Today is the anniversary of the Windscale fire, and the annual Nukiller Greenwash award is announced.
To mark the 66th anniversary of the Windscale Fire -the worst nuclear accident in the UK (October 10th 1957) the Close Capenhurst Campaign and Lakes Against Nuclear Dump present the George Monbiot Nukiller Greenwash Award to Labour Leader Keir Starmer and Labour’s Workington and Whitehaven candidate Josh MacAlister
Every year there are events to mark Hiroshima and to a lesser extent Nagasaki day.
Yet there have also been victims from the testing of Nukiller weapons.
For example – Some of the aboriginal people of Australia who received no warnings about the tests.
Another one of these was the crew of the Lucky Dragon.
This coming march it will be 70 years since that occurred.
I’m thinking that it would be worthwhile to mark that anniversary.
How the unlucky Lucky Dragon birthed an era of nuclear fear
Mistaken Concerns
There are currently a number of campaigns which those of us who are unfortunate enough to live in Brexitland are being subjected to.
All of these campaigns are redirecting us away from many of the more pressing social, economic, and ecological issues which we need to urgently focus upon.
On and off the rails.
The first of these is that one to stop railway station booking offices being closed.
This campaign is being conduced by the same railway trade unions which has striking on and off for the last few years, and thus preventing us from travelling in the first place.
Yet they are not campaigning to reopen all the rail lines which we used to have.
Or
In any way mentioning all the stations which do not currently have ticket offices closed outside of peak hours – if they exist at all.
Back on to the plartforms.
While they argue all stations need staff to assist disabled passengers get on or of trains,
what they should really be campaigning for is that all stations should have both step free access,
with train doors being at the SAME LEVEL as the PLATFORMS.
London Transport has been working on that as currently been done ny Mersey Rail and some of the other Metro systems.
That really is a much more important demand to be making.
While all train stations should have buffets that sell vegan food which is low fat, glutton free, salt and sugar free.
Not taking notes.
One of the other onging campaigns centres around the use of cash rather than the use of debit or Credit cards.
What those who advocate this fail to take into account is that bank notes contain Animal Fat.
Thus the less bank notes in existance the better, as it will help to prevent the murder of our fellow creatures.
While it will mean less air pollution and less wasted resources used in the transport of cash.
It will also make it much easier for pedestrians to get around as the there will be less pavement parking by securithug vehicles.
The more important issues
Yet the number of more pressing issues are jusr not being tackled, or rather only being tacketled by an extremley low number of activists.
I’ll not list them all of them as that woud just be repeating what I keep banging on about, but will just make two points.
The first is that many of our problems are the result of very poor education, an unwillingness to continue life long self education, and how much adult education classes have been cut.
The second is that a lot of the resistance to change comes from a lack of imagination.
That is especially so in terrms of the need to sort out the transport system, becoming vegan, moving away from the use of extreme energy, stopping nukiller power, and dealing with all the toxic waste dumps which continue to grow by the day.
I’m very tired of repeating these points, but they need making time and time again.
I’ve just completed one of those tasks which should be done from time to time, and that becomes much more so as one becomes older.
That has been going through my email address book and deleting those of old friends and comrades who are no longer with us.
I ‘ve also deleted the ones for people who are no longer working at various places for which I have their old email address.
Though just in case I did print out the list before undertaking the above task.
The sad thing is that it made me realise just how many of my friends have died over the last decade.
Much of my time now involves undertaking Joined-up-campaigning, and showing just how issues are linked one to another.
So with that in mind here are some links just what I have been doing and looking at of late.
DRS
“A historic moment”: first meeting for rail campaigners with nuclear industry
Vegan PPEOne aspect of the DRS visit concerned wearing PPE [ Personal protective equipment ] – especially around the engine sheds, I had no problem with wearing head protection and a high viz waistcoat, but pointed out that as a vegan I do not and will not wear any footwear made if animal skins.
This is what I received in the correspondence I received on the issue: –
‘ We don’t have many visitors especially where we have to provide PPE, so this is the first time this has been raised.’
As things worked out I could make the visit wearing my normal Vegan footwear by keeping to a series of marked safe paths.
The follow up being that I was able to note over the following to them.
Astute Class Nuclear Submarine ManualOne of my recent book purchases is a Haynes Manual upon the workings of the Astute Class Nuclear Submarines which are currently being build by BAE Systems.
The manual not only gives lots of illustrations about these deadly underwater craft which are currently being build, and an outline of the commissioning process.
Of special interest are the various photographs in the book, and a map of the Barrow Upon Furness dockyard where they are being built.
This is a very useful campaigning reference book.
https://haynes.com/en-gb/astute-class-nuclear-submarine-manual
Badges For A Better World
For some while now I have been using the following expressions which sum up many of my political thoughts and ideas.
Now I am thinking it would be good to have some badges with these as slogans.
Beer Not Bombs !
Pull Down the Motorways !
Dole Not Coal !
Campaign Against the Cuban Dictatorship.
I’m a Pragmatic Anarcho Pacifist.
I’m a Law Abiding Anarchist.
2 Feet Good ! 4 Wheels Bad !
Campaign Against the National Union of Weapons Manufacturers and Plutonium Workers
Build more Railways and Canals.
Support All Russian and Ukrainian Conscientious Objectors.
Becoming Vegan is an Ecological and Political Act.
Stop Noise Pollution – Silence All Musak in shops !
Pedestrians First !
Less Roads and More Footpaths.
Shrink the suburbs !
Plant More Forests
Create Fruit Orchards in the Inner Cities.
Nukiller Power? – No Thanks !
The death in January of Neil Collins has left a gap in my own and many other peoples lives.
Knowing Neil and Who he knew.
Neil Collins was one of those individuals that though involved in many campaigning groups and organisations over the years, was not someone who wroteall that much.
He was very knowledgeable about many aspects of the early history of the Anarchist and the Peace movements. I learnt a lot about this history and homed much of my radical political thinking while having long chats with him.
Neil knew or had meet many of the people involved in Freedom Press and pacifist circles.
At one time he told me about meeting Lilian Wolfe who had been a suffragist, involved in Freedom, and street sold Peace News right up to her death at 96.
He also meet Fermin Rocker who was the son of Rudolf Rocker.
Time Together
I first meet Neil in 1969 as we were both involved in the Peace Pledge Union [PPU ]. At one stage shortly afterwards I shared a house with him, his wifeTania, and others in Leytonstone. We were also involved in the E10 & E11 PPU
group.
I was also though Neil that I first learnt about aspects of a Vegetarianlifestyle, and what it was to be an anti Zionist jew.
It was in the company of Neil, Tania, and the late John Hyatt, that I decided to become Vegetarian some 53 years ago.
Peace Campaigner
It was only by chance that Neil became involved in the Peace Movement. It was during 1962 that he happened to be passing by American Embassy in GrosvenorSquare where a regular demonstration was taking place about nukiller bomb test. Having taken a leaflet he came back the next week, stated that we agreed with what was in it joined the protest and many subsequent ones
Following on from this he became actively involved in the London Committee of 100. For example in protests outside of the CBW [ Chemical and Biological Warfare ] establishment at Porton Down in Wiltshire.
In the early 1960s he had been an accountant, but gave it up to train for social work. Though between the two he spent a while working upon the accounts of Housmans Bookshop. Thus he spent the rest of his life undertaking social Work in one form or another.
He was also on the board of Peace News for a while.
Other Campaigns and Other Activities.
Amongst other campaigning bodies Neil was also active in the following : –
– The Jewish Socialist Group.
– MERAG [ Middle East Research and Action Group ].
– Operation Namibia.
He was a part of the London support group on this project
– PARTIZANS [ People Against RTZ and Its’ Subsidiaries ].
He took part in some of the shareholders actions.
Social Campaigner
Perhaps the most impact upon society came from his interest in social issues and via his involvement in the local community.
His particular interests included both mental health and mixed race adoption issues.
He also co-run a local Woodcraft Folk group.
He was the first individual to win the London Compact Award because of his involvement in Voluntary Action Waltham Forest.
Neil Collins
September 8th 1941 – January 20th 2023
I have just been reading, or rather trying to road, a book by Peter Kropotkin. It is Anarchist Communism.
The problem about it is fourfold.
1. That it is full of mid nineteenth century examples and analysis.
2. That while it is very useful in terms of describing the development and practice of capitalism up to that era, it does need to be updated.
3. That any perspective about economic developments does really need to factor in ecological issues.
&
4. That much of the analysis does remind me of what is to be found in the pamphlet Wage Labour and Capital by Karl Marx.
Away From A Socialist Perspective
One of the greatest problems with both a socialist and Anarcho Syndicalist economic analysis is that both are very good at pointing out the problems, but not so good in giving any ecologically sound solutions.
Rail and Power
One of the most simplistic arguments which I keep hearing from Socialists is that all the problems of both the railways and energy generators can all be solved by re-nationalising them.
That takes no account of how we need to create energy sources at the point of use. i.e. by the use of many more vertical wind turbines and solar panels in our city centres, together with buildings which are properly insulated.
While none of them refer to the need to create local manufacturing workshops which use recycled materials, or returning all goods movements back to both canals and railways.
Or how we can produce better solutions by the use of energy cooperatives.
While all of these solutions will help us to close down the Drax power plant and nukiller power plants.
Dole Not Coal !
There there is the issue of what are and are not socially useful jobs.
Which goes back to the concept that saving jobs is more important than saving the environment.
Historically supporting striking miners was a blow against improving our environment.
While a lot of current political campaigning is focused upon saving totally socially useless work, such as using cash rather than debit cards, or not using self checkouts within supermarkets.
Yet there are still lots of jobs which need many more people working on them.
Here are a few example : –
– More people to build and operate more trains and trams.
– Many more Traffic Wardens.
– More people to building and operate many more sustainable recycling centres.
– People to plant and maintain more urban fruit orchards.
– Creating more wetlands to prevent major floods.
– Building and maintaining vertical wind turbines and solar panels at the point of use. That is within the inner cities.
In the Fields
Now contrast the above with the Following
work of Peter Kropotkin.
Fields Factories and Workshops
Or
Industry combined with is agriculture
and Brain work with manual work.
The chapters on agriculture being of special interest.
Although first published in 1898, while not taken from a Vegan perspective, and pre-dating the effects of climate change, there is still a lot in it which is worth considering.
Colin Ward
Of those political thinkers which I like the best is Colin Ward, as he looked at issues from a practical perspective. The issues which he wrote about were very wide ranging indeed.
The first series of the Freedom Press periodical Anarchy which he edited is well worth reading, as is his book Anarchy in Action.
Here is the Highest Educational Problem
The figure I keep quoting is 1in 7 of the population in Brexitland are functionally illiterate.
Yet while millions of pounds are pouring in to the universities, next to no money is being spent to solve this problem.
It is possible to find books in public libraries to solve the adult literacy issue, but there is no one to do the teaching.
I’ve always thought that university students should do such teaching as part payment for their education loans.
Though given the concerns which exist about the literary skills of some students, such a scheme should be set up with a formal teaching course to go with it.
Here is the Financial Problem
There’s talk right now of raising council tax by 5%.
Yet that is double what any individual that is part of a couple would have to pay.
Thus single individuals would pay 100% more than any two people in the same place.
Even with the 25% single person reduction it is still a much higher amount than individuals in a shared property pay.
That is not social justice or making an equitable contribution to local services.
It is also an unfair fiscal load upon all single pensioners.
Meanwhile all students are exempt from paying council tax. Yet keep in mind many pensioners left school at either 15 or 16, and never got the chance to go to university.
Thus the council tax system needs to be abolished, and a modified version of a local poll tax introduced in order to lift the present inequitable system.
I don’t expect a lot of people who campaigned against the poll tax to like this idea, but we do need to abolish the totally inequitable and unjust council tax system.
The Final Ongoing Chapter
The middle and last part of 2022 was a time of uncertainties, economic mess, and major political swings. Yet none of the major ecological, educational, or social issues where being addressed.
Much of this uncertainty was caused by an unstable Rabid Right Wing government which was economically illiterate. While those were in it had no understanding of science, and technologically.
Thus they had no concept of the major social, ecological, and economic damage which they were causing.
All they were concerned with was helping to make the rich much richer, and ways in which they might keep themselves in power.
Still the Rabid Right Wingers managed to stay in power, even when they kept changing their policies by the day.
As one well known commentator said at the time: –
‘ They make it all up as they go along.’
While another one stated that there was no point in reporting, or ever reading, any government policy announcements, as they all changed by the hour.
Then the Expected Unexpected happened, and the Dance of Death changed in to a continual internal battle and debate about just who might command Brexitland.
Thus the economic decline, social poverty, and environmental mess was ignored.
Only when the environmental damage had reached way beyond crisis point did the rabid right wing Brexitland government start to notice it, even though activists had been predicting these problems for many decades.