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Marxist Love Fest for Easter

March 31, 2013

Marxist Love Fest for Easter

Forgive my naivety but I thought Marxism disappeared up its own backside in early 1990s. You remember that time don’t you: the fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the implosion of some of the most oppressive regimes in history? Doesn’t ring a bell?

Yet despite the relegation of this failed ideology Marxism must be back in fashion. Then again it could just be another self indulgent talk fest run by the DSP/Green Left Weekly/Socialist Alternative/ Trots and a bunch of Union hacks who yearn for the good old days when they though Communism would rule the world.

So in celebration of clinical denial the ‘existential bong‘ will be passed around once more just so these extremists can out themselves to public.

If you are wondering why so many people in the public eye, unions and media have so many warped ideas. It could be that they are peddling an ideology that virtually no one subscribes to anymore.

Personally I think that they are doing public service by alerting the rest of us that they pushing a Marxist agenda. Suddenly people like Antony Leowenstein are much easier to understand. He’s a just another Marxist ideologue. Agenda item 1: destroy capitalism, Agenda item 2: install Marxist state, Agenda item 3: Purges.

I figure that in a few weeks or months, there will be a little bit of a PR backlash as some of the representatives at this talk fest try distance themselves form this conference. “No me sir,” they will claim. “I weren’t there at all.”

So for future historical records I have preserved the details on my blog.

My comments are marked as [ED]

BRIAN JONES

Brian Jones is an African American teacher, actor, and activist in New York. He co-narrated the film, The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman and… READ MORE

[ED: Never heard of him but he gets top billing above Pilger. He must be a someone to someone]

JOHN PILGER

John Pilger is a world-renowned journalist, author and documentary filmmaker, who began his career in 1958 in his homeland, Australia, before moving to London… READ MORE

[ED: Well everyone knew he was a hardcore Marxist for years. I still cannot work out why so many people worship his shoddy research and emotive illogical conclusions. Very involved with the DSP/SA]

BLACK PANTHER BILLY X JENNINGS

Billy X Jennings joined the Black Panther Party in the 1960s. He was active in Oakland throughout the sixties and worked alongside such figures as… READ MORE

[ED: Gimme a break. Black Panthers? Are they serious?]

GARY FOLEY

Gary Foley is a legendary Aboriginal activist, writer, actor, teacher, story teller and historian. He is a prominent figure in the history of Aboriginal resistance… READ MORE

[ED: Wasn’t Gary Foley they fellow who went all the way to Libya to suck up to Col. Gadaffi?]

ANTONY LOEWENSTEIN

Antony Loewenstein is a Jewish-Australian political activist, freelance journalist, author and blogger who is based in Sydney. He has written for The Guardian, Haaretz, The… READ MORE

[ED: Rabidly pro LTTE, Anti Sri Lanka, Anti Israel. Also part of ‘The Sri Lanka Campaign’which is now calling for the boycott of Sri Lanka. Why does this vacuous fellow keep coming back?]

JEFF SPARROW


Jeff Sparrow is an Australian leftwing writer based in Melbourne, Victoria. He is the co-author of two volumes on Melbourne’s radical history. He is also the… READ MORE

TOUFIC HADDAD


Toufic Haddad is the co-author and editor of Between the Lines: Readings in Israel, the Palestinians and the U.S ‘War on Terror’ (Haymarket Books, 2007,… READ MORE

BOB CARNEGIE


Bob has been involved in a host of important struggles and played a leading role in the SEQEB dispute in 1985, Patricks’ in 1998 and… READ MORE

SANDRA BLOODWORTH

Sandra Bloodworth has been active since the mid-1970s in a wide range of campaigns and strikes including the campaign to stop the Jabiluka uranium mine and the Refugee Action Collective. She… READ MORE

RICK KUHN

Rick Kuhn is a long term socialist and social movement activist. He was the convenor of the umbrella anti-war organisation in Canberra during the struggle… READ MORE

DIANE FIELDES

Diane Fieldes has been active since the early 1970s in many campaigns such as those for Aboriginal rights and against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and in the… READ MORE

PEOPLE’S LIBERATION PARTY INDONESIA

Marxism 2013 welcomes a representative of the People’s Liberation Party of Indonesia to speak on the struggles going on in that country.  READ MORE

[ED: Okay so now we import Marxists from Indonesia.]

NAVA SAMA SAMAJA PARTY (NSSP) SRI LANKA

Marxism 2013 would like to welcome a representative of the Nava Sama Samaja Party (NSSP)  Sri Lanka to speak on the issues surrounding the oppression of… READ MORE

[ED: Even in Sri Lanka this mob is so tiny that they are a joke. Even the Marxist JVP party in Sri Lanka treat them as a joke. But if we import them to Australia they suddenly grow to be giants]

PHILIPPINES LABOR PARTY (PM)

Representatives of the Philippines Labor Party will be speaking at Marxism 2013. In particular they will be offering stories from the frontline struggle of the… READ MORE

[ED: Now lets go to the Philippines and bring in more Marxists]

KIM BULLIMORE

Kim Bullimore is a long-time socialist, political activist and anti-racism campaigner.  Kim is a volunteer with the International Women’s Peace Service, the only all… READ MORE

LOUISE O’SHEA

Louise O’Shea was active in student politics in the anti-capitalist movement of the early2000s and National Union of Students Education Officer in 2006. She has been involved in… READ MORE

[ED: Student’s Union huh? Gay Marriage Activist]

LIZ ROSS

Liz Ross has been active in women’s and gay liberation and socialist politics since the early1970s. Author of “Dedication doesn’t pay the rent! The 1986 Victorian… READ MORE

VASHTI KENWAY

Vashti Kenway is a member of the National Executive of Socialist Alternative. She became active in revolutionary politics in the anti-capitalist movement, was a founder… READ MORE

[ED: Anti Capitalist? Well Duh… You’re a Marxist. Also an anti Israel protester who targeted Max Brenner coffee shops. How brave. How terribly brave. Intimidating shoppers and staff must give her a warm glow each morning.]

TOM BRAMBLE

Tom Bramble has been a socialist activist since the late 1970s. He is a senior lecturer in industrial relations at the University of Queensland. He has published… READ MORE

[ED: Good thing the state pays his wage.]

MICK ARMSTRONG

Mick Armstrong has been active in a wide range of struggles and strikes since the late1960s, including more recently the Victorian Peace Network and campaigns in… READ MORE

MAX LANE

Max Lane was active around Third World development issues in the 1960s and 1970s on Sydney University campus. He radicalized while in Indonesia, which he started… READ MORE

[ED: A former executive of the DSP – Bingo]

COREY OAKLEY

Corey Oakley is editor of Socialist Alternative magazine and the Socialist Alternative website www.sa.org.au. He is also on the editorial committee of the Marxist Left Review journal http://www.marxistleftreview.org. READ MORE

[ED: Ah the Socialist Alternative. Corey is the editor of SA magazine. One of the many front organizations of the Democratic Socialist Party (DSP). Maybe I should play DSP bingo.]

TOM O’LINCOLN

Tom O’Lincoln is an American born Marxist historian, author and one of the founders of the International Socialist Tendency in Australia. He attended UC Berkeley in 1966 and joined the International… READ MORE

[ED: Another Socialist Alternative member – Bingo]

ROZ WARD

Roz Ward is a delegate in the National Tertiary Education Union at La Trobe University. After growing up in Thatcher’s Britain, she moved to Australia and joined… READ MORE

Update: 3-6-16: New link here via archive.org

[ED: What is with all these Education Unionsts? Is Marxism a prerequisite in joining]

JOHN PERCY

John Percy was one of the first activists against the war in Vietnam in Sydney, and radicalised to become a founder of the socialist youth organisation Resistance… READ MORE

[ED: Resistance – another DSP front organization. Bingo]

ALLYSON HOSE

Allyson Hose has been active since the mid-1990s in campaigns to defend student unions and in numerous anti-racism campaigns, most recently the campaign against the Northern Territory Intervention. She is the co-author of Women’s… READ MORE

[ED: Student Union rep. These universities must be bursting with eager Marxists.]

IAN JAMIESON

Ian Jamieson, a National Executive member of the Revolutionary Socialist Party, has been an industrial worker and unionist all his life. A tram conductor, steelworker,… READ MORE

[ED: Revolutionary Socialist Party. Let me check the DSP website- The jury is still out on this. However there magazine called ‘Direct Action’ is using the same name of one the old DSP publications before they changed it to Green Left Weekly.]

SANTO CAZZATI

Santo Cazzati is a spoken word artist. The son of Italian immigrants to Australia, he emerged from past lives as a classical concert pianist and… READ MORE

JANEY STONE

Janey Stone is a life-long socialist. She was a founding member of an early predecessor of Socialist Alternative and is today active as a supporter.… READ MORE

[ED: Socialist Alternative – DSP front – Bingo]

JANE KENWAY

Jane Kenway is a Professorial Fellow with the Australian Research Council, a Professor in the Education Faculty at Monash University and an elected Fellow of the Academy… READ MORE

[ED: Maybe Marxist can only survive in the rarified air of a university campus. Or maybe they like getting government money]

FAROOQ TARIQ

Farooq Tariq is general secretary of the Awami Workers Party (AWP) of Pakistan. He has played a key role in organizing a number of working… READ MORE

[ED: Where is Awami anyway and why do we care? ‘Exiled from Pakistan’ is one of his claims to fame. Considering the numbers of people who were executed or jailed in Pakistan since its founding ‘exile’ is pretty far down on the suffering scale.]

JORGE JORQUERA

Like many others, Jorge Jorquera was forced to leave Chile after the military coup. He became an activist in the Chilean solidarity campaign and a supporter of the… READ MORE

[ED: Another member of the DSP – Bingo]

DOUGAL MCNEILL

Dougal McNeill is an editor of Socialist Review and a member of the International Socialist Organisation Aotearoa/New Zealand. An activist in the Tertiary Education Union, he is the author of Forecasts of… READ MORE

[ED: International Socialist Organization (which is not very international at all) and is another DSP front organization – Bingo. Also another Student Union rep]

JOHN PASSANT

John has been a socialist for over 30 years. He has worked in the Australian Tax Office and academia. John has been published extensively on tax and other… READ MORE

[ED:

ANN CUNNINGHAM

Ann Cunningham is a Sydney law, criminology and academic publisher. She is actively committed to international social justice, peace with justice, human rights and non-violent civil… READ MORE

BRIAN ROPER

Brian S. Roper has been a political activist in New Zealand since the early 1980s and is a founding member of the International Socialist Organisation… READ MORE

[ED: A founding Member of the International Socialist Organization – Bingo]

CHIKMANN KOH

Chikmann Koh entered radical politics as a student activist fighting for democracy in South Korea under the military regime in the 1970s and 80s, suffering… READ MORE

[ED: Wow a South Korean Marxist. Why didn’t just cross over to the paradise in North Korea?]

SUE BOLTON

Sue Bolton was elected to the Moreland Council (Melbourne) in November under the banner of “People before Profit” and “Community Need, Not Developer Greed”. Sue… READ MORE

[ED: Living out my way in the municipal City of Hume I border the city of Moreland. Please, please Sue, stay in Moreland. Hume has suffered enough. Also she is another person protesting Max Brenner coffee shops. And she is the Victorian convener for the Socialist Alternative – Bingo]

SAM WAINWRIGHT

Sam Wainwright, Socialist Alliance councillor, will be sharing his experiences and making a case for a socialist intervention in elections for capitalist parliaments and local… READ MORE

[ED: Socialist Alliance councilor no doubt. Another DSP front organization – Bingo]

SIMON BUTLER

Simon Butler is a former editor of Green Left Weekly and is coauthor (with Ian Angus) of Too Many People? Population, Immigration and Environmental Crisis… READ MORE

[ED: Come on fellows. You are making this too easy. Former editor of Gree Lefty Weekly – damn-it-all why is the DSP all over this? Bingo]

SUSAN PRICE

Susan Price is the current national co-convenor of the Socialist Alliance and its National Trade Union work coordinator. Susan has been an active Socialist for… READ MORE

[ED: Socialist Alternative – Bingo.]

BARRY SHEPPARD

Barry Sheppard was a member of the U.S. Socialist Workers Party from 1959 until 1988. For most of that time, he was a central leader… READ MORE

[ED: Now we are bringing 4th Internationalists from the US]

JEROME SMALL

Jerome Small is Socialist Alternative’s industrial organiser. He is a member of the main construction union, the CFMEU, having spent the last 12 years working… READ MORE

[ED: Socialist Alternative – Bingo.]

LOUISA BASSINI

Louisa has been a member of Socialist Alternative for 10 years. She is a member of the Australian Services Union and has recently been involved… READ MORE

[ED: SA – Bingo]

VAN THANH RUDD

Van Thanh Rudd has been exhibiting his art in Australia and overseas since moving from Brisbane to Melbourne in 1995. In 2004, after years of… READ MORE

[ED: BDS (Boycott Divestment and Sanctions) is code for blockading the Max Brenner coffee shops to prevent it doing business. Very nasty campaign run by some very nasty people. Also claims to support Tamil Justice. Claims to be an artist of some kind.]

TREVOR GRANT

Trevor Grant is an Australian sports journalist of 44 years experience who has covered international and national sports for major daily newspapers, including The Age… READ MORE

[ED: Sports journalist with a Marxist twist.]

FRANK POLEMICOS

Frank Polemicos’ father used to take him along to union rallies when he was out on strike to win better wages and conditions. In 2012,… READ MORE

[ED: Another Marxist unionist. Well that was a surprise.]

MANOLYA MOUSTAFA

Manolya is an activist and sub-branch representative in the AEU, an active member of rank-and-file group Teachers and ES Alliance (TESA) and Popular Education Network… READ MORE

[Ed: Unionist and another member of the Socialist Alternative – Bingo]

CATHY LEWIS

Cathy Lewis is a delegate for the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) in Victoria and has been central in building a rank and file… READ MORE

[ED: An occupy Melbourne protestor and … you guessed it… another Socialist Alternative – Bingo]

ADAM BOTTOMLEY

Adam Bottomley has been a member of the Australian Services Union since 2002, and a delegate since 2008, playing a leading role in the Equal… READ MORE

[ED: This man is another Socialist Alternative member – Bingo]

KATE DOHERTY

Kate is a member of the NSW Public Service Association, and in 2012 was elected as part of a rank and file ticket to the… READ MORE

[ED: Her profile picture shows that she is standing in front of a Socialist Alternative banner but she has not identified herself as such. I am so conflicted.. To call Bingo or not to call Bingo]

GERRY RIVERA

Gerry Rivera is the President of the Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (PALEA). PALEA members have spent 18 months on the picket line at Manila airport,… READ MORE

[ED: A unionist from the Philippines. This is some kind of joke entry right?]

Editorial Comment:

Count the Bingo for the DSP and their front organizations and you get the picture. Far from being some grand new resurgence in Marxism it looks to be another lame DSP publicity stunt.

All jokes aside this is lame even by their standards.

Happy Easter everyone

Editorial Addendum:

After reading all the profiles of the key note speakers I have come to the conclusion that this event is more of a fundraiser for the DSP/Socialist Alternative.

They are boasting that 350 people attended their first meeting. Multiply that by the price of admission and it is still a pathetic turnout.  I can get more people to a dance party.

In short it looks like a worse failure than the ‘Rise of Atheism’ conference a few years ago.  It looks like the elastic limit of fanaticism in Australia is limited to about 350 per day.


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