London’s Burning

London is burning.  This time, from rage instead of boredom.  I hesitated to discuss this for a while.  As so many of my colleagues are British, it is becoming more and more unavoidable.  If anyone doesn’t know, there was a shooting of an Afro-Caribbean fellow in London sparked massive acts of violence.  If you want to know more, check out The Guardian.

Manchester

The violence has spread from London, into Nottingham, Manchester, Birmingham, Salford, Wolverhampton and West Bromwich.  This is truly a devastating event.  And it concerns me for several reasons.

First, let’s get one thing clear.  When you have a disenfranchised segment of the population that feels downtrodden, anger and resentment builds.  When a member of the dominants executes a member of the disenfranchised, this is often a tipping point.  The internalized anger comes out…  like shaking up a beer can on a hot day… it explodes.

I am deeply concerned about how this is being orchestrated.  It is truly just pure rage?  That is possible.  But, what I fear more is that opportunists are taking advantage of the rage and directing it.  As an American, having resided in New Jersey and California for majority of my life, I’m well aware of the course of riots.  What is often not reported is the tactics of trust-fund anarchists.

Let’s look at anarchists for a moment.  I had a professor once state, “If you want to see the root of a problem with government, ask an Anarchist.  Anarchists are fabulous at explaining the illegitimacy of a government.  If you want a solution, these are the last people to ask.”  (Not really verbatim, I don’t think.)  Farther, Libertarians are Anarchists.  Anarchists are not always the “Radical Left.”  These are people that generally think so much of themselves, they believe that no one has the right to tell them anything… because they didn’t consent.  They want to live among other people, but only no their own terms. Often, we see a lot of these anarchists are trust-fund rebels.

My problem with this is that we see this in the United States quite often.  And often this anger is directed inward.  These people, who are “fed up,” end up trashing their own communities.  They smash the small businesses that serve their communities.  They destroy the infrastructure that surrounds them.  They rarely head into the privileged communities or government offices.  It really makes it that much less productive.

I’m not condoning the violence.  I just wish there was some silver lining in it.  Instead, there is just nothing ‘good‘ to find.  And if these trust-fund anarchists are directing it, I find it really hypocritical that they are directing it away from their trust-funds.

There is one good thing about this situation.  It is a warning.  It is a warning that human society gets every few years.  We rarely pay attention, though.  The warning is that when disenfranchisement and desperation get to certain levels, the results are deadly and destructive.

I read a comment this morning where an individual stated that, “This is what the Libs want to happen in America.”  No.  You have that backwards.  This is the situation that the GOP/Tea Party wants to create in America.  They want to cut funding for social services in the communities that need it the most.  They want to remove all safety nets to ‘save the economy.’  They want the bottom 40% of our society to have nothing to lose.  And London is a prime example of how people behave when they feel they have nothing to lose.  So is Syria, and Egypt, and Tunisia.

LONDON IS WHY THE WEALTHY SHOULD PAY HIGHER TAXES.  We keep seeing these recurring themes in American politics, coming from the Right, stating that the wealthy should not shoulder the burden of society.  They basically claim the people on the bottom are parasites.  If this is true, then 80% of the United States are parasites.  Also, what happens to a host when it no longer supports parasites?  They kill it and find a new host.  Someone really needs to ask the top 5%, how great is your superior status in a destroyed nation?

The conservatives want to foster an environment that breeds the violence in London.  Policies that increase education and healthcare do not breed resentment.  Policies that provide opportunity do not breed anger.  And, it seems Americans refuse to listen to any ideology that makes them uncomfortable.

The Marxist view is one that states that the actions in London are inevitable.  If this is the case, then the riots in London are just proletarian rage.  This is what Marx considered the natural progression of Capitalism.  But Marx died before we saw the arrival of the Middle Class and the implementation of Keynesian economics.  These actually belied Marx’s predictions.  It seems enough time has passed that no one wants to take heed to these warnings anymore.

The Tories took control of England not so long ago.  And now look what is going on?  Do we really want the Tories to take control in the States?  Will we take heed of the warnings of England?

Tags: Afro-Caribbean, Anarchy in the UK, anger, disenfranchisement, England, London, Marx, Parliament, proletariat, rage, riots, Tory, UK
Category news |

Workers Of The World, Unite!

“Who are the oppressors? The few: the King, the capitalist, and a handful of other overseers and superintendents. Who are the oppressed? The many: the nations of the earth; the valuable personages; the workers; they that make the bread that the soft-handed and idle eat.”

~ Mark Twain

Labor day was made a federal holiday after the Pullman Strike.  It was a national strike of railway workers.  The Pullman Strike ended in a bit of tragedy.  The President sent the National Guard and US Marshals to end the strike.  Death and injury resulted, as well as large amounts of property damage.  Eugene V. Debs led the strike.  He was eventually incarcerated on a minor charge.  It was while in jail that Debs read the works of Karl Marx.  Debs became a socialist and ran for President in 1900.

Those who produce should have, but we know that those who produce the most – that is, those who work hardest, and at the most difficult and most menial tasks, have the least.

~ Eugene V. Debs

We owe a lot to these organizers, of unions and protests, in the 19th and 20th centuries.  It was these brave people who stood up to corporate thuggery and government force.  They paved the way for workplace safety standards, fair wages, fair conditions, and many other labor laws that save thousands of lives every year.

While there is a lower class, I am in it, while there is a criminal element, I am of it, and while there is a soul in prison, I am not free.

~ Eugene V. Debs

Today is Labor Day.  Let us not forget what “Labor” means in Labor Day.  It means the worker.  Labor day is not “Production Day.”  It was a national holiday created in support of the labor that keeps society going.

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Tags: Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, communism, Eugene V. Debs, labor, Labor Day, Labour, Mark Twain, Marx, socialism, Workers
Category Main category, news |

Website Status and Gramsci

“All men are intellectuals, one could therefore say:  but not all men have in society the function of intellectuals.*” ~ Antonio Gramsci

” * Thus, because it can happen that everyone at some time fries a couple of eggs or sows up a tear in a jacket, we do not necessarily say that everyone is a cook or a tailor.“

I will be discussing this in the near future.

I am currently redesigning this site from the ground up.  I will be back shortly to elaborate on whatever I so desire in the very near future.

Please be patient as I am literally coding this entire site on piece at a time.

In the meantime, remember:

“TO TELL THE TRUTH IS REVOLUTIONARY!”

~ Antonio Gramsci

Tags: dialectic, Gramsci, Marx, Marxism, praxism, prison, status, Website
Category Website |

Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.

There is a lot of talk about Patriotism these days.  The New Right has proliferated the internet with their “Patriotic” terminology.  There is this trend towards Revolutionary Era nostalgia mixed with patriotic terminology that seems to obscure any true meaning.

Sarah Palin stepped on the scene and decided to resign as Governor and proceed with her speaking engagements and book writings.  Many people cannot figure out why Palin has become such a national figure.  She is quite symbolic.  Sarah Palin puts a lot of words together and actually says very little.  Sarah Palin said, “Americans expect us to go to Washington for the right reason, and not just to mingle with the right people.“*  What does that mean?  It can really mean whatever you want it to mean.  Everyone can attribute whatever preconceived notion that have to it.

The New Right is full of these comments, insinuations and rhetorical devices.  I went to “Norcal Freedom Fighters.”  In the “About Us” page, it states the following:

Core Values

• Dedicated to defending the principles of our Nation, as established by our forefathers for the advancement of the people of these United States of America, under God
• Ensure that the principles of the Constitution are preserved, communicated, understood and used as the basic premise for all Government in these United States of America (Local, State and Federal); creating an environment for fiduciary responsibility, the motivation of opportunities, individual choice, self-determination and generosity
• Support for political candidates that supports conservative ideals

Strategies

• Provide Constitutional education to empower and advance opportunities for all citizens
• Promote the greatness of this Country and not apologize for being the envy of the World
• Promote our principles and respecting others, not apologize or be subjugated to other doctrines of the world

If you “[p]rovide Constitutional education to empower and advance opportunities for all citizens,” does that include non-Christian citizens?  What about the education that contradicts that the “principles of our Nation, as established by our forefathers” were not based on a Nation “under God“?

I could really spend the entire time dissection just this six point page.  “Promote the greatness of this Country and not apologize for being the envy of the World.“  Envy of the world?  That is a lot like that attitude that some women have where they truly think people dislike them simply because they are beautiful regardless of their behavior (or breath).  At the very least, this is such a subjective statement, one can’t help by wonder exactly what it is supposed to mean to the general public.  How Palin-esque.

I’m going to do something I have been doing too much lately and draw a direct quote from Wikipedia.  My apologies in advance.  I just want to make sure we are using the same terms.  Far too many people throw around words with reckless abandon and then want to debate the semantics of it.

“In Marxist  terminology, reactionary is a pejorative  adjective denoting people whose ideas might appear to be pro-working class, but, in essence, contain elements of feudalism, capitalism, nationalism, fascism  or other socio-political characteristics of the ruling class.  Reactionary also denotes supporters of authoritarian, anti-communist and fascist régimes such as Vichy France,…”

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Tags: corporatism, elite, Marx, Marxism, New Right, NorCal Freedom Fighters, Patriotism, Plutocracy, Professor G. William Domhoff, reactionary, sarah palin, terminology, United States, wealth, wealth distribution, Who Rules America
Category Definitions |

It’s A Mad Mad Mad Mad World.

The world is pretty crazy right now.  To all of my readers overseas, let us examine what is really going on:

In America, we know that “gay marriage” is a terrible thing.  We have to ban it.  This “sacred institution” needs to be preserved.  We need this institution.  It was started as a means to subjugate women.  What could be more important?  First we let gay people get married, and then we have to figure out: Who is the husband?  Which one owns the other one?  Who gets to take most of the money in the divorce? We might even have to make wedding cakes with two brides on the top.

Sex with goats. That has a lot of gray area.  Florida recently failed to ban beastiality, and it is a good thing too.  I mean, how do we know if the animal is consenting or not?  Do not let this cloud your judgment, though.  If men like having sex with men, it does not matter if it is consensual.  They need to do it the good, old fashioned way:  In a sleazy hotel with a lot of crystal meth, preferably with a male hooker or employee.  If you are in a hurry, you could always just jerk each other off in the restroom.  But to actually live with someone that you love and share in their life is unacceptable if you are the same gender.  (Gay women should not be allowed to marry, but we don’t want to talk about it too much, because all the straight men will get erections thinking about it, although, lesbians never have mullets and skull tattoos in heterosexual lesbian fantasies.)

These are important issues, not like the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  The Governor of Texas let us know that the oil spill was “God’s will” and that “nothing could have been done about it.” When I farted in the elevator last week, that was God’s will, too.  Hurricane Katrina was also God’s will.  And the Earthquake in Haiti was “God’s will.”  This is not important.  What is important is covering up the cartoon breast on the seal of the State of Virginia.  This is a much more pressing issue then the coal mines that collapsed next door.  The State of Virginia is also currently celebrating their loss in the War of Northern Aggression.  They do not want to be concerned with trivial issues like slavery, but want to delve into the spirit of what caused them to lose the war against the United States government and be forced to have a tit on their state seal.

People from Mexico coming into the United States has nothing to do with “God.”  Illegal immigrants are another big issue.  Everyone is concerned.  The people on the Right are so outraged that Mexican children are working in the fields and building their houses with no workplace standards, they want to enact an Apartheid system.  Apparently, it is much easier to get a nanny from China or Africa and beat her into submission, because she can’t just leave.  The people on the Left are all worked up about illegal immigration, too.  They claim that “no one is illegal” even when they are not legal.  Everyone has a very strong stance on the issue and are consumed with the details so much that they don’t have time to actually look at what is going on in Mexico.  While the drug cartels are assassinating the entire government of Mexico, we have so much to worry about, like sex with goats, gay marriages, and abortion.

The abortion issue is currently a big deal because of Universal Healthcare.  Apparently, the President passed a bill that provides Universal Healthcare.  This is terrible.  It is so terrible, that people logically loaded their guns and marched on National and State capitals.  (I know that it shouldn’t even need to be said.  Whenever I think about healthcare, my first response is to load my assault rifle.)  These people know what is really going on, the things that are not written anywhere.  They can read between the lines:

First we let gays marry, and then we give poor people preventative healthcare, and the slippery slope starts… next thing you know, everyone is being forced into gay marriages and Communist death panels start deciding who is getting a gay  abortion.  Meanwhile, God is dumping oil along the coastline, so you have to have sex with your goats farther inland… no animal sex on the beach.

We also have a Black President with a funny name.  This means he is a follower of Marx, a Muslim, a Communist, a Black Nationalist, a Socialist, the Anti-Christ, a Zionist and a black Stalin/Mao/Castro.  He is NOT, under any circumstances Se Seko Mobutu.  Mobutu may have caused the death of half a million people a year, but he was not a Communist and all of those people were Black Africans, so they were probably going to die in a year or so anyway.  (We all know that is all that happens in Africa… people kill each other, or get a disease, and die – while the noble animals are all sitting around discussing important issues, like what people to have sex with and not letting gay animals have married abortions.)  This Communist President bailed out private automotive industries to help them keep people employed.  He also bailed out banks and financial institutions.  He did not nationalize these institutions, because he does not want to show his hand yet… the Communist Conspiracy of Kenya. (more…)

Tags: abortion, aliens, amicus curiae, anti-christ, Arizona, beastiality, birds, birth certificate, breast, Castro, Communist, Constitution, drug cartels, environmental policy, faeries, Florida, gay marriage, George Will, goats, Gulf, Harvard, healthcare, illegal immigrants, Islam, Kenya, labor, Leprechauns, Mao, Marx, Mexico, Nationalist, oil spill, patriots, pixies, sarah palin, Se Seko Mobutu, Socialist, Stalin, state seal, subjugation, Tea Party, Texas, Tory, trolls, unicorns, Virginia, zionist
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