We're not in this boat together.

-

Guest Commentary: Louis Riel

And so it begins...
Somehow, despite John Key's optimism, the real world is arriving on Aotearoa's doorstep. Today, workers in Wellsford and Nelson have faced massive layoffs--105 jobs lost at Irwin Industrial Tools, and 60 at Nelson Pine Industries. This on top of the nearly 350 other jobs lost nationwide in less than one week.I read this news piece today right about the same time I was reading some other blog entries on last week's Job Summit (what was the purpose of that again?) where I was told that "We are all in this boat together". If that's the case, then can somebody tell me why I haven't heard about any CEO's facing redundancies? Why have I not heard about any bankers (not bank staff, mind you) facing redundancies? And why don't they seem very worried?


Let me tell you how it is in the boat that I'm sitting in.I'm employed, and for now I'm in a "safe" position. That's for now--I can see how things could change overnight. Many of my fellow passengers are, however, sitting on leaks. I've got neighbors who have already been made redundant, and a new job is proving to be the haystack needle. And of the ones that are still employed, they are all starting to get more than a little worried too. And none of us, not a one, seems to be able to find the bail bucket. We also don't see Johnny and his crew anywhere on board.So when I get told how we're all in one lovely egalitarian ship, and simply facing some rough water, I get pissed off. And so should every other worker out there--things are rough enough already, we don't need to be insulted on top of everything else!


We on the socialist left oppose this placating position being put forth by the capitalists, and stand by the mantra "we won't pay for your crisis. As such, I am going to openly call for the occupation the Irwin factory in Wellsford. If anyone there has to go, it should be the CEO and any other over-priced directors at the top that do nothing but take. They have proved that they don't know how to run a sustainable business, so let's turn it over to the workers instead and let them show the capitalists how to do it instead! Let's stand up, and fight back!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Jacinda Ardern’s Resignation Is Anything But Simple - It’s Time For The Left To Organise

-
Image
Interview with Joe Carolan by Jennifer Pannell. The sudden resignation of Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister of New Zealand and Labour Party Leader, on the 19th January this year was a shock to many around the world. She was held up by the global mainstream press as a beacon of strong and empathetic leadership in the face of numerous crises throughout her two terms. In her emotional resignation speech, she gave little hint as to why she was stepping down, stating “having reflected over summer I know I no longer have that bit extra in the tank to do the job justice. It’s that simple.” ' As a socialist, Joe, what’s your analysis of why Ardern resigned? There is a narrative that as a female Prime Minister, she experienced vicious, relentless trolling - death threats and attacks from a deeply misogynistic far-right led mob, who thought she was a dictator, a tyrant, a Communist. This is similar to the ideology used by the far-right in many other countries; in America, in Ireland, etce
Read more

Commentary fron an American member of Socialist Aotearoa

-
Image
My Two Cents By Laura Hardin As with any presidential election, the American pubic will once again be asked to head to the polls to test which campaign slogans proved more effective. We can either vote for the fairy tale of “hope and change” or we can cast our vote for the “Maverick’s from Main Street.” The McCain/Palin ticket has just recently been trying to lure the middle class with their new Main Street myth, an attempt to portray themselves as sympathizers who understand how this economic crisis is affecting the majority of America. In the Vice Presidential debate last Thursday Palin said that credit markets is where "mainstreeters like me" would feel the effects of the meltdown. And earlier last week, presidential nominee John McCain said of the bailout, “The first thing I’d do is say, ‘Let’s not call it a bailout. Let’s call it a rescue,’ Because it is a rescue. It’s a rescue of Main Street America.” You know what you’ll find on most Main Streets in most American towns
Read more

The Rainbow Rejects the Thin Blue Line

-
Image
While the French are rising up against their government and being confronted with armed police and tanks , Auckland’s queer community are in the midst of a small battle of their own.  Thursday December 6th saw the debate about whether or not to allow an oppressive force to march in full uniform in a parade commemorating the struggles of the queer community against a colonial state reach its zenith. Last month, after multiple opportunities for community consultation , the Board given the task of organising February 2019’s Pride Parade let police know that they are welcome to march alongside the LGBTQ+ community, under the one condition that, if they choose to do so, they are not welcome to wear their uniforms. This kicked off a series of melodramatic but necessary events which have seen the withdrawal of the Police, military, and several major corporate sponsors from the Parade .  For some reason, this is considered controversial. The culmination of this supposed crisis
Read more