The Great Internship Scam: Free Labour Dressed Up In The Fancy Cloak Of Reciprocity

As a recent university graduate and new member of Ireland’s massive 14% + unemployed club, I have been eagerly scouring the internet looking for work. Of course this task was never going to be easy with over 400,000 others on the dole queues, but the task is not being made any easier by the government’s promotion of free labour for employers through the normalisation of internship schemes. A cursory glance over any jobs website with show that many companies are no longer hiring for real jobs and it is only internships on offer. I mean one can't blame the companies can they? If you run a for-profit business and there is free labour on offer, you would be mad not to take advantage of it.

A Comparison Between the Great Depression and the Global Crisis

The 1929 stock market crash and the subsequent ‘great depression’ was the biggest economic crisis that the world has experienced. The depth and length of the crisis and the suffering that it caused is legendary. Therefore when the global financial crisis struck in 2007, many rushed to proclaim that we were about to experience another depression on a similar scale, or at least what some have termed a ‘great recession’. This paper will compare and contrast the two economic crises to analyse the key similarities and differences between the two. To do this, the paper will firstly provide an outline of the conditions that led to the 1929 crash in the economy. Moving on from here the paper will then look at the policy responses that were implemented to tackle the crisis before analysing the conditions that precipitated the 2007 financial crisis and the policy responses, to draw out the similarities and differences of each of the crises, and to ascertain were any lessons learned during the current global crisis from the policies of the great depression era. Finally the  paper will conclude with a discussion of the main points raised by the analysis of both crises and a look at the future prospects for recovery.

Emigrate Or Flip Burgers!

“Emigrate or work in a fast food outlet.” That is the extraordinary threat made to graduate nurses by Minister for Health, Dr James Reilly. It is aimed at those who do not wish to accept the slave wages on offer under the new graduate nurse recruitment scheme. The scheme, which intends to recruit 1000 nursing graduates on 80% of the standard minimum pay, has been widely condemned by opposition politicians and nursing unions.

The Different Political Paths Of The 'Two Koreas'

This paper will begin with a brief overview of the breakup of Korea and the ensuing war before explaining the two different political systems that emerged in each state. The paper will then undertake a comparative discussion of the different regime types in North and South Korea since 1953 to provide some context to the political developments that have occurred in each state since then. Following on from this the paper will assess the literature on each state before going on to apply different regime typology theory to both cases to assess what Korean style dictatorship and democracy have meant for the citizens of North and South Korea respectively. Finally the paper will conclude with a summary of its findings and some recommendations for future policy.

Do Left Or Right Governments In Latin America Achieve Better Results For Their Citizens?

To discover if ‘left’ or ‘right’ governments achieve better results for their citizens, this article will analyse a range of data on two left-leaning governments, Venezuela and Brazil,  and two right-leaning governments, Colombia and Mexico, focussing on the timeframe from 2002 to 2010. The analysis of these governments will centre on their performance in a number of social and economic indices and will include data on gross domestic product (GDP), unemployment and inflation as well as Human Development Index (HDI) values, life expectancy, child mortality, health and education spending as well as homicide rates. 

The Media During The NATO Interventions In Kosovo And Libya

What were the dominant themes within media narratives during the UN sanctioned NATO intervention in Libya and the non-UN sanctioned NATO intervention in Kosovo? 

An analysis of print media discourses.

The recent NATO intervention into Libya had many similarities and some key differences to the NATO intervention in Kosovo in 1999.  Both interventions were justified by NATO and its allies and also in the Western media as ‘humanitarian’, as necessary to prevent a ‘genocide’ or ‘massacre’ from occurring and to remove an undemocratic dictator from power. Both interventions involved an aerial bombardment on the enemy, and the support of a non-state actor in an internal conflict. The differences lay in the fact that the NATO intervention into Libya had UN Security Council sanction, whilst the intervention into Kosovo had not received the same sanction. Since the Kosovo intervention, the concept of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) had come into being, in many ways as the direct result of the controversy of NATO’s illegal intervention into Kosovo. R2P as a growing international norm had now legitimised an intervention into Libya. 

The Truth About Tech

This is a very interesting graphic that was sent to us at We Only Want The Earth recently (Thanks Jen).  The graphic takes a closer look at the labour conditions behind our everyday tech gadgets.

Take a look and feel free to comment and tell us what you think!

Convention on the Rights of the Working Class

Convention on the Rights of the Working Class

Preamble

·         Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

·         Whereas disregard and contempt for the rights of the working class have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want of employment has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

·         Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that the rights of the working class should be protected by the rule of law,

·         Whereas the peoples of the world have reaffirmed their faith in fundamental worker’s rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

·         Now, Therefore the Communist International proclaims this CONVENTION OF THE RIGHTS OF THE WORKING CLASS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Convention constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

·         The Communist International also rejects completely capitalism and everything it stands for. We reject the idea of private property, greed and ‘free’ markets. We call on the workers of the world to rise up, throw off their chains and seize the means of production from the capitalist class, and use these means for the betterment of all men and women, not just the few.

The Arrogance And Hypocrisy Of Imperialism

As the UN Security Council meets to thrash out a resolution on Syria, it seems like the arrogance and hypocrisy of the imperialists knows no bounds. Recently there have been calls from Western powers for Syrian President Assad to step down from power, with Jay Carney, the White House spokesman saying "Assad's fall is inevitable". UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, supposed to play a neutral role in world conflict situations, even chipped in saying "he hoped the Security Council would reflect international will to get Dr Assad to quit power". It seems that the Western imperialist thirst for regime change has not been quenched by the removal and murder of Gaddafi in Libya. Yet the standards that the imperialists apply to others are never applied to themselves. Such is the nature of the world order we live under.

Does Money Equal Power In American Politics?

“The executive of the modern state is but a committee for managing the common affairs of the whole bourgeoisie” (Marx, Engels). 

The American political system is often portrayed as a model liberal democracy where anyone can have access to power and decision making through a system of representative democracy. On the surface this is completely true, with open and transparent government at the core of the American political system. In the United States, the lobbying of politicians is a central feature of the system, with lobbying seen as an industry that is a natural part of a liberal democracy. However, a deeper look at lobbying, interest groups and political action committees (PAC’s) reveal a controversial world where critics suggest that money equals power and political influence can be bought. As the above quote from Karl Marx suggests, the power of capital is the same now as it was long ago and will be the same in the future as long as democracy is twinned with the capitalist mode of production where wealth and power is concentrated in the hands of a minority.

Why Does NATO Still Exist?

The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) came into being at the end of World War II in 1949. The treaty was signed by twelve members in Washington, DC.  Although not explicit in the treaty, the alliance was a direct response to the perceived threat of the ideology and military power of the Soviet Union. The treaty was designed, in the words of NATO’s first Secretary General Lord Ismay “to keep the Americans in, the Russians out and the Germans down” (Eden 2000, p.2). The main provision of the treaty was in its Article 5 which stated;

The Role Of The Media In An illegal Imperialist War

“A massacre in one place was a fight against terrorists in another, and what was unavoidable collateral damage from one perspective was a war crime from a different angle” (Bahador 2007, p.18)

On March 24^th 1999, NATO forces launched an aerial bombing campaign on multiple targets inside the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The campaign lasted until June 11^th 1999, when an agreement was reached to allow a peacekeeping mission to enter Kosovo. NATO’s official justification for the intervention was ‘humanitarian’. It suggested Slobodan Milosevic’s troops were committing crimes against humanity by massacring ethnic Albanians in its Kosovo province. The war against Milosevic was illegal under international law, having not received a sanction for the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). Because of this, NATO fought a media war in conjunction with its aerial bombardment. NATO’s justifications for the intervention have been widely disputed, with academics such as Chomsky suggesting that the media was used as a tool to help justify what he calls ‘humanitarian imperialism’ (Chomsky 2008).

Democracy Suppressed In DCU

The farce of the DCU referendum on higher education funding descended deeper into controversy last night when the DCU Student's Union President  Ed Leamy vetoed a FEE DCU motion at Class Rep Council to have the result of the recent referendum respected as a 'democratic survey' and adopted as union policy. The action by DCU SU President Ed Leamy cast further suspicion on a process that has been tainted by a constitutional screw-up by the  referendum Electoral Committee and the Student's Union Executive.

DCU Student's Union Disrespect Democratic Result

DCU SU President Ed Leamy has just declared the result of the DCU referendum on the funding of higher education "null and void".

The option of a "fully free education system" had won the vote.

FEE DCU will campaign for the democratic will of students to be respected, and for the result to be maintained.The declaration that the result  is "null and void" shows a lack of respect for the democratic choice that students have made.

A new referendum has been called for next year. We don't want another referendum. The students democratic choice was reflected correctly after the first count. 

This is not the Lisbon Treaty. We can't re-run the vote until the people in authority get the result they desire.

Have your voice heard. Demand that the result of the first vote is respected!!

For a background to this story, see the previous post HERE

We Only Want The Earth (And Free Education for Everyone)

DCU Students Vote For Free Education For Everyone - DCU SU Call A Recount

After a mandate from DCU's Class Rep Council, a historic referendum was held in DCU this week to ask students their opinion on how higher education should be funded in Ireland. The original mandate put before the council had four options for students to vote on, but left out the option of a "fully free education system" funded through progressive taxation. During a rigorous debate, FEE DCU fought hard to have this option put on the ballot paper, however council voted to have a "less ideological" question regarding free education. Finally,  the question “Would you agree with a fully free higher level education system that is funded fully through the conventional taxation system?” was put on the ballot.

The Responsibility To Protect In Libya: The New Imperialism?

The idea of military intervention legitimised by ‘humanitarian’ ideals is nothing new. The concept of responsibility to protect (R2P) however, has risen to prominence in international relations discourse since the end of the cold war. The R2P concept has created much debate, with some seeing it as an important development that redefines state sovereignty in terms of responsibility to protect citizens rather than borders or territory. Critics however see the concept of R2P as Western liberal imperialism dressed up to cloak its true nature.  The recent United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctioned North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) military intervention into Libya, based on the concept of R2P, has reignited this debate.

New Blog Posts Coming Soon...

Apologies about the lack of blog posts lately, I have been on an extended break from writing and political activity. I was re-charging the batteries! I will have some stuff to write from next week on once I get back into student politics, and back into the cut and thrust of political activity. Keep an eye out for what's new on the blog!

Stand Up, Get Up - UK Riots 2011

This is a song that I wrote and recorded in early 2010. I have not had the opportunity to create a video for the track until now (due to my lack of knowledge of Windows Movie Maker), but the recent riots in the UK provided me with the video footage, and the inspiration to match the song to the video. This is the end product. If you like the song or the video, feel free to share it on!

Speeches From The ULA Forum (Part 2)

The recent United Left Alliance forum in Liberty Hall (25/6/2011) was the first real opportunity for the different factions within it to debate a possible future programme that the ULA should adopt. Following on from my previous post containing videos of the first plenary session, below are the main speeches from the debate from the floor on the first plenary session "The left response to the crisis" and the speeches from the second plenary session of the day from Seamus Healy, Declan Bree, Richard Boyd Barrett and Joe Higgins.

The Labour Party: A Party Of Lies And Broken Promises

A recent Facebook rant  made from the profile of Labour Youth (Dublin South-West) on a ULA event page caused a bit of embarrassment to the national leadership of that organisation, who moved quickly to have the comments removed and went on to issue an apology on their national Facebook page. A young man named Sean Glennon also went onto the national Facebook page to say it was he who had posted the comments, and that he was not a member of Labour youth and did not agree with their values and policies.

However, since then it has emerged that the young man who posted the comments was in fact a prominent Labour Youth member, and was an administrator on their Facebook page. While the comments could be passed off as juvenile naivety, I believe that the whole debacle provides a deeper and more disturbing insight into the policies of the current Labour Party in Ireland.