Workers Solidarity Movement

From the outset of the financial mess the Irish Government currently find themselves is, they have tried pinning the blame on anyone but themselves and their big business buddies. They have been quite willing to perpetuate lies and untruths in order to deflect public ire away from themselves.

For the last eight years the local communities in Rossport and Glengad, County Mayo have been resisting petro-chemical giant Shell’s plans for a high-pressure gas pipeline from the offshore gas fields to an online refinery at Bellanaboy. The project is a significant health and safety risk in the medium term, as admitted by Shells own engineers at a recent local forum examining the project. It already has caused high levels of aluminum pollution of the local water supply.

Born of a Catalan mother whose family fought Franco’s forces in the Spanish Civil War and a father who juggled a nursing career and a passionate interest in painting, Cantona’s humble lineage portrays a character quite different to the one we should have expected from the one on the field, with his upturned collar and puffed out chest, his air always suggested that of a French nobleman; that and his football eventually led to him to be known as King.

PAYE taxpayers are only not being forced to bail out bankers and speculators, we are told that we also will have to meet the compensation and legal bills of a giant paedophile network. And we should be grateful that the child abusers are throwing in a few bob towards the cost!

May - June 2009 Edition of the Workers Solidarity freesheet.

April saw Workers Solidarity Movement members from around the country meet for their twice-yearly conference. As the WSM has a much fuller concept of democracy, it organises itself quite differently to the way Fianna Fail, Sinn Fein, the DUP or Labour do. The conference is open to every member and every member can put a motion for consideration. Decisions are made by majority vote. As well as setting out policy, the conference also elects officers and discusses how to put our policies into action in our day-to-day political activity.

Around 1,000 people attended the 4th annual Dublin Anarchist Bookfair in March for a day of meetings, films, debates and - of course – lots of books. One of the organisers, Colette O’Reilly, felt the “growing interest in anarchist politics is reflected in the larger attendence and bigger book sales than last year”.

The struggle against capitalism and authority is constant but each year on May Day the labour movement takes time out to celebrate its history and achievements. Rather than dwell on the hardships of struggle we take to the streets and remember what it is we are aiming for - the emancipation of our class. Climbing a mountain means paying close attention to the ground you walk but it's important to look up now and again in order to focus on exactly where it is you're headed.

Any excuse will do for the University College Cork “Societies Guild” in order to suppress the freedom of speech of pro-choice students. First it was that “a society already exists which caters for debate in the area of abortion and choice”. That society being the clearly anti-choice “Prolife” society – who have no interest in debate on the issue.

At the beginning of April, the G20 group of major world economies met in London. Media attention focused as much on the confrontation between police and demonstrators outside the conference as on what was going on between the suits inside. The London police were their usual charmless selves and even managed to kill an uninvolved man, Ian Tomlinson, on his way home from work.