A document from Prevent, the official scheme to stop radicalisation, includes believing in socialism, communism, anti-fascism and anti-abortion in a list of potential signs of ideologies leading to terrorism.

It comes as the Conservative government considers widening what it will consider to be extremism.

The document is part of online Prevent awareness training for those covered by the duty to inform if they suspect radicalisation. That includes teachers and youth workers.

So wait, have I got this right – teachers in the UK are required to report their students if they believe they’ve been “radicalised” into supporting socialism, communism, or anti-fascism?!

I’m just imagining the FIELD DAY my year 11 History teacher would’ve had with this if Australia had it at that time. I mean, I’m sure he wouldn’t actually have reported me for something so stupid. But I never would’ve heard the end of it in his classes either, I can guarantee you that, lol.

Really good piece on the history of Zionist feminism – a variety of colonialist feminism which arose in 19^th century Europe and, like other colonialist feminisms of the era, basically championed the opportunities for “equality” on the frontier, where men and women alike could subjugate “the natives”. In this day and age, Zionist feminism retains its imperialist nature. The article describes it as a form of “femonationism”, and points to the whipping up of hysteria about evil, barbaric Palestinian men raping Israeli women en masse on October 7 (a story which was just put about by Israeli propagandists, and has never been independently verified) in support. You know, the exhortation of Western feminists to accept and support the genocide of Palestinians, because obviously brown Muslim men are so aggressive and sexually violent, and if you disagree, you’re clearly an antisemite.

The article concludes by talking about a world feminist conference in 1975 in Mexico, which declared that ‘the equality of women’ rested on ‘the elimination of colonialism and neo-colonialism, foreign occupation, Zionism, apartheid, and racial discrimination in all its forms.’ “Feminism” is and has long been a highly contested label, used to justify nearly anything, from outright genocide and imperialist war to liberatory socialist revolution. The trick is to sift through these vastly disparate uses. Just identifying as a “feminist” doesn’t necessarily imply anything good at all – in that sense the article’s title has really nailed it. “Some of my best enemies are feminists”, indeed.

For over 90% of human existence, during our hunter-gatherer phase, social structures tended to be egalitarian, with equal status and autonomy for women. The subordination of women only began with the development of agriculture, cities, and more stratified economic systems. Patriarchy today is the culmination of a long transition away from complementary gender roles toward the increasing commodification of women’s reproductive capacity through paternal laws controlling lineage, inheritance, virginity, and monogamy. Understanding that patriarchy emerged so recently, under particular economic conditions rather than from biological fate, is empowering. It means we can rewrite modern society through consciously structuring culture and laws.

Resharing this, even though as a Marxist, I just like the beginning which provides a very high-level overview of how women’s oppression emerged with the beginnings of class society, and I had to increasingly side-eye it as it went on and on about how “patriarchy” still exists without naming its source: capitalism. But still… the fundamental point that women’s oppression, like class society, is a relatively modern invention and not a law of nature is an important one.

The Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign is calling for a boycott of Eurovision this year due to its insistence on including Israel – even though Israel has murdered over 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza since October last year, and is openly seeking to use its Eurovision participation for propaganda purposes. See the fact that Israel’s original entry, “October Rain”, was nakedly about the October 7 attack , and they only reluctantly agreed to change the lyrics. The BDS article states:

Participating in Eurovision for Israel is “a dream, in particular this year, when it has even more meaning.” Since October 2023, Israel has murdered more than 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza, including at least 12,300 children, and injured a further 70,000.

Understanding the contest’s propaganda value, particularly in the time of genocide, the Israeli president Isaac Herzog says, “it’s important for Israel to appear in Eurovision.” At the International Court of Justice, South Africa cited his assertion that Palestinians are “an entire nation out there that is responsible” as evidence of Israel’s genocidal intent.

It’s interesting to contrast the treatment of Israel to the treatment of Russia, after the latter invaded Ukraine in 2022. Officially, Eurovision claim they didn’t suspend Russia over the invasion, but because Russia wasn’t following the rules about the broadcast of the contest (i.e. that they weren’t allowed to cut stuff, like gay kissing). Still… the optics are plain to see.

An article about the number of prosecutions for “riot” – carrying a potential ten-year jail sentence – that’ve been carried out against people who protested in Bristol in 2021. Some who were prosecuted were, in fact, savagely beaten by the cops and yet have been cast as the violent ones. The evidence shows that the cops did not distinguish between peaceful protesters and violent ones, and it seems clear that political interference from right-wing demogogues like Priti Patel and Suella Braverman played a part in the disproportionate prosecutions. The bill the protesters were campaigning against – which gave even more sweeping powers to cops – became law two years ago, and of course former Crown Prosecutor Keir Starmer doesn’t want to do anything to change it even if Labour is elected. What a state.

South Korea has the lowest fertility rate in the world. This year it’s fallen to 0.72 (down from 0.78 in just a year!) and in the capital region around Seoul, it’s just 0.55. Compare that to the replacement rate of 2.1. This BBC article asks the question: Why? So, I’m just going to pull out a few quotes that I feel answer the question pretty convincingly:

“It’s hard to find a dateable man in Korea - one who will share the chores and the childcare equally,” she tells me, “And women who have babies alone are not judged kindly.”

Yejin works a traditional 9-6 job (the Korean equivalent of a 9-5) but says she usually doesn’t leave the office until 8pm and there is overtime on top of that. Once she gets home, she only has time to clean the house or exercise before bed. […]

“Sometimes at the weekends I go and get an IV drip, just to get enough energy to go back to work on Monday,” she adds casually, as if this were a fairly normal weekend activity.

From the age of four, children are sent to an array of expensive extra-curricular classes - from maths and English, to music and Taekwondo.

The practice is so widespread that to opt out is seen as setting your child up to fail, an inconceivable notion in hyper-competitive Korea. This has made it the most expensive country in the world to raise a child.

Minji confided that her childhood and 20s had been unhappy.

“I’ve spent my whole life studying,” she said - first to get into a good university, then for her civil servant exams, and then to get her first job at 28.

She remembers her childhood years spent in classrooms until late at night, cramming maths, which she loathed and was bad at, while she dreamed of being an artist.

“I’ve had to compete endlessly, not to achieve my dreams, but just to live a mediocre life,” she said. “It’s been so draining.”

Only now, aged 32, does Minji feel free, and able to enjoy herself. She loves to travel and is learning to dive.

But her biggest consideration is that she does not want to put a child through the same competitive misery she experienced.

“Korea is not a place where children can live happily,” she has concluded.

Minsung’s answer surprises me. “I’d love to have children. I’d have 10 if I could,” So, what’s stopping her, I ask? The 27-year-old tells me she is bisexual and has a same-sex partner.

Same-sex marriage is illegal in South Korea, and unmarried women are not generally permitted to use sperm donors to conceive.

Piece by Mehdi Hasan on how the Israeli war on Gaza is campletely dependent on a stream of American weaponry, so Biden could turn the tap off any time. He won’t, because as Biden has made clear, he couldn’t give less of a shit about Palestinian suffering, or their continued existence.

I did find the comparison to Ronald Reagan in 1982 very interesting. At that time, it was Beirut that Israel had laid siege to, cutting off access to food, water and power and bombing the city mercilessly. Reportedly, moved by the sight of a wounded Lebanese child, Reagan put a single phone call through to Menachem Begin, and within 20 minutes, the bombing stopped. (However, I know the war went on for many more years.) At any rate, Biden could clearly force Israel to agree to a ceasefire in Gaza, but would rather support genocide. The bar is on the floor, and yet he tunnels under it.

ALL PUBLIC SPACES NEED TO BE THOROUGHLY WELL-VENTILATED. Masking is all well and good, but it’s an individualistic “solution” to a systemic problem. It can’t just be on individuals to “protect themselves”. We need systemic solutions.