Facebook fables

 


A new Guardian report shows how Facebook has become a hotbed of toxic far-right sludge, with just a few overlapping groups serving up racist and xenophobic misinformation to an unwary but ever-growing public audience. ‘Regular people interacting with this content often don’t know that they’re part of some playbook or agenda’ which uses ‘a narrative such as “the mainstream media is lying to you”, or “scientific institutions are looking to censor people”‘. Fearing state lies and manipulation, they fall prey instead to far-right lies and manipulation.

On the plus side, young people have largely stopped using Facebook, because their parents are on it. So maybe Farage-mania will age out, while a saner generation realises that the real problem is capitalism.



https://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/

Socialist Sonnet No. 205

They & We

 

THEY are belligerent, perfidious.

Whereas, WE are civilised, trustworthy,

Favouring an open society,

Which is why THEY connive to confound us,

Fashioning munitions, missiles and drones

To advance their ambitious aggression,

Engineering international tension;

Hostility’s the marrow in their bones.

It’s only to keep our borders secure

WE maintain peace with military might,

Only slaughter when WE decide it’s right

To do so, certain our motives are pure.

But, who are THEY? Who WE? It’s surely clear

There’ll be neither once borders disappear.

 

D. A.

Channel energy into socialism

 

Do you embrace the ‘Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness’ like Keats? Or does autumn fill you with dread as communications keep arriving announcing energy price rises? Darker and colder days mean using more expensive energy that you can’t afford.

According to the Resolution Foundation the number of customers falling behind on their electricity bills with no repayment plan in place has more than tripled between 2012 and 2024 to over one million. Gas customers falling behind on their gas bill shows a similar increase. The size of the debt has also considerably increased.

Eating or heating? When it gets chilly energy poverty can produce serious health issues. Capitalism doesn’t care. Capitalism cares only for profit and more profit. Make capitalism history.

World Socialist Radio – A Wealth of Hallucinations

 



From the September 2025 issue of The Socialist Standard:

This article warns of the growing crisis posed by generative AI’s propensity for “hallucinations”—fabrication of false or harmful content presented as fact. It highlights alarming examples, including a case where Google’s AI falsely informed council-house tenants they could be evicted to make way for asylum seekers—dismissed by a housing solicitor as “horseshit of the highest order.” It also discusses Musk’s AI, Grok, which—especially in its “spicy” mode—can generate explicit deepfake imagery of celebrities without prompting. The piece critiques the Trump administration’s deregulatory stance on these technologies, despite widespread calls from U.S. states and even tech leaders for safeguards. Concerns escalate when chatbots are reported to advise children on dangerous behaviours like abusing substances, hiding eating disorders, or drafting suicide letters. OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, acknowledges a deeper problem of “emotional overreliance” among young users, who may defer critical life decisions to AI, a phenomenon he finds deeply troubling.

https://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/world-socialist-radio/






Germany and France war preparations

 

I’m aching in this hospital bed

Comes from where this squirming dread?

I pray that soon I’ll rise and wear the coat of blue

Out to the station then ride three stops to you

Far In the killing fields my mates lie dead

All of the cities coloured red



I’m burning in this fiery bed

Why are we fighting? Roger said

To save the sheep from being led

Too late! too late! the bovids cried

We trusted them, They lied! They lied!

The probing eyes fly overhead



Visions crowding through my mind

Unthinking blind following blind

I ponder, was this not designed

to seal the fate of most mankind?

how quickly sheep become resigned

to sheepishly become confined



I lie expiring in this bed

do we still resist I said?

I hear from here the jackboots thunder

this empire lasts how long I wonder?



Here in this ground undisturbed

nothings moving nothing stirs

No sound I make heard by the herd

The dead cry out, This is absurd !

Who is left to spread the word ?

That might’s not right

An eye for an eye

make the whole world

lose its sight.

The drip, drip, drip of propaganda by the exploitative minority into the collective consciousness of the capitalism facilitating majority continues with the aim of preparing people for military conflict with a nuclear weapons power.

Germany’s armed forces are planning how to treat a potential 1,000 wounded troops per day should a large-scale conflict between NATO and Russia break out. 

Moscow has rejected any suggestions it might be preparing for a war with the Western military alliance, but the latest incursions of Russian jets and drones into NATO territory have raised fears of escalation.

Germany’s Surgeon General Ralf Hoffmann said the number of wounded troops in a potential conflict would depend on the intensity of battle and which military units were involved.

‘Realistically, we are talking about a figure of around 1,000 wounded troops per day,’ he said in an interview.

European nations, including their medical services, have been stepping up preparations for potential conflict with Moscow in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Europe’s biggest conflict since World War Two.’

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15122373/Germany-makes-plans-deal-1-000-wounded-troops-day-case-war-Russia-France-ordered-hospitals-prepared-amid-growing-WW3-fears.html

French hospitals have been ordered to make preparations for an imminent war in Europe as Germany says it is on alert for Russia’s military drills. 

France’s ministryof health has told health bodies across the country to prepare for a possible ‘major engagement’ by March 2026, according to documents obtained by Le Canard Enchaîné. 

The French government is predicting a scenario where the nation would become a supporting state that has the capacity to take a massive number of wounded soldiers from France and other European nations. 

The order aims to ‘anticipate, prepare and respond to the health needs of the population while integrating the specific needs of defence in the health field’.

The ministry of health added: ‘Among the risks identified, therefore, is the hypothesis of a major engagement where the health issue would consist of taking care of a potentially high influx of victims from abroad

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15054555/Europe-prepares-WW3-MONTHS-France-orders-hospitals-ready-war-year-Germany-warns-alert-Putin-use-forthcoming-military-drills-ATTACK-Europe.html




Germany and France war preparations

 

I’m aching in this hospital bed

Comes from where this squirming dread?

I pray that soon I’ll rise and wear the coat of blue

Out to the station then ride three stops to you

Far In the killing fields my mates lie dead

All of the cities coloured red



I’m burning in this fiery bed

Why are we fighting? Roger said

To save the sheep from being led

Too late! too late! the bovids cried

We trusted them, They lied! They lied!

The probing eyes fly overhead



Visions crowding through my mind

Unthinking blind following blind

I ponder, was this not designed

to seal the fate of most mankind?

how quickly sheep become resigned

to sheepishly become confined



I lie expiring in this bed

do we still resist I said?

I hear from here the jackboots thunder

this empire lasts how long I wonder?



Here in this ground undisturbed

nothings moving nothing stirs

No sound I make heard by the herd

The dead cry out, This is absurd !

Who is left to spread the word ?

That might’s not right

An eye for an eye

make the whole world

lose its sight.

The drip, drip, drip of propaganda by the exploitative minority into the collective consciousness of the capitalism facilitating majority continues with the aim of preparing people for military conflict with a nuclear weapons power.

Germany’s armed forces are planning how to treat a potential 1,000 wounded troops per day should a large-scale conflict between NATO and Russia break out. 

Moscow has rejected any suggestions it might be preparing for a war with the Western military alliance, but the latest incursions of Russian jets and drones into NATO territory have raised fears of escalation.

Germany’s Surgeon General Ralf Hoffmann said the number of wounded troops in a potential conflict would depend on the intensity of battle and which military units were involved.

‘Realistically, we are talking about a figure of around 1,000 wounded troops per day,’ he said in an interview.

European nations, including their medical services, have been stepping up preparations for potential conflict with Moscow in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Europe’s biggest conflict since World War Two.’

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15122373/Germany-makes-plans-deal-1-000-wounded-troops-day-case-war-Russia-France-ordered-hospitals-prepared-amid-growing-WW3-fears.html

French hospitals have been ordered to make preparations for an imminent war in Europe as Germany says it is on alert for Russia’s military drills. 

France’s ministryof health has told health bodies across the country to prepare for a possible ‘major engagement’ by March 2026, according to documents obtained by Le Canard Enchaîné. 

The French government is predicting a scenario where the nation would become a supporting state that has the capacity to take a massive number of wounded soldiers from France and other European nations. 

The order aims to ‘anticipate, prepare and respond to the health needs of the population while integrating the specific needs of defence in the health field’.

The ministry of health added: ‘Among the risks identified, therefore, is the hypothesis of a major engagement where the health issue would consist of taking care of a potentially high influx of victims from abroad

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15054555/Europe-prepares-WW3-MONTHS-France-orders-hospitals-ready-war-year-Germany-warns-alert-Putin-use-forthcoming-military-drills-ATTACK-Europe.html




Germany and France war preparations

 

I’m aching in this hospital bed

Comes from where this squirming dread?

I pray that soon I’ll rise and wear the coat of blue

Out to the station then ride three stops to you

Far In the killing fields my mates lie dead

All of the cities coloured red



I’m burning in this fiery bed

Why are we fighting? Roger said

To save the sheep from being led

Too late! too late! the bovids cried

We trusted them, They lied! They lied!

The probing eyes fly overhead



Visions crowding through my mind

Unthinking blind following blind

I ponder, was this not designed

to seal the fate of most mankind?

how quickly sheep become resigned

to sheepishly become confined



I lie expiring in this bed

do we still resist I said?

I hear from here the jackboots thunder

this empire lasts how long I wonder?



Here in this ground undisturbed

nothings moving nothing stirs

No sound I make heard by the herd

The dead cry out, This is absurd !

Who is left to spread the word ?

That might’s not right

An eye for an eye

make the whole world

lose its sight.

The drip, drip, drip of propaganda by the exploitative minority into the collective consciousness of the capitalism facilitating majority continues with the aim of preparing people for military conflict with a nuclear weapons power.

Germany’s armed forces are planning how to treat a potential 1,000 wounded troops per day should a large-scale conflict between NATO and Russia break out. 

Moscow has rejected any suggestions it might be preparing for a war with the Western military alliance, but the latest incursions of Russian jets and drones into NATO territory have raised fears of escalation.

Germany’s Surgeon General Ralf Hoffmann said the number of wounded troops in a potential conflict would depend on the intensity of battle and which military units were involved.

‘Realistically, we are talking about a figure of around 1,000 wounded troops per day,’ he said in an interview.

European nations, including their medical services, have been stepping up preparations for potential conflict with Moscow in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Europe’s biggest conflict since World War Two.’

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15122373/Germany-makes-plans-deal-1-000-wounded-troops-day-case-war-Russia-France-ordered-hospitals-prepared-amid-growing-WW3-fears.html

French hospitals have been ordered to make preparations for an imminent war in Europe as Germany says it is on alert for Russia’s military drills. 

France’s ministryof health has told health bodies across the country to prepare for a possible ‘major engagement’ by March 2026, according to documents obtained by Le Canard Enchaîné. 

The French government is predicting a scenario where the nation would become a supporting state that has the capacity to take a massive number of wounded soldiers from France and other European nations. 

The order aims to ‘anticipate, prepare and respond to the health needs of the population while integrating the specific needs of defence in the health field’.

The ministry of health added: ‘Among the risks identified, therefore, is the hypothesis of a major engagement where the health issue would consist of taking care of a potentially high influx of victims from abroad

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15054555/Europe-prepares-WW3-MONTHS-France-orders-hospitals-ready-war-year-Germany-warns-alert-Putin-use-forthcoming-military-drills-ATTACK-Europe.html




Germany and France war preparations

 

I’m aching in this hospital bed

Comes from where this squirming dread?

I pray that soon I’ll rise and wear the coat of blue

Out to the station then ride three stops to you

Far In the killing fields my mates lie dead

All of the cities coloured red



I’m burning in this fiery bed

Why are we fighting? Roger said

To save the sheep from being led

Too late! too late! the bovids cried

We trusted them, They lied! They lied!

The probing eyes fly overhead



Visions crowding through my mind

Unthinking blind following blind

I ponder, was this not designed

to seal the fate of most mankind?

how quickly sheep become resigned

to sheepishly become confined



I lie expiring in this bed

do we still resist I said?

I hear from here the jackboots thunder

this empire lasts how long I wonder?



Here in this ground undisturbed

nothings moving nothing stirs

No sound I make heard by the herd

The dead cry out, This is absurd !

Who is left to spread the word ?

That might’s not right

An eye for an eye

make the whole world

lose its sight.

The drip, drip, drip of propaganda by the exploitative minority into the collective consciousness of the capitalism facilitating majority continues with the aim of preparing people for military conflict with a nuclear weapons power.

Germany’s armed forces are planning how to treat a potential 1,000 wounded troops per day should a large-scale conflict between NATO and Russia break out. 

Moscow has rejected any suggestions it might be preparing for a war with the Western military alliance, but the latest incursions of Russian jets and drones into NATO territory have raised fears of escalation.

Germany’s Surgeon General Ralf Hoffmann said the number of wounded troops in a potential conflict would depend on the intensity of battle and which military units were involved.

‘Realistically, we are talking about a figure of around 1,000 wounded troops per day,’ he said in an interview.

European nations, including their medical services, have been stepping up preparations for potential conflict with Moscow in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Europe’s biggest conflict since World War Two.’

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15122373/Germany-makes-plans-deal-1-000-wounded-troops-day-case-war-Russia-France-ordered-hospitals-prepared-amid-growing-WW3-fears.html

French hospitals have been ordered to make preparations for an imminent war in Europe as Germany says it is on alert for Russia’s military drills. 

France’s ministryof health has told health bodies across the country to prepare for a possible ‘major engagement’ by March 2026, according to documents obtained by Le Canard Enchaîné. 

The French government is predicting a scenario where the nation would become a supporting state that has the capacity to take a massive number of wounded soldiers from France and other European nations. 

The order aims to ‘anticipate, prepare and respond to the health needs of the population while integrating the specific needs of defence in the health field’.

The ministry of health added: ‘Among the risks identified, therefore, is the hypothesis of a major engagement where the health issue would consist of taking care of a potentially high influx of victims from abroad

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-15054555/Europe-prepares-WW3-MONTHS-France-orders-hospitals-ready-war-year-Germany-warns-alert-Putin-use-forthcoming-military-drills-ATTACK-Europe.html