back 2 front #4 by yan tree

ack2front # 4

Box F, 67 Tannaghmore RD, Ballynahinch, BT24 8NU, UK

back2front@riseu p.net

elcome to back2front #4 and just in time to usher in e tearful end of Cheney's Fourth Reich, and what a nch and Judy show it's been! Head puppet Bush, ho couldn't read an auto-cue if it killed him, has ecome a figure more despised than our old friends ixon and Reagan and as he goes off back to his solar

owered ranch to powder his nose and contemplate hat suit to wear to the next Bohemian Grove shindig, e Middle East lies in tatters, the world economy is in ieces and the climate teeters precariously on the brink. t never mind boys and girls, president-elect Obama, nder the good guidance of that figurehead of global uality Zbigniew Brzezinski, will save us all by the hief light of Christ and a fistful of oily dollars! Yes d, there's no better time to place all of your telligence in the capable hands of corporate brown ses and mildly shrug off the fact that you've been ped once again by the illusion of two-party politics. awd bless AmeriKKKa! ikes we're already panning young Barrack and he sn't even set foot in the White House. Not very fair ou might be thinking but if you read 82F#3 you'll no ubt remember Brzezinski as one of the architects of e Trilateral Comission whose central perogative has een to secure the resources of the Eurasian land ass by all means necessary in order to further US conomic interests. You might also recall Obama eferring to the slaughter in Babylon as "a dangerous listraction" and how he hopes lo "take the fight to Al eda". Hmmm, looks like the anti-war swing vote didn't ork too good. eanwhile unelected PM Gordon Brown, as ever his n man, has followed his baseball-loving comrades, nd flung enough money to stabalise the entire NHS nd the Education system for the forseeable future, at is banking friends instead. Hurrah for stiff upper lips nd good old fashioned British decency - the fuzzyuzzies may be dying of starvation Gordy but the anking bonuses will all be paid and there'll be no hortage of G&T at the old boy's Christmas bash. erhaps when you're patting yourself on the back at r next self-contgratulatory Masonic Lodge you'll pare a thought, rather than a pound, for the billions in economic poverty by your fiscal cunning and tatesm an-like approach. aybe you'll mention it to your G8 buddies as a joking side when you're next under seige from those bad lac bloc types, rather than the usual boring old blether ver that scuffle in Babylon. So how did this economic ge into the red, literally come about? Well, when u were bending over for W. taking it on the buttuck Queen and Country did he mention that he'd overtimated the cost of his mis-adventures in the Middle ast by at least 50 times? Yup, $3 trillion big ones to the Coca-Cola flowing into Afghanistan and the oil out of lraq. The mega-bucks spent on the vasion each week were enough to wipe out illiteracy ld-wide according to Nobel-winning economist ph Stiglitz but what the hell does he know? yhoo 5 years later the war on terror has become the ond most expensive in history after Nam. The US entral Bank thus responded to the massive financial rain by flooding the market with cheap credit. This top ea led to mass borrowing, hyper-consumption and a

housing boom in the US, followed by the UK and elsewhere. Now what happens when you're paying a mortgage 20 times the actual value of yout'house? That's right kids - negative equity - people can't pay and the economy takes a nose-dive into recession, dragging the rest of the world, poorest first, kicklng and screaming with it. War's a tricky game, folks, so don't try this at home. Poor old Gordon Brown has obviously Cecided to continue in the footsteps of Tony " Faith and Globalisation" Bliar after all. An increase in troops here, a new nuclear submarine there (â&#x201A;Ź3.2 billion) and what about a few more aircraft carriers (t3.9 billion,1to help ease international tensions? Why not get our o d chums BAE Systems in on the deal too while you re at it? Regular readers will no doubt recall the Campaign Against the Arms Trade forced a corruption pi'obe against BAE following exposure of the ver-y doCgy A/ Yamamah arms deal with the Saudi Royal family, but lawlords decided that probing a good business deal which will lead to profitable mass slaughter was 'not in the public's interest'. \A/ho are these public anyway? Back in lreland unelected Taisoeach Brian "Biffo" Cowen, who took over in 2008 when back-hander Bertie made a quick get-away, has had a spot of bother after his righter-wing-than-thou budget garnered the wrath of tens of thousands of pensioners, teachers and other protestors. Biffo (or Big ignorant fucker from Offaly as he is affectionately known) isn't too popular as was seen from the vote against the Treaty of Lisbon, which he even admitted he hadn't really read. Of course Blf is only too happy to bend over backwards in the corporate boardroom and is currently giving away natural resources for free, so if you're a multinational behemoth, shuffle over to the forty shades of green for a slice of the pie before the people kick his fat ass back to that pub in Offaly where he was supposedly raiseC. ln other news the British Nazi Party, purveyors of green politics tainted with white power, have managed to get their entire membership list posted online. Alarmingly their numbers went into 5 figures.. er... just, so the other 60 million UK citizens had better watch out! But seriously these cowards always stand the chance of getting a seat ortwo in a political vacuum so if they or any of their allies are organising in your area... that's right phone a policeman and make a compiaint. This works every time apparently. For those of you who have been wondering where we've been, here in B2F land a new record label has

been launched and many plans are afoot. This issue

was meant to co-incide with the 40'n anniversary of the Paris Uprising of 1968 when situationists and students demonstrated the validity of anarchism but demanding

the impossible isn't always easy. For those of you booking holidays we recommend Strasbourg in Apri1. Gordy and the boys will be there celebrating 60 years of NATO. Perhaps you'd prefer the Sardinian island of Maddalena where our friends the G8 will be toasting their self-importance later in the year . Remember vrnal went down last time ltaly hosted this tea party?

Thanks to Eric Drooker for the cover artwork to Sean oi Protest Zine for help with lay-out, to Caroline for proofing and to everyone who contributed to th s rss.-le Contributions to the next issue are welcome as 3 ,','a is Now enough of this passive consumption, po si th::: boots and iron the balaclavas foi-time is tight anc there's a world to win!

200812OO9

Front Cover Product ons

ATMOSPHERE BAD The Burning Ouestion f lo I W rm in o

The 2l" century has brought with it the greatest potentialthreat to our survivalin history. This very alarming statement. and others like it, is the subject of ongoing controversy between those who accept the reality of climate change and those who do not. To cornplic-te matteri there are those who accept the phenomenon of globalwarm ing but consider it a result of naturalcauses indicating that periods of warming have occurred throughout history without human interference. The problem rvith this thinking is that jt paints humanity out of the pictu re as if our co llective endeavor has no globalimpact. lt also creates an uncomfortable complacency, for even if this is true it does not mean that the scare is over and we can get on with our lives like the good litile sheep we are.

generation, as well as factory fumes and those given off by cars. The acid rain phenomenon is now an : ;:'.'J

:';

: ; i: ;x U,"tlT"J? o u",."

effeci o n roca r ecolgilarticurarly across Sca nd inavi-a, China. Canada and parts of the Ufiited States. The Sulphur Em issions Reduction Protocol was approved in 1985.

lam alarmed by some opinions l've

heard, often from those w ho dism iss clim ate sc a rem o n gerlng", co nte nt to follow the opinions of others for the sake of kudos. This essay intends to look at available data and no matter what your opinion on the subject it is hoped you m ight agree that scientific investigation of this sort is the only way to arrive at an opinion that is worth consideration.

The example of acid rain clearly shows how human activity can affect the climate but one of the main difficulties in understanding human implication in globalwarming is the matter of scale. We can understand how our activity causes localised pollution but in order to appreciate how our activity causes climate change it is necessary to consider how Earth's atmosphere actually works, how our activity m ight alter its composition and what effects might th rs ca u

se.

Firstly it is important to differentiate our term inology. The term 'global warming'for example refers to the rece nt period of wa rm ing (since 1 950) and its projected effect and establishes human involvement. The U N uses the term 'climate change'lo represe nt change d irectly attrib utab le to human activity while the term clim ate va ria b itity' cci nside rs w a rm in g as a result of naiural phenomena. will'use these descriptions for the sake of clarity. '

It is understandable that some maY

accept climate variability as the soie cause of globalwarming given the resulting greenwash ing by transnatio nal corporations and their exploitation of the situation. This blatant cashing in on fear in the shadow of disaster is the true face of modern capitalism but to cynically dismiss climate change solely because of this displays a fundamental lack of consideration for the bigger picture. l'll return to this later but for I'd like to look at Earth's climate; how it actually works and the recent developments that have led to an unprecedented rate of global warming,

The Acid Rain Phenomenon ln 1 852 the Scottish chem ist Robe rt Angus Smith discovered a connection between pH change in rainwater and atm ospheric pollution. (Potentia

hydrogen or'pH'is a scale used to measure the acidity or alkalinity of a substance). Smith noted that

What's Up There?

increases in sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides since the ind ustrial revolution due to the mass burning of coalhad led to an acidifying of rain especially in highly industrialised areas. lt would take more than a centurv however before scientists began'to look at the phenomena seriously with the lerm'acid rain' being coined in 1972, Readings taken from fog and rainwater have shown a reading of as little as pH2-4 (the same acidity as vinegar) and the connection with such readings and coalburning facilities are well-established, lt was thought the use of tall smoke siacks would reduce localised pollution but thrs actually led to a regional atm ospheric circu latio n w hich literally pushed the pollution elsewhere, often into mountainous regions where the acid rain caused considerable defoliation and woodland death. I have personally witnessed this in Sweden in 1986. The cause of acid rain was initially disputed because natural deposits of an acidic nature had been discovered in glacialice dating back millennia. Some scientists held that clim ate variability was the cause of acid rain citing volcanic em issions and other

naturalphenomena. While this is certainly true there was a problem of scale and continuity. Volcanic activity for example is erratic, The principle cause of atmospheric pH change is compounds of sulPhur and nitrogen in high concentration over a steady period of time caused by the burning of sulphur-conta ining coal and other fossil fuels for electricity

Earth's atmosphere consists of a layer of assorted gases which surround the planet, maintained by atmospheric pressu!'e as a result of surface gravity. The atmosphere of earth is directly related to the by-products of the flora and fauna it sustains and other natural phenomena. Earth's atmosphere consists ol 78,08o/o nitrogen, 20.95o/o oxygen, 1ok water vapour, 0.93% argon,0.038%o carbon dioxide, and traces of hydrogen, helium, neon, methane, krypton, oxides of nitrogen, xenon and of volatile pollutants. lt is this balance that allows life tc exist on the planet. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that long term and concentrated changes to the balance of gases in the atmosphere couid be detrimental to life on earth. The example of acid rain, now an undisputed scientific fact, serves to show what happens when excesses of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are pumped into the atmosphere by human acitivity. But vuhat effect is generated when we change the balance.of gasses that are invo lved 4n clim ate tem perature a nd what a relth?m p licatio n s?

The Greenhouse Effect f he 'greenhouse effect'was

discovered by the French scientist Joseph Baptiste Fourier in 1824. Fourier outlined the relationship between atmosphere and the temperature of ihe planet. His worlfi was teken further by the Swedish [ .-le chemrst Svante Arrhenrus who rn 1DOI speculated thai changes in the lev+E of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere co u ld substa ntially affect surface tem perature. The G reenhouse effect as it became known is not disputed but accepted as fact but how does it actually work?

Earth receives energy from the sun in the form of radiation. The planet reflects 30% of this radiation while the remaining 70o/o is absorbed causing warming of land masses, oceans and atmosphere- ln order to maintain stability of temperature absorbed radiation must be balanced by the

certain quarters was brought to bear here. Later the IPCC reported that by 'very likely'they meant 90% or greater p ro ba b

ility,

The main thrust of the IPCC rePort was that climate variability due to fluctuations in the naturalsolar cycle,

Thermal rBdlaJion into spBce: 195

Directly radiated from surface: 4O Greenlrouse gas

absorption;350 Heat and energy in the atmospl-lere

lThe+

Greenhouse Effect

Earth's land and ocean surface warrrred to an average of 14'C energy reflected backwards. This avoids exti'eme increase and decrease in temperature which would otherwise have considerable impact upon the climate. This is known as the 'steady state' It is the radiation reflected from earth in the form of long infra-red waves that \,varms the atmosphere. This radiation is easily absorbed by greenhouse

gases such as carbon dioxide, water vapour, methane and ozone because these gases can absorb such longer wavelengths as infra-red O ur atmosphere is also warmed by the late nt he at of the p la net. T he atm osphere radiates longwave radiation both upward to space and downward to the surface. The downward part of this longwave radiation emitted by the atmosphere is the greenhouse effect as shown in the diagram on the next page. Therefore an inci'ease in greenhouse gases creates the potentialfor inc;reased absorption of long wave infra-red radiation which in turn creates a rise in tem perature. The greenhouse effect is a widelyaccepted phenomenon. What is now in dispute is whether the global warm ing we are now undergoing is caused by climate change or by climate variability.

The Heated Debate ln '1 988 the U.N. established the lntergovernmental Panel on C limate Change to investigate this dispute. The IPCC concluded that "most of the observed increase in globally averaged temperatures since the midtwentieih century is very likely due to the observed increase in a nth ra po ge n ic (m a n -m ade ) gree n ho u se gas co nce ntratlons". T h is carefully worded observation uses the word'most' acknowledging the role of clim ate variabilty but avoids f ull culpability by the term 'very likely'. One suspects that pressure from

volcanic activity or ocean climate variabily for exam ple had been responsible for a period of m inor warming since pre-industrial times until around 1950 but since then global warm ing has been largely manmade, All the major national academies of science in the developed West endorsed the report and were soon followed by the vast majority of scientists around the world (http://e n.w ikiped ia org/wiki/Scie ntif ico p in io

n_o n_clim ate_ch a n g e).

However there was not consensus. The reasons for this are several but it should be considered that while some scientists may have disagreed with the m inutae of the IPCC report this d id not necessarily m ake them skeptics as such. There lS consensus that global warm ing is a reality but the dispute is whether or not it is manmade. The problem with who or what is causing globalwarm ing often detracts from the fact it is still happening and it has the potentialto eradicate much of whatwe know as civilisation. A dim inshing number of ciirnate skeptics continue to argue th the period of globalwarming we are undergoing is a naturaloccurance th will eventually subside, just as it has done in the past. Climate change skeptics argue that periods of heating are often followed by periods of cooling in naturalcycles such as the climate variability of preindustrialtimes which led to a period of warming and then cooling in the 1950's, suggesting the situation wili self-resolve. lt is a dangerous position to take. Others skeptics cry that scientists have not investigated ALL potentia I clim ate variabilities or that the ice-caps have been melting since before the current phase of global warming (and thererfore cannot be attributable to it) but these arguments do little beyond detracting from the extreme seriousness of the situation. It is also of interest to note the role of

transnationaicorporations in a lof this. According to a report from the U n on of Concerned Scie ntists (www.ucsusa,org) a nd others Exxo nMobil gave some $l6million tc various organisations such as the lnternationa I Policy Netwo tk lo' cre ate confusion over global warming' a nd to make the 'body of climate change skepfics bigger than it actually was'. Exxon-Mobil have also been noted for recommending key personel in the Bush administration and a US congress famous fcr its rejection of the Kyoto Protocol The Kyoto Protocolwas brought into force in 2005 fo llow ing the IPCC revelation of climate change and initial international negotiations n 1997 The protocol has the object ve of reducing greenhouse gases espec a y COz in order to curb further anthropogenic climate change and has since been endorsed by 181 countries U nfo rtu n ate ly th is o n ly co ve rs 6a% of greenhouse gas emissions. Tne US, the biggest polluter, has signed cut not ratif ied the ag reem e nt B oth ihe US and Australia rejected KYoto on econom ic g roir nds citing r.rnemployment as a major factor Centralto Kyoto is the'cap and trade' systern were COz emissions are capped at certain levels and excess can be traded in the form of carbon credits thus creating a globalcarbon economy. The Washington Declaration of 2007 \/as an attem pt to create a successor to Kyoto. -;But how are human activities

'implicated as the major source of gi'eenhouse gases? WhY do the vast majority of governments and scientists now accept clrmate change as a re a

lity?

Human lmplications lhave already established the

JUiU o (l) LI

(5 q,

L IE

Greenhouse Gas

Naturallv Occurrinq or of Hufiran Origin? Naturally occurring

Coz Carbon Dioxide

Human origin

Naturally occurring CH+ Methane

NzO

atmospheric CO2.

Volcanic activity Breathing

Poles Apart

Burning of fossil fuels, deforestation Burning and rotting without the presence of oxygen e.g rice paddies and cattle grazing

Human origin

Landfill burning, deforestation

Human origin

Use of chemical fertilizers and burning of fossil fuels and wood

Nitrous oxide

cFc

rise in tem perature and a greater overall greenhouse effect. This effect can only be reversed by depletion of

Source

Entirely human origin

hlorofluorocarbons

lndustrial Chemicals Refrigeration Air ccnditioning

d;'oughts, farnine and other d isturba nces pa rticua rly affecting developing natrons. Because El N ifio d rives warm currents of water it is also connected to increased thunderstorm activity but the overall mechanism isn't fuliy understood. The effects of global warming are now thought to be an influence however.

Aerosols

HCFC

Entirely human origin Hydro-

Less damaging CFC's Sarne type of products

Chlorofluorocarbons

concentration of gases in Earth's atmosphere and looked at what happens when this'steady state'is altered with the exarmple of acid rain. I have also shown how the greenhouse effect is created when there is an increase in greenhouse gases. The problematic greenhouse gases are ca rbo n d ioxide, m eth a ne, n itro us oxide, chloroflouocarbons (C FCs) and hydroflurocarbons. To digress slightly CFCs are enitrely man-made as is nitrous oxide and these gases are im plicated in depletion of the ozone layer. The ozone layer is reposible for absorbing some of ihe more harmfulradiaition from the sun but CFC pollution at one point created holes in the ozone layer covering 5% of total area- An internationa ban on CFCs and related products known as the Montrâ&#x201A;Źal Protocolsaw a slowing do\ryn of thts depletion. O nce aga rn we see evidence of what happens lvith an imbalance of greenhouse gases and yet despite'fixing'the problem it wil be severallifetimes before the ozone layer is expected to be fully restored. The chart on the next page shows the various greenhouses gases and their origins. Note the bottom three are entirely attributable to human origin while the upper two, and the ones causing the most damage, are attributable to both hum an activity and naturalphenomena. But our activity is also capable of exacerbating natural phenomena for example in mass scale monoculture (nitrous oxide) and intensive-farm ing of anim als (methane). Volcanic activity is responsible for a mere '1 % of modern carbon emissions.

certain times but it is thought the spread of piants, which absorb COz, helped to ci'eate a negative feedback system to counter the imbalances and create c lrn ate stability - hence the importance of rainforests and peat bogs for example.

We know that the fluctuations

atmospheric carbon during these periods were the result of climate variab ility. W hile clim ate variability creates carbon emissions 20 times greater than climate change does these are thought to be carefully balanced over time by naturalsinks sucn as weathering of continental rocks and photosynthesis of carbon comp.ounds by plants and marine piankion The balance achieved meant that CO2 remained between 24a-250 ppm (parts per million) since the ast ice age and the beginnings of r-,C u stria lisation. C urre ntly CO: leve ls stand at 380 ppm. The continued corporaie abuse of the environrnent for resources has meant a steady decline in carbon sinks which means that climate variability is then affected directly by this activity. What transpires is increased global warming by climate variabilty which has been affected by human activity. This is then compounded by industrial poliution, land mismanagement and the other centralsources of climate change. The current modelof global warming may then be a combination of climate change and climate variability but our influence is central to both. A specialreport by the IPCC estimates CO2 growth pattei-ns ra ng ing f rom 541 -970 ppm with in the next 1 00 years!

We know that an increase Studies of ice-core deposits revealthe variations in greenhouse gases and tem perature over the last 800,000 years. Data reveals high periods of carbon dioxide concentration at

When global temperature increases ice at the poles melts. W ith the retreat of the ice landwater takes its place but landwater is less relflective than ice and thus absorbs more solar radiation increasing temperature again. The influx of cold meltwater into the oceans is thought to have an adverse affect on the G ulf Stream and North Atiantic Drift responsible for influencing European climate. ln Pacif ic waters the El N ino phenomenon is strongly influenced by fluctuations rn ocean tempeiature. El Niho is responsible for floods,

greenhouse gases, especially CO2, leads io a rise in temperature. This in turn leads to fu(her evaporation of water, Water vapour is a greenhouse gas so this in turn leads to a further

The effect of global vrarm ing on melting iee-caps and glacialretreat is better-undertood. The pace of glacial retreat is now occurring at a far greater rate than initia!ly anticipated leading to subsequent rises in sea water levels. la 2Q04, the Natural Resources Defence Council declared "the polar ice cap as a whole is shrinking. lmages from NASA safe//lles show that the area of permanent ice cover is contracting at a rate of 9 percent each decade. lf this trend continues. su,n'? mers in the Arctic could become ice-free bv the end of

lce Caps Are Retreating Rapidly Another result of this continued acceleration will be increased water evaporation causing potentially drastic changes in precipitation, leading to flooding for some and drought for others. Again this will have a knock on

effect with increase in ferocity and frequency of extreme weather events. As well as all of this there are great reserves of meihane gas trapped in the ice which are being released as the caps melt, contributing to further tem perature rises. Sattelite im ages from NASA and Google Earth show the ice cap retreat; shocking but clear and irrefutable evidence of the true state of the situation. Rising sea levels are already taking their toll. Levels around the UK are now 1Ocm higher than they were 100 years ago but it is thoug ht they could increase by upwards of 90cm by 2080 accordrng to the Environment Agency. Rising tides will also cause the salination of estuaries and aquifers resulting in diminished fresh water supplies.

GlobalMeltdown An lndependent colum nist reported the disappearance of the inhabited island of Lohachara off the lndian subcontinent in 2006. Uninhabited islands and atolls in the Pacific had already become submerged and disappeared by 1998 during what had been the warmest year on record. Locachara, which once had a population of 10,000 who were forced to flee, is startling evidence of what is now actually happening. The disappearance of the remote island was only noticed by satellite. Other islands off Papua New Guinnea and elsewhere face the same fate. ln 2005 the lnuit peoples filed a legalpetition against the USA saying its climate policy violates their human rights. They claim to be facing extinction because of melting ice casued by greenhouse gas emissions. Other coastlines will be drastically altered if this process is allowed to continue. There is now irrevocable evidence that the mean temperature of the earth is climbing. The 1 0 warmest years on record have all been recorded since 1998. In 2003 almost 20,000 people are thought to have died across Europe as a result of a heatwave which smashed temperature records. G laciers m elted across the Alps casuing flash flooding in Switzerland. lmportant crops such as wheat wer"e hit extremely hard with "/o of crop loss reported in Ukraine and Moldova alone with its own im plications for global econom y.

Weathering the Storm Rising temperatures can also lead to extreme weather events. lncreased temperatures can cause collapse of volcanic islands and landslides which in turn create tsunam is (waves that race across the ocean floor). ln 2004 a megatsunamiwas caused by an undersea earthquake in the Indian ocean killing almost a quarter of a million people across 11 countries but there is no clear evidence to link one of the g reatest d isasters in history to clmate change (or indeed to new toys being employed by the Pentagon). 6

Only months later in 2005, the warmest year on record to date, Hurricane Katrina destroyed most of New Orleans although global warming is not required for hurricanes of such ferocity as the hurricanes of 1935 and 1969 suggest, ,Again there is no clear evidence to connect the event to ciim ate cha nge b ut w hat is accepted is that hurricanes draw strength from heat in ocean surface waters and we know that surface temperatures have risen over '1 "F in the last '1 00 years therefore g lobal warm ing did increase the probability of such an event occurring and increased its magnitude. The journal Nature recently produced a study showing that the lifetime and intensity of storms has increased over the last 30 years due to rising mean temperatures.

We can now see that although we might not be able to directly link these natural disasters conclusively we can appreciate that their scale and regularity removes them from the 'freak of nature 'category. We also know that fossil fuel corporations are very concerned about the possible fall in profits if further CO2 capping is enforced by international law and evidence is mounting of their lobbying

io orevent such a situation by distorting the facts around climate change. ln othei-words they are risk ng our future for their own gain. perhaps unable to realise that ihey ri,ron't have a nything tc spend their profits on if these trends continue. They continue to speculate for oil and gas reserves in areas once covered by ice sending conspiracy theorists wild

Climate change is not a consPiracY theory however. The mounting evidence from numerous quarters in the scientific world has led to a gradual acceptance of the phenomenon across the planet. The debate is now beginning to change from the causes as to how we might dealwith it; how we might reduce the levels of greenhouse gases directly attributable to rising temperatures.

Political feet-dragging has left many envirome nta lists concerned that the government is not doing enough and not acting with the necessary haste, as if that m ig ht com e as a surPrise The situation is a consequence of the corporate lobbying of Western states determined to put their own interests above all else irrespective of the conseq uences

:-r$E

/.1 \

t!, ffi

\FIRES

:._-jJ

--" I " \i::r;-

:; 1r!.

led us here in the first place. According to Greenpeace, under Tony Bliar the UK began construction of coalplants in developing nations and because the energy supplied was not in British territory then Britain m ight be seen to be upholding Kyoto. lndeed there is little sign that government is doing anything to encourage energyefficient vehicles, renewable energy, lighting and building techniques

"-i,-...* ..u-:,:--_ , / ,i: :,1 i: I

beyo nd toke n ism

[ii:- ,.rii;;r.

There's No Government Like No Government The UK government has advised us to turn down our thermostats and change our lightbulbs while simultaneously considering new coal and nuclear power stations. W hile nuclear power may be carbon free it carries incredible risk potential by maintaining the technology that resulted in the bombs at Nagasaki and Hiroshima or the risk of deadly accidents such as Chernobyl, not to mention the implications of radiation leakage or the disposing of extremely hazardous toxic waste. The reason this is even being considered, and it includes support from environmentalist David Bellamy, Gaia hypothesis author James Lovelock and others you might not expect, is thought to be an indication of the seriousness of the situation Governments are basing their strategies on climate models, that is complex software programs capable of predicting the state of the cl m ate overa period of time There are thought to be 15 such r,rode s in operation today across the world but

they have slrght variances in pararnerers and will probably never agree The amount of variations in such models offers the same prob iem s for weather-forecasters w ho often get it wrong especially in long term fcrecasts There are just too many variables for accuracy. However all the models do come to the same conclusion - climate change Predictions include the rising of tem perature at night, during the vvinter months and at the Foles. Models are predrcting a rise of between 3'and 9' within the next century with numerous consequences, some of which have beer discussed above.

But as Western governments are nerally seen as the adm in p artme nts for corporate globalisation there is a tendency to brush the dirt under the politicalcarpet if that dirt threatens corporate profit ln this nstance tokenism and short-term solutions'(e.g nuclear power) are often the order of the day. ln fact there is an overall tendency to suggest that we can somehow continue the resource drain to supply demand (and demand supplying) and maintain the current economic system when conversely it is that very system thal ge oe

L '-h{.dd*n':L

qE*r-*

*, *'$*rl;

Despite vows and promises CO2 levels actually rose a further 3% between 20A6-2007 according to the LA Times resulting in several scientists adm itting the iertainty of worst-case scenarios. The report also places C hina as the biggest CO2 producer. But because China, and lndia too, are considered developing nations they are not bound by Kyoto. ln August 2008 two scientists from the S cripps lnstitutio n of Ocea nography and UC San Diego published research showing that even if humans stopped generating greenhouse gases immediately, the world's average tem perature would "most likely" increase by 4.3"F by the end of this century. Of course there is a catch 22 situation between avoiding totalpanic by an adm ission of the true state of affairs and doing what needs to be done. The centralsystem of a Carbon Economy offers potentialbut it is also open to abuse Taxes on carbon excesses must be far more than a slap cn the wrist and an easily-paid finel

Towards A Carbon-Free Future So far the onus has been placed on individual households to reduce their 'carbon footprint . the brand nam e given to tackling clim ate change. Tackling climate change principally involves the red uction of carbon and other greenhouse gases as well as the encouragem ent of carbon sinks New technology which attem pts to capture and store carbon rather than releasing it jn'io the atm osphere, unimplemented at the time of writing, is a f urther attem pt to m aintain the corporate status quo The seeding of ocea n beds with iron to fertilize phytoplankton as suggested by oceanographer John Martin is one of many short term solutions with longterm consequences. A personalcarbon quota allocated to each household, on the other hand, allows a rrew form of currency where excess may be traded for other goods But fundamentally at the heart of the m atter is that the society we live in, the society thai transports goods to and from allcorners of the world to satisfy need, real or imagined is unsustainable and climate change is only one m anifestation of its utter failure. W ho will have the bravery to adm it that capitalism has failed? Not

unelected Prime Minister Gordon Brown who insists that climate change must be addressed hand in hand with the econom-y, and certainly not the Oil

Cartelrunning the US.

Zero-Carbon-Britain is a report produced by the Centre of Alternative Technoloov that attemDts to address the urgenEi, of action rdquired to tackle globalwarming but also incorporates the economic agenda realizing that the scale of this problem must involve all of us for any one nation or corporation cannot save itself from climate change. Zero Carbon Britain offers a contraction and convergence global framework. Countries start, it suggests, with widely differing per capita em issions entitlement. However, a canvergence date is agreed, by which time all countries' per capita emissions will have converged on equity. Thus,'high carbon' nations m ust reduce their emission more dramatically than those starting f rom a lower level. To aid the process, countries whose emissions in any given year fall below their allocation can sell entitlement to countries that cannot reduce their emissions quickly enough. ln this way, poorer countries are able to fund their development onto a low-carbon pathway, while richer nations can buy themselves time to achieve the necessary reductions. An overview of total energy use would revealwhat the report refers to as 'energy obesity', going on to suggest the scaling down of power-use so that within 20 years the UK would be using approximately half the energy it is using now. This would require fundamentalchanges in society, in industry, building and transport as well as in the home with sustainability and recycling central to operations. The use of private vehicles needs to be addressed. Piiblic transport needs to represent a cheaper and more effective system than private vehicles otherwise it has failed. Cycling could become commonplace as people realise they can traveldistances with iheir own m uscle power and keep themselves fit at the same time. Land-use must undergo a literal revolution. Locally grown organic systems require minimalif any transport and would drastically cut 'food miles', im prove soil structure, ecology and the general health of the population. This would most certainly be underpinned by a shift towards more a vegetable-based diet. The Transition Towns movement is a grass roots network ded icated to building towards sustainability and se lf-re lia nc e.

New ideas for hybrid vehicles, methods of building, farming techniques and other ideas with minimal environmental impact have long been available and proven to work. According to Greenpeace 150,000 people are dying annually because of climate change and one third of all land-based species face extinction within 50 years. But what is the government doing? lt has recently emerged that the UK will farl to meet its own self-imposed target to reduce greenhouse em issions by 20% by

2010. A combination of government coward ice a nd co rporate lobbying is

failing us all.

Climate Activism As individuals we can minimise our impact on the environment by refusing to purchase any product that cannot be recycled or reused. We can avoid any product that m ay be detrimental to the environment. We have that power. There is an urgent need to adapt to a new way of living however, rather than trying to maintain the unsustainable capitalist outlook that currently dominates society. lf government will not listen then people should stand in local constituencies on this issue; eslablish sustainable collectivisation or transition systems and organise. lf government won't listen we m ust adopt what Arundhati Roy cails 'a biodiversity of struggle'in order to force them a nd their corporate lackeys into immediate and concentrated actio n before it is too late. C lim ateChange activism is gathering momentum across the world but it'is greeted by riot police and a legal system seen again and again to protect capitalism before its people. Climate Change activists such as the Camp for Climate Action in the UK are taking protests to the frontline Heathrow Airport, Drax Power Station and recently Kingsnorth Fower Station where several G reenpeace activists were arrested. Their subsequent defence when tried for crim inal damage was that they had 'lawful excuse' - beca use they were acting to protect property around the world "in immediate need of protection" ftom the impacts of climate change, caused in part by burning coalat Kingsnorth.

For the first time in history it is now possible to circum navigate the Arctic with both the North East and North West passages now open. S ince 2005 Norway is offering blocks in the Barents Sea and the Norwegian Sea for oil and gas prospecting. The drive to continue the globaleconomy continues unabated in the face of pote ntia I catastrop he.

Where do vue stand in all of this? How seriously should we take it? From my own research we have less than a decade to avoid an irreversible tipping point. ln order to avoid this tipping point, from wt'icl^ the.e is no going back, we m ust cease a ll activity which causes greenhoJSe gas emissions within the shortest possible timeframe. We must simultaneously increase and protect exist ng carbon sinks. ln order to do this we m ust change our dependency on the State and we m ust learn to live rvithout many of the gadgets we ncw take for granted- lt begins with the ind vid ua! in the home but it must also take to the streets and fields across the woild This is everyone's fig ht now. lf government will not radically accelerate, improve and consolidate its current policy then the alternative may be too terrible to consider. We have time on our hands but too little of it.,.

Defence witnesses included Jim Hansen, widely regarded as the leading expert in climate change and an lnuit leader, Aqqaluk Lynge, who told of his people's first hand experiences with climate change. The six were found not guilty setting an important legal precedent. The Jurors supported the right of people to take direct action to protect the planet from climate change. This is a major victory and the legalcornerstone on which future actions will be based.

FinalThoughts Writing this essay was a method of augmenting my own personal experiences. Living largely in rural environments over the last few decades I have witnessed variations in naturalcycles - flowers and insects out of season, birds arriving early and m igrating late, recurring freak weather patterns which show me first hand experience of global warming. I don't need a lecture by an'expert'on the payroll of the fossil fuelcarteltelling me to '/ook at the statistics'. Time is running out and it is likely we will see more and more naturaldisasters on greater and greater scales over the com ing ye a rs.

Resou rces www.risingtide.co, uk www.wom bles.org.uk www,zerocarb o nb rita in.com www.ea rthf irst. org. u k www. m anicore-com www.carbo nco u nter. info/links. htm www.zf acts. com I p 1222.html

www. isla ndsf irst.org/ www.ea rth-po licy. o rg/ www.g ree n peace. o rg/inte rnatio na l/p re s s/rep o rts/e ne rg yre vo I utio n re p o rt

Kffi

"ffi.'#

ou(5,

ov*, (ottlPLAcgNCl-_

lnd delt;'ntirrui,o,t

"r.-ffi

lX) Tlll='/ OtU= trs ,\ l-l\rlN(i?

When it was announced that Steve lgnorant, lead singer of anarcho-punk pioneers C rass, would perform their seminal 1977 album "The Feeding of the 5000" for the first time in 30 years there was a frenzy of debate over the internet and elsewhere as to whether or not it was a sell-out of their ideals. There were adverts for the gig in Kerrang, Q and other mainstream music press publications, a press that once tried it's very best to misinterpret ,if it bothered at all, what has become known as anarcho-punk.

Anarcho-punk started with Crass in 19'78. Punk itself, the Great Rock'n' Roll Swindle, had erupted in '1 976 with a few swear words on prime-time TV only to evaporate on a wave of cheap glue a year later, its little tantrum exposed as just another m assmarketing device. The ripped and torn designer fashion soon became a milking factory for a dyi4g postcard industry. Despite this the concept of punk, the philosophy of punk was based on rejection of a society based on mass consumption and greed. "The Swindle may have sought to confuse, and cerlainly succeeded in entertaining, but the lost tribes oi England, wanted more than tiiat. For people who'd bought punk as a way of life, 'this time it was for real', was a phrase that could have, should have, meant som ething."

(George Berger "The Story of Crass') Punk said fuck you, sure, but the hippies had said it too during their summer of love, and with a flower or two as they turned the other cheek to the truncheons. Some refused to accept that punk was just another m usical fashion; that punk could so easily be assim ilated into m ainstream culture; that it was up for sale. Punk was just as m uch a reaction to the hippie idealism of the 1960's as it was to the urban decay and lack of opportunity in the 1970's after all. "Yes that's right, punk is dead /f 's iust another cheap product for the consumers head Bubblegum rock on plastic franslsfors Schoolboy sedition backed by big time promoters." (Crass "Punk ls Dead") 10

Anarcho-punk's first grand stalem ent was 'punk is dead'. took that to mean that the fashion statem ent of torn clothes and shock culture was done because it had been exposed as just another 'this year's thing'as the cash registers of London's Kings Road made a merry song and dance. I also took it to m ean that anarchism held possibilities that were beyond the dead-end left and right wing politics that were the centralcause of class division and socialinequality. That's what Crass were about. I

The DIY movement which sprung from C rass reflected m uch m ore than the anarcho-punk brigade of the early 1980's, encapsulating the wider protest movement as it moved across the globe over the ensuing decades. ln some quarters theories became rules and the originalwave lost its m om entum but in other places it warped and changed and became a major catalyst to modern protest and direct action. Anarcho-punk had tried to be genuine - it didn't want to be sold,

didn't need to be on TV and consequently rejected the rock'n'roll racket. Crass and the many bands they influenced bred a concept of punk that was about thinking for yourself. Now hold on just a cotton-pickin' m inute, let's just take that phrase for a moment because it's im portant. Thinking for yourself? I mean do you really appreciate what that actually means? There were ali sorts of debates about this event. Were Steve lgnorant and the other bands who'd agreed to play somehow walking all over their principles? The gig was to be held in the Shepherd's Bush Empire, an. old London m usic hall but a venue more associated with commercial ventures and an instant bone of contention for some but then again such an event could not have been held in the usual punk venues where 4 blokes are usually found shouting at 50-100 others the latest rules for belng considered radical. That doesn't mean there wasn't an alternative. I thought I would get in touch with

all the bands involved in the gig. A 1978 it had a price sticker saying pay no more than f1.99 at a time few of them were also very when other albums were selling influential in the early years of for twice the price. Many of the anarcho punk but some hadn't played together for years. I tried anarcho-punk records which followed continued the same idea. to get in touch with Steve lgnorant, Flux of Pink lndians, It was a statement in itself that

flf, ilOSTALGIA, NCINSEI.iSE AND BETEA-fAL A Sad Ferforu*nce !.u lt'e Enttrety *f...

HIE:ig

?Fil= Iry=t:lllN(i

(!l; TllrE H{i(}s

go to his local Lifeboat and the event was billed as having stalls and films. lt seemed like a rallying ca ll of s o rts. Anarcho-punk had been a rallying call to people who cared about the world they lived in, people who had genuine socialconcern, who actually gave a damn, even if they were unsure exactly why. The problem with anarcho-punk was that it soon became conservative; m any had righteous opinions to the extent that proving oneself , or m ore than likely disapproving of someone else, became more important than finding ways to tackle social in justice or m ounting environm ental concerns. For some anarcho-punk was over by the m id 1980's while for others, like us in Belfast, the scene was just taking off but by the m id 1990's, rn the UK at least, it seem ed as if there was no real movement outside of a few isolated pockets. lbegan to look on ihis gig maybe as a focal point that could re-ignite something. But lwas also wary that it could easily turn to farce.

I {.d

ffi

q A Totel

.$el[-ont" of nlY Ansreh+-Punk Ethl+s by

8flerre lg*onant and C*reless Co]la'boratsrs

A,k.a. 'The BleeClng

Lhe 20il*"

far sale by Ticketmaster, this aintl- for revrllution, itis just for cash,"

Anarchy *Eutis not

Hho do you Ehlnk Lhey Zounds, Confl ict, the Disruptors, the Restarts and Deviated instinct. lasked two questions - why they were playing but more importantly what they thought about anarcho-punk now and did they see it as the potential threat to society it had always claimed to be. The interviews will appear momentarily but the latter question, about punk as a threat, was by far the m ore im portant of the two and it got me to thinking so lbegan putting the question to a wide range of others at the same time, the results of which can be read further on. So what was the central criticism of this event? When lhe Feeding of the 5000 album cam e out in

are fool

inq?

placed tne ideas far above the concept of the product. This philosophy also extended to the door price at gigs which were often benefits. The venues were often squats, community centres and, ironically, church halls.

There was a problem then with the venue and ticket price. Penny Rim baud is quoted in the G uardian as saying "/ acknowledge and respect Sfeve's right to do this, but I do regard it as a betrayal of the Crass ethos. What has it got to do with the cov e rt u n d e rg rou nd politic a I movement that Crass was a part of?" f imes have moved on since the late 70's however. Steve lgnorant stated the money would

After the initial surge of anarchopunk had died down what grew up in its place was the beginning of a more inclusive DiY com m unity. But centralto it was the DiY ethos, of organizing by your own means or by mutual aid, avoiding capitalist exploitation anci unnecessary impact on the environment. DiY wasn't just about bringing out your own records, putting on gigs and doing fanzines. lt was about organizing on a community level, it was about finding ways of protesting and breaking the institutions of dominance and greed, it was taking the messages of the songs onto the streets where they m ight actually be relevant. AnarchoPunk was a vehicle for political change. You'd also hope there was a lot of fun someurhere in that heady m ix. People organised in many shapes and forms from squatted com m unities, autonomous centres and social community organisation to anti-war, anim al rights and other activities that revam ped the protest and anarchist movements in the UK. Many sniped from the sidelines and still do, offering little alternative beyond cynicism. Others felt, and still do, that the movement was far too. gullible and naive to appreciate the bigger 11

picture yet to look at things such terms spells defeat.

g petrole um lobal Aviation com panies, and the autom obile fin a n c ially s u p po ftin

Jon from Active Distribution puts like th is:

com panies, it

"What does lf matter, it's not portant, m aybe not to those who've given up, those who don't care, those who just want a beer and a good night out, maybe pick up some skirt too, eh? But it m atters to those who still care; those who still kick against the pricks and it m atters that an ideal can be degraded by the weight of hypocrisy com ing from those that hold the m icrophones. lt m atters that there are still many bands, labels, organisations, squats, coops, activists trying to do som ething worthwhile, still trying to f ight back without being com prom ised into irrelevance by the capitalist m achine." im

So what did the bands involved have to say about playing this

event and m ore im portantly did they think that anarcho-punk was still a potential threat?

B2F: Why are you playing the Feeding of the 5000 gig? What do you say to its detractors? "We are playing it simply because it is a gig.".we were asked to play as if was felt we would fit on the bill because we cover similar ground (politically) as so/n e of our predecessors. You will always have detractors no m atter w hat route you choose in life, (a lot of them make a career out of this kind of dogma). To them I say why not see what happens at the event and then pass your criticism s. Muslc is a medium used to spread an idea or message, it can be done small or large scale, unfortunately as we live in the hotbed of capitalism, a large scale event in London will be entangled with all the trappings of capitalist culture, ln a similar way every aspecf of western punk rock and the industry of making music can be implicated as "collaborating" with the evils of capitalism ... for exam ple by

u stry (th ro u gh to u rin g), ppo ftin g inte rn ation a I m anuf acturers (Marshal, Fender, Glbson etc)..and ultimately the

ind s

choice of venue that is chosen (mostly all operate on a commercial level) . As you can see fhese obse rvations start to sound a b solute ly lu d ic ro u s...? Peop le start to lose touch with reality when they get too dogmatic about their own'm anifestos' or personal belief s.

It is like choosing the /esser of two evils when finding a venue that can accommodate 2000+ people. lf the gig was held in a squat or sm aller'less com m ercia!' venue it would be over crowded and shut down by the police or council before it even starts. ln 2004 when Stig from lcons of Filth died, a fund raiser was organised fo raise proceeds for his children. The same detractors slagged off the event because it was held at the Forum in Kentish Town (for

being a'commercial venue'). The venue had agreed to reduce venue rental by 50% and the result was a large amount of m oney w as raised for the fam ily and cause. lronically some of the main detractors actually showed up at the event'selling their wares' which was quite ironic to say the least. I think people should be allowed to decide for them selves...surely if they think it is a "sellout of ideals" then they won't attend, or are the punters too intuitively stunted to figure that out themselves? These detractors assu/ne this "nanny sfafe " role and feel that they are here to save us from ourselves. The attendees af the gig will be comprised of fresh faced young punks, acfivlsts, anarchists, and curiosity seekers, I find it hard how all of these people can be dlsmlssed as sou//ess collaborators? W ake up people - /f /S A G lG ! Focus this same kind of energy in a more productive manor and let some young kids re-discover some great punk!"

82F: What does anarchopunk/agit prop means to you? Do you think it is still a threat, or was it ever a threat? What does the future hold for this way of life? "To me it is all about ldeas, com m unicating and networking. Like I said before music ls used fo spread ideas and emotions, and as 'punk'refuses to go away, I

don't mind helping its continuation. This gig w ill be showcasing some of the greatest influential punk frock from the 80s, we are hum bled to be sharing a stage with these people, and have to recognise the influence these bands have had on your m usic and ideas and you becom e elitist or try to get your m usic 'out there' as ethically as possible? Yes, / think independent m usic will always be a threat, if it challenges an established industry and pushes forward towards autonomy, then the people that control the industry will feel threatened - this is why they seem to be em bracing punk rock (to try and control the beast, so to speak). The dem and for m usic (not just punk) has revolutionised how we listen, buy and see our m usic, from 'peer to peer' downloading to com m unicating independent tou rs etc. lt is all about the empowerment and having as m uch control over your ovr n form of expression. lt is a m arriage between ideas and art, but sometimes people with ideas have no understanding of the expression of art, and thus lose the concept of how to communicate ideas. Punk will remain as a movement and lifestyle, it will continue on an underground level and unavoidably there will always be a com m ercial elem ent that will be exploited...but at the sam e tim e it will still communicate ideas and open up people's m inds. The Future has yet to be seen, but will be dictated by how the newer generations of youth and m usic /isfeners see fit."

www. resta rts.c o.u k

B2F: Why did you decide to play at the Feeding gig? How did it cSme about and what do you say to those who disagree with the event? ." We're doing the 5000 gig because we were asked basically, lwas going anyway already bought tickets for me and my girlfriend. When the promoter phoned me I initially thought it was som eone winding me up much to his amusement. Actually l'd been trying to get the Disrupters back together for a while, e'ter since the Overground com pilation cam e out. l'd iust quit singing for the New York Scum haters and thought the time was right for a reunion. Paul and Houghy didn't want to <1a it and Kev was busy with his other band. It was looking as though lwas going to have to get a com plete nenr line up but ltried Kev again this time he agreed. So lf's definitely happening. There 's been a lot of criticism directed af Sfe ve lgnorant for doing this weekend, lreally don't think some of these people have thought this through at all. Considering Crass' legacy I seriously doubt this event could be staged for 5 quid in a pub. There people travelling from different continents to be at this SiS. A/so glgs of this size are very expensive to put on. But it's all holier tnan thou bullshit as far as l'm concerned from the anarcho scene police, ln the great schem e of things there are far more worthy targets in this world for slagging off than Steve lgnorant. It's gonna be a great w'eekend I th in k.

To the detractors? Simple. stay in .. .... ...

B2F: Does anarcho-punk still mean anything to you now and do you think it is still a

potentialthreat?

Has to be said ltook a step back from the scene for a while in the late 80s, that's when the Disrupters split. lfound the anarcho scene had become verY restrictive and elitist, with new rules piled upon more rules. lt got really fucking bitchy. Always

& carried those original ideals with me though. My politicalviews ain't chanEed that's for sure. But it's a relief I don't have the old bill banging on rny door these days. But yeah I still stand by it all, good to broaden your horizons foo though. l'm in my mid 40s now and hopefully a bit wiser too. With that comes a better understanding

of hum an nature m any of fhose puritan scene police we m entioned earlier were usually the first to jum p ship, at least that's how I saw it. ls it/was it a threat? Certainly the potential is there to be a big fucking nuisance, dunno about a serious threat though. Certainly this way of life shows no sign of going aw ay."

B2F:Why are you playing the Feeding of the 5000 gig and hat do you say to the detractors? "We are doinq the gig because we ke playing lhe songs, they are till rele,/ant and have meaning nd a lot of people v,rant to hear hem played live. The detractors are welcome to eir opinion but they are looking m usicians to lead the evolution, I wouldn't trust a m usician to lead a dog."

82F: What does anarcho punk mean to you now? ls it a th reat? "Anarcho punk is a label someone else thoughf up so I don't think

about it. Musicians make practically no money and it seems a lot of people expect them to work for nothing while everybody else at /east gefs m inim um wage. There will not be another Zounds record (unless I change my mind, 13

played it due to the aforementioned. RE: Money - Conflict are not getting a cent... we gave all the 81500 we were getting paid away. We purchased tickets with it all to sell to supporters at cheaper than face-value via our website."

B2F: What do you say to the detractors? Do you think this event might ignite some fire in the anarcho scene again? "To the people that knock the gig, or Steve, its fair game - if there was silence it means no one gives/gave a foss. BUf please fhose peoole help me crganise a big gathering as a benefit next year with groups who are worthy and active still... Come on /ess moaning and more of creating the alte rn ative.

B2F: Why are Conflict taking part in the Feeding gig? "l'm taking part in the gig for the sole reason that Steve asked me to play. Conflict play a lot of festivals that we would not normally play now so I did not see fhls as being any d

www.conflict-u k.com

iff e re nt.

Without sounding big headed I also want people to see a group that is still active on all fronts, I was not aware it was a full on anarcho-style reunion as such when I said yes, the line up is nof our choice, but in honesty lwould have still

I believe the Feeding of the 5000 event will be very worthwhile and an inspiration to many in many ways. The promoter, whom I know well and totally trust, is a down to earth honest person who has put his neck on the line for Conflict and me on many occasions. Sfeve lgnorant seem s to have a fresh lease of life and already there is talk of him writing new material. lt was Sfeve himself (not Crass) that influenced me mosf of all. Quite sim ply, if it was not for lgs then Conflict would not exist and more importantly it is e xtre m e ly dou btfu I w h eth e r rnost of the many actions I have been involved in throughout the years, including the liberation of counfless anim als, would in fact have happened at all."

(

Colin Jerwood of Conflict photo by Trunt

B2F: Flux didn't answer my brief interview request. Here are some excerpts.from the only interview they gave at the time to Punk & Oi. l've kept the excerpts relevant to what lwas asking. This is followed by lan G lasper's thoughts on the same subject. "When we were first asked to do the gig we said we'd think about it but with no intention of actually saying yes. As the next few days passed the idea grew on us; I g'uess lt seem ed like a one-off opportunity and we (Kev and l) ended up agreeing to do it and then afterw ards starfe d to think "W hat have we gone and done?!" The line up will be the sarn e as on 'Strive To Survive'but lan Glasper will be playing bass insfead of Derek Birkett, who we presumed would be too busy with his record label One Little lndian."

- lh sure there will be a strain of what we commonly refer to as anarcho punk."

Perhaps for some PeoPle. lt still means a lot to me, but back then there was no historY involved. Sfuff was happening for the first time and in front of Your eYes.

Well it's 25 years on, the world has changed, nothing staYs the same. But I don't regret what we've done or what we said and I still believe in all the things we sang about back then; now it's 2007, things are different and I'm presuming the PeoPle at the gig will have all changed a bit too ' that'll be the fun of it." B2F: lan Glasper is now PlaYing bass with Flux so I asked him: Why are you plaYing this gig? "l'm playing the Feeding gig because I can basicallY, haha! I loved Flux af Pink lndians back in the day and was absolutelY thritled to be asked bY Col, Kev bass with them and Martin to

- if's a real thrill strumming along fo songs like Tube Dlsasters, Progress and TheY Lie, We Die, that were such a big (Positive) influence on my youth. Having said that, even if I hadn't been doing the Flux thing, I would have attended regardless... in fact. I wouldn't have m issed it for the world. I only saw Crass once first time round - at their last ever show in Aberdare (with Flux supportinE, funnily enough), but !'ve played their records hundreds of times aver the Years and still think they are incrediblY Potent releases even todaY. The lure of seeing Steve perform those songs - even without the other guYs was always going to Prove too great to resist/

B2F:Since this interview Flux have played the 1in12 club in Bradford and are playing again in London. lan GlasPer is working on the third installment of his trilogy on the U K Punk scene. His earlier books "Burning Britain" and " The DaY the Country Died" are available from Active Distribution. Deviated lnstinct did not rePlY to the interview. lt was also impossible to get hold of Steve though I spoke to him afterwards over a Pint or two. The following excerPts are from the only interview he gave at the tim e. "l was affered to do this gig and I was ... Ok l'm not reallY sure

about it so I thought I don't wanna get up there and do the usual thina. I thouqht l'd reallv like to do

To the detractors, I would saY, I understand your mixed emoflons about the gig - I have some myself - but we're all adults and all capable of weighing uP the pros and cons and coming to a decision we feel comfortable with. lf you strongly disagree with the gig, don't go - what better waY to dem onstrate Your disaPProval than to veto the event? And tell everyane WHY You're not going too! Then let them make an

informed decision too. Likewise, Sfeve is comPletelY entitled to get uP and slng Crass songs w he reve r/w h e nev er he likes, and even m ake m oneY doing so, and anYone who wants to pay fo see him is sure ta be entertained. How m uch You're prepared to PaY for that entertainment is between You, your wallet and Your Punk conscience." B2F: ls anarcho-Punk still re leva n t?

Colin Latter of Flux Photo bY Trunt

"Anarcho Punk was, is, and always will be, a force for awareness, and anYthing that m akes peoPle question/debate what they are sPoon-fed bY the media is going to be a threat to the status quo, albeit a rather inconsequential one in the big scheme of things. As long as there are angrY Young (and old!) peopte with guitars - or otherwise

Ian Glasper of Flux photo bY

Trunt*

Barbarians

Corrections Welcone to this a few errors l'd like are conected belo

or B2F #4. There's a

r#ention

to which

tl PunK' parts of the ln the adicle "Ad Pe text appear out of sequence so it seems a bit mixed up in places. I have placed an asterisk where the te{ breaks and a second asterisk where it should continue. A third asterisk is where the text breaks again a second time and this part of the article then continues at the next line past the first asterisk. Frgm this point the text which continues from the Second asterisk is continuedl0 after the third asterisk. Clear as mud I know.

Secondly in the artide "Antistasiology: The Study of Resr.sfance" the text in the first paragraph had gotten muddled up. lt should read as follols:

lsrael is continuing its policy of National Socialism by illegally invading the Gaza Strip after an aerial bombardment has left hundreds dead, the majority of which were innocent civilians, and tens of thousands dispossessed and scattered. Does it make your stomach churn when politicians call on lsrael to declare a ceasefire while at the same time they continue to supply thgm with the necessary military hardware that allows this brutality to continue? lndeed could lsrael survive without the billions of dollars in aid supplied by the US government each and every year? ln fact might we suggest that attacks on Western lnterests by AlQaeda'bnd extremist groups not connected to that western creation are in direct retaliation by a desperate people who haverto suffer this brutal regime year in and year out? lndeed this ongoing crusade in the Middle East is nothing more than the globalisation of resources for Western Elites while people are crushed under the jackboot of progress and they have the audacity to call any retaliation terrorism. Welcome to the greatest farce of the 21$ century! http://www. indymedia. org. htt

"At this juncture, I believe it has become necessary b define exactly what antistasio/ogy rs and, perhaps even more imgidantly, what it is not.affltrgrsiology rs fhe ampantivestudy of

vailus tyqs dtaclics, stratqies anid organizational structures used by various resistance movements, both in history and those which are in present use. The information gamered by such study can be particularly useful in ascertaining which approaches have been most effective where there has been a state of insurrection." l'd like to apologise on behalf of bX for these dreadful oversights and can assure you they will definitely occur again in the future.

Other Nerrus For those of vou \rtlq\raffl lp find out rnore about the British f.f izi pffi&rfp E arlnv. wi f ii eaks.org will be revealing. Th+rty*rfnrbership list is still online here shouldl@1yfhh to enquire further about their policies.

Just ln ia. org. uUen 120081 and contrast with

121

ya h oo. co m/4 I 2008 1 223

-activists-found-guilty-dbal

415959. h

tuk-

61 8. html )

//www.

g u a rd i an. co, u

palestine-gaza-attacks

1 6339. html n/05/i s ra e -

uW enl2OOSl 1214

Uwo rl d/2 009/j

B2F calls on everyone to boycott lsraeli goods sold by Tesco and other such multinationals and to raise your voice in whateverway you can to stop lsrael's ongoing genocide in Palestine.

Mumia Abu Jamal Latest http://www.wombles. org. uk/ imagesl Z,{7

Failure at Poznan Climate Talks Once again the seriousness of climate change was squandered over corporate interests at the Climate Summit in Poznan, Poland in December 2008. More details here Tal kshttp.//www. stwr.org/cl i mate-chan g een viron menVpozna n-cl imate-tal ks-fidd li ng-wh ile-

the-earth-burns.html The featured article in this issue of b2f was written because even though much of the information is not new the majority of people don't seem to appreciate it that unless we seriously change the way we live in the next few years the climaie will reach the dreaded tipping point from which there is no going back. No point trying to put an energy efficient light bulb at the end of the tunnel if the fucking tunnel is flooded now is there. Once again, and it should come as no surprise, we have been betrayed by government. Time to organise!

STI=\rl= l(iN()I?r\NT

a performance of 'Feeding Of The

50a0' as it ls on the record, without'Asylum'coz I mean onlY Eve Libertine could do that. I don't want to touch that; that's a separate thing. I couldn't invite other members of Crass to do it, I don't think they would have done it anyway, coz the minute You get more than one ex member of Crass to perform peoPle think Crass are reforming and that's definitely not the case. The other reason I wanted to do it was because I think it would iust be a great thing to do. ln a vlaY lf's me saying to the mem bers of Crass, 'look how great it was! weren't it fantastic?' I have been reading the lyrics and rehearsing them and all of the songs excePt I think 'A nge ls' a re still relev ant. But because feeding is onlY about 30mins long if that, l'm gonna do 'Big A Little A'and'BloodY Revolutions' complete with brass secfion as I want to recreate all the radioey bits. i'll do 'Shaved Women' as well, 'How Does lt Feel' coz I think that's still relevant too and it's a bloody cracking song. I might round the whole thing off with a Schwarzenegger song, which is 'The Way Things Are'. l'm doing it for 2 nights and its gone from me thinking I'll do just a little half hour slot in amongst all the other bands to snowballing to me thinking now l'm headlining for two nights at the Shepherds Bush EmPire.

All I can say to would be critics who say l've sold out and I'm doing it for money. Well l'm Not. It's been done for the right reasons, I cant explain what those reaso,rs are it - jusf fee/s right. lf it didn't I wouldn't fucking do it. The promoter also has a policy that some of the money has to go to worthy causes, so he was like what would you like your whack of it to go to? I said ld like it to go to the Lifeboats at the village I live in now. Apparently I've been slated for that as well, I should have donated it to a crisis centre or to polio victims. I mean fucking hell urhere do fhese people get off telling me what I can and can't do. The gig is turning into a big thing and it's scary. I know if I cock it up I will never be able to show my face outside my door again. lt's really a big deal for me and lknow if lcock it up in front of the ex members of Crass its gonna be terrible. lt's got to be 16

right. So l'm really getting mY professional head an now talking to atl the other band members for the night m aking sure theY are on the ball - and they are!

that there were no stalls - a missed opportunitY to Present anarcho-punk as the Protest vehicle it once was. l'm onlY glad it was a one-off event.

Ithink Joy De Vivre, Phil Free and Pete Wright will go. I'm not sure about Penny coz he doesn't agree with the gig. He's given m e perm ission to use his m aterial bui he said 'l don't know whY Yau're doing this Sfeve'but no-one else seem s to m ind out of Crass bul for som e reason he doesn't agree with it. lthought fair enough that's alright as ldon't agree with some of the stuff he daes either."

After the gig we had a few drinks and words with Steve. He sPoke of how pleased he was how things had gone, how energized he felt by the atm osPhere and spirit of people who had come from far and wide. He also rem inisced about Crass PlaYing in Belfast in 1982 and how verY, very afraid he was at the time. We spoke of the influence of Crass and how it was one of the main catalysts in setti,ng uP the Warzone Centre in Belfast and the Fleskwater Collective a few years later. lt is hoped the Belfast gig will be getting a release on CD in the near future. Watch this spa ce.

Steve mentioned that all members of Crass were Present on the night with the excePtion of Eve who tried to m ake it but couldn't and Penny who was against the whole thing from the off. He felt he didn't need to justifY him self and that this was a one-off celebration of the emergence of anarcho-punk, nothing m ore. He also mentioned that one thing

he always remembered from Crass was not to let the ego get a grip of you. After the event he planned to go home and let the ego'die down'. He's also currentlY rvorking on some new material he revea led.

As I m entioned at the start of this overly long series of interviews what was imporiant to me was not so m uch the biggest anarchopu nk gig in 20 years but a reminder of what was still possible, At the end of the gig Steve said that the State was afraid of us back then. MY question is why it is still not afraid, Steve lgnorant photo Irena Active Rebellion indeed w hy is not trem bling in its boots. The question is onlY naive lfound myself caught uP between as long as people continue to the various oplnions. The gig itself think along safe parameters. was great with Flux being especially mem orable. I enjoYed So is anarcho-punk still a threat or the rendition of Feeding too but is it an irrelevant slice of cultish wasn't im pressed with the rock history ripe for the proPaganda star pretensions of one of the m arket? Was it just another Youth edge guitarists who stood at the subculture trapped by the follies of the stage with his arms oPen of its 'token tantrums'? I Put this like a crucifix which had me question to a number of PeoPle reaching for something to throw. and their replies appear There were a number of small elsewhere in the zine. was plaints one m ain but the com I

I?â&#x201A;¬

B2F: An old colleague once asked me "what sort of an anarchist are you?" which lthought was a great question. So, what sort of an anarchist are You?

lan Bone: Lifelong

r.tt

B2F: Class War got Pissed and then heckled and took over other organisations rallies and tea parties leading to all sorts of accusations, Where you looking to upset grouPS like CND or were you on a recruiting m ission with these ventures?

lan Bone: We wanted to do both but prim arily pose the direct

action/street m ob/a nti-pacifist alternative to those grouPS.

lan Bone is well known as one of the founders of the originalCiass War movement in the UK and recently published his biography "Bash tite RJch" outlining in his inimitable wit a varied, drunken but at time s inspiring siory of his flirtations with everything from the lVelsh armed struggle to the Mrner's Strike and from the Stonehenge Campaign to the Poll Tax Riots featuring a bizarre cast of colourful characters. W hile rn a ny have criticised Ciass War over the years for their glorification of violence, there have been few anarchist traditions in recent history to achieve national notoriety albeit occasionally of the media-frenzy kind which once dubbed Bone 'fhe most dangerous man in Britain". Your intrepid reporter caught up with lan recently to talk about his book and past history while looking ahead to his plans now that he has rejoined Class War again. lan's story begins in the late 60's and the summer of love:

lan Bone: I was a crap hedonist the drugs didn't work, lcouldn't 'hear the colours', I could n't even see the fucking colours... I seem ed t'he only one unable to hallucinate and got loads of Morning Glory seeds strlck in my teeth for weeks for nothing. I m ust have sat through rn ore idiots talking bollocks that year...

was interested in the politics of hippiedom then yippiedom, not the brain-num bing banalities of dopedom. One day I discovered the quote " The creative personality does not seek fo shock or entertain the bourgeoisie but seeks fo destroy them". That'll do for me thought and lwas gagging for the Sum mer of Love to end quick and usher Sfreet Fighting Man centre I

sta ge !"

Keen to see an end to "peace and love" la n bega n working on assorted publications in Swansea where he was living at the time trying to get the word out.

B2F: lan. can you give a brief

synopsis of your earlier papers llke Alarm and how thai ultimately ieci to the first issue of Class War. Why did you take that particular aoproach to Class War (i.e. tabloid-like, loads of swearing, in-your face stuff?)

lan Bone: Alarm in Swansea showed it was possible to produce a political paper working class people would want to read... at least at a local level. Class War was an attem pt to reproduce that lively populist tabloid approach natio na lly. What we discovered with the Swansea Mafia pam phlet was that it was possible to engage the political attention of the punters by concentrating on local issues but not by presenting it in an overtly political way. People told us that the pam phiet wasn't political because it was "the truth". We decided that we had to produce something that came out regularly and we decided to concentrate on exclusively local issues and that it should be funny and not'political' in a party-building way. We thought it should contain swearing - we ie sooke. wanted to write as

B2F: Like many people, lthought Class War (ye olde class war that is) was funny as fuck on the one hand but the actual political ideas that rvere there were often lost among the swearing and dumbed-down sloganeerinE. Of course this complaint was always attributed to'middle-class scum'and bookish lefties who, to use your phrase, had had a humour bYpass. With hindsight do you feelthat a lot cf what you were trying to saY get said? d on t rea 'y lan Bone: There was a Period when what we wei'e saying was new,

shocking, funny but then we got stuck in a rut rather than developing our ideas and actions f

urther and becam e predictable.

B2F: According to your book'Bash the Rich'you moved in on anarchopunk and followers of Crass to try and get them on your side, that is to trY and get them to move awaY from the pacifism of Crass towards your central theme of street confrontation. Where do you draw the line with violent confrontation? lsee you trod carefully over the Bridgewater affair? ls violent confrontation the only way forward or are you of the 'by all and anY means

necessary'camp? lan Bone: ln reality I'd always thought bom bs were a sign of failure, a sign of giving up on the working class in favotlr of a few self-a ppointed revolutionaries acting in their own eyes on behalf of the working class. ln reality this

Bolloclts To

Ihe Counttuside Alliancel When ThGU Are llot Shagging SltGc[ TnGy Are lfilllng fores !

was not 'on behalf of lhe working crass'but'instead of'. You can't blow up a social relationship after all. The Angry Brigade slogan'If You want peace PrePare for war' that we'd later take uP in C lass W ar but as Martin W right wrote in CW "For us that means getting out on the streets with a PaPer in one hand and a petrol bom b in the cjther, as part of a m ob". Or as John Barker later Duts it.... "Petrol bombs are far m'ore dem ocratic than dynam ite." It was apparent that having violence the answer to everYthing painted us into a corner we co uld n't get o ut of - sam e as the

Angry Brigade/W eatherm en. W e should have adoPted a greater variety of im aginative tactics rather than remaining one dirnensional. I think particularly on the humerous side of ridiculing the opposition... H ospitalised CoPPer etc B2F:There were certain highlights for Class yo

War Can you mention a few of

r favo urite activities? W hat

ultimately led you to leave the group in 'l 993? Do you see yourself as still part of the idea? Have Your ideas mellowed with age?

lan Bone: HenleY Regatta was the outstanding day out - You'd never get away with it now - You'd all get kettled in and nicked. l've just rejoined Class War. B2F:Do you think anarcho-Punk

although it motivated many to think for themseives ultim ately pacified them at the sam e tim e?

lan Bone: Yes lthink listening to anarcho-punk bands didn't aid people onto the streets - it was the alternative, sitting around in endless squats doing fuck all and m outhing m indless Platitudes

about'war' and'animals'.

Crass had found a waY of getti ng anarchist political ideas through to tens of thousands of Youngsters. From the plastic A's of Rotten's 'Anarchy in the U K', C rass gave the circled A real political meaning. They had created an em brYonic political movement. They'd reached punters in towns, villages and estates that no other anarchist messages could ever hoPe to reach. B ut what were they going to do with it? PeoPle were fighting back but Grass were still telling them to turn the other cheek. They'd achieved som ething m uch bigger than I previously recognised but their inf luence had becom e reactionary. The time was right to produce a paper aimed at the Crass anarcho-punks and soon after the f irst pa per hit the streets B2F: One of the central problems with C lass W ar was the deP ictio n of working class stereotypes, which if I rem em ber were attrib uted to % of the UK population according to the paper' Would you agree that the AndY CaPP brush backfired to a degree? lt m ust

r4fi&

drl

have a lie nated a lot of PeoPle good intentions?

lan Bone: We could have been more nuanced in our aPProach

shall I say

B2F: Moving on from that era I think the culmination of StoP the CitY, anarcho punk and class war agitation led to the Trafalgar riots and the demise of Thatcher and her Poll tax, but then again what came after (council tax and John Majo0 wasn't rea lly a ny bette r a nd the re is a tendency among anarchists to exaggerate what is and isn't a victory? D

lan Bone: The trouble is we were never am bitious enough - we just have a ruck then go home to watch it on telly. After the Poll Tax Riot we could have seized buildings and territory and hung on to them and posed a threat to the government'.. but we lacked imagination and am bition.

lan Bone: lain't oPPosed to voting

as a tactic

lan Bone: Ain't been a decent riot since J18. Police tactics and new laws have effectively made it m uch harder to get out on the streets' The Stop the War demos were a rnajor missed opPortunitY reverting to m ind-num binglY ineffective marches from A to B. UK anarchism is in a piss Poor state. B2F: Over the years I've noticed an indirect Class War support for the IRA and l've noticed that manY English anarchists have a similar agenda. imagine this was because of direct action against the British State and yet at home their suppression and dictatorship over their own areas was in many ways as anti-freedom as the U nion Jack boot? I

lan Bone: Some Pacifists do m uch m ore direct action than violent

arm chair theorists. A plurality of

anY means

imaginative tactics is reguired rule nothing out.

lan Bone: Andy Martin got in touch with m e after lan Glasper's book on anarcho-punk was published and suggested UNIT and me might ..out of which has come a day's recording in

B2F:What plans do You have for the future? Are we going to see a foilow up to your book? ls there anYthing you'd particularly like to say/rant

B2F: You cite Lucy Parsons as being a major influence on your political ideas. What is it about LucY and her ideas that inspire you?

about?

lan Bone: I adm ire her feistY sPirit, fortitude, resilience and raw hatred. 'To Tramps'is the most vitriolic exposition of class hatred ever (see

ignite the London anarchist m ovem ent/rejoined Class War/ doing a load of stuff for anniversary of May 1968/ trYing to stay off the

forthcom ing GD release!) S he was part Mexican, part lndian black woman born under the Confederacy - that's just for starters. After 80 years of fighting she burned to death in a shack.

B2F: OK violent confrontation against the state in the form of street rioting will do nothing to further the cause of anarchism. The State will crush any such rising quickly and efficiently and the media will carefully demonise the entire movement, even those not involved and eventually legislation will be brought in to outlaw anY form of protest except the sanitised afternoon walks througlt London. Discuss! (lsn't this actually what has haPPened?)

lan Bone: Doing mY blog www.ianbo ne.wordPress.com' the book is being made into a film bY Greg Hall/involved in trying to re-

booze!! 'W ithout violent confrontation w ith the forces of the state the working class will never break through the

ly, stu ltify in g con d itio n w h ic h enmeshes it today. The class becomes decadent without class d ea d

violence.

Without a willingness to canfront and attack caPitalism PhYsicallY, the state, authority, institutions will continue to flourish. This will mean the ever increasing subordination of every individual, not Part of the ruling class, to everY facet of the system'.

m "Anarchist"

lan Bone

to[odies

expe ct?

B2F: Following on the Problem with violent confrontation is that m any people (probably middle class though not always) say that it helPs to criminalise their legitimate (but ultim ately harm less) protests. This problem has plagued anarchist ideas for some time right uP to the antiglobalisation protesters who try to disassociate them se lves from autonom ous black bloc grouPs? ls there, in your view, some waY to accommodate these disparate views under a single banner, or is it a case of fuck the lot of You I'm doing this?

Bigots

lan Bone: l've never suPPorted the IRA but there were peoPle in Class War who did, especially early on. This difference of views was tolerated - we were a broad church with no 'party lines' on m ost things... obviously what we gained in tolerance we lost in claritY.

SOMETHING

-'by

ight include rioting and voting. lf Boris Johnson wins the London Mayoral election lmaY stand in his Henley constituency in the subsequent by-election, which will coincide with the Regatta! necessary'

B2F: There seemed to be a lull in anarchism after this untilthe Reclaim the Streets movement moved uP a gear, followed by May DaY, J18 and the Carnivals against Capitalism. lt is felt by many that these events helped spark the Anti-g lobalisation moveme nt across the world. Do You agree? ln what state is UK anarchism in todaY?

collaborate on

Dem os.

B2F: Something to look forward to... On the Jonathon Ross show in the early 90's you talked .about how there is no difference between our political parties and that we all end up shafted at the end of the day but could voting be used, on some level, to further the agenda?

iscu ss.

B2F: You've had a rather eventful sideline career with The Living Legends and other agit prop groups. hear you're recording a few tracks with Andy Martin and UNIT - how did thls ail come about and what can we

lan Bone: Com Pare and contrast; Poll Tax Riot 1990/StoP the W ar

Hackney and a forthcom ing CD release including 'Fuck Off Gordon Brown', a couple of sPoken word readings from LucY Parsons and Durrutti texts, a reading of a chapter from "Bash the Rich" ' all with UNIT accomPaniment Plus the release of 16 LIVING LEGENDS tracks rescued from oblivion including "sexisf Twat" and "TorY Funerals".

w ith

PeruGrts

0nlulosers smmltthg

TK: Future plans are to make more short films planned and scripted by ex-prisoners dealing with whatever they deem fit.

B2F: ls there an attitude from any section of the public that condemns or ostracizes your films because they involve prisoners and/or ex-prisoners who are seen as somehow 'contaminated' and are rejected by society in

general? What I'm looking at is the societal washing of the hands approach towards those who commit crime and how that is often carried beyond the prison gates?

TK: I have had no bad feedback about my films of that the opportunity to make films is not fair. No3: I would be open to the opinion as to what people think of ex-prisoners. As of yet I have had no adverse comments made against me, GW: I face peoples' prejudice on a daily basis and if lwant to change and make a positive impact lwill do anything it takes. B2F: At the anarchist bookfair your film was billed under the heading of 'Prison Doesn't Work'. What do you understand in the prison system today that doesn't work or is the whole institution flawed? GW: I have very strong views on this as I have been returned to jaii several times. The whole system is flawed. No3: Within the system if you are treated with respect you would give them the same respect back.

B2F: Was there a sense of achievement/selfempowerment among the lifcr prisoners by being involved in these projects? No3: Yes because it helps to express oneself in film and lets others see they are only human and we can all make mistakes like everyone else.

GW: I feel Iike a life-prisoner who is doing his sentence by installments. l'm an ex-prisoner through drugs.

B2F: How did the Micky B film come together? Can you describe the concept, the approach of the government to the idea, funding, working with the prisoners and their attitudes, aftermath of the film and response/opinions?

TK: Everyone felt great achievement from being involved in the course and it also crossed the divide of religious boundaries. B2F: Has your relationship with the authorities improved since the making of these films? Where can we get more information about these and other projects?

GW: I got involved through probation, to try and further my writing.

TK: The governmentwill always see me as a criminal, not a reformed person, just a criminal looking for his or her next fix.

TK: Due to being on probation lwas asked would I like to

No3: Well I haven't been involved in any criminality since my release from prison, so filming with ESC can help ex-prisoners from going back to prison.

attend a film-making course run by ESC at Extern. The funding was raised through Peace ll. Working with other ex-prisoners opened nry eyes to the needs and difficulties we all go through in our daily lives. The afternrath of this course has been so positive; the doors that have been opened I never saw coming as it has took me to a new level of confidence

GW; l'm afraid that anyone who has ever had the misfortuneto see the criminaljustice system from the inside will never be able to build any relationship with those involved in running such a flawed and unfair system.

No3: When I started to work at Extern, from that I heard about ESC when they first came to talk to us about making films and learning camera work. lwouldn t have sat in a group before because I had a bad temper and if someone said the wrong thing lwoulci have punched them, but by doing the film work I began to enjoy working with ESC. My temper seemed to cool down and I could have a laugh.

Resources:

B2F: What other films have you been involved with and what else have you planned for the near future?

http://www.brig htonabc. org. uk (UK ABC)

No.3: I have been involved with the last two projects with ESC. I hope to follow up and do more filming in the future to strengthen my experience in film-making. GW: We each took part in each others films and I have written a script for another film.

http://www.pa n p roject.orgi index. p hp? optio n=com-co ntent&tas k=view&id=141 &ltemid=43 (link to documentary on Mickey B) http ://www, mysp ace, com/be

lfastabc

(A na rch

http://abcf .net/index.htm (ABC Federation)

To order a copy of 'Mickey B' info@esc-film.com .havend istribution. org. uk

for Prisoners) Front Cover and back2front

ist

lack

ross)

B2F: How did you come together? Where you in other bands before forming Anima Mundi? Tell me a bit about where you come from and the scene there... AM: W e cam e together sim PIY bY

talking to each other and deciding

that we wanted to do something with our art that would express what we were thinking and feeling, and hopef ullY Provide a Point of connection for others who were thinking/feeling the same. Most of us were in previous bands, but that's not im portant. All of us are based in L.A., m ost of us having grown up here, and the scene, like iny other, goes through its uPs and dow ns.

B2F: l'm verY imPressed bY Your first album, was it easy to put together? ls it a collective process or do certain

people write the lyrics and the music? W e would n't saY it was necessarily "easY," but we enjoyed the process a lot. The writing is collective.

AM:

people being bett'er than another -a low trick designed for a low mentality, m uch like racism. Surveillance is widesPread and growing -- we haven't caught uP to London yet, but the transformation is underwaY, albeit slowlY. And Yes, the obvious m isuse of said technology is intrinsic -- there's just no telling how far it can go, but images of the telescreens in 1984 begin to haunt the m ind...

BZF 'There is no intelligence when a girl or a woman uses her bodY to gain power and attention... ' is a lyric from one of your tracks on the album. ls I simply a case that, from your point of view, that women using their sexuality in any context s somehow wrong? What are your thoughts on pornography and Prostitution? AM: We can't say what is wrong or right, we can onlY state from our own experience' We say, judge the mind, heart and character of everY new perso!'l that You meet, not the sex. GrouPs like Women's Empowerment (WE) offer education, skills, Personal and

B2F: How did You get involved with

social advocacy for disadvantaged women to have so many more options in life than the sex trade.

AM: We've been friends with Colin for years, and at the tim e that the album was coming out, we alreadY

B2F: "6th Extinction lndustrY" is probably my favourite track at the moment. Can the might of corporate power really be challenged when the vast majority of PeoPle are simPlY ignorant of corPorate crimes, or couldn't care less as long as the nearest Wal-Mart is oPen? BeYond boycotting companies what else might people do?

Colin and Mortarhate and releasing the album through them?

had plans to work with Conflict quite a bit in the com ing months, so it simply made sense to release on Mortarhate. We share two members with Conflict as well, so it's a fairly cozy relationshiP'

B2F: Your song "ldentify" tackles the use of surveillance in the US following the Patriot Act. To what extent is this surveillance being used to undermine not only activist groups but anyone who disagrees with the current regime? Would you describe yourselves as patriots and what does patriotism mean to You?

AM: Patriotism is like religion; blind faith in something you can't really explain; lt's based on one grouP of

AM: You mean "6th Extinction lndustry." The onlY waY to

challenge globalization (which is really what we're talking about here) is with localization; smaller, local economies of scale where communities are Producing as many of their own goods and services locally as Possible, serving the needs and interests of their population. Small Mart vs. Wal-Mart.

In the capitalist environm ent that we live in, we encourage conscious consum ing as a start down the road to something better; sim PIY put, don't fund corporations/com panies that are counter to your own interests' ln the broad sense, it's about organizing on a com m unitY scale to get this information out there and assist in the transition to a local economy. Much has been written on the subject of Transition Towns, and we recommend anYone

interested to look it uP on

ikipedia for a start.

B2F: Confrontation or Pacifism?

AM: Pacifism first. Follow itwith dirbct action. Confrontation is always a last resort, but sometimes

for global warm ing (that's m ore than carbon), going vegan would actually be better f or the envirohm ent than stopping driving altogether; im agine what's possible when you com bine these approaches. Anim al liberationist thinking is never going to catch on and be accepted by the general public, so we're not concerned with trying; it's m ore about em boldening and empowering those who are willing to take these risks and act on behalf of the anim als -- those are the people we're reaching out to with "t/Ve Always Win" and "The Sea Shepherd." f he next album will have songs taking on meat consum ption and the like in m ore detail, but this last one was in support of those who are willing to take direct action.

necessa ry.

B2F: Permaculture features big

your philosophy and i see You have Graham Burnett (Graham also contributed to some of our earlier zines back in the daY - Ed) coming over to help with a workshoP You're organizing. How did the workshoP come about and how important is this philosophy to you? Are you involved in any existing permaculture projects in your part of the worid? Do You feel that it's vitalto organise along sustainable lines NOW?

AM: Permaculture is the foundation of our philosophy. Graham, who teaches permaculture at Dial House, is a great friend, and the course went very well, desPite a less tha n idea I atte nda n ce. O ur m ain project at the m om ent is Ars Terra, a sustainable hom estead project in Palmdale, CA' 3 of us live on-site, with the others stopping by regularly to help out and take part. W e are branching out into local com m unity organizing, and

continue to talk and teach on permaculture at any opportunity. ln our view, perm aculture is a realizable version of the anarchist vision so m anY of us have been on about since back in the'80's, and is our best and brightest hoPe for the fut u re.

B2F:Animal issues are alsc playing a big role in several of your scngs, How do you spread the idea of animal liberaticn against 2000 Years of dominant cultr,tre? You and lknow animal liberators are not terrorists yet the media paint them this waY as a means of undermining the idea, because it's profits and losses at the end of the day. How do You see a way round this? I ask because real change needs to be poPular among the general public, AM:

ince environm ental

consciousness aPPears to be growing to some small degree

among the masses, we are alwaYs pointing out that the methane produced by the factorY farming of animals accounts for nearlY 5'l% of

B2F: Barrack Obama is now running for the Democrats and I imagine you'd rather it u/as him gets in than John McCain who will no doubt continue w he re C he ney a nd R um sfe ld left off? lsn't there always a problem that people are lulled into a false sense of secu rity w he n the re's a cha nge of face in office when the same old shit will continue unabated? AM: At best, the differences will be m arginal. U ntil people understand that it starts with them, and that the people at the top don't m atter, we're doorneC to play out the same scenario over and again. That's why, while our art may have a global tone to it, we engage m ost directly on a local level -- this is where we can have the most effect' B2F: You've played a felv dates in the UK. How did that go? Have You toured much elsewhere and what has that been like? AM: We just did the after-Party for the Feeding of the 5,000 gig, with

Rubella Ballet and others. lt was a fun gig to be sure. W e've toured a bit supporting Conflict, and have

done a few shows with Subhumans around as well, and it's been good thus far. lt's aiways heartening to speak aird engage with others out there who are wiliing; some just

want to express a sense of unitY with what we're saYing, and that's always welcome; and then still others who take issue with som ething we've expressed, and often that's even more welcome -we hate the idea of just PlaYing to people who blindly agree with everything we're saying -- we're always up for civillY discussing anythinE with anYone at anytime, and we think this is where real progress can come from.

B2F: Are you working on a second album/new tracks and how is that going, when might we expect to hear them?

AM: One of our collective is having a child late this year (2008), and we

are going to take som etim e off for fam ily. We are going to spend a good part of 2009 writing the next

album, and will then record, release and tour again in 20'l 0. B2F: Do you think the concept of One Tribe, perhaps a n echo of Bob Marley's "One Love", is naive and id e a

listic?

AM: That's an easy -- and cynical -m indset to occupy, and Iam entably, why we largely find ourselves where we are. Everyone feels disem powered, cynical and burdt out. W e c hoose not to walk that line as, for one thing, it's EASY. Anyone can do it, and most do. We feel it's far m ore practical, not to m ention helpf ul, to get off our asses and work toward positive change. And we're doing exactly that. Join us, won't you? Co AT'I

nta ct:

IMA MU NDI PO Box 2766 Hollywood, CA 90078-2766 USA

info@animamundi.org

iwwv;, aninram undi org

CtlOlllEl(Y: The general intellectual culture, as you knorlr, associates 'anarchism'with chaos, violence, bonts, disruSion, and so on. So people are often surprised wtren I speak positively of anarchism and identify rnyself with leading traditiors within it. But rny inpression is that anrcng the general public, the basic idere seern reasonaUewten the clouds are cleared a,vay. Of course, when we tum to specffic nntters - say, the nature of families, or lpur an econory urculd ttruk srciety that is more free and just - questions ard controversy aise. that is as it should be. Physics can't really explain ho,v vvater flolls the tap in your sink. Wlen rare tum to vmtly rnre corpex ions of hunen significarce, understanding is very thin, and there is plenty of roon for disagreernent, experinentation, both intellecttd real-life exploration of possibilities, to help us learn nrcre. RtsR: Perhaps, more than any other idea, anarchisrn hm suffered from the problem of misrepresantation. Anarchism can rneem nEmy to nrany people. Do you often find yourself lnving to eplain what it is that you lrean by anarchism? Does the nisrepresentation

anardrism bother;,ou?

RBR Firsl df, Ncm fcn q.lte a tint noruyou've been ar actvocde irtrodrtim for tl'e anardrisl idea. Ivhry peope are fanrlia ltiflr puwrde in 1970 to G.rerin's Anarchisn, fut nrcre recertly, for irstarpe in the film f,rhndduirg @rcrt, you tmk the opportmity ignight again tl'Ie pdeltial cf arwcfils'Yr and the awcfti$ idea. hd

tlr

hrid

attrads yott to arardrisrn?

i I ram dtrated to amrdrisr a yourg teerega, as I began to tf$rk abcut the \^orld bS/cnd a pdty runoru alrd l'raren't seen rnxtt re6m to radsettree ealy attitdes sirre. I think it orly nd<es serseto seek o.t ad i*rtiff strudures cf iilearcfry, and dqrirdion in oray asped d life, ard to tlen u'iless a jr-r$ificatim for tien car be gven, tl'rey are trd shoid be dsnâ&#x201A;Źrtled, to irrereaetl'e scope d furat

Thd irdLdes@iticd po ,er, onnesiipatd naegffiErt, a",nrg nen and u,oTEn, parents ard cfilden, qJr cotrd tlre fde d futue gerrerdiors (the Bic nrrrd inperative bdlnd envirmrentd norerBrt, in my Mevt), ard mtdr dse. Mudly neas a cfrdlerBetotl'e huge irstitutiors d mercion ard ccrfrrd:

$de, the r-rmcouutaHe pivatetyrarfes tM cotrd nrcd dtlre donestic ad intendicrd ecdury, ad so m. B."t nd orty tlese. TM isvrfrat I iwe dwq6 r.lrdssood to betie essetce d m the ccxrvidim thd tl-e h.rdff d pocf l'm to be , dd thd it sl'ouid be dsrallled rf tM h^rden ca'nd be . SonHir',e the br-rden can be nd. lf l'm td<irg a udk wth nry adtlm/cbrt out irtoa htsystred, Iwill me rd q'dy

pcd

dprcd coercim to stop tlren Ti'e ad sfrUd be brit I tlrink it can readily ned tle chdletge. And tl'pre are cmes; life is a cqmlo< afiar, rae t"nrder$at wry little abottt

authoity btrt also

ad scidy, ard gnard promrperrE ts ae gererdly nnre bendit. Bl tfe perspedive is a vdid one, I

d fnnn tlun d ard can

rc q-lte a lot uaY.

Beyod smh gereralities,

rae

@in

to look

d 6es, wfidr

vfBre

tre q,rediors d lnrnmr irterest ard corcern anse.

tM yotr ideas ad cnticpre ae ruiv rrue lMddy tlran e/er bdore. lt shold dso be said that your vs/i,s are res@ed. l-bru do you thir* yo.r sipport fa arscfisrn is in ths osrto(? ln particular, I'm intereded in tlrc resporse recdve fronr p@e wio are gdting irtaested in pditics fa It's tn re to say

pslâ&#x201A;Źps

l'ave core acrm ),ou vierc. peope st^rprsed Uf Va.r sWport for aurcfisr? Are tlrcy

tinre

ad wto

nrray,

CtlOWSt(Y: All misrepresentation is a nuisance. Mrch of it can be bmk to strudures of porruer that haue an interest in preventirg , for pretty obvious reasons. lt's urell to recall David Hurne's Prirciples of Governnent. He epressed surprise that people submitted to tlreir rulers. He corrcluded that since furre is dways an the side d the govemed, ttre pvemorc have ndhing to support them but qinion. 'Tis therefore, on qinion only that pvemnerrt is foun&d; and this maxim extends to tlP most &sptic ard rnost military govemtrerts, as wre// as to the nret ftee and nnst popular. Hune wm very astute - ard incidentallX hardy a libertarian W trp of the day. Fle surdy undereslinnfies the efficacy cf fore, his observdion sesnsto ne basicdlyconed, and important, in the nrore free socidies, wtnre the art of controlling is tfrerefoe far nnre refined. Msrepresentdim and cther fon,'s of befuddlenerfi are a natural cormritant. So does rnisrepresentation bdher rne? Sure, but so does rctten weather. lt will exist as long as correntrations of pcnruer engender a kind of conmissar dass to defend them. Since they are usually not very briglrt, or are bright enough to kno\ /that theyd better avoid the arena of fad and argument, they'll tum to misrepresentation, and other da/ces that are available to those wtro kno,v that be proieded by the variotrs rneans availade to the pcmerful. should understand why all this occurs, and unravel it as best ue can' Thats part of the projed of liberation - of ourselves and others, or npre reasonably, of people working togdher to achieve these ains. Sounds sinpleminded, and it is. But I have yet to find rnucfl conrnentary on hunnn life and societythat is not simpleminded, absurdity and self-serving posturing are cleared away' Ho,v abor.rt in more established left-wing cirdes, where ore might eped to find greater familiarity with what amrcfrisrn adually stands for? Do you enoounter any surprise here at your vians ard support for anarchism?

Cl-E[llEt(Y: lf I understand what you mean by estadt'shed left-wirry cr'rcles, there is not too muci surprise about rny vionrs on anardrism,

ause very little is known about nry viaas on anything. These ae the cirdes I deal with. You'll rarely find a refersrce to anythitB I say or write. That's not conpletely true of course. Thus in the US (btt lqss connnnly in the UK or elsaruhee), you'd find sone familiarity with wirat I do in certain of the npre critical and indeperdent seclqs migirt be called estailished ldt-vong cirdes, ard I hare persond 'iends and associates scattered here and there. B.ft have a lookd the books and journals, and you'll see wlrat I nrean. I dont expedu I write and say to be any more wdcone in these cirdes than in the dub or editorial board room - again, with exceptiors.

The question arises only rnarginally, so much so that its hard to

FER A nurber d

sejd is'

in the

sare

se tiese tenrs

la,e nded

otod a

sinilf

essatidly

tE yu.r me the tem' libstaiar flr ucrd'aadisnl. b yet ls

aradisn

a type

srcidis"n to yol? Tte deoiSicn ire been wed bdae tH \Afuld yor arudisn is qiudat to sidisnvith

4ree

Wththsbmice+drcn? Cl-gl,Etry:

fte iftroddim

cpers with a qde fnon an sars tM azd'rsn 16 a

r{o

derrErt

sajdisni. l\e

G.sirfs

bock

aradr$ ryrpdhsa

yor

retiaed

a cerilury ago,

wto

M Mt ad grdtr*-- ar$firV Ae

been

tried to

\,H le trdtiod ly tsr

o@dn ttse ard dservtse

cd led'

vild

libstaian

nrem by

ldrg

thd, Sressjqg thd its hady oi$rd; l'mtd<irg tlre ida ftan figues in the aadiS ro,ered wtun I q-de ad wl'p rdfe

cuidently desqibe tl-ersdws as uidiSs, lr,tile tasl'ly mdernjry tl'e'rerud6s' d rd,d irtdledudsvr,tp seek to dtain stde poner in the o-rse d pcpia dng$e at to beccne tle

uoos

bta-rrydwfidr

Bd<.nin vranred; rnrHs cften cdled

'smidisn. i rdlm ryee with Rrddf

bds

pe@icn tE tiese

terdete in aadrsrn drary fron tle be$ d ft ighterrrEnt arl d6sid liberd tho.€ht, \^dl bq/ord uhd he described ln fd, as l'rctriedtodmruthe/ccnbd sl'spyurth N/bxi$-l-eririd ddrine ad pdie, the'libataian ddrite thd (+rte cerird)

ae faliqdCe in the LE ad tX patiai aly, ad de coterporay idedoge, dl d ntich sesn to rne to rd,re to dvocay d oe o ardl'Br fom d illegrtinde alhcrity, q-rte cftert

rd tvraty.

TtEFi*tFbldrtion

oaSe

Or tle oe had, tircre uo.ld se n to be tuo apeds to this e the opsrere d the $a'rsh bdrtion iS yar say, a good d'anachisrn in dicn. Or tle dle, yu l'sue dso $resed tH the Sdish rsdLlim is a good oarpe dvlE u,oters can

oaf,

dierc dob rsirp patio@oy darmay. Ae tlrc tv\o 6peds - asdisn in dim ard paticjpday darw&y - ore ad the sarethry fo yo./? ls anadisn a dll@ry fa peosds pond.r thro4h tidr onn

Cf{fl,El(Y: l'm rdudat to rce faxy pdysylldes likephTo$yto rds to u,H sers adnay canrm serce Ard I'm dso mcorfcrtde u,ith slogas. tlr #ievtrerts d $arsh v\rcrkss ad pe6arb, bdoe tle rsdrlior ua cnshed uee inpessile in nary\ sys. Tbtam'paticipaory darocrac/ is a nue rst se v\,tidr dodo@ in a dffset cortoc fut tl'ere sudy ae ponts d sirilaity. I'm scrry if ths seens ryanve lt is, b.I thd's becase don't thrk dtl'Er the ctr@ d aschisn a d paticipdory is

da eugh to be de to asrcr tle +redior

ClUllEl(Y: Maincidared dl. Theterderf,ie

asdrsntM

nrd

persuanrc sed< a higHy oQaised s@dy, integrding naydtrerert kirds ddndures (uolSre, ormrity, ad nsifdd dhEr fcnrs dvdufay 6sajdrm), b..t utrdled by

partioprts, rd

whel arthcrity car

cotirperne).

tle be

idea are a csrtral feture CIOIGKY: Giticism

of anardtism?

'dmmacy' annng anardtists

has cften beer

criticisrn d parlianentary dernoacy, as it lras ariser within saieties with deeply r+ressire features. Take the LE, whid hm besr as free m any, sirre its ui$ts. Anrerican derrDcracy \ /as fcx-nded on tlp prncide, stressed by Janes lMadison in the Constitttticxul Coruettion tlre in 1787, that the grnary tundim d gwemnent is to frunthe mjuity. ThLs he uamed that in mmity d tlle

qdat

pdd

Epland, the only quasi-dennoatic npdel of the day, if the gereral population were allo ed a say in public affairs, tlrcy weJd inpenent agaiar reform or dher atrocities, and that the Arrerican sptem mst be carefully crafted to arcid such crines agairst tlre

idts d AWrty,

wtidr rust bedefended (infad, m.st pre\EiD. Parlianentary dennoacy within this frarsnork does rrerit slarp oiticisn S genuire liberlarians, and l've ld olrt nEny other fedures that are lardly suffile - slavey, to menticxr jLst ore, or the urage slavey that uas bittely @ndenrrcd byu,l#<ing @plewfp had nser heard of anardilsrnor conrrunism right thragh the 1Sh etury, and beyond.

in a

pcitior to $le cders (e<oeC, ryin

jwtified,

a is sordine

tl"e

caq

RBR lhe in'portane of grassrmts darnoacy to any nmningful drange in socidy uorJd seern to be self e/ide1t. Yet the left has beel antigLrcus abort this in tlre past. I'm speaking gererally, of social denr'ncracy, fut also of Bolsheuisrn - traditims on the left thd u,tculd seen to hare nnre in wrrrnn with diti$ thinkiqg than with strid derncratic prdie. Lenin, to use a udl-loo^n oerple, uas urion se$icd that ra,okers could develop anything rrcre than cmsoasrpss by urfricfr, I assurc, he neant thd vucrkers cottld rct seefar beyord tlreir inmediate predicanEnt. Snilarly, the Fabian smidi$, Beatrice \Abbb, vr/rc um very influe rtial in the Labor l%rty in Englad, had the Merythat vllrcl<ers \,ere only interested in fiote miry ffisl Wrere doc this elitism originate and urffi is it dcling on

tr*

the left?

CtOll/EKY: I'm afi'aid it's hard for me to ansruer this. lf the left is understood to include'Bolshevism,' then I would flatly dissociate myself from the left. Lenin was one of the greatest enemies of socialism, in my opinion, for reasors I've discussed. The idea that rarcrkers are only interested in horsFracing is an absurdity that cannot withstand even a superficial look at labour history or the lively and independent r,vorkirg class press that flounshed in many places,

uffi l'er

RBR OE d the mdn dis,q€rts dthe Sansh bdurtimum it d gressods da'ruray e$disH. ln tsns d is edindedtH orer 3 rillicnurere in\rd\ed R.rd ad utryl proddim ure na"4ed by v\crl€rs therEdves ls it a ccirudare to yo.r nird thd ascfids, kmln fo tldr dr,ocay d indvidd fuedon srcceed in this aea d odledirc driristrdim? the degree

duays fu,nC

rdly

theTaetlresa're.

l'r,e

REFI Amrdr'sts dten opend a great deal of dort at tuilding up 5assroob darmay. lndeed tlrcy are often acased d takirg datwwy to extrutes. Yd, despite this, neny anardtists ultculd nd ide-rtifo darnoacy as a central mnponert of anardist ptilcoptry. Arnrdtists cftet describe thdr @itics as teing about saialisnl or ktsng abottr 'the individml- tlrcy are less likdyto sry lhat arerd"risn is abo-t dernoacy. \A,b.Jd yu agree that denmatic

Leninisrn

RBR ln the pad, vuten ycu fa\,e spd<ar *o"t asdisrn yur l6,e dten erflmisd the oanfl e d tlE Sptrrsh hdutio. Fr yo.r

dermrey

nraracy

yor rce

in specific

including the manufaduring tcnruns of New'England not many miles frorn where I'm writing - not to speak of the inspiriry record of the @urag@us struggles of persecr.rted and oppressed people throughoLtt history until this very moment. Take the most miserable comer of this hemisphere, Haiti, regarded by the European @nquerors as a pardise and the source of no small part of Europe's wealth, noar devastated, perhaps beyond recovery. ln the past bw years, under conditions so miserable that feru people in the rich muntries can im4ine then, peasants and slurncfui,ellers corstructed a popular democratic move.rrent based on grmsroots organisations that surpasses just about anything I know of elsewhere; only deeply conrnitted conrmissars muld fail to collapse with ridicule when they I lhear the solemn pronouncements of Arnerican intellecluals and lpolitical leaders about horuthe US has to teach Haitians the lessors of ldernocracry. Their achievenrents rarere so substantial and frigl"rtening to Ithe pora,erful that they had to be subjected to yet anotl'er dose of Moous terror. with oraiderably more US support than is publicly I

acknovvledged, and they stll have not sunendered. Are they interested lonlv in hors+rrcino? I

sone lines I've occasionally quoted fron Rousseau: Mlan d efiircly naked savryes scom Eurryn and udwe hurger, firc, tlre s'z.nd, md dedh to rc mty tlrcir iflepen&nce, I fel that it des rtd blwve to reasm afutt fr*n.

sr.rggest

t muttitu&s

Speaking gererally again, your oaar uaork - Hening cracy, I\ecessary lllusions, etc. - has dealt cmsistentlywith tle and prevalerrce d elitist idem in socleties sucfr as our omn You l argued that within'\AEstem' (o parliarentary) denncracy there a Oeep a,rtagonism to arry real rde or input fron therrms of people, st it thieatenlhe uneven distribution in r,rrcalth which farours the rich' vrork is quite convincing here, but, this aside, sonB lsve been <ed by yor.rr assertions. For instance, you conparethe @itics President John F" Kenrredy with Lenin, rrpre or less equating the two' This, I miglrt add, ha shocked supporters of both camps! Can you a little on the validity of the cornparison?

CtlOtl/El(Y: Bakunin's wamings about the Red bweauaacylhd la,odd institnte thev,rir$ d all deSic pvenments rarrere long before Lenin, and were direded against the folloaiers of ttfi' lVlax' There in fad, follcnarers of nrany different kinds; PannekoeK frrn Lenin, ard thdr Lrxenbourg, tvldtick ard dhers ae rrery viarvs often-convage with dsnents of ananfrosytdicdisrn. l(omdt ard dhers vwcte ErrpatMicdly of the amdri$ rwddim in $dn, in fad. Ttrere ae contintities frcnr tvkx to Lerin, hrt there are dso mntinuities to tvlaxists wtro rarere harshly oitical of Lenin and Teodor Shanin's work in the past years on ttlar/s later attitudes toaards peasant revoli,ttion is also relevant here. I'm far frsn

being a lVarx sdrda, and wouldn't venture ary serios judgenrrt m icfr of tnese ortirruities reflects the 'real tvla:t,' if there alen can be an answer to that question.

Rffi:

Recently, uie obtdned a

&lt

standard Leninist dodrine. I've argued that the roots are rather in bdh cases. Wthorlt fui'ther clariflcation about what people shrckirtg,l can't corrrent furtirer. The conpatisons are speqfic' I think both proper ard properly qualifid. lf not, that's an eror, I'd be interested to be eniightened about it'

of yotr

l$es On Arsdisrn in the l'}SA). lnthisyu.r

cnrvn

frtfux, in particular ifs devdopent of Do you generally agree with capitalism. the idea of alienation under this division in lvlar(s life and work - a young, nrore libertarian sociali$

mentionttreriats: I haven't actually equrafedthe dodrines of the liberal of the Kennedy adninistration with Leninists, bttt I tmre striking points of sin'ilarity - rather as predided by Bakunin a y earlier in his percefiive ccrnner-rtary on the rewclass For I quoted pessagm fronr [\4cMnnra cxr the r@to enhance ltortr the ial control if rne are to be truly free. and that is ffre real thrcd to &nrcncy is an assault irst reason itseif. Change a fe,v re,ords in these passages, and we

opy

(rep.{lished last year by Dscussion &Ildin

dteeriity

burt, in later years, a

firm authoritarian?

O-Ol\lEl(Y: The early Max drans extensivelyfronthe rnilizu in lived, and one fin& nnny similarities to the thinklng that aninated ical iiberalism, mpeds of the Enligl"rtenrnerrt ad French and Gemran Rornanticism. Again, I'm not enough of a [4ax scholar to preterd to an auhoritdive julgenrert tt/y irrye**n, for whd it is irnrttr, is tfrat te ealy lvlanx was very nudr a figure of the late Edigtrtennent, attne mer Ufxwas a high[ anhoitarian adM$' anO-a crruca ardy$ d c4italism, vrf,ro had little to say abot socidist alternatives. Btlt those are impressions'

RBR Frmr my unde$andirp, tfe core part of pr.rr werall viau is infonrEd bV V6ur conc+t d hurBn rdure. ln the pad fE idâ&#x201A;Ź cf Specrfically, Leninism refets to a form of rnaxism that tped with V.l. Lenin. Are you implicitly distingishing the vriorks of ftom the particular criticism you have d Lenin vrlren you use the 'teninisnl? Doyo.r see a continuity behrcen IVhrXs viqns and

sarHhng legressive' er'ert limiting. For instance, the unchanging aspect oI hurmn nature is often used is an argune.rt for wtry things can't be changed fundarnentally it the diredion of anarchisnr. You take a different Merl2

hunsr rstue was seen, perhaps,

Wrf

CFOIIIEKY: Tle core pat d arlone's pcirt of vietl is scrrE orceil d hman rphne, lmrcver it nay be renrte frmr airareness o lack artioidim. At led, thd is tnre of peofle vrtuc oorsider tlpnselves npral agents, nd nnrslets. trilsslee mide, wtrdher a persanufn advocates refonn or rardrtion,

o st*ility o

return to ealier

S4es'

o sinply orltivating onds om grdan, Ekes stand on the grunds tna it isigood for peopte.' B.rt tM judgerErt is bced m smre conceptm of nunan rature, wttidr a reasonaHe persm will tryto pcsiHe, if rty so that at can be evduded' So in rnat<e as Oear

respect I'm no dlfferent frort anyone eise.

Yar're right thd hurran rdure lBs been seen as sondhing 'regressie,' but tH n'r'st be the resr-{t d pdordconful1' tt *y gr;ddaughter no ffierertfroma rock, a salanerder, adrid<en, a imt ef A person wtro disn$sses tlis abstrd[ty.as ryq.!:3ryt'i that th;re is a d$indive hurnan reture. \Ab are lefl or{ywith tfe question d raf,rd it is - a higtily nordrivid anA F"imilg guedim: yft dunpts sciertinc ifiereg ahd furnan sigificarrce' \Ab lmol afair annr"nt abotl oertain *pects of it - notthosecf najor hurran Bqrcrd tkdt, weare ldtwith orr hopes andwistrcs, intuitions and s@ulations. ffrere i. nothin! reEressive about the fad that a hunen enbqp is so that it does nd grorvwings, orthat its visual system fundion in the nranner of an insed, or that it lacks the lwrirg of pigeons. The sare fadors that conSran tle organisnls also enahe it to attain a ricfr, mrmlex and higl'tly strudure, sinilar in fundanertal rarays to cmspecifcs' and rernarkable capaties. An oganismthat lacked sucft rrrinative intrinsic stnrc*ure, whicfr of couse radically linitsthe ls d do/elopnEnt, ritlrculd be sonr kind of aloeboid creature, to pitied (wen if it could suMve sor*rorv). The scope and linits cf

Take language, one of the fa/v distindive hurnan capacities about vrtrich n'ucfr is lrrown. \A,b have vey strong reasons to belis/e that all possible hunen languages are very sir$la4 a tviartian scienti$ observirB huurmns night condude thd tiere is just a single language, with rinor variants. The reason is that the particr-rlar as@ d hr-rnan nature that underlies the groMh of language alloas vay redrided etians ls this liniting? Of course. ls it liberating? AJso of murse. lt is these 1rcry restridions that rnake it possible for a ridr ard intricate qSem of epression of thouglrt to darelop in sinilar raEB on the basis d very rudinentary, scdtered, aM varied epaience.

V\M

about the nefter d bidogrcally-deternined hunran difierenes? That these exst is surely true, and a catse for joy, not fear or regrd. Ufia annng dones wculd nd be u,orth liMng, and a sare person will mly relcice that dhers hare abilities that tley do not share. That should be elarerrtary. Wrd is mnrrnnly believed about these rErtters is strarBe indeed, in nryopinion.

ls hunnn nature, whatever it is, conduove to the developnrent of anarchist fqns of life or a banier to thern? \Ab do not lcroru eno.rgh to an$Aer, one uay or the dher. Tlrese are nutters for epainBntation ad discorery, not enpty prclounceme-ts.

Athird reason has to do with uhat the hsircss press calls fhe pnprd lr1,&em uacrkerc with tlrdr lLxuians lifxtylx. Wth rudl of Eastern Europe retuming to the fold, onners and nrenagers hale poaerful na/v v\,eapoins again$ the uorkirp dasses and the @r at honE. GM ad M/Vcan not only transfer produdim to [\4exio and Brzil (or at least threden to, whidr cften annunts to the sarc thirB), but also to Poland ard Ftmgary, wtrere they can f nd skilled and trained wcrkers at a fadion cf the cod. They are $oating abant it, understandaUy, given tlrc guidirj values. the Cdd \ Ar (or any otl"rer mnflid) \ Es dreaing and w1rc is unl'eppy after it ends. By that criteion, ttre Mdors in the Cdd \Abr irdude \Abdem elites an

V\,b can leam a lot about \ i'tat

abalt $l looking at vttrc

the or-l'lcrrenldatura, nory ricfr beyo'rd tleir wildest drearns, and the losers irdude a substantial part dthe porulation of the Ea$ along Wth vucrkirg people and the poor in the \Abst, 6 \ ell re popular sedors in the South thd haue sought an independent path.

Srch ideas tend to arouse rear llptaia anrrcng \Atsstern intdleduals, wtrcn tl'ey can sren perceive tlrcrn, which is rare. That's emy to shorl It's also understandable. The observatiors are coned, and sdc\,â&#x201A;Źrsive of porrcr and pnMlege; herce hystena. ln gereral, the readiors of an honed person to the end of the Cdd fo will be rpre corplex than just pemure wer the collapse of a brutal tyranny, ard pevailing readions are suffr.sed with extrere hpooisy, in my opinion.

\ RBR To @in finishing ofi, I'd like to ak yol briefly about sone

orent

issues on tle ieft. I don't laurv if the situatim is sinilar in the USA hrt here, with thefall of the Souiet Lhicxr, a oertain denprdisation has sd in on the left. lt isn't so mLdr that peoplewere dear supporters of what existed in the Soviet Llrion, but ratlrer its a general feding that with the derise of tle Soruiet Lhion the idea of socialism has also been dragged doam. Fbve you cone across this type of derroralisdion? Whats your response to it?

CIOIEI(Y:

tt/y response to the end of SoMd tyranny uras similar to my readion to the Gfeat of Htler and l\fussolini. ln all cases, it is a vidoyforthe hunen sprrit. lt should lnve been partiarlarlyraelmne to socialists, slnce a great ensrry of socialisrn had at las't mllapsed. Like you, I was intrigued to see horu peode - induding people who had midered thenselves afti-Salinist and anti-Leninist - raere denralised by the mllapse of the tyranny. V\trat it reveals is that they vrere nnre deeply cormitted to Leninismtlnn they believed.

There are, horsrer, other remorc to be concenred about the elinindion dthis brutal and tyrannical system, wtricl'r raas re rnrctr rt was bnrcntic (recall that it dairned to be bdh, and that soodi$

the latter daim was ndioied in the \ ,bst, while the fonrer was eagerly a@pted 6 a weapo'l again$ socialism - one d the nrany exanples d the service of \Abstem intelledLels to poaer). Oe reason has to do with the nature of the Oold \Ahr. ln my Maru, it was in significant ITEâ&#x201A;Źxiure a speoal case of

the'Mrthsorlth conflid,'to rcethe otnent

anphenisrn for Europe's corquest of mtch of the world. Emtem

furope had been the original 'third vrorld,' and the Cold \Ahr frsn '1917 lrad no slight resemdance to the readion of attends by dher parts of the third uorld to pursue an independent course, thotgh in this case differen:es d scale gave the conflid a life of its oarn. For this reaon, it vras only reasonable to aJlped the regior to rdum pretty nucfr to its earlier stdus: parts of tl'e \A,bst, like the Qedr RepuUic or \Atsstem fulrd, could be opeded to rqoin it, Wrile others revert tothe traditional service role, the ex-Mnenl{atura becon-ng tie $andard third uorld elite (with the apprwal of \Abslern statecorporde po Er, wt$ch generally prefas tlrernto altematives). Thatwas rrt a pretty prosped, and it has ledto irnnerse suffaing. AnctrEr remon for mncem has to do with the nratter of dderrence and rnnalignrmrt. Crdesque m the Soviet erpire was, its rcry existerce dfered a certain space for nonalignnent, and for perfedly qrnical reasors, it sonetines provided assistanceto Mdins d V\Esiem aftadc Thme o$iorc are gone, and the South is suftaingthe

Cafltalisn RtsR ln nany ways the left today finds itself back at its original port in the last century. Like ther, it noarfms a form d captalisrn that is in the acerdancy. There uould seern to be Eeater 'corsersuS today, nnre ttran at any otie+ tine in hstoy, that starting

captalisrn is tlre oiy valid form of econonic organisatim pcsible tli: despte the fad that wealth inequality is Wdening. Against this backdrop, cxre muld argue thd the left is ursure d lrorv to go fonlard. Floru do yor lmk at the cunent penod? ls it a question of 'back to basics'? Should the etrort noru be toaards bringirg out the libertarian tradition in smialisrn and toruards stressing derncratic idea?

CflOlltsl(Y: This is r,mtly propaganda, in my oprinion. \A,lut is called 'captalisnl is basicdly a systen of mrporate nercantilism with huge and largely unaccouftable pnvate tyrannies exerosng vast corltrd orer the economy, political systerns, and social ard ciltural life, operating in dose moperation with poa,erful states that intervene nussivdy in tie do"re$ic emnony and international socidy. That is dranutically true d the United States, contrary to m.rdr il[sion. The rich and grvileged are no nrre willirj to face nerket discipline than tlrcy hare been in the pmt, thongh they mnsider it just fire for the generd population. tVlerdy to cite a faar illustratiors, the Reagan adrinistration, whidr re/elled in free rmfl<et rletoric, also bmted to the hsiness mrrunitythat it uasthe nret protedionist in pmt+ar US histoy - adually nnre tlran all otfrers contined. I\sM Clngrich, who leads the olnent crusade, represents a supemch distrid that receives nrre federal subsidies tlran any other sufurban region in the muntry, outside of the federai systern itself. lte 'onseruatives wl'ro are calling for an erd to scfrod lundres for hungry cfrildren are also denwrding an increase in the fudget for the Pentagon, whidr vvas estahished in the late 1940s in its curent form because - a tlre fusiress press vlES kind enough to tell w - high tech indrdry cannct survive in a pure, a nptitive, and the gwemnent

wnny,

ursubsidzd,'frre

mst

atupir-'

be its sawa;r WthorJt the saiour, Gngrichsmrstitumtsuaculd be pmrvue*ing people (if they uere lud<y). There wculd be rc mrmlers, eledronics generdly, auiatim industry, mdallurgy, autoretion, etc., dc, right dom the list. AIHchisF, of all people, sl'rould nd be taken in h7 tirese traditional

frads.

lVtre tlrar erer, libetariar socidist idem are rdqat, atd the is very mdl opm to trcrn Esfite a h4e nrc d $ill o.fside d educded cirdes, orporate nairtdn Fneily mldt hjrtradtional dtitudes. ln the tJS, fororanple'

popttdim

pq4rda

nrre ttm S/o dthe pq.Idim regd tte

irMty .pod

Ihe Mventures of...

ffitaric

q/stern

pditicd sy$em e a fra.rd' uticfr seruestfe lrteredq rrt fre pade. OrcnnhefrirB miodties tfirk

wftiradtE

N0AMCHOMS ...

rtrt.l

hi.,hrl'Itldtr'rtti!

n\ tlldt [alpn i{.dff rgrh: Briggldg dtoot his (Etstdlyl

vrakirB peope l'sve to lifre \dce in pJCic afidrs (tl'e sarc is trw in tre gorenrrErt fE he respqrttility d asddirg ErElarO, sfndd tde spardlB fu edrcdiqr ad in red @e preederrce orcr hrcbd-atting ad ta( oJE td th cureri ae sailirg flTough Oogess bendt tl"e nepdicar popcds ridr md fsmtln gaerd pqt/ation, ard so on. lntdleciuals ney tdl a diffaent story, tut its irct all that dificr.rlt to find ott the fads.

ffi

piri asdi$ ide6 fgve bsl virdcded by fE cdlape of the SG,id uim - the pedidirs d Bahrfn lae poren to be osred. Do irru tirk td asdists stu'Id tdre M fian this RBR To a

0ooo. I n ialph fibltef! Lool at me. I |Grrrd !tr lnltRle* ulh

rO ftanfre peresrieness of Bdcrrins rralpis? S[uId aradrids look to tte period dread vtith greate mrfiHrce in tlrdr idem and h$orY?

generd ctdAopnert

Cf,XlllEl(Y: I think - at lemt hope - that ti'e arsrrer is inflicit in the above. I think he cun'ent era has oninom ported, and sigts of great frcpe. \Ahidt result srsLres @ds on vrrhat rle nake of tle

But | (an't do th+t! Ihere'rlrtt Eot to bp a way io preserve mY rrilgeaflditillgtt EY

f(r$, ql'l... 'lrrr l trt lof d rnodtrn tnduilrbl to(n'ay h lo ,r hievc wir* lrnaw

opportunitie.

RER Lm{y,

G.irm

I\em

d +estion V\b tsrre a fiil d yol here. \Afen ae yoJ grrrB to ore ard

a different sort

on order for

,,ooplo wr'to

Alnness ready. I trope it r,r,or't be tm long'

l-essj@.ta!, Id betfreretcnurorif neodd \AE (myurifecarc dcrd t r/ith ni), tt'us.d fd UEe corsart tips) hd a nBrvClctts tine \ in treand, ad vto.Id loe to core bad( Wry drft ue? brtt bse you Wth tie sordd dddls, hl denards are edrarlnry, and nrurfing - a refledircn dthe condtiors l've been tyirg to desoibe'

lftr{ru(p ,r,ld liy(l fft.ely

(rc.ttp, llve llretr

drink it? CHOIIISI(Y: lGep the

lfiftllrrllry

l(',tlilalrro. ndrnrlY, n rock'ty ril(n lr rr.illy l,d!rd on lrot' eohnt rn' r,orlldpilrol o,

Ioirttt ('ltutrrsltt' I )ir r-

('it lettrlit

ilr l,n,l.lu I r rp,t. ll

t'!

Spur',iitrrnrr u rqrh

ril,.uigh,l 6rtri,r. rr,rt r1s

rithrn firtll0ltont lhcy c rrnlror dnd wllh llmllod htsrorthkol poiilDty ooun ot olt,, {!urer,

Belfast's prestigious Waterfront venue, an architectural product of the 'Peace Frocess' here did its polished best to exclude ordinary working people from its shiny interior until failing ticket sales to its assorted galas and operas forced them into opening their expensive rev<ilving doors to one and all. Recently it hosted a rather unusual debate with the ominous title "Did Peace Kill Punk?" and so your intrepid reporter was dispatched to get the lowdown There were only a handful of people at the start with a panel consisting of Brian from original Belfast punk band Rudi and Johnny from "Alternative Ulster" magazine. Another panellist didn't show up. Brian gave.a brief history of punk rock's glory days in Belfast with occasional contributions from Johnny... The scene is set. Belfast is the centre of an ongoing civil war between two extreme forms of nationalism. The media called it "The Troubles" as if to play down the actual events on the ground. Large sections of the city were no-go areas, especially at night. The "fwo communities", to use an exhausted phrase, had a deep mistrust going back centuries and the flame of that suspicion was carefully fanned by an ascendant class. When punk finally reached here in the late 1970's it was a welcome alternative to years of sectarian hatred. Brian ran through the early days of punk and spoke of the first wave of bands like Rudi, The Outcaste, Ruefrex, Stiff Little Fingers and the Undertones among several others. He pointed out that some of SLF's lyrics were written by an English rock journalist getting a little dig into the most fanrous mainstream punk band from these embattled shores. He menttoned DiY label Good Vibrations set up by Terry Hooley in 1978 which put out many singles in the early pop punk explosion, most of which has been well documented in the book " lt Makes You Want To Spit" by Sean O'Neill and Guy Trelford. There was no "politics" per se in the early punk scene in Belfast because many wanted to turn away from the horror that had marred the city and beyond for years, according to Brian. ln 1977 when The Clash were due to play, the gig was cancelled by city fathers and a riot erupted in Bedford Street between the cops and disillusioned punters and many people think this was the real spark of punk in Belfast, including Terri Hooley who has said it turned him from being a hippie into being a punk. Brian also points out that Joe Strummer sporting a "Smash H-Blocks" t-shirt when Republican prisoners were staging a dirty protest in 1980 which escalated into a hunger strike over a demand for political status a year later did not endear them to certain elements in the Northern lreland scene (the H-Blocks were the prison in question which formed ihe)C was a caf6/drop in, a practice room/come venue, a screenprint work shop and more. It attracted a considerable humber of people and became a focal point for the alternative and underground scene for the next 17 years. lt was Giro's, I pointed out to the panel, that politicised punk (indeed far beyond punk) in Belfast. There was much nodding of heads and other voices spoke up about the liberation of finding somewhere like Giro's free of the religious bigotry that had wrecked many of our lives. One bloke in particular was amazed that when a gig was suddenly cancelled it ended up being transferred to someone's house where all were welcome and no money was asked. Such camaraderie was a rare occurrence for him and many others, used to sectarianism and suspicion. The debate then turned to what punk had to offer today to the city of Belfast and a few people spoke of some of the great new bands coming out of here nowadays like Runnin' Riot, The Lobotomies and othei's, but before things could really get anywhere the talk was rounded up. I say talk for there wasn't much debating. Your intrepid reporter did a brief interview for a German anarchist radio station and then headed out into the

ln a sense it did. That was my first reaction. Of course it depends what you mean by punk. The original punk was a resounding fuck off to the system but particularly the music business which was no more than an exploitative marketing strategy controlled by fat cats. But that punk, the 77 punk soon became nothing more than a fashion statement as its image became commodity and postcard punk became the norm. There were of course some that wanted to hold onto that original anti-system idea and by the late 70's there were many bands with strong political agendas such as Discharge, Dead Kennedys and Crass as many readers will know all too well, The influence of Crass especiaily is still being felt to this day.

Anarcho-punk is just a name that was given to the bands of the early 80's who espoused similar viewpoints to Crass. lt opened up the barbed wire rr'ralls at the end of every cultural cul-de-sac, and anarchism in particular offered an idea that could put an end to one-dimensional party politics. Many punk bands were not anarchist in outlook but had a similar agenda, something that was more than just bashing out a few chords and hoping we'd wake up free one day. I prefer to use the allembracing term DiY for it encapsulates the whole idea of not just anarcho-punk but all forms of social consciousness, including those with no connection to punk at all. Anarchopunk, as such belonEs to the 1980's but the DiY punk community it formed is international and ongoing... but to get back to the point... Over the years l've noticed that it's only when something comes through your front door that you do something about it. It's only when you are directly, affected that you make a move. So it was in Belfast in those early years, surrounded by hatred and somebody had already blown up the light at the end of the tunnel. Unemployment was rife, housing conditions were considered 'third world' in some areas and opportunities were rare. Many young people moved to London, Dublin or New York rather than face the shit. So you can say we were politicised, we were surrounded by it day in and day out so it's clear why you'd want to seek an alternative. I think the same can be said of the early anarcho-punk scene in the UK in general. The continuing arms race of those days had many of us terrified. Margaret Thatcher was especially adept. She changed the face of policing in the UK by bringing plods from out of town with no lD numbers and she sent them to smash the Stonehenge Free Festival movement with maximum force and then moved in on the Mining community and cut the heels of the trade unron movement in the UK, and then off to Wapping to have a go at print workers while increasing troops in Northern lreland and fully backing her righter-wing-thanthou

Reagan was so clearly losing it from day one that it was truly frightening to think he was in control of the case with the button. Reagan laid the foundations for the Globalisation movement and covert operations in South and Central merica were the order of the day. lt was a truly disturbing H from the air). Punks began to set up a few venues around the city centre, notably the Pound, the Harp, the Manhattan and the Labour Club which was the beginning for many.

The Compare put questions the audience which had begun to increase considerably and a few people asked questions of panel which were mostly music related.

willingly give up their rights, many of them not knowing what those rights were in the first place. lt becomes important for me as an individualto put as many spanners into this as I can find. I want to kill this 'peace', shatter this illusion, blow it up, burn it down, and kick it till it breaks. It's not really about punk or peace for me. lt's about passion; it's about making life an experience to cherish before it's all over. lt's about breaking the barriers that separate and destroying ideas, by all means neeessary, that put those barriers up in the first place. lt's about eliminating fear... it's about the future and this is what was going through my mind as I walked out of the prestigious Waterfront hall and headed to the bus station for the journey home.

At this point your intrepid reporter had to get his 2 cents by mentioning the rise of anarcho-punk in Belfast from the early 1980's onwards which lead to the formation of the Warzone Collective in Belfast. Up until this point there was no mention the debate of anarcho-punk or what would become one of the most culturally important venues in the city. The Warzone Collective was much more politicised than the previcus pop punk generation and were motivated to find their own place after becoming fed up with over-commercialised venues Crass had played in the old A.narchy Centre in 1982 and realiy inspired a lot of people, (although Brian pointed out he thought they were awful). Punk gigs had been held in several venues across the city by this point. One of the better venues was The Labour Club, in Waring St where you could get cheap pints a even have a tipple on a Sunday long before the laws changed io allour Sunday opening bui it soon closed its docrs. The Warzone Collective started aboui 1984 and acquired premises in 1986 called'Giro's'where your intrepid reporter could once be found cooking vegetarian food, being quiet at meetings, ticiying up after gigs and wondering why nobody would buy the Thatcher On Acid 'Garlic" LPs that lay under counter gathering dust, The venue was small but still there time and in such an uncertain period it was then no wonder that such an anti-politicalbacklash came resounding across the UK; because it was coming through your front door every day and you needed to act. Of course many used the cover of the movement in which to hide their shortcomings and it is not my intention to present some cohesive organisation of mass protest for it clearly wasn't. But it was powerful protest for some ali the same, motivated many of us and still does to this d

ay.

Moving on over the years things came and went, everything split and went this way and that. ln more recent years technologi/ has created all sorts of distractions which the vast majority of us do not need and never will. The credit card became available to the lower classes, and all could happily turn their wages into unwanted household products- Advances in entertainmeni meant huge TV screens and games consoles so the youth could direct theii-anger into tedious shooting and fighting games or stay in the bar to watch the match Society began making more and nrore useless items and gadgets so that we would have to do less and less They vranteo to keep us indoors and off the streets. Give them credit cards and satellite TV and then dull their senses with the most banal, mundane and heart-destroying nonsense they can conjure. For it is conjuring. Did peace kill punk? lt depends on what you mean by peace. Political movements rise in history when the times call for it and in the 'absence' of injustice when 'peace' is said to reign there is less activity, less of a 'need' for protest. But when you realise how controlled mainstream forms of media are, how consent and concern are manufactured and fed to the herd, you begin to establish the notion that this is the artificial peace. We are at peace in dreamland UK. Of course the problems still exist but we are led to believe they are far away; and fear not for the self-appointed world police are on the case. For young people growing up today in the shadow of the stone-throwers of yesterday, life has never been better' They have never been more distracted in history in this computerised age when most youths have a mobile phone literally stuck to the side of their face or glued to their hand as they send text messages to the person sitting righi next to from terrori . The State sa

,.t

EDO-MBM are a Brighton based subsidiary of US Arms giant EDO Corp. EDO's military products include bomb racks, release clips, and arming mechanisms for warplanes. EDO also build the laser-guided Paveway lV - the most used munition in the aerial assault on lraq The effects of "Shock & Awe' mbardment of lraq have been counted in deaths nd shattered lives. Air strikes on civiiian populations an integral method of modern warfare to keep death at a distance. And it's not just in lraq - add Palestine, Afghanistan, and who knows where next? The campaign against the bomb factory has been growing slnce Augusl2C04. Regular pickets, noise demos, rooftop protests and blockades have all been targeted at the warmongers among us.

.smashedo.org.uk

Mary's friend June's brother owns the Rock, which was the venue for the picnic.

lhad been involved with

small independent festival in

Leitrim 2005-07, doing a punk

stage am idst all the electronic/experim ental dig ital rave a nd da nce stuff, and also at this fest we had a Trad/world m usic stage which was great. This fest was Leechrum fest, changed name to SAlfest for last year. B2F: Jasper can you give

brief history of Poo Promotions and how/why you came to revive it again in lreland?

JM: Briefly, it's just a silly name for me putting on gigs that came about years ago cos the f irst ba nd I was in, Les furds stopped, but I carried on putting on gigs (this is mid '80s U.K.). I stopped putting on gigs early '90s and in 1994 lmoved to Eire, for several reasons, am ongst which was that I had been in a band Phobos Deim os a nd the m ain m usician was m oving here. W e were going to carry the band on, but he moved back after one year and I stayed. I m ade the decision to start

doing gigs again in 2004, the main reason being to do a benefit gig for a friend who had a brain tumour. I'd seen a backroom in a local pub in Leitrim that had allowed live music on before, so I got the gig there, it went well, decided to do m ore. I

From there lstarted putting gigs on in Sligo and rrther venues in Leitrim, been involved with Leechrum/SAl fest the 3 years it was on, Mantua this year and of course Drumacanoo Punx Picnic - which brings us nicely to your next question. B2F: How did the idea and the plans for organising the biggest punk's picnic in lreland at Drumacanoo come about?

JM: The idea of organising Drumacanoo punx picnic well it wasn't my idea originally - ljust said yes l'll

do it cos lcouldn't say no when Mary & Oisin told me about their plans.

Mary & Oisin do the gigs in

Letterkenny town, The Rebellious Jukebox (check em out on MySpace) and

Mary, June & Oisin hatched a plan to have a small event at the Rock, but without the rave/dance elem ent, just live

punk and underground bands, so they asked m e if l'd get involved. They had som e crazy idea that lwould know what to do, having done Leechrum fest for 3 years, haha! So I went up to see the venue, im m ediately said 'yeah, why not then'and so began a long, hard slog to get the event up and running and eventually, over. B2F: lf a few people wanted to get such an event together what advice would you give them? What costs need to be borne in m in

d etc?

JM:Well, off the top of me head now, first off is the venue - you need public liability insurance (with the Rock they already had it; it covered the land as well), lf you are doing it in a private field, you will have to get public Iiability insura nce. That is a prim ary cost. Ok, if

have the cost of hiring them they havd to have all correct doc um e ntatio n f or the fire off icer, who will do an inspection of your festival site. You are going to have to hire port-a-loos, lig hting towers, security fencing, generators. You are going to have to hire a qualified electrician to certify all the electrics - the fire officer will want to see these certificates. You will have to hire fire extinguishers. We had the lrish Red Cross on site, they were voluntary, but obviously accept donations.F irst Aid/am bulance is essential on s

ite.

lf using m arquees you will need a stage - either hire (expensive) or build - we all have m ates who are chippers - still an expense for tim ber is there. P.A system, backline, lighting, engineers we worked with a budget of m inus f uck all. The 2 m ain areas - hall & marquee - the P.A.'s & backline was provided free - well the condition was ifwe made excess cash, then it would be attributed to the people with the P.A.'s - we were fortunate enough to have people - the Erne Music Collective and Jay & Am brose - who didn't have m oney as a num ber one priority. They wanted the event to work and were prepared to offer their services for free in order for it to succeed, lm ust also point out that we did rely heavily on bands to bring backline am ps, so that individual pieces of equipm ent weren't overused. D rum kits were provided. Right so, you're going to need to pay for printing posters, flyers, program m es, wristbands, tickets, postage costs, bands expenses, ba nds hosp itality beers, loads of other m iscellaneous expenses (for exam ple - high visibility vests for stewards, bin liners, g loves for litter picking, probable skip). W e are presum ing here that this is an above board, by the books, according to the rules festival/m usic event so of course you are going to have to have security, which is a m ajor expense, those boys don't com e cheap. I've probably forgotten a few things b ut those are the m ain

'tr.ri3.-ir.\r :-a,:l

ti;,

ENTCRiTAIHMEIIT

i . 'r: 'irr'-1 f', -.!

Ghurshill suruiues punk invasion

t-l4y ,6rc

f.''i:t.!'rz.i,

' r'lf r. rr1;Xr:

cn .i-

B2F: W hat was the resPonse of local people to the Punk's Pienic, before and after, like?

JM: Well, l'm fortunate enough not to have to have dealt with the locals, MarY was the PR for the Picnic, and she did a great job dealing with the local m edia and the local citizens of the area, holding a general m eeting at the venue, where she answered all questions and put laid to rest any fears there m ay have bee n. Ithink generally there wasn't m uch against the event, there was one person who tried very hard to stop the event going ahead, badgering the police to stop it, but lthink this person would've tried to stoo it even if it were a child's tea'party - they needed som ething to be against.

As for after the event, there as positive write-uPs in the local paper, the localPeoPle were happy enough - theY hadn't been disturbed, it was all over within 72 ho urs, m ost attendees had left bY then, the whole site was cleaned uP and back to norm al bY the ednesday after. B2F: W hat were the highs and lows of the event for You? W hat happened wilh BIood or Whiskey and the fight' afterwards that led to certain allegations being m ade and the ops land ing in - I've heard 4 ifferent versions now? W ould you put them on again?

JM: W hen it was over was a high point for me, ha'ha! Seeing it all com e together fter m onths of hard work nd planning was good, even hough it didn't run ftt-.t

corn pletely to Plan. As lwas working several different roles, ldidn't really get tim e to see m uch of the bands, a couple of songs bY a band here or there, so that's a low point for m e but that's the way it is organising these things.l'm waiting for som eone else to do it so I can just go and enjoy the bands. Another low point was MarY being taken to hosPitalon the Saturday night when she had an allergic reaction to som ething she'd eaten and went into anaphylactic shock. S he was recovered bY S unday afternoo n thankfullY. Another low point was nearlY being in debt several thousand euros, this was the Saturday night also, m oneY went to the hosPitalwith MarY which lwas unaware of, so I was working on basis of having less m oneY than we did have - by S undaY when Mary was back the ProsPect of great debt was not so bad and in fact we have just about broken even on the whole

event.

So keeping with low Points and answering Your question as regards B lood or W hiskeY - well that whole ePisode was the low point of the fest. lwas not in the m arquee when it happened so lwas not witness to what haPPened, although ldo have the accolrnt of the soundm e-n, and ltrust their word without question. You refer in Your question to several stories doing the rounds - like BIood or W hiskey asking for a lot of m oney up front - ok - ldid pay them before theY PlaYed - the m oney that had been agreed, which was the sam e am ount that Paran oid Visions and D irty Lo ve got - theY were the headlining bands of the event. I was asked to Put m anaoer. I

said lcouldn't afford them, m entioned that Paranoid Visions & Dirty Love were playing for 1/5 of what theY wanted - so it was agreed that they would also PlaY for that am ount, which lthought was reasonable enough. You m ention fighting - again I was not witness to the outbreak of violence, but it did occur, Blood or WhiskeY were involved with it and the cops were called.l'm not sure about false allegations being m ade - I can't com m ent on that 'cos ljust don't know. The crux of the m atter was that Kidd Blunt were due to play before Blood or W hiskey. As w ith events of this nature we were running behind tim e, approxim atelY 1 hour. B Iood or WhiskeY approached m e and asked if they could swap slots with Kid Bluntand I asked them if this would be okaY. TheY were pissed off but agreed. This is w here I m ade a m istake. At this stage in the proceedings there would've been tim e for both bands to play a set, we had cut off tim e at 2am, but I would've let it go to 3am, I should've exPlained this and reassured them that we wouldn't run out of tim e' My understanding of it is that certain m em bers of the audience felt that Blood or W hiskey had had m ore than their fair share of tim e & should vacate the stage for Kid Blunf, this eruPted into f ig hting w hic h basicallY ended the gig. The coPs did com e, but I just kePt awaY from them 'cos there was nothing lcould do not knowing why they were there in the first place.

ould I have them again? ell the answer is no, I wouldn't. They do ask for too m uch m oney in m y oPinion, but they're probably used to getting what theY ask - theY seem pretty big in USA & Europe. They played cos I got them at a'discount'Price, but Ithink they are more suited to the com m ercial world of W W

usic. They are full tim e usicians who try to m ake a living out of m usic - who wouldn't if they could? Better than working l'd say. m m

B2F: I was slightly disappointed that there weren't more stalls and emphasis on the political/protest side of things?

JM: I would have liked to have seen rn ore of this - well the Palestine info stall didn't m ake it, I don't know why. The Tara road protest people did have representatives present, although we were hoping for m ore along the lines of info pam phlets. I would've liked to have had som e represeRtatives from the S hell to Sea cam paign, I suppose I never got round to asking them, or any other pressure groups to com e and do info stalls. My m ain role in the picnic was to organise the bands and sort out running tim es etc. So I agree, it could've been better in that respect. B 2F: I noticed yo u were for a number of other bands over the weekend. \/ hat are your band Excuses up to at the minute? Do you have any recordings available?

sing ing

JM: W ell I sang with Excuses, and we played twice. thought, bollocks l'm organising this thing, l can put our band on twice (this was after bands dropping out), so that's what ldid. The other band lsang with was Settirrg offSirens. I do backing vocals on one of their tracks. I

We don't have'any recordings on offer at present. You can hear recordings on www.m yspace.com /exc uses ir eland. W e have recently done some live recordings which are being m ixed now, including 5 new songs which we hope to record soon. People have offered to put vinylout for us, so we will have to see. W e're writing new songs and looking for gigs, anywhere. Offer us gigs - jasperm ckatt@ hotm ail.com B2F: Having been involved in both the UK and lrish scenes for a long tim e, how do they compare? Has the political dim ension of punk started to

disappea r off the tadar?

JM: lreland is better than England for me, that is why I am still here, lwouldn't go back to the UK, it's changed an awful lot since lleft and n ot f o r th e b ette r. it's s tricte r

rrrd /LrL,

f-tirak

is any cash for m e I usually buy a curry the next night. I don't think l've ever been accused of selling out for m aking a living out of gigs 'cos it just isn't happening, it's funny to even think of it being a possibility. Good luck to anyone who can make a living out of it, they'd have to be putting on a lot of gigs.

and tighter; the edges have all been straightened; they have taken the rough patches away, sprayed all the weeds; made it all digital and clean. Everyone's got their num ber, they all got their cards. And I don't think lreland is too far behind with this attitude. ell talking personally I would say that the punk scene lwas involved with in Kendal/Lancaster of the late '80s was probably the m ost politically active lhave been in - when lwas doing gigs they were all benefits for things like hunt sabs, anti nukes, children's hospitals, Greenpeace, youth clubs, Stonehenge Gam paign, m ore can't rem em ber. W hen I started the gigs again in 2004 Itried to do thern as benefits but found that it wasn't really working, that lcouldn't pay bands expenses, gig expenses and have a decent am ount left for the benefit.

tqorlt

l'm happy if gigs at least break even, expenses are covered, bands paid etc and that's usually the case, thankfully not often out of pocket.

lwouldn't know how to

com pare realistically, tim es

are diffe!'ent, lam aware of politically active people doing stuff in D ublin, alternative social centres and the like. There are loads of D lY gig organisers around the country, which is great. I think you could probably find the sam e in the U K as well though. lthink in general it's loads better for gigs than it was 20 years ago, both in lreland and the UK.

lwouldn't really know about politics dropping off the radar

within the prese nt pu n k scene. I suppose it depends what gigs you go to and what else you do/are involved in. suppose putting on a punk rock gig in a sm all town and corrupting the youth with the devils m usic m ay be seen as a political act by som e, ha-ha! I

B2F: D o you still find yourself politically motivated these days or is it a case of everyone for them selves? W hat of the lrish Green Party coalition with Fia nna Fa il & basica lly sweeping their green credentials under the carpet over the Tara road fiasco?

JM: I don't read newspapers or watch the news at 10, so am not au fait with the goings on between the Greens and FF, they are both the sam e; pawns drunk with power-lust and hell-bent on self advancem ent at whatever cost, pacts m ade with corporations, souls sold, fat m en in s uits, let them destroy them selves. lf you m ean by politically m otivated to go and protest against som ething I feel is wrong, then yes, som etim es I am still politically m otivated, but politically m otivated to follow the gam es of politicians, then no, I am not and never have been. I gave them no perm ission and never would do, a hex on them all, shower of bastards. www.pooprom otio ns.com

B2F: W ill there be another event next year? JM: W ell I can't say for 100% certain if there will be or not. people have to sit down & talk it through, lwouldn't want to do as rn uch as ldid this year. lt is certainly probable that it will happen again next year. Possibly m aybe. Could happen... B2F: Are you able to make a living from prom oting gigs? Do you ever get accused of selling out for this? JM : W ell the sim ple a nswer is no, I don't m ake a living from it; us ually I am a ble to cover

expenses, pay ba nds, if there

OEU{IO|]$ ITE}H f O{$

I iIIEf; I{HIIE

CULIUilE

tflti,tt,,pogoEffle,c(I,tlk

"They haven't gone away ycu know". That one caused a bit of a storm over here a few years back when the process'was 'peace dang!ing by it umbilical corC. Of coLirse itwas a loaded commentwhich was intended to suiface lt fraO the desired effect. The power of wortls eh? lt's easy to get a knee jerk to the draw more shit reaction from someone if you really want one. Easier still to have one. Fuck Bambi... Who killed Asterix? Those who don't learn from history blah blah blah. The final act of encirclernent should not be arguing about the bounciaries within our circled A. We ail woke up around the same time, maybe some before others, but we shared a rrision ancl let the world know what that vision was. As in the wider punk movement there were skeptrcs ai"rc! oppr:rtunists, businessmen and plain in-your-face users. lt was not to be these elements that car;sed the rotto set in liough. lt was our inabiiity to see beyond the confines of the idealswe should have aspired to. I don't know how riany times i was asked by idiots to define anarchy or anarchism. I equally don't know how many iirnes I was th jt idiot. Crass clones, Nazi veggies/vegans, humourless politicos, unholier than thou trend followers'.. The good old days. OK so some fuckers deserved to have shii slung at them and in some cases it rightfully stuck (and still does). us But when it got to the extent were internal house keeping was more important than the threat that brought did. many on tcgether it was 1;mq for many to move on. And so rnove

An individuai can of course centinue to make a difference, but isoiation wasn't what Anarcho punk (or should that be anachro-punk... Discr:ss) u;as about. The power lfelt personally atthe time came from the factthat there were loads of other people out ihere (and not just punks) who had a better vision of what they thought the world could be, and who were prepared to get off their arses to do sonnething about it. Divisions were going to be a predictable part of that and indeed a heaithy element to some extent, as they illustrated the diversity of philosophy within the movement. what It was and is great to be chailenged constructively because it gives you the chance to explore exactly in a not so drain into Caesar's this descended you. Butwhen to y6ui- beliefs rnean

funny parody of where the Judean People's Front and cancel each other out (sorry if you haven't seen ihe Life of Brian), it just felt Galilee Free to the Campaign plain nasty. fr," ego became more importantthan the objective. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong ' wiitr taking a swing at people who are obviousty cashing in on revolution or trying to channe! resistancJinto something that becomes Ineffective. But what's beyond that? yourself Expectations are an unforgiving currency I suppose when you spend a lot of your time giving of lt's noi others. of same the expecting of mindset the into slip yoiinadvertently peoplJ for the betterment of go. social lt takes word the from challenged be shoulcj that it's one but expectation bad an eniirely responsibility fr-om being something which is determined by the individual into the realms of duty. Coiscience is so much more powerful when it is allowed that we the space to flourish an<J guice rrs fi'cm sonrewhere that hasn't been poisoned with guilt and a feeling to networks up and set ideas to exchange we decided SHouLD do somethrng fiie definiteiy got it rightwhen going subsumed to be weren't our efforts that decided we gct whJn it r-iJnt get infor-mation fio#ng. we by the mainstream and took the DIY ethos tr: heart, We ihe revolution that punk orrginaliy should have been and set itto exposing the reciaimed we got ii lightwhen lies and rnurderous treacherY of thatwe capitalisrn and goyernment. We got it right urhen we went'out onto the streets and ietthe world knovr fear' than rather iove were prepared to act out of Look at what Anarcho-punk inspired and continues to hard to accept then so is the fact that we lost it somewhere along the line. are inspire. lf the criticisms unrealized motfr'ing nas cfranled except ourselves. We live in twin worlds where unbelievable horror and is a more the horror that only differenc-e is that it would seem to most beautf balance piecariousty. ' organisedThe personally that and determined force. I don't believe as I'm sure millions who see through the spin and the will slick pR don't. The monkey has climbed higher up the tree and has, even more, exposed the arse that going you do to are the fuck what face saying.'So just and ln ifre jingoism looking-us is now shit on us. The just Will we wait? and lie hbre we Will land. to ready is throat th6 iowards heading Soot about it?,,That fuck! Our power never diminisneO, it just got distracted. Come back Anarcho-punk... All is forgiven. PS How rnany Anarcho-punks does it take to change a light bulb? 35

"Punk a threat? Don't make me laugh. ls swearing on TV threatening? ls a CND or Stop the War march in any way threatening? ls another black and white record going to have Gordon Brown quaking in his underpants? I see where you are coming from, what can we do to get the level of inspiration that was raised by the original anarcho bands, and what can we do so the potential isn't squandered again over petty debates over leather shoes or gigs in big venues? Young people do need a soundtrack and there are good bands raising awareness but we need to look at ALL meciiums, not one in isolation. Then again how many people could care less, so wrapped up in their halflived lives, unaware of the building crashing down around them?"

Ruth Less. Activis

illing to take the streets and fuck ings up. But sometimes they need in the right direction "

el, PE Boards) "lt could have been a threat if it hadn't alienated other punk genres of the time like Oi! lt didn't help when the scene became far too politicised where many had little or no grasp of politics. They'd just quote record sleeves of their fave artists instead. A friend of mine went to an Anarcho gig a while back in London. lt was her first in like'1 7 years and how she escribed it was it was like going to a friend's family do and no one speaking because you aren't part of that family. Things can change though whether it be an anarchist or socialist band but it's how you get that message across I

(Steve DIY/Street Voice Zine)

es it was a threat. Look how hatcher sent the thick blue line ainst the M iners and Stonehenge ople which were both linked up to narchism. Problem is nobody does nything anymore."

Frank, anarchist) "l don't know about "nobody does anything anymore" ln Denmark kids are on the streets every Thursday since the 1st of March to get a new house (Referring to the Ungdomshuset Eviction last year Ed) They're squatting like hell over here, and in a couple of weeks the BZ-DAY is coming up, where squatters are planning to spread all over the country to grab space foi' themselves. ln Helsinki the squatter movement is growing, according to a poster on this forum and yesterday activists from Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Germany gathered in Sweden to stop a huge march of neo-Nazis in a small town called Salem,

Sure it's easy to say that no one does anything, because it seems like so much more was done before, but I think a lot of the sweet stuff going on isn't going on in the public eye, ya know? lf you're not there, participating, you're not going to know about it until after it's over, And when you see the turnout for those huge anti-G8 protests I'd say that there are a lot of angry people

"Genuine concern? Away from music, yes, i really do think there is. lthink the animal rights movement in particular is a sign of this and will continue to be until there is a fundamental change in human consciousness towards our animal brethren. On a broader political level, it appears to me that anarcho punk is still diverting too much energy away into clich6s, cursing the darkness rather than Iighting candles. I don't see any desire whatsoever to create anything new, and i think that's the serious weakness and always was. The popular bands in the anarcho punk scene are popular precisely because of their musical conservatism and - in the context of anarcho punk - their lyrical conservatism too. ln this respect, the anarcho music scene is a microcosm of pop music (only the music is more aggressive and macho). Create something new (even with the same energy) and by definition it won't be called anarcho punk: maybe that's where we should be looking."

(Gerard, Flowers in the Dustbin. Author of "The Crass Story") "Tis what is made of it, always has been.. make the energy and fuckin use it!l!!! Not sit and ponder the whys and wherefores... that's for the hippies and old bastards!!! Don't you get it.. MAKE IT WHAT YOU WANT!!!!!'

(Wise One, Gonflict Boards)

7/)

"As for the whole anarcho scene... l've written things about this a few times, at length, But in short: lthink the whole anarchist-punk scene was incredibly inspiring and fresh, it shook so many things up, and personally set me off on a course which means I'm still here carrying a lot of that stuff around with me in mY heart, everY day, and for that I'm grateful' The criticism I'd have of those times are about the rigid self-policing which sprung from it, whether in musical style. clothing. food Politics or whatever. And I find it a bit regretful that Crass' great DiY politics became a huge and strict sei of rules, especially in America.

feel like it superceded some of the beauty of originalPunk, some of the things I loved, the messiness and disparateness and weirdness, the move away from straight guitar music (Patrik Fitzgerald, Slits, Raincoats, Cooper-Clarke, etc). W hen Chumbawamba made a record of acapelia rebel music ln 1987 we found it utterly ironic that it was refused a review in Maximum Rock'n'Roll because it "wasn't Punk". Punk became a style. I never really liked seeing Crass supported by bands that looked and sounded like them, even though I did love a lot of those bands. I didn't like the Crass Records house style, the strictness of it, the logos etc. But i understand whY theY did it and why it worked. I mean, it was such a short space of time really.,. and it had I

"Punk was potentially a threat when the momentum was there but ilfizzled away. Only the animalrights struggle seems to have remained intact and active from what the anarcho bands stood for, For today, what politics do any punk bands sing about? Stop the war? You can get that message reading the Guardian newspaper-"

(Direct from the Bar, Conflict Boards)

"l live my life bY the conduct of anarcho punk, but I have also seen the problems that blackened the movement. Punk became a droPout zone for spoilt rich kids to hang out until they get bored. Drink and drugs where encouraged, of which ruined some of the best Years of mY life and health. Punk matters little in my life there are bigger Problems to worry about than if Oi Polloi's new album is out on CD or not etc. The existence of government and caPitalism, neoconservatives and their neo-liberal policies, war being the health of the state, imperialism, deforestation and feeding our kids organic-non GM crops are all much more irnportant to me. Although punk is important, is it sub-culture or counter culture? People should learn from punk and participate in it, not try and dictate what punk is.

(Johnny Punk. Leeds Anarchist)

"Punk is a wcrldYride Phenomenon nowadays. And Yes I have met Punk people from more or less all continents, and I live in Serbia. So I would assume that most of You have met punk people form all parts of the world... So lwouldn't say it is a "white phenomenon... As far as being male dominated, I would saY our whole civilization is male dominated Or it could be that males tend to make large groups while females tend to be more solitary." (Bananaman PE Boards) "Do we really want anoiher crass? The network is there, it just needs people to do more and work a little bit harder. lf anarcho punk is splashed all over the press, does that mean it is a threat? No." (Crust-Edge)

such a big effect. And yes, there's very little around in the big world now that has something worth saying... the Punks seem to exist in small Pockets, nobodY's listening to them anymore. i think the musical thing in the USA has been much healthier recently, ihe backlash against the War. There have been so many good songs about it all. I don't want to generalise in such a short space of time. There are still plenty of things I listen to that inspire me and make me sit uP and think, Not all of them in the narrow confines of 'radical' m

usic..."

Boff, Chum bawam ba)

"l think the history speaks for itself and its evolution can easily be followed. think it's hugely relevant in its own com munities and comm unity networks around the world. lf you look at what's been happening in CoPenhagen over I

the last months you can get an idea of how relevant it actuallY is. Punk itself could never become a positive vehicle for a new world; let's face it, how many PeoPle will ever hear political punk music? ln that sense, it could never be a threat to the world order."

(Fry, Conflict Boards) "Punk was never a threat and it's a bit grandiose of anyone who claims otherwise. Back in the early eighties there may have been a heightened sense of hoPe or a feeling that a rebellion was underwaY or at least imminent. But, I feel, people tended to overestimate the influence of punk and grossly underestimate (to say the least) the power of the 'system'. Was it naivety, youthful enthusiasm or whatever? Punk acted as an introduction to revolutionary ideas for many people and in this sense was at it's most successful. People became exposed to new ideas and new waYs of seeing the world- They maY have left Punk but they left it as politicised people and went on to aPPIY this new perspective in other areas of social change and imProvement." le, Conflict Boa "Well, ln a nutshell lthink it was eventually fucked by its own morality. You can't be a libertarian and a moralist, don't work. Never can! You can have ethics alright, but not these kinda stances like'this is the only way that's right' - how can You have 'uniformed anarchy', (or uniformed life for that matter!) - People will disagree and do their own thing, and always will and it can't be otherwise... so get used to it! Before we knew it'freedom' was enforced by'law' and no-one escaped judgernent. Trial by fuckin' Fanzine!

ls or was Punk ever a threat to 'the System'? Wrong questionl Threats a pointless, and by posing them you provide your adversaries with info, an early warning, and probably a way to stop you! Any silly cunt can threaten ain't the same thing as being effective Was Punk effective? Yeah in terms of culture and accepted attitudes in society. Effective and important! Far as 'the System' goes - Punk's a fly buzzin'round their drinks - at most! The System will be just dandy so long as everyone is lead or argues, obeys it's laws, or reacts to them, does what they're told, or riots, or pays taxes, or commit crimes, or votes - or not! They've been dealing with all that shit & more for centuries. But stop playing the game in any way, on any level at all? lf most people ciid that they'd be fucked (probalrly). At times Punk has been like some kinda beautifulvirus, that if only enough peopie had got it something like 'lgnoring the State to Death' mig actually ha\./e been possible.... if for nothing else, then at least love it for that!

(Al, lnternal Autonomy) "l still have an unquenched desire to explore those issues and think about how I might act, react so that I can say I DID something and feel in control of my life. And this had given me an idea that out there are others - it's not wrong - I don't have to conform - | can't conform anyway. But here were people that didn't just drop out. They dropped into something, fully and with every bit of energy and conviction. Do people still care? Yes - and I think will do increasingly as discontent and depression sweep the country again in the wake of this swing to the right. Don't they see the swing to the right is never ever going to succeed? lts not about the free market economy - it's about people ultimaiely and they can only be kept quiet for so long on a diet of media shit and blame the neighbours for your woes-

It's still alive, relevant and true. lt's not just a stance - it's a total philosophy and as such will have relevance no matter what the age. fashion or government. " (Smiley 1, Radical Pianist) in all its forms was a movement for change. Recently a Joe Strummer film was released and the influence of him on today's music and culture is quite phenomenal. Whatever Steve lgnorant may have said and sung about the Clash Crass were influenced by them too. The aftershock of punk reverberates through today's culture but has been bought out by the consumer market. Punk still influences culture to a degree but the truth is nobody is rebelling anymore. Punk was.just a small part of that movement of the late 70s to early 90s."

"Anarcho-punk was a curious British youth subcultural phenomenon whose feeble adolescent fantasies enjoyed a brief excursion into the public arena from 1980 to 1985. lt was a joke that wasn't especially funny the first time round. Before the end of the decade it was extinct and its few token purveyors had become pitiful parodies of a movement that was already profoundly daft from the start. These spoilt white middle class brats who thought amassing huge record collections by their favourite black rag clad pop stars would in some obtuse and mystical m anner pose a significant threat to world capitalism must surely represent one of the most lamentable (and rather offensive) youth subcultures ever to have arisen in these halcyon shores. Thank Crowley the rave scene came along and put all these sad bastards out of their m ise ry. Let's have one fact abundantly clear: punk rock was a fashion invented by middle cless art schooltypes and it was never a threat to anything apart from interesting rnusic and intelligent lyrics. The IRA were a revolutionary movement (despite the problems one may understandably raise over the romanticisation of nationalism) but since the Good Friday Agreement, their power has been somewhat neutered by the ir desire to becom e respectable - this just allows the Brutish - sorry, British government sufficient breathing space to concoct some other means by which lreland can be exploited and kept under co lo n ia I co ntro

During the 1980s the only viable and certainly interesting challenge to corporate control and state capitalism was Class War. The rest of the anarchist movement was simply too busy arguing with itself via various factions over matters cf hopelessly unimportant trivia. The Marxists, naturally, as aiways, tnrere simply ridiculous. However, if the term 'revolutionary' m ay be taken out of a purely libertarian context, the emergence of the British National Party m ust certainly count as an anticapitalist revolutio na ry force, regardless of our opinion of their political agenda, both public and hidden. (You m ay be certain there most definitely is a hidden agenda.)

Why dc lsay that? Because Class War actually frightened the police and the government. But, unlike the Angry Brigade and the lRA, the fear they caused was not due to terrorist attacks such as bom bings, kidnapping and so forth - no, their power derives from the realand genuine support they gained from ordinary working class (and, here and there, middle class) people. Alihough Class War is not the behemoth it was during the m iners strike against Thatcher, it still receives a fair degree of justifiable respect am ong ordinary people although not many of these are under 30 years old, a factor which does dilute its power.

During the 1990s there was a kind of

revolutionary force opposed to capitalism in the form of the underground (not commercial) rave s.cene in generaland SpiralTribe (some members of SpiralTribe came out of the anarcho scene - Ed) in particu la r. Overtly po litica I sloga ns were not normally apparent but direct action was there in the form of massed squatting of large buildings etc. The Stop the C ity affairs in the 1990s were also worthy of merit despite the absence of any realmedia cove rag e.

With the advent and increase of CCTV cameras throughout Britain (even though footage taken from them is generally not perm issible in law courts due to their poor quality), physical direct action is not the most advisable means by which to effect change now. However, thanks to the lnternet, information on corporations and governments is available to us thai was not even dreamed about 20 Years ago - and with that the means to cause them considerable grief!" (Andy Martin, The Apostles/U N lT) ne problem with anarcho-punk is that it is personality based. The usual thing is that a certain person starts a project, and people join it based on people involved rather than the goal the project itself. And it usually ends when people that started it get frustrated/bored/have less time due to other com m itm ents etc. I know that the success of a project dePends on people involved as m uch as it's idea. But what I would like is to see something like an infoshop or Food Not Bombs established so that it would go on even after people that started it are gone. That is another problem - a very small flow of people. The anarchist scene here is more or ss the same as it was when I first ot involved with it some ten years ck, the same people with very verY few newcomers, and veterans disappearing. On the other hand Nazis always seem to find new recruits and with the current state of things they have a potentialto grow exponentially in the next year or two. M usic still seem s to be the best recruiting agent. l'd like to see people joining the anarchist movement regardless of their m usicaltaste - it just isn't happening on a noticeable scale..." (Bananam an PE Boards "O

"People tended to overestimate the influence of punk and grossly underestim ate the power of the 'system', The era of snot and vomit have returned to punk... Maybe people just got fed up of banging their heads against a brick wall? Not saying that puke n'snot are what punk should be about, but I can understand how people become nihilistic and shy away from full on socialchange. As with life experience, you learn that whatever you may change, the masses will always run full vicious circle rn the rut they are in.

"While lthink diversifying the scene could be great for everyone, just the aesthetic nature of most anarchopunk bands tends to turn PeoPle awaY' I can't understa nd the lYrics a nd it sounds like the singer is choking on glass, seems like a common statement about bands As far as fighting the "system" or any

other invisible entity that controls us goes, lbelieve that there should be more community involvement as opposed to protest. Yes, we protest the lraq war. but that's all it came down to, we Protested it and the powers that be still Put us into the mess. I'd much rather feed a familY with a communitY garden, or gather clothes for donation for fam ilies in need, and let someone see mY oenuine care for their well being, past ine dark clothes and patches and into my heart, to show them mY love for true freedom and equality.

ldon't mean to denounce those that

are involved in direct action, but expanding our horizons and getting other kids involved with projects other than shows (potlucks, food not bombs hom ebrew Parties, com m unitY gardens etc) can give us a better chance to connect with PeoPle we don't know, working together, and building allies. lts hard to relate to someone at a show where the music is loud, communication is mintmal except between bands, and everyone's talking shit. ialso believe m ixed bills will make for better shows cause no one will get bored of the same sounds and if theY don't like a band theY can alwaYS steP outside and talk to others. I'm not wrlting any of this to be critical of anyone, but this toPic com es uP a lot and we talk talk talk but don't seem to walk walk walk. W hether or not we're truly effective at reaching a utopian idea that no one really agrees on is subject to time, for now l'd m.uch rather live my life by my terms wlthoul oppressing others and share anything

lcan spare."

(Thrash Thrash Thrash PE Boards) "Punk has been really'influential' However, lthink the problem is that it is intimatelY connected with the dominant white society as a whole' lf is a white male dominated movement it iust doesn't have the revolutionary po*et. I think a lot of that has to do. fuitn il e tie it has to class as a political identity, which has lots its muster' Hip hoo aooeals to resistant identities uaieO' in nationalism. To me it deals with colonialism and racism, something way more salient than the class based critiq ue. O n the other hand, anarchopunk really has strength when it comes to feminist bands' These tyPes of bands do have more m ass appeal if theY would let themselves. As for Thrash's point: I'm not sure its an either on thing when it comes to community or protest; to me its about

building a communitY through the things you mentioned that can challenge the mainstream and defend other communities. think the point is to find ways to bring people together, and build our trust and relations so we can go out into world and cut the ties of oppression that are more collectively based. To do this we can't wait around to fix our own little Perfect world before we deal with the Problems we create in the rest of the world. We need to start from the stand point that we are occupiers of indigenous land living an oppressive lifestyle and realize that its two pronged change. elations with each other and relations with others need to change l think this is the premise that can help us move forward." (Rev PE Boards) I

"Well I think one of the main problems with anarcho punk is that anarchism is still regarded as a dead ideologY. Many peoPle have a verY limited understanding of anarchism, or a complete misunderstanding of it' ln fact I'd be willing to bet thet most ists" wouldn't know who Proudhon was. This is reflected in a lot of the music coming out. As far as anarcho punk goes, I find that there are a lot of bands who call themselves anarcho but really aren't anarchists, simply politicalwith very leftigt beliefs calling themselves anarchists. And I think ihat Punk rock has made all "hardcore Punk rockers" strive to come these anarchists simPlY because theY assume it's what's expected of them. lt's not a coincidence that most Punks are willing to call themselves anarchists; it's alrend within the scene for most of . That being said I would consider mYself an anarchosynd icalist/m a rxist/post-modernist a nd that's probably not even an accurate I find that punk scenes in general are very narrow-minded and focus more on ievolutionizing scenes raiher than bringing anarchism out into the open' Anaicho Punk is a verY unPoPular genre, and is not very accessible to [he mainstream. Maybe we need band like Chumbawamba to t famous in order to shine some imall amount of light on anarcho

punk.

The focus should be on writing cool music with a good message and to trY to promote that message as much as possible, but not to limit ourselves to music as the onlY mode of inform atio n."

exicon Devil PE Boards)

-IIO TUTUNTEEEEEEEEEEEEE NO FUTURE FOR YOUUUUUUUUU!!!!!! An upsurge for books and DVDs, is that not iust caPitalism in action? Anarchyfor sale $SS$$$S$$$$$S$S How about an upsurge in violence towards the state? WaY better than watching a DVD."

"There are a lot of older people that were into punk Years ago that were veggies/anarchists etc. Now they are as reactionarY and blokeY and ignorant as the people they rebelled against. They think its different cos thly don't have gravy stains on their vesi with a rolled uP coPY of the Sun and some bad swallow tattoos. Punk flop"

(Scooby Doo, Conflict Boards) "Of course you're right Scooby Doo. I was just thinking the other day; do we all turn into our dads? But since you've taken the high ground, whY don't you take the initiative and show wankers like me the waY? Or are You another tyPe of Punk clich6, all questions and no solutions."

(Cutting Edge Suicide, Conflict B

oards)

"lt must've been a threat in the 80's otherwise Crass and Conflict wouldn't have been on special branch files... As for todaY well, everYone seems to have given uP, whether Punk or no-t. Peoptra with debt having to work silly hours, theY ain't got the energY to do anything else. And being a Police state anyone REALLY rocking the boat will be jailed for 3 times the length of a kiddY fiddler- G[ly ". (Trev, Negative Reaction Zine) "lt was and still is a threat in-so-far as political lyrics can open PeoPles' minds and thus turn Passive PeoPle into active people. lt only takes one to make a big difference sometimes. Back in the day the look and lifestyle was considered a threat by the media that's for sure. And let's not forget that there are still countries in the world where simply being a punk can be lifethreatening. These days in the UK the anarcho scene is too small to be considered a threat on its own, but the people it nurtures and influences can. do wonderful things outside the world of punk."

"The DIY scene is still Producing political, sound-as-fuck bands but most are noisY, hardcore, crusiy or whatever, so its not as if the anarcho movement has died (albeit its smaller) but what they are trying to resurrect is the anarcho Punk genre of music in my view, cause a lot of the PeoPle who will go to the gig are still in the scene now, 'doing it'.. I reckon. .. Too many divisions though l'd saY..'" (Steve, RiPPing Thrash Zine) "l started getting into punk back in 1988 and have seen manY asPects of the ounk scene. I alwaYs had more of a kinship with the anarcho-punk and D.l.Y aspect of the scene because it not about sliPPing on some clothes and slipping on an attitude, it was more about making shows happen, making 'zines haPPen' inq the word out without the 6Ussilng of the record industry and without the help of venues that turn

their noses up at the punk scene. lt as also about raising awareness on political issues such as the unjust ars that the government provokes, the unjust treatment of the poor, and raising awareness how to combat police brutality, racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, patriarchy, and so on and so forth. I have witnessed aspects of the punk

scene that were seen as "trendy" but lead to apathy such as the "grunge" and "emo" in the 90's and current. lt wasn't cutting edge, it wasn't

dangerous, and it wasn't pushing the envelope.

(Pagan leprechaun) "There are anarchist federations and diverse groups not directly linked to punk; do they have more ethnic

diversity in their ranks? ldoubt it, My opinion is that we should be more tolerant towards people who choose other means of dissem inating our ideals, let the undergrourid purists go on, the "secret" side also attracts people, let the ones who go more mainstream also cio their stuff and let's not slag ihem. Let us be more accepting and even encouraging of diversity within our ranks and maybe that's all which is needed to attract different people without us having to "drag" them into the scene or to go looking for them."

(@-Rainbow

PE Boards)

"ls punk politicalanymore?" Of course some elements of it are. lguess you could say anything is political if you get my drift. Sadly, I personally don't think punk is a threat at all. The Animal Rights movement is still a concern for the powers that be. But that scene does not neeessarily consist of punkq." (G rim

rancour that ensues. For freedom to work people need to concern themselves with practicality, not theory, and suspend any form of 'moral' judgement, they also have to 'live and let live', and accept that consensus is irrelevant (and rarely ach ieva b le !)

lf you can do it, get it done - if it works people will adopt it, if not it'll be rejected and fail (and be replaced by

something else), maybe there is no universal solution anyway. But fuckin get on with shit! Don't argue, don't theorize, don't form an assembly & take a sodding vote, don't write some bitchy letter to a fanzine - know what I mean? Democracy in any form is bollocks, innit - a load of hot air, ego-wanking, counter-prod uctive & divisive shite that produces a tyranny of the'majority' & personality cults. Just like Religion its great fun for a psychopath with Narcissistic Personality Disorder, but couldn't we find them something else to do, (or if necessary whack the cr,rntsl) and just get on with our bloody lives? I i'emember, back In the 80's. reading an artrcle in 'Freedom' or 'OrEanise' or some such, v.rhich devoted several pages to an agonizing examination of how to get round the likeiy appearance of personaiity cults n assemblies necessary for the implementation of an anarchocommunist society, and the da nger to freedorn that they would inevitably pose..,. blah de blah cie blah.. Lisien don't have ihe fuckin meeiing K? Problem solved. You & everybody else know what needs to happen, seen? What's to discuss? \Ar ork together & get it donel lf anyone stirs the shit. or tries to take over - deai with it. End of."

(Al, lnternal Autonomy)

my, Conflict Boards)

"l think that's it in essence, and the reason why it's so important to continue io have a political element to punk. What's ugly is that people now seem to view a lot of the egalitarian ideals others worked towards as being 'PC' and therefore something to rebel

as dogma, or even'law', and the

The problem with our scene/movement is that we're so underground that sometimes it must feel like we're distrustful of outsiders" or "newbies". l'm not saying that being underground is bad. However, the "more underground than thou" mentality can be a bit much. We're potentially alienating a lot of people. Back to breaking out of the anarchopunk ghetto many of us are in. \t'/hy don't more of us listen to hip hop, folk or old rebel songs? Why don't more of us [ead about liberation struggles in the past and present? Why don't we make efforts to get invoived with groups in our own ccmm unities that aren't necessarily "punk" in nature? I'm guilty of many of the things lmentioned, so this isn't a is... more something we all should be thinking about constantly.

(Damien lnbred

)

"More people will be interested in anarchism from reading Proudhon or Emma Goldman than they ever will listening to an anarcho-punk band. The focus should be on spreading the actual ideology rather than making music with lyrics that can't even be comprehended in a very marginal style of music. Anarcho punk is a great form of music don't get me wrong, but if we actually want to make a change yelling your message at the top of your lungs in front of 50 drunken likeminded kids who can't even hear what exactly you're saying isn't doing very much." (Lexicon Devil PE Boards) "l think it appears that some are confusing the loose anarcho-punk rock subculture with a broader, all

against. The era of snot and vomit ha returned to punk rock." (Fry, Conflict Boards) "Radicalism is also something of a two-edged sword, in that the epiphany of finding a solution in ideology 'X' is also what turns quite a few of it's converts into complete twats. One attraction of Anarchy is that it is the politics to kill politics... yeah? Well, for ideology lwould substitute truth, circumstance and the ability to adapt accordingly, with freedom being your basic point of reference, or aspiration. Anarchism has a better record than anything else in this regard, but has also failed itself miserably on many occasions due to it's radicalism being misused

Build bridges. (Even between subgenres within the larger punk movement.) Dammit punks, let's stop being so fucking white! (By that, mean, let's examine why there are so few people of colour in the scene and goddamn fix it! And lmean truly diversify our scene, not just tokenize, which is racist in itself)

"Before anarchopunk can truly become a threat, we the punks have to broaden our honzons, and step out of the ghetto we're stuck in today. As Rev said, hip hop is m uch better at this than we are. Perhaps we should le building stronger connections with e hip hop subculture. Put on truly ixed-bag shows with a couple of unk bands and a couple hip hop Lots of info tables, and voila...

encompassing resistance movement. don't really see anarcho punk being the movement of change as much as a part of a larger more encompassing movement. Anarcho-punk isn't a broad based community political organization or a group that you can really join (if so where's my mother fuckin' member card?). lt's a subculture and a marginal one by definition. Punk rock isn't for everyone, nor should it be. lt appea ls to certain, small groups of people. lt's the same way that I think hip-hoP doesn't and won't appealto everyone either. lf it was meant to be bigger than it is, ithink it would be. Asking questions like how do we get more people to join, and should we be integrating hip hop (or alt country, etc), become less smelly or not wear black clothes seems kind of silly to me. lt's not as though this is the IWW or ooliticaloroanization with a set of

"The future of the anarchoPunk m ovem e nt, a nti-g loba lisatio n

movements and radicalPolitics in general is pretty sad since almost everybody just writes university/coilege essays and books on it, but nobodY does shit in the streets anymore!" (Filip Fuchs)

]XNE,

B2F: Second time back in Belfast then?

J: Yeah, for the band anyway, for lhner Terrestrials

Paco: I was here a long tlme ago,85, a com pletely different time

B2F: Ah yes with Confllct... lt's been a while since lnner Terrestrials had an album out and hear you're working on new m aterial. W hat's the story with that?

J:Well it's all set up. The release and all that is a done dealbut the problem

is, at the m om ent we're spending so uch tim e touring that we ain't had the time... it's me that has to finish it really. l've got the guitar and vocal parts to lay dow n but l'm living a long ay f rom London now m yself and e're o n the road a ll the tim e so it's getting really difficult to find a studio and get the time to finish it but it's all done. We'll be playing new materialat the g igs. Firsi and forem ost we're a live band but obviously people who can't get to see us aren't hearing the new m aterial so we do need to get the album out but yeah it's all there, the songs are allwritten, ii's literally just finding the time to finish it. We've een a bit slack. I reckon spring 2009 hat you reckon Paco? m

Paco: Yeah that's about righi, the and will also be 15 years old by B2F: O k, so what sort of themes or subjects are you going to be tackling on the new record?

J: W hat sort of themes, well you m ea the lyrics, well following on really from the themes we've been passionate about, you know that's been the history of this band so - there's a song called "Flag" which is about the fact that people don't change because of a flag and sacrifice their lives while the rich enjoy the benefits; there's one about fam ilies getting fucked up by rugs like ketam ine and

that

Songs

is pretty much what we've always been on about.

B2F: I noticed a while back on your website that you were trying to draw attention to what's going down in Brussels in respect of Europe-wide laws and how they m ight affect us?

J: lt's crazy all this giant super-state stuff. On the one hand it can seem like a good idea, breaking barriers and getting people together rather than being entrenched in old cultures but on the other hand the idea of having 300-400 million people under one government is a crazy idea because the needs for one crew in one place are completely dif.ferent to the needs of another and being told what you're allowed to do, what food you're allowed to grow, how the land is used and what you can and can't do to make a living doesn't take all this into sideration. Personallv I believe in lution and much smaller unities where everyone has a of autonomy. Getting any type

of association together to consider how you want to move forward on anY particular issue is very difficult to agree. How can you herd 400 million

people into a situation like that? I think it's important to keep an eye on these money men They know its all spin with economic power and industrial having carte blanche. Talking about the Treaty of Lisbon we were watching the lrish referendupr closely- Politicians across Europe were saying we shouldn't have to have referendums, they - ordinary people - don't know anything about this. They've got no say in all of this, they'lljust mess it up if we let them get involved No, no, no - give them a pat on the head, but no it was righteous that the lrish people should have had a referendum as everyone should've had. But of course it doesn't work like that, does it? B2F: Yeah the lrish said no, which wasn't accepted. lmean how many times do you have to say no, fuck off. we don't want this?

"3l,fljl"J;:.?:[T:iJ,Jii??'''

J:[?J;;li.! *:H:l'-';i;i:i This is shit, lmean

i;"

Europe is going to start thinking about sanctions against the Republic if they

democracy? they re asking people what they want and they tell them - but then it's not the answer we're looking for, try again and this time tell us what we're telling you to say and everything will be fine.

It's a central thing in the British political system and l'm sure in poiitical systems all over the world, this idea about Party whiPs. To me that's a disgrace against democracy Each MP should have the Power and the rig ht to vote whatever way they see is best for their constiiuents on any given issue but of cours,e it's not like that, is it, the PartY whiP goes round and threatens their jobs and tells them, Iook if you're going to be part of this party you have to vote with us. What's the fucking point? Political representatives just do what they're told by the big men so at the end of the day they're not representing the com m on peop le so the w ho le idea of . rsav: the Commons is a fucking farce!

I I I I

1 ,-"'lr';... -.. i. Ji

.';

t:l ll

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

\ t.tl: .q,

*rr' ,or're been doing a few I lcollaborationsrecentlvincluding I lone with Fil from Baci to the Planet I l(see interview with Fil in B2F #3). I lCan you tell me a bit more about I lsuicide Bid? I

i.!.

all

I I

really,

there's

louite a lot of us and we come from

''r..i,,..

they're

separate bands, so we get and raise up the energy. together I I Wnen we do a gig it's a brilliant vibe I there's a big crossover for the I vounosters as well as there are I o"ooi" involved in new bands like the I kind alues who are bringing the I youngsiers rn as well So it s like the w ith the I old schooi subversives m ixing ! younger generation. lt's not just a I nand but a reallv political movement I as well. and it's f unl (ntto:llwww m yspace.com /suicideb id)

lin tn"i,

| I I I I I I

ezr, Ok, and keeping with the theme of collaborations, what

about Christopher Lee' lwas sent a tint to the video and lthought, first of all. is it real and then how the

n"tt oio it happen?

l r'

,n" whole thing's a big send uP I because if you actually watch that I video (which can be found here: ! http:/lwww youtube com/watch?v=R0 I Hpk6cw-k0)we aren't PlaYing, we I OiOn t plav on that tune, we're m iming, I rioht to t[is reallv awful metaltune I'll about. My I t""tl yo, exactly hbw it came runs a small green II dad actually cirrrt rn Ifilm stLrdrol lhat vou "..oon

i".l .:,-.-"r';: , :\ i! 1+ .. !r:: .r '. ' )ri',i '..

r "

lditt"r"nt bands from the underground I land we get together and do an album I la year, something like that. and 2-3 I lgigs a year and that's the waY it I I works lt s all about a family and family I I business lt's not intense at all, people I I tive in all different places and

ffi

lr' ,r,.,0" Bid is a band, well more of la musicalcollective

,lte",

-r

;'-'.1'; ";'

t' -..;" r. , ':t r" ,:i, - .': -

i ,;f 'r'11*.' ':

::..1

I I I I I I I

can just go in and hire and he just got a booking to hire the sPace and this crew came in, ChristoPher Lee's son-

in-law in fact was the director Christopher Lee had decided to launch a musical career He loves to sing but he's not a great singer (ha

crack we just did it. So we just stood there and mimed to this fucking appalling metaltrack .. and it was great to spend the daY with him, You know he's 84 years old He's f ucking massive as well.

ha)

B2F: ... he's the tallest actol history apparentlY...

B2F: He's not too bad after a few d ri nks...

J: ls he really, well when

blood Yes. and we were all big fans of B-Movie horror

J: When he drinks

Ititms like Hammer House of Horror land allthat kinda stuff, and we all lgrew up liking Christopher Lee, you lknow, Count Dracula, anYWaY mY dad lphoned me uP and said, 'listen I've lbeen asked to get a band in to be in Ithis video with fucking Christopher lLee, ,re you up for it?' I mean, the old Iman really helps us out, he's one of us lreally, and he's done loads of favours lfor us over the years and still does, so lwe said yes stralght away. There was lno money in it or anything like that. He lwas getting a little bit out of it, so just lfor the sake of meetrnq him for the

You meet him in the flesh he's fucking huge, and he is quite a laugh really They told us before we did it, be a bit carefui with this g uy as he's had his sense of humour surgicallY removed so we thought alright then and we kePt chipping away at him and he turned out to be quite a lauEh in the end. All day I was winding him uP about the Spanish CivilWar (half the film crew were Spanish) and lwas saYing,bome the revolution'and all that but he's an old fella stuck in his ways, not into that revolutionary stuff at all so were winding him up all day about it and we got a rise out of him in the end which was a good laugh, and that was it. So that was what it was all about, it was '41

l+J

really just a big hammy send-up. For him it was serious but for us it was just a Iaugh. lt was'the band that dripped blood...' then after that he had all this Jonathon Ross Show stuff lined up and this and that but we were like, no no no, we had a laugh but we're not going to get silly about it and that was that! We all got a CD out of it.

B2F: Did any of you go to the Feeding of the 5000 gig?

J: No it was my birthday, we

did

something else....

Paco: We went out for a nice meal and then down to your place for a few

B2F: A few of us were at the gig and a punter in the q,geue was telling us he'd been to see the Sex Pistols and it was â&#x201A;Ź50 for a T-Shirt. Now that's milking it, look what Johnny Rotten is doing now.

J: That is fucking out of order, The

B2F: There was a lot of debate about this event as l'm sure you know, about the rienue and ticket prices and about it being a sell-out of ideals. W hat do you think of it all 6nd about anarcho-punk nowadays

Paco: l'll tell you what I think because

B2F: Ok Paco are you finished

playing drum s with Conf lict now or will you be appearing on the new TILT album ?

Paco: Weil, if TILT ever happens.... l'm gonna do a feiv tracks on it but not the whole album, mostly as a thank you to the people that helped me out for the operation and raised the money to get it done otherwise wouldn't be doing anything at all, so really as a thank you to them !'ll do a few tracks on it, if it ever happens. They've a lot of problems trying to get it going, but as far as live stuff goes that's it...

I talked to a LOT of people about this, for me personally lwouldn't have gone. I thought it was a showcase for nothing but you could say lwas lucky enough to see Crass originally, and l've been around since the year fucking dot anyway, so lcan have my cake and eat it in ce!'tain ways. A lot of people that are young now never seen any of these bands and they had a great time and have since got into a lot of things they maybe wouldn't have got into. For them it rnay have been something but for me it wasn't and a

drummer haha B2F: A few people have been asking about what happened to the Conflict website which just disappeared overnight, and all sorts of rumours about arrests. Can you elaborate on that?

Paco: ldon't know really, lwasn't involved in the Conflict website, so if was to say anything about it ldon't actually know what happened.

Paco: Nobody's been nicked or anything like thal, not to my knowledge anyway. There seems to be more of a personalbreakdown of those involved with Conflict at the m oment, readjusting, shifting about, who's doing what. As far as that goes lam still mates with everyone on a friend level but not so m uch as to what's going on on a Confiict level. That's about it rea

don t even know what to say about

that, he pulled the fucking foundation from under it... in

,.. going back to the Crass gig, I thought it was a bit of a fucking freak show really and I don't mean that in a good way. lt was a bit of a farce but at the same time there were people

lot of people my age thought it was bollocks. A lot of people wouldn't have got into the DIY thing at all, because it was a big thing and it was easy to go to Ticket bollocks and go along with everything else, it gave the person who doesn't know what the underground is an access into it and from then on they've got into other bands. So for that it was a commercial way of learning about the underground. For me it wasn't worth a lot

are saying though. There's a rumour m ill. You've got to take anything to do with that with a Ukrainian salt mine. Chinese whispers...

J: He's made a mockery of punk;

J: lt almost certainly ain't what people

Paco: AImost like waving the British fla 9...

Paco: lt's like making the best cake the world and then slamm ing it into your face. Can't understand it...

B2F: So how is the health, are you feeling any better?

Paco: Oh yeah, every day l'm feeling better. This is the most prolific year of playing live l've ever had after 27 years of playing live; the busiest year without a doubt. About 2 years ago wasn't able to play anymore - speaks for itself really... I'm a born-again

Johnny Rotten now is such a fucking wanker - ljust can't believe the butter adverts he's doing, what a tosser...

J: None of

us went, so we did my birthday instead. l've mixed feelings about it. l've no problem if anyone wants to play a gig but there's so much bile gets thrown around, so many accusations and so m uch backstabbing on ihe scene. lt's a difficult one. I could go into personal reasons with this, that and the other but I think that's totally unnecessary. The gig weren't THAT expensive, it had a massive line-up for anyone who hadn't seen those bands, I mean the last time James Brown played in London it was [.40 for a ticket. Fuck off I ain't paying that and then he died and then I thought, bollocks, I wish l'd seen James Brown before he died. But it is kind of wrong to milk it.

putting a lot of propaganda out against it and I didn't get involved in that. On the one hand it's a totalpiss-take and on the other it's fair enough if people want to have a one-off festival. ln an ideal world they would have sq uatted a warehouse but squat gigs often get turned over by the cops so for people coming from across Europe, lmean you can't turn them back or you've fucked it. lt's a difficult one but we weren't bothered about it. B2F: Yes i have mixed feelings about it too but it did raise a lot of issues about anarcho-punk and v,rhere it's going....

J: I think there's a really big issue here people always overlook. Back in the day when these youngsters were in those bands, none of them were

even slightly perfect and the idea is, okay, people are writing political poems but maybe not even living by them and if you really analysed the lifestyle of these people the first mistake you're doing is hero-worship. The individuals involved in Crass are not infallible, most of them came from rich backgrounds, Steve lgnorant was probably the only working class one in utd55...

B2F: lthink Gee came from a working background as well...

J: ... oh ok, they have a lovelY

building in Epping Forest all paid for by the pocket of the underground. don't begrudge them that, theY do good things out of it, they have it open for people but you start analYsing what the individuals are like in Crass or Conflict (or lnner Terrestrials)... ple build people up to be a cross tween Wat Tyler, Robin Hood and Luke fucking Skywalker. lt's not important what these band s are like as people, what's imPortant is that their poetry and what theY've given has influenced peoPle. TheY're not perfect revolutionaries who assassinate Nazis, PeoPle say You should never meet your heroes but in anarcho punk we shouldn't have anY I

fucking heroes. B2F: One of the problems with rcho-punk is that there's a rule book, you can't do this, You can't do that, it defeats the PurPose of

anarchism itself...

J: The people who are shouting the

ioudest about what you can and can't do are all up to their necks in Babylon, like I was when I was '1 8 thinking that the sun shone out of mY ass - those ople are cunts. these PeoPle are ucking traitors and all that and you on't actually look in the mirror and say hang on a minute - look at the clothes you're wearing, none of them are falr trade, none of them are organic, you've never made anYthing yourself, look a the food you buy, look the Shell dieselyou buY..., I'm not saying that you shouldn't strive towards being righteous, PeoPle should just remember we're all uP to ur necks in this but we are looking for solutions and none of us got the full answers to what those solutions might be..

B2F: The last time You PlaYed here

you had a bit of hassle from an nthusiastic punter on the e. Do you get a lot of hassle at or on tour? J: We've had a bit of it and sometimes it dces get on your nerves like when someone throws a Pint of beer over

your effects peddles or something. You get used to it...

2F: Have you had anY bother from

r right groups or the like?

J: We've had a few death threats Eastern Europe and we've had a

le of kick-offs with fash but it's an cupational hazard. Touch wood it 't happened for quite a while but n it does happen you've got to be repared. We're not gonna temPer we say or what we do because of it. I'll give you an example, there was a festival in Switzerland, an antifascist festival in Berne, where last ar it got nail-bombed bY the Nazis then they contacted us and asked us to play and I said Yeah, fucking right we do, cos if we start shitting it, they've won. No I haven't got a bombI can't stand

06.08.45

Hiroshima

their way into the darker recesses of the mind, the bricks and mortar of socia lly conditioned prejudices remain untouched. The scourge ofthe swastika scored deeper into the heart and soul of Man then ever it did into the granite temples of his architeciural vanities. Human rights cannot be granted, nor freedoms given. When at the end of the Second Great war the death-camps of Lublin were liberated, some of the freed inmates joined a victory march through the city. At first they were greeted with flowers, but as they neared the centre they were ireated to bullets fired by members of the Polish nationalArmed Forces who had helped liberate them. Freedom? Let the buses run ernpty.

200,000 dead

"Thank you America, for your strength, Your courage and ourfreedom which has been a beacon to the world for two hundred years..." The American Pledge of Allegiance I

To discuss freedom is the first step towards denying it. Freedom cannot be prescribed, cannot be defined and cannot be conditional, for when it is any of these, it ceases to be freedom. Freedom is not open to discussion,

A Discussion on Freedom The caged canary has a pretty tune, but where the sound of flight?

06.08 45 - H |ROSH tMA 'Head hair began to fall out. bluish spots appeared on their bodies.'

Freedorn is not an abstract noun to be tossed about in the semantic trashcan by dusty academics looking for an intellectual fix. lt is a birth: a verb. Like the air we breathe, freedom is free to us all, with one condition, that we are free enough to unconditionally

embrace

it.

Freedom simply exists, fluici and absolute, whereas conditional freedom is the core of violence; the soul raging against confinement. What then of those who seek to define our freedom. The nuclear family, the educational system, the Church and the State? lt is ihey who orchestrate everything we believe to be bad both in others and, more disturbingly, in ou rse lves.

ln its appalling quest for tightly defined

freedoms, Nazi ideology ciepended upon a sweet and sour mixture of bgnal sentimentality and deliberately imprecise terminology. Those who the Third Reich saw as opposing their freedom, and who were subsequently hounded into the gas chambers, were seen as 'a foreign body in human society', a classic example of doublespeak comparable to Blair's 'look, we have free speech in this country, but don't abuse il'. Regarding his shallow proclamations concerning acts of 'terrorist' violence, it is clear that Blair is unaware of the fact that conditional freedom is the antithesis of freedom, a total violation, an act of violence in itself. So who's the terrorist? Contrary to claims made from within the conceits of Western, postmodernrst philosophy, freedom is not a commodity. This particular'real thing'can neither be bought nor sold. Equally, it is not, as bearded barstool revolutionaries are keen to tell us,'in the air'. Freedom is of the air, born of life, lf only we have the eyes to see it, it exists already, an innaie force which few of us dare acknowledge, for by doing so we are obliged to face the profound responsibility inherent within it: the Faustian tryst of our birth.

Freedom, then is an absolute sense of responsibility an inner reality which can only be truly embraced if it is entirely f ree of external imposition.

Being the opposite of commodity, it stems from inner conviction and commrtment: an act of faith. The implications are awesome, but that's no excuse to back off. lt is up to you, and there is absolutely nobody who can say otherwise. 06.08.45 - H iroshima 'At first we treated burns, but patients wasted away and died.' True freedom can be as much achieved within the confines of a prison cell as it can on Mouni Olympus, the beach at Benidorrn or in your own back room, for true freedom is a state of mind. We are not apart from life, for we are life itself, its all and everything, its freedom and its servitude. When asked whether he there was too much suffering in the u;orld, composer/philosopher John Cage replied that the balance was perfect. lf we are unable to see balance and perfection, it is because we stand apart from them. Martin Luther King had a dreann, but did Adolf Hitler: words. words and e words. Albert Einstein stated t'no problem could be solved frorn same level of consciousness that ated it', which is io say that if freedom is no more than an idea, it is no more than an idea thai it will xist. ln which case, dream on, Martin aybe the bus-seats are now multil, but what about the bums which sit on them? h its inherent contradiction, creed freedom forces retreat; the

Freedorn fighters? We're all of us freedom fighters, all of us abie with consummate ease to define the parameters of our own freedoms and to defend to the end any attack madd upon them. Christ died on the ugly cross of his own prejudice. So, is a good Chrrstian one who in cowering subm ission mounts the gallows thereby condemning another to kill whilst at the same time commanding that they 'shalt not'? Where does absolute responsibility hang in that equation? And who was Moses to decree that murder dwelt in the heart and soul, and why is his authority so widely acknowledged? What were those tablets of conceit but confines to the absolute nature of our freedom, a repressive step towards ensuring the corruption of that nature, an act of violence? But freedom which is truly freedom cannot be attacked, for it exists so utterly and profoundly absolute thai it defies all definition. Being only of itself, it is a fact. True, nothing happens without consequence, but the absolute embrace of consequence is the absolute responsibility which goes hand in hand with absolute freedom.

A pebble bounces from a rock-face and creates an avalanche. I turn my head and see one thing but not another. Freedom has eyes in the back of its head; it is the pebble, the avalanche and all the devastation that may ensue. Freedom is feared because as both cause and effect, as much sub-atomic as it is psychic, it must and will encompass every possibility, for it is utterly, and irrefutably responsible. Freedom is life lifeing itself, the natural reverberation of bdingness, the perfume of existence, the essence, the consequence, the beginning and the end.

.08,45

HIROSHIMA

'Bleeding started from the nose, moth By nature, then, to demand freedom is, in the exrstentialsense, selfnegating in that it is a demand which must encompass everyone and rything, the all and the nothing: I submission to the power of our n will, the ultimate and only gift. ything else is a form of psychic bensraum. lt is not freedom which he freedom-fighter seeks, but its very sis, self-definition However

ell-intentioned. any defined human ts are, in fact, a limitation of an rights. Even where they claim o offer freedom, social, moral or legal positions are a denial of the internal dom which is our birthright: the ht to do whatever we so desire, the ht and, indeed the moralimperative create our own world, no more, no ss. But surely, isn't that to give icence to all the so-called human vils: avarice, rape, murder? 'Freedom is the Almighty's gift to the of the world. '- George Bush is an erroneous argurnent which ims that the removal of imposed w and morality would lead to chaos k no further than Bush and Blair's nous involvement in lraq to see he very opposite is the truth. For as as we buy into the social and rsonal conceits of defined oms, the chaos, avarice, rape murder practiced in its name (and

identally in that of democracy's) is chaos, avarice, rape and murder ractised in our name, and don't ther with the SWP placards which :laim otherwise. When Blair stated that he was sinking into the foul rhetoric which condem ned m illions to the gas chambers, the sentimental conceit used throughout history to ify cynical versions of freedom: 'arbeit macht frei', the very principle to which capitalism has always subscribed.

Commodity or commodified, v.rhere do we stand? Western freedom is sei-vitude. Peace is submission. Loyalty cards are the yellow stars of the capitalist ghetto, the right to ose not our own lives, but a prescribed fate: cieath by chocolate erican Express? That'll do nicely,

Like Bush's Patriot Act, Blair's Terrorist Act does not seek to defend freedom, but to create its opposite, a society bound to self-imposed moral and legalservitude. ln the snitch society of today's New Labour, the totalitarian nightmare of the New World Order has come true. We are all Big Brothers, watching both ourselves and each other. At last we are all equal.

WE KNOW WHERE YOU ARE Yet, as the failures of 'real' socialism have so consistently proved, we are not equalat all, rather we are each one of us unique and utterly

unpredictable. We have, nonetheless, managed to survive together against the savagb onslaughts of history, and that is because rather than being the mind of the State, freedom remains a state of m ind, ours and ours alone. Either we must embrace the weight of that freedom, or be a slave to another's deliberations. E ither we must accept that right, or perish in its denial. 'America witt tead'by defending liberty and justice because they are right and true and unchanging for people everywhere'. - George Bush Be it psychic or physical, enclosure is an act of violence which finds reflection in the soul of its victims. The so-called deviant is a product not of birth, but of the soul deprivation so assiduously employed by the nuclear family, the educational system, the Church and State. 06.08.45 - HIROSHIMA 'Every person carried in here as a patient is carried out as a corpse.' Despite what the psychic overlords and their lackey media would have us believe, the rapist and m urderer are few and far between and demonstrably uninhibited by externally imposed law and morality, as indeed are the so-called terrorists amongst us. 'Thou Shalt Not' clearly does not ring in the ears of the serial killer, and nor does it do so in those of the godfearing, power-wielding bigots who from their guilded thrones order others to slaughter and, if need be, die on behalf of their'freedom'. lt's all a m atter of collateral. 9,11.01 - NEW YORK 3.000 dead. A modern-day Reichstag

'Where are you?'The globalmantra, recorded, documented and backed up on hard drive. Never mind Mount Olympus, Benidorm or the back room, you're on the phone, mobile and free, techno-glued, traceable,'just in case'. Blam, blap, kerpow.'Just in case'is a personal 9111 , a bathtub tsunam i, the poison in the pretty pill of existence: fear. Fear is the essence of commodity culture, the unbreakable shackles of our own self-created

Which then is the greatest threat to freedom, the psychotic's frenzied knife attack, or the State executioner's studied professionalism? Who are the terrorists, and who are the terrorisers? For or against? Freedom? None of us is innocent.

sla ve ry.

Better the w|ath of the gods than the follies of man. I have built my own church, and it is there I will lay down

'The terrorists hate us for our freedoms'. - George Bush

'God wants me to do B

to.'-

George

ush

IN CONCLUSION

III=\'II=\YS Please send your stuff for review to the address on Page 2 but bear in mind if you're in one of those burger-and-coke pop punk bands who like to jum p in the air and kick

their legs in multiple directions every 15 seconds then do yourself a favour and write to Kerrang or something. Our panel of savvy reviewers may have many years of experience between us but we have to keep our self respect for fuck's sake. Also if you're a band with a guitarist who slides his fingers down the fret board at every opportunity or one of those crust bands that sound like a medieval torture costume drama then on your bike, you'll get no points here! Send in your m usic, print, video, whatever and savour our obvious im partiality.

We'll say it again, if you are sending vinyl then please send d CDR copy too otherwise we can't review it. (lf you'd like a copy of the zine in which your review takes place please enclose an SAE unless you're a reg ular contributor, such as a label, or we've worked something out beforehand. Apologies for this but with almost continual raises in postage costs I am forced to take this draconian measure. Reviews can also be emailed if required).

Danbert Nobacon: "The Library Book of the World" CD (Bloodshot Records): l'd heard a few tracks of this in advance and really didn't think very much of the country and western flavour but Nobacon's first solo record since 1985's "fhe Unfairy 7ale" is a very good effort. Better known as one of the vocalists of Chum bawamba, Danbert has moved to the USA physically and m usically, encapsulating a number of folkorientated styles, including the dreaded lap steelguitar. A few tracks are rem iniscent of his old style trotably "Tarin Kot", my favourite track on the album. There are some excellent lyrics, biting, questioning and am using but ther-e's no lyric booklet, Still at nearly 55 mins it's well worth a listen. lnfo and lyries at www.danbertnobacon.com

Anarchoi #22 & 24: Scotland's most

prolific punk rock fanzine is back with more of the usual cut and paste craziness we've come to expect with typed interviews alongside handwritten articles, graphics and assorted reviews. This zine has improved over the years but still lacks any real depth. lnterviews are generally banal and as mentioned before it all seem s very rushed. lssue #24 has just landed and is a better effort, containing 2 good interviews with Social Parasites and Active Slaughter and a crap waste of time with Condem ned 84. I'm wary of any bands who claim nationalism. No it isn'l racism but it is a steD towards

f1 .50 postpaid from Jamesy, 3 HazelGrove, Kilwinning, Ayrsh ire, KA 1 3 7J H, S cootla nd

Bad Religion: "New Maps of Hell" CD (Epitaph): lf you're one of those types that think this band walk on water you'll no doubt love this and while their formula of fast and catchy pop punk and thought-provoking lyrics is well-trodden there's little sign of any stagnation While ldon't think it's as strong an album as the previous effort it is certainly memorable in places such as the excellent "hlew Dark Ages", The Epitaph label which the band siarted themselves is now so big it is considered to have major label status so many continue to question this and how far removed it is from the original punk scene that spawned it, Given tsad Religion's support for the co

rporate-spo nso red Va ns W a rped to u r a nd se lf-aggra nd ising

DVD's the answer seems clear, or is this simply the cost of popu!arity and hard work? They're a good band and this is well-packaged indeed but.. . we say fuck corporaie spo

so rsh ip

Subhumans: "lnternal Riot" CD (Bluurg): When this first

came out I noticed a lot of people tripping over themselves to say how great it is but let's face it anything new by the Subhumans wiil have praises heaped upon it because of who they are irrespective of artistic merit. lwas reading that they could easily have had a biE labeldealwith Fat Wreck Chords amongst others but chose to continue the DiY style by selfreleasing on their or.vn Bluurg labelwith distribution through Actirre, That is extremely admirable. Of course everyone expects them tc sound like they used to but times have changed so why should they have to glance musicaliy hackwards? What you do get is a variety cf tracks that do look towaids their halcyon clays especially the brilliant "tVeverEnding La/ar Song", a few tracks that sound like latter-day Citizen Fish anci some fresh, forward-looking ideas Lyricaily brilliant as alv'iays and particularly relevant in reference to idealism is how we might look towards "largefs /ess fantasilc" if we want to continue challenging "cultures of excess" but moreso and reminding me of a touching lyric from Culture Shock days, "scan for signs of reeognition in the eyes of all these people going past, all I'm seeing is the aftermath in relation to a society sat behind a com puter screen." Subhumans remain a sturdy bridge from the original anarchopunk era to the present day. Available from Active Distribution

Barse: "lf You Can't Fuck 'Em Cut'Em Up CD (Hell's Tone Recs): This trio play an old schoolstyle back to basics punk n'roll and there's some good tunes in here though the whining iead guitar on every track makes it all sounds samey after a while. The lyrics largely dealwith the singels adolescent attitude towards women which, although it made me grin the odd time, soon descends into puerlle nonsense and eventually becomes boring. You could easily dismiss Barse for mindless, immature and sexist rubbish but the singer topped himself so one can only guess that he meant what he said, ls that punk? You decide, Get itforâ&#x201A;Ź6 postpaid from Trev Hagl,20 New Front St, T/Lea, Stanley, Co Durham, DH9 9LY, UK.

Legion of Parasites: "Another Disaster" CD (Overground):

First of 2 discs covering the entire career of this early anarchopunk band from 'l 981-'l 985. The tracks cover early demos, compilation tracks, the "Undeslra ble Guest" 12in plus the "Prison of Life" LP from 1985 and it comes with a well thoughtout 12 page booklet Anyone familiar with the anarcho-punk retro series on Overground records will know they are getting decent quality. This is no exception, raw and basic attimes but with its own intensity, often m issing from other bands of the pe.riod. www.overg ro undreco rds.co. uk.

- "11" CD (Active/Ruination): Beautifully packaged fold-out digipac comprising of 2 EPs on one disc in a slip case with posters. Musically there are elements of early Rudimentary Peni and Killing Joke baked in a crusty pie with trimmings and lthink it's excellent, especially "Stitched" which is a classic and one of the best tracks l've heard this year, The Kropotkin poster is a gem too. An absolute bargain for â&#x201A;Ź5 from www.activedistribution.org Cross-Stitched Eyes

- "The Boy Bands Have Won" CD (No Masters): Chumbas continue their journey on the folk bandwagon with this still largely acoustic album featuring 25 tracks, Some of these are 'ideas'while other are full songs among which are a couple of realgems ("Lord Bateman", "Charlie" and "Add Me" spring to m ind) and lyrically this is Chum bawam ba

more scathing than the Chumba-Lite that has been served of late, Originaldrummer Harry is back for a few tracks and radicalfolkers Robb Johnson and Roy Bailey lend a hand but the voices of Danbert, Dunst and Alice are still conspicuously m issing, On the whole another good album with a half decent booklet this time though there's a barren feel about the artwork overall. Chumbawamba have remained a consistently interesting band, despite the short-lived major labelcontroversy. Now available from Active Distribution which is better than the High street prices elsewhere.,. and details at www,ch um ba.com

D'Corner Bois/Barse - Split CD (Hell's Tone Recs): Some singles and demos signalthe last recordings by Barse and like the other album reviewed earlier there's some good songwriting here which is the pity because the lyrics are for the most part absolute shite. They do have a street levelfeel sometimes but the treatment of anything female might give the lads a laugh, but it borders on the highly suspect in this writer's book. D'Corner Bois are a far better band - good tight boy's own shouty punk for lads with boots'n'braces and good, relevant lyrical observations. All told a m ixed bag with a minimalbooklet (no lyrics for Barse which is probably a blessing in disguise), Contact trevhagl@hotmail.com for deta ils,

Public Serpents: "Feeding of the Fortune 5000" CD (Tent City): Public Serpents play fast ska punk like Operation ivy

with an upbeat dancehall feel and occasionalforays into experimentairap tinted with the necessary hardcore edge to carry it off and yet the lyrics question the living dead all around us seem ingly unaffected by continual corporate abuse and the demise of culture. l'rn informed the sound is"Crack Rack Sfeady" and there are moments of Leftover Crack which isn't surprising as front man Skwert was once the drummer of the genre-setting Choking Victim along with Stza at one point. The CD comes with a fold out 18 page booklet of a( and interesting lyrics and an excellent poster reminiscent of Winston Smith. A good package all told and a band to keep an ear to. Not a classic but worth looking into. Find out more at www.te ntcityreco

rd s.co m

Eye For An Eye: "Gra" CD (Pasazer Recs): This Polish band play old-schoolmelodic hardcore punk tinged with metaland a modern US feelthat reminds me a little of Signal Lost at times with just a hint of Post Regiment and even Agnostic Front. Although there's nothing especially originalhere Anka's vocals are exceptionally strong and emotive while the quality production offers a crystalsound with excellent dynamics between instruments, but when the metally sound comes in quickly lose attention. The CD and average 8 page lyric booklet (all in Polish) are housed in a lavish digipac. Nothing to write home about but definitely worth a listen. Details from I

www.pasazer.

Slug & Lettuce #90- 20th Anniversary issue: Christine's free newsprint zine is now an institution in America.and wellrespected across the globe but it's her skill as a photographer and documenter of the US punk scene that keeps this zine a notch above its peers. This issue showcases many of the bands Chris has captured over the years from Subhumans to Neurosis to Oi Polloi and Nausea amongst a wealth of others alongside her well-written colum ns. lt's free for postage from Slug & Lettuce, PO Box 26632, Richmond, VA23261-6632 or via some of the better UK distros,

NaomiKlein: "The Shock Doctrine" (Penguin): Klein's

new

book is easily the best thing she's written since "No Logo" and arguably the best-researched piece of journalism she's published to date. The book exam ines the rise of free market capitalism and its association with disasters real and imagined and oharts the rise of Chicago School Econom ics (the modern face of capitalism) from CentralAmerica to the UK, Poland, the Soviet Union, South Africa right through to the current disaster in lraq where private contractors are literally making a killing Centralto all the events discussed is the monolith of global capitalism and its attempts to open up countries across the world for corporate domination, Klein exposes the lie of trickledown economy and reveals the misery left behind. A timely and important slice of historicalanalysesl Available from the big and the bad online

Bald Cactus #26: Cracking new issue from one of the UK's longest running anarcho-punk zines. To celebrate 20 years

emphasis on renewable energy, land based economy and natural building. Anyone who realises the seriousness of the current economic and ecologicalsituation would benefit from a read of this excellent publication. For details of this publication (and on practicalcourses run by the Sustainability lnstitute) go to www.sustainab ilityinstitute. ie

Another Dinner ls Possible: Huge and well-designed spiral-

bound cook book and tome on all aspects of food from an ecological perspective including simple introductions to the different arg um ents for vega n ism : ecolog ica l, h um a n itaria n and compassionate and featuring basic cuiinary concepts, growing your own, a UK/US glossary, eating from the wild, home-brewing etc. The best part of the book is the extensive second section featuring a history of food production and a solid introduction to nutrition. Devised by people who are involved in feeding hundreds if not thousands across activist sites and climate camps this is a near definitive guide to 21"t century food in all its aspects. lt's far more than a collection of recipes - E10 postpaid from Active Distribution.

hdQfront is looklng for another revie\ â&#x201A;Źr. lf you thinkyou've Eot what it takes then please get in toudr. You'll need to have arcess to all fornmts. A few revieins \fi,ent astray this issue, if yours vias one of them then please get in touch. Please don't send enails asking to cone and listen to your hnnd on your site. I don't have the tine. Send it in or look elsewhere. Regardirrg adverts - in the past I have done adverts for free for DIY and non-Pofit ventures. \ftlrilethis is still the case I will be charging othenruise so please get in contact for rates. Thanks to Ruth and Andy for doing revie\Ae in pevious issues

J,R.fuSh.gp-org