Over 30 years of anarchist writing from Ireland listed under hundreds of topics
Poll Shows Class Divide Widening
Date: Mon, 2012-04-23 14:01
The Irish Times/ IPSOS like all polls is only a snap shot in time they say, but polls can be helpful indicators of the public mood when they contain useful questions. This particular poll covered a number of areas the usual poll of party support, leader popularity and government satisfaction, opinion on the fiscal compact referendum and most interestingly opinions on the household and water taxes as well as a question about cutting social welfare.
Belfast bus drivers take wildcat strike action to re-instate work colleague
Date: Fri, 2012-04-20 16:50
Belfast city centre was brought to a standstill this morning after up to 100 metro workers took unofficial wildcat action in protest against the suspension of a work colleague over ’misconduct.’ Those on strike parked their empty buses outside City Hall in a show of solidarity for a driver they say has been suspended for allegedly damaging the disabled ramp of a bus. Talks were then held between Translink bosses and union representatives in a bid to resolve the dispute. Following a meeting on the grounds of Belfast city hall between workers and union officials with angry words being exchanged over a range of issues including working conditions, workers agreed to return to work following assurances that the sacked driver would be immediately re-instated.
Ivory tower academics fail to see mass popular organisation against Household Tax
Date: Thu, 2012-04-19 11:47
Dan Hayden and Colin Scott (‘Why People Avoided Paying Household Charge’ 16th April) should get out of their academic ivory tower and talk to some real people if they want to answer the question as to why almost a million households have decided to put themselves in conflict with the government by refusing to register for and pay the household tax. Instead of presenting any real analysis of what is by any stretch of the imagination a massive rejection of government policy they start off by insulting those who decided not to register and go on to present a hotch-potch of half-baked theories which seem designed to do anything other than admit the truth – people made a conscious political decision not to pay.
Lagan Brick workers take campaign to Belfast in occupation
Date: Thu, 2012-04-19 10:21
Lagan Brick workers from Cavan stepped up their campaign over the Lagan Group’s failure to pay established redundancy terms by occupying their headquarters at Lagan house on the 4th April. More than 35 Lagan Brick workers and their supporters entered the company’s offices at Lagan House, Clarendon Road following a refusal by the company to accept a letter requesting its participation in negotiations. Workers at the Lagan Brick manufacturing plant in Kingscourt were informed it was closing only hours before it ceased operation on Friday, 15th December.
Stormont roles out the red carpet for Chinese Emperor as worker anger grows
Date: Wed, 2012-04-18 10:54
Stormont was back to business last weekend as they laid down the red carpet for a top member of the Communist Party’s politburo Liu Yandong as part of the ongoing normalisation drive to showcase investment and job opportunities in in the North. Before it was pandering to US capital but with a stagnating economy our local ruling class are increasingly keen to build relations with the next emerging global power, China, which is increasingly flexing its muscles in the US sphere of influence.
Labour Party Learns that the People are Revolting - Direct Action should be Encouraged
Date: Mon, 2012-04-16 20:07
Thousands of people marched from Eyre Square in Galway to the Labour Party conference at NUIG on Saturday. People had travelled from all over the country to show their opposition to the household tax and other attacks on people’s living standards. The story that made the evening news however, was one of the several hundred strong breakaway protest that reached the doors of the conference centre.
Surveys say poverty rising, resistance too
Date: Mon, 2012-04-16 16:07
Two recent surveys have shed a little light on the levels of poverty and financial distress being experienced in Ireland. A survey by the "What's left" found 47% of households (over 1.5million people) with €100 or less in hand monthly after essential bills have paid. The other survey by Social Justice Ireland calculated over 700,000 people now live impoverished lives in the state. The increasing cost of essentials, declining wages and rising unemployment are all contributing to this.
Anger flares in Galway at Labour Party after protesters attacked with pepper spray
Date: Mon, 2012-04-16 14:41
Saturdays Household tax demonstration in Galway at the Labour Party conference saw angry scenes after Garda attempted to keep the protesters out of sight and sound from the conference venue. Students who were being kept off their own campus were particularly annoyed and led a push against the Garda barriers during which several of them were attacked with pepper spray. They did however succeed in removing the barriers with the result that around 1,000 of the 4,000 or so Household tax demonstrators were able to march to the door of the conference center to protest in full sight of the Labour party delegates inside.
A number of WSM members were present at the protest, either with their various local Household tax delegations or with FEE, the student group. One of them was among the people pepper sprayed. We asked them to give us their accounts of what happened on the day.
An introduction to Hacktivism and Anarchism
Date: Sun, 2012-04-15 20:12
In the last few years, headlines have been filled with news of online attacks carried out against government and corporate websites claimed by groups calling themselves, among others, “Anonymous” and “Lulzsec”. Hacktivism is now so popular that a documentary will soon be released covering the Anonymous movement and others called “We Are Legion: The story of the Hacktivists”
Anarchist report from 1916 Easter Commemorations in Belfast
Date: Sat, 2012-04-14 11:20
This year marked the 96th anniversary of the Easter Rising traditionally a time when republicans across this island come out to remember the sacrifice of fallen comrades and renew their ideals set in stone in the 1916 proclamation. It is also a time when rival republican groups set out there stall in a show of strength and support; but what is noticeable in so-called republican heartlands is a decline in overall attendance and of the wearing of the Easter lily and houses flying the tri-colour.