Political Perspectives #4: Thoughts on Cambodia
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Monthly Archives: August 2012
Exploring Young Women’s Experiences of Social Movements
Just been forwarded this message and think that this research could be important. Worth keeping an eye on the project blog as it progresses.
I’m a PhD student in the Department of Sociology at the University of Leicester. I’m researching young women’s experiences of social movements in the UK and am looking for women aged 18-30 who are involved in anarchist or environmental activism who’d be willing to be interviewed.
I’d really appreciate it if you’d be able to publicise this or forward it to anyone you think might be interested.
There’s more information about the project and how to get involved on my website http://movementsresearch.weebly.com
If you have any questions or comments feel free to email me: reh28[at]le.ac.uk or get in touch via Twitter: @RoseHolyoak
Thanks for your time,
Rose
Stop Hinkley Campaign to give talk in Bath
The proposed Hinkley Point nuclear power station has become something of a hot-topic amongst some of the Bath activists, with people either side of the debate and many on the fence – hence why I was excited that Bath People’s Assembly are once again putting on a relevant and topical event – see their press release below. On the whole, I’m against the new power station. The money being poured into nuclear could be much better spent elsewhere – like research into renewables, making them more efficient and cost-effective. The contaminants are in the ground for hundreds of years – I recently spoke with a guy who specialises in removal of the contaminants and who is against nuclear power on these grounds. And, in the unlikely event of a catastrophe, my lovely city will be wiped out. You don’t get that threat with wind turbines, solar panels or geothermal energy. But more than that, I really think that we use far too much energy. Finding alternative things to do than having huge widescreen TVs and computer consoles on all night – or least gathering communally, cooking communally, turning off stuff when it’s not needed are all things we could do to reduce the need for any kind of power – nucelar or otherwise. Low-impact micro-generation for communities could bring people together and result in less energy use. But then I’m no expert. The man giving this talk is, however – go and hear what he has to say. More on energy in the future – here’s their press release:
On Friday August 17th, Bath People’s Assembly will be hosting a talk by the Stop Hinkley campaign, opposed to the development of the proposed nuclear power station at Hinkley Point in Somerset. This talk follows on from their successful “Visions for Change” event earlier this year. Although the proposed power plant is not in BANES, some Bath residents are concerned about the environmental impact of nuclear power (including uranium mining), and also that Bath could potentially be affected in the event of any major catastrophe, such as those at Sellafield, Chernobyl and Fukushima.
Hinkley Point is currently the site of two existing nuclear power stations – Hinkley A which closed in 2000, and Hinkley B, which is still operating but due to close in 2016. The proposed new power station, Hinkley C, would consist of two reactors and would be the first new nuclear power station built in Britain for over 20 years.
The speaker, Richard Carder, was the Green party candidate for North Somerset in the General Election of 1979, and represented Friends of the Earth at the Public Inquiry into Hinkley in 1989, when he focussed on the emissions of radioactive materials into air and sea. He is now a spokesman for Stop Hinkley in North Somerset. The talk is held at the Friends’ Meeting House, York Street, Bath from 7pm and the event is free. There will be a discussion session following the talk, during which people from all sides of the debate over Hinkley can have their say.
Bath People’s Assembly is an independent democratic non-affiliated body for discussion, debate and the formulation of ideas and proposals on local, national and global issues and policies. Its purpose is to give all people of Bath a stronger democratic voice. It invites people of all ages, genders, abilities, races, and religions to come and work together to put democracy into action. Formed in December 2011, they hold regular meetings to which all residents of Bath and the surrounding area are invited. In April 2012 they organised the “Visions for Change” event, to which they invited all of the various campaign and activist groups and organisations in the Bath area to have stalls and give short talks. The Stop Hinkley talk is likely to be the first in a series of talks following on from this event.
The Westcountry Mutineer – Forthcoming News for Anarchists, Activists and Radicals
This week it has been announced that a new paper is about to be launched, focussed on issues in the south-west that go unreported and a more radical perspective on bigger news stories. Although this blog, The Shittro, the BARF blog and others have done a good job of covering the region in recent times, this will be a physical paper written by a wider range of people, covering a bigger area and with a wider distribution – and will hopefully be food for thought for a new audience as well as covering the issues that those of us already involved in activism, anarchism or other radical groups would want to read. Further information and a guide for contributors, released by The Westcountry Mutineer, is below.
What we believe
Here at The Westcountry Mutineer, it’s not all about cider and muck-flinging. There are a few important principles that guide the paper – we see society as being divided into two basic classes, the working class and the ruling class. We believe that these classes cannot live in harmony, as the luxury and wealth of the ruling class is only gained through the exploitation of the working class. We believe that workers are entitled to the full value of what they produce. Politicians of whatever party only serve to protect the interests of their mates in big business. We believe that the working class should, and has the ability to, abolish oppressive institutions such as government and capitalism and run society on its own, without the interference of bosses, politicians or any other self-appointed ‘leaders’. We struggle for a world in which communities are run by the residents, workplaces run by the workers – a world without exploitation, prejudice, environmental devastation or class systems, in which resources are produced and shared equally and responsibly, not hoarded by a greedy few. Sound good to you? Then baby, you’re an anarchist!
GUIDE FOR CONTRIBUTORS
If you think you’ve got what it takes to be a Mutineer contributor, then here’s what we’re after: we’re not big on censorship, but the general theme of the newsletter is anti-state, anti-authoritarian, pro-grassroots change, pro-workers’ movement, pro-animal rights, pro-gay rights, anti-sexist, pro-environment, anti-racist, anti-fascist, anti-militarist… Lots of ‘ist’s. If you’re still with us, then content-wise: keep it brief, up-to-date, accessible to those who may not be as in the know as you, and check your typos and your facts (including links for further info as foot notes to your article is always a nice extra).
Interesting and humorous are both considered a plus point, if you can. The ‘house-style’ is that of the pun-obsessed tabloid, but don’t let that constrain you. Try to keep profanities to a minimum, though we agree that they are, in moderation, sometimes both big and clever. Also, try not to be repetitive in your choice of phrasing, and we encourage the use of commas and full stops where appropriate. And go on, give it a catchy heading! The word limit is 350 words, which many people ignore – much to the despair of the editor at 3am deadline day. So give a thought to that poor S.O.B. when you’re trundling out your treatise on the finer points of the rights of man. Piccies from events in your neck of the woods are also gratefully received.
Whilst we try to cover important national and international news, we prefer to aim for a local focus for our news – stories from the deepest, darkest corners of the Westcountry are best. Radical interpretations of local news stories are good, as well as news that other sources may downplay or miss entirely. If you’ve got any dirt on a local boss, politician, copper or any other form of slime, this is the place to publish it. The more of the West Country we can cover, the better, and that depends on you, so grab yer quill and let the rest of us know what’s happening in your manor.
As well as informative news reports or analyses, we also aim to have around one or two ‘Theory Corner’ and local radical history pieces per issue, and though it’s non-standard for us, possible other content could include: spoof news, book/film/gig reviews, images, cartoon strips, and – at an extreme push – poetry. Fiction would be pushing it. If you’re not up for doing the writing, then please send us any links, story leads, events or campaigns you want plugged, or other comments.
We reserve the right to edit contributions before publishing, or to not publish contributions at all, but, in honesty, would be very reluctant to, as we want to feature as many different voices and perspectives as possible (at least within the newsletter themes outlined above and below), and editing is likely to be fairly hands-off, just so that we don’t interfere or misrepresent what we view as the original author’s intent. That being said, we do have a few ‘don’ts’. These are:
1. Dickheads they may be, but the ruling elites are not lizards! No conspiracy theories please.
2. We love the environment, but we also love people, our warm offices and ‘Home and Away’, so no population control or primitivist content will be published.
3. Obviously all racist, anti-immigrant, anti-worker, anti-gay, sexist, pro-boss or pro-corporate submissions will be binned and spat on (then wiped dry and recycled).
Happy scribbling!
Peace (and class war)
Contact the Westcountry Mutineer:
E-mail: mutineerpress@riseup.net
Website (forthcoming): https://network23.org/thewestcountrymutineer/2012/09/