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17 October

Back from the ESF, which I have distinctly mixed feelings about. On the one hand, great to see all those people meeting, talking, thinking and arguing about a new kind of future, as it always is at a social forum. On the other, the event was in many ways so tightly controlled, undemocratic and almost corporate that it left a nasty taste in the mouth. It seems that most of this is down to the organisers, who were dominated by Ken Livingstone's GLA, which put up the cash, and our old friends the Socialist Workers Party, which according to my sources has infuriated virtually every activist in Europe and shoved the radical movement in this country backwards when this event should have given it a kick in the pants.

Lest you think I'm the only one to hold such opinions, have a look at this report from Indymedia of what happened on the Saturday, when a group of activists invaded a stage on which Ken Livingstone was supposed to be speaking, to protest about the exclusive nature of the forum. Even the official translators stopped working in protest. As usual, the hard left has gone and screwed it all up for everyone else. All ideas on how to extinguish the vile SWP forever to be sent to me on a postcard, please. First out of the hat wins a copy of the very first issue of Socialist Worker ever printed. You'll notice it has all the same headlines as last week's.
Anyway, I'll be writing more on the ESF in the coming week, in a couple of articles for openDemocracy. Check them out if you're interested.

On another subject entirely, I can't help gloating over the forthcoming fate of Fox TV's nasty little Republican chat-meister Bill O'Reilly, who it seems is being sued for masturbating down the telephone to one of his female assistants, despite being a 'family values' crusader. I just love it when things like this happen. Nothing gives me a warmer glow deep inside than seeing very rich, very right-wing, very smug people brought low. Stoke up your own glow by having a giggle at the transcripts of the alleged (lawyers for Fox please note) telephone perving that O'Reilly indulged in here. You won't regret it. It's great!

Posted by paul at October 17, 2004 01:55 PM

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