Social Security

themselves 10g. 3, Past alone win.

6.00 6.45 7.05 7.30 9.00 9.20 10.10 10.40 11.15 7.30 8:00 8.50 9.20 10.00 10.55 (What, we might ask, will Ali do if the Irish Free State Army intervenes on the side of the Provisionals in Ulster?)

As usual the revisionists are joined in this exercise by their inveterate allies-the state capitalists' of the International Socialism grouping. These reformists in the past distinguished complete loss confidence in the ability of the Bangla Desh movement to survive-leave Pessimism Now that the Pakistanis have been defeated the so-called 'Socialist Worker'-their weekly paper-has had to change its tune. But the lyric, predictably, remains the same: the futility of the Bangla Desh struggle. The morbid pessimism and defeatism of the state, capitalists reflects, most'" cléarly, the " complete political impotence and lack of a viable historical perspective of the metropolitan petty-bourgeoisie.

Every colonial struggle is seen WT!

MAN' WAIT HWORD 12.35 Croeso'r Castell. 1.30 Andy school. 4.40 Jackanory._4.55 Vision 5.44 Magic roundabout. 5.50 News. NATIONWIDE.

TOMORROW'S WORLD.

of Buccaneers.

NEWS and weather.

DOCUMENTARY: LEE KUAN FILM 1972.

REFLECTION.

BBC 2 11.00 Play School. 6.05 Professor Charles Taylor.

NEWSROOM.

INTERNATIONAL TENNIS. The Mast COLLECTOR'S WORLD.

BIOGRAPHY: ALEXANDER FLEMIN THE OLD GREY WHISTLE TEST. by these reformists as a retraction of the 'great power' struggle between US imperialism and Stalinist 'imperialism'.

Their anti-communism, sooner or later, breaks through and leads them to oppose-with radical phrases of course-the struggles of the colonial peoples.

Thus nobody should be surprised at their bankrupt stateSnared 'Nothing now checks Indian domination of S 'Asia. Given Indian dependence •on Russian arms, that means 'the Soviet Union has a powerful dominating role in the Indian Ocean ... For India,. alignment is deadolice of non... Dependence upon Russia has now become very great, and the TODAY'S MME:

Pandy. 1.45 News. 4.15 Play on. 5.20 Harlem globetrotters. University. Indian government is likely to find itself in the unenviable position of Egypt, snared in the web of Russian interests. (Our emphasis.) ('Socialist Worker' December 24, 1971-'Independence for Bengalis postponed by India victory' by John Ashdown.)

This is the logical end of revisionist politics. But Marxists cannot stop there, because the positions expressed by Ali and theoretical mentors in the revisionist Unified Secretariat raise theoretical and political questions of fundamental importance to Marxists.

To the formalist and impressionist the question exquisitely simple and straightforward: There are •two •sides. They are both reactionary bourgeois. The war is an interbourgeois war. Bangla Desh is a pawn. Ergo, we oppose both sides and turn the war into a civil war. QED!

Or as the Unified Secretariat statement concludes:

"These bankrupt classes have no right to and no possibility of taking upon themselves the solution of the problems of the Bengal people or of any other ethnic minority'. (Our emphasis.)

No statement could possibly expose the reactionary nature of the revisionist Secretariat this reference to the colonial bourgeoisie.

Arming

Marxists recognize that the weak and stunted Indian and Pakistani bourgeoisie are reactionary and cannot carry through the democratic revolution to unite India. For this reason Marxists in India would not vote confidence in the central government's plans to defeat Pakistan. They would oppose the anti-strike laws of the government, they would oppose the compulsory purchase of Defence Bonds and would raise the demand for. the arming of the defeating the Pakistani army and uniting India.

But neither would they obstruct the invading Indian government forces going into Bangla Desh, nor would they dissuade Bengali militants from fighting, on terms of equality, with the Indians against Yahya Khan.

Sophistry

• Unlike the revisionists, we do not say that the Indian capitalists 'have no right' to solve the national question. This sophistry, not dialectics, and has nothing in common with the permanent revolution of Trotsky.

Marxists neither over-estimate the political capacity of the native bourgeoisie to solve democratic tasks nor do they undérestimate their counterrevolutionary politics. But we do not-for a single moment-deny the native capitalists the right to solve this problem. That would be reactionary. And that is exactly what the Secretariat does in its statement.

We know, for example, that the Egyptian bourgeoisie cannot carry through a democratic revolution have would European correct generalization to deny the late Nasser the right to nationalize the Suez canal, to attack Israel or to send troops to the Yemen against the Royalists?

No ritual History would indeed be relatively easy to make if the capitalists the colonial countries were So absolutely bankrupt and reactionary that they could not even attempt to carry through such a struggle.

Real life—not the cloudcuckoo land which surrounds Ali-proceeds dialectically and not in accordance with the metaphysical and syllogistic ritual proclaimed by the Secretariat.

The real life of colonial nations shows us every day that despite its reactionary character and its unwillingness to fight imperialism, the native capitalist class is forced into conflict with imperialism and sometimes-with gréat caution and apprehension— summons the masses to its support and, at the same time, tries to drive the very same masses back and behead them.

The revisionists reject such a scientific theoretical understanding of the colonial bourgeoisie. That is why in Ireland their attitude to the bourgeoisie and petty bourgeoisie is one of complete prostration, summarized in their slogan 'Support the IRA'. And in Bangla Desh it is one of callow abstention and absolute opposition to the Indian bourgeoisie.

They are two sides of the same coin. by Philip Wade ATTACKS on the social services by the Tory government have cost some 10 million workers about £155m in only 18 months.

Measures like the abolition of free school milk and . the ending of free welfare milk have cut the wages of workers earning between £1,000 and £2,000 by an estimated £15 a year.

And the number of persons in poverty in Britain, including unemployed, pensioners and the sick and disabled, has risen by over 10 per cent since the Tories came to power in June 1970. These are, ot course, simply hard, cold statistics. Behind them lies the misery and degradation of millions of workers. For despite all the cuts in services and the destruction of basic rights, the sick and the unemployed still have to find the resources, somehow, to carry on.

It may mean borrowing money from friends or the loss of dignity involved in having a means test. Or, as we have seen, it might be that snoopers from the social security office will follow you and prey deep into your personal life.

And to this confirmed cut in living standards must be added the èffect of an 1l per cent increase in food prices over the period, effectively a wagecut of 10p in the f. abour MP for Oldham W, recently showed in 'The Times' how, for example, the abolition from last April of free school milk for the over-sevens and the increase in dental and prescription charges have brought in £66m for the Tory government.

Another piece of Tory legislation, the National Insurance Act 1971, has meant workers payıng another £316m in. contributions to finance the miserable increases in pensions and industrial injury benefits.

The abolition of unemployment, sickness and industrial injury benefits for the first three days after lay-off has cost the working class another £l1m under the Social Security Act of May this The Tories have been boastful about alleged achievements behalf Britain's poorest families. Social Security Minister Sir Keith Joseph has been presented as some tiger with a humane heart. The Tory propaganda machine has been working overtime on this dramatic picture. "The Guardian', pathetic and grovelling as always, had this to say about Joseph on December 7:

'There is no doubt about Sir Keith's concern with the most hard-pressed in society, wrote Ann Lapping following an interview with Joseph. One wonders whether the Minister includes himself in the hard pressed? He is soon to get a pay increase of £4,500, taking him on to £13:000 a year.

About 8 million workers in Britain earn less than £1,000 a year. According to figures, they are £l a week better off as a result of Tory measures. Most of the people falling into this category are old-age pensioners. It has been proved over and over again that the rise in the cost of living has more than eaten away the rise they got in September. The National Old People's Welfare Council has already stated the £l increase would be eaten away by Christmas.

In any case increases have only restored the purchasing power of pensions in a retrospective manner and they are never backdated. As for the rest of the poor, the Tories decided shortly after June 1970 to shelve plans for universal family allowances. In their place they brought in the notorious Family Income Supplements scheme. A stringent six-monthly means test ensures that little money seeps through to those in direst need. And less than half of the 160,000 families who are estimated to qualify for FIS have bothered to apply for it.

But the Minister is not finished yet. A departmental committee will report next summer on the prevention and detection of 'abuses' in relation to social security benefits. This can only mean that the right to health and social services will be further planed and a veritable army of spies will be hired and dressed up to follow workers who want to claim what is by right theirs, having paid for it over and over again.

The British ruling class has had a real bonanza out of the money taken by the Tories from the Women today. 4.10 house. 5.20 Magpie. News.

Anglia. 6.35 Crossroads. Crocker: 8.30 "The Ballad of Andy Crocker'. Mike and Bernie. United Socialist States of the Balkans With reference to the article on the Balkans (Workers Press, December 28, 29 and 30) it must be pointed out that Kosovo-Metohija is an 'autonomous region' of Yugoslavia. The great majority of its population of 963,988 are Albanian Moslems.

This region has been the subject of dispute for a long time.

It was included in Yugoslavia by This. seven part series by MICHAEL BANDA whloh appeared in the Workers Press is now avallable as a pamphlet. Order from New Park Publications, 786a Clapham High Street, London SW4. Price 18p Includcuts cost working class by one measure after another. Those 1.2 per cent of the population earning €5,000 and over have gained an estimated £335m from Tory tax reliefs. Each person in this group is about £1,258 better off each year. Cuts in income tax, corporation tax, increased earned income relief, abolition of capital gains tax on death and • lower estate duty, have brought them a real windtall.

While the entire working class became poorer and poorer these gentlemen of leisure grew richer and richer. That is why Oliver Jessel, head of investment giant Jessel Securities, recently awarded himself a 50 per cent increase in salary taking him up to £30,000. At the same time workers are offered a miserable 7 per cent by the Tory government, far below the increase in the cost of living.

This continuing impoverishment of the working class can only be answered in one way. The Tories must be forced to resign and a Labour government returned pledged to socialist policies, including the restoration of every single cut made in the social services and the welfare state. the Treaty of London (1913). After partition in 1941, it was incorporated in Albania (of which it is rightfully part), but restored to Yugoslavia in 1945.

It is one of the most fertile regions in the Balkans.

The annexation of KosovoMetohija has been a major cause of the animosity and distrust between Albania and Yugoslavia.

THE THEORY AND PRACTICE Ing postage.

Star Czech HEARD about the latest birthcontrol methods from 'Czechoslovakia? It's all done by astrology, with a claimed 98 per cent effectiveness.

The system relies on the position of the sun and moon at the woman's birth to predict the fertile periods during her life.

An individual reading, called a cosmogram, includes vital information to guard against miscarriages, the incidence of malformed babies and other problems of pregnancy.

The beauty of the method is, of course, that since no drugs are used, there can be no possible side effects. Except pregnancy.

There is no truth in the rumour that babies born as a result of reliance on this method are greeted at birth with the words 'Welcome to the 12th Up, up and away WRITING in the medical magazine 'AMA Update', in Dallas, Dr David G. Hubbard reported the results of tests he had made on some 40 people imprisoned for attempting to hi-jack aircraft.

It seems, according to Dr Hubbard, that the typical American hi-jacker is a man with little or no sex life, has fantasies concerning space and motion and gravity, and has a childhood history of fleeing : from a violent father to a mother who was a religious nut.

If the hi-jacker had any sex experience at all, it was probably because the woman took the initiative.

Few hi-jackers are motivated by. strong political convictions, said Hubbard, and called their flight to another country 'a replication of their childhood strategy of fleeing to the protection of one parent from a hostile Numerous other theories have been advanced as to the mental state of hi-jackers-like because of unsatisfactory sex lives are attracted shapes of the aircraft-which led one worker at Chicago's O'Hare airport to opine: 'If you ask me some of these guys just want to steal planes.'