12 June 2009
11 June 2009
Crisis and Resistance in the Neoliberal City
Harvey's opening words include the following quote to indicate the significance of where everything is at, how it relates to where we go next, and the potential implications for the future of any actions that are taken now:
"How we come out of this crisis is almost certainly going to define the nature of the next crisis down the road, unless we decide to say, 'To hell with capitalist crises, to hell with capitalism.' This seems to me to be something we should really be thinking about."From then on in Harvey endeavours to provide information about recent history that seems to have been collectively forgotten, or deliberately ignored, in case anyone might learn anything from the timeless lessons of that which has gone before us.[applause]
Crisis and Resistance in the Neoliberal City
Video from the City from Below Conference of Professor Harvey’s remarks at the opening plenary. Baltimore, April 18, 2009. Read the transcript. Watch the rest of the plenary.
Posted by The Antagonist at 12:42:00 PM 4 comments Links
Tags: Anti-Capitalism, Bailout, Capitalism, Class, David Harvey, Fascism, Finance Capitalism, Imperialism, Labour, Mexico, Money for Old Hemp Rope, Revolution, Tent Cities
09 June 2009
Journey well, Lord Patel
The news of Lord Patel's passing, a man who was without doubt one of the most prolific and insightful UK bloggers bar none, is too sad for words, particularly since Postman Patel's blog was one of the few British blogs from which some true insight could be gleaned about the stories in, and behind, the news.
Postie's place in the annals of British blogging history rightfully deserves marking, not least because he always managed to put all the young whippersnappers to shame with his wit, insight, courage and forthrightness. Lord Patel of the Internets was a very special man indeed and he and his prolific blogging output will be sorely missed in among the otherwise bland, challenge-nothing, British blog-bromide brigade. Anyone with pretensions to blogging in earnest would do well to learn from the examples set by Postman Patel.
Lord Patel had the dubious privilege of being the first person to email your humble correspondent directly on the basis of some of the scribblings here on Reason, back in November 2005. In those days Lord Patel was one of the few UK-based bloggers challenging and questioning the unfolding story of the events of 7th July 2005, something that he continued to do over the years. Lord Patel became an ardent and welcome supporter of the efforts of J7: The July 7th Truth Campaign, and his support was such that, as well as writing many articles about the various events in July 2005 for his own blog, he was also the tenth person to sign the J7 petition demanding the release of all 7/7 related evidence.
Lord Patel of the Internets, Edward Teague, you were, and are still, much loved, and you will be sorely missed.
Thoughts, condolences and best wishes for, to and with Edward Teague's family, friends and acquaintances.
In addition to being a prolific blogger, Edward Teague was a husband, father, businessman, botanist, writer, copywriter, textilist, arts administrator, and bookshop owner. He also managed, among other things, a stint as Craig Murray's Blackburn campaign coordinator (with more here, here, here and here). Edward Teague was also a cartoonist, and it seems apt and fitting to leave the last words to the great man himself.
Journey well, Lord Patel.

Posted by The Antagonist at 2:42:00 PM 8 comments Links
Tags: Edward Teague, Lord Patel of the Internets, Postman Patel
30 April 2009
When fascism comes to town....
It will probably look a little something like this.



The expression, "a captive audience", redefined.
Welcome to the prison ship.
--
Edit: Compare and contrast (via amtte).
Posted by The Antagonist at 11:56:00 PM 62 comments Links
Tags: British Fascism, Class Struggle, Corporatism, Dissent, Dystopia, Fascism, Metropolitan Police, Neo Nazis, New World Order, Police State, Propaganda, State Hijackers, State Terror, Unite Against Fascism
28 April 2009
Another miscarriage of justice averted by brave jury: Alleged "7/7 helpers" cleared and found Not Guilty
From J7....
"Injustice upon injustice, many others in a similar position || have not been so lucky."
-- Lawyer, Imran Khan
The second trial of the so-called "7/7 helpers" reached its conclusion today. Waheed Ali, 25, Sadeer Saleem, 28, and Mohammed Shakil, 32, were all cleared of the charges of assisting in 7/7 at Kingston Crown Court. After nearly seven days of deliberation a jury of seven men and five women cleared the 3 accused of helping to plan the events of 7th July 2005.
The not guilty verdict comes as little surprise given the QC for the prosecution, Neil Flewitt, was reduced to admitting that the case centred on purely circumstantial evidence, circumstantial evidence which he alleged created a compelling picture of guilt. Aside from perhaps wondering when circumstantial evidence suddenly become "a compelling picture of guilt", the brave jury appears to have thought the "compelling picture" was far from conclusive.
The prosecution failed to do so much as produce CCTV footage which purported to show the three men on the alleged "hostile reconnaissance mission" and, furthermore, no proof, nor even any evidence, was produced to support the notion that the accused had even been on the underground during the sightseeing visit to London.
Andy Hayman, the former Deputy Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police -- who was forced to resign from his senior position with the police ranks after various improprieties came to light about his claiming large amounts of cash in expenses for trips abroad with a woman police sergeant -- said:
A report on the verdict by the BBC suggests that the decision "raises questions about the evidence gathered in one of the largest investigations ever run by Scotland Yard." In the almost four years that have passed since 7/7, the State has touted a factually inaccurate and twice amended Official Report issued by the Home Office, questionable investigative tactics by the police, and a prosecution brought by the Crown Prosecution Service on the basis of what was known to be purely circumstantial evidence."The end of this trial probably represents the last throw of the dice for the police investigation into 7/7. It is extremely frustrating to reach this milestone knowing that people who aided and abetted the murders of 52 innocent people remain at large. || But at the end of that investigation the evidence that could be put before the court was largely circumstantial. That was the only evidence that was found because, perhaps, that was the only evidence there was to be found."
Following the verdicts lawyer Imran Khan issued a statement on behalf of Sadeer Saleem, calling for an inquiry into why the prosecution was brought. J7 fully support Sadeer Saleem's call for an inquiry into why this prosecution was brought. Video below courtesy of the BBC.
J7 also fully supports the demand by the bereaved for fully open and public inquests for the victims to be held immediately, before the new Coroners and Justice bill passes through Parliament.
Reporting restrictions that were imposed on the trial have now been lifted and J7 expect further information to be revealed about the trial proceedings, the events alleged to have occurred on 7/7, and the wealth of links and interconnections between various alleged terror plots and individuals.When considered in conjunction with the lies told in the ongoing attempts to cover up the hitherto unknown truth about various events in July 2005, including 7/7, 21/7 and the murder of Jean Charles de Menezes, today's verdict raises yet more questions about the behaviour of the government, police and 'security' services. More recently we have witnessed: The rioting police brutality tactics that led to the death of Ian Tomlinson at the London G20 protests, complete with a stream of lies from the police, the IPCC and even the coroners; and the high-profile, armed mass-arrests of 12 Pakistani students against whom the most compelling piece of evidence appeared to be a bag of sugar, all of whom were eventually released without charge and immediately threatened with deportation.
Consequently, one might begin to suspect that the UK has fallen victim to something of a dictatorial State in which any and all members of the general public are guilty, to be held accountable until they can prove themselves innocent, while provably mendacious and guilty public officials are barely even challenged, much less ever justly held to account for their actions.
For updates on the verdict as they happen, please see the J7 People's Investigation Forum thread.J7 again reiterates its call for an independent public inquiry, to be held outside of the remit of the shameful Inquiries Act 2005, and once again calls on the government and police to Release the Evidence which they continue to claim provides "a compelling picture of guilt" for those that stand accused of being responsible for the events of 7th July 2005.Please show your support for J7's campaign for truth and justice and sign the J7 Release The Evidence petition.
Onwards.
Posted by The Antagonist at 7:07:00 PM 18 comments Links
Tags: 7-7, Ausman, Germaine Lindsay, Hasib Hussain, Home Office, Human Rights, Inquiries Act 2005, Metropolitan Police, Mohammed Shakil, Mohammed Sidique Khan, Sadeer Saleem, Shehzad Tanweer, Waheed Ali
08 April 2009
Rioting Police Physician, Heal Thy Self
But what's the point?
You can search for photos of the RBS window smashing incident yourself and note the way in which in a crowd of thousands of people the RBS window smashers coincidentally happened to be surrounded by professional film and camera wielders, all eagerly lapping up the minimal faux devastation of an empty building for a few front page headlines about how ordinary people are everything that is wrong with the world.
Who knows, you might even find a few of the photographs that show fully tooled-up riot police with cameras already inside the building and filming out, almost as if they were waiting for the incident to occur at a predetermined time and place. They might even look like a bit like this.
There will also always be those who, under the banner of "Telling you what they won't", will endeavour to pass such things off as nothing of any great concern. In doing so, the last vestiges of their credibility melts into air as the pretence of "telling you what they won't" manifests itself quite clearly as "telling you exactly the same thing they will".
But what would be the point of that?
Under capitalism, protection of property is of greater concern than the protection and well-being of human beings. When was the last time the police arrested a war criminal, particularly any British war criminals who are a part of whatever the current ruling administration might be? Or even the benefit thieving MPs who think nothing of living a life of luxury at the expense of honest, decent, hard working people who pay the money demanded with menaces usually referred to as 'tax'? The reality of the situation is that you're more likely to find police protecting war criminals.
"The country's biggest force, the Metropolitan police || believe that large sections of the population have become increasingly politicised, and there is a growing sense that the current restrictions on demonstrations are too light." -- The Guardian
Below is the video footage obtained by The Guardian showing the big, fearless, hard-man assault from behind, on a man with his hands in his pockets, of those operating under the banner of "Working together for a safer London". A valid question might be, "A safer London for whom?"
Full marks to The Guardian for obtaining footage of the police brutality that led to the death of Ian Tomlinson and full marks to whomever filmed the footage in the first place. Now wait for the whitewash.
--
Update 09/04/09@01:28 Oh look, another of those lovely full-face mask wearing, rioting police types, hiding inside the otherwise empty RBS building. (Thanks@amtte)
The Rioting Police occupation of RBS seems to be fairly well documented, elsewhere in the world.
Surprise, surprise. It's the Territorial Support Group doing what they're best at, again.
Posted by The Antagonist at 12:52:00 PM 56 comments Links
Tags: Capitalism, Class Struggle, Fascism, G20, Gangster States, Ian Tomlinson, Media Lies, Metropolitan Police, New World Order, Perception Management, Persecution, Police State, The Guardian
27 March 2009
Antagonista TV: Grate Britain Vs Terence McKenna
What civilization is, is 6 billion people trying to make themselves happy by standing on each other's shoulders and kicking each other's teeth in. It's not a pleasant situation. And yet, you can stand back and look at this planet and see that we have the money, the power, the medical understanding, the scientific know-how, the love and the community to produce a kind of human paradise. But we are led by the least among us - the least intelligent, the least noble, the least visionary. We are led by the least among us and we do not fight back against the dehumanising values that are handed down as control icons.
This is something -- I mean I don't really want to get off on this tear because it's a lecture in itself -- but culture is not your friend. Culture is for other people's convenience and the convenience of various institutions, churches, companies, tax collection schemes, what have you. It is not your friend. It insults you. It disempowers you. It uses and abuses you. None of us are well treated by culture.
Yet we glorify the creative potential of the individual, the rights of the individual. We understand the felt-presence of experience is what is most important. But the culture is a perversion. It fetishises objects, creates consumer mania, it preaches endless forms of false happiness, endless forms of false understanding in the form of squirrelly religions and silly cults. It invites people to diminish themselves and dehumanise themselves by behaving like machines - meme processors of memes passed down from Madison Avenue and Hollywood and what have you.
How do we fight back? It's a question worth answering. I think that by creating art -- art -- man was not put on this planet to toil in the mud. Or the god who put us on this planet to toil in the mud is no god I want to have any part of. It's some kind of gnostic demon, it's some kind of cannibalistic dema urge that should be thoroughly renounced and rejected.
By putting the art pedal to the metal we really, I think, maximise our humanness and become much more necessary and incomprehensible to the machines.
The following is, in all likelihood, exactly the sort of thing to which McKenna was referring when he suggested the creation of art as part of the fight back against corporate culture and the mass psychology of fascism:
As the man says, don't give up on solutions.
Posted by The Antagonist at 3:09:00 PM 16 comments Links
Tags: Anti-Capitalism, British Fascism, Community, Entheobotany, Ethnobotany, Fascism, New Economy of Community, New World Order, Poetry, Seattle, Unite Against Fascism
David Harvey Interviewed on New York Public Radio
The interview with Harvey includes some discussion of the way in which solutions to the permanent crisis of capitalism lie not in falling back on previous historical models for running things, but rather in novel, realistic, legitimate and achievable new models that can create a more fair, just and equal society in which the needs -- rather than the selfish wants, and desires -- of everyone, not just the rich, ruling classes, can be realised.
So, for example, at least as far as digital content goes, we already have in existence the New Economy of Community, established and operating without let or hindrance. This is despite the continued evil machinations of global media oligopolies whose existences are entirely dependent on the wholesale robbery of both their customers and the artists on whose backs their media empires have been built. Of course, such machinations by corporations would not be possible were it not for the almost total compliance of the Corporatist state lackeys responsible for passing regressive and repressive legislation (usually referred to as 'governments').
Anyway, back to the original reason for this post, the interview with Professor David Harvey. The full interview is 24 minutes long and you can listen to it below, or download an MP3 copy for off-line listening:
Throw away your ambitions for membership to the socially acceptable position of wage slave.
Posted by The Antagonist at 11:16:00 AM 0 comments Links
Tags: Anti-Capitalism, Capitalism, Class Power, Class Struggle, Communism, David Harvey, Financial Terrorism, Marxism, Socialism, Wage Slavery

















