Month: February 2018

Vince Caughley looks at the ideas and strategies for change put forward by anti-capitalist thinker George Monbiot. GEORGE MONBIOT, the prominent British journalist, caused a splash with his recent visit to Australia. His call for a “global democratic revolution” to address the enormous inequalities in our world really struck a chord. The people who packed out his meetings were keen to engage in the debate about how to bring about such a transformation. Monbiot’s speaking tour comes at quite an important time for local activists who are campaigning against the proposed Australia-US Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA) and planning actions to […]

THE MOST insidious aspect of neo-liberalism and economic globalisation is the way our futures are more directly being tied to the fortunes of the market. In Australia its a process thats been occurring since the Hawke and Keating years and has accelerated under the Liberals, culminating in the latest attacks on Medicare and public education. Another of our most important social concerns under threat is security in retirement. After 40 or 50 years in the workforce, you should be guaranteed a reasonable standard of living. Unfortunately, the recent poor performance of Australian superannuation funds and a spate of dodgy company […]

Victorian Peace Network THE VICTORIAN Peace Network (VPN) has been meeting every week to promote the setting up of local groups and coordinate Melbourne-wide activities. Delegates from churches, unions and activist groups have been attending with around 30 attending recent meetings. Regional groups have started up in Wodonga and Geelong and initial steps have been taken to try setting up groups in Gippsland and Ballarat. In Melbourne there are local groups in Darebin-Moreland and Western Suburbs. The next major rally will be on the weekend of the 15-16 February, but a definite place and date has yet to be determined […]