1134

Here are 10 of this month's best political albums (plus a few extra - count them). What albums would you suggest? Comment on聽,听, or聽email. Videos not playing? Try a bigger screen.

Today 鈥 ANZAC Day 鈥 is the climax of the orgy of nationalism and militarism we've been subjected to in recent times, ostensibly to remember the ordinary people who responded to the lies of the government by fighting and dying in an unjust war.

Of course progressive people have sympathy for the soldiers who died as well as the soldiers who didn't die but nevertheless witnessed or experienced terrible things.

Prime Minister Theresa May has called a general election for June 8. The Tory leader is hoping that Labour has been sufficiently weakened by the attacks of the right on Labour鈥檚 left-wing leadership around Jeremy Corbyn that she will be rewarded with a further five years in office.

It is, of course, a complete coincidence that rumours had started to emerge that the Crown Prosecution Service were about to move against 30 individuals for electoral fraud in the last general election, threatening the Conservative government.

The US is looking to聽聽for the Saudi Arabia-led war on Yemen, officials said on April 19 鈥 a move some see as聽聽that President Donald Trump is itching to take the US to a new war.

Hundreds of cities took part in a worldwide 鈥淢arch for Science鈥 to coincide with Earth Day on Saturday. Grouping together local and international environmental issues, the demonstrations聽championed science, research and evidence in the face of political inaction toward the environment and climate change and increasing steps by taken by Donald Trump鈥檚 attacks on science and planet.

鈥淲ar aids capitalism, those who support capitalism support war, that is, the philosophy of death and destruction,鈥 Boliva鈥檚 left-wing President Evo Morales said on April 18.

Morales warned that humanity was 鈥渁t risk of disappearing in a nuclear holocaust,鈥 as tensions mount worldwide after US military attacks in Syria and Afghanistan.

鈥淣uclear power in the United States and Western countries are getting us dangerously closer to a nuclear conflagration.鈥

Four years ago this month, a former bus driver with humble working-class origins became the president of Venezuela.聽

Promising to continue the revolutionary legacy of deceased former president Hugo Chavez, Nicolas Maduro pledged to advance the living standards of Venezuela鈥檚 poor and oppressed.聽

But since taking office in 2013, Maduro and the Bolivarian Revolution his government leads have faced non-stop attacks from Venezuela鈥檚 US-backed right-wing opposition, making advancements difficult.

One hundred years ago, on May 7, 1917, the following declaration appeared on the front page of the Bolshevik newspaper聽Pravda聽under the title, 鈥淒raft of a mandate for use in electing delegates to the Soviet of Worker and Soldier Deputies鈥.聽

This 鈥渕andate鈥 marked the first appearance of the slogan 鈥淎ll power to the Soviets鈥 in an official party statement.

The Soviets emerged out of the February Revolution that year, which succeeded in overthrowing the Tsar. The Soviets were based on elected delegates of workers, soldiers and peasants.

On April 25, 1945, the National Liberation Committee of Northern Italy (CLNAI), called for an insurrection against the Nazi-Fascist occupation of Italy.

Based in Milan, the Committee was led by (among others) Sandro Pertini, a key figure of the Italian Socialist Party (PSI) who later became Italian president in 1978.

Pertini made the announcement to the 鈥淚talian citizens and workers鈥, declaring: 鈥淣azi-Fascist occupation must be ended and Italy has to be liberated, so the invaders have to surrender or perish.鈥


By Alan Broughton & Elena Garcia
Resistance Books
104pp, pb
$15.00

An emergency protest organised by Sydney Stop the War Coalition, held as the US Vice President Mike Pence arrived in Sydney on April 21, drew a range of networks concerned about new, possibly nuclear, wars.

Unions representing care and support workers are pleased to be jointly announcing with government a proposed equal pay settlement to 55,000 workers across the aged residential, disability and home support sectors.

The proposed settlement is a huge win and will make a real difference in valuing the work of care and support workers and the people they support, workers in the sector say. It is a significant step in addressing gender inequality in New Zealand.