Eamon Dyas Although placing limits on freedom of expression has always been a feature of western democracies — particularly in angst-ridden Germany — I’ve noticed since Covid an upsurge in the way in which public figures in the west are increasingly describing freedom of expression as a privilege. In Britain the establishment’s use of antisemitism … Continue reading Is freedom of expression a privilege or an essential ingredient of democracy?
By Labour Affairs Rail maintenance budgets slashed The need for an energetic trade union leader for the RMT has not gone away. The issues within the industry that led to the industrial action have not been resolved. Scot Rail, state owned, is pushing ahead with a programme to reduce booking office hours, in some cases … Continue reading Mick Lynch retires
By Eamon Dyas I had meant to continue the previous article (Labour Affairs December 2024) on the attitude of the US to Europe’s relationship with Russian energy. But at the time of writing the newspapers and airways were dominated by the news of the decision by Kiev to end, on 31 December 2024, the long-standing … Continue reading Ukraine and the supply of Russian gas to Europe
Dave Gardner Human beings need to live in association with each other. They can live in societies without a state, but the world of today is dominated by states. But each of these states is composed of different kinds of social groups based on family, economic, religious and linguistic ties. The state relates not just … Continue reading Civil Society and Socialism
Reflections on questions concerning global warming Part Six: 5% of scientists can't be wrong or Science Whoring By Richard Jones I intended to write about attribution. I will, but mostly just to introduce the concept and the bare bones of the problem, as nothing I could write would compare with simply referring readers to the recent … Continue reading 5% of scientists can’t be wrong or Science Whoring
Eamon Dyas With Starmer reluctant to use home grown state funds to stimulate the economy he’s relying on blood money from the Ukrainian conflict as an alternative source. At what point does that policy - ostensibly designed to encourage Kiev to keep going - mean that the government’s domestic policy for growth has come to … Continue reading Growth through War?
John Clayden In an interview with Kim Iversen, Richard Werner covers a lot of ground . Kim's first question is "Who really runs the world? I always thought it was the central banks". Richard Werner: "Your instincts are right it is the central banks." He then gives a résumé of his career starting studying economics … Continue reading Conversation with an economist: Richard Werner and the threat from central banking
(Reprinted from Church and State 2025) British Premier Sir Keir Starmer took part in mid-December, in his official capacity as British Prime Minister, in the Jewish celebration of the festival of Hanukkah. A segment of his speech played by the media suggested that Hanukkah was about meditation conducive to peace, rather like what Christmas has become in … Continue reading Celebrating Hanukkah!
Gwydion M. Williams “It’s not that she’s black, but she’s black” Labour’s Submissive Tendency Unsuccessful Strife, and Afterwards Slovakia Dares to Disobey the Anglosphere Will Trump Dump Kiev? Snippets How Russia Was Lost Trump Endorses Greater Israel Trump Wants the World: Does the World Say No? Afghan Failure Australian decline Lynching the Audience “It’s not … Continue reading Notes on the News
Catherine Dunlop Farage has a reputation for being against immigrants, but is he? What does his programme say? what does he say in interviews? And crucially, what does he propose to do about the factors that drive immigration ? The UK population has increased by around 8.2 million since the start of the twenty-first century. The UK population was … Continue reading Is the Reform party against immigration?
Three Israeli captives released in exchange for 183 Palestinians (Middle East Eye, 8 February 2025) US State Department informs Congress of $7.4 billion arms sale to Israel (Times of Israel, 7 February 2025) The Middle East's longest-reigning king heads into a standoff with Trump (Sean Mathews, Middle East Eye, 7 February 2025) The damage of … Continue reading Palestine Links February 2025
BSW on Democracy and the banning of political parties: The efforts to ban the AfD (Alternativ für Deutschland) are a political folly in which BSW is not participating. The fact that support for the AfD has doubled in the past three years is not due to the particularly brilliant policies of Weidel and Co. but … Continue reading Sahra Wagenknecht Newsletters December 2024/January 2025
Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) (The Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance – Reason and Justice) Party Building: Letter to Supporters, December 2025 Dear supporter(s), The frequent and active help of our supporters was of decisive importance for BSW. Without you, we would never have been able to achieve our successes this year. We would like to thank you … Continue reading Sahra Wagenknecht on the challenges of building a new leftwing party
The British government, with the support of the opposition, is currently engaged in acts of war against the Russian Federation. It has approved the use of British made and supplied missiles to the Ukrainian state in order to attack targets within pre 2014 Russia. The Russian government has made it clear that such actions constitute … Continue reading Britain on the Brink of War with Russia—Editorial
Keir Starmer’s decision to assist Ukraine in shooting UK supplied weapons into Russia is puzzling for many reasons. Firstly, it is not going to affect the outcome of the war in Ukraine. Secondly, it is not going to change the conditions which Russia would require in any peace deal. Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, it … Continue reading Starmer’s Pointless Missiles—Editorial 2
Part One — an early experience Eamon Dyas The way in which Europe is currently committing a slow economic suicide in the wake of what is effectively a US geopolitical exercise in Ukraine stands in marked contrast with what happened in 1981-82. The more robust stance adopted by Europe at that time promised the possibility of an independent Europe … Continue reading The United States policy towards Europe’s energy needs
Catherine Dunlop “People want to be governed.” This is what Burke said and it’s a fundamental truth. People want to get on with their lives and they rely on a government to maintain an environment where they can get on with their lives. The instrument of the government is the state; a modern state has a police … Continue reading Bevin, MMT and the Class Struggle
What Socialists Should Know. Dave Gardner Socialists need to understand what the state is and how it can help or hinder progress towards socialism. Societies can exist without a state but the reality is that, when a society becomes complex or is threatened by neighbouring societies it will develop a state. A state is an … Continue reading The State in Capitalist Society
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