THE GREENS IN GOVERNMENT? – Ireland has seen this movie before

The formation of a new government in Ireland is proving to be a tortuous process. Following Sinn Fein’s electoral  surge to first place, even a Fine Gael/Fianna Fail coalition can not provide a new government. Their Framework for Government document was designed to act as a bait for other parties. This article from Socialist Democracy…

KEVIN KEATING – An Appreciation

It was with great sadness I learned of the death of Kevin Keating.  I first met Kevin and his partner, Anne Conway, at the Socialist Democracy (Ireland) weekend schools held near Kippure, in the upper Liffey Valley in the Wicklow Mountains, from 2007-9. The political debates  were of a very high standard, and the camaraderie…

IDEOLOGY AND SCIENCE

In the political  climate since the 2008 Financial Crisis and now with  the Coronavirus pandemic, there has been a marked increase on anti-science thinking. Whilst particularly prevalent on the Far Right, such thinking has spread far wider. Thus article, first posted by Socialist Democracy (Ireland), examines this phenomenon in relation to the coronavirus pandemic.  …

INTERNATIONALISM FROM BELOW, Volume 4, part A

Allan Armstrong is in the process of writing Volume Four of the Internationalism from Below series. This volume is entitled, Communists, nation-states and nationalism during the 1916-21/3 International Revolutionary Wave’. Due to the Coronavirus lockdown, Allan has not been able to complete the research to finish this. However, the part which deals with the situation in…

IRELAND’S FRAMEWORK FOR GOVERNMENT

Following  their disastrous general election showing on the 8th  February,  Fianna Fail and Fine Gael have come up with Ireland’s Framework for Government document to try to create the basis for a new Irish government. Socialist Democracy (Ireland) provides an analysis of this.   IRELAND’S FRAMEWORK FOR GOVERNMENT A Framework for Capitalist Survival Michael Martin…

BIG PHARMA IN IRELAND

This article from Socialist Democracy (Ireland) outlines the impact of the US pharmaceutical industry following the Coronavirus pandemic. BIG PHARMA IN IRELAND   As the numbers of casualties mount in the Coronavirus pandemic and around a third of the world is in lockdown the economic impact is becoming apparent. Capitalism is in crisis but the…

COVID-19 PANDEMIC CRACKS FACADE OF UNITY AT STORMONT

Much has been made of the UK government’s ‘4 nations’ approach in its handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Sunday Times  article exposed both  Covid’s 19’s  secondary concern (after a ‘No Deal Brexit) for Johnson and the Tories’ deliberate winding down of NHS preparations for pandemics.  In the face of this, the  supposedly ‘4 nations’…

BERNIE SANDERS AND THE US STATE

Bernie Sanders has withdrawn his challenge to become the  Democrat Party  candidate for US presidency. In this follow-up article (http://republicancommunist.org/blog/2020/03/08/bernie-sanders-and-the-us-constitution-explosive-contradictions/) Daniel Lazare highlights one of the key weaknesses of Sanders’ bid, his failure to challenge the US constitution.  Sanders’ acceptance of the existing state  constitution is something he shares with Jeremy Corbyn, something we have…

INTERNATIONALISM FROM BELOW – Volume 3

Allan Armstrong has completed the third volume of his book – Internationalism from Below: Reclaiming a communist tradition to challenge the nation-state and capitalist empire. This volume is titled, Revolutionary Social Democracy, Nation-States and Nationalism in the Age of High Imperialism and the Second International (1889-1916). It can be read online at:- https://allanarmstrong831930095.files.wordpress.com/2020/05/internationalism-from-below-book-3doc-1.pdf Most of…