August 2004 Archive 

The self-indulgence of bourgeois consumer boycotts

Dear Subcomandauntie,

In between my bizarre double-life as a financial adviser and Marxist guerrilla, I regularly go jogging and clubbing. Such a lifestyle makes a decent pair of trainers essential. How can I protect my little pinkies in trendy, reliable footwear without wearing expensive branded shoes stitched together by mainly Third-World women or child workers for a few pence a day?

Yours,

Dancing Queen, Leeds

Spoiling for Choice The Labour-Tory market model for extending choice in the NHS will inevitably result in a dramatic decline in service-user equity. Here Marian Barnes outlines reforms that would benefit everybody.

Spoiling for choice Choice, if Labour and the Tories are to be believed, is in danger of becoming like motherhood and apple pie: no right-thinking person could possibly be against it. If you raise questions about choice you are quickly condemned as a supporter of the old Stalinist-type "command and control" economy. Choice in public services is, however, a problematic concept.

Slaying the racist dragon Billy Bragg celebrates the contribution of the flag of St George and the England football team in furthering the cause of multiculturalism.

The Left on the web What better medium to capture the varied voices of dissent than the internet? How has the mainstream left responded to Labour’s recent electoral drubbing? And how is the political fringe attempting to give voice to this popular disaffection with party politics?

Britain toes Washington line in Latin America The UK government’s policy of ending direct aid to Latin America received fresh confirmation last month in a report published by the Department for International Development (DfID). Increasingly, British aid for the continent will be directed through the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

Local Democracy Italian style Hilary Wainwright savours the political and cultural dolce vita in the Adriatic town of Grottammare.

Creative occupation Protest doesn’t have to be po-faced. Black-clad posturing and worthy hand-wringing are all well and good, but sometimes you just want to dance. "Creative occupation" is party as protest - be it dancing on the motorway or raving on the tube. It creates spaces for individual and communal expression in defiance of global McMonoculture. Everyone’s invited

The election results dissected If you want clear-cut analyses, the June election results are annoying. With Euro votes of 6.2 per cent for the Greens, 5.2 per cent for the Scottish Socialist Party and 1.7 per cent for Respect, the left did not break the mould of British politics. But there were some very significant results, especially in the local elections. The new electoral map reveals the real and different strengths of the Greens and Respect, and also how several left organisations have made local breakthroughs through sheer persistence and well-respected local candidates.

Notes from the West Bank: July 2004 The impact of the proposed 650 km "security wall" being constructed by Israel inside the occupied West Bank has finally captured international attention. In late June the Israeli Supreme Court ruled that certain sections of the wall should be rerouted; and by mid-July, the International Court of Justice’s opinion that the wall contravenes international and humanitarian law was overwhelmingly endorsed by a UN General Assembly vote. But less is known about the ongoing grass-roots Palestinian campaign against the wall - and the role that village women play.

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