Monday, September 26, 2005
And your little dogs, too
After discovering the new Google blogsearch, naturally enough I googled my own blog. I've found two other fans of Margaret Hamilton. We seem to be in similar political universes, at least, and they have the benefit of using punctuation.
... and your little dog too! is penned by a guitar-playing dude who hates religion and right-wingers. Rock on.
and your little dog, too... is from a feminist and Democrat who's also a secretary (I'll always have a warm, glowing VDT in my heart for the profession) and thought the Boy Scout massacre a little odd, just like I did.
And your little blog, too!
The IRA abandons a military solution
Today's political reference goes to Ireland, where the IRA has just finished destroying its weapons caches. I think this is a good thing. Not because it signals a weakening of Republican resolve to get the British out of Ireland (though it may very well be that), but because it opens up new spaces for socialist resistance.
Armed struggle with red flags is very romantic, and there are republican socialist groups that reject IRA de-commissioning as a sell-out. However, armed struggle in a non-revolutionary context quickly devolves into internecine battles, as the Irish Republican Socialist Party experience attests to. Rather than a Maoist strategy that 'leads the people to liberation', the point is to mobilize Irish people themselves to fight against capitalism and British imperialism. Socialist Democracy puts it quite well:
Irish Unity Rally, Sept.24
... and your little dog too! is penned by a guitar-playing dude who hates religion and right-wingers. Rock on.
and your little dog, too... is from a feminist and Democrat who's also a secretary (I'll always have a warm, glowing VDT in my heart for the profession) and thought the Boy Scout massacre a little odd, just like I did.
And your little blog, too!The IRA abandons a military solution
Today's political reference goes to Ireland, where the IRA has just finished destroying its weapons caches. I think this is a good thing. Not because it signals a weakening of Republican resolve to get the British out of Ireland (though it may very well be that), but because it opens up new spaces for socialist resistance.
Armed struggle with red flags is very romantic, and there are republican socialist groups that reject IRA de-commissioning as a sell-out. However, armed struggle in a non-revolutionary context quickly devolves into internecine battles, as the Irish Republican Socialist Party experience attests to. Rather than a Maoist strategy that 'leads the people to liberation', the point is to mobilize Irish people themselves to fight against capitalism and British imperialism. Socialist Democracy puts it quite well:
We work to build a political opposition to the [Good Friday] Agreement that can mobilise mass resistance to imperialism. We oppose republican militarist conceptions of struggle that stand in the way of the oppressed achieving their own freedom.Of course, the militarists say armed struggle is part of Irish anti-imperialist culture, and point to various national liberation struggles - China, Vietnam, Angola, etc. - for inspiration. In which case we have to have a debate about guerrilla warfare tactics. In another post. For today, congrats to the IRA for laying down its arms; keep up the struggle by other means.
Irish Unity Rally, Sept.24
