Review: Workers Unite! The International 150 years later

Introduction The editor of Workers Unite! should be congratulated on his aim, namely to make the debates within the International Working Men’s Association (IWMA) accessible for radicals active 150 years after it was founded in 1864. Yet while the book’s subtitle states “150 years later” the introduction is written as if those 150 years do […]

Making anarchist organisations work – Dunbar’s number, administration and care

There is a strong tendency, almost a rule, that anarchist groups tend to fall apart once they have more than 20-30 members in any city or 50 to 60 overall. Or at the very least an organisation that once felt like it worked very well becomes one that feels sluggish and starts requiring too much […]

Meet the new boss: Greek police baton & tear gas migrant demonstration

Yesterday police in Greece batoned and tear gassed protesters outside one of the migrant detention camps now being run by Syriza. Militant protests both inside and outside the camp resumed last weekend after the suicide of a Pakistani migrant, Nadim Mohammed who had been held for 18 months, released and then returned to the Amygdaleza […]

The origins and development of the movement against Water Charges in Ireland – audio & video

A talk about the development & future of the campaign against water charges, a mass campaign of resistance to privitisation of water and an austerity tax that has emerged in southern Ireland involving hundreds of thousands of people. Watch the video  

The Jobstown dawn Garda raids against the Water Charges movement

This article combines accounts of the raids morning after morning early in February when in retaliation for a sit in directed against a Labour Party Tainiste the Garda arrested 21 people over five days from Feb 9th 2015. [Italian translation of this article] Day 1: Shocking news this morning as we hear that Garda have […]

As ECB tells Greeks they voted wrong – will Syriza pull the temple down?

Do we live in an economy or in a society? Last night Europe’s central bankers sent the clear message they expect us to be the well behaved slaves of an economy rather than equals in a society. Less then two weeks after the Greeks had elected an anti-austerity government the ECB in effect told them […]

After the election of Syriza in Greece – Power is not in Parliament

Today, across Europe, the left is excited by the likelihood of Syriza topping the polls in the Greek election. Some on the left have gone so far as to suggest the election itself will mark the end of austerity policies, in the terminology of the Anglo left, an end to the idea that There Is […]

Why is online conflict so much more disruptive of organising?

I’ve written a good deal about the positive organisational opportunities created by social networking. Here I’m going to look at one of the strong negatives, the intensification and deepening of conflict as a result of online disagreement . This results in fracturing movements even resulting in people unable to be physically in the same space […]