Save the Welfare State March and Rally, London - Pictures.
Terence Bunch | 10.04.2010 19:15 | Analysis | Globalisation | Terror War | World
Pensioners to be hardest hit!
Deep Cut!
Pinocchio Politics
RIP Sheltered Housing.
Arriving in Trafalgar Square.
Save the Whittington Hospital.
Jam Tomorrow.
Prostate.
Stupidity of War.
As the pre-amble to the election gets under way, the three main political parties, Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat all set out crisis manifesto's in an attempt to deal with the post war fallout.
The protest is primarily attended by those UK citizens who have most to lose from the cost-cutting which is to follow. Pensioners, care workers, NHS workers and those working in the fields of civil infrastructure including transport, local government and supplementary services.
The election is to take place on May 6th where it is widely expected that a hung Parliament is to be returned. Immediately after, a national defence spending review is to take place in which Britian's commitment to the continuing occupation of Afghanistan is to be assessed in light of the current critical economic environment.
London, UK. April 10th 2010.
Terence Bunch
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Comments
Hide the following 12 comments
WTF
10.04.2010 19:49
anarchist
but
10.04.2010 20:38
So unless you can come up with a realistic, costed alternative, without relapsing back into grandious one size fits all political idealism that will probably cost the lives of most of the old folks in these pictures try shutting up and keeping out these folks way while they try to do something.
The welfare state is a good thing if done for the good of all, its when people abuse it that we all suffer
anon
no masters
10.04.2010 21:17
no masters no state no leaders
attack and destroy
an@rchist
"Going to war to prevent war was the most stupid thing i ever heard"
10.04.2010 21:35
WW2. England and france avoided war and could of easily stopped Germany from the conquest of europe. Then they 'went to war' later on.
Jeez. Thought the bloody pensioners would remember this stuff
old man
To anarchist.
11.04.2010 00:03
timbob
Smashing the state....?
11.04.2010 00:28
The public services are the closest thing we have to self-organised provision as they are not privately owned and therefore oriented towards enriching individuals. If it is a choice between private ownership of our necessary utilities, or the state, I will choose the state anyday because at least it theoretically publicly owned and funded and not aimed at profit.
Public services do serve as a positive example of non-profit pubic utilities. It also expose the limits of the state system when the government attempts to cut them because people begin to value free provision of healthcare and the like and get pissed off when some bureaucrat makes cuts and they can't do anything about it because they are not empowered over these matters. It opens the mind to alternatives to the percieved necessity to be a "viable business model" to succeed.
Being anti-everything is not constructive. We as an anarchist movement need to by analytical and tactical in who and what we support and for what ends we do so.
Think before you rush in with fiery raging rhetoric.
Anarchy & Freedom.
AberAnarcho
Get Rid of the Welfare State
11.04.2010 03:00
Klamber
I second AberAnarcho's comment
11.04.2010 14:59
There are contradictions in this position if you are coming at it from an anti-authoritarian point of view. However, there are other ways of looking at it. Mr Chomsky, for instance, argued that, while in the long term, anarchists may oppose the state, you may have to support aspects of the state in the short term because the alternative is privatized services run by and for the rich. Look at the example of New Orleans. Much of the public school system was irrevocably damaged post-Katrina. It it's place, a number of dodgy private companies are stepping in, setting up 'voucer systems' with the explicit intention of introducing market ideology into education. In this context, teachers unions have been almost wiped out.
If we followed the logic of Anarchist, would that mean we would have to oppose public libraries (which are free for anyone to use) because they are run by the state? If that's your anarchism than it's ridiculous.
Those who already comparatively rich (ie most Tories) will not be in the leat bit affected by doing away with public services because they are not reliant on them. They have private healthcare, send their kids to private schools and will never have to face a dole queue. There are lots of problems with the welfare state. I was on Jobseekers recently and it was a horrible, degrading experience. However, getting rid of it completely would benefit no one but the rich, and further entrench the massive inequalities we already have in the UK.
Wonky Wood Pigeon
@Wonky Wood Pigeon
11.04.2010 16:39
To be free, we must establish our rights and access to common land which has been stolen by the oligarchs over the centuries. We do not need arrogant psychopaths to tell us how to live... human beings have been living and co-operating for millenia without the aid of centralised state systems of control. We now also have the advantage of technology which has been held back in many respects by those in power to maintain the status quo... it is now time to use technology to benefit humanity.
Respect!
Klamber
anarchist solutions to todays problems
11.04.2010 20:04
There will probably be some people who disagree with the general consensus who may cause a lot of trouble, and other people who steal off others. I suggest we give jobs to some special people who have some powers (we'll call these "the law") over others. We could make these people easily identifiable to others by giving them special hats.
What do people think?
anarchist
Anarchy & The State
12.04.2010 13:25
I'm all for a dismantling of the state and private ownership but this can only occur once people have laid the foundations for autonomous organisation. In this sense, as Anarchists we have failed massively. In the mean time we should continue to highlight the importance of social mechanisms (free healthcare/education, A secure livelihood upon retirement) which are rapidly fading into the oblivion.
T
specific details
12.04.2010 18:53
Anarchists typical bemoan how things are, but don't go into any specfic details on rebuilding things. Its all a vague "everything will be determined by consensus" statement.
Thats too vague. What if two groups completely disagree on the way forward. Thats not consensus.
As Normanski said "Anarchism would never work".
Morrisey