Royal Mail’s assault and our political tasks

As expected, attempts to broker a deal between Royal Mail and the Communication Workers Union have been unsuccessful. Mike Macnair examines why Royal Mail, encouraged by the government, has been determined to push ahead with confrontation, and looks at the implications of this decision

There is a risk - one that would not be at all surprising, as it is normal to the British political cycle - that the last months of this Labour government will be characterised by large-scale industrial disputes and substantial disruption. ... more

Letters
Open goal; Faith left; Damn it; Decolonisable; Root cause; Commie cowards; National socialism; Open source; Needled

Post workers and students unite
Building solidarity in Manchester. Chris Brandler reports

London support
Paul Demarty reports a postal workers solidarity meeting

Second-rate response to second-rate führer
Communists have no desire to sign up to the bourgeois consensus, writes Eddie Ford

Timely questioning of no-platform fetish
James Turley sees SWP politics reduced to ultra-shrill self-parody

Triumvirate’s reorientation faces Left Platform rebellion
The SWP leadership around Martin Smith has retrospectively formulated its differences with deposed leader John Rees. Peter Manson examines its downgrading of ‘united front work’ and undemocratic obsession with secrecy

AfPak strategy brings new disaster
It has been total war for civilian non-combatants, writes Jim Moody

Looking to 2010
Mohsen Sabbagh reports discussions on the Labour Party, postal workers, and students

What kind of landmark?
Is StWC’s leadership being courted? Caitriona Rylance attended its latest demo

Promise
Robbie Rix wants those contributions as we go into November

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Previous issues

Activities

Fighting Fund

Keep you posted!

Robbie Rix welcomes another increase in our internet readership

The success of the last few months' fighting funds looks set to continue in November. I can announce a brilliant start, with no less than £387 already in the kitty.

Of course, a good slice of this takes the form of start-of-the-month standing order donations (17 of them, totalling £262, in fact). But there will be rather less of those for the next few weeks. In addition I've just received TR's usual monthly £60 cheque - it's so regular (even with the postal strikes) that it's as good as a standing order.

Finally, we got four handy contributions via our website - £20 each from JS and PJ, £15 added to his subscription to the paper from MZ, plus a tenner from MP. PJ tells me: I've been meaning to make this donation for a while, but have been at the mercy of the capitalists. I know the feeling, comrade. For his part, JS specifies that his is a donation towards the new hardware. I'll be down PC World over the weekend, comrade.

Further good news comes with another increase in our internet readership - we had 16,249 visitors last week. This figure has been increasing steadily since our old website was hit early in the year, but, with the new site gradually being filled out, more and more web readers are now returning.

Most of our archives will be back up hopefully within the next week or so, but unfortunately there is a period of about 18 months that will be missing at first. Their restoration will require a period of "grunt work" from a team of comrades.

Perhaps I shouldn't say this during the current CWU dispute, but I'll keep you posted!

Click here to download a standing order form - regular income is particular important in order to plan ahead. Even £5/month can help!
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