The Day the War Starts

[redjordi]

Dear comrades,

the war could now start at any time and we must be prepared. All over the world there are plans for protests on the day the war starts. This is very important since on that day a lot of people will be really angry, they will feel that their views have not been taken into account. It is extremely important to try to channel those feelings into action.

I think the two main axis should be school walk outs and work stoppages at noon on the day the war begins and for people to converge into demonstrations in the centre of every town and city.

for this action to be effective it cannot be improvised but must be prepared in advanced. there should be meetings in every workplace, trade union branch, school and college to discuss the war and what should be done the day it starts. we must agree beforehand on meeting points and such details.

i think it would be wrong to underestimate the effect that this can have. from our experience for instance, here in Britain in hundreds of schools up and down the country in small and big towns and cities students are already preparing for this. also in many workplaces resolutions have already been passed agreeing to it.

it would be good if comrades can report of what is being organised in their countries, schools, workplaces etc.

have a look at the Spanish Students Union web site . they are calling for a students strike for the day the war starts and there will be more than 50 local demos around the country. see pic of their poster.

we must step our activities, this is a crucial moment!

redjordi

[DrUSA]

Comrade Jordi,

Here in the US (and here in Fargo), there is a sort of agreement among people that they will converge at some central place (in our case the Federal Building) at 5 pm the day the war starts.  If was starts after 5 pm, then at 5 pm the following day.  This is to allow for people who must work and do not have the ability to stage a walk out.

Everyone should see what is going on in this regard in their area.  We will also prepare a leaflet for the day the war starts, letters to local newspapers, etc.

The example of the European working class is vital to get the US working class moving as a class.  There is a lot of apathetic inertia to overcome here, but the tide is turning.  Once the US workers move it will be game over for capitalism!

Workers of the world unite to stop the war!

[marx_was_right]

Because I work in the private sector can anyone tell me if my work could do anything to me if I walked out on the day the war starts. We have a staff of 6, but only 2 of us are anti-war so theres no way we could all walk out.

 Is it best for me to keep working? :-s

[redjordi]

hi Igor,

obviously the best option is if you work in a place that is unionised. then you can take a collective decision and whatever represion that might be used against you, you can then fight back in an organised way.

if that is not the case, and you don't even have the agreement of the rest of the workforce, then  my advice is do not walk out!

but there are still things you can do. you could produce a little leaflet to hand out early in the morning (the war is likely to start in the middle of the night) at bus stops, train stations, etc

you can join protests taking place that evening in most towns and cities.

... and if there is a really big mobilisation at lunch time you can always join in during your lunch break (or even call in sick! ;-) )

the main thing though is find out what is hapenning in your local trade union movement, schools, etc and try to link up with them.

redjordi

[danyka]

i wish my work was union becase we have 2000 employees here. if we all walked out that would be a huge deal

[redjordi]

Hi danyka,

well, even if your workplace is not union not all is lost!

there are still plenty of things you can do.

one idea would be to try and set up a workplace anti-war committee. Try to get two or three other workmates that are against the war to help you out. Get some anti-war literature with some basic arguments (I think you can find some at the WIL and YFIS sites) and then copy them, distribute them to other workmates and ask for phone numbers or emails of those who might be interested in helping out.

once you have a certain critical mass, call a meeting, even if it is an informal gathering after work, to discuss what to do. Link up with other groups, organise a debate, in general agitate against the war, get the discussion going, etc

if the mood is then right and you feel you have quite a lot of support, try to prepare for a walk out when war begins, if you are not sure, don't do anything stupid! but maybe you can organise some sort of protest in the workplace (get everyone to come to work with anti-war badges, and then meet toghether to go to any local anti-war events on that evening)

in any case the most important thing out of all these activity is if you can get a small nucleus of people (2 or 3 would be a good start) interested in socialist ideas and start some discussion group.

good luck!

redjordi

[comrade_tom]

on the day?thats way too late, we want to prevent war, not stop it after its started which is even more impossible.

[DrUSA]

Well, it took many years for the Vietnam War to finally be stopped by the movement of the masses (above all when the working class got involved in opposition).  I don't think we can really have any hope for stopping the war before it starts.  The decision to go to war was made many months and even years ago, they will not stop now.  What we need to do is take advantage of the anger and crisis caused by the war to bring down the belligerent governments and the ultimately capitalist system itself.  Even if we could stop this war, it would not change the fundamental conditions in society.  After this war, if they succeed, they will go on to another.  

The era of wars, revolutions, and counter-revolutions we have entered means we must prepare for the era of the anti-war movement and the socialist movement for the overthrow of capitalism once and for all!

[comrade_tom]

well we're fucked now, and half the reason US withdrew from nam was because they were being slaughtered

[yosef m]

Hello: Could someone in the UK respond to the message below  from  buffalobralee@yahoo.co.uk   ?

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                                                                                                                                    Tue, 18 Mar 2003 10:41:14 +0000 (GMT)
                                                                                                               From:
                                                                                                                                    =?iso-8859-1?q?simon=20bralee?=
                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                        To:
                                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                        Subject:
                                                                                                                                    ['spotters] re: day x and young socialist groups


                                                                                             hello my cyber comrades

                                                                                             i am planning a strike on day x but am worried about any action that may happen.  what should i do.  i can get a
                                                                                             few people to do the local stike but many who would be willing to strike are scared of counter action.

                                                                                             i am in the centre of england have made links with many fellow socialists but many are older.  i am wondering if
                                                                                             anybody knows of any young groups i have heard that they are groups and that one of their jobs is to get members
                                                                                             i am willing to do this but i would like to now how

                                                                                             hastala siempre

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Thanks.

[comrade_tom]

Im in UK and i can tell you many of my friends trying to strike have been suspended, one has been expelled. I think a group of students in a strong union is the only way to do it or you will look like trouble makers