2023 was the year when every illusion was stripped from our eyes.
In the full glare of television screens, Israel has carried out a murderous campaign of genocide and is systematically making Gaza unlivable. They have done so with the full backing of the USA who supplied the bombs and protected them at the UN.
Nobody should now believe a word about progressive American values. Talk of ‘human rights’ and ‘democracy’ disappears when there is any threat to their watchdog in the region.
The same brutal disregard for human life is evident in the conflict in Ukraine. There another thug, Putin, committed his troops to a brutal invasion to promote his great power ambitions.
The difference between Ukraine and Palestine lies not just in the hypocritical double standards of Western countries but in how a WW1 style trench conflict has become the site of a proxy war between the big imperialist blocks. The US and the EU pour money into Ukraine to ensure that the war continues until the bitter end.
Everywhere there are signs that we are living through an age of disaster. Conferences designed to halt global warming are chaired by an oil company executive. Across Europe, the old ghost of fascism is raising its ugly head. Wealthy sponsors prefer to see working people turn on migrants or trans people rather than target their anger at those responsible. This is why they sponsor them.
But what is to be done? How can those of us who live on a small island in the Atlantic effect change?
Here the vision of the great Irish socialist, James Connolly, is important. He thought that a blow struck in Ireland would have a ripple effect around the world. In a globalised age, this is even more true.
This is why People Before Profit advocates clear and concrete policies that can set an example.
We have repeatedly called for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and for Irish politicians to boycott the St Patrick’s Day celebration in the White House. We are deeply concerned that May Lou McDonald used the holiday season to announce she will be attending – we ask her to think again.
We want to bring about an Irish left government that is willing to take the fight to the rich and privileged. Rather than the countless betrayals of parties who have bowed the knee to capitalist blackmail, we want a government that mobilises a risen people.
And there is much that can be done. We can use public land for a massive programme for social and affordable homes. We can impose strict rent controls to get people out of the current rent hell. We can tell US troops they are no longer welcome in Shannon. And lots more.
But all of this requires a strong left-wing party that does not move to the centre like Sinn Féin currently is. The greater the support for People Before Profit in coming local and European elections, the more determined the signal that we are ready for real change.
Over the coming year, People Before Profit will be mounting a major challenge in local and European elections.
To do so, we need your help – in whatever way you can.
To those who are not yet members, we say: Make a new year resolution and get political. The world may be in a ‘state of chassis’ but all the more reason to act.