One of the talks at this year’s Summer School! will be given by Bill Martin. He will entertain and enlighten us on ‘The Mysteries of the Pyramids’. These ancient monuments are a testament to the skills and abilities of humanity through the ages: and they are also clues as to how and why people laboured in the past. This talk will look at some of this evidence, and use it to discuss how human labour time is a constant factor in historical modes of production whilst also varying in how and why it was used. It will also look at how this evidence of human ingenuity is refracted through a modern ideological prism.
The dead hand of Leftism
You will not find this phrase in any of his works. Indeed, he stated quite the opposite:
‘.. When the [First] International was formed we expressly formulated the battle-cry: the emancipation of the working classes must be conquered by the working classes themselves. We cannot therefore cooperate with people who say that the workers are too uneducated to emancipate themselves and must first be freed from above by philanthropic bourgeois and petty-bourgeois…’ (Karl Marx and Frederick Engels to Bebel, Liebknecht, Bracke, and Others, September 1879).
Taxation – the curse of the capitalist class! /sarc
There are only two things certain in life – death and taxes. Christopher Bullock (1716)
With the transition to a money-free, class-free society one of these will no longer exist.
“Progressive” politicians, and their supporters, can often be heard hollering the slogan, ‘Tax the rich!’ Labour politician Denis Healey said, ‘until the pips squeak.’ It is not surprising that the capitalist class should resist attempts to reduce the wealth accumulated from the exploitation of the working class.
“A record number of super-rich Norwegians are abandoning Norway for low-tax countries after the centre-left government increased wealth taxes to 1.1%.
More than 30 Norwegian billionaires and multimillionaires left Norway in 2022, according to research by the newspaper Dagens Naeringsliv. This was more than the total number of super-rich people who left the country during the previous 13 years, it added. Even more super-rich individuals are expected to leave this year because of the increase in wealth tax in November, costing the government tens of millions in lost tax receipts.”
The Socialist Party of Great Britain provides a more relevant solution to the problem of the capitalist class and their continued clinging to wealth and to power.
Don’t tax the rich – Abolish them
http://socialiststandardmyspace.blogspot.com/2022/04/dont-tax-rich-abolish-them-2021.html
Kiwi capitalist whines about cheaper competitor
The price Kiwis pay for nationwide overnight postage is “ridiculously cheap” and should cost at least twice as much, the chief executive of listed company Freightways says.
Mark Troughear said on the Herald’s Stock Takes podcast that overnight $3 postage to get a small parcel from the North Island to the South was “chronically underpriced” for the undertaking required, using expensive aircraft and often unsuitable roads.
“The reality is we have some services that are just chronically underpriced. It’s nuts.
“It’s a phenomenally high level of service … For a ridiculously cheap price.”
Chomsky’s support for Extinction Rebellion and Ukraine
‘Chomsky: The Global South is calling for some negotiated settlement to put an end to the horrors before they get worse. Of course, the Russian invasion was a criminal act of aggression. No question about that. Ukrainians have a right to defend themselves. I don’t think there should be any question about that either...
Barsamian: The lunatics seemingly control the asylum. What signs of sanity are out there to counter the lunatics?
Chomsky: Plenty. There’s lots of popular activism. It’s in the streets. Young people calling for the decent treatment of others. A lot of it is very solid and serious. Extinction Rebellion..’.
Once upon a time he had some better ideas including:
‘Presupposing that there have to be states is like saying, what kind of feudal system should we have that would be the best one? What kind of slavery would be the best kind?’ (Manufacturing Consent, 1988).
‘A democratic revolution would take place when it is supported by the great mass of the people, when they know what they are doing and they know why they are doing it and they know what they want to see come into existence. Maybe not in detail but at least in some manner. A revolution is something that great masses of people have to understand and be personally committed to’ (Linguistics and Politics, September–October 1969, New Left Review).
Competition? Pshaw! Name of the game – profits!
THE UK supermarket that was ranked as one of the cheapest just one year ago is now the most expensive, it’s been revealed.
Last year, Asda was named the third cheapest out of major retailers – jus trailing behind budget competitors Lidl and Aldi.
But now, price tracking analysis of eight essential goods by the Manchester Evening News (MEN) revealed that all but one of the big brands’ prices had increased by 25% or more since 2022.
They measured the cost of a basket of basic items like salted butter, beef mince and a loaf of white bread.
And Asda topped the list with a staggering 32.4% increase, raising their essentials basket from £9.44 to £12.50.
Aldi had the second largest price hike with a 31.4% increase, followed by Lidl and Tesco with 30% and Morrisons with 25%.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/money/21994282/uk-supermarket-ranked-most-expensive-essentials/
Capitalism – has no place for the old
CHARITIES are warning the increase in state pension will be wiped out by a soaring cost of living.
From today (April 10), pensioners will see their weekly payments rise by almost £19 after the government increased the rate by 10.1%.
But charity bosses have warned the rising cost of essentials such as food, energy, fuel, social care and accommodation will cancel out the boost, reports The Daily Mail.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/money/21994818/warning-state-pension-cost-of-living-benefits/
The thin red line
“….Likewise, the scattered anti-war actions that have been reported so far—protests in Russia, soldiers disobeying their orders in Ukraine, refusals to handle shipments by dockers in the UK and Italy, sabotage by railway workers in Belarus—need to take on an autonomous working-class perspective to be truly anti-war, otherwise, they will be ripe for manipulation by one of the warring capitalist powers. Support for Russia or Ukraine in this conflict means support for war. The only way to end this nightmare is not for workers to line up on one side of it, but to fraternize across borders to bring down the war machine.
This is why we say, emphatically: no war but the class war! The ruling classes are already waging their war on us and the planet. If they want more war and bloodletting, let them march on the battlefields themselves, rifles in hand, and fight it out amongst themselves. The working people of the world must not allow ourselves to become cannon fodder for their wars. Rather, it is up to us—the great majority without whom everything grinds to a halt—to stop our rulers’ war plans and create the alternative.”
Socialist Stanza No. 5
The Landlord
Inflation seems inexorable,
No prospect it might relent.
Where’s the cash for heat and food bills,
School uniforms and the rent?
The landlord’s not unreasonable,
His property well maintained,
But it’s not his fault or concern
If tenants’ incomes are drained.
It’s just a matter of business,
Not moral dereliction;
He is not unsympathetic,
But still pursues eviction.
For him, the house is not a home,
But an asset that must earn.
Yet, if rent’s unpaid, then it’s just
Capital without return.
D. A.
Election manifesto: Homes for People, not Profits
Kent & Sussex branch are contesting this year’s local elections on 4 May, in Folkestone.
Here is our election manifesto:
Homes for People, not Profits
If you ever need to see the brutal reality of capitalism at work, look no further than the new apartment blocks being built along Folkestone seafront.
According to a County Council report, parts of both the Harbour and Central wards of Folkestone are among the 10 percent most deprived areas of England, so how many residents do you think will be able to afford the multi-million-pound apartments now being constructed in their front yard?
How many Folkestone residents got any real say in what the development would look like?
Of course, we already know the answer to those questions.
Like everything in the capitalist world we live in, profit is the only driving force. The only purpose in building homes under capitalism is that somebody somewhere makes a big fat profit. So despite the real housing needs of local residents, these apartments are not built for them.
The Socialist Party of Great Britain stands for the common and democratic ownership of the means of producing and distributing wealth in a global community without borders.
This means all of us will actually own the Folkestone Seafront. When we controlthe resources of the earth –from the farms to the mines and quarries – nothing will stop us building the best quality houses, with real community participation, for the people that need them. Access to these houses and apartments will be freeaccording to our real needs.
If we own everything, why do you need money?
Extend that to food production, clean energy, clean rivers and oceans. When we own the world, we will ensure that we live in harmony with nature. Taking what we need to live well and not destroying the planet in the name of profit.
That is why we are asking for your vote. We cannot fix the problems of poverty and conflict within capitalism. And that is why we stand for a world free from borders, free from wars over markets and trade routes – a world where our fellow humans are no longer forced to risk their lives to seek a dignified life.
This is a revolution. A world revolution. And it has to start somewhere – so why not Folkestone on Thursday, 4th May?