MrMenno goes to an SWP meeting

[Bannedontherun]

About the “outrageous ‘ SC ruling. Well i watched his video about this and was dying laughing. I was in the SWP many moons ago and I consider myself a Marxist feminist.

What was particularly funny was that he had clearly googled Marxist concepts and had a better grip on historical materialism and top down top up politics than any of the nit wits in the meeting.

He spoke about the grass roots movement of the FWS at the meeting and how he classed them as his friends, and the manic speaker said ooo you have friends to which he burst into that Bet Middler song. “You gotta have friends”

What a star he is.

anyway it prompted me to facebook my local SWP group for some answers, and they are well in to gender woo.

They provided a bunch of links and distorted what analysis's in what their own party intellectuals said.

Sooo I said maybe you should be occupying yourselves with the failure of the unions to actually relate to those that they represent.

in particular WOMEN.

doubt they will respond

He did an excellent impression of Ben Elton.

I liked Mark. I found him frustrating at times, because he could see through a lot of the bullshit but was too eager to be liked. But he was a real person with a sense of humour.

I found the same thing with Pat Stack. There's plenty I disagree with Pat on, and I could rage about all the terrible things he managed not to notice down the years, but in person I found him impossible to dislike.

It's probably telling that the likeable people stand out in the memory.

Pat Stack was a lovely and quite sensible man when an issue arose in a different branch nearby.

The RCP were so barmy and their monthly magazine so glossy and well produced ...there were rumours about M15 involvement.

Yeah sense of humour bypass and a sort of puritan streak. You got the impression that Paul Foot , Mark Steel etc were regarded as a necessary evil. One SW friend said Foot was a bad member, didn't attend meetings often enough and so on.

This will sound terrible, but I'm sort of glad Foot died relatively young, so he wasn't around to disappoint me when the rape scandal broke. He might have taken the right side on that, but I wouldn't want to bet money on it.

Lovely man though IME. Just about the only leading member to seem comfortable in his own skin.

In some odd ways the good elements shine a light on the bad. Like there often was an instinct to look after young women, but that would manifest as "keep them well away from Chris Harman if he comes to your branch".

I like Mark Steel but the constant sarcasm grates, especially as he has got older.

You can read the Higgins book online for free. It's got lots of history that the SWP don't teach, and hardly any members know about.

Jim Higgins: More Years for the Locust (1997)

I think it was Higgins who described Cliff as having a "whim of iron", and one thing about founders is that they build groups in their own image.

Duncan Hallas old industrial worker if i am correct and a part of the rank and file movement.

I always remember if you booked him as a speaker he needed to be put on the train at both ends or he would end up in a pub somewhere, not make it to the meeting, or not make it home and search parties had been required on more than one occasion 😂

Found the quote:

For Cliff, the group is like something he owns and, in the final analysis, can dispose of as he wishes even on a whim; for he has a whim of iron. It is as if his investment of more time and more sacrifice gives him extra shares in the concern. If others feel they have an equal right to contribute in a way that he may think is mistaken, then he will defend his own revelation with all the ferocity of a lioness defending her cubs. By hook or by crook (in practice both) the transgressor will be cast into the outer darkness, cast out of the movement and no longer allowed to participate in the socialist emancipation of mankind.

I don't think that's unique to the SWP. It reminds me a bit of WPUK's attitude to feminism.

Where the Jeff is the video?

This ^

It's not on Mr Menno's you tube. 🤷‍♀️

Thank you 🙏

@MelOfTheRoses @Thatsrhesummeroverthen sorry don't know how to do links it is an age related issue, dont know how to do bigly either (tsk)

Love this thread. Thanks everyone. La Lotta Continua and all that

Just a thought, the party view on sexuality and sexual expression was that we culture bound, by the borgousie and therefore existing expression may change in utopia.

I think they might have had a point about Trans

Thanks for the link

Well am super excited as i have found out how to do

bigly

next stop is links