Dr Bob James has researched and written a major new study: CRAFT, TRADE OR MYSTERY: Part One - Britain from Gothic Cathedrals to the Tolpuddle Conspirators available at: http://www.takver.com/history/benefit/ctormys.htm From the Preface: Freemasons, Trade Unions and the Tragedy of History The tragedy is at least five-fold: First - students of history have been denied an adequate account of the 'lodge movement' and its social context, with the result that it is invisible to the general populace and researchers in many fields have been denied the challenge of seeing Freemasons, 'trade unions' and 'friendly societies' as fruit of the same tree; Second - the idea of mutual aid, the impact of its once wide-spread existence, its origins and its demise have all been rendered invisible to the detriment of our understanding of ourselves. The clearest example of historico-cultural consequences of this process is the tradition of the 'true believer', the worker who allegedly chose to be disciplined by the collectivity, the 'trade union', at the precise moment she/he became aware of his/her individual freedom; Third - social commentators have advocated and governments have legislated flawed, indeed destructive 'solutions' to social needs, eg, the State-regulated health and welfare system; and Fourth - we have all been denied an adequate understanding of ourselves and of our potentialities, because the history we have been taught lacks depth, complexity, ambiguity and resonance. Fifth - mis-understanding the failure of the particular model of 'mutual aid' dominant since industrialisation has prevented practitioners (lodge members) and their observers (historians) from redressing it in the direction of systems theory, ie replacing linear with integrated perspectives. Thus, social theory has pendulumed between goal-oriented models, 'free trade' and 'protectionism'. Other articles of interest are available at the Freemasons, Friendly Societies and Trade Unions Index: http://www.takver.com/history/benefit/index.htm -- with solidarity Takver Takver's Initiatives - http://www.takver.com Radical Tradition, an Australasian History Page Visit Anarres Books - http://www.anarres.org.au -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Archived at http://www.cat.org.au/lists/leftlink/ Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
