We wanted this debate today (WSM Ideas & Action 31 March 2001) because we recognise that we share a considerable number of points of departure with those who advocate local sustainable development from an environmental rather then a nationalistic perspective. The idea for the session came out of a discussion I was having a couple of months ago with some of the activists involved in the S26 collective. They were a little annoyed at the description of the movement against corporate globalisation being labelled ‘anti-capitalist’, as this was not how they choose to define themselves.
Writer: Andrew Flood
Articles by Andrew N Flood
A 60 minute recording of a talk and discussion on the Chinese revolution and the Chinese anarchist movement. It’s available here as google video, mp4 and mp3 formats, the first two are preferred as the viewer will then be able to see the images referenced during the talk.
The political history of the Phoenix Park in Dublin. While the park hosts many of the symbols of power in Ireland – past and present – from the monument to the arch-reactionary Wellington, to the US-ambassador’s residence and the Garda Headquarters, it has also seen its fair share of opposition.
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Class, Ecology and the bin tax
In 2003 in Dublin over 20 people were jailed for resisting the imposition of the bin tax in Dublin. There were some who saw the bin tax struggle as being an example where the ‘environmental agenda’ is counterpoised to the ‘working class’ agenda. I don’t and I think the few environmentalists who have supported the ruling class line in this have done great damage to the environmental cause. The bin tax pure and simple was about imposing the neo-liberal agenda, what some people call ‘globalisation’. A core part of this agenda is to transfer the costs of running society from the rich and corporations to workers and the poor.
After a quiet period the struggle against Shell’s attempt to impose a dangerous experimental gas pipeline in Erris, Co. Mayo has escalated once more over the last month. Shell are now attempting to bring the pipe ashore at Glenagad and over 20 people have been arrested to date resisting this. Shell’s Solitaire pipe-laying ship has arrived at the port of Killybegs and is expected in the Erris area any day making this a key period for Shell and for the community that is determined to halt its project.
The 34th G8 summit took place in Japan July 7th to 9th 2008. Andrew Flood interviewed Diane K. a member of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) and the (US) Northeast Federation of Anarchist-Communists (NEFAC) who traveled to Japan from New York to take part in the summit protests and counter summit.
What do we say to people in the reformist parties? They can not (and should not) be ignored. We say look at the record of your party in government or to the Workers Party when you supported the 1981 minority Fianna Fail government. Look at what your party stands for. Look at the record of your party in the trade union bureaucracy. Look at the historical role reformist parties have played in other countries. Reformism has had it’s test and failed one hundred times.
Article from 1992 looking at the prospects for a growth in anarchism following the collapse of socialism. The tradition in which the anarchists stand is one that socialists need to identify with. For many on the left this will be a difficult process. They were weaned on a diet of slander when it came to anarchism, either being told that anarchists were police agents or that they were not real socialists at all and wanted a return to feudalism. We must resist the temptation to avoid this problem by going "beyond anarchism". The state has been the Achilles heel of 20th century socialism, it is not an issue to be fudged.
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Legalise it
Article from 1994 arguing that possession of small amounts of all drugs should be de-criminalised. Anti- social drugs like heroin should be available on prescription from doctors at low cost to prevent junkies turning to crime to finance their habit. What is needed is a real debate on the control of the other drugs. It seems reasonable to say that the maximum of restrictions should be similar to those applying in relation to drink or tobacco and this should be medically based and enforced rather than state controlled.
There is a long tradition of personal autobiographies written by ageing activists in the anarchist movement about their experiences and motivations. This is the recently published autobiography of Albert Meltzer, a British anarchist whose life has taken him from the fights against Mosley and support for Spain in the 1930’s through fringe involvement in a plot to assassinate Hitler, the Cairo mutiny after WWII, supporting the Spanish resistance, to the Angry Brigade trials and fighting the National Front in the 1970’s.