March 2005

In April a new book by Alan Woods is being published by Wellred Books.
The title of the book is “Ireland: Republicanism and Revolution”. It
looks at the history of the Republican movement from a Marxist
viewpoint. Gerry Ruddy, Ard-Comhairle member of the Irish Republican
Socialist Party, has written a preface to the book, which we provide
here. As he says, “Hopefully, it will stimulate debate and analysis.
Serious revolutionaries, genuine Marxists, committed Republicans will
read this book with thoughtful interest.”

A group of students organised in the UCL Social Forum, UCL Stop the War
Society and the UCLSSWS, together with other activists, occupied the
University College London on the eve of the national march against the
occupation of Iraq.

We are very happy to publish this leaflet that has been distributed in
West Yorkshire. The authors of the leaflet are a small but committed
group of young Socialists who are based in the area.

Twenty years ago this month, the heroic twelve-month long struggle of
the British miners to defend their jobs and their communities came to
an end. The BBC drama Faith
broadcast on February 28 on these events was like a breath of fresh
air, an antidote to that earlier filth masquerading as ‘impartial
documentaries’. For the first time in the national media the role of
the state – its specially created national police force, its media, its
secret services, and all the weapons employed by the ruling class to
fight the miners – was vividly exposed.

Jamie Oliver’s television programme has highlighted the scandal of junk
food school meals being served up to British children by private firms.
In some cases a pathetic 37p is being spent per child. This is the
inevitable consequence of allowing profit hungry privateers anywhere
near our children’s health and education.

Way back in 1959, the then Tory prime minister, Harold Macmillan, went
into an election with the slogan that Britain has “never had it so
good.” Now, according to Gordon Brown, the UK has enjoyed, under his
stewardship, the longest period of sustained economic growth since
1701! However, it does not say much for capitalism and the British
variety of it that the longest period of economic growth in its history
is just seven years.

Tony Blair has called the general election for May 5. He did this as
opinion polls show a sharp fall in Labour support, down to 37% of the
electorate, with the Tories close behind at 34% and the Liberal
Democrats at 21%. This would indicate another Blair victory but with a
much reduced majority and with significant layers of the working class
voting for nobody. There will be no street parties this time.

In Southern Ireland the
economic miracle is well and truly over. As we have predicted and explained for
some time now, the Celtic Tiger phenomenon did not mean that capitalism had
solved any of its contradictions. Now in the context of a declining world market
the only road open to the bosses to protect their profits will be an assault on
workers living standards.