Dear Which Blair,
Haven't you learned yet that Auntie is a cynic? And that Blair is not going anywhere? As much as I would love for the bastard to be expelled, let's be realistic. Not a single Labour MP has had the balls to support impeachment - why the hell would emails from you and your mates make them change their mind? They didn't when war actually started. And even when we had the chance, not a single pro-war MP was deselected.
Unfortunately buddy, you're not alone. Former independent MP Martin Bell is trying a similar 'will-fail' tactic - he' s trying to get Blair's opponents in Sedgefield to unite around one anti-Blair independent. The Tories and Lib Dems just laughed in his face. Which is what Auntie is doing now at the 'I Won't Vote Blair' website. (It's not exactly an eye-pleaser; its webmaster would do well to take a peek at this month's 'Guerilla Guide'.)
What worries me most is the crap response on the site to the FAQ, 'Won't we just get Gordon Brown, Michael Howard or Charles Kennedy instead'? 'Probably. This is about democracy.' Yeah, well, maybe if the left tried to focus on providing an alternative then we might not think we were voting in vain. Or fought for good ol' proportional representation so our votes counted. These things won't come soon (or ever), Auntie despairs, so why not use your energy to fight Blair and co at next year's G8 in Scotland? Otherwise, you could just foment revolutionary hot air for another four years.
The crack pipe of peace Dear Auntie
_ War, famine, economic depression and global warming - the idea that 'another world is possible' seems remoter than ever. Will we ever have a just and peaceful world?
_ Desperate for peace, Preston
Learning by number Dear Auntie
_ At one of the Gaza protests in London, Stop the War put the number of protesters at around 100,000 but the police insisted it was only 20,000. Can Auntie reassure me that the Met has a scientific methodology for estimating crowd numbers?
_ Numberless in London
No hope Dear Auntie,
All my left-wing friends seem to be overjoyed about Obama winning the US election, holding real hope that he will bring change, that he'll stop the wars, and that he'll somehow make America all cuddly and nice. But haven't we been here before? I'm getting flashbacks to the expectations people had of politicians like Tony Blair and Bill Clinton, and how quickly they betrayed us. Is it terrible that I think Obama will be just more of the same?
Hopeless, London
Co-operating with cuts in Lambeth Isabelle Koksal reports on how Lambeth’s ‘co-operative council’ is riding roughshod over co-operative principles in its drive for sell-offs and cuts in local services
Labour and the cuts: beyond the ‘dented shield’ The scale of coalition cuts means the very future of local public services is in jeopardy. Michael Calderbank asks whether Labour councillors can do more than offer verbal protest and practical acquiescence
Refounding the politics of labour Ed Miliband's speech had little to say on the unions. Hilary Wainwright urges the Labour leader to embrace a newly political trade unionism
February 15, 2003: The day the world said no to war Phyllis Bennis argues that while the day of mass protest did not stop the war, it did change history
Egypt: The revolution is alive Just before the second anniversary of the Egyptian revolution, Emma Hughes spoke to Ola Shahba, an activist who has spent 15 years organising in Egypt
Workfare: a policy on the brink Warren Clark explains how the success of the campaign against workfare has put the policy’s future in doubt
Tenant troubles The past year has seen the beginnings of a vibrant private tenants’ movement emerging. Christine Haigh reports
Co-operating with cuts in Lambeth Isabelle Koksal reports on how Lambeth’s ‘co-operative council’ is riding roughshod over co-operative principles in its drive for sell-offs and cuts in local services
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