Issue 155 of Socialist Appeal is out now. This months journal features:
- Editorial: Iraq and Afganistan: "Horror without end"
- Trade Unions: Metronet: A bad case of Begging bowl capitalism and Action delivers… Let’s have some more!
- News: Still no justice for Jean Charles de Menezes and Return of the living dead – and John Redwood
- Education: The City Academy Scandal and Student debt reaches all time high
- Global Warming: WhyBiofuels miss their target
- Economy: Stock markets – Nightmare on Wall Street
- Venezuela: Workers Control under attack – The struggle for justic at Sanitarios Maracay continues
- France: Legislative elections mark the end of the honeymoon period
- International Marxist Tendency: Marxist World School Success
- Russian Revolution: Land and Freedom
- Fim Review: No Volveran!
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Fighting Fund
Fight for Socialism!
Towards the end of the new Tory report on economic policy presented this August by John Redwood, we find the following statement on ownership:
‘Today we should offer the same prospect to people to own the factories and offices of Britain as we offered them to own the homes of Britain in the last century.’
What can they mean? Well let’s read on.
‘The task of spreading ownership will not be carried out by confiscation, or by attack upon the current owners of capital. We are not Marxist socialists who judge the current owners to be too rich or the wrong sort of people… Our aim is to involve the current owners more, not less; to allow them to enjoy the fruits of ownership more, not steal them from them; and to create a climate where many more set up businesses of their own, or come to buy and own stakes in the bigger businesses run by others.’
Now no one reading this journal would ever be likely to think of the likes of John Redwood as being ‘Marxist socialists’ and the truth is all too clear. They just want us to give them more money. After all, what have we seen over the last few decades? The rich getting richer, the poor poorer with more wealth being concentrated in ever fewer hands – no ‘spreading ownership’ at all.
The society we want is one where the people really own the means of production and have a full say in how things are run. This is socialism and it is the task of us all to fight for it.
But to do that we need cash and that is why we have a fighting fund. The summer months are traditionally slow on this front (although the tremendous contribution of UK readers towards this year’s international collection should be noted) but now autumn is almost on us it is time to get moving. Every reader should consider what he or she could give to help us spread the ideas of socialism inside the labour and trade union movement.
Donations can be made in a number of ways:
"By cheque to us at PO Box 50525, London E14 6WG (made payable to Socialist Appeal SC).
"Cheques and cash can also be paid in over the counter at any branch of Abbey National quoting account number K2018479SOC.
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If you wish you can also ask your bank to pay a regular amount by standing order each month into our accounts. Simply use the information above when instructing your bank (non Alliance and Leicester customers should quote sort code 72 00 05 and account number 625 286 01) or contact us and we will send you a special form you can just fill out and send back in. After that everything is automatic and you can change or cancel the SO at any time, it remains under your control and no-one else, ourselves included. Your support is appreciated – thank you in advance.
Steve Jones
