anti capitalist musings

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Close-up of a British two pence coin, copper-coloured, showing a heraldic lion in a crosshatched frame with fleur-de-lis corners and the words “TWO PENCE” at the top.
Labour Government

Rachel Reeves and the 2p Trap

The chancellor’s proposed income tax shuffle is clever accountancy but toxic politics — a pledge-break disguised as fiscal discipline, and proof that Labour has trapped itself in rules it cannot escape.

An illustration of a red fish (Herring) in profile against a pale background, with the words “RED TERROR” in bold black capitals beneath it.
Charlie Kirk

Red Herring, Not Red Terror

David Frost calls it a new “Red Terror.” The truth is plainer: it’s the Right’s wars, coups and crackdowns that have spilt the deepest blood in politics.

Donald J Trump

The Invention of the Narco-Terrorist

Trump’s latest “kinetic strike” killed three unknown Venezuelans he labelled “narco-terrorists.” The phrase is not law but incantation, a word that strips away humanity and legitimises killing. From Vietnam body counts to Obama’s “signature strikes,” America has always named its enemies into existence, and into death.

Britain

Beyond Creeping Fascism

To call Robinson’s rally “populist” or “right-wing” is to miss the point. Fascism doesn’t require every marcher to be a coherent ideologue; it requires a mass, a scapegoat, and leaders prepared to turn grievance into violence. That is what we saw in London.

Screenshot of a Telegraph article by Camilla Tominey titled “The killing of Charlie Kirk shows just how poisonous Left-wing politics now is,” with the subheading “Speech has consequences – we have once more learnt that lesson from the horrifying events in Utah.” Below the headline is a photo showing two people in jeans holding a poster with a portrait of Charlie Kirk.
Camilla Tominey

Tominey’s doublethink

Camilla Tominey’s sainthood act for Charlie Kirk trades politics for piety. The Right already owns the machinery (press, finance, courts, police) and Kirk was part of the drive shaft. A death certificate doesn’t wash clean a career built on making violence respectable.

Britain

Flatlining Growth, Rising Crisis

The ONS reports zero growth in July. The papers call it “grim news” for Rachel Reeves. In reality, it is the latest entry in a long obituary for British capitalism — a system now sustained only by euphemism, stagnation, and decline.

A close-up photograph of a dark grey suit jacket with a red circular badge pinned to the left lapel. The badge features bold white text that reads "JOIN A UNION" in all capital letters. The image is softly lit, with the badge clearly in focus and the texture of the suit fabric visible in the background.

The Right to Strike Is Not a Threat—It’s a Minimum Demand

The modern-day barons don’t run trade unions, they sail £100 million yachts and bankroll governments. Yet it’s the rail cleaner or the guard who’s cast as the threat. What’s truly appalling is not that Eddie Dempsey wants to strike fast, but that workers can’t strike in solidarity with Palestinians, can’t refuse to load weapons bound for Gaza, can’t use their collective strength to win better conditions across sectors. The right fears not chaos—but class power.

Graphic in red/biege writing says Solidarity Betrayed with #MeTU

Solidarity’s Other Betrayal

In Solidarity Betrayed, Ana Avendaño takes aim at the labour institutions she once helped lead. Drawing on personal experience and survivor testimony, she reveals how trade unions, far from shielding their members, have too often shielded abusers instead

Plaque for Department for Business and Trade

A Step Forward, But Not a Leap

The new Employment Rights Bill announced by the Labour government is being trumpeted as a victory for workers, and on the surface, there are some real wins: day-one unfair dismissal rights, guaranteed hours for agency workers, stronger collective bargaining, and improved sick pay. But a closer look shows there’s still plenty missing, and, as ever, it will all come down to enforcement.

ME TU image - person holding placade which states TUC - stand down perpetrators.

GMB women letter to Yorks and Humber region

This letter from the GMB Women group highlights ongoing issues of bullying and harassment within the union, especially targeting women members. It calls for solidarity to address these problems and reinstate suspended members.