"We are many, they are few. They have the tanks, what can we do?"

Two covers for the Miranda Revolution (book due out later this year)

Noble 524 - the charge of the armchair brigade.

524 is a comfortable parliamentary majority. They are comfortable to send people off to their deaths but are the noble 524 sending their own children off to die or other people's?

All the arms merchants will be rubbing their hands in glee at this disgraceful decision. Turning blood into cash is how they make their living.

Cameron and his canaille of millionaires imagine that this bloody war will help them to win an election as the Falklands helped the blessed Margaret Thatcher.

They have a "coalition of the willing" in the region including Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia's rich elite are fighting a war against extreme religious persecution and a regime which beheads people. And I am the Queen of Sheba.

The role of the Labour Traitors is beneath contempt. And frankly who cares what the Liberal Democrats think any more?

We need a party of the working class.

#socialistreviews


--
http://derekmcmillan.com

The union Cameron does not want to keep

Just a little reminder in pictures
 

#socialistreviews

NUT the next generation

NUT - TNG. I spent a couple of hours in Bognor today recruiting student-teachers. This is a good activity for a retired teacher and I can thoroughly recommend it. The next generation are questioners. They want to know which union is right for them and which union's policies accord with their view of education.
They are encouraged to join all the unions - it's free after all - and then make their minds up to join the NUT :)

The ATL were there and I talked to them about the time when we had a joint strike rally with ATL in Worthing. We are stronger together if we are taking action. The same goes for the NASUWT.

I had to be polite to "Voice" the artists formerly known as "PAT" the strike-breaking conspiracy. The first line of their leaflet was enough for a long discussion which I bit my lip and avoided.

It read, "The non-striking union in education. We believe in the power of negotiation, never resorting to industrial action."

The recent victory at Hove Park School involved the power of negotiation. And that power was backed up with strike action when appropriate. "Voice" can hardly claim to have been of the slightest use to that successful campaign.

The removal of Michael Gove was an example of the power of joint industrial action which it would be wise to remember. One minute Govey was saying "this strike will achieve nothing" and the next minute he was out on his ear.

To hold talks without being prepared to exercise your democratic right to strike is like negotiating with both hands tied behind you back. The employers will simply laugh at you.

The other problem with the "non-striking union" is that they boast of not being affiliated to the TUC. So they are not even a union. However on the plus side whenever the Daily Telegraph wants a quote from a union, they can be guaranteed to quote "Voice." That does not sound very independent to me

The students at Bognor will add to the strength of genuine trade unionism in the years to come.

#classroomteachermanual

--   http://derekmcmillan.com

Hove Park victory. The struggle continues

I am a retired teacher. I was delighted to see the headline in the Argus "Hove Park says no to academy."

My children were all taught by qualified teachers. The academy programme is based on Mr Gove's theory that any Tom, Dick or Harriet can teach and cheap unqualified teachers are the way forward.

Our children deserve better.

I am glad that reason has triumphed at Hove Park.

The Argus is asking us to write in. The address is  letters@theargus.co.uk and the above is the letter I sent them. This is a very easy way to support our fellow teachers and costs nothing. This is a great victory. We need more victories :)

#classroomteachermanual
#socialistreviews

Warmonger Blair

Military genius Tony Blair wants 'boots on the ground' in Syria according to today's "i" newspaper.   

Parachute him into Syria. He can talk ISIS to death.

Does he think people will forget that he bombed unarmed civilians in Iraq?

Does he think people will forget that he lied his ass off to persuade the Labour Party to abandon its commitment to peace and go to war against Iraq?

And as for his self-styled "faith foundation" it is obviously a faith in the father of lies, the Devil.

"Blessed are the warmakers" is what appears in Blair's sermon on the mount apparently.

May God forgive this lying hypocrite.

 

#socialistreviews

Hold your nose and vote Labour?

I understand that people may vote Labour to get the Tories out. I just think we could do a lot better if the unions refused to fund candidates who support privatisation or cuts. That would rule out most of the Labour Party :-) #socialistreviews

Labour's actions in Scotland are a warning to workers in England and Wales

The Tories could not have organised the "no" campaign on their own. They needed stooges and lickspittles North of the border.

Step forward the Darling/Brown double-act. Without the Labour Traitors it is unlikely in the extreme that the Tories could have carried the day. Darling deserves a knighthood from the Tories. Brown, a peerage at least.

In the period leading up to the referendum the polls showed a big shift among Labour supporters to the "Yes" camp but the Labour Traitors pulled out all the stops to help the Tories to win.

The empty promises of constitutional reform will be drafted "by January 2015" and then there will be a general election. If anything is left of these pie-in-the-sky reforms by then it will not be worth the paper it is written on.

The only reason these wiseacres were even *talking* about pretending to give more powers to Scotland was because of the Yes campaign.

What they feared most of all was the simple fact that all the parties of capitalism - Lib Lab Con - (perhaps LIBLABCON will be the name under which they fight the next election) backed the "No" campaign. The Yes vote was a massive rejection of their perspective of cuts and more cuts.

The "no" result is a setback for workers in Britain as a whole. International solidarity does not recognise any borders. The policy of "austerity" is a sham. There is no "austerity" for millionaires like Cameron. There are just "tough choices" for the rest of us. The response must cross borders. Action from the unions, action from the TUC rather than fine words are what is required now.

The NSSN has forced the TUC to get off its knees before. It can do it again. Cameron and his Labour Traitor allies have won the battle. They must not win the war.

#socialistreviews

Andrew Neil reduced to sneers by Tommy Sheridan

If Scotland votes YES today it will be a massive defeat for the parties of Austerity - Lab, Lib and Con.
It will also be a defeat for the unholy trinity of Tony Blair, Cilla Black and Cliff Richard
#socialistreviews

The abominable "no" men

The increasingly panic stricken chuckle brothers, Gordon Brown and
Alistair Darling are decrying the "narrow nationalism" of the Scots. At
the same time they are orchestrating a disgusting nationalist campaign
to frighten Scots into "rallying round the flag." They are a disgrace.

Worse yet, the Rt Hon Tony Blair, or "mass-murdering war criminal Tony
Blair" as he is popularly known in the Middle East, has decided to throw
his weight behind the pro-Tory campaign in Scotland. Matthew Norman in
today's "i" newspaper has concluded "Whatever Thursday's referendum
brings, Mr Salmond has been blessed in his opponents."

The people of Scotland have a right to self-determination. The
Conservative and Unionist Party has always opposed that right. They at
least are being consistent. Kier Hardy the Labour Party founder, was a
keen advocate of Home Rule both for Scotland and Ireland. He must be
turning in his grave to hear the Labour Traitors grovelling to the
English Tories.

As for the Liberal Democrats, who on earth cares what they think after
they let the Tories form the most right-wing administration since Thatcher.

However the vote goes, the pro-austerity parties are in for a rough
ride. The Scottish working class increasingly sees the Independence
referendum as a way to "give the effing Tories a kicking" for good and
all. That feeling will not go away. The opportunites to pursue a
Socialist Scotland will be enormous.

#socialistreviews


--
http://derekmcmillan.com

Jack London's Suicide Note

I am working on a short story (very short - flash fiction) about Jack London. Jack London did not commit suicide. He died from taking two medications at the same time and left a note about his plans for the next day. 

The myth of his suicide was useful for those who hated Socialism and therefore hated Jack London.

Forty years ago I had a discussion with my college lecturer about what Jack London's suicide note would have been like. There are enough indications in Martin Eden and John Barleycorn that he understood despair and fought against it. 

As for the short story (which my iPhone keeps trying to call a 'shirt' story) you will have to wait and see.

#socialistreviews

http://derekmcmillan.com

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The true face of politics

The Scottish Referendum shows the true face of politics. The
Conservative Party's lieutenants in Scotland are Alistair Darling and
Brown. Hardly the dynamic duo, their campaigning consists of empty
threats and insincere promises. The fact that the Labour Traitors spend
night and day working for the Conservatives tells you all you need to
know about them.

Empty threats - the bullsh*t over the currency is a classic case. If you
vote the wrong way we will punish you by taking away our pound. A
schoolyard threat - if I lose the game I'm taking home my ball. The day
after Scottish independence the English government will have to deal
with the reality of an independent Scotland and the obvious fact that no
country wants to discourage the use of its currency or indeed has any
power to stop it.

And as for the last minute panic attempt to get the supermarkets to
raise prices if the Scots dare to vote against Cameron and crew; it was
immediately torpedoed by Tescos who will of course do no such thing.
Supermarkets spend billions to convince people their prices are the
lowest. Does Cameron know the first thing about capitalism? Surely if
Asda say "We'll punish you Scots" Scots will say "we're off to the Co-op
ye Tory bastards!"

The empty promises are as much use as Nick Clegg's solemn vow to get rid
of tuition fees, or Obama's pledge to close Guantanamo bay. As Mary
Poppins put it, "That's a pie crust promise, easily made and easily broken."

And this campaign also shows the real role of the banks and big
business. We have party political broadcasts by bankers telling the
Scots to vote as the Tories tell them or else.

I do not have a vote in this referendum. If the No campaign wins it will
be a victory for the bankers and a victory for the politics of
intimidation. The Tories backed Lithuania when it wanted to break away
from Russia. The Tories backed Estonia when it wanted to break away from
Russia. The Tories backed Latvia when it wanted to break away from
Russia. They are hypocrites and liars.

All power to the Yes campaign. #hopenotfear




--
http://derekmcmillan.com

Foot in Mouth Cameron

Cameron threatens the Scots they could be rid of the Tories permanently.

 Some threat! The "effing Tories" deserve a good kicking. If it is permanent, nobody in Scotland will mourn.

The attempts of the banks and financial institutions to intimidate the Scottish people show their true colours. Empty threats and empty promises.

Socialist Reviews updated for September 2014

Updated for September 2014.

Click here to try before you buy

'Rise like Lions after slumber

In unvanquishable number -

Shake your chains to earth like dew

Which in sleep had fallen on you -

Ye are many - they are few.'

NUT LEADERS BACK DOWN. LANAC CAN MAKE THEM FIGHT

The NUT exec has backed away from the October strike. The government will hail this as a 'victory for common sense.' They mean a victory for the divided ramshackle coalition.

It would seem the government's tactic of 'divide and conquer' has succeeded.

I cannot see the other unions being impressed. They might talk about us in the same terms NUT members often talk about NASUWT.

United action brought down Gove. LANAC will rise to the challenge of making the NUT leaders fight.

LANAC is the Local Associations for National Action Campaign.

LANAC has made the NUT leaders fight in the past. and the vote on the Exec was not unanimous. It was 25 to 12 but some of those 25 can be turned back from the Dark Side.



You can join LANAC on Facebook

Space Dog Alfred

I have written children's story for the National Literacy Trust. My deadline was mid September so I am getting ahead of myself!

This is a story for 8 to 12 year old readers. I have been uncompromising. This is the story I would have loved to read at that age. I enjoyed writing it  and some readers will love it.

It tells the story of a French Bulldog who ends up going into space with Finbar Cool, a very dodgy street trader and uncle to Tom and Seren, the twins who accompany him. Finn brings his daughter, Abby, along too.

On the planet they go to there is a group mind which is shared by Gai - sentient tree-like creatures - the Veck who are humans but have mastered unpowered flight and the people of Ardin who are small but perfectly formed. They worship death.
The group mind is not shared by creatures known as the gnarl who are warlike and largely live underground.

It is an adventure story in which the powers of all the characters are tested to the maximum. Abby realises her selfishness is holding her back. Seren eventually comes to realise that Abby can change. Tom finds out that he really doesn't know everything. Finn realises the futility of war. Alfred's bravery and his powers of hearing and smelling make him into a hero. Like all French Bulldogs, he has the power to understand what humans (and other creatures) are thinking.

In the end good triumphs over evil. The heroes succeed in averting a war which would have cost thousands of lives. In doing so they also introduce the gnarl to the joy of storytelling. They prove that it is possible to win a battle by surrendering.

--   http://derekmcmillan.com

Review of "How to build a girl"

Caitlin Moran was brought up on a council estate in Wolverhampton. She
became a journalist on the Times, probably the poshest newspaper in the
world, at the age of 18. Consequently she works alongside a fair
sprinkling of the upper class public school boys who have all the
positions of power in the country. She is unique in thinking Michael
Gove is not a waste of space. Her reason for this, however, was that he
knew the name of the hamster Freddie Starr was alleged to have eaten!
(Teachers believe it is a pity he didn't know anything about education).

The title is a postmodern reference to the idea of constructing and
reconstructing the personality. What is different about this book is
that the idea is for the first time rooted in the realities of class
society. It is indicative of Caitlin Moran's style that the difficulties
of masturbating while sharing a bed with a sibling feature as an example.

A book which deals with the effects of poverty while growing up in
Wolverhampton and the cruelty of the benefits system sounds like a
"worthy" book which socialists would read out of a sense of duty rather
than an expectation that they will enjoy it. *This is not that book!*

The narrative veers between pathos and hilarity. You will recognise the
bitter anger against the treatment of the poor one minute and be
laughing your socks off the next.

It is an "adult" book. This means that teenagers will love it and some
adults will think it is totally unsuitable for teenagers to read.

I leave that judgement to you. Just read this book. You will be hooked
after the first few pages.

Derek McMillan

--
http://derekmcmillan.com

Old boys' network

There is an absurd old left-wing idea that the top jobs in British society are dominated by an "Old boys' network" of posh public school boys. It is interesting therefore that a government report produced by the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission has produced the following hard facts.

The old school tie brigade make up

71 percent of senior judges

62 percent of senior armed forces officers

55 percent of Whitehall permanent secretaries (the "Sir Humphries")

50 percent of House of Lords members

36 percent of the Cabinet (22 percent of the Shadow Cabinet)

33 percent of MPs

26 percent of BBC executives.

The report produced similar percentages for the number who went to Oxbridge. Oxford and Cambridge deny that they favour public school pupils over the state sector. Methinks they do protest too much.

With these percentages and the misogynist nature of most public schools, it is hardly surprising, for example, that Cameron's line-up of MPs and MEPs show a distinct gender bias. In the global table of female representation, the UK ranks 74th - down from 33rd in 1999 and 62nd in 2010.

And what are the chances of the government doing anything about this? Are a group of public school boys who have cottoned on to a good thing going to put an end to it? The odds are on a par with turkeys voting for an early Christmas I imagine.

Don't be fooled by the wigs and silk stockings. They are public school boys underneath.

We are many. They are few. They use their power to defend their wealth and privilege. They will not give up either without a fight.. TUSC (The Trade Union and Socialist Coalition founded by Bob Crow)  is the only political party which fight.

Fishing in troubled waters

The latest suggestion from Dannat - work with Assad against Isis. The Western Powers and the arms merchants are rubbing their hands with glee at the opportunity to bring more death and destruction to the Middle East. Oppose Assad, Support Assad. Toss a coin. Just make sure our profits benefit.
It is beyond satire and it isn't funny. Arming both sides in a conflict and then wringing their hands over carefully selected atrocities (the Israelis do not commit atrocities - not in Cameron's book anyway) these hypocrites still claim the moral high ground.

Skylight

Worthing is a town which has always re-elected Tory sunkets in the past and the worship of the blessed Saint Margaret Thatcher is widespread. It was a pleasant surprise therefore when the Connaught Studio was packed out for a performance of "Skylight" by David Hare.

The play is part of the National Theatre Live screening program whereby plays are broadcast throughout the country. David Hare sees this as an alternative to touring and made it a condition of putting the play on that it should be broadcast by the NT Live program.

In it Carey Mulligan plays a teacher and Bill Nighy as her former lover is the epitome of Thatcherism. The play cleverly weaves a love story, a comedy and a political statement around each other.

I will not give away the plot but David Hare commented during the interval that it was originally staged at the end of the Thatcher era in which those who work in the public services were denigrated and "we have just had four years of the same!"

Carey Mulligan has one final statement in which she says that teaching is about setting your own objectives, and celebrating them when you achieve them rather than following the daft objectives set by politicians who hate the public services. All teachers will recognise that.

It is well worth seeing if there is another NT "encore" performance in your area.

http://derekmcmillan.com/

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