RE: [Marxism] New Scottish Socialist Formation

["Darren Williams" <dazza1970@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

www.leninology. blogspot.com" wrote: 

>Incidentally, Darren - are you still trying to Save the Labour Party?  Merely
>curious.

Deft googling there, Len.

Yes, I am a supporter of 'Save the Labour Party', along with various other
groups and journals that are trying to build a left-wing within the mass
organisations of the British labour movement, in opposition to the New Labour
clique.

Does that disqualify me from having an opinion on the split in the SSP?

For the record, I think most of the recent attempts to build a 'socialist
alternative' outside the Labour party - the SLP, the Socialist Alliance,
Respect, the Campaign for a New Workers' Party - have been doomed to failure
from the start, having underestimated the strength of the relationship between
Labour and the working class, partly mediated through the unions, along with
the unfavourable political circumstances in Britain for establishing new
parties (not least the electoral system).

The SSP was the one that stood the most chance of success - due to the role
of the Scottish national question and the fact that it was built on the basis
of longstanding struggles by working class and popular forces, around issues
like the Scottish Parliament, the poll tax, water privatisation, etc. It
was always too sectarian towards the Labour party but at least it was a more
credible effort than the various 'socialist alternatives' in England and
Wales. However, Sheridan - with the support of your pals in the SWP - now
seems to have wrecked whatever chance it may have had.


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