Bolshy

Joe Strummer 1952-2002 They don't make bands like The Clash any more. Call me cynical, but it's true. Girls Aloud and One True Voice, as vocally talented, articulate, intelligent people as they are, don't quite measure up to a band like The Clash. Their front-man, Joe Strummer, who died unexpectedly of a heart attack in December 2002 at the age of 50, will certainly be missed. Joe Strummer and The Clash combined punk - the angry noise of the white working-class - and ska - the angry noise of the black working-class - and came out with…The Clash: the angry noise of the working-class. Okay...

Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq is notable not only for its brutality but for its capacity to survive. The regime has endured war with Iran and then with the US, and international sanctions. The current Ba’thist regime took power in 1968; Saddam himself had concentrated power in his own hands by the end of the 1970s. But this is not a regime which draws its legitimacy from a revolutionary movement. If anything, the opposite. The Ba’th was responsible for a reign of terror which brought to an end the properly revolutionary period in Iraqi history, the regime of Abdul Karim Qassim. Now the...

From Bolshy - Jan 2003 issue A bill is currently before parliament that will, if passed, effectively outlaw pub sessions, charity events at local venues and force small music venues to close. It will not only hold the promoters at fault – the performers may also be prosecuted, even if they believed the venue to be licensed. The laws are buried in a bill that is mainly about allowing pubs to stay open longer, and thus will not receive much coverage. The exact wording of the bill is ambiguous, referring to ‘entertainment facilities.’ This means that as well as pubs and clubs, recording studios...

NIKE IN COURT TO DEFEND THE RIGHT FOR CORPORATIONS TO TELL WHOPPERS! Nike is being sued by California activist Mark Kasky for violating a state law that forbids corporations from intentionally deceiving people in their commercial statements. Instead of refuting Kasky's charge, they have decided to argue that corporations should be allowed to lie! It's free speech, goddamit - a basic human right! And of course, as countless third world sweatshop workers will confirm, Nike knows lots about basic human rights. The US Chamber of Commerce, Exxon, Monsanto, Microsoft, Pfizer and Bank of America have...

NO TO BUSH, NO TO SADDAM, YES TO SOCIALISM! STOP THE WAR! - Bolshy Editorial/January 2003 Welcome to 2003. My crystal ball's fairly heavily fogged at the moment, so I can't tell what this year holds. However, if the signs are to be believed, one event does seem pretty imminent; everyone's favourite trained ape is about to launch a brutal, imperialist attack on the innocent citizens of Iraq. Happy New Year, Baghdad! We're dedicating this month's issue of Bolshy to that same topic - why we must oppose this war, why Bush wants it, and what we can do to stop the damn thing. We'll also be looking...

The English Civil War was the first bourgeois revolution in the world. In the struggle between Parliament and the Crown for the running of the state and the collection and burden of taxes, Parliament seemed to have won a decisive victory. Charles 1st was executed and the monarchy was scrapped. In the partially-successful counter-revolution that followed, the monarchy was restored: never to its former, all powerful glory, but to the botched compromise betweeen modern bourgeois democracy and the ancient feudal rule of kings. We still live in a state where an unelected head of state can over-rule...

A 101 year old, gin-riddled racist passed away in her sleep not so long ago - quick, hold the front page! by Bolshevik Smuggled Into the Hello! Editoral Office (now unemployed) The British public stayed at home, in their millions, preferring to queue at Sainsbury's than at Buckingham Palace. A fit tribute to a parasitic waste of good Gordon's and tonic. The boredom of her finally going to the great gin palace in the sky was a fitting way to celebrate the legacy of someone who was so "loved" that when she visited the East End of London, in her chaffeur-driven limo, during the Blitz, the locals...

by our very own idiot * The top three billionaires have assets greater than the GDP* of the 600 million people who live in the 48 least developed states. * 20% of the world's richest people living in the world's richest countries control 86% of the world's wealth. * On the world's money markets a small number of traders change $1.5 trillion every day. Meanwhile incomes in Africa south of the Safara have actually gone down in the last 20 years. 40% are below the poverty line. [* what do these initials mean? don't despair, it all becomes clear in the explanations a few paragraphs further down...

Two nations, two states: Israel out of the occupied territories! by Sasha The right-wing Israeli government led by Ariel Sharon recently invaded several Palestinian towns and refugee camps in the West Bank. Hundreds of Palestians were killed - most notoriously at the Jenin refugee camp - and many hundreds detained and arrested; on the Israeli side dozens of soldiers (many were irregular troops called up for the operation) died. This is another terrible, tragin round in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Palestinian-majority areas in the West Bank, Gaza Strup and East Jerusalem have been...

This article was originally published in Issue 1 of Bolshy, in December 1998, under the title "The Voice of Treason: The Royals". The Queen Mum, everyone loves her, don't they. Did you know, she's 98 years old and is still in pretty good shape, apart from the odd new hip. And I've found out her secret, and it's not Oil of Ulay. Very simple, in fact. She's still going strong, cos She's Never Done A Day's Work In Her Life. If I bumped into her, I reckon I'd ask her round for a fish-based meal. Or kick her stick away. I like to follow the royals. When I say follow, I mean 'stalk' or 'try to make...