Guest Vocals by John McCallion There’s more to politics than parties AFTER MY defeat in the 2003 Holyrood elections, people often asked me what I was doing now that I was out of politics. They were usually surprised when I replied that I now worked for Oxfam and was as much involved in the struggle for political change as I had been in my 20 years as councillor, MP and MSP.
Many take "politics" to mean "party politics". Yet there is a mass constituency of activists out there, campaigning not for any particular party, but for their fellow human beings oppressed by poverty, injustice and inequality.
No political party in Scotland today is capable of putting 100,000 supporters on the streets. Yet in 2005 the non-party Make Poverty History coalition put close to a quarter of a million on the streets of Edinburgh, with another eight million people across the UK wearing white bands to show their support for the campaign's core demands.
A lot of the marchers in Edinburgh were marching for the first time in their lives, with only a small minority under party political banners. No political party today could deliver an equivalent impact. Indeed, in the year ahead, it is clear that popular campaigning against global warming and climate poverty will be led not by political parties but by a broad coalition of environmental, development and civil society organisations under the banner of Stop Climate Chaos.
Of all the changes I have witnessed over 30-odd years of political activism, it is this change in the nature of popular mobilisation that has been the most striking. Civil society rather than political parties has now become the main driver of popular engagement for progressive change. I can remember demonstrations in the 1980s and the 1990s where the strength of each party's turn-out could be judged by the number of party and trade union banners. People marched then because their party organised them but not any more.
The internet has massively widened access to information and opened up a bewildering choice of alternative campaign centres. In an increasingly competitive marketplace, political parties are struggling to command attention. Popular protest and campaigning remain as strong today as ever. Protest simply looks different because times and people have changed. What never changes is the human desire for justice and fairness and its obverse, the human capacity for injustice and oppression. While both those sides of human nature persist, so too will the need to campaign for change.
|
|
Posted by: David Alexander on 12:01am Sun 10 Feb 08
[quote]No political party in Scotland today is capable of putting 100,000 supporters on the streets.[/quote]
I beg to differ.
The Labour party put 100,000 anti Iraq war supporters on the streets of Glasgow.
New Labour RIP.
No political party in Scotland today is capable of putting 100,000 supporters on the streets.
I beg to differ.
The Labour party put 100,000 anti Iraq war supporters on the streets of Glasgow.
New Labour RIP.
Posted by: Duns Scotus, The Borders on 12:37am Sun 10 Feb 08
[quote]non-party Make Poverty History coalition[/quote] Non party my a**e! This was a Gazza Broon-driven piece of nonsense swallowed whole by Oxfam who later complained that they had been conned.
How many people have fallen into poverty since then and how many have escaped?
Broon with his stealth taxes and pension raids has created more poverty than he has eliminated. The man is hypocrite.
non-party Make Poverty History coalition
Non party my a**e! This was a Gazza Broon-driven piece of nonsense swallowed whole by Oxfam who later complained that they had been conned.
How many people have fallen into poverty since then and how many have escaped?
Broon with his stealth taxes and pension raids has created more poverty than he has eliminated. The man is hypocrite.
Posted by: jamie80 on 2:53am Sun 10 Feb 08
[quote][bold]Duns Scotus[/bold] wrote:
[quote]non-party Make Poverty History coalition[/quote] Non party my a**e! This was a Gazza Broon-driven piece of nonsense swallowed whole by Oxfam who later complained that they had been conned. How many people have fallen into poverty since then and how many have escaped? Broon with his stealth taxes and pension raids has created more poverty than he has eliminated. The man is hypocrite. [/quote] Sorry, Dunce but you're wrong on every point.
Make Poverty History was a global campaign with various different shades of opinion but all united around some common aims. The only aim not achieved at Gleneagles was action on trade justice and since then Brown - in fact most of the political establishment - and OXFAM seem to be converging around the same position.
Not sure of exact figures but the travesty where an African child died as a result of extreme poverty every three seconds has ended.
You're also factually, indeed totally, wrong on the last point. You're stuck in the 80s mate, most people now accept that tax cuts make the rich richer and that it takes redistribution and investment to widen prosperity and tackle poverty.
Duns Scotus wrote:
non-party Make Poverty History coalition
Non party my a**e! This was a Gazza Broon-driven piece of nonsense swallowed whole by Oxfam who later complained that they had been conned. How many people have fallen into poverty since then and how many have escaped? Broon with his stealth taxes and pension raids has created more poverty than he has eliminated. The man is hypocrite.
Sorry, Dunce but you're wrong on every point.
Make Poverty History was a global campaign with various different shades of opinion but all united around some common aims. The only aim not achieved at Gleneagles was action on trade justice and since then Brown - in fact most of the political establishment - and OXFAM seem to be converging around the same position.
Not sure of exact figures but the travesty where an African child died as a result of extreme poverty every three seconds has ended.
You're also factually, indeed totally, wrong on the last point. You're stuck in the 80s mate, most people now accept that tax cuts make the rich richer and that it takes redistribution and investment to widen prosperity and tackle poverty.
Posted by: Donald Anderson, glasgow on 6:15am Sun 10 Feb 08
As an admirer of John McAllion, I hope he will consider the following points.
John's first mistake was in Joining the Labour Party in the first instance. Will he learn from his mistakes? labour always was a reactionary careerist structure. Labour changes nothing, not even a light bulb.
His second, was in signing away Scottish territorial waters to Ingurland, right up to Carnoustie. One English Tory MP, on EBC Scotlandshire, admitted to John he did not know where Carnoustie was, but that John did, next door to his Dundee constituency.
His third mistake was in being fooled into joining the SSP when others were leaving in disillusionment over its "tactical" sham claim to be "for" an Independent Socialist Scotland. His first SSP Conference in Dundee should have dispelled that lie, by the sheer volume and venom of opposition to entrenching its own token clause for an “Independent Socialist Scotland“.
As for 100,000 marching against the G8, what good did that do? You can get bigger crowds at a football match, or pop concert. It means nothing if not followed up by political action. The SSP failed to link that and their 'Make Poverty History" campaign relevant to Scottish Independence and breaking up Bush's poodle ally the "United" Queendome. The eyes and ears of the world were on Scotland and still they allowed their campaign to be led by the English National Socialist Workers Party, as though it were just another Brit left demo, led by the Special Branch. Yes, Stella Rimington did say in her maiden speech that MI5 controlled the Brit left, even down to their beloved demos and even to controlling the routes.
The SWP ran the SSP's G8, Poverty and anti war campaigns, blethered by Gorgeous George, Unionist opportunist. Rather belatedly, the residual SSP has discovered that the SWP is London based, a fact no one was allowed to mention when they back door deals were done to bring them in to Scotland. You should have witnessed, John, the telling SSP venom at the SNP being present on the G8 day oot and Saltires being carried. No criticism of Respect was allowed, nor was anyone allowed to say that Bush would go home after the day oot and Blair would still be in charge of Scotland. Bush has given Blair a present as "Peace" Envoy to the Muddle East and Broon is the new Yankee Poodle Dandy in Westminster.
The SSP's behaviour throughout bordered on the surreal. Four perfectly good MSPs allowed themselves to be wasted in an ill informed Parly placard, student style demo, costing them six months pay and loss of gravy train income to their office staff. They were duped into blaming the SNP in the belief that the an SNP Council was blocking the demo. Not true. It was hung council and the casting Chair vote was against on the grounds that Union Jack McConnell had insisted upon them paying all the costs, plus a £1m insurance. In the event, the demo was allowed to go ahead, as it could not be stopped. Fortunately at the time, Tommy Sheridan and Rosemary Byrne were not involved and able to carry on paying the mortgage for their office in Glasgow, which the SSP has since sold at a profit. The office was a repossessed sale snap up and they have downsized, to a smaller garret in appropriately, [bold]Hope[/bold] St. Now Tommy is trapped with the SWP in Solidarity, who are awaiting their next move back to London. The sill anti-pro Tommy split had the predicted consequences, but listening is not a virtue of cliquism. I hope I am still friendly with both Tommy and some of the SSP, despite glaring political differences over Independence. They did not listen to me then and are less likely to learn from their experience.
Both Tommy and Colin Fox genuinely believe in Independence in its own right, as a progressive step, but both are trapped by their political alignment, going nowhere. I hope John can see above that. Charity, as I am sure you know John, is the middle class answer to poverty and deals, selectively, with the symptoms. We all know what the cause is. Don’t we? Both sides of the split have lost the haemophiliac vote as well as the Independence vote.
As an admirer of John McAllion, I hope he will consider the following points.
John's first mistake was in Joining the Labour Party in the first instance. Will he learn from his mistakes? labour always was a reactionary careerist structure. Labour changes nothing, not even a light bulb.
His second, was in signing away Scottish territorial waters to Ingurland, right up to Carnoustie. One English Tory MP, on EBC Scotlandshire, admitted to John he did not know where Carnoustie was, but that John did, next door to his Dundee constituency.
His third mistake was in being fooled into joining the SSP when others were leaving in disillusionment over its "tactical" sham claim to be "for" an Independent Socialist Scotland. His first SSP Conference in Dundee should have dispelled that lie, by the sheer volume and venom of opposition to entrenching its own token clause for an “Independent Socialist Scotland“.
As for 100,000 marching against the G8, what good did that do? You can get bigger crowds at a football match, or pop concert. It means nothing if not followed up by political action. The SSP failed to link that and their 'Make Poverty History" campaign relevant to Scottish Independence and breaking up Bush's poodle ally the "United" Queendome. The eyes and ears of the world were on Scotland and still they allowed their campaign to be led by the English National Socialist Workers Party, as though it were just another Brit left demo, led by the Special Branch. Yes, Stella Rimington did say in her maiden speech that MI5 controlled the Brit left, even down to their beloved demos and even to controlling the routes.
The SWP ran the SSP's G8, Poverty and anti war campaigns, blethered by Gorgeous George, Unionist opportunist. Rather belatedly, the residual SSP has discovered that the SWP is London based, a fact no one was allowed to mention when they back door deals were done to bring them in to Scotland. You should have witnessed, John, the telling SSP venom at the SNP being present on the G8 day oot and Saltires being carried. No criticism of Respect was allowed, nor was anyone allowed to say that Bush would go home after the day oot and Blair would still be in charge of Scotland. Bush has given Blair a present as "Peace" Envoy to the Muddle East and Broon is the new Yankee Poodle Dandy in Westminster.
The SSP's behaviour throughout bordered on the surreal. Four perfectly good MSPs allowed themselves to be wasted in an ill informed Parly placard, student style demo, costing them six months pay and loss of gravy train income to their office staff. They were duped into blaming the SNP in the belief that the an SNP Council was blocking the demo. Not true. It was hung council and the casting Chair vote was against on the grounds that Union Jack McConnell had insisted upon them paying all the costs, plus a £1m insurance. In the event, the demo was allowed to go ahead, as it could not be stopped. Fortunately at the time, Tommy Sheridan and Rosemary Byrne were not involved and able to carry on paying the mortgage for their office in Glasgow, which the SSP has since sold at a profit. The office was a repossessed sale snap up and they have downsized, to a smaller garret in appropriately,
Hope St. Now Tommy is trapped with the SWP in Solidarity, who are awaiting their next move back to London. The sill anti-pro Tommy split had the predicted consequences, but listening is not a virtue of cliquism. I hope I am still friendly with both Tommy and some of the SSP, despite glaring political differences over Independence. They did not listen to me then and are less likely to learn from their experience.
Both Tommy and Colin Fox genuinely believe in Independence in its own right, as a progressive step, but both are trapped by their political alignment, going nowhere. I hope John can see above that. Charity, as I am sure you know John, is the middle class answer to poverty and deals, selectively, with the symptoms. We all know what the cause is. Don’t we? Both sides of the split have lost the haemophiliac vote as well as the Independence vote.
Posted by: angiebobs, against a world of poverty and war on 9:13am Sun 10 Feb 08
[quote]Of all the changes I have witnessed over 30-odd years of political activism, it is this change in the nature of popular mobilisation that has been the most striking. Civil society rather than political parties has now become the main driver of popular engagement for progressive change. I can remember demonstrations in the 1980s and the 1990s where the strength of each party's turn-out could be judged by the number of party and trade union banners. People marched then because their party organised them but not any more.[/quote]
John's comment is hitting one nail on the head - that is that people are disillusioned by the failures of Labour - but they still care deeply - so did people in 80s and 90s by the way - about inequality and war. We have shown time and again we dont want a world where children suffer and die of malnutrition while billions are wasted on nuclear weapons and killing people in Iraq.Everyone who wants to see a better world needs to keep on marching and organising. So hope to see some of you on March 15th in Glasgow for next Scottish big anti war demo - its part of an international day - so joining millions round world.
Of all the changes I have witnessed over 30-odd years of political activism, it is this change in the nature of popular mobilisation that has been the most striking. Civil society rather than political parties has now become the main driver of popular engagement for progressive change. I can remember demonstrations in the 1980s and the 1990s where the strength of each party's turn-out could be judged by the number of party and trade union banners. People marched then because their party organised them but not any more.
John's comment is hitting one nail on the head - that is that people are disillusioned by the failures of Labour - but they still care deeply - so did people in 80s and 90s by the way - about inequality and war. We have shown time and again we dont want a world where children suffer and die of malnutrition while billions are wasted on nuclear weapons and killing people in Iraq.Everyone who wants to see a better world needs to keep on marching and organising. So hope to see some of you on March 15th in Glasgow for next Scottish big anti war demo - its part of an international day - so joining millions round world.
Posted by: Rob on 9:53am Sun 10 Feb 08
The Make Poverty History campaign was an embarrassment, in which the woolly middle class liberals who invariably rise to the top of the voluntary sector were hoodwinked into providing Blair and Brown with some ill-deserved credibility. I was an Oxfam volunteer at the time, and still am, but only just. I almost left in disgust.
I hope that John McAllion is able to apply some critical thinking in his new role. Oxfam does not exist to support government policies.
The Make Poverty History campaign was an embarrassment, in which the woolly middle class liberals who invariably rise to the top of the voluntary sector were hoodwinked into providing Blair and Brown with some ill-deserved credibility. I was an Oxfam volunteer at the time, and still am, but only just. I almost left in disgust.
I hope that John McAllion is able to apply some critical thinking in his new role. Oxfam does not exist to support government policies.
Posted by: DonaldWatch on 10:30am Sun 10 Feb 08
The artist formerly known as McAllion was a party politician for a long time - coincidental with his salary being paid. Since he was (ahem!) invited to leave the Parliament he has had a revelation that party politics is perhaps not the way to go, now that the taxper is not supporting his lifestyle but Oxfam are paying.
Donald Anderson admires this sort of thing!
The artist formerly known as McAllion was a party politician for a long time - coincidental with his salary being paid. Since he was (ahem!) invited to leave the Parliament he has had a revelation that party politics is perhaps not the way to go, now that the taxper is not supporting his lifestyle but Oxfam are paying.
Donald Anderson admires this sort of thing!
Posted by: Duns Scotus, The Borders on 10:38am Sun 10 Feb 08
[bold]jamie80[/bold] @ 2:53 am
While I accept my statements above are sweeping generalisations, I was refering to the MPH demoes in the UK.
Historic Scotland had a huge crane with a banner fluttering above Edinburgh Castle (convenient word "history") - that could only happen with Scottish Executive approval.
Mobile phones worked on the day - they were jammed during the anti-Iraq invasion demonstration in Glasgow. That could only happen with Whitehall approval.
jamie80 - were you on the Edinburgh march? Did you see the Gestapo on the rooftops in places like the Royal Scottish Academy at the bottom of The Mound? For such a consensual, happy-clappy parade - strange.
Speak to church groups and other charities and activists such as in the World Development Movement and ask them how (un)successful it has all been.
Broon has contentedly accepted being portrayed as the "[italic]prudent, Presbyterian son of the manse[/italic] ". Yet when he enrolled in Edinburgh University he described himself as an atheist.
Broon has created a myth about his financial abilities as "[italic]the best chancellor we ever had[/italic] " when the reality is he hasn't a clue about economics. Selling gold at a 20-year low price - nice one! Northern Rock anyone? Negative equity and repossession anyone? Let's see how many people plunge into poverty in those situations.
He set up and sustained a decade of "feel good" based on the fantasy of rising house prices and having his nose right up the backsides of big property developers. Look at Glasgow Harbour or Salford Quays or a thousand other "executive apartment" developments. Investigate the property investment business called "Inside Track" and ask, who benefits?
Broons tax-cuts - of course they benefit the rich! Have you studied last year's changes when he abolished the 10 pence rate? Anybody earning less than £18,000 a year ended up paying more tax!
Broon funded the Iraq war and supported the disgusting sanctions for years before that. The result - poverty, misery and death on a biblical scale.
Ah! I've discovered his strategy - take people out of poverty by taking them out.
What is Broon doing about Zimbabwe, Kenya, Darfur? The list goes on.
Lastly, Mr McAllion who seems to have a greater affection for Cuba than his native land, says above, [quote]Of all the changes I have witnessed over 30-odd years of political activism, it is this change in the nature of popular mobilisation that has been the most striking. Civil society rather than political parties has now become the main driver of popular engagement for progressive change[/quote] Until the Make Poverty History march I thought that too. When I saw through the clumsy con trick and then studied what was going on I realised that Labour simply had no activists to organise a knitting bee never mind a mass demonstration so a covert operation took place to abuse the goodwill of church and charity groups. Like all con tricks it is a case of "truth will out".
As for Mr McAllion's political meanderings, that is perfectly covered by one who knows much better than me, Donald Anderson above.
Mr McAllion is in a charity that has more "retail outlets" than WH Smith and still we have 20% of our population living below the poverty line.
It disnae add up, just as Gazza Broon cannae add up.
jamie80 @ 2:53 am
While I accept my statements above are sweeping generalisations, I was refering to the MPH demoes in the UK.
Historic Scotland had a huge crane with a banner fluttering above Edinburgh Castle (convenient word "history") - that could only happen with Scottish Executive approval.
Mobile phones worked on the day - they were jammed during the anti-Iraq invasion demonstration in Glasgow. That could only happen with Whitehall approval.
jamie80 - were you on the Edinburgh march? Did you see the Gestapo on the rooftops in places like the Royal Scottish Academy at the bottom of The Mound? For such a consensual, happy-clappy parade - strange.
Speak to church groups and other charities and activists such as in the World Development Movement and ask them how (un)successful it has all been.
Broon has contentedly accepted being portrayed as the "
prudent, Presbyterian son of the manse ". Yet when he enrolled in Edinburgh University he described himself as an atheist.
Broon has created a myth about his financial abilities as "
the best chancellor we ever had " when the reality is he hasn't a clue about economics. Selling gold at a 20-year low price - nice one! Northern Rock anyone? Negative equity and repossession anyone? Let's see how many people plunge into poverty in those situations.
He set up and sustained a decade of "feel good" based on the fantasy of rising house prices and having his nose right up the backsides of big property developers. Look at Glasgow Harbour or Salford Quays or a thousand other "executive apartment" developments. Investigate the property investment business called "Inside Track" and ask, who benefits?
Broons tax-cuts - of course they benefit the rich! Have you studied last year's changes when he abolished the 10 pence rate? Anybody earning less than £18,000 a year ended up paying more tax!
Broon funded the Iraq war and supported the disgusting sanctions for years before that. The result - poverty, misery and death on a biblical scale.
Ah! I've discovered his strategy - take people out of poverty by taking them out.
What is Broon doing about Zimbabwe, Kenya, Darfur? The list goes on.
Lastly, Mr McAllion who seems to have a greater affection for Cuba than his native land, says above,
Of all the changes I have witnessed over 30-odd years of political activism, it is this change in the nature of popular mobilisation that has been the most striking. Civil society rather than political parties has now become the main driver of popular engagement for progressive change
Until the Make Poverty History march I thought that too. When I saw through the clumsy con trick and then studied what was going on I realised that Labour simply had no activists to organise a knitting bee never mind a mass demonstration so a covert operation took place to abuse the goodwill of church and charity groups. Like all con tricks it is a case of "truth will out".
As for Mr McAllion's political meanderings, that is perfectly covered by one who knows much better than me, Donald Anderson above.
Mr McAllion is in a charity that has more "retail outlets" than WH Smith and still we have 20% of our population living below the poverty line.
It disnae add up, just as Gazza Broon cannae add up.
Posted by: Mercutio, Falkirk on 10:41am Sun 10 Feb 08
"There’s more to politics than parties". He would say that wouldn't he. He is still taking money for posturing.
"There’s more to politics than parties". He would say that wouldn't he. He is still taking money for posturing.
Posted by: Curley Bill, the southwest on 2:15pm Sun 10 Feb 08
Donald, a single post?
[bold]Well done, sir!!![/bold]
Donald, a single post?
Well done, sir!!! 
Comment | Read Comments (10)
Print this story
Email to a friend
