Red Pepper

About us Contact us Advertise Donate Press

Fur coat and no knickers

Well, perhaps a fake fur coat but you get the idea. Red Pepper is hanging by a thread financially and we desperately need money to reach a wider readership. If we can do this we know we can flourish and become the success story the independent, non-sectarian left so badly needs. But we can’t do it without you.

We’re not looking for a pair of designer silk knickers; plain old Marx and Sparts will do just as well. If all our readers were to give just £5 – more if you have the means – this would make a huge and lasting difference.

If you understand that Red Pepper is more than just a magazine, if you’ve read just one article in this issue or on the website that’s made you think or given you hope, then please donate today and give us the undergarments we need.

Please donate now

Booktopia

Which eight books would you take to the ends of the world with you?

NEW Musician Aki Nawaz on god delusions, the Qur’an and fighting the National Front

Map obsessive Roger Lloyd Packreckons he could ’probably walk away with the Mastermind prize with Tintin as my subject’

Jill Robinson picks wild swans, joy and animal emotion

Tracy Quan mixes love, lust and Biblical studies

Newsnight’s Paul Mason on red virgins, vines and wrath

Jo Brand finds room for her mum among the Dickens

Peter Tatchell plumps for some Wilde with his de Beauvoir

Comedian Mark Thomas mixes Rushdie and Brecht with the Bible

If you shop with Amazon, use this link and support Red Pepper:

The great miners’ strike: 25 years on

Look back in anger
In the introductory chapter to Shafted: The Media, the Miners’ Strike and the Aftermath, Granville Williams revisits the way the media covered the strike

‘We are woman, we are strong ...’
Hilary Wainwright on the vital role women played in the miners’ struggle

No redemption
Mike Marqusee talks to Red Riding author David Peace about GB84, his dark novel on the strike

Share your thoughts and recollections in our forum discussion

What’s Going On?
Now in his forties, and questioning the meaning of life, relationships and socialist politics, Mark Steel subtitles his latest book ‘the meanderings of a comic mind in confusion’. In these two extracts, he writes about teenagers and protest

Is the future Conservative?
The New Conservatives pose a significant challenge not only to a demoralised Labour Party but to the wider progressive movement as a whole. Edited by Jon Cruddas and Jonathan Rutherford, this free e-book offers a serious critical engagement with the ideas behind the resurgent Tory Party.

In this extract from his book, The Credit Crunch: Housing Bubbles, Globalisation and the Worldwide Economic Crisis, economist Graham Turner argues that in the current financial turmoil, the omens are not encouraging for remedying the inherent flaws that will tip us into debt deflation

Thanks But No Thanks
In this extract from her book, Thanks But No Thanks : The Voter’s Guide to Sarah Palin, Sue Katz examines the critical response from Alaskan women to the woman being touted as the next Republican presidential candidate

George Bush’s joint
In this extract from her new book, Commie Girl in the OC, Rebecca Schoenkopf, the ‘queen bee/black widow of alternative journalism’, goes inside the federal propaganda machine against marijuana

Waiting for the barbarians

The so-called ‘war on terror’ has created a global bonanza for commercial military suppliers, writes Red Pepper correspondent Solomon Hughes in this exclusive extract from his new book War on Terror, Inc

Anti-semitism and the Israel lobby
In this extract from his book, If I Am Not for Myself: Journey of an Anti-Zionist Jew, Mike Marqusee says that no one should be deterred from criticising the Israel lobby by charges of anti-semitism

Reviews

Grievable and ungrievable lives
Nathaniel Mehr reviews Judith Butler’s Frames of War: When is Life Grievable?

The message is not the medium
Radical poetry just sloganises, argues BRIGG57. Good poetry is about much more than its politics

A tale of three Michaels
Until his murder conviction and hanging in Trinidad in 1975, Michael X was one of the best-known figures of 1960s radicalism. Michael Horovitz reviews a new account of the life of this self-styled black Muslim revolutionary

Hope in the face of an impossible peace
Mark LeVine’s new book Impossible Peace: Israel/Palestine since 1989 is essential reading for anyone seeking a new way forward for peace in the Middle East, says Clare Woodford

American interest
John Mersheimer and Stephen Walt’s The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy offers a brilliant account of US economic and military support to Israel, writes Richard Kuper. Its flaws lie not in an alleged anti-semitism, but in overstating the influence of the lobby over a US administration that is out of step on a broad range of foreign policy issues

Comrade or brother?
A timely overview of two centuries of British labour history carries hope for the future as well as insights on the past, writes Nathaniel Mehr

The patron saint of sandal-wearers Matthew Beaumont welcomes Sheila Rowbotham’s biography of Edward Carpenter and reflects on the political counter-culture that emerged at the end of the 19th century as the economy plunged into depression

Sunbathing in the nude From his advocacy of a ‘simplified’ rural lifestyle to his backing for causes as diverse as women’s suffrage, sexual freedom and recycling, Edward Carpenter cuts a surprisingly modern radical figure. Sheila Rowbotham says it is time for a revival of interest in a man who challenged not only capitalism but the values of western civilisation

Out of the shadows The reader feels the injustice of Gerda Taro’s exclusion from history, says Jess Vyvyan-Robinson in her review of Francois Maspero’s biography. Taro is all but forgotten, only mentioned in conjunction with Robert Capa

Grist to the radical Mill
Is it worth reading or rereading John Stuart Mill? Anthony Arblaster explains his importance for socialists and radical liberals in this discussion of a recent political biography

This is what you do
This piece began as a review of Eyal Weizman’s book Hollow Land, commissioned – but then not published – by the Jewish Quarterly, the leading Anglo-Jewish review of new writing and ideas, writes Michael Kustow

Planetary mythology
Soundbite science and self-help manuals would have you believe that men and women can’t communicate. Deborah Cameron’s new book shows that the real issues are to do with power, writes Romy Clark

You’re booked
Sports books fill the bestseller lists every Christmas. Anne Coddington and Mark Perryman examine the rise and rise of the new sports writing

Racism today
Hostility towards migrants is on the increase. David Renton reviews a new book by Arun Kundani that puts contemporary racism in perspective

Terra Nullius: A Journey Through No One’s Land
Ever felt like you couldn’t finish a book, not because it was badly written or researched, but because it made you squirm with shame about your ignorance and complicity? Readers of two of Swedish writer Sven Lindqvist’s recent books, Exterminate All the Brutes and A History of Bombing, will know the feeling

Alternate realities
China Mieville has turned the traditionally reactionary world of adult heroic fantasy upside down. Can he do the same trick with the increasingly popular (and sometimes equally hidebound) world of children’s fiction?

God is Not Great
Matthew Gray reviews Christopher Hitchens’ audiobook version of God is Not Great

Poetry and Politics

Something worth fighting for
A poem by Carol Ann Duffy has been removed by a school exam board. Michael Rosen thinks poets may have a battle on their hands

A cultural revolution
Poet and writer Andy Croft talks to Neil Astley, the founder and editor of Britain’s most important poetry publisher, Bloodaxe Books, about putting the politics into poetry

Carrying on from the Chartists
Can poetry provide a means for change? Dave Toomer, Christina McAlpine and John G Hall, the editors of Citizen 32 magazine, explain the importance of combining poetry and activism

Interviews and news

Commie Girl in the OC
Laurie Penny interviews Rebecca Schoenkopf about politics, life, feminism and getting ‘finger-fucked’ by Hillary Clinton

Selfish capitalism is making us ill
Mat Little interviews psychologist and writer Oliver James about his book, The Selfish Capitalist

Disturbing family order
Laurie Penny interviews the Turkish feminist and author Meltem Arikan

After shock
From Poland to Iraq and from China to New Orleans, neoliberalism has risen on the back of what Naomi Klein calls ‘disaster capitalism’. She spoke to Oscar Reyes about her book, The Shock Doctrine, and new forms of resistance

Reclaiming our past
Newsnight correspondent Paul Mason’s Live Working or Die Fighting sets the experience of modern factory workers in the global South alongside some of the classic narratives of labour history. He spoke to Hilary Wainwright about the insights he gained in examining a neglected part of our heritage

Murder in Samarkand
In 2002, while political attention was focused on Iraq and Afghanistan, a troubled British diplomat was exposing the UK’s casual attitude to human rights abuses in Uzbekistan. Marcus Williams talks to Craig Murray about trying to tell the truth about torture and being branded mad by the Foreign Office

Adrian Mitchell
Red Pepper’s Shadow Poet Laureate
October 1932 - December 2008

Shadow on the sun
Red Pepper looks back at the life of Adrian Mitchell, our shadow poet laureate

On Adrian Mitchell’s Answerphone
by Keith Armstrong

Steve Platt on Adrian Mitchell
‘Adrian’s pages – like the man himself – sparkled with enthusiasm, commitment and verve’

You should visit Faslane

At the crossroads

Three poems on peace and war

‘Long live the earth, deeper than all our thinking’

Thank you, Adrian

Harold Pinter
Playwright, poet, actor, director and Red Pepper advisor
October 1930 - December 2008

In words and silences
Hilary Wainwright reflects on Harold Pinter and Red Pepper

Thank you, Harold
A short note about Harold Pinter

Pinter moments
Michael Kustow remembers three moments with Harold Pinter

Pinter on war
Four poems about war ...

The war against reason
There’s an old story about Oliver Cromwell ...

Red Pepper magazine, 1b Waterlow Road, London N19 5NJ. Tel (+44) 20 7281 7024

	About us Contact us Advertise Donate Press
				Search this site

	Home Latest issue Blogs Forums Books Debates 365 days Guerrilla guides Archive Radical directory Subscribe
	Fur coat and no knickers Well, perhaps a fake fur coat but you get the idea. Red Pepper is hanging by a thread financially and we desperately need money to reach a wider readership. If we can do this we know we can flourish and become the success story the independent, non-sectarian left so badly needs. But we can’t do it without you. We’re not looking for a pair of designer silk knickers; plain old Marx and Sparts will do just as well. If all our readers were to give just £5 – more if you have the means – this would make a huge and lasting difference. If you understand that Red Pepper is more than just a magazine, if you’ve read just one article in this issue or on the website that’s made you think or given you hope, then please donate today and give us the undergarments we need. Please donate now Booktopia Which eight books would you take to the ends of the world with you? NEW Musician Aki Nawaz on god delusions, the Qur’an and fighting the National Front Map obsessive Roger Lloyd Packreckons he could ’probably walk away with the Mastermind prize with Tintin as my subject’ Jill Robinson picks wild swans, joy and animal emotion Tracy Quan mixes love, lust and Biblical studies Newsnight’s Paul Mason on red virgins, vines and wrath Jo Brand finds room for her mum among the Dickens Peter Tatchell plumps for some Wilde with his de Beauvoir Comedian Mark Thomas mixes Rushdie and Brecht with the Bible If you shop with Amazon, use this link and support Red Pepper:	The great miners’ strike: 25 years on Look back in anger In the introductory chapter to Shafted: The Media, the Miners’ Strike and the Aftermath, Granville Williams revisits the way the media covered the strike ‘We are woman, we are strong ...’ Hilary Wainwright on the vital role women played in the miners’ struggle No redemption Mike Marqusee talks to Red Riding author David Peace about GB84, his dark novel on the strike Share your thoughts and recollections in our forum discussion		What’s Going On? Now in his forties, and questioning the meaning of life, relationships and socialist politics, Mark Steel subtitles his latest book ‘the meanderings of a comic mind in confusion’. In these two extracts, he writes about teenagers and protest Is the future Conservative? The New Conservatives pose a significant challenge not only to a demoralised Labour Party but to the wider progressive movement as a whole. Edited by Jon Cruddas and Jonathan Rutherford, this free e-book offers a serious critical engagement with the ideas behind the resurgent Tory Party. In this extract from his book, The Credit Crunch: Housing Bubbles, Globalisation and the Worldwide Economic Crisis, economist Graham Turner argues that in the current financial turmoil, the omens are not encouraging for remedying the inherent flaws that will tip us into debt deflation Thanks But No Thanks In this extract from her book, Thanks But No Thanks : The Voter’s Guide to Sarah Palin, Sue Katz examines the critical response from Alaskan women to the woman being touted as the next Republican presidential candidate George Bush’s joint In this extract from her new book, Commie Girl in the OC, Rebecca Schoenkopf, the ‘queen bee/black widow of alternative journalism’, goes inside the federal propaganda machine against marijuana Waiting for the barbarians The so-called ‘war on terror’ has created a global bonanza for commercial military suppliers, writes Red Pepper correspondent Solomon Hughes in this exclusive extract from his new book War on Terror, Inc Anti-semitism and the Israel lobby In this extract from his book, If I Am Not for Myself: Journey of an Anti-Zionist Jew, Mike Marqusee says that no one should be deterred from criticising the Israel lobby by charges of anti-semitism

		Reviews Grievable and ungrievable lives Nathaniel Mehr reviews Judith Butler’s Frames of War: When is Life Grievable? The message is not the medium Radical poetry just sloganises, argues BRIGG57. Good poetry is about much more than its politics A tale of three Michaels Until his murder conviction and hanging in Trinidad in 1975, Michael X was one of the best-known figures of 1960s radicalism. Michael Horovitz reviews a new account of the life of this self-styled black Muslim revolutionary Hope in the face of an impossible peace Mark LeVine’s new book Impossible Peace: Israel/Palestine since 1989 is essential reading for anyone seeking a new way forward for peace in the Middle East, says Clare Woodford American interest John Mersheimer and Stephen Walt’s The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy offers a brilliant account of US economic and military support to Israel, writes Richard Kuper. Its flaws lie not in an alleged anti-semitism, but in overstating the influence of the lobby over a US administration that is out of step on a broad range of foreign policy issues Comrade or brother? A timely overview of two centuries of British labour history carries hope for the future as well as insights on the past, writes Nathaniel Mehr The patron saint of sandal-wearers Matthew Beaumont welcomes Sheila Rowbotham’s biography of Edward Carpenter and reflects on the political counter-culture that emerged at the end of the 19th century as the economy plunged into depression Sunbathing in the nude From his advocacy of a ‘simplified’ rural lifestyle to his backing for causes as diverse as women’s suffrage, sexual freedom and recycling, Edward Carpenter cuts a surprisingly modern radical figure. Sheila Rowbotham says it is time for a revival of interest in a man who challenged not only capitalism but the values of western civilisation Out of the shadows The reader feels the injustice of Gerda Taro’s exclusion from history, says Jess Vyvyan-Robinson in her review of Francois Maspero’s biography. Taro is all but forgotten, only mentioned in conjunction with Robert Capa Grist to the radical Mill Is it worth reading or rereading John Stuart Mill? Anthony Arblaster explains his importance for socialists and radical liberals in this discussion of a recent political biography This is what you do This piece began as a review of Eyal Weizman’s book Hollow Land, commissioned – but then not published – by the Jewish Quarterly, the leading Anglo-Jewish review of new writing and ideas, writes Michael Kustow Planetary mythology Soundbite science and self-help manuals would have you believe that men and women can’t communicate. Deborah Cameron’s new book shows that the real issues are to do with power, writes Romy Clark You’re booked Sports books fill the bestseller lists every Christmas. Anne Coddington and Mark Perryman examine the rise and rise of the new sports writing Racism today Hostility towards migrants is on the increase. David Renton reviews a new book by Arun Kundani that puts contemporary racism in perspective Terra Nullius: A Journey Through No One’s Land Ever felt like you couldn’t finish a book, not because it was badly written or researched, but because it made you squirm with shame about your ignorance and complicity? Readers of two of Swedish writer Sven Lindqvist’s recent books, Exterminate All the Brutes and A History of Bombing, will know the feeling Alternate realities China Mieville has turned the traditionally reactionary world of adult heroic fantasy upside down. Can he do the same trick with the increasingly popular (and sometimes equally hidebound) world of children’s fiction? God is Not Great Matthew Gray reviews Christopher Hitchens’ audiobook version of God is Not Great Poetry and Politics Something worth fighting for A poem by Carol Ann Duffy has been removed by a school exam board. Michael Rosen thinks poets may have a battle on their hands A cultural revolution Poet and writer Andy Croft talks to Neil Astley, the founder and editor of Britain’s most important poetry publisher, Bloodaxe Books, about putting the politics into poetry Carrying on from the Chartists Can poetry provide a means for change? Dave Toomer, Christina McAlpine and John G Hall, the editors of Citizen 32 magazine, explain the importance of combining poetry and activism	Interviews and news Commie Girl in the OC Laurie Penny interviews Rebecca Schoenkopf about politics, life, feminism and getting ‘finger-fucked’ by Hillary Clinton Selfish capitalism is making us ill Mat Little interviews psychologist and writer Oliver James about his book, The Selfish Capitalist Disturbing family order Laurie Penny interviews the Turkish feminist and author Meltem Arikan After shock From Poland to Iraq and from China to New Orleans, neoliberalism has risen on the back of what Naomi Klein calls ‘disaster capitalism’. She spoke to Oscar Reyes about her book, The Shock Doctrine, and new forms of resistance Reclaiming our past Newsnight correspondent Paul Mason’s Live Working or Die Fighting sets the experience of modern factory workers in the global South alongside some of the classic narratives of labour history. He spoke to Hilary Wainwright about the insights he gained in examining a neglected part of our heritage Murder in Samarkand In 2002, while political attention was focused on Iraq and Afghanistan, a troubled British diplomat was exposing the UK’s casual attitude to human rights abuses in Uzbekistan. Marcus Williams talks to Craig Murray about trying to tell the truth about torture and being branded mad by the Foreign Office Adrian Mitchell Red Pepper’s Shadow Poet Laureate October 1932 - December 2008 Shadow on the sun Red Pepper looks back at the life of Adrian Mitchell, our shadow poet laureate On Adrian Mitchell’s Answerphone by Keith Armstrong Steve Platt on Adrian Mitchell ‘Adrian’s pages – like the man himself – sparkled with enthusiasm, commitment and verve’ You should visit Faslane At the crossroads Three poems on peace and war ‘Long live the earth, deeper than all our thinking’ Thank you, Adrian Harold Pinter Playwright, poet, actor, director and Red Pepper advisor October 1930 - December 2008 In words and silences Hilary Wainwright reflects on Harold Pinter and Red Pepper Thank you, Harold A short note about Harold Pinter Pinter moments Michael Kustow remembers three moments with Harold Pinter Pinter on war Four poems about war ... The war against reason There’s an old story about Oliver Cromwell ...
Red Pepper magazine, 1b Waterlow Road, London N19 5NJ. Tel (+44) 20 7281 7024