Author Archives: lauriemc

Police try, fail to muzzle Guardian

Bourgeois political power is not as unassailable as they would like us to think. Our rulers can be relied upon, periodically, to split. James Turley looks at the botched attempt of the Metropolitan Police to use the Official Secrets Act Once again, The Guardian has found itself targeted because of its phone-hacking investigation. Waving around the ...

Organising for an alternative vision

We are republishing this article as it should be of interest to anyone on the student left. In it, Mike Macnair argues that student unions are not like trade unions, and unity must be built primarily around politics, not 'student issues'. Across England and Wales university students are starting their courses with ‘freshers weeks’ and existing ...

The Student Protests: A Year On

Manchester CS public meeting 6pm, Thursday 22nd Sept Cameron Committee Room on 3rd floor of MMU An introduction will be given by a CS member heavily involved in the student movement of last year and we are hoping a good debate and discussion will follow the initial talk. Contact us for more info: manchestercommuniststudents@googlemail.com

Solidarity cricket a success

Around 40 people attended last Sunday’s third annual solidarity cricket match between Hands Off the People of Iran and the Labour Representation Committee - and raised well over £500 for Workers Fund Iran in the process. Bathed in sunshine, the picturesque corner of leafy Islington that was Wray Crescent pitch made for a wonderful cricketing environment. ...

Why So Many Exams? A Marxist Response

Here we republish an excellent article by Bertell Ollman, a professor of politics at New York University. His book, 'Exams and changing the rules' is reviewed here. I. The psychologist, Bill Livant, has remarked, "When a liberal sees a beggar, he says the system isn't working. When a Marxist does, he says it is". The same insight ...

Ten years of blood and fire

The anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks coincides with a resurgence in 'liberal interventionism'. James Turley evaluates the bloody harvest of both (first published here) On September 11 2001, a motley crew of Islamist militants hijacked four planes in US airspace. Hours later, the tallest buildings in the country had been demolished, and thousands of ...

A triumphant victory?

Claire Fisher and Maciej Zurowski report on the English Defence League demonstration in east London and the response of anti-fascists As readers will know, home secretary Theresa May responded to the English Defence League’s intention to hold an anti-Muslim demonstration in Tower Hamlets and the proposed counter-demonstration of the left by banning all marches in five ...

A victorious debate

The 1920 Halle congress of the Independent Social Democrats of Germany (USPD) was a turning point for our movement. It was also a moment of triumph for Grigory Zinoviev. This is an excerpt from Ben Lewis's introduction to a new book, 'Zinoviev and Martov: head to head in Halle' Between October 12 and 17 1920, the ...

Fall of desperate regime

Anti-imperialism does not equal pro-Gaddafi, argues James Turley As it threatened, briefly, to do this spring, the regime of Muammar al-Gaddafi has collapsed. The forces previously known as the Libyan rebels have seized power in most of the country, including the capital, Tripoli - assisted, of course, by months of aerial bombardment by Britain, France and ...

Of runes and men

In the first of a series for Red Mist Reviews on the troubled relationship between the left and culture, CS'er Maciej Zurowski investigates reactionary musical counterculture and looks at the anti-fascist response Warning! Attention, everybody! It looks like for the first time since the 80s, London's ethnic communities must fear for their safety when certain rock ...

The Riots and the Reaction

Last week's riots revealed anger but also the weakness of our class. We must inspire disaffected youth with a vision of a different society, says Callum Williamson Urban riots, such as those we witnessed over four nights last week, rarely result in a positive outcome for our class and at worst can lead to tragedy. The ...

« Older Entries Recent Entries »