Book Review: Keir Hardie: Labour’s Greatest Hero? Bob Holman (Lion Hudson plc/ 2010 / £10.99) Hardie, class struggle and keeping the faith This review, by Richard Price, was first published in Permanent Revolution The standard Marxist appraisal of Keir Hardie goes something like this. Although due respect must be paid to his pioneering role, Keir…
In Search of Middle England
The political commentator said: The new leader of New Labour will just have to make himself more acceptable to Middle England.’ Being a traveller, a geographer even, I searched my atlas for Middle England. I could find no such place so I wandered around the post-industrial Midlands instead. Without luck I wondered if my Scots…
Book review: Around the Time of Michael
Around the Time of Aitken Andy McPake reviews the latest book of poetry, from Jim Aitken. Jim has become a regular contributor to Emancipation & Liberation, and he credits us in his preface. Around the Time of Michael is Jim’s ninth published volume of poetry and, as the quote above suggests, a continuation of his…
Book Launch: From Davitt to Connolly: ‘Internationalism from Below’…
From Davitt to Connolly: ‘Internationalism from Below’ and the challenge to the UK state and British Empire from 1897-1895 By Allan Armstrong Published by Intfrobel Publications, £7.99 Allan Armstrong’s new book From Davitt to Connolly: ‘Internationalism from Below’ and the challenge to the UK state and British Empire from 1897-1895 was launched to a warm…
The Sane Society – Erich Fromm
Joe Conroy appraises Erich Fromm’s 1955 work. This article first appeared in Red Banner Issue 39 The United States in 1955 would hardly seem a propitious time or place for condemning capitalist society outright and advocating an entirely different way of living. With millions buying into the consumer society and no end in sight to…
The Only Boss I Ever Liked
Rod MacGregor follows Bruce Springsteen’s political development through his music Now I been lookin’ for a job but it’s hard to find Down here there’s just winners and losers And don’t get caught on the wrong side of that line —Atlantic City, Bruce Springsteen It was nearly three decades ago, in May 1981, that I…
Remembering Charlie Rees
Militant Trade Unionist, Republican, Communist, Artist and Poet RCN members recently heard of the death of our comrade Charlie Rees. Charlie, together with his partner Deidre McCartin, was one of the founding members of the Scottish Socialist Party. He had been an active socialist in the south of England, but also remembered his family’s Welsh…
The Sheridan Perjury Trial
Allan Armstrong highlights some of the lessons to be learned from the Sheridan saga The split on the Scottish Left between celebrity populist and genuine socialist politics On May 1st, 2003 six Scottish Socialist Party members were elected to Holyrood. From January 26th, 2011, by far the best-known (former) member of the SSP, Tommy Sheridan,…
Irish elections: Revenge, but not yet resistance
by Kevin Keating and John McAnulty, Socialist Democracy (Ireland) In the run-up to the Irish election of 25th February a number of key issues arose. The major issue was the imposition of four years of renewed austerity overseen by the intervention of the European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund. The second issue was the…
The 1% Network
Dan Finn of the Irish Socialist Network shows how socialist groups in Ireland are coming together to fight the cuts agenda of the Irish ruling class Ireland is undergoing neo-liberal shock therapy as a result of the Government decision to guarantee the debts run up by speculators in our hyper-inflated housing market that went down…