Walking on the Far Left

What constitutes a nation is a question with many definitive answers, all of which being heavily influenced by socioeconomic development, position and integration into world systems, and level of superpower status, not to mention the countless other more culturally ingrained practises that define one's national identity and the social and cultural significance of this globally, arguably presenting one's status as a nation state as considerably more nuanced than merely being defined by their individual international sovereignty and self governance on a global scale, and how this affects their integration and cooperation in international agreements. It is through linking this back on my perspective as an internationalist that I will argue whether the existence of these nation states in question is entirely problematic in all respects, and whether abolishing them is likely to effectively bring about the freedom and diplomacy that it sets about to facilitate, or if this can purely ...

A stone walled city nestled within a rugged expanse of mountains and jagged coastline punctuated by hidden caves in the typical karst topography of Southwestern Europe, and running parallel to a multitude of small islands submerged within the Adriatic sea, waters glistening blue and green in the Mediterranean sun, is what seems like any other coastal tourist destination. Yet amidst the beachside bars and restaurants, souvenir shops, bike and car rentals, and all things typical of many European tourist destinations, one can notice the more subtle facets of the Croatian economy past and present. Tucked away within the many ornate Baroque and Renaissance era buildings and typical rural abodes are a few indicators of a heavily religious society, several churches and cross carvings, sculptures and images, as well as some museums, artwork and graffiti indicative of its past as part of former Yugoslavia. It is through visiting Dubrovnik's Red History Museum that one can further recognise ...

When taking a naturalist and dogmatic stance on the chronic perpetuation of outdated and ableist ideals regarding the integration of the disabled population within society, what can be made apparent is the overriding prevalence of Marx's theory on alienation put into practice. This can be reflected on through recognising the common view that one's position in society is largely determined by their ability to engage with the "reciprocal influences amongst government" which would supposedly related to their involvement in "the economy, social classes, state, and status groups" present within a  capitalist society (Oliver, 1999), these all being things which would put disabled people into an increasingly marginalised position, and a supposedly lower status and level of influence on the society in which they coexist amongst others. Observing the inability for the disabled population to effectively integrate within society in this way, appears to be very obviousl...

"Sure. Your parents got the property boom, but we've got vegan bacon that tastes like bacon" This was a slogan remember seeing on a billboard at a bus stop advertising plant based bacon once. What they may have thought of as a genius marketing slogan set to appeal to a younger demographic struggling to find affordable housing, it came off to me as condescending and demeaning of the actual struggles that the UK's low income population have to face, and seemed to do little more than alienate them further from the interests set about through the establishment of a failing economic system which only sought to repress them further and exacerbate the disparities they face. In fact, it seemed like the perfect visual representation of capitalism: seeking to market a non-essential rarely recognised new product which many would buy purely for the novelty appeal of it, this appearing to further entice them to buy it by making its supposed environmental benefits and comparatively...

In present political discourse, it is widely regarded that NATO is a military alliance that operates with the core intention to effectively preserve and maintain sovereignty and establish diplomatic ties between member nations, so as to provide additional security against potential international and geopolitical threats to their socioeconomic and political stability that could likely be prevalent. This has arguably always been their main role by which they were set up to fulfil in that they were developed in that they were founded to deter and protect against the threats posed by the Soviet Union when it was at its peak, as well as having been set about with the support from the UN Charter so as to effectively maintain this in relation to international law (this being led and heavily influenced by maintaining diplomatic relations with the US, thus further fostering any of the potential militarist and neo-colonial intentions that said nations may have). During the era after the Second W...

  Photo my comrade got of me after the festival. Che Rosenberg perhaps?! Whilst being an avid SWP member and a huge fan of the much awaited Marxism Festival and the many other smaller national events within the party, being on the Marxism team was not something I'd ever done before. In spite of the long hours (starting qt 9:30- long before festival goers arrived- and ending late into the evening) the making of sacrifices of not attending certain meetings, and the effort of stewarding and organising large groups, it was a really enjoyable experience for me and one I would like to have again. From the very beginning helping set up all the chairs in the venue to the final singing of the Internationale by all to close the festival, I immediately felt confident and proud to be representing a party I valued so much, and give something in return for all the many opportunities they had given me in developing my activist profile. I felt a huge sense of pride at being welcomed into such a fa...

With dramatic and unprecedented rises in temperature having been observed during the past few decades with the likelihood of the UK reaching temperatures peaking at 40 degrees having risen by times since 1960, and this week in South East England there having been red weather warnings put in place indicating significant danger to people's health and personally safety, one can now truly realise the extent of the major ongoing existential threat of climate change which controls our lives and damages our wellbeing. A threat that has largely been brought about due to human activity in the form of mass consumption, globalisation, westernisation, and the rising demand to expand nations' industries to keep up with the rapid economic growth that has been taking place globally. It is in light of this, that one must question, why are workplaces not taking enough action to support the wellbeing of their workers (as after all, computers overheating and stopping working in these temperatures...

Having been well understood as the centre left socially liberal party and the core opposition society had to their more neo-liberal anti-internationalist socially right-wing counterparts within the Conservative Party for much of the 20th century, the UK Labour Party has continually experienced significant evolution and dramatic changes in political stance over recent decades. It is through a greater understanding and reflection on the historic founding of the party and the principles it was founded upon, as well as the  shifting of narrative in response to evident societal change that had taken place throughout this period that one can further recognise and understand the ways in which centrism has been redefined, and draw conclusions as to whether it is the centre that has been shifted to account for the rising support of more extremist far right ideals, or whether this change has merely come down to a period of rising fear and desperation under a situation of crisis having been o...

While considerable advancements have been made in relation to the recognition of the needs of the trans population with their rights being considered a considerably more significant part of policy making, and featuring more frequently within political agenda, the causes and extent their struggle continues to remain hugely misunderstood and often overlooked in society. This can largely be attributed to the alienation of this community within society, and the conflict and debate as to how they should be regarded. This could perhaps have been seen to stem largely from the flaws in many of the well accepted theoretical and dialectical approaches by which the social constructs of gender and sex are examined and understood, this in particular concerning the "beyond the binaries" perspective. These can be regarded as taking a considerably more dogmatic and idealist stance on the matters, presenting them as appearing somewhat abstract concepts and with limited biological, physiologic...

 "But you see, it's not me, its not my family" While this lyric can be interpreted in many ways with it being ambiguous as to whether the Cranberries on writing Zombie were demonstrating anger at all violence, or whether they wrote the song specifically to oppose the actions of the IRA in particular, there does appear to remain a common recurrent theme of apathy and inability to engage with or initiate conflict apparent in much of the political discourse of the present day, in the same way as many misguidedly assume that involvement in war efforts benefits the economy and further preserve their influence. This can be reflected on when observing historic interregional cultural and religious conflicts evident within Ireland, and their relations with the UK and the EU. One can notice the clear contrasts between the attitudes of Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland with regard to the willingness of the people to engage with these conflicts, as well as their comparatively iso...

        Signs I saw at the 2026 Nakba demo opposing Zionism, antisemitism and islamophobia In the current political climate wrought with polarisation and division. Far removed from the past primarily economically and historically driven perceptions of certain religious groups popular amongst many 19th century political theorists, current antisemitism and islamophobia is set about with the motives to further develop ultranationalist and neo-colonialist intentions to create a state built with a white supremacist western homogenate as its cultural and ideological basis. This thus acts as merely a means of further making fascism appear somewhat more palatable when overshadowed by the potential for future developmental and socioeconomic proposals, and the core aims of supposed freedom of expression and representation of religious values. It is, however, also important that one reflects upon historic dialect on labour movements and collective attempts to emancipate the peo...

  Yesterday would have been Marilyn Monroe's 100th birthday. It is in tribute to the great feminist icon (who shares my love for bright red lipstick!) that I will write this post observing the many ways she shaped the last century's fashion, popular culture, and film, and, most of all, the way that women's presence in society could be regarded, surpassing all kinds of stereotypical ideation demonstrated through the presence of the male gaze, and other huge chauvinist attitudes that were apparent in the film industry in the US during this period. We can thus very clearly consider her as way more than just the perennial stereotype of the heavily sexualised glossy pop icon that she has for too long been portrayed as, and even go so far as to view her as, in her own rights, a true revolutionary and a good comrade. When reflecting on the ways in which the stereotype of subservience, submission and reliance on men has been considered as an integral aspect of her character, howeve...

                                       Cold War Propaganda ( gabriel-chetcuti.wordpress.com) With one of the core defining aspects of the aftermath of the Cold War being the significant failures of the US during the Second World War and the Cold War having developed as sense of comparative instability and sociopolitical insecurity, it is clear that they desired change through economic prosperity. This was the core driving force behind their advocacy for globalism through neocolonial and expansionist agenda, so as to achieve this, all the while maintaining mutual symbiotic relations with their core allies, establishing links to resource rich and economically valuable regions that would be crucial in their development, and ultimately avoiding any potential threats with their communist opposition. However, it is only through analysing the tensions remaining between the Eastern and Western Wo...