Announcement

Beckett grassroots form new working-class pro-democracy movement against union machine politics

Howard Beckett’s grassroots campaign teams have founded a new, working-class pro-democracy movement with the aim of preventing ‘machine politics’ from destroying democracy with trade unions, following his decision this morning to step out of the Unite leadership contest.

Beckett’s former campaign accounts on social media have been rebadged as ‘Ordinary Left’, the name of the new grouping. Search your preferred social media platform for your nearest group and follow to keep up with the new campaign (the group’s new Facebook page is here).

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19 comments

    1. This is an URGENTLY needed step‼️ BUT for this grassroots movement to win and SUSTAIN wins, they MUST from the GET GO screen and say no thanks to ALL appeasers, ALL prepared to do BACKROOM deals, ALL who show even the tiniest hint of the Can’t do / victim attitude, ALL who even look as if they will whine on about pragmatism. It is nothing of the sort.

      Yet Rayner and Nandy are ringing round to get support to turf out Starmer. They want to be a pair of parasitic filled turds to replace the incumbent pair of turds including one of the challenging turds. Brilliant tragic comedy for us yes. Have popcorn at home at a fraction of the Cinema prices but what good for the many in URGENT need of a TRUE Labour government❓

      It is NOT “pragmatic” to keep caving in to “pressure” “attacks” etc which are nothing more than those with polar opposite aims AIMING to achieve their aims. That is life in ALL competitive enterprises.

      It is NOT pragmatic to give in, over and over for thirty years, forty fifty years, sixty years in a party that is over ONE HUNDRED YEARS old!!!

      Screen out ALL who talk about “long games”. That is obscenely laughable in 100 year old party. When a long serving member who was never even made a bag carrier by the Status Quo guardians, gets elected leader DESPITE all the attackers, yet squanders ALL the almost FIVE years “DOING EVERYTHING THEY ASKED” according to John McDonnell, gets suspended, Whip removed, insulted STILL and lied against to this very day and yet we are told to be “pragmatic” “sacrifice” … really??? It’s no “sacrifice” when the backroom stitchers remain ok but “The Many” pay the harsh DEADLY price.

      Socialist TV??? To tell the grassroots what exactly??? How to quit??? How to cave in??? How to appease??? How to whine about the status quo yet refuse to stand up to them in a SUSTAINED meaningful way??? To talk about how virtuous we are??? How to hide??? Keep your head down ? ? ?

      This is a DREADFUL day. Not because of Starmer’s catastrophe. That was PREDICTABLE and PREDICTED. SIR Keith Starmer is a value free vacuum. All the better to do as he’s told.

      This is a DREADFUL day because to my crushing amazement NOTHING has been learnt. It seems clear that enough people are ready to carry on the charade just as before and call it a long game that started over one hundred years ago. That is a nasty joke. If no one said it before and all we have seen are stitch ups after stitch ups, the past practises have failed. New ones may fail too, but we KNOW that the old attitudes HAVE failed REPEATEDLY.

      They are nothing but defeats sleep walking and sleep talking. Talking myths. Shackled by myths. Failing over and over.

      What stops inteligent, knowledgable and sincere people seeing that???

      🥀🏳️ ☢️🥀🏳️☢️🥀🏳️☢️

      1. What did you really expect? Beckett was fighting against machine politics, he couldn’t win. Even the muted response on this site should have been an indication of how it would end. The unions are enmeshed in machine politics where a small group of supporters maintain the dominance of the ruling clique or leader by way of patronage. I think Howard realised he must take the machine apart first.

      2. Despite the machine telling Jeremy to quit, he went to the members. They voted AGAINST the machine.
        ✳️📌✳️📌✳️📌

      3. lundiel,
        1️⃣ -What are “politicised unions” ❔
        2️⃣ – Which unions are not “politicised” ❔ 3️⃣ Why are Unions affiliated to the Labour Party❔
        4️⃣ Why are politicians intervening, in particular Watson and Hodge❔
        5️⃣ I heard Hodge say at least twice in one morning that the Unite position is a VERY important political one. Why do you think an experienced politician said that❔

        6️⃣ You say with startling conviction – “people with mortgages to pay are NEVER going to support politicised unions.”

        WOW‼️ Gosh … What a day this is⁉️ How do PEOPLE with mortgages pay their mortgages❔With nice words❔ Spit❔

        Mortgages, pay, working conditions, health care for mortgage payers, education for their children, social care for their relations, transport to and fro work and school, green spaces to relax, refresh, revitalise, … cultural support to inspire, utility prices are ALL part of the political world. THE world. A fact of life.

        The Tories, having won almost all elections… certainly all in my lifetime, know that. They therefore organise ALL of the examples of political decisions and more in their Tory interests… the interests of the ONE PERCENT … “the few”. The ninety nine percent need as much effective organisation as possible to protect them from their disadvantaged position. The Tories feel confident that they can erode the welfare of ALL workers more and more. Why? Because they know they CAN, because those who say they are for the workers, give all ground because they have learnt to believe they have “no choice.” The “Left” are ruled by what they believe can “NEVER” be in their favour.
        Tories rule because the know that almost everything is possible. They exploit EVERYthing, no matter how ethically depraved and no matter how excessive to their needs.

        The only “NEVER” Tories too have grown to believe is – no matter what, no matter the evidence, those who are supposed to defend the “Left”, believe they “NEVER” can change. They “NEVER” have choices. They can “NEVER” expect Beckett to respect the hope nominators expected from him.

        Even military invasions involve mortgage paying people directly and indirectly. Resources are scarce including the lives of people. Those who believe they can rule (Tories), do. They then waste the lives of other “people’s” parents and children sending them to fight, kill other people’s parents and children… and be maimed and die themselves… Mortgage payers and non payers alike. ALL life is political. All PEOPLE are in a political world.

        Beckett’s quitting has knocked me sideways lundiel so i am struggling to understand your claim above, because it comes from you
        🥀😧🥀😧🥀😧

      4. Oh come on signpost. You know what I mean. Neoliberalism was kick-started by selling off the countries housing stock for a song and cemented by preventing new builds which caused house price inflation. That was Thatcher’s killer stroke and legislation aside, it created a workforce dependent on low inflation and jobs that pay the mortgage. Untill we reach the tipping point that puts them in negative equity or out of work they will always support the status quo. For them, Turner made perfect sense, someone who’d fight their corner with proven negotiation skills while Beckett might represent everything they aspire to, the risk is too great when you’ve a family to look after.

    1. it just occurred to me. How can Craig Murray STILL fight❓ He is under constant severe attacks. I bet the establishment tools like Jack Straw and Sir Rodney Starmer hates Craig but i bet they admire him. Despite all the REALLY harsh PHYSICAL results of constant attacks he has not caved in. HOW❓

      https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2021/06/the-mind-of-lady-dorrian/

      I don’t agree with all Craig’s views, but has anyone wondered how he manages to keep speaking up❓ THAT to me is TRUE sacrifice.

      What about Julian Assange??? Julian LIVES TRUE sacrifice. Fine. Most of us cannot be like that. But NEVER abuse the word to spin collaborating in backroom fixes.
      Never use it to disguise the lack of leadership qualities. It gives approval for failure.

      Those who took the trouble to nominate Beckett, have now been DEPRIVED of the opportunity to vote for their choice over TWO months before the deadline. With widespread campaigning, support can be assessed. Competition is a positive. Look what happened with Theresa May??? A totally unsuitable person slipped through. Same with Johnson. Same with Blair. Fishy Backroom shenanigans in which “the grassroots” … “the many” have no say.
      I am LIVID!!!
      L I V I D ‼️‼️‼️
      🏏⚖️🏏⚖️🏏⚖️

    2. Thanks for the link to CE Estate Media’s BRILLIANT article lundiel. Well worth bookmarking the entire blog . That RD Hale, the blogger, is worth anybody’s time.

      “Pasokification will become known as Starmerfication.”

  1. Disappointed Howard withdrew but perhaps they’d done the maths and perhaps left on left would have let Coyne in so Graham should withdraw too. But disappointed in whole affair – perhaps next time we need a grassroots activist socialist candidate.

  2. What pisses me off about the whole affair is the assumption that Beckett’s supporters will transfer their vote to whoever they agree will run for the Left. What happened to democracy? The whole affairs stinks.

    1. Now, most of Starmer’s MPs (Including mine, Leeds NW) should cross the floor to the LibDems and let us have our party back.

  3. The internal report leaves no room for compromise with Red Tories, Turner and Unite can only be on one side of that battle for control of the Labour party
    That is largely down to Howard Beckett, fair play to him
    Graham has no where to go now
    Go read Mandelson in the Guardian, what a bunch of bottom feeders Centrists are, time to put them on notice, they are in the wrong party

  4. The blatant programme of exclusion and changing the rules behind closed doors even before the arrival of Starmerfuhrer as leader, has made Labour and any close association and support by unions a quagmire of backstabbing and waiting in line for the one above to fall from grace. Truly, socialists NEED to form a new socialist party, align with like-minded union members and ditch Labour.

  5. Excellent common sense by Howard Beckett & Steve Turner.

    The ball is in your court, Sharon Graham

  6. Yes with Beckett perhaps some of us were marched up to the top of the hill and then marched back down again but best now to back Turner and keep the Right out. Graham should withdraw. But next time need a grassroots left wing democratic socialist activist as candidate.

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