Bride of Occupy(ed) Melbourne

Posted on October 17, 2011 by @ndy

So…

On the one hand, there’s Brendan O’Neill, who reckons that the Occupy protests are really an expression of middle class anger with the working class.

You may remember Brendan from such TV shows as Q&A and his sage advice that if you don’t like what you read in the Murdoch press, you can always set up your own.

On the other hand, Ken Knabb reckons that the “Occupy” movement that has swept across the country over the last four weeks is already the most significant radical breakthrough in America since the 1960s. And it is just beginning.

Oddly enough, Brendan O’Neill writes for Spiked, which got its start courtesy of the now defunct ‘Revolutionary Communist Party’ (another expression of middle class anger with the working class). Their political evolution is a fascinating story of how the chattering class seeks and finds its level.

It is … worth noting the great appeal of Leninist doctrine to the modern intelligentsia in periods of conflict and upheaval. This doctrine affords the ‘radical intellectuals’ the right to hold State power and to impose the harsh rule of the ‘Red Bureaucracy,’ the ‘new class,’ in the terms of Bakunin’s prescient analysis a century ago. As in the Bonapartist State denounced by Marx, they become the ‘State priests,’ and “parasitical excrescence upon civil society” that rules it with an iron hand.

In periods when there is little challenge to State capitalist institutions, the same fundamental commitments lead the ‘new class’ to serve as State managers and ideologists, “beating the people with the people’s stick,” in Bakunin’s words. It is small wonder that intellectuals find the transition from ‘revolutionary Communism’ to ‘celebration of the West’ such an easy one, replaying a script that has evolved from tragedy to farce over the past half century. In essence, all that has changed is the assessment of where power lies. Lenin’s dictum that “socialism is nothing but state capitalist monopoly made to benefit the whole people,” who must of course trust the benevolence of their leaders, expresses the perversion of ‘socialism’ to the needs of the State priests, and allows us to comprehend the rapid transition between positions that superficially seem diametric opposites, but in fact are quite close.

The question is: do all roads lead to Rome?

Probably not.

Predictably enough, Italian authorities have called for another crackdown on anarchists, and it appears as though the wheels are once again in motion. According to AP (Italy cracks down on anarchists after riot, October 17, 2011), rioting Romans have been training for many months–who knows? perhaps even years–at Camp Loukanikos:

ROME (AP) — An Italian security official says police are conducting a crackdown on suspected anarchists following riots in Rome that marred a march against Wall Street greed.

Interior Ministry Undersecretary Alfredo Mantovano told Sky TG24 TV in an interview that the crackdown targeted far-left suspects. He gave no details because the operation, which included house searches, was still being conducted Monday.

Mantovano dismissed criticism Italian police weren’t tough enough against several hundred rioters Saturday. Rioters used clubs and sledgehammers to smash bank ATMs and store windows, torch police and private vehicles and hurl cobblestones and chunks of sidewalk they had ripped out.

Rome daily La Repubblica quoted an unidentified rioter as saying anarchists had trained in Greece in urban guerrilla tactics for a year.

Italy Calling has translated commentary on the monkey business here, while actforfreedomnow! has link and porn.

Also of interest: Three thoughts on #Occupy, piercepenniless, October 13, 2011.

Posted in !nataS, Media, State / Politics, That's Capitalism!, Trot Guide | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Anti-Poverty Week 2011

Posted on October 16, 2011 by @ndy

October 16-22 is Anti-Poverty Week. Which means it began, like, today, and by next weekend–if successful–poverty will be no moar.

I guess only time will tell eh.

Still, I have to confess that, at first glance, I thought ‘Anti-Poverty Week’ might refer to an under-publicised project associated with the billion-dollar Building Australia Fund.

Apparently not:

Anti-Poverty Week was established in Australia as an expansion of the UN’s annual International Anti-Poverty Day on October 17.

The main aims of Anti-Poverty Week are to:

strengthen public understanding of the causes and consequences of poverty and hardship around the world and in Australia;
encourage research, discussion and action to address these problems, including action by individuals, communities, organisations and governments.

Everyone who is interested in helping to reduce poverty and hardship here or overseas is encouraged to organise their own activities during the Week or join in some being organised by other people. The activities can be large or small, and events at the local level are especially welcome.

Future dates for Anti-Poverty Week: 14-20 October 2012.

Unfortunately, while the website established to promote the Weak provides numerous links to Facts About Poverty, it provides little information about its Causes. There are exceptions, however, and one fact sheet (PDF), titled ‘Poverty and its causes’ and authored by some thing called ‘Australian Collaboration’ (the site dates the doc as being May 2008; the vers linkedto is actually a revised vers dated December 2010) states:

Poverty is not caused only by individual circumstances but also by major inequalities built into the structure of Australian society. Some of the main causes of this inequality and poverty are access to work and income, education, housing, health and community services.

So. There are major inequalities in Australian society, and these are some how, and in some way, built into its structure.

By whom and for what purpose, I wonder?

A beggar dreamt of a millionaire. As he awoke he met a psychoanalyst. The latter explained to him the millionaire was a symbol for his father. “Curious”, remarked the beggar.

Posted in !nataS | Tagged | 1 Comment

Return of the Son of Occupy Melbourne

Posted on October 16, 2011 by @ndy

*Some nice Storytelling photos here too.

At least 200 people, including children, gathered today at City Square in Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city, carrying banners and calling for an end to “greed.” Nick Carson, a spokesman for Occupy Melbourne, had predicted “at least a couple thousand” participants. A dozen mounted police and other officers were on hand as members of the Producers’ Free Association distributed pamphlets denouncing capitalism and urging the abolishment of “all forms of authority.”

Melbourne Indymedia reckons “The Occupy Melbourne day in Melbourne’s City Square kicked off with approximately 750 people and a large number of police.” Jeff Sparrow pretty much hits the nail on the head: Occupy Melbourne: some initial thoughts, Overland blog, October 15, 2011 | See also : Rally occupies itself in most polite company, Jill Stark, The Age, October 16, 2011.

Posted in State / Politics, Student movement, That's Capitalism! | Tagged | 7 Comments

Conspiracy of Fire Nuclei Are Terrorists. And That’s Official!

Posted on October 14, 2011 by @ndy

The US Department of State has issued a statement declaring that the Greek pyromaniacs belonging to the Conspiracy of Fire Nuclei are now terrorists.

And That’s Official!

(Unlike, say, the United Islamic Front/Northern Alliance, who are not. Or…)

Actually, it could be argued that the members of the Conspiracy are pretty amateurish when compared to the many professionals who’ve graduated from the School of the Americas. Not that the State Department would agree, of course. According to it, “the training provided by the School is intended to be a long-term investment in a positive relationship with Latin America”. By the same token, one might argue that the illumination provided by the Conspiracy is intended to be a long-term investment in a positive relationship with PASOK…

Anyway.

Terrorist Designation of Conspiracy of Fire Nuclei
Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
October 13, 2011

The Department of State has designated the Conspiracy of Fire Nuclei (SPF), also known as Conspiracy of Cells of Fire, Synomosia Pyrinon Tis Fotias, and Thessaloniki-Athens Fire Nuclei Conspiracy, under section 1(b) of Executive Order 13224. SPF is a Greece-based extremist group. It has targeted civilians and government officials, both Greek and foreign, in an attempt to spread its violent anarchist ideology. The group first emerged in January 2008 with a wave of fire-bombings against car dealerships and banks in Athens and Thessaloniki. Four members of the group were arrested in 2009 following the evolution of the group’s tactics to employ more sophisticated bombs.

In November 2010, SPF attempted to mail parcel bombs to EU government offices in Germany and Italy, as well as foreign embassies in Greece. The Government of Greece has made important strides in countering the threat posed by SPF and other terrorist organizations based in Greece. Earlier this year, for instance, Greek authorities arrested two SPF members for their involvement in the 2010 mail parcel bombings. Today’s designation complements the efforts of Greek authorities dealing with the threat posed by anarchists. SPF is the third anarchist group designated by the Department of State since 2009.

The consequences of this designation include a prohibition against U.S. persons providing material support or resources to, or engaging in other transactions with SPF, and the freezing of all property and interests in property of the organization that are in the United States, or come within the United States, or the control of U.S. persons. The Department of State took this action in consultation with the Departments of Justice and Treasury.

PRN: 2011/1712

Note that the police investigation into the parcel bomb campaign of November (and other activities) has resulted in waves of arrests of suspected members of Synomosia Pyrinon (Tis) Fotias, the first such arrests taking place in September 2009. In July 2011, the first trials of real or alleged members ended with the imposition of severe prison sentences.

Precisely what importance the State Department designation has for social struggles in Greece (let alone US citizens providing material support or resources to, or communicating with, the Conspiracy) is an open question, but if nothing else it would seem to provide further public confirmation, if any were needed, of the US state’s support for whatever additional repressive measures are required in order to ensure the country remains solvent. “Member States adopting IMF/EU programmes have to remain firmly committed to very specific measures, which need to be acted upon from the outset. Monitoring has to be strengthened” as they say in the classics.

See also : Left-wing and anarchist terrorism in the EU (2010) (April 21, 2011) | From the Greek Streets.

Posted in !nataS, Anarchism, Broken Windows, State / Politics, That's Capitalism!, War on Terror | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Moaron Occupy(ed) Melbourne: Land & Labour

Posted on October 13, 2011 by @ndy

Unions show support for ‘OccupyOz’ movement writes Chris Zappone (October 13, 2011), “unions” in this instance meaning the National Union of Workers and the Communication Workers Union of Victoria and “support” meaning (seemingly) the probability that some union officials and members will wander down to City Square on Saturday.

Oddly, “BusinessDay understands that local unions, while supportive of the criticism of capitalist excess, are wary of a repeat of the protests in 2000 against the World Economic Forum that resulted in violence”.

Why the absence of unions will prevent police from rioting again is something of a mystery, the riot itself having for many (apart, perhaps, from those unionists who had their limbs broken, their bodies bruised or their teeth knocked out by police) seemingly having disappeared down The Memory Hole.

The protesters were noisy, disruptive and obstructive, yet they were overwhelmingly peaceful. The protests did not constitute a riot and one must question whether the protests justified such violent intervention by the baton-wielding “riot police”, the Force Response Unit.

No doubt, many of the “ordinary” police manning the gateways tried to behave with a reasonable degree of professionalism while acting under orders. The violence at the Crown Casino came overwhelmingly from the free-ranging Force Response Unit, anonymous and unaccountable in their helmets and mostly with their name tags removed. Judging by the TV footage, each of the baton-attacks of Tuesday 12 September looks like a riot by the Force Response Unit, aided by the mounted police and others, not a riot by civilians.

See also : S11: $1.3 million for lawyers (March 5, 2007).

Otherwise, the call to Occupy This and That bit of the globe has–perhaps not unexpectedly–brought to mind a series of earlier occupations. But while Occupy(ed) Canada can refer to “treaties that were misrepresented and illegitimately undertaken”, treaty is still very much a foreign concept for locals, tho’ inre Occupy(ed) Melbourne, some are working on it. (See also : Memorandum of Solidarity with Indigenous Peoples, Occupy(ed) Boston, October 8, 2011.)

See also : Joined Protest on the Brooklyn Bridge, Got Trapped, But Didn’t Get Arrested / And some thoughts about all this, Never Got Used To It, October 2, 2011.


[h/t : Carlos]

Posted in Broken Windows, History, State / Politics, That's Capitalism!, War on Terror | Tagged | Leave a comment

Down with Zeitgeist! Long Live Juche!

Posted on October 12, 2011 by @ndy

NB. Implementing the Juche ideology within the framework of the Victorian Parliament or the Government of Victoria is something that can be achieved in a surprisingly short period of time.

The first step is to share awareness of the cause: and to do so, people must be well-informed of the outcomes that will be attributed to such a fundamental political change (See: The Movement in Victoria). Once the movement has gained popular support; the implementation stage will begin.

U.S. Swept by Waves of Protest Demos
October 8. 2011 Juch 100

Pyongyang, October 8 (KCNA) — Unprecedented demos are taking place in the United States these days in protest against exploitation and oppression by capital, shaking all fabrics of society.

The first demo kicked off in Wall Street on Sept. 17. It has been going on for three consecutive weeks.

The demonstrators put up slogan “Let’s Occupy Wall Street”.

Young Americans formed a mainstream of the ranks of demonstrators at first. But they were joined by people from all walks of life who varied in their ages including day laborers, poor and unemployed Americans as well as employees of companies and housewives.

Their actions included marches, sit-in strikes, occupation of bridges and various other forms of protests and non-stop protests at night.

These actions spilled over to different parts of the U.S. including Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco all of a sudden.

It was reported that organizations were inaugurated in 146 cities of 46 states and the capital city as of Tuesday to supervise demos.

The waves of demo which swept the U.S. recently is an expression of the grievances against the mounting social contradiction resulting from the worsening unemployment and the widening gap between the poor and the rich due to the serious economic crisis.

It also reflects the public opinion critical of the authorities and the exploiting classes who drove the country into such serious phase.

Foreign media predict that demos will go on and spill over to large-scale protests and create something unprecedented in the future.

Such protests as what is happening in the U.S. are expected to take place in other capitalist countries.

It was reported that slogan “Let’s Occupy Melbourne!” has already appeared in Australia and “Let’s Occupy Toronto Stock Market!” in Canada and organizations were formed in Japan, Germany and other countries to stage demos under the slogan “Let’s Occupy!”

Posted in Poetry, State / Politics, That's Capitalism! | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

ASIO, fascism and anti-fascism

Posted on October 12, 2011 by @ndy

They said it would rain tomorrow.
My garden is full of weeds this year, the herbicide isn’t working.
The Moles snuck into The Garden last night.
The… spotted cuckoo is flying backwards?

Threat of fascist attacks revealed
Dylan Welch
The Sydney Morning Herald
October 12, 2011

FASCIST and nationalist extremist groups are active in and pose a threat to Australia, with the country’s security agency saying there are legitimate concerns they may spawn a terrorist in the style of Norway’s Anders Breivik.

The assessment, in the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation’s annual report to Parliament, also reveals Australia’s right-wing extremists, much like the Islamic fundamentalists they loathe, draw inspiration from overseas via the internet.

”There has been a persistent but small subculture of racist and nationalist extremists in Australia, forming groups, fragmenting, re-forming and often fighting amongst themselves,” the report states.

The appraisal also states there has been a recent rise in anarchist or ”anti-fascist” groups, with the ideologically-opposed groups coming into conflict.

”Where such confrontations have occurred, the ‘anti-fascists’ have outnumbered the nationalist and racist extremists and police intervention has been required,” the report states in its ”Australia’s Security Environment” section.

…

As the recent case of Anders Breivik shows, the dangers posed by right-wing extremists have not abated, despite most intelligence agencies focusing on the threats posed by Islamic terrorism.

A Christian who described himself as a ”modern-day crusader”, Breivik killed 77 people during a bombing in Oslo and a shooting rampage at a teen camp at an island outside the Norwegian capital in July.

While the assessment does not suggest ASIO has uncovered right-extremists in Australia that mirror Breivik’s murderous intentions, it reveals they rely on overseas connections and events to inform and motivate them.

”[They] maintain links and draw inspiration from like-minded overseas extremists, and much of their rhetoric and activity is derivative, heavily influenced by developments overseas,” it states. Websites such as stormfront.org – the web’s most famous and ubiquitous white supremacist and neo-Nazi website – have numerous Australian members.

However, the threat posed by Australian right-wing extremists seems to be limited, with such groups appearing to be interested only in ”propaganda and engendering support”.

”However, there is always the possibility of a lone actor or autonomous group inspired by a nationalist or racist extremist ideology engaging in violence as a means of provoking a wider response,” the report says.

It states the continued existence of such groups has directly led to the resurgence of an ”anti-fascist” movement.

”[The anti-fascist movement] aims to confront those it identifies as fascists, including some of the nationalist and racist extremist groups also of interest to ASIO,” it states.

The security assessment also discusses its monitoring of ”issue-motivated groups” – organisations ranging from community-based forestry groups to neo-Nazi parties.

”There is … a small minority who seek to use protests around a range of emotive issues to further their own (often unrelated) political agenda by provoking, inciting or engaging in violence. It is this fringe that is of concern to ASIO.”

…

Note that The Australian (by way of its Defence Editor Brendan Nicholson) spins the report rather differently. Thus ASIO “warns that as well as Islamist extremism, fuelled in part by wars in Afghanistan and tensions over Palestine, an anti-fascist movement had recently emerged led by self-styled anarchists determined to confront other interest groups.”

Posted in Anarchism, Anti-fascism, Broken Windows, State / Politics, That's Capitalism!, War on Terror | Tagged | 10 Comments

Dear Occupiers: A Letter from Anarchists

Posted on October 11, 2011 by @ndy

On the one hand, there’s Chris Berg and Sophie Mirabella. On the other, CrimethInc. “A two-sided flier intended to be folded down the middle, longways” is available from the conspirators’ website.

Dear Occupiers: A Letter from Anarchists
CrimethInc
October 7, 2011

Starting with the occupation of a park next to Wall Street on September 17, a new movement is spreading across the country in which people gather in public spaces in protest against social inequalities. We’ll present a full analysis of this phenomenon here shortly; in the meantime, here’s an open letter to the occupation movement, engaging with some of the issues that have arisen thus far. Please forward this widely and print out versions to distribute at the “Occupy” events!

Support and solidarity! We’re inspired by the occupations on Wall Street and elsewhere around the country. Finally, people are taking to the streets again! The momentum around these actions has the potential to reinvigorate protest and resistance in this country. We hope these occupations will increase both in numbers and in substance, and we’ll do our best to contribute to that.

Why should you listen to us? In short, because we’ve been at this a long time already. We’ve spent decades struggling against capitalism, organizing occupations, and making decisions by consensus. If this new movement doesn’t learn from the mistakes of previous ones, we run the risk of repeating them. We’ve summarized some of our hard-won lessons here.

Occupation is nothing new. The land we stand on is already occupied territory. The United States was founded upon the extermination of indigenous peoples and the colonization of their land, not to mention centuries of slavery and exploitation. For a counter-occupation to be meaningful, it has to begin from this history. Better yet, it should embrace the history of resistance extending from indigenous self-defense and slave revolts through the various workers’ and anti-war movements right up to the recent anti-globalization movement.

The “99%” is not one social body, but many. Some occupiers have presented a narrative in which the “99%” is characterized as a homogenous mass. The faces intended to represent “ordinary people” often look suspiciously like the predominantly white, law-abiding middle-class citizens we’re used to seeing on television programs, even though such people make up a minority of the general population.

It’s a mistake to whitewash over our diversity. Not everyone is waking up to the injustices of capitalism for the first time now; some populations have been targeted by the power structure for years or generations. Middle-class workers who are just now losing their social standing can learn a lot from those who have been on the receiving end of injustice for much longer.

The problem isn’t just a few “bad apples.” The crisis is not the result of the selfishness of a few investment bankers; it is the inevitable consequence of an economic system that rewards cutthroat competition at every level of society. Capitalism is not a static way of life but a dynamic process that consumes everything, transforming the world into profit and wreckage. Now that everything has been fed into the fire, the system is collapsing, leaving even its former beneficiaries out in the cold. The answer is not to revert to some earlier stage of capitalism—to go back to the gold standard, for example; not only is that impossible, those earlier stages didn’t benefit the “99%” either. To get out of this mess, we’ll have to rediscover other ways of relating to each other and the world around us.

Police can’t be trusted. They may be “ordinary workers,” but their job is to protect the interests of the ruling class. As long as they remain employed as police, we can’t count on them, however friendly they might act. Occupiers who don’t know this already will learn it firsthand as soon as they threaten the imbalances of wealth and power our society is based on. Anyone who insists that the police exist to protect and serve the common people has probably lived a privileged life, and an obedient one.

Don’t fetishize obedience to the law. Laws serve to protect the privileges of the wealthy and powerful; obeying them is not necessarily morally right—it may even be immoral. Slavery was legal. The Nazis had laws too. We have to develop the strength of conscience to do what we know is best, regardless of the laws.

To have a diversity of participants, a movement must make space for a diversity of tactics. It’s controlling and self-important to think you know how everyone should act in pursuit of a better world. Denouncing others only equips the authorities to delegitimize, divide, and destroy the movement as a whole. Criticism and debate propel a movement forward, but power grabs cripple it. The goal should not be to compel everyone to adopt one set of tactics, but to discover how different approaches can be mutually beneficial.

Don’t assume those who break the law or confront police are agents provocateurs. A lot of people have good reason to be angry. Not everyone is resigned to legalistic pacifism; some people still remember how to stand up for themselves. Police violence isn’t just meant to provoke us, it’s meant to hurt and scare us into inaction. In this context, self-defense is essential.

Assuming that those at the front of clashes with the authorities are somehow in league with the authorities is not only illogical—it delegitimizes the spirit it takes to challenge the status quo, and dismisses the courage of those who are prepared to do so. This allegation is typical of privileged people who have been taught to trust the authorities and fear everyone who disobeys them.

No government—that is to say, no centralized power—will ever willingly put the needs of common people before the needs of the powerful. It’s naïve to hope for this. The center of gravity in this movement has to be our freedom and autonomy, and the mutual aid that can sustain those—not the desire for an “accountable” centralized power. No such thing has ever existed; even in 1789, the revolutionaries presided over a “democracy” with slaves, not to mention rich and poor.

That means the important thing is not just to make demands upon our rulers, but to build up the power to realize our demands ourselves. If we do this effectively, the powerful will have to take our demands seriously, if only in order to try to keep our attention and allegiance. We attain leverage by developing our own strength.

Likewise, countless past movements learned the hard way that establishing their own bureaucracy, however “democratic,” only undermined their original goals. We shouldn’t invest new leaders with authority, nor even new decision-making structures; we should find ways to defend and extend our freedom, while abolishing the inequalities that have been forced on us.

The occupations will thrive on the actions we take. We’re not just here to “speak truth to power”—when we only speak, the powerful turn a deaf ear to us. Let’s make space for autonomous initiatives and organize direct action that confronts the source of social inequalities and injustices.

Thanks for reading and scheming and acting. May your every dream come true.

Posted in Anarchism, State / Politics, That's Capitalism! | Tagged , | 18 Comments

Nine anti-fascists acquitted at Welling trial

Posted on October 11, 2011 by @ndy

Nine anti-fascists acquitted at Welling trial [October 3, 2011: see Leeds ABC for more infos]

Nine anti-fascist defendants were acquitted today, but six more remain in prison in need of support.

The remaining nine defendants in the Welling anti fascist trial were today* acquitted, with cheers and loud applause from the gallery. The defendants had been charged with conspiracy to commit violent disorder, after trying to attend a picket of a gig by neo-Nazi band Blood and Honour at the Duchess of Edinburgh pub[1] on 28th March 2009.

A total of 22 anti-fascists were arrested following an incident at Welling train station where two known neo-Nazis who had arrived for the Blood and Honour gig were apprehended by activists, with one of the neo-Nazis injured. Police were called to the scene, and as neither of the neo-Nazis were around to press charges of assault, the entire group, and anyone intending to picket the gig, were all charged with conspiracy to commit violent disorder.

Today’s trial followed the conviction of seven other anti-fascists on 28th June 2011. Their trial lasted for 17 days, and sentences of 21 months were received. A further four anti-fascists were acquitted in June. Leeds Anarchist Black Cross have set up a support fund for the prisoners, and the addresses of those in prison are as follows:

Andy Baker
A5768CE
HMP Highpoint
Stradishall
Newmarket
Suffolk
CR8 9YG

Thomas Blak
A5728CE
HMP Wormwood Scrubs
PO Box 757
Du Cane Rd
London
W12 OAE

Thomas is Danish and would appreciate European/International stamps to keep in touch with his family and with comrades abroad.

Sean Cregan
A5769CE
HMP Coldingley
Shaftesbury Road
Bisley
Surrey
GU24 9EX

Sean can receive books (they must be new or in very good condition).

Phil De Souza
A5766CE
HMP Elmley
Eastchurch
Sheerness
Kent
ME12 4AY

Ravinder Gill
A5770CE
HMP Wayland
Griston
Thetford
Norfolk
IP25 6RL

Ravi can receive posters, so if you hold a support event consider sending him one in.

Austen Jackson
A5729CE
HMP Stocken
Stocken Hall Road
Stretton
Nr. Oakham
Rutland
LE15 7RD

Brighton ABC have a guide to writing to prisoners, and over the coming months it is likely that many more people will face convictions relating to anti-austerity actions, our support from the outside will be crucial.

1. The Duchess of Edinburgh [172 Upper Wickham Lane, Welling, Kent, DA16 3DX] regularly hosts Blood and Honour, and are well aware of their neo-Nazi ties.

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Occupy Melbourne?

Posted on October 8, 2011 by @ndy

Big (A)//Little (a) says:
September 29, 2011 at 12:58 am

So when are you going to do a post on the Occupy Wall Street protest? Yes there are activists of all sorts there but the banksters need a kicking and at least should be hauled in front of Congress or a people’s court and be interrogated by the people who want answers for the financial mess that they got the US into.

*cough*

OCTOBER 15TH
UNITED FOR #GLOBALCHANGE

On October 15th people from all over the world will take to the streets and squares.

From America to Asia, from Africa to Europe, people are rising up to claim their rights and demand a true democracy. Now it is time for all of us to join in a global non violent protest.

The ruling powers work for the benefit of just a few, ignoring the will of the vast majority and the human and environmental price we all have to pay. This intolerable situation must end.

United in one voice, we will let politicians, and the financial elites they serve, know it is up to us, the people, to decide our future. We are not goods in the hands of politicians and bankers who do not represent us.

On October 15th, we will meet on the streets to initiate the global change we want. We will peacefully demonstrate, talk and organize until we make it happen.

It’s time for us to unite. It’s time for them to listen.

People of the world, rise up on October 15th!

In Melbourne, people will be assembling at the City Square.

Or what remains of it.

Opened by Her Majesty in May 1980, over half the Square was purchased for $12.5 million from the Melbourne City Council in 1993 to house a ***** luxury hotel, one of over 180 Westin Hotels (“havens of wellness and rejuvenation for those seeking a transformative hotel experience”). Westin is owned by Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc., a multi-billion dollar US-based corporation. (Note that the other, much larger ‘public’ space in the CBD, Federation Square, is privately-owned land.)

The organisers of Occupy Melbourne are demanding that politicians do a better job of representing the masses, and will be joining who-knows-how-many others at the Square for who-knows-how-long before, presumably, either: a) Australian politicians start doing a better job or; b) they go home.

Afaik, the last time a tent city was established in Melbourne was in 2001 (October 14–November 2), although on that occasion the happy campers were located up the road at the State Library. The camp was established in order to protest the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, but proved somewhat ineffective in stopping the 19,799 million-dollar (USD) Australian war-machine. Thus the occupation of Afghanistan by US, Australian and allied forces has lasted slightly longer than the tent city: on October 7, ‘Operation Enduring Freedom’ celebrated its 10-year anniversary.

The US “War on terrorism” removed the Taliban regime in October 2001, but it has not removed religious fundamentalism which is the main cause of all our miseries. In fact, by reinstalling the warlords in power in Afghanistan, the US administration is replacing one fundamentalist regime with another. The US government and Mr. Karzai mostly rely on Northern Alliance criminal leaders who are as brutal and misogynist as the Taliban.

RAWA believes that freedom and democracy can’t be donated; it is the duty of the people of a country to fight and achieve these values. Under the US-supported government, the sworn enemies of human rights, democracy and secularism have gripped their claws over our country and attempt to restore their religious fascism on our people.

Whenever fundamentalists exist as a military and political force in our injured land, the problem of Afghanistan will not be solved. Today RAWA’s mission for women’s rights is far from over and we have to work hard for establishment of an independent, free, democratic and secular Afghanistan. We need the solidarity and support of all people around the world.

Women eh?

As for ‘Occupy Melbourne’, the ad hoc nature of the event(s) mean that anything could happen–but probably won’t.

Posted in Media, State / Politics, That's Capitalism! | Tagged | 25 Comments