thewestcountrymutineer – Page 2 – The Westcountry Mutineer

FASH FOOTY BOSS LEAVES SWINDON! AND WHY EVERYONE IS SO FUCKING HAPPY ABOUT IT…

THIS WEEK HAS been great news for all the footy fans who hate the fash as much as we do. Paul Di Canio; the the perfect exmaple of an italian far right bonehead, resigned on the 18th February from his managerial posistion in Swindon. Follwing his resignation he has now apparently been caught on CCTV engaging in a midnight raid on his old office and tearing up the place.

For anyone out there who has no idea about Di Canio or indeed football for that matter, Di Canio is famous amongst the english crowd for his career within various footy clubs in the English and Scottish leagues. Such teams including the Glasgow based Celtc FC, east end London boys West Ham United, Sheffield Wednesday and Charlton Athletic. After his english tour he returned to italy to play for Lazio and Cisco Roma.

Di Canio has self described himself as a ‘Fascista’ and has been spotted giving the fascist salute to his fans on several occasions. This was done mostly during his time at Lazio who’s fanbase has a reputation for involvement in fascist politics including an anti semetic attack against against Tottenham Hotspurs fans last year. One of these salute incidents happened when Lazio played against A.S. Livorno Calcio which has a more left wing attitude when it comes to politics. Di Canio has also praised the Benito Mussolini in his autobiography describing the italian dictator as a “basically a very principled, ethical individual” who was “deeply misunderstood”

Di Canio in his true bonehead form... — Di Canio in his true bonehead form…

So when Di canio decided to manage Swindon Town F.C. it was no surprise that many football fans and anti-fascists were a bit pissed off with this new addition to the club. As a result the local GMB union withdrew their £4,000 yearly donations to the club, and many rival fans have been known to mock the Italian Boss during games as a ‘Shit Mussolini’.

So there you have it, due to financial disagreements Di Canio has now resigned from the club and we’re only too happy to see this fucker gone from the Westcountry. The only bad thing to say is that he should have been got rid of earlier, but lets just hope this fascist swine never gets a job in the footballing world ever again.

THE GREAT ANTI-WIND SWANAGE SWINDLE

NIMBYS HAVE A tendency to react with shock and surprise when they find there’s a bigger world out there and such proved the case with the Swanage flavour of this species on January 13^th.

Apparently those nasty Eneco people are going to plonk a bloody great wind farm about 9 miles off the coast of Swanage and spoil their sea views and of course it would be much better installed on someone else’s patch and its all a con and a conspiracy and inefficient blaah blaah ….

Eneco are capitalists and yes we would prefer that sustainable energy was a resource built, owned and run by the community it will serve and that the energy would be free at the point of delivery but that ain’t gonna happen anytime soon.

Meantime the planet continues to cook and Dorset continues to get away with putting bugger all into the national grid and freeloading off working class communities that live in the shadow of coal, gas, oil fired and nuclear power stations in other parts of the UK.

Imagine then the look on their faces when hoards of fluffy greenies turned up at their little ‘we don’t want a wind farm in our little town’ demo on the 13^thJanuary to put the case for sustainable energy. Equipped with the usual windmills, carnival dragons, colourful kites and all the rest of it the look on the collective nimby mug was priceless and their link hands protest that had been cobbled together by the usual hi-tech method of word of mouth and a paragraph or two in the local rag was thrown into total disarray; they didn’t quite know how to deal with miffed counter demonstrators that forced them to look at such scary things as livid jugglers and demented musicians.

Still, when their megatoff tory MP man of the people Richard Grosvenor Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax (W.T.F.!) turned up to dry their tears and reassure them that their little bit of the planet was exempt from trying to arrest the effects of climate change they felt a bit better and had a good shout at the fluffies who just juggled and sang a little more.

Well, the nimby wannabe toffs retired to their clubs, pubs and discussed the fact that the world was bit bigger than they thought it was and they probably need to stop marrying their cousins if they were to have any stake in the its future.

INVOLUNTARY/VOLUNTARY WORK LOOKING VOLATILE

THE CON-DEMS’ FAVOURITE neo-slavery plans – Workfare – were dealt a nasty blow on Tuesday 12th, with the Court of Appeal’s decision with Cait Reilly that unpaid schemes were legally flawed. Definitions are blurry on exactly what this all means, and the government are eager to deny that Workfare will be overturned, and are themselves talking about overturning the Court of Appeal decision, blah blah blah.

So in real terms: it looks like there is an opportunity for people now who have been sanctioned in various ways by the Department for Work and Pensions to look for reparations – financially speaking – if they have been told schemes are ‘compulsory’ when they’re not, or if they have been sanctioned for unnecessarily long times, or they might be able to reclaim benefits that were wrongfully withheld. It’s a lot of maybes. But this may be the time to have a word with a friendly lawyer or Citizens Advice Bureau to check out your rights. At the very least, when you’re at your next sign on, your adviser will probably be more reluctant to bring up the idea.

What does this mean to activists opposing the scheme? It now seems that the Workfare (and similar copy-cat) scheme(s) is also facing challenge from the legal side of things, offering us another potential angle of attack. But we can also use this as a fresh chance to hit out with propaganda, to take advantage of this latest media spotlight on what is essentially a rich man’s wet dream. Remember, some companies have rapidly backed out of the scheme and the associated slur on their names, with Holland and Barrett being a good example. We need to drive home the point that Workfare is a modern dressing-up of slavery, and is helps neither the claimant or the taxpayer; it is more than anything a good old Tory social policy to attempt to put the poor in ‘their place’, and Duncan Smith’s friends in Big Business are merely sniffing around it as a convenient tool to cut their staffing costs.

Whilst there is no surprise that a lot of people see benefits claimants as good-for-nothing scroungers, and might see these schemes as a way of dealing with this problem, the reality is that it does not. What merely happens is that the beneficiary of the taxpayers’ wages that would normally end up in the claimant’s hands, is now finding its way into the pockets of the shareholders and companies who use the opportunity to save on wages – with politicians’ tacit complicity. The ‘free ride for scroungers’ is anything but over; the faces of the scroungers only change.

Perhaps a new tactic for campaigners would be to not only call for the D.W.P. to pay back wrongfully-withheld benefits for Jobseekers, but also demands to be made to the companies who have benefited from these schemes to pay out, as well, the sum of any differences between their newfound slaves’ benefits and the standard wages they should have been paid. A pipe dream, maybe, but we need to do everything we can to dissuade these parasites from lobbying for similar schemes in the future.

According to the Socialist Party website: “The fight for decent jobs continues. 2.5 million people are unemployed, including one million young workers… There are less than 500,000 job vacancies – many are not even real jobs. Millions more are under-employed or in the growing ‘precariat’ – low-paid workers in insecure jobs with bosses that don’t allow even basic rights such as guaranteed hours.“

If we really want people to work, and the work exists for these people, then it’s time to pay your workers. Simple as that.

BBC article

Socialist Party article

Boycott Workfare article

STOP THE PRESS:

According to Boycott Workfare: “(i)t didn’t take long for the humiliated government to get forced unpaid work back on the road again. Last night, promising a “short sharp shock”, it rushed through regulations which mean that from today these schemes may be mandatory. We say may because the DWP doesn’t exactly have a good track record of following the law; the new regulations were rushed out in 24 hours and may not respect the judges’ ruling.

The new regulations haven’t yet been put in the public domain, so once again people are in a limbo where we have no way of knowing our rights.“

BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME, COPPAHS!

SATURDAY MORNINGS TOOK a turn for the bizarre on the 9th February, when, as four morning volunteers preparing the weekly Saturday breakfast at Kebele Community Co-op cafe were met by a pair of plods and attendant member of the public, whose i-phone was apparently stolen the night before. The police claimed that they tracked the phone to the whereabouts of the social centre/the surrounding area/they can actually track the phone moving around inside – choose whichever one you wish to believe, and they demanded entry to search the building. The police’s various accounts differed when individually questioned. The key detail is that the cops had no warrant for entry, and so the volunteers politely refused; the police then threatened criminal damage to the property.

As 20-or-so Kebele supporters turned up over the next 10 minutes, they were preceded by a few police cars and a C.C.T.V. van’s worth, full of police, which only increased in number as the morning went on.

Whilst this was all happening, there were attempts made by the gathering crowd and volunteers to find a compromise, allowing the individual to come inside and search for his missing phone, without accompanying police – as their presence would breach the centre’s Safer Spaces policy. The police refused the offer, leading to an hour-and-a-half of strange standoff: instead, police stated that “We don’t talk to members of the community.” They refused to speak to anyone but the volunteers within, through the letterbox, and eventually all left to attend another call – apparently deciding there was no crime taking place after all?

Then the individual claiming the stolen i-phone came inside for a coffee, but decided not to bother looking for his phone, and refused any help to do so, as his phone ‘was on silent anyway’.

Whilst we here at the Mutineer disapprove of the role of the police as hired thugs of the rich and the powerful in the status quo, and look forward to a society of mutual aid and without oppression, it warms our heart to know that, should we ever lose any our property in a public building or shop, like McDonalds or Starbucks or what-have-you, we will be able to instantly call on a small private army to come help us kick down the door, no questions asked. The world is hence a safer place.

One benefit to all the melodrama though, was that a lot more people turned up for Kebele breakfast than normal, and much funds were raised!

So it was nothing too serious at the end of the day, but the golden question about the whole thing is: what was this really all about?

THEORY CORNER: JACKAL RUN RUNS WILD

AS EVERYONE ALREADY knows, it has been revealed over the last week that the rozzers have been found using the identities of dead infants for their nefarious plans to infiltrate known extreme fringes of hippydom that threatens the sovereignty of Our Proud Empire. This has no doubt caused outrage amongst the general public (including muesli-eating Guardian readers and Middle England Daily Heil readers), and the paying public are demanding executions – or just short.

While we find this latest tactic disturbing, we have to ask why are people acting so fucking surprised? This has been treated as if the police would not reach these depraved depths, despite all evidence to the contrary: all the Ian Tomlinson manslaughter cases, all the institutional racism and Stephen Lawrence, the Hillsborough cover-up, undercovers getting under the bed covers of activists, Mark Duggan’s killing, Wapping and the attacks on striking workers, attacks and incitement of demonstrators, and all the fit-ups and corruption and lying to protect their own dodgy colleagues all throughout their history.

While we don’t mean to downplay the severity of this latest scandal, we question why such scandals filter out of the public’s mind so quickly, only to resurface with a dollop of fresh outrage at the police’s next offence. If in a couple weeks’ time the media has forgotten all about these children and their parents’ plight, it won’t mean that the police are suddenly our best friends again. We feel that people need to remember that this will not be the last time the filth will pull off such an abuse of power, even if they sacrifice one ‘bad apple’ or two to take the fall.

It bears repeating that the police are not servants of the public trust, but actually they are the snarling hounds of the ruling class, snapping and stretching at the leash – they are a private army, a mercenary corporation, who sell their brutality to the highest bidder: and they see the general public as their enemy – whether they state it in those terms or not.

They will continue to find ways to find ways to fuck us over as and when they can get away with it, and we need to keep this truth clear in our minds, or things will continue to get worse, unchecked and unending.

A.C.A.B.

Bereaved parents: coppers have set their sights on you — The Jackal in a less convincing role [above]

CALLING ALL SWAMPYS

READERS OF THE Mutineer old enough to remember the headline-grabbing road protests at the Newbury Bypass, and (closer to home) at Solsbury Hill in Bath, and the A30 at Fairmile in Devon, could be forgiven for thinking that the era of protesters inhabiting treehouses and tunnels and chaining themselves to trees and bulldozers was one of those things we left behind in the 90s, along with Britpop, Gameboys and shellsuits. Even though those protests didn’t stop those particular roads being built, they resulted in over 300 other such road schemes being scrapped. Of course, even those behind such roads admitted that they were effectively pointless and only served to put more cars on the road. Now that the Tories have regained power, however, they intend to finish the job that Thatcher and Major couldn’t finish. Indeed, the fight back has already begun, with camps set up along the route of the proposed Bexhill to Hastings road and with many more road schemes to begin soon, including some of those abandoned at the end of the 90s (along with that old Shed Seven album you only ever listened to the once). What’s more, they have the support of both local residents and some pretty high-profile environmental groups. Many of these roads go through nature reserves, woodlands and other places no-one wants to see concreted over and destroyed forever. So be prepared – environmental devastation could be driving past your house soon – so dig out that Levellers t-shirt, grab your spade, a tarp, some pallets and as much rope as you can get, and put them within easy reach. You might be needing them very soon.

Mr Swampy, pictured here in the height of 90s crust [above]

OBAMA VS. FLY

IN JANUARY, MORE column inches were probably dedicated to a fly that landed on Obama’s forehead than any of his policies or actions. Here at The Mutineer we thought we’d find out more about the creature bugging the President of the United States, and took the liberty of contacting an expert on flies at Bristol University. “The fly that landed on the President’s head was almost certainly a species of housefly”, our source told us. “They tend to feed on decomposing organic matter, especially meat. Obama has been looking old of late, and he has a lot of blood on his hands due to his drone war in Pakistan, so it’s not surprising that the fly took an interest in him. Houseflies are vectors of disease and in some parts of the world they can pass on some pretty nasty diseases”. So there we have it. Obama is responsible for the deaths of innocent civilians through his aerial attacks, to the point where he has been described as “Bush on steroids”, and his much-hyped environmental policies have barely been realised. The fly that landed on him is nature’s warfare against his misdeeds and inactions. We hope it’s the first of many fly-strikes against him.

Police have released a mugshot of the known suspect [above]

TEN YEARS OF FIGHTING WAR

FEBRUARY 2013 MARKS the 10th anniversary of one of the world’s biggest protests – the day the world stood up and said a huge resounding “NO” to going to war in Iraq. If you weren’t in London that day, chances are that you know someone who was.

Many seeds were sown on that day. Such was the impact, that when the first protests in Tahrir Square in Egypt, the birthplace of the Arab Spring (which was in turn a huge influence on the subsequent Occupy protests), were being organised, they stated that they wanted another Hyde Park.

Although it didn’t stop the war, it showed the world that the general public were not exactly happy about the impending war, and the moment that Tony Blair turned his back on us and went to want anyway, was the moment that all hopes of him being the man of the people some hoped he would be were gone for good.

PERMANENT CULTURE NOW PRESENTS: ‘RESISTANCE IN AN AGE OF AUSTERITY’

THIS IS THE most recent video uploaded by Permanent Culture Now, filmed in December 2012. This film features a panel of Bristol-based political and activist organisations, who discuss and debate resistance during these harsh economic times.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT5Hw5C3jQY&feature=player_embedded

“What does resistance mean in an age of austerity, how can we change the world for the better when all around us we see the dismantling of our public services, watch this debate to get a range of views on this thorny issue.

What does resistance mean take in an age of austerity?

As we see the austerity agenda having massive consequences in Greece and Spain and the UK bracing itself for the real impact of the austerity agenda, we ask what should a resistance to austerity look like. In Greece we see outright violent resistance, combined with a development of bartering systems and many people returning back to the land to support themselves. Should we just resist or do we push for more radical change in society, if yes how can we do this. Are these the right ways to resist, could this occur in the UK, what can be done in this new age of the austerity agenda? We will look at short films about the impact of austerity, hear from Bristol groups attempting to effect change and highlight new ideas of resistance and social change. The night will feature speakers from a range of speakers from Bristol IWW, Afed, Solfed, Socialist Party Badaca plus many others talking about the issues they are coming into contact with, the resistance they have been involved in and the future of resistance in Bristol to these appalling cuts.

This is a link tot he film we showed at the start of the evening called Athens: Social Meltdown as it shows a range of responses to a much more intense austerity agenda.“
https://vimeo.com/50028620

Bristol I.W.W.
Bristol Anarchist Federation
Bristol Solidarity Federation
Bristol Anti-Cuts Alliance
Bristol Socialist Party
Bristol Feminist Network

PALESTINE: EXPECT THE U.N.EXPECTED

NOVEMBER WAS A funny month to be a Palestinian, to put it mildly. Beginning with the assassination of the Palestinian Hamas Party military chief on the 14th, the latest Israeli offensive into Gaza started in brutal earnest, ending 162 lives until the following Wednesday’s ceasefire. Near a quarter of those dead Palestinians were children. As the Gaza Strip is one of the most densely populated areas in the world, it would have been impossible for the Israeli bombs to avoid civilian slaughter, even if that was the intention.

Immediately following this butchery came the inevitable wave of protests, with hundreds of demos held globally against the attacks, and a 15,000-strong Stop The War Coalition march in London on the 24th. In the southwest, Bath saw 20 out in protest the same day, and daily vigils stood their ground in Bristol centre. Elsewhere in the U.K., companies dealing with illegal Israeli settlements or supplying the I.D.F. weapons were also struck that week, with direct action, occupations, noise demos, and phone/e-blockades of Barclays Bank, G4S and even the Israeli state-sponsored Batsheva dance troupe!

Palestinians in the West Bank also carried out solidarity demos, to be met with typical Israeli oppression. Demonstrators were shot dead in Nabi Saleh and in western Hebron. A baby in Qalandia refugee camp was also killed, by Israeli tear gas: maybe it was a terrorist or something?

Alongside these intensifications of the 65-year occupation, since Hamas were voted in back in 2006, the Israeli government has punished the people of Gaza to an unimaginably barbaric degree. Medical aid and food shipments are regularly stolen by border guards, alongside necessity building materials and machine repairs parts. As a result, children are malnourished, hospitals are overstretched, sewage stays untreated, and poverty flourishes.

And then, just as trigger-happy Israel was busy breaking the ceasefire, the U.N. General Assembly voted on Thursday 29th to approve Palestine’s ‘upgrade’ to a sovereign ‘non-member observer state’, 138 votes to nine. The jury is still out on what this bit of paperwork means in practice, but this does mean access to various international agencies, treaties and the ability to take Israel to the International Criminal Court in the Hague over its war crimes. Whether or not the change in status will bring actual change, it does offer some hope. And it’s pissed off Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu no end!

Straight away, as well as America helpfully offering to punish those uppity Arabs by withholding U.S. financial support, Netanyahoo and his ultra-right friends responded by first of all withholding £75m in tax rebates to the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority; secondly, Ben the Builder has just announced new plans to build another 3,000 illegal homes, and to use development to cut off Palestine’s planned new capital of East Jerusalem.

So, whilst the Israeli P.M. is embarrassing even long-term collaborators like his British and U.S. allies, Hamas (one half of Palestine’s government) – just as murderous towards everyday civilians as the I.D.F. – are coming across smelling like roses, especially to their Muslim neighbours. You could say these are interesting times…

http://angryarabscommentsection.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/israeli-premeditated-offensive-against.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/30/un-palestine-recognition_n_2217165.html

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/29/us-palestinians-statehood-idUSBRE8AR0EG20121129

http://www.thenewfederalist.eu/EU-and-the-Palestinian-UN-vote,05413

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/11/30/responding-to-un-recognition-palestinian-state-israel-to-build-3000-new/

http://www.bikyamasr.com/81776/israel-breaks-gaza-ceasefire-repeatedly/