A recently published
book by Francis Beckett, The Great City Academy Fraud, is a clear exposé
of the City Academies programme of the New
Labour government. Launched by David Blunkett in March 2000, the Academies
programme is both an attack on state education and, in educational terms, a
disaster. The programme is also an example of the spin and deceit methods that
are the hallmark of New Labour.
After the successful demonstration to the
presidential palace on August 8th, the campaign for the release of the student
activists from the CLEP-CEDEP and the
MENA arrested on August 6th while demanding
more university places continued with more demonstrations and actions.
We
call on workers throughout the world to protest against the capitalist
government of Iran and for the unconditional release of Mansour Osanloo
and Mahmoud Salehi and all other imprisoned labour activists in Iran.
The achievements of science and technology during the past century are
unparalleled in history. They provide the potential for the solution to
all the problems faced by the planet, and equally for its total
destruction. Allegedly scientific theories are being used to "prove"
that criminality is caused, not by social conditions, but by a
"criminal gene". Black people are alleged to be disadvantaged, not
because of discrimination, but because of their genetic make-up. Of
course, such "science" is highly convenient to right-wing politicians
intent on ruthlessly cutting welfare.
The times of the post-War boom were fat years for most
working class people. Living standards went up year after year and there was
virtually full employment. As a result the labour movement had built up
enormous strength.
The following episode is taken from Rob Sewell’s book ‘In
the cause of labour ‘, on the 35th anniversary of the historic events of that year.
Brown has replaced Blair as leader of the Labour Party and Prime
Minister, but has anything fundamental changed? Absolutely not! And yet behind
this seemingly uneventful change lies the manoeuvre to stop John McDonnell to
stand for the leadership. All the indications were that John would have made a
good showing. Something is stirring in the British labour movement.
Jorge Martin talks at a Socialist Appeal meeting at the end of June on the recent Nationalisations that have been taking place in Venezuela since the begining of the year. Also talked about is the general acceleration of the revolutionary process since the elections in December of last year, which saw Hugo Chavez returned to government with 63% of the vote. As Chavez said the vote was not for Chavez or the government, but for Socialism.
The Socialist Youth Network (SYN) launched its COFUP! campaign (Coalition Fighting Unfair Pay) in the House of Commons last night. The campaign seeks to make it a Labour party policy that pay discrimination based on age is abolished, and that the minimum wage is adjusted to 2/3 of median male earnings.
In
the House of Commons last night around 40 people met for the ‘Launch of
International Support for Mexico’s Public Trial of Crimes Against Humanity’.
The meeting was organized by The Global Woman’s Strike and hosted by John
McDonnell and Jeremy Corbyn.
This is an important book, written by Andrew Kliman, and published by
Lexington Books. In a nutshell, what Andrew Kliman shows is that Marx’s laws of
motion of capitalism (how capitalism works and does not work) are logically
consistent and theoretically valid.
In the course of human history new discoveries,
particularly in the fields of science and medicine, have challenged established
thought. This is now happening again with stem cell research. What could lead
to curing many diseases that up to now have been fatal is coming under a
barrage of criticism because of religious and reactionary prejudices.
On Thursday 18th July comrades of the British section of the International Marxist Tendency, Socialist Appeal, showed their solidarity with the Peoples Youth Block (BJP) by protesting outside the embassy of El Savador against the repressive measures employed by the government. A letter of protest was received, signed by leading trade unionists from the NUJ, PCS, CWU, ASLEF, UNISON and the TGWU.