PRC-UTE
19th June 2009, 11:21
from the leftist trainspotters email list. Seems they're changing their line on a few things.
Big news for the IMT in Ireland.
A new article has been posted on the IMT website, dealing with the aftermath of the
elections in Ireland. This reveals that the (2?) supporters of the IMT in Ireland
have constituted themselves as the "Fightback Editorial Board". Unfortunately this
is an editorial board for a publication that doesn't yet exist, but we are assured
that it will come into existence at some point in the future. A breakthrough for the
"forces of genuine Marxism" indeed.
Anyway, the article itself is reasonably interesting for a few reasons.
One is that it includes Sinn Fein as a party of the left in the various statistics
it is throwing around and seems to be arguing for coalitions of Labour, Sinn Fein
and the socialist left on local councils.
Secondly, there is no mention of the IRSP or Eirigi, two groups that the IMT has
been courting in a rather unprincipled way for some time now. Instead the argument
is for "a serious struggle" to be "waged from the left within the Labour Party in
order to change course to party policies."
Thirdly, the article actually addresses some of the existing left groups which is
unusual for the IMT. The basic argument in relation to them is that they need to
relate to "the masses that still are supporting the reformist Labour leadership".
This is fairly odd given that (a) a large majority of workers do not vote Labour,
(b) the Labour Party, with a paper membership claim of less than 6,000 is not a mass
party and (c) the Labour Party leadership is straightforwardly capitalist rather
than "reformist".
Its approach to the recent electoral successes of the left is generally to play them
down as much as possible.
The article originally contained the claim that Joe Higgins' personal base was
developed when he was a TD (true) and when he was a Labour Councillor. The idea
presumably being to imply that Joe could never have become so popular without his
long history in the mass organisation of the working class etc... Unfortunately Joe
was never a Labour Councillor nor even a well known public figure while he was in
the Labour Party, although he was well known within the party. The claim has since
been amended to "when he was a Labour activist" which seems a little forlorn.
It talks of the Socialist Party winning three seats on Fingal Council "on the back
of Joe Higgins campaign." In fact, apart from Joe's own Council seat, the other two
are held by people who were already sitting councillors before these elections and
so are unlikely to owe much to Joe's Euro election campaigns.
They are greatly concerned to argue against the idea of a new workers party because
they think it would cut off the more advanced workers from their class compatriots
in the Labour Party (all 6,000 of them). Despite this predictable IMT dogma, they
are actually correct that the welcome (well, not to the IMT) advances of the left do
not in and of themselves show that the time is right to launch a new party.
Finally, the article is extremely Dublin centred and shows almost no knowledge of
events elsewhere in the country. No mentions are made for instance of the 8
councillors won by the Workers and Unemployed Action Group in Tipperary, the
councillor won by the Socialist Party in Drogheda or the councillors won by the
Workers Party in Cork and Waterford. Apart from one mention in passing of a
Socialist Party Councillor in Cork, you would never know that the left existed
outside of Dublin.
Anyway, on this evidence we don't have much to look forward to if "Fightback" ever
sees the light of day. Although there will at least be some interest in seeing if
they can manage a longer run of their magazine than the Sparts managed of theirs.
http://www.marxist.com/ireland-after-elections-historical-opportunity-left.htm
Big news for the IMT in Ireland.
A new article has been posted on the IMT website, dealing with the aftermath of the
elections in Ireland. This reveals that the (2?) supporters of the IMT in Ireland
have constituted themselves as the "Fightback Editorial Board". Unfortunately this
is an editorial board for a publication that doesn't yet exist, but we are assured
that it will come into existence at some point in the future. A breakthrough for the
"forces of genuine Marxism" indeed.
Anyway, the article itself is reasonably interesting for a few reasons.
One is that it includes Sinn Fein as a party of the left in the various statistics
it is throwing around and seems to be arguing for coalitions of Labour, Sinn Fein
and the socialist left on local councils.
Secondly, there is no mention of the IRSP or Eirigi, two groups that the IMT has
been courting in a rather unprincipled way for some time now. Instead the argument
is for "a serious struggle" to be "waged from the left within the Labour Party in
order to change course to party policies."
Thirdly, the article actually addresses some of the existing left groups which is
unusual for the IMT. The basic argument in relation to them is that they need to
relate to "the masses that still are supporting the reformist Labour leadership".
This is fairly odd given that (a) a large majority of workers do not vote Labour,
(b) the Labour Party, with a paper membership claim of less than 6,000 is not a mass
party and (c) the Labour Party leadership is straightforwardly capitalist rather
than "reformist".
Its approach to the recent electoral successes of the left is generally to play them
down as much as possible.
The article originally contained the claim that Joe Higgins' personal base was
developed when he was a TD (true) and when he was a Labour Councillor. The idea
presumably being to imply that Joe could never have become so popular without his
long history in the mass organisation of the working class etc... Unfortunately Joe
was never a Labour Councillor nor even a well known public figure while he was in
the Labour Party, although he was well known within the party. The claim has since
been amended to "when he was a Labour activist" which seems a little forlorn.
It talks of the Socialist Party winning three seats on Fingal Council "on the back
of Joe Higgins campaign." In fact, apart from Joe's own Council seat, the other two
are held by people who were already sitting councillors before these elections and
so are unlikely to owe much to Joe's Euro election campaigns.
They are greatly concerned to argue against the idea of a new workers party because
they think it would cut off the more advanced workers from their class compatriots
in the Labour Party (all 6,000 of them). Despite this predictable IMT dogma, they
are actually correct that the welcome (well, not to the IMT) advances of the left do
not in and of themselves show that the time is right to launch a new party.
Finally, the article is extremely Dublin centred and shows almost no knowledge of
events elsewhere in the country. No mentions are made for instance of the 8
councillors won by the Workers and Unemployed Action Group in Tipperary, the
councillor won by the Socialist Party in Drogheda or the councillors won by the
Workers Party in Cork and Waterford. Apart from one mention in passing of a
Socialist Party Councillor in Cork, you would never know that the left existed
outside of Dublin.
Anyway, on this evidence we don't have much to look forward to if "Fightback" ever
sees the light of day. Although there will at least be some interest in seeing if
they can manage a longer run of their magazine than the Sparts managed of theirs.
http://www.marxist.com/ireland-after-elections-historical-opportunity-left.htm