[Peace-discuss] [sf-core] Fw: [socialistdiscussion] tony benn

[Carl G. Estabrook]

A good memorial, David.

The Thatcherite Tony Blair's becoming UK prime minster, instead of Tony Benn, is something like the Reaganite Bill Clinton becoming US president, instead of Ralph Nader...  In each case the neoliberal counter-attack on "the sixties" triumphs. 

To have sense of what we lost, see Democracy Now's interview(s) with Benn, re-run today & on the website.

Although neoliberalism is the common name for the capitalist depredations in both countries over the last 40 years, the situations are by no means identical.

E.g., note the statement Benn reads about the institution of the National Health Service - in 1946! The sop thrown by Obama for his wretched bail-out of the insurance "industry" doesn't even approach that distantly.  


On Mar 14, 2014, at 7:08 AM, David Johnson <davidjohnson1451 at comcast.net> wrote:

> I am sorry to hear about Tony Benn.
>  
> As unfamiliar as I am with British politics and those involved, even I knew who Tony was, since the late 1970's when I first saw an interview with him on the U.S. television " news " program " 60 Minutes".
> I admired that he stayed uncompromising true to his Socialist principles over the years, despite most of the rest of Labor politicians selling out to the capitalists / neo-liberalism / New Labor.
> Tony Benn along with Oskar Lafontaine in Germany were my two favorite European Left politicians, who seem unfortunately to be an endangered species at this point in time.
> I only hope that a younger generation world-wide will be inspired by comrades like Tony Benn.
>  
> David Johnson
> Champaign, IL. usa
>  
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Bryan Beckingham
> To: yahoo gp cdfu ; campaign teacher ; socialist discussion
> Sent: Friday, March 14, 2014 5:12 AM
> Subject: [socialistdiscussion] tony benn
> 
>  
> 
> When I worked as a journalist for Militant I was based in Bristol South East. Tony  was my  MP and we argued and debated  for over 15 years. He was a brilliant MP, honest fighter for socialism and always respectful of others. On a personal level he spoke at the memorial meeting for my first wife Sue Beckingham who died at the age of 36. He visited her in hospital and was a real friend to us at that time. He helped her speak at LP conference in the year she died when she was ill. Tony moved left as he grew older and always defended the contribution Marxism made to the ideas  within the Labour movement.  Tony was a credit to the movement and as he once said to me he could not be corrupted or bought off paradoxically because he was wealthy and was never concerned with material gain.
> We has lost two great fighters for socialism in one week in Tony Benn and Bob Crow. As many have said in the past do not mourn but organise to renew the struggle for socialis