THE SEEDS OF WAR

Reformist political parties spread the idea that wars are fought over such issues as principles, liberty or democracy. Only the SPGB points out that all capitalist wars are fought over markets, sources of raw material and spheres of political influence. "Australia is set to become home to hundreds of U.S. Marines - as America moves its servicemen to a military base on the northern tip of the country. In a bid to combat China's increase in global military and financial power, between 500 to 1,000 officers are to form a permanent U.S. military presence at a barracks outside Darwin. "(Daily Mail,14 November) The presence of US troops in far away Australia has nothing to do with principles, it is an awareness of the growing economic and military importance of the South China Sea. RD

THIS IS PROGRESS?

Some supporters of capitalism claim that for all its shortcomings it is at least a progressive society, but this report would seem to contradict that notion. "A global plan to halve by 2015 the number of people without access to sanitation is failing so badly that some of the world's poorest countries will not have this basic necessity for another 200 years. Almost 900 million people worldwide live without access to clean water and more than two and a half billion people live without adequate sanitation - more than a third of the world's population. But, says the charity WaterAid in a report due out this week, aid given to solve this problem is not reaching the people who need it most." (Independent, 13 November) It is hardly a progressive society that condemns millions of people to live without clean water for another 200 years. RD

NOT SO NEAT

One of the illusions that supporters of capitalism love to expound is that "the young don't realise how lucky they are" or "things were a lot worse when I was a lad". The media depict young workers in a mocking fashion. In the past they have been "teddy boys" or "ne'er -do-wells", but now they have come up with a new one "neets". "The number of young people not in education, training or work has risen to a record level in England. Official figures for the third quarter of this year say there were 1,163,000 people aged from 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training (Neet).That is almost one in five of that age-group and an extra 137,000 compared with the same point last year." (BBC News, 24 November) The increase of Neets has nothing to do with a media "degeneration of youth" but a lot to do wither the slump of present day capitalism. RD

Return to the slums

More than 1.4 million homes have failed to meet a key housing standard, new figures have revealed. In 2010 61% of houses, 1,014,000 in the private sector and 393,000 in the socially-rented sector, failed to meet the Scottish Housing Quality Standard.

One-fifth of the stock in Scotland is now more than 90 years old, a third of the housing stock is more than 60 years old and a fifth of homes have been built in the last 30 years.

its getting worse

Families are £13 a week worse off than they were a year ago, as deteriorating employment conditions and high inflation continue to erode their spending power, according to a report.

UK families typically had £164 a week left of income in October after paying regular bills such as food, clothing and housing costs, 7.1% less than a year ago.

Charles Davis, managing economist of the Centre for Economics and Business Research compiles the report, said: "Worsening employment conditions, alongside the persistently elevated rate of inflation, are continuing to erode household real incomes and family spending power." He warned: "UK households will remain under pressure for some time."

DEATHS ON THE HOME FRONT

The media give great prominence to the death of a soldier in Afghanistan, but less prominence is paid to another tragedy. "180 pensioners died every day as a result of cold conditions during the 2010-11 winter months in England and Wales. The annual "Excess winter mortality" report found that an estimated 21,800 people over the age of 65 died as a result of adverse conditions, on top of the average mortality rate for the same period of time (4 months from December 2010 to March 2011). Over-65s accounted for 84% of the overall 25,700 deaths during the winter months. "The numbers of excess winter deaths are a disgrace",said Michelle Mitchell, charity director of Age UK." (Yahoo News, 22 November) Needless to say the pensioners who die of the cold this winter will all be members of the working class who could not afford the rising cost of gas and electricity bills RD

Lazy Workers ?

New research shows that 49 per cent of working parents don't use up all of their holiday allowance, and that one in five of us simply can't take enough time off work to get away. We are becoming a nation where the notion of a fortnight away from it all is fast becoming a thing of the past.

Rebecca Taylor, web editor and mother of one said "The reason families don't spend enough holiday time together is because we are all desperately clinging to the jobs we do have in order to earn just enough to pay our huge childcare bills. Some mothers I know haven't managed a proper fortnight off since they gave birth."

Nicola Chappell, who has worked in TV for the past 20 years, says in that time, she has witnessed an almost complete transformation of attitudes. "I always make sure I take every single day of holiday that's owed to me but I've noticed that younger people in the office don't seem to take any. It's freelance culture – they're far too scared of losing their jobs to go away."

Dr Martina Klett-Davies, a family sociologist thinks our increasing reluctance to take proper holidays is directly related to the state of the economy. "We are living in an age of austerity. It becomes more prevalent to hold on to your job for love nor money and if that means forgoing holiday to do so, so be it."

"Having worked in HR for many years it is amazing how many people are willing to lose holidays or would rather be paid than take time off," says Tanya Milson. "This year in particular I have noticed a lot more unused holiday. It seems we are living in a world where none of us simply ever have enough time to get all our work done."

DISCONTENT AND REVOLUTION

One of the sillier notions abroad at the moment is that we live in a revolutionary era - we don't. We live in a society that makes profit making it's major priority and this leads to major discontent but not to revolution. When a member of the working class, whether a shipyard labourer or a brain surgeon realises that the whole world and everything in and on it is owned by less than 10 per cent of the world's population we get a revolutionary era. We can not forecast the future but we do know that men and women who want a new society based on common ownership and production for use want a better world. No war, no world hunger or poverty. That will do us. RD

THE PRIORITIES OF PROFIT

Greece is forced by European leaders to abandon a referendum to allow the people the chance to vote on its latest bailout conditions. The conditions of the next 130bn euros rescue package will be severe but ignores the extent to which the German and French military industries rely on Greece. "The small, crisis-hit nation, whose prime minister, George Papandreou, narrowly survived a vote of confidence on Friday, buys more German weapons than any other country. Some Greeks want to know why it is that France and Germany are demanding cuts in pensions, salaries and public services, but the buying of arms is allowed to continue unabated." (Independent, 7 September) French and German capitalists, like all capitalists world-wide, are more interested in profits than the plight of Greek pensioners. RD

THE POOR GET POORER

Governments always claim in times of economic downturn that "we are all in this together", but it is significant that it is the poor and needy who always suffer most. "Millions of benefit claimants are about to lose £1 billion of increases planned for next year after the Government decided to break the historic link between inflation and welfare payments. The Times has learnt that key ministers, including Iain Duncan Smith, the Work and Pension Secretary, have agreed that 5.7 million people claiming benefit for the unemployed will each lose hundreds of pounds a year." (Times, 18 November) The report then goes on to claim that the government hope to save £10 billion a year with changes in the benefit system. RD

A SICK SOCIETY

The owning class are always seeking ways of increasing their profit margins and one way of doing that is by decreasing their expenditure on welfare and health. "People should be signed off for long-term sickness by an independent assessment service not GPs, a government-backed review says. The review also suggests tax breaks for firms which employ people who suffer from long-term conditions. It is estimated the changes would send 20% of those off sick back to work." (BBC News, 19 November) In sickness and health the working class must be kept toiling to keep those profits rolling in. RD

WORK HARDER, WAGE SLAVES

In a desperate move to ease their financial difficulties European politicians have been looking to the Chinese capitalist class for some assistance, but so far have been rebuffed. "The head of the Chinese state's overseas investment arm said he would only help Europe if it reformed its outdated labour laws and welfare systems. Jin Liqun, chairman of the board of supervisors of China Investment Corporation, said Europeans should stop "languishing on the beach" and work harder it they want to drag the eurozone out of its downward spiral." (Daily Mail, 13 November) The Chinese model of ruthless exploitation, long hours and starvation wages may be the ideal for the European capitalists but their workers may prove less accommodating than the Chinese wage slaves. RD

CLUELESS ABOUT THE JOBLESS

Every reformist political party claims that it can deal with the problems of capitalism. They all have a "Cunning Plan" to deal with poverty, war and unemployment. The British working class at various times have tried different brands of political tricksters to deal with the problems. They have most recently even tried a coalition government - with what results? "UK unemployment rose by 129,000 in the three months to September to 2.62 million, as youth unemployment rose above a million. The jobless total for 16 to 24-year-olds hit a record of 1.02 million in the quarter and female unemployment was at its highest for 23 years. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the jobless rate hit 8.3%." (BBC News, 16 November) The sad fact is that capitalism by its very nature must have slumps and booms, and unemployment is one of the inevitable outcomes. RD

NO HOUSING PROBLEM HERE

In the present economic situation it is often difficult for newly-weds to find affordable accommodation, so it is nice to see that one couple have solved the problem."The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are to make Kensington Palace their family home after the Queen personally intervened to enable them to live in Princess Margaret's former apartment. About £1million will now be spent renovating the lavish four-storey, 20-room Apartment 1A - which comes complete with its own private walled garden - to make it fit for William and Kate." (Daily Mail, 6 November) There is no problem about housing for the owning class and all their hangers-on. That is only a problem for the working class. RD

MILITARY REALITY

The Hollywood stereotype of war veterans returning to a hero's welcome from their home town population amidst cheering crowds and flag-waving adulation is just that - a Hollywood invention. "One U.S. veteran of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan attempts suicide every 80 minutes, according to new study. In a staggering indictment on the lack of mental health programmes in the U.S. military, the report reveals 1,868 veterans made suicide attempts in 2009 alone. Many veterans face dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder, high unemployment and a loss of military camaraderie after returning from tours." (Daily Mail, 3 November) We can't expect Hollywood to reflect this grim reality - it's not good box office material. RD

POLITICAL PROMISES

Vladimir Putin hopes to return to the Russian presidency for a third time, and like all politicians is peddling the usual patriotic electioneering nonsense. "Repeating his usual criticism of the West for meddling in the affairs of other countries such as Libya, the former KGB spy hinted that his third stint in the Kremlin would not be all that different from his first two. "Putin does not split in two. He is one person," he quipped. "There are basic things that are not subject to change, that will not change -- a love for the Motherland, the push for results... to increase people's wealth, and to improve internal and external security." (Daily Telegraph, 12 November) During Putin's tenure of office he certainly assisted in increasing the wealth of some people - the Russian capitalist class. RD

PROFITS BEFORE PEOPLE

In a desperate attempt to cut costs in the NHS the government awarded Circle Health the management of Hinchingbrooke hospital in Cambridge. The company is run by a former Goldman Sachs banker, and the move was hailed by government ministers as "a good deal for patients and staff". "The first private company to take over an hospital has admitted in a document seen by the Observer that patient care could suffer under its plans to expand its empire and seek profit from the health service. Circle Health is already feeling a strain on resources due to its aggressive business strategy, the document reveals, and the firm's ambition to further expand into the NHS "could affect its ability to provide a consistent level of service to its patients", it says." (Observer, 13 November) In view of the company's own appraisal it would appear the government's forecast of "a good deal for patients and staff" could prove to be well wide of the mark. RD

Tartan Trots

Further to this earlier post Socialist Courier finds vindication.

Tommy Sheridan’s former press chief Hugh Kerr has resigned from Solidarity to join the SNP, claiming he wants to fight for an “independent Socialist Scotland” within Alex Salmond’s nationalists and also said he would be “delighted” to stand for the SNP as a Holyrood candidate or in the 2012 council’s elections.

Kerr said that the far left had become a “sideshow” as he resigned from Solidarity and claimed that the only way he and other Sheridan supporters could have “any influence” would be to join the SNP. He said: “The split with the SSP and other factors has meant that the far left is doomed to be a sideshow for a decade and if I’m to have any influence the truth is that this has to be in the SNP, which has the support of the majority of Scots."

Former Labour MEP Kerr told The Scotsman he had held talks with Sheridan during a prison visit to his former boss, whom he insisted was “very sympathetic” to his decision to join the SNP. He also said that there “could well be” other members of Solidarity planning to defect to the SNP, a move which could see left wingers entering Mr Salmond’s party in a similar tactic used in the 1980s and 1990s to influence Labour by far left groups such as the Militant Tendency.

FORGOTTEN HEROES

On 11th November every year all over Britain they commemorate the millions killed in war. Veterans parade in city squares, military bands play rousing music, reverend gentlemen mouth platitudes and of course politicians make promises. "David Cameron said ministers would "strain every sinew" to do more for service personnel and their families.The Remembrance weekend initiative aims to end the scandal of veterans being left too poor to buy a home and unable to get on a social housing list." (Daily Mail, 12 November) In 1918 politicians told us it was a war to end all wars. It turned out to be an empty piece of rhetoric - just like Mr. Cameron's latest piece of political bombast. RD

A TALE OF TWO NATIONS

The USA is the most developed capitalist nation in the world and it has some of the richest people in the world. It also has some people desperately poor. "Nearly 15% of the U.S. population relied on food stamps in August, as the number of recipients hit 45.8 million. Food stamp rolls have risen 8.1% in the past year, the Department of Agriculture reported, though the pace of growth has slowed from the depths of the recession. .... Mississippi reported the largest share of its population relying on food stamps, more than 21%. One in five residents in New Mexico, Tennessee, Oregon and Louisiana also were food stamp recipients. (Wall Street Journal, 1 November) This gap between rich and poor is not unique to the USA. It is a worldwide feature of capitalism. RD