Ed’s Egg
Not even the opposition can face the public unscathed, says Will Skyrme. Not even those ordained by Her Majesty to oppose the current ruling clique can wonder freely in the righteous world of the un-egged. Quite apart from the deliciously appropriate nature of the tactic itself – sitting perfectly as it does on the right side of actual bodily harm and just on the wrong side of being really quite annoying – Ed’s egg is a significant emblem of our political times.
Over 3 years into a nasty Tory government that has quite openly sacrificed social wealth and human wellbeing in order to pay the banker’s debts, whilst presiding over a dramatic reduction in average wages and just generally pissing everybody off, one would be forgiven for thinking the Labour leadership might be basking in the heat of eager (or, at least, desperate) anticipation, if not popularity.
But few of those bearing the brunt of crisis and auterity can have much faith in the pale pronouncements and lethargic rhetoric coming from Ed Milliband. Few of those repelled by New Labour’s business ethos and deference to the super-rich will be inspired to think anything but more of the same is possible. And few of the supposedly ‘core’ working class members and voters that have fallen away over the years will see in politics much more than, at best, the chattering of the priveleged and, at worst, a conspiracy to defraud and decieve them.
In a period of (debt-financed) economic growth it was possible for the Blairites to convince enough people that class was an irrelevance, that the poor were just a tiny rump to be dealt with primarily by the criminal justice system. No longer. Glaring inequalities are laid bare. Austerity – the pillaging of public wealth and the squeezing of the working class – must be opposed and the perorgatives of profit and growth subordinated to social need. This requires partisan, anti-capitalist politics. In these times (if ever it was) it is not possible to be both darling of the rich and defender of the poor.
But the historical shift of the Labour party to the right, its acceptance of Thatcher’s legacy and its current austerity-lite agenda, has been predicated on its adherence to the needs of capital – of international competition, of profit-rates as the principal hallmark of the Good. Transforming Labour back into a socialist party is delusional because it never was one.
Class anger is the egg hurtling through the air. We need a new party.
9 comments
9 responses to “Ed’s Egg”
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What would happen if policies to put these ideas into practice were expressed in non class terms? For example production for need not for profit, social ownership of the railways, banks and utilities, every person to have a decent place to live, work, education and healthcare. Work to be organised locally in cooperatives.A minimum wage and a maximum wage set at a low multiple of the minimum wage. These policies raise numerous questions of detail but do they need to expressed in anti capitalist class struggle language? I think the language of class struggle and anti capitalism is not necessary and is off putting to most people in the UK. A vision for Left Unity and initial policies expressed in everyday language is more likely to work for people. Couple this with street level action in communities to help people in need and I think Left Unity could be successful.
And how will your policies be brought about David? The 300 strong workforce of CityClean went on strike in Brighton recently. Within the space of a single weekend Brighton was being paralyzed by the piles of rubbish on the streets.
This strike was an indication of the only way in which your programme, that I wholly endorse, can be brought about, I know of no other.
We don’t need to use the language of Keir Hardy or Karl Marx but their understanding of the class nature of society is an invaluable lesson.
The polcies you have listed above are a class programme, quite a good starting point for the year ahead for Left Unity. I think its important LU fights to define ourselves in class terms, part of the whole Labour retreat has been about buying into the whole “class is dead” thing the faliure of labour has been its faluire to fight for the working class (although how much they’ve ever done is debateable), part of this will be debating with the people were relating to about what class means today, we should avoid thinking thatt everyones brought into the neo-liberal guff though more and more people have defined themselves as working class in recent years (noticibilly since the austerity drive)
‘Class anger is the egg hurtling through the air. We need a new party’
Then let there be a thousand eggs, hurtling through the air, splattering the whole of ‘The’ wholly corrupt, devious, self serving unrepresentative political class’ (with a very very few exceptions) of all neo liberal political parties, from both the foul rotting Commons and the foul rotting Lords, whenever and wherever they appear in public. Where are they ?
THEY ARE ALL IN IT TOGETHER…..They are ‘all’ in it together,planning a massive pay rise for themselves but ‘ working hard ‘ on their image, working hard on damage limitation, desperately trying to (re-)gain credibility and trust which was thrown away, demolished as a result of The Expenses Scandal, which was just the tip of the iceberg in terms of everyday ‘normalised’ corruption and criminality that passes for so called mainstream politics nowadays. It was ever thus……rotten boroughs !
The Labour party is an absolute disgrace and has betrayed it’s base supporters on a monumental scale losing over 200,00 members and 4 million voters since 1997 !!!
Yes, we need a new party but not just a new party . We need a new Left party.
A new Left party which can win over those lost to Labour, reach out to the millions of disaffected, disillusioned non voters, those that dont even bother to vote in any election, the unemployed, those struggling to make a living on zero hour contracts , poverty wages and poverty pensions and of course the pittance that is the minimum wage, those suffering the appalling consequences of The Bedroom tax, the austerity cuts, the benefit cuts and sanctions, those made homeless and without HOPE.
Milibrand’s pledges to let THE CLIMATE CHANGE CRISIS and THE ECONOMIC CRISIS be left to rampant market forces determine our future, he pledges to maintain the neo liberal agenda ,of continued privatisation of health and education and anything else for that matter, the austerity cuts , the bedroom tax, student debt, while Ed Balls pledges to further cut winter fuel allowance for good measure. To say nothing of continued imperialist wars and interventions !!
Most of all. To have a new Left party we need a BIG IDEA, new language, new ideas and a new fresh approach.
That big idea has to be about meaningful DEMOCRACY
WE NEED TO BE RADICAL AND RELEVANT
I cant be bothered with this whole false debate and discussion about whether Left Unity is or will be a Reformist / Revolutionary party.
The point is that Left Unity is growing, is inspiring people, is giving hope, is providing a glimmer of optimism in a very bleak situation but the mass of the working class is not rushing to join the SWP, The Socialist party or the SLP, Respect or any other tiny Left sect.
8,000 EDL marched through Birmingham a few weeks ago and completely out numbered the anti racist, anti fascist mobilisation against them.If that isn’t a wake up call then I dont know what is ! Similarly in Greece , if SYRIZA fails and is not able win over sufficient numbers of the Greek people workers with a popular democratic process and viable social economic and political programme then the gates are open for the growing fascist Golden Dawn,increasingly militarised and very organised in actively attacking and killing people with support from the police, the prison service and the military.
Masses of People are not rushing to discover marxist dialectics, discover the finer points of Leninism, and the in’s and out’s of the Russian Revolution.
Just as millions of oppressed and disillusioned people lost hope in Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador, so they regained hope through a renewal of the democratic idea through being respected, listened to, actively involved, engaged in a democratic process involving a rewriting of the Constitution, the enshrining of their human, political, citizens,women and workers rights,through the introduction of new democratic structures, the introduction of referendum etc.
The point being that unless The Left here is itself capable of being democratic and capable of renewing itself by involving people in a genuinely popular democratic process bringing about and creating fresh, inspiring ideas of social change with a VISION that have a resonance and a practical relevance to people’s lives, it will simply be tossed away into the dustbin of history.
I had a brief meeting with the strikers in Brighton a few weeks ago and understand what is happening there. Workers backed by their unions should do what they can to protect their positions. The policies I am suggesting for Left Unity will bring this kind of situation to an end. There will still be disputes but they will be between equals and resolved in a different way.
Drawing lessons from the history of class struggle is important and inspiring. I am not seeking to diminish that but feel that the language of class struggle is divisive and not appropriate for Left Unity.Left Unity should attempt to draw support from as wide a group as possible. A class based analysis of the current situation is no help in this aim. Capitalists, bankers and others of doubtful intent are people too and should be encouraged to join this enterprise
Left Unity has set itself on a electoral pathway. Given this policies for an election must be supported by a majority of the electorate. I think a simple vision, clear and straightforward policies and direct action in communities will develop the necessary electoral base. At the same time Left Unity through its community action will be supporting people in need now rather than after any electoral success. Direct action with individuals will mark out Left Unity as different from other political groupings.
Dear David,Keep the day job mate and you definitely need to keep taking the medication.I’m sure “Capitalists, Bankers and others of doubtful intent” will flock to Left Unity.
Drawing support from a wide base is really important. Capitalists and bankers are a small group and their choosing not to participate is of relatively little consequence although their knowledge and skills would be useful. What about anyone who owns a house in the UK? How would you intend to persuade them to join Left Unity in its march towards socialism?
We need to listen to the people yes we must educate them but not with Marx or Lenin those days are over and to be honest we must look at what the broad left has achieved over the last 70 years and im sorry to say it has not amounted to much, to many splinter groups and factions, division will gain nothing and so it shows.
Now how do we win the people over ? we have got to offer them something that they will grasp something that makes them sit up and take notice, and we need to decide quickly what that something is , for me it is public ownership with a promise that the profits that have been creamed of by the fat cats for three decades will be put back into the country , we must promise a social house build from these profits thus creating employment and growth we should aim for 250 thousand new house builds a year, we should make it clear that we are not in fear of the capitalist and those that threaten to leave the country will be welcome to go they are after all in a minority.
I repeat it is no longer about Marx, Engels or Lenin, it is about getting in touch with people listening to them, if i gave any young person from the age of 18 to 30 on the estate where i live a book by Marx etc they would not read it they would bin it, we need to get through to them what we can do for them and this country, as activist we can all go to meetings and nod and debate but i know this the same activist will turn up week after week while the masses are at home, we need to get out there and talk to them but we must have something to offer them .
Well said Mick. Maybe we can persuade others to put their proposals for Left Unity in language we can all understand. I would like to see Left Unity out in the community talking to people and also taking action to help individuals with their everyday problems. This direct action would help develop an electoral base for Left Unity. Left Unity Community Workers – one in every neigbourhood would be a good target.