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Hi It's a pity this thread got sidetracked - and no one from Oz has stepped in. It started with the loopy WSWS piece which is really too wrong to respond to. With the caveat that I am in Mackay QLD and these events are in Melbourne VIC (that's about the distance from Dallas to New York) I'll try and start a conversation. The Socialist Party (SP) candidate Steve Jolly won his position of leadership as a union delegate for the CFMEU and in defending the closure of public schools in Victoria. This was enough to win him a position on the local council where he has staked out a position well to the left of the Green councillors and been an advocate for local issues like public housing. There is no doubt lots to be learned from what he and his comrades have been doing. He is currently standing in the state elections. There is a website http://www.yarrasocialists.net/ and some of his comments are on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6L5yTCSKETU. Hopefully others can add their experience on the ground there. Ignoring the WSWS boilerplate stuff about 'middle class' protests and 'independent movements of working class' etc. The idea that the SP is supportive of the Greens (let alone the ALP) is stupid. I will make a few quick comments - to my knowledge the Socialist Party has shown no particular interest in any of the left regroupment processes. At present its seems like the Labour Party vote is breaking to the left so the fact the CFMEU (for its own reasons) is supporting his campaign (and that of some Greens) is a sign of that change (not as WSWS would have it of Steve's 'opportunism'. I guess if you see the Socialist Party as right wing then that puts you in some pretty strange political territory. He has received coverage - along with other candidates in Green Left Weekly whose supporters are generally more interesting in NPA-style regroupment processes but not SP to my recollection. With the Greens gaining ground and the ALP primary vote in decline there seems to be real shifts in voting in Australia - of course WSWS isn't interested in any analysis of that kind - some brief thoughts here at http://left-flank.blogspot.com/2010/11/taken-at-face-value-labor-is-in-lot-of.html ________________________________________________ Send list submissions to: Marxism@lists.econ.utah.edu Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
