The letters in the 'Herald' today include a plea from a Solidarity supporter to get in touch if you want there to be only one socialist party in Scotland.
I have to tell him that this situation already exists. The Scottish Socialist Party are the only really socialist party in Scotland, the other, which purports to support Scottish socialism is largely funded from other places and was never any more than a vehicle for one man's vanity (and the driver seems to be abandoning the vehicle rapidly to try to find a career where his talents will be better placed--in the media presumably, even although he has condemned them up and down, but thats show business, even if it's not politics).
Showing posts with label solidarity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label solidarity. Show all posts
Monday, 7 May 2007
Friday, 4 May 2007
The Election Results
This is a painful one to write, but I said that I would comment on our own showing in a later post, so I suppose I can't run away from it. The only caveat I would add is that this is my personal opinion (as is everything else in this blog)
The result for us was dreadful. Our parliamentary base has been wiped out and the Scottish Nationalists with their capitalist puppet masters have become the biggest party. It could hardly be worse.
But it is worse. Some of our failure, as Clairwil comments earlier today, was due to the general squeeze that was felt by all of the smaller parties, which, in their rush to give Labour a good kicking, just supported the most likely boot boys. It would, however, be hypocritical to ignore the mutually assured destruction which Tommy 'tangoman' Sheridan forced the left wing parties into.
He has deprived the people that he purports to represent of a voice of any kind in the Parliament by an act of triumphalist self aggrandisement. Who will speak for the poor and the disenfranchised now. Tangoman has deprived them of a voice and is trying to give them just a mouth. He has become a disgrace to socialism and is now everything a socialist should not be.
He should be ashamed of what he has done to his own people who trusted and believed in him. It is the right of everyone to form a party and to stand in election, but to target your highest profile candidates in places where there is a sitting socialist member is either malicious or just plain crazy. It isn't as if the result was unpredictable, he knew exactly what he was doing when he set out to destroy what he had created for no other reason than that it had survived without him. I repeat--he knew what he was doing because he has been in politics long enough, and every pollster and pundit told him.
There are 100,000 more people disenfranchised today than there were yesterday because of Douglas 'Duggie' Alexander's Westminster imposed voting system and not a solitary damned MSP of the left to represent them .I hope you're proud Tommy.
There is nothing more unseemly than a fall out within the left (Peoples Front for Judea etc) and as my old mum used to say 'The more you stamp on a skitter the further it spreads.' so it is not my intention to make any further comment at all on this, but I will not censor comment. I've given it out, so I'll have to take it. And yes, I am bitter.
The result for us was dreadful. Our parliamentary base has been wiped out and the Scottish Nationalists with their capitalist puppet masters have become the biggest party. It could hardly be worse.
But it is worse. Some of our failure, as Clairwil comments earlier today, was due to the general squeeze that was felt by all of the smaller parties, which, in their rush to give Labour a good kicking, just supported the most likely boot boys. It would, however, be hypocritical to ignore the mutually assured destruction which Tommy 'tangoman' Sheridan forced the left wing parties into.
He has deprived the people that he purports to represent of a voice of any kind in the Parliament by an act of triumphalist self aggrandisement. Who will speak for the poor and the disenfranchised now. Tangoman has deprived them of a voice and is trying to give them just a mouth. He has become a disgrace to socialism and is now everything a socialist should not be.
He should be ashamed of what he has done to his own people who trusted and believed in him. It is the right of everyone to form a party and to stand in election, but to target your highest profile candidates in places where there is a sitting socialist member is either malicious or just plain crazy. It isn't as if the result was unpredictable, he knew exactly what he was doing when he set out to destroy what he had created for no other reason than that it had survived without him. I repeat--he knew what he was doing because he has been in politics long enough, and every pollster and pundit told him.
There are 100,000 more people disenfranchised today than there were yesterday because of Douglas 'Duggie' Alexander's Westminster imposed voting system and not a solitary damned MSP of the left to represent them .I hope you're proud Tommy.
There is nothing more unseemly than a fall out within the left (Peoples Front for Judea etc) and as my old mum used to say 'The more you stamp on a skitter the further it spreads.' so it is not my intention to make any further comment at all on this, but I will not censor comment. I've given it out, so I'll have to take it. And yes, I am bitter.
Wednesday, 25 April 2007
Colin Fox , Tommy Sheridan, and Bernard Ponsonby
I've just watched the interviews by Colin Fox and Tommy Sheridan with Bernard Ponsonby, and I wonder why TS keeps refusing to grasp the olive branch and talk about some sort of electoral arrangement with Colin and the SSP.
Tommy Sheridan keeps alluding to 'backstabbers' (at least he has dropped the dread word 'scabs') who, he says, he was warned about. while leader of the SSP. It is clear that the SSP has the thought out agenda, which might be because Solidarity are new in the field, but CF seemed much more like a serious champion of working people, and TS more like a personality politician who would demand to be leader in whatever he joined.
Well I'm sorry TS, its time to put up or shut up. Who were the backstabbers? What did they do to you? Who warned you about them? And what was their issue, because it surely, by your description of the events, pre-dates your problem with the NOTW ?
Thursday, 19 April 2007
At the Election Hustings in Paisley
I had never attended a hustings before and I was assured that it would be interesting. I wasn't disappointed'
Like everything in politics we started with a tea break before a blow had been struck, and whilst it was very good (fair trade) stuff, and a credit to the churches which provided it, perhaps they should have asked the candidates to do some work first.
As to the parties, well Labour did not show up due to illness, which disappointed a lot of the audience who had clearly come to give the Labour candidate a good kicking, so perhaps his illness was tactical. If not then I apologise for my cynicism; Labour made me this way.
The Tory was a revelation. I had heard rumours of their existence in Scotland but had never before seen one in the flesh as it were. I believed that they existed like unicorns or yetis. Something to frighten children with who won't behave. He was clearly under some pressure on the issue of Trident when he told us that we had to have nuclear weapons to defend ourselves from the U.S.A. I rather switched off at this point and pretended not to be listening because I didn't want to embarass the man any further. I hope his carers managed to find him because he seemed nice, if unhinged.
The Lib/Dem, in a typical Lib/Dem compromise, torn between nuclear and non-nuclear, decided that she would get rid of half of our nuclear weapons and keep the other half just in case (of what I'm not sure).
The Scottish Nationalist candidate decided to promote their new 'ethical foreign policy' which considering their attitude to the English and the fact that their domestic policy is ethically questionable (they took the Souter money) seemed to be just a bit opportunistic. She also mentioned on two or three occassions how her party's policies were fair and just. She talked a lot about economic growth and increased prosperity, but she didn't tell us how this new found wealth would be shared out. I think she is just offering a rich boss with a different accent and all of her blethering about just and fair society is a smokescreen. There will be increased prosperity with independence, but if the Nats have their way it will all go into the same pockets it goes into now because the Nats offer no real social change. That's why the rich love them. This is not my kind of independence.
Solidarity put up a good candidate with really sound socialist policies, but they didn't seem to be very well fleshed out with specific policy committments. Perhaps it is early to be looking for that, but their man looked uncomfortable and I think he knows he has backed the wrong horse.
The Greens were green, what else can I say.
The Scottish Socialist (and my loyalties are no secret) was an old hand at hustings. He played his cards with some style, and he had the big cards for this audience. End trident, stop the war, build council houses, free public transport, scrap the council tax, and challenge big business to accept their share of social responsibility--I think we had the best of this evening.
The Chairman, parachuted in from the University of Paisley did a fine job.
Like everything in politics we started with a tea break before a blow had been struck, and whilst it was very good (fair trade) stuff, and a credit to the churches which provided it, perhaps they should have asked the candidates to do some work first.
As to the parties, well Labour did not show up due to illness, which disappointed a lot of the audience who had clearly come to give the Labour candidate a good kicking, so perhaps his illness was tactical. If not then I apologise for my cynicism; Labour made me this way.
The Tory was a revelation. I had heard rumours of their existence in Scotland but had never before seen one in the flesh as it were. I believed that they existed like unicorns or yetis. Something to frighten children with who won't behave. He was clearly under some pressure on the issue of Trident when he told us that we had to have nuclear weapons to defend ourselves from the U.S.A. I rather switched off at this point and pretended not to be listening because I didn't want to embarass the man any further. I hope his carers managed to find him because he seemed nice, if unhinged.
The Lib/Dem, in a typical Lib/Dem compromise, torn between nuclear and non-nuclear, decided that she would get rid of half of our nuclear weapons and keep the other half just in case (of what I'm not sure).
The Scottish Nationalist candidate decided to promote their new 'ethical foreign policy' which considering their attitude to the English and the fact that their domestic policy is ethically questionable (they took the Souter money) seemed to be just a bit opportunistic. She also mentioned on two or three occassions how her party's policies were fair and just. She talked a lot about economic growth and increased prosperity, but she didn't tell us how this new found wealth would be shared out. I think she is just offering a rich boss with a different accent and all of her blethering about just and fair society is a smokescreen. There will be increased prosperity with independence, but if the Nats have their way it will all go into the same pockets it goes into now because the Nats offer no real social change. That's why the rich love them. This is not my kind of independence.
Solidarity put up a good candidate with really sound socialist policies, but they didn't seem to be very well fleshed out with specific policy committments. Perhaps it is early to be looking for that, but their man looked uncomfortable and I think he knows he has backed the wrong horse.
The Greens were green, what else can I say.
The Scottish Socialist (and my loyalties are no secret) was an old hand at hustings. He played his cards with some style, and he had the big cards for this audience. End trident, stop the war, build council houses, free public transport, scrap the council tax, and challenge big business to accept their share of social responsibility--I think we had the best of this evening.
The Chairman, parachuted in from the University of Paisley did a fine job.
Monday, 16 April 2007
Election Update : Bliar Visits Paisley
My apologies but shift working has meant I've been neglecting the blog.
While I've been away Paisley has had a visit from Bliar and his entourage. You would imagine that, with an election in the offing, he would be keeping a low profile. He is not the asset he once was especially in Scotland. I don't remember seeing his smiling face on any of the candidates' election leaflets, but if I'm wrong no doubt someone will correct me.
Hugh 'Shuggie the Hammer' Henry has apparently decided that, after years of opposing Catholic schools, he is now their champion. My own view will remain my own, but there is a distinct smell of hypocrisy about everything Shuggie does these days.
More shady dealing over Labour election broadcasts with party hacks being drafted in to pose as real people. As if no-one would know that a Scottish Bliar supporter had to be a plant (or some other kind of vegetable).
The smirking fish has been quiet, presumably letting Labour self-destruct.
What else is new, well, the Greens are being green, the Lib/ Dems are being all things to all men, and the Scottish Senior Citizens Unity Party are deciding where to exercise grey power. The Scottish Christian Party are hoping for a miracle, Solidarity are furiously promoting the cult of multiple personality and the SSP are fighting to hold the line after a bad year.
While I've been away Paisley has had a visit from Bliar and his entourage. You would imagine that, with an election in the offing, he would be keeping a low profile. He is not the asset he once was especially in Scotland. I don't remember seeing his smiling face on any of the candidates' election leaflets, but if I'm wrong no doubt someone will correct me.
Hugh 'Shuggie the Hammer' Henry has apparently decided that, after years of opposing Catholic schools, he is now their champion. My own view will remain my own, but there is a distinct smell of hypocrisy about everything Shuggie does these days.
More shady dealing over Labour election broadcasts with party hacks being drafted in to pose as real people. As if no-one would know that a Scottish Bliar supporter had to be a plant (or some other kind of vegetable).
The smirking fish has been quiet, presumably letting Labour self-destruct.
What else is new, well, the Greens are being green, the Lib/ Dems are being all things to all men, and the Scottish Senior Citizens Unity Party are deciding where to exercise grey power. The Scottish Christian Party are hoping for a miracle, Solidarity are furiously promoting the cult of multiple personality and the SSP are fighting to hold the line after a bad year.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
