I guess there is whining aplenty here in Australia about the state of the left. There's certainly much to be annoyed about in way of its marginalisation and disunity. While I've been very acerbic about the failure of almost all the far left groups to commit to a regroupment project -- any regroupment project -- I think one of our successes here nonetheless is that we've been able to keep the worst excesses of the British disease at bay and still pursue a regroupment agenda.
"The British Disease" is a cynic's joke as it is a name I use for the dead hand of sectarianism which seems to have found fertile ground esp in Ol' Blighty. In fact, along with pork pies and English grammar, it is one of the UK's most pervasive exports.
A good swag of the far left groups in this country are, or have been, local franchises of London based toy internationals. This certainly has its advantages in way of reducing ideological start up costs, but it has meant that London has to sneeze first before the colonials catch cold.
And catch cold they certainly will. As the snide joke goes. (actually it was mine):
Of course maybe the mother lode across the way is the font of political wisdom and tactical smarts? Maybe it's really only a case of paternal political mentoring after all...? Maybe there is a lot we can learn from the experience of the English far left parties...?
Then, maybe not.
In a piece just published in the Morning Star -- a left wing British daily newspaper -- Liz Davies attacks Britain's Fractured Left for being dedicated to disunity. Davies articulates, what seems to be, a general backlash against Britain's far left groups for failing to work together and allowing space for the British National Party -- the local right wing neo Fascist (arm) brand -- to advance at the recent Euro poll.
With a General Election due in 2010 and with the prospect of a Tory victory and further BNP gains, Davies writes:
We can't gloat over this state of affairs because we don't have the runs on the board either -- even credits that can compare with some of the ready achievements of the British left both today and through a proud tradition of struggle.
But we are not in tragic mode-- in the way they seem to be. We have not recklessly spent all our opportunities to come together as they seem to have.That doesn't make us any better -- only, I guess, more careful and perhaps a tad more consistent in our pursuits.
And not so tragic perhaps?
"The British Disease" is a cynic's joke as it is a name I use for the dead hand of sectarianism which seems to have found fertile ground esp in Ol' Blighty. In fact, along with pork pies and English grammar, it is one of the UK's most pervasive exports.
A good swag of the far left groups in this country are, or have been, local franchises of London based toy internationals. This certainly has its advantages in way of reducing ideological start up costs, but it has meant that London has to sneeze first before the colonials catch cold.
And catch cold they certainly will. As the snide joke goes. (actually it was mine):
Q:How many far left franchise members (put selected party name here) does it take to change a light globe?Maybe that's unfair. But you only have to monitor trends in England to predict what's likely to be on the political agenda soon enough down here in the antipodes regardles of local conditions of indigenous politics.
A:Sorry. They won't know until after they ring London.
Of course maybe the mother lode across the way is the font of political wisdom and tactical smarts? Maybe it's really only a case of paternal political mentoring after all...? Maybe there is a lot we can learn from the experience of the English far left parties...?
Then, maybe not.
In a piece just published in the Morning Star -- a left wing British daily newspaper -- Liz Davies attacks Britain's Fractured Left for being dedicated to disunity. Davies articulates, what seems to be, a general backlash against Britain's far left groups for failing to work together and allowing space for the British National Party -- the local right wing neo Fascist (arm) brand -- to advance at the recent Euro poll.
With a General Election due in 2010 and with the prospect of a Tory victory and further BNP gains, Davies writes:
The left's inability to offer a realistic alternative at the ballot box means that it has failed those who reject neoliberalism. It's nothing short of a tragedy.Davies chronicling of the British left's mastery of fracture is wrist slitting stuff. As far as I know, her story is sadly true. She writes (on her Socialist Alliance experience):
I watched the so-called revolutionary political parties destroy any chance of effective left co-operation and flout principles of democracy and accountability.Then, after still more tales of fractious wow, she writes:
You couldn't make it up. It's deeply tragic.And so it is. As one English left activist told me recently, the left in the UK is at its worse state in decades.
We can't gloat over this state of affairs because we don't have the runs on the board either -- even credits that can compare with some of the ready achievements of the British left both today and through a proud tradition of struggle.
But we are not in tragic mode-- in the way they seem to be. We have not recklessly spent all our opportunities to come together as they seem to have.That doesn't make us any better -- only, I guess, more careful and perhaps a tad more consistent in our pursuits.
And not so tragic perhaps?
