Finally a Referendum to Repeal the 8th - Organising Made this Happen

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The announcement that there will be a referendum to Repeal the hated 8th amendment is the product of decades of active campaigning.  Pro-choice campaigners built for repeal ever since the referendum was passed in 1983. If at first this seemed like a distant demand now repeal looks by far the most likely outcome in May.  The story of how this happened illustrates how change comes in general.  That is not through elections but through people getting organised to demand that change, regardless of which politicians happen to be running the show in any particular year. 

Union Struggle: How the Minions Fought and Won Against GRU

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In 2015, 2 years after graduating from an animation school in Paris, I found myself participating for the first time in a struggle as a unionised worker. At the time my interest in the anarchist critique of our current institutions was increasing, but having no first hand experience of class struggle, I couldn’t relate to what anarchism had to say about unions. By telling the story of this fight, I hope to show how much can be learnt from a single campaign and why action is the best way to assimilate theory and perfect it. I also hope that the specifics of this story will be a useful addition to the wealth of past experiences anarchists can learn from.

PESCO and The Militarisation of the EU

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The idea that the European Union is an undemocratic entity has become unremarkable, yet its latest authoritarian move shouldn’t be overlooked since the negative consequences will be felt both in Europe and abroad.

On the 11th of December 2017 the European council decided to establish a European military command structure under the acronym of PESCO (Permanent Structured Cooperation). This happened only a month after EU member states issued a statement about their intention to participate in this European defence cooperation. The speed of the process and the signing up of countries with neutrality policies such as Ireland, Sweden, and Austria raises a red flag. In Ireland, the decision to be part of PESCO happened after a rushed debate and was in direct violation of Ireland’s neutrality stance. On top of this, one interpretation of the 6th article of the Irish constitution implies that any delegation of power to the EU should be put to a referendum.

So why has PESCO suddenly become a priority? What is the geopolitical meaning of this move and what exactly does PESCO entail?

Strike4Repeal - A Call to Action this January

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Strike4Repeal launched in January 2017, it exists currently as an ad hoc group of pro-choice activists, academics, trade unionists, artists and students. We directed a single demand towards the government: a national strike would take place on the 8th March unless a referendum on the 8th Amendment of the Constitution was called.

In December, we in Strike4Repeal came together once more to announce that a second strike action will take place if it becomes clear during Dáil debate that full abortion access will not be legislated for or if there is no straight repeal question on the ballot in the upcoming referendum. [ Video ] [Audio]

Dundalk Stabbings Not Terrorism Despite Right-Wing Fear-Mongering

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The murder of one and stabbings of two other people in Dundalk recently was a horrible incident which was terrifying for those caught up in it and has left one family grieving for a loved one. Carried out by someone who was clearly disturbed - why or what caused that remains to be seen.

Some have reacted by letting anger or fear take over and jumping to unproven conclusions about Islamist terrorism, even after the gardaí have announced that they have investigated that possibility and found no link whatsoever. Fascist and far-right elements are drooling at the opportunity to smear all refugees, all Muslims, all people from the Middle East, and to a large extent all migrants. Social media, and Twitter in particular, has been buzzing with anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim hysteria for the past 24 hours.

Repeal ref is coming - get ready for a long tough battle to win it

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Irish pro-choice campaigners are celebrating - this is why... Abortion is highly restricted Ireland, thanks to an amendment inserted into our constitution in 1983. The government has said there will be a referendum on abortion next summer.

Thinking About Anarchism: Hierarchy - What it is and isn't

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Wondering why your vote doesn’t seem to make a difference, why your wages seem to barely cover your costs, or why you feel like a second-class citizen? Then, you’re thinking about hierarchy.

Anarchists treat ‘hierarchy’ as the central issue in society, as the unifying theme in most of the problems we face. Then, the aim is to get rid of hierarchy and replace it with something better. But what is hierarchy? It’s not something which is talked about in mainstream political discourse, and even anarchists themselves can sometimes misunderstand it.

Sometimes Lightning Strikes Twice: Pledge to Strike 4 Repeal

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A new intention to #Strike4Repeal has been announced as we still wait for a referendum and as importantly to see what it is we will get to vote on.

See https://www.wsm.ie/strike4repeal for coverage from last year.

Pledge to Strike 4 Repeal here: https://goo.gl/forms/DTDfA9tQ0kZ0HQ6F3

 

Climate Change Denial Myths: The Truth

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Climate change is a hoax! Or so some say. There is much debate over whether anthropogenic climate change is real. Many assertions have been made from a variety of sources which claim that humans cannot affect the climate. However, this debate is one for the cameras, because almost all working climate scientists agree that these claims are inaccurate and that humans are almost certainly responsible for the changing weather patterns we have been witnessing in recent years.

A recent article gave a basic overview of climate change. This article will explore some of the most common assertions made by anthropogenic climate-change deniers and then contrast these claims with the findings of climate scientists. I will then briefly look at some cases of how climate scientists have been slandered in order to try to discredit their findings, and finally some of the potential motivations behind these slanders will be examined. Any curious readers are invited to please click on the links below if they wish to familiarise themselves with the sources and some of the specific scientific studies relevant to this article's content.

A critical history of WSM from a 2010 internal meeting

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This audio history of the WSM was presented at a meeting in Cork in 2010 as part of a day of critical internal discussions. As it was originally recorded for internal use it's been edited so it is just the presenter and then his responses to questions and discussion points. For more on the history of the Workers Solidarity Movement see https://www.wsm.ie/wsm-history