The sun shone as the bus loads flowed in from around the country, as London townspeople streamed into speakers corner for a pleasant but subversive stroll around town. The Sambatistas raised the temperature by degrees: burning and simmering all day in the warm sun; powerfully claiming space for the carnival of dissent that flowed passed the US embassy and snaked its way to Trafalgar Square - dancing and drumming, moving in the rivers and rhythms of resistance.

Thanks again cops for providing them with a protective escort. But hey, lets see a bit of samba in your marching step next time - loosen up. OK the Met don't train you in dance, but I hear Charlie Clarke wants to train you to do the goose step- that would be a laugh!

There were many who couldn't find the time to attend the March 19 demonstration, yesterday, because of elections, building for G8 and scores of other political activities will hopefully be free for the Gleneagles G8 festivities.

Organizing the national public workers strike action for next Wednesday was one activity that kept some away - although it may be called off now because John Prescott has promised to withdrawer the governments Robert Maxwell-like robbery on public workers' pensions. If they do, its a timely victory for union power which should boost Trade Union confidence for battles to come.

Inevitably, Newish Labour will come back after their general election victory and try pull the “Maxwell“ again, because they have squandered vast collective wealth on the rich, private commercial and industrial policy, and a plethora of unnecessary projects, and need to make the less well off pay for it - just like the Robber baron Maxell.

Gordon Brown has blown mountains of cash on: illegal wars; bogus wars on mythical terrorists; policing demos and dissenters; subsidising the arms trade; making a mess of Africa, Columbia, the Middle East and other countries, in league with the USA; GCHQ Cheltenham the global eavesdropper; the Eurofighter and other needless military procurements; locking up asylum seekers and refugees; privatising the NHS; PFI; cuts in corporation tax for big business; cuts in tax for the rich,; subsidising the big agro-industrial to the detriment of small farmers; trebling MI5 and MI6's budget; MP's salaries and pensions; subsiding the bloated pensions of the fat cats; huge salaries for local government and NHS executives; unnecessary roads; 1 billion on a Dome for Tony Bullshiter Blair‘s new years eve party; 2 million last week in Derby to police some street theatre; many billions on management consultants to advice the government on privatizing everything; many billions to the private sector to manage the London Underground and the railways; many billions for the private sector to develop useless over expensive government computer systems; huge sums on propaganda for Newish Labours re-election campaign which has been ongoing since 1996 known as the "permanent election campaign" led by Alistair Campbell... and so on

And making it personal - because it is as well - the large sums wasted on: barking mad Alistair Campbell; right Charlie Clarke’s huge Lunch expenses and inflating his big pompous head; Tony Bullshiter Blair’s and Alan Milburn’s hairdressers; Prescott’s several homes and cars; Blunket’s huge power-crazed ego and mistresses; Jack Straw’s travel expenses and his doll and toy soldier collection.

What a shower of pathetic individuals. They are just Tories without the hundred years experience of hiding their personalities behind front, bluff and a stiff upper lip - nouveaux Tories.

The economy is heading for the skids, and guess who will have to pay: the poor in reduced pensions, wages, benefits, and poorer working condition through the planned completion of the neo-liberal privatisation project. Yet, the rich will further benefit. Look at the sums again Gordon, the economy is going down the tubes, unless you can get the poor to pay for it.

As teacher and union officer from Coventry, Jane Nellist, said on the demo: "Don't say we didn't warn you Gordon." And neither would the Tories or Liberals do anything different to avert the very probable economic disaster from which the poorer will mostly suffer.

This battle in the mainstream is against Newish Labour, the Tories, and the Liberals, because what only differentiates them are their rhetorical nuances and spin.

So if the likes of Cllr. Dave Nellist in Coventry (too busy fighting the cuts in Coventry and trying to get his general election campaign moving to attend the march), and George Galloway in London, get a good result it would be a blow against Newish Labour, and to an extent the Liberals and Tories.

The new boy on the electoral block, ex-MI5 jailed dissenter David Shayler - who was on the march - deserves a mention because he is looking for support to stand in his homeland, against in Tony Bullshit Liar's Sedgefield constituency - he‘s hoping to do a Martin Bell in a white suite caper. Fair play to David - the big, vain, bullshiter actor-prime-minister, himself, might at least lose a few more of his dyed hairs, and a few thousand votes, if not his seat in parliament.

If all three of them were to win the revolutionary period would be getting up to full speed. Soon we'd all be down the Social Centre, social club, pub, cafe, church, temple, mosque or synagogue for a celebration of the beginning collective history, real history, and not the history of self-aggrandizing psychotic emperors, kings, queens, prime ministers and presidents playing perversely evil power games.


Back to more prosaic matters: In Coventry - a traditional test bed for new ideas and government measures - we have to fight the imposed huge reduction in Council wages for which industrial action is being imminently balloted. This will be rolled out nationally if they get away with it. It's part of cutting costs in local authorities nationally, before all local services are privatized and the poorer are further ripped off and abused.

If the Chief executive of Coventry Council does not back down, we could do with some support from further a field to support our defense against the attacks of these neo-liberal stooges. Details to follow sometime.

So, all the creative displays of dissent and protest, the tanks, the coffins, the music, the inventive banners - not to mention all the material that was passed around and out to the on lookers made it a very successful yesterday.

I only heard two speeches: one from an older but no less highly potent unrelenting firebrand Tariq Ali, and the passionate words of Shami Chakrabarti of Liberty.

Looking to tomorrow, the G8 meeting in July should make this a hot summer of dissent, and maybe give biggest festival of dissent this country has ever witnessed. Lets hope as many as possible can all find time to get up there.

The London anti-war demo has been a good warm up for what lies ahead, it will require more than the sambastistas, alone, to hot up the G8 in Gleneagles.


Fight for peace, equality freedom and true justice.

Ant-G8 Network: www.dissent.org.uk