The Socialist Inbox

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Send your news, views and criticism, in not more than 150 words, to [email protected] - or if you're not online, PO Box 1398, Enfield EN1 9GT

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Killed by the system

Philippa Day died having overdosed - A letter from the DWP (Department for Work and Pensions) was found next to her rejecting her request for a benefits assessment to be carried out at her home - a decision the family believes triggered the overdose.

She was a single mum, with a history of domestic abuse, and had been thrust into a cycle of debt after her benefits were reduced.

Cutting benefits is state violence. Let's ensure the DWP knows that people are watching this inquest. We know there is blood on the government's hands.

Amy Cousens

Priced out of safety

Tory scum strike again. Around 300,000 people are living in tinder boxes clad in Grenfell-style cladding, like my mother's flat. Residents have now been made liable by this Tory government to pay for the cladding's removal. My mother and thousands of others cannot afford the astronomical cost.

The Tories are endangering hundreds of thousands of people in these buildings just so their billionaire landlord mates don't have to spend a penny. Tories not only want to starve children, they also don't care if you die in a fire because you didn't have the money to replace the dangerous cladding. The Tories, with their right-wing ideology, are a danger to everyday people's lives.

Mark John

Socialist internationalism to oppose militarism

Demonstrating against the Iraq war, photo Paul Mattsson (Click to enlarge)

Those who survived the Great War greeted 11 November as the end of the insanity, and the beginning of peace. They would have been mystified to see generals and royals using it as an opportunity to celebrate war over a hundred years later.

Since the end of the Second World War, there has not been a single day of peace. In my lifetime there has been one imperial war of conquest after another.

The red poppy is an ambiguous symbol. On the one hand it represents remembering those who fell in war, and the money raised is used to support those soldiers who suffered as a result of war.

On the other hand it is used by generals and the royal family to glorify war. If anyone dares to criticise this disgusting militarism, they are immediately accused of disrespecting the fallen and being too mean to help the military victims of warfare.

The people of Iraq, Syria or Afghanistan are some of the poorest people in the world. What with the ruthless bombing campaigns of American imperialism and the disgusting brutality of the Taliban and ISIL, their sufferings have been made worse.

Socialist internationalism is the only basis on which militarism can be opposed.

Derek McMillan

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Finance appeal

The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.

The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.

The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.

The Socialist Party's material is more vital than ever, so we can continue to report from workers who are fighting for better health and safety measures, against layoffs, for adequate staffing levels, etc.
When the health crisis subsides, we must be ready for the stormy events ahead and the need to arm workers' movements with a socialist programme - one which puts the health and needs of humanity before the profits of a few.