly frustrated by labour lack of a alternative plan. Their plan still seems to be the old Alastair Darling 4 year half the deficit plan. This for me stil goes too far with cuts, even if cuts are not carried out as quickly or as deep i still am not sure the cuts are nessesary. It woudl appear labour has swalloed the idea that cuts are nessesary from George Osbourne and wont shift from that idea.
Well hwo about more growth for a start, investing in our future, investing in students and their education ? Wales has shown the way from a labour perspective and Ed miliband should be championing the idea of wales to not put up its tuitian fees.
It can be done. The capitalist system all over the world has failed and to use the anology of someone who spoke from teh audience tonight you cant carry on pouring water down the drain eventually you will run out. I really feel it is time to stop throwing our money away to these rich bankers in the elite class who seem to thinkw e have a unlimited amount of money and more money is the only answer.
One of the over riding messages to come out of tonights meeting is that we must start to ramp up the pressure on our local councillors to not impliment cuts even if they are a labour councillor. We must create a movement similar to the anti poll tax movement back in the 80's. It can be done and this government we have now is weak in so many ways. The tories wont know what has hit them once they start stirring the union movement.
Already the students have shown from their brave occupations and mass protests that the government wont get everything its own way and we must stand shoulder to shoulder with the student movement who some are so young we must protect them too.
After all it is their and our future we are fighting for we must stand up and be counted or we never will see the country the same way ever again.
Now as many of you may or may not know i'm hugely in favour of the union movement so tonight encouraged me greatly that the unions are starting to move once again. The government consisting of the tories and the lib dems keep on poking the sleeping giant taht is the trade union movement putting out policy after policy against the working class's and the middle class's i might add as i dont think this is purely a attack on the working class anymore its escalated.
But waht the tory lead coalition as that is what i firmly believe it is, the role of the lib dems is to just take the flack of the tory policies almost like a human shield for the tories. A very clever tactic i must admit. But tonight i felt a start of something new. From small acons grow big trees was the line that struck me as meaning the most. A movement from the left organised and strong can take down this government of ours. They are weak, weak i tell you many many cracks are appearing in this tory lead coalition. We must aim to exploit their lies and their broken promises. Boy the lib dems could fill a whole parliament with broken promises already and we are not even a year into this sham.
There was call for a day of general strike which was debated like a hot potato, some for it heavily some not so sure. Me myself are for it and think that a day of co-ordinated strike action in the public sector hopefully followed up in the private sector too is what we are heading towards. I think labour will have nothing to do with this. Just as Ed miliband has kept out of all demo's and student protests so far i can only see that continueing.
People like John Mcdonald in the labour party have the right idea but get hammered any time they talk up a mass movement against the cuts which is unfair as he is entitled to his opinion. Even if it doesnt follow labours plan of a 4 year deficit reduction. John recognises that cuts are not nessesary and there is another way.
Ed balls also recognised this but was shouted down by other labour members and MP's sadly.
The meeting tonight was very inspirational with many gettting up and talking passionatly about their situations.
A post office worker spoke passionatly of his struggle to keep his job and the proposed threat to stevenage post office and how it is set to close. There was anger directed to the union rep of the CWu present Billy hayes. But it is difficult when your facing a situation of 69 post office sorting centres across the country and a lot needing to go. That is the situation facing the post office and its workers across teh united Kingdom right now. Billy Hayes- a labour party member and having his union still affiliated to the labour party is in a difficult situation. He wants to keep his members on side but also protect his affiliation with the labour party.
There were calls for a break away from the labour party by the unions who recognise that labour no longer represent the mass workers party it once was and going back to a post i made earlier in the week that some labour MP's have become career polititians and no longer represent the working class.
I myself am a labour party member for the time being so have to be careful what i say but i myself am becoming increasingly frustrated by labour lack of a alternative plan. Their plan still seems to be the old Alastair Darling 4 year half the deficit plan. This for me stil goes too far with cuts, even if cuts are not carried out as quickly or as deep i still am not sure the cuts are nessesary. It woudl appear labour has swalloed the idea that cuts are nessesary from George Osbourne and wont shift from that idea.
Well hwo about more growth for a start, investing in our future, investing in students and their education ? Wales has shown the way from a labour perspective and Ed miliband should be championing the idea of wales to not put up its tuitian fees.
It can be done. The capitalist system all over the world has failed and to use the anology of someone who spoke from teh audience tonight you cant carry on pouring water down the drain eventually you will run out. I really feel it is time to stop throwing our money away to these rich bankers in the elite class who seem to thinkw e have a unlimited amount of money and more money is the only answer.
One of the over riding messages to come out of tonights meeting is that we must start to ramp up the pressure on our local councillors to not impliment cuts even if they are a labour councillor. We must create a movement similar to the anti poll tax movement back in the 80's. It can be done and this government we have now is weak in so many ways. The tories wont know what has hit them once they start stirring the union movement.
Already the students have shown from their brave occupations and mass protests that the government wont get everything its own way and we must stand shoulder to shoulder with the student movement who some are so young we must protect them too.
After all it is their and our future we are fighting for we must stand up and be counted or we never will see the country the same way ever again.
Monday, 1 November 2010
The Tea party in american politics
Having just watched this worlds documentary from Andrew Neill on bbc 2 earlier on this the fastest growing political movement in the USA.
Worries me slightly at the language being used and the messages being put across. To me it is always worrying when a big political movement gets going it is a momentum that can snowball out of control sometimes if the wrong people get involved.
This documentary focused on how people are flocking to this new right wing movement in the states in their droves. It highlighted peoples frustration with the current government and government in general. Tea party activists seem to want to take America back to the good old days where things were easier and simplier. They are dead against big government and the federal state.
Aligning this ideaology to a british perspective i'd say they are like the tory party of old in Britain. A group of people who do not want governemnt interfering in their lives anymore and want to take back their country as they put it.
The current president in America is of course O'barma who is a black american who has been touted as a socialist and a muslim by many in this tea party movement. I just find some of these claims farcicle and so wide of the mark, O'barma may be of african disent but he is defanatly american.
To me a british politics enthusiast i find it hard to get my head around how quickly this movement has sprung up so close behind what seemed like the big wave of optimism that swept across America to see President o'barma into the white house. Where has all that feeling gone ?
As i documented earlier this tea party movement predomenantly a grass roots campaign has been growing speed and power and is now infiltrating the Republican party in American politics, a party that has always been more right wing and been quite conservative, This tea party threatens and has achieved reasonable success in taking the republican party further to the right than it has ever gone before.
One question stands out for me is how have ordinary Republicans just let their party be taken over like this ?
I am aware that tea party activists have used all sorts of dirty tactics to get republicans out and their people in.
Now we face the mid term elections across America with the senate and the congress both up for grabs i expect to see a major shift towards the right in America with this scarirly fast movement which has tinges of racism in amoungst its depths. I just wonder where this will leave America and its less well off who are struggling even as it is. Will these be left to fend for themselves and ultimatly maybe perish.
Doesnt bear thinking about. I fear this movement from the documentary i watched tonight even without a leader to protect itself by having no head to cut off may be a road America may regret turning down.
Worries me slightly at the language being used and the messages being put across. To me it is always worrying when a big political movement gets going it is a momentum that can snowball out of control sometimes if the wrong people get involved.
This documentary focused on how people are flocking to this new right wing movement in the states in their droves. It highlighted peoples frustration with the current government and government in general. Tea party activists seem to want to take America back to the good old days where things were easier and simplier. They are dead against big government and the federal state.
Aligning this ideaology to a british perspective i'd say they are like the tory party of old in Britain. A group of people who do not want governemnt interfering in their lives anymore and want to take back their country as they put it.
The current president in America is of course O'barma who is a black american who has been touted as a socialist and a muslim by many in this tea party movement. I just find some of these claims farcicle and so wide of the mark, O'barma may be of african disent but he is defanatly american.
To me a british politics enthusiast i find it hard to get my head around how quickly this movement has sprung up so close behind what seemed like the big wave of optimism that swept across America to see President o'barma into the white house. Where has all that feeling gone ?
As i documented earlier this tea party movement predomenantly a grass roots campaign has been growing speed and power and is now infiltrating the Republican party in American politics, a party that has always been more right wing and been quite conservative, This tea party threatens and has achieved reasonable success in taking the republican party further to the right than it has ever gone before.
One question stands out for me is how have ordinary Republicans just let their party be taken over like this ?
I am aware that tea party activists have used all sorts of dirty tactics to get republicans out and their people in.
Now we face the mid term elections across America with the senate and the congress both up for grabs i expect to see a major shift towards the right in America with this scarirly fast movement which has tinges of racism in amoungst its depths. I just wonder where this will leave America and its less well off who are struggling even as it is. Will these be left to fend for themselves and ultimatly maybe perish.
Doesnt bear thinking about. I fear this movement from the documentary i watched tonight even without a leader to protect itself by having no head to cut off may be a road America may regret turning down.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)