Class War: International Terrorist (t-shirt manufacturing) Group!

Terrorist by proxy, I guess.

Mother of God.

Tonight on A Current Affair the top story was one that seemed to suggest that there is a centralised organization called Class War that is spreading hate to the young and disaffected. Furthermore, this group had something to do with the recent Macquarie Fields riots.

Wait a sec. I'm confused. Is this the same Class War group that, as a troubled teenager, I had correspondence with? Yes, I think it is.
But wasn't that just a company that was involved in the making of merchandise, like stickers and t shirts? Yes, Pete, it was.
The same Class War merchandising company that was related to such Leftist publications as Angry People and Activate, but wasn't an organization unto itself? Yeah, man. I guess so.
Have they, post-9/11, become an 'international terror group'? I suppose so. I thought the politics and rhetoric behind the propaganda were primitive and stupid - though nothing to worry about - but I guess they could have suddenly become a...terror group. I mean, they are smart guys...right?

A bit of a coincidence that there was none of this talk of terrorism back in the day. I'm sure there are detainees suspected of terrorism who are pissed off at this comparison. "Oh come on! I studied the Koran every day of my life, built bombs and met with anti-Western terrorist leaders and THESE guys just make some t-shirts? Hey, buddy, I worked long and hard to earn the epithet 'terrorist'. Nobody can take that away from me.' "

Hmm.

Funny how you can label something as 'terrorist' these days and it is newsworthy.
I guess it just doesn't make good copy to say 'silly leftie rhetoric on t-shirts'!

Are Class War even around anymore? I thought the one or two guys who made the merch would have graduated or something by now. Maybe I'm wrong. A Current Affair seem to know.

The ACA story managed to draw these imaginary lines between the riots and Class War with disingenuous journalism like speaking about Class War merchandise over footage of the riots. There was even a strange bit where they asked some guy riding a bike if he would 'join' them, if asked. Join? What's he going to do, design stickers?

Somehow there was no discussion of the politics whcih underlie Class War. They aren't good, rationalist politics, but they are there and they do have a bearing on the propaganda. The way ACA portrayed it, these t-shirts are being made to just encorage anger to no end. That's unfair, ACA. These guys spend good minutes reading Marx (before they get bored, of course) to come up with their prints. Don't get upset just because they don't have a 'Smash the System' hoodie in your size, Ray.

Wait, isn't Class War just a phrase with a long history in unionist movements and stuff? Isn't putting it on t-shirts similar to having FCUK shirts? No, not really. More akin to having 'Jesus Saves' on a t shirt. Both are ignorant and dangerous but based around a popular ideology.
Shut up! You can't compare religion with irrational pseudo-political t-shirt manufacturing (*snigger*) terrorist groups! You're right. That was stupid.

I can't help but feel that Labelling theory may come into effect and promote a response of 'Oh, we're terorrists are we? Fine, then. We'll show you what anarchistic terror is all about'. And then he'll, you know, start printing his t-shirts, like, REALLY fast. THAT would be a terrible outcome.

Ray Martin said he scratches his head at this. So do I, Ray. So do I.

(By the way, there is a lot to this issue. The Class War shit is politically and socially inept, but it's far from terrorism. I'm in objection to its misleading depiction than their judgement of it. A sociological look at the kids who are entranced by the rhetoric,myself included in my naive years, may be useful. My experience was that nobody took it seriously, just like a pamphelteer handing out 'Save Old Growth Forest pamphlets...on paper.
Once you get into the politics behind it - anarchism - people get turned off. Either they disagreed with the politics or they just hated politics in general. For once, being uninformed was useful.
Unfortunately this publicity might actually arm them. No, not literally, you mongs. *Sigh* It is a pity I even have to say that.)