Anti-Fracking Info and Resources

As the anti-fracking battle in the UK and elsewhere heats up, here are a few of the useful resources and web pages that activists can use to keep up to date and informed:

A good source of news on developments in Britain is Drill or Drop

For the currently immediately threatened areas in the UK - Lancashire, Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire - there are the following campaign websites:

Frack Free Lancashire

Frack Free Ryedale

Frack Free South Yorkshire

Frack Free Notts

Here are the big environmental campaigns Fracking pages:

Friends of the Earth

Greenpeace

And for those who can see that direct action may be a required part of the resistance:

Reclaim The Power

Earth First

Corbyn Victory Makes Role of Greens More Important

Leading Greens Caroline Lucas and Natalie Bennett have welcomed the victory of Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader.

These are very interesting times.

We Greens will continue to have more influence outside Labour than we would have within - we need a distinct voice on Climate Change, the most important issue of our age. Caroline Lucas has held out the hand of partnership to Jeremy and we wish the labour left well, but they still have a massive mountain to climb in the face of an overwhelmingly right wing PLP and councillor base.

The Green surge was partly responsible for Jeremy's rise IMO, with the raising of left green policies to debate in the election and engagement of a new generation. Now Greens must continue to use our leverage to push for commitments on electoral reform and climate change. This is crucial, as without electoral reform, if the establishment manage to defeat or more likely sabotage the Corbyn movement to reclaim Labour from the Blairite cuckoos it will be back to neo-liberal business as usual. With electoral reform Tory majority governments will hopefully be a thing of the past (24% of the electorate and falling?) and radical left and green views will be much much harder to push to the margins where FPTP and neo-liberal "consensus" in the corporate media have managed to contain them for so long. The left wing lever that the Greens, and to some extent the SNP and Plaid have applied to Labour can be continued and strengthened and a progressive alliance will be able to take on the Tories and their corporatist backers effectively across all the country and all its diverse sections.

If we play this right we can park our ecosocialist tanks on the lawns of the establishment and the corpocracy and build the kind of Parliamentary/extra parliamentary alliance that is required for the next stage....This will not be easy, mind. The ruling class can see the threat. Expect dirty tricks from the corporate media/foreign and domestic intelligence services.....

The fact that Caroline Lucas and the SNP and Plaid may now be able to attack the Tory Corporatist agenda in concert with a Labour Party Front Bench is immensely encouraging however.  The fightback just stepped up a gear.  A key aspect of the coming period will be to unite forces on the ground to fight things like fracking, Trident replacement and the anti-trade union bill.  There is everything to play for.

"Rise like lions out of slumber, 
Ye are many, they are few...."

After the election - get organised and resist!

Now that the general election is over and we face the full horror of a Tory Government, the Green Party are well placed to be a vital pole of attraction and organising base for oppostion to what the Tories aim to do.  I urge everyone who has supported the Greens in the election campaign to sign up, get involved locally and help build effective coalitions of opposition and resistance.
From the Human Rights Act to Hunting, from Trade Union Law to massive welfare cuts and from fracking to cutting renewables support the stage is set for mass opposition and anger against what this government of corporate shills and chancers have planned for us all.
Join the Green Party here: https://my.greenparty.org.uk/civicrm/membership/joining
Support the coming demonstrations organised by the People's Assembly and the actions arranged by UK Uncut and get active in your local community to build solidarity networks.
There is hope!  The Greens are committed to long term change, and to resisting every mean spirited, nasty, selfish and authoritarian move the Tories make.  Join us.

Support The People's Assembly

Unfortunately I cannot attend the People's Assembly Against Austerity on 22nd June due to family commitments, but would urge anyone who can get along to do so as this is an important opportunity to show that there are alternatives to the austerity drive and to network and build a stronger movement of resistance.

More from Owen Jones here

The Nottingham Assembly, which I went along to, was well attended and a good start locally.

Eastleigh By-election

The Green Party in Eastleigh have decided not to stand a candidate in the forthcoming by-election brought about by the downfall of the disgraceful Chris Huhne.  The main reason is that the local Party need to concentrate on the forthcoming Council elections and do not have the funds to run in the crowded by-election field as well.

As this was a "safe" Lib Dem seat with a majority Lib Dem Council, where the main challengers are the Tories, it is safe to say we do not have a horse "likely to win" in this race.  The likely victors seem to be the Treacherous Quislings or their Dark Overlords!  However, the lack of a Green candidate and the lack of any pressure for "tactical" voting gives an opportunity to look at the other alternatives on offer.

The preferred alternative candidates of many former Green voters look likely to be either Dr Iain Maclennan of the National Health Action Party, (a former Green Party member and local election candidate)  Jim Duggan of the Peace Party (whose policies are very similar to the Greens), or Daz Procter of the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) (who comes from the TU side of that coalition)

These candidates all offer a good opportunity for a meaningful protest vote highlighting the Coalition Government's continuing attacks on the NHS, their overseas warmongering and their horrendous attacks on working people, benefits and the welfare state in general.

As far as Labour is concerned, it is interesting that they are standing a comedian/humorist - one might say that they are joking if they think that people have forgotten the wars, the privatisations, and the craven crawling to corporations and banks that led us to having to suffer the current ghastly Coalition.  Truly, as far as this election is concerned, a plague on the houses of all three main parties.

Of course, the gutter media favourite contenders are UKIP.  The vote of this Party of climate change denying conspiracists, xenophobes and ill-informed bar room ranters continues to rise.  This is no coincidence.  The right-wing media barons and their attack dog commentators and journalists who are promoting them see UKIP as a useful tool to drag the Tories even further to the right.  Once this is achieved, I predict that UKIP will be very quickly cut down to size, with the right wing vote directed back home to Toryland.  The yellow press have ample dirt on Farage and co (not least the behaviour of their hypocritical MEPS) to bring them down to size when required. Consequently, expect the Thatcherite droolers to poll well, for now, in Eastleigh.  Politics - it's a dirty game.....

5th May - Say YES! (And Vote Green if you get the opportunity!)

On 5th May there is the opportunity to make a small change in the UK's voting system. However, if the vote is no this will be presented by the whole media and establishment as showing that there is no appetite for any change from First Past The Post in UK general elections and Proportional Representation will be off the agenda for possibly a political generation. Anyone who wants PR should vote YES to AV.

The Tories are changing the boundaries for elections so that they will get even more of an advantage under FPTP - Labour votes are concentrated in urban areas and the North - Tory voters are more spread out in rural and suburban zones and the South. The new boundaries will mean more seats fall to the Tories or become "Safe" Tory seats. AV would at least balance this change.

Some have been arguing that progressives and the left should vote No to "spite Clegg" in the hope this will cause the Lib Dems to leave the coalition or some such unlikely "Turkeys Voting for Christmas" scenario. Putting aside that voting YES is likely to "spite Cameron" and upset the Tories - (the Organ Grinders rather than the irritating monkeys!) - it seems to me that basing your vote on a change (that could lay the ground for further change, will be fairer and allow more of a clear picture of smaller party support) on personal animosity and short term vengeance seems to me politically immature to say the least.

So, Vote YES, and if you can - vote Green, and elect local councillors with principle who will not be mouthpieces for the Coalition vandals.

Climate Change Public Forum

CLIMATE EMERGENCY COPENHAGEN

London Public Forum
Saturday 7th November 12-6pm

South Camden Community School,
Charrington Street
NW1 1RG
(nearest tube Kings Cross)

Open to everyone and free to attend, hosted by the Campaign against Climate Change the Public Forum will bring together leading figures to discuss and debate the Climate Emergency and what we can be doing to tackle it. See below for the programme for the day.

This event sees a great variety of speakers including
Aubrey Meyer (Global Commons Institute),
Oliver Tickell (author Kyoto 2),
Andrew Simms (new economics foundation),
John Stewart (HACAN),
Johann Hari (journalist),
Jean Lambert MEP (Green Party),
Damian Carrington (Head of Environment, the Guardian),
Alexis Rowell(Camden Council),
Chris Baugh (Public and Commercial Services Union)
Dr Stuart Parkinson (Scientists for Global Responsibility)

There will also be workshops with Biofuelwatch and the Campaign against Climate Change Trade Union Group.

This is one of our last chances to get together before we hit the streets demonstrating in December.

Programme

________________________________

11:45
Doors Open

12:15-13:15 Session
1 "10% Cuts by end 2010: the case for emergency action"

13:15-13:45 Break and Workshops including:
Introduction to campaigning against Agrofuels, hosted
by Biofuelwatch and Food Not Fuel

13:45-14:45 Session
2 "Green Jobs Now - a million climate jobs by end 2010"

14:45-15:15 Break and Workshops including:
Discussion of the role of Trade Unionists in building the Climate movement before and after Copenhagen , hosted by Campaign Against Climate Change Trade Union Group

15:15-16:15 Session
3 "Decarbonising our transport fast - the way ahead"

16:15-16:30 Break
with musical entertainment

16:30-17:30 Session
4 " Copenhagen - the deal we need and the deal we're likely to get"

17:30-17:45 Climate
Emergency CALL TO ACTION


________________________________

Interesting New Stuff From The Corner House

The people at Corner House have a lot of interesting and useful new material available on climate change strategies and economics, (no apologies for the cut'n paste!). Much of this is a valuable contribution to the radical critique of the likely "solutions" touted by the big powers, corporations and politicians this week and likely to be continually pushed over the coming months:

NEW PUBLICATIONS ON CLIMATE AND FINANCE FROM THE CORNER HOUSE AND FRIENDS

The climate crisis and the financial crisis highlight the need to organise for social change -- and also open unprecedented opportunities for doing so. But to prevent a destructive return to business as usual, the roots of both crises need to be understood, together with the nature and limitations of elite responses to them. As a contribution to this discussion, 10 new documents have recently been added to The Corner House's extensive collection of free books and articles on climate
change and finance at

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/subject/climate

and

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/subject/economics.

(1)
Corner House Briefing Paper No. 40
When Markets are Poison:
Learning about Climate Policy from the Financial Crisis

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/briefing/40poisonmarkets.pdf

Around the world, progressive groups have linked the unfolding financial crisis with concurrent crises of climate, food, energy, health care and militarism, and have called for integrated popular movements to assert greater democratic control over financial and economic institutions so that economic recession and global warming can be tackled together.

But governments and business elites also claim to be tackling global warming and economic reversal. Talk of 'Green New Deals' is constantly in the air; investments are being made in agrofuels, geoengineering, carbon sequestration and synthetic biology; and Wall Street is looking forward to seeing global carbon markets expand to a multi-trillion dollar scale following the Copenhagen climate conference in December and promised new US legislation.

This briefing paper critiques one of these elite responses by detailing the close parallels between the financial innovations behind the current financial crisis and the marketing innovations associated with carbon trading -- the dominant official approach to climate change.

Both the new financial markets and the new carbon markets involve the construction of similar abstract commodities. Both heighten systemic dangers, necessitating movements of societal self-protection. Both involve regressive redistribution and the erosion of crucial knowledge. Both are vulnerable to bubbles and crashes. Both erode notions of transparency and conflict of interest. And both call into question the easy assumption that all markets can be successfully regulated, no matter what type.

Drawing on the insights of grassroots communities on the receiving end of the new trade arrangements as well as financial and carbon market practitioners and theorists, the paper urges that failures of both markets need to be investigated and understood before a coherent and effective response can be formulated to the problems that both were supposed to have tackled.

A first section describes the enormous growth in financial derivatives markets since the 1970s -- a process involving the increased commodification of certainty and uncertainty, security and risk, safety and danger, determinacy and indeterminacy -- and the associated huge expansion of credit. It is highly misleading, the paper argues, to describe the new financial practices as 'casino capitalism': they were so hazardous that no casino could have followed them and stayed in business.

A second section analyses the concurrent invention of carbon markets, which involved the increased commodification of the earth's carbon-cycling capacity. Some of the same theorists and practitioners responsible for the new financial markets helped create the carbon markets and, unsurprisingly, carbon markets rely on the same sort of abstractions and faith in quantification that brought down the financial markets. In particular, carbon markets abstract fatally from the question of how industrialised countries can eliminate their dependence on fossil fuels.

With all its acronyms, calculations, credits, monitoring and legal requirements, carbon trading rivals the trade in financial derivatives in its obscurity -- and in its dangers. As one carbon trader has said, 'I guess in many ways it's akin to sub-prime. You keep layering on crap until you say, 'We can't do this anymore'.' This briefing paper attempts to bring into the open the ways in which the complexity of both carbon and uncertainty markets have hidden their hazards, both from many market players and from the general public.

(2) Climate as Investment

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/document/Climate%20as%20Investment.pdf

Proposals for Green New Deals aimed at tackling both global warming and global recession are streaming forth worldwide. Yet, as this article forthcoming in the journal /Development & Change/ argues, many such proposals are incoherent in that they overlook the need for an immediate start to a programme of phasing out both fossil fuels and purported fossil fuel substitutes such as nuclear power and industrial-scale agrofuels. They also tend to rely on Northern-biased conceptions of
technology transfer and intellectual property that the climate crisis has helped make obsolete. To overcome these problems, future climate movements will have to focus increasingly on the democratization of research, planning and finance.

(3) Neoliberalism and the Calculable World: The Rise of Carbon Trading

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/document/Neolib&Calc.pdf

Carbon permit prices flashing on electronic screens in Wall Street trading rooms reflect a complex political movement to reorganize and redistribute power and knowledge. The carbon markets associated with the Kyoto Protocol, the EU Emissions Trading Scheme and the US's Waxman-Markey Act constitute perhaps the last great class project of a waning neoliberal regime -- the ill-fated attempt to privatize the climate itself.

Carbon trading resembles other neoliberal movements of recent decades that have invented new possibilities of accumulation through the creation of fresh objects of calculation and intensified commodification. Such movements include the hugely expanded derivatives markets responsible for the financial crisis, global intellectual property rights regimes, and attempts to transform health, health care
and even biological species into measurable, tradeable commodities.
Generating both profits and crisis, the ambitious abstraction and commensuration that are vital to such schemes can never be completed. This draft chapter for a forthcoming book on the rise and fall of neoliberalism outlines the contradictions inherent in the attempt to form a viable climate commodity.

(4) Unregulatability in Financial and Carbon Markets

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/document/Unregulatability.pdf

Can the financial derivatives markets be regulated? Can the carbon markets be regulated? The questions are parallel, according to this article from the June 2009 issue of /Carbon & Climate Law Review/. Both markets have involved new attempts at commodification: in the case of the financial markets, commodification of an unprecedented range of uncertainties, and in the case of the carbon markets, commodification of climate benefits or the earth's carbon-cycling capacity. Regulatory responses inspired by neoclassical economics, which assume that any problems can be handled by 'internalizing externalities', are unlikely to succeed. A more pragmatic approach looks to decommodification in both markets. Both approaches, interestingly, have attracted supporters from wide ranges of the political spectrum.

(5) Regulation as Corruption in the Carbon Offset Markets: Cowboys and
Choirboys United

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/document/Athens%2010.pdf

The civics-class formula 'no matter what the market, it will always be possible to regulate it' is not a useful principle for constructive social action in the real world. In markets that cannot distinguish between fraud and non-fraud, that undermine the rule of law, and that are based on conflict of interest, attempts at regulation can be worse than useless. 'Governance' itself becomes part of corruption.

The carbon offset market is one such market; the market for certain complex credit derivatives is another. Both these markets, argues this draft chapter for a forthcoming book on carbon trading in Africa, should teach us the need for new, more nuanced and practical approaches to issues of corruption and regulation.

(6) /Mausam/: Issues 2-5 of the Indian Climate Change Magazine

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/document/Mausam2-5.pdf

This is the long-awaited latest issue of a magazine aimed at returning the dialogue about climate change and its solutions to the 'public space.' Featured are pathbreaking articles uncovering the reality of UN-sanctioned 'carbon saving' projects in the metals, hydroelectric, wind power, chemicals, waste management and electricity generating sectors, as well as analyses of the political economy of the scientific controversies over the monsoon and over Asia's so-called 'brown cloud'
of pollution.

(7) Uncertainty Markets and Carbon Markets: Variations on Polanyian Themes

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/document/NPE2high.pdf

New markets in uncertainty and in carbon are advertised as making both finance and climate action more cost-effective. Both fail to do so, argues this article forthcoming in the journal /New Political Economy/. Creating the commodity framework necessary to make sense of the notion of 'cost-effectiveness' causes both markets to lose touch with what was supposedly being costed. One consequence is systemic crisis.

The new financial markets expanded credit and multiplied leverage by isolating, quantifying, slicing, dicing and circulating diverse types of uncertainty; an unchecked pursuit of liquidity led to a catastrophic drying up of liquidity. The carbon markets, meanwhile, by identifying global warming solutions with reductions in an abstract pool of tradable emission rights and commensurating them with 'offsets' manufactured by 'quants', ended up blocking prospective historical pathways toward less fossil fuel dependence and thus exacerbated the climate problem. Unsurprisingly, both markets have provoked strong, if diverse and confused, movements of societal self-defence. This pattern of action and reaction is similar to the one seen in movements to commodify land and labour.

(8) Imagining Climate Solutions

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/document/CanDimension.pdf

These days, being a climate activist can easily get you arrested -- or worse. But the bigger danger -- especially for activists in industrialised countries -- may be that of being seduced into expending your imagination on 'solutions' that turn out to be bogus.

(9) The Trouble with Carbon Trading: A Short Debate

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/document/MerrillLynchvsCH.pdf

In this brief exchange from ClimateChangeCorp's website, The Corner House rebuts claims from a Wall Street carbon trader that: (a) the climate problem is a problem of quantity of emissions; (b) carbon trading lowers costs; (c) putting a price on carbon in Europe helps Southern countries reduce emissions; and (d) carbon markets can work in concert with other policies and measures.

(10) Hold the Applause: A Critical Look at Recent EU Climate Claims

http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/pdf/document/HoldtheApplause.pdf

The European Union has recently congratulated itself for being 'on track' to meet its Kyoto Protocol emissions targets. But is it? And, more importantly, is the EU 'on track' in the effort to wean itself off fossil fuels -- which is the point of the Kyoto Protocol and other climate change mitigation efforts? The answer to both questions is no. Misleading accounting has produced an illusion of effective action; the reality, as a careful examination of the figures shows, is more complicated and disturbing.

Left of Labour electoral prospects and strategies in Britain

It seems that elements around the RMT, Communist and Socialist Parties that put together the last-minute NO2EU alliance for the recent Euro elections are now looking at putting together a coalition for the next general election in Britain.

Aside from concerns about the democratic credentials and principles of some of those involved in this project (in light of the way that NO2EU was put together over the heads of much of the RMT rank-and-file), I would say that a much broader discussion is needed on left electoralism. Going once "more unto the breach" with another coalition after the varied degrees of failure of the Socialist Alliance and Respect and split of the SSP without confronting the reasons for the failure of these projects would seem a self defeating exercise for those involved. The current and likely political situation should also be honestly looked at, along with the lack of time for putting together anything beyond local agreements not to have inter-left contests on the electoral field.

As far as I can see at this time, with the possible exception of the Greens and Scots and Welsh Nats (and whilst there are socialist elements/currents in these parties the leaderships are often more social democratic/left liberal) the Left in Britain are likely, in most cases, to go down and go down hard at the next general election, tactical and electoral agreements or not. (Tactical agreements might soften the blow). This is an inevitable result of the British Left's attachment to the Labour Party as internal or external tendencies through repeated deference to the shibboleth of the "organic" Trade Union link.

Once this likelihood is faced then a realistic appraisal of what can be salvaged in the short term and what the longer term strategic tasks should be can be addressed. I think that effort should be put into getting some electable tribunes elected - Salma, Caroline, some of the left Scots and Welsh Civic Nationalists and the handful of electable Labour Lefts behind McDonnell's "change candidates" idea. Such a grouping of MPS should present themselves as a left opposition in Parliament, separate and distinct from the rump Labour Party (which is likely, after defeat, to fall into civil war between different rightist factions). But beyond that the emphasis should be on the work that the Convention of the Left sensibly concluded was necessary - basic grassroots bread and butter coalition working. (Which will become even more vital in the face of the already telegraphed Tory onslaught on the British working class) Much of the left nodded in agreement to this and then went away and continued with the same old sterile sect politics, student recruitment and foreign policy fetishisation.....there is still time.

Mobilise For The G20 Protests!

The G20 protests over the next week offer the first real opportunity for mass protest in Britain around the deepening economic crisis and the ongoing assault on ordinary people being carried out to appease the bankers and finance capitalists.

The neo-liberal beast is wounded, it is time to forge the coalition to begin digging its' grave and fight those who seek its' resurrection.

There are so many events and types of action planned that there is something for everyone - a way for everyone who is affected and concerned to show their anger, unrest and resolve to find better ways of running our world.

There is a massive demonstration planned for Saturday 28th March under the banner Put People First! - For, Jobs Justice and Climate. The broad demands of the march are for decent jobs and public services for all, an end to global poverty and inequality and for the building of a green economy to tackle climate change. Whether the current political and economic systems and their representatives at the G20 would be willing or able to deliver these things is another question! But in that question are the seeds of a debate that needs to be had and the beginnings of a radical critique. I would urge everyone who can to get down to London for what promises to be a massive demo - assembling at Victoria Embankment from 11am.

The Wobblies, the growing section of the IWW in this part of the world promise a vibrant and militant bloc, plus there should be representatives of just about every left of centre, progressive and campaigning organisation from the UK and farther afield.

For those interested in NVDA (non-violent direct action) the Climate Camp are holding a City G20 Climate camp on 1st April in the City outside the European Climate Exchange.

The Stop The War Coalition and CND are raising the peace issue at several points.

For other forms of action a whole range of groups are planning various actions during the summit period.
See Indymedia - main G20 page here and also - here, here, here and here.

The G20 Meltdown Site is Here.

The Alternative G20 meeting website is here.

Similar demonstrations are taking place in Berlin and Frankfurt in Germany, and then on Monday 30th March there is mass action planned in Ireland.

WE WON'T PAY FOR THEIR CRISIS!

Occupy!

Workplace or institutional occupation is a tactic having an international comeback. It is ideally suited to situations where workers have little to lose and can force concessions in the most desperate circumstances. Occupation can be used by students as in the recent wave of University occupations pressuring Israeli links of UK Universities around the Gaza situation, but is also a time honoured method of working class struggle.


Poster for the Movimiento Nacional de Empresas Recuperadas (MNER), at a worker-recovered print shop, Chilavert Artes Gráficas in Buenos Aires, Argentina - from Wikipedia entry by Brian Zbriger.

Info here on recent or ongoing occupations in Ukraine, in Ireland (complete with the reappearance of the Starry Plough flag - the symbol used by James Connolly's Irish Citizen Army in the early 20th Century)and in Chicago, USA.

The plus points of occupation as opposed to other tactics are that it prevents lockouts, it actively prevents any economic activity that is not under the control of the workers, it captures plant and buildings and holds them as a bargaining chip, it is often warmer inside at this time of year (!) and last but not least it prefigures more generalised self management. Let us hope that these good examples begin to spread around the world. Things may be about to get quite exciting.