Socialist Organiser

The weekly of the fused Workers Socialist League, July 1981 to April 1984

[throughout the strike, was also to be gagged…]

Socialist Organiser no. 129, 28 April 1983 · scan p. 8 · about 642 words

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throughout the strike, was also to be gagged. The major part of the shop stewards' meeting on Monday was taken up with the stewards arguing for the right to make a recommendation to the meeting. When that battle was won, the stewards passed a resolution saying that the formula was not a basis for a return to work' although whether, and in what form, this resolution would be put to the mass meeting, was not. clear.

The main pressure for the sell out did not in the end come from Terry Duffy. Reports to the stewards' meeting made it clear that Moss Evans was the most determined at national level to bring the strike to an end. He had made the running in both the Carlton Hotel and the Holiday Inn meetings. He apparently fought with At today's mass meeting [Tuesday ], the mood was equally strong. The media had for two days set out to create the mentality that the strike was as good as over, and this had obviously had its effect, but it was clear from the reaction of the meeting to the platform that a substantial vote to continue the strike was possible, given a strong lead from the platform.

There was however no such lead. The meeting was gradually talked back to work.

Last night's [Monday] Oxford Mail was very skilfully presented, "The 5000 men and women who have supported the washing-up strike are likely to vote tomorrow for a return to work. But a small minority of militants are claiming that the latest peace terms are a sell-out". . It went on to say that LEAVE to one side for a moment the question of whether John Lister crawled into Cowley end it same.

thing in the tea whether the sight of Pat Lally selling Socialist Organiser outside the mass meetings reaches the votes other papers can't reach.

The workforce, as seen by the Daily Express, is a passive mass incapable of thought, feeling or independent political action. 'Marxists move in for the kill' the paper declared and went on to report accusations that the workforce were lemmings, following the union over the cliff.

The red baiting was taken up to a lesser extent by some of the fellow Fleet Street outside agitators, but it was a minority voice and a weak one. Majorities of up to ten to one at mass meetings need better explanation than Marxist plotting.

The real contest this week has come from the Christian matia. It was probably best expressed in the BBC Sunday programme -e Hear of che Matter which 2 se 3s blaming the other fellow* , while THe HER ET Christians began with penitence. He didn't seem very penitent himself but then he wasn't a car worker so he didn't have so much to be penitent about.

This year being the centenary of Marx's death has given all kinds of parrots the opportunity to confute a Marxism which exists largely in their own minds - but this analysis took the biscuit. The long careful brick building analysis of Capital is reduced to a game of name calling.

The Reverend Tony Williamson, Lord Mayor of Oxford, body plant lift truck driver, and worker priest, was confident that it was possible to reconcile his ideal of Christian management with profitable car production -Buckle was not. He raised doubts as to whether car production should be undertaken at all if the consequences were slave conditions.

We can confidently predict a flood of articles trying to reconcile Christian morality (love your neighbour) with factory production (work harder than your neighbour). This could be the theme of the next big speech from the Archbishop of Canterbury, drawing on his vast experience of the matter.

Fisai: BL =E: je forced TET I001:2 I SUILT I* DER CIR producia that would really appea: De:

← Contents of Socialist Organiser no. 129

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