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WAKE UP! WAKE UP! IS YER CHROMOSOME DAMAGED?

Issue 230, Friday 1st October 1999

NO WOMB FOR MISTAKE

"Soon it will be a sin of parents to have a child that carries the heavy burden of genetic disease. We are entering a world where we need to consider the quality of our children"
- Robert Edwards, eugenicist

A conference of the Galton Institute, formerly known as the Eugenics Society, was rudely interrupted two weeks ago by protesters concerned at the rascist and genocidal tendencies of the Institute's members.

Actvists from People Against Eugenics stormed the lecture hall and demanded that the conference be abandoned. As they emerged, ruffled, outside, one protester was reported to have said; " ever notice how eugenicists always look genetically least diverse? " The somewhat disgruntled chairman, Dr John Timson called the protestors "fascists preventing us speaking and I hope none of them are British because I'd hate to have to share a nationality with them" . Funny of him to complain of 'fascism', when eugenics is basically a strand of fascist thought, manifested in science. Particularly unsavoury examples of the noble science include the Nazi holocaust, in which 6 million Jews were murdered, plus thousands of gypsies, homosexuals and others labelled 'inferior'. Or how about the Swedish government's eugenics experiments which lasted 40 years and led to at least 62,000 people being sterilised to prevent genetic 'defects' from being passed on. They operated on people of mixed race, low intelligence and the physically defective, as well as people classed as rebellious, promiscuous or simply people whose views conflicted with those of the state. As Aldous Huxley said, eugenics can be used to control those with "dangerous thoughts about the social system " who " infect others with their discontent." So watch it.

SchNEWS wasn't surprised to hear that Prof Glayde 'Pretty Boy' Whitney, a speaker at the conference (whose genetically pure good looks are sought after by fashion-conscious parents everywhere), wrote the foreward to a book by David Duke, former leader of the Ku Klux Klan. When questioned about this link, Whitney denied he is racist but said, " Duke is the only American politician who is prepared to face the issues: genetics, race and crime ". The link between race and crime was further illuminated at the conference by another stunningly clever and open minded specimen of the master race, Prof Richard 'Einstein' Lynn: " blacks have a lower IQ than whites and part of the reason for this is genetic." He has also said, " blacks have high levels of testosterone that makes males aggressive and this probably contributes to their high crime rate ".

You may laugh at such blatantly racist crap, but these people have a disturbing amount of respect and influence. In '57 the Eugenics Society decided to branch out into 'crypto-eugenics', working through other organisations to achieve eugenic goals. The Society set up the International Planned Parenthood Federation, now the major world birth/population control agency. The Family Planning Association is it's UK affiliate. Meanwhile, another participant of the conference, Cedric Carter, stressed that efforts should be made to encourage " the most ignorant " and " least gifted groups" in society to use family planning. Sound familiar?

Theories that this dissatisfaction with the rest of humanity and urge to 'cleanse' those around them are themselves products of an undesirable rogue gene, remain unproven. But it seems that eugenecists may have found a back-door route to public acceptance, through the old chestnut of parental concern. Every parent wants the best for their child - if that means selecting the sex, IQ and physical characteristics of your baby, is that so bad? The tricky thing is drawing the ethical boundary: where 'choice' slips into an abuse of human rights.

Eugenecists most disturbing success to date has been the attempt to eliminate disability by the (typically compassionate) approach of eliminating the disabled. While it is not yet possible to select the best overall genetic makeup for your child, individual eugenics is being practised on the disabled. The only way to 'prevent' Down's syndrome, for example, is to prevent people with Down's from being born. Under pressure from doctors 90% of women abort their Down's syndrome babies. The success of the pre-natal testing program is measured not in terms of information given to mothers but rather in terms of the number of children with handicaps who are not born.

Plastic surgery was originally developed to enhance peoples' health, but the consumer market soon grasped the commercial possibilities and it is now used mostly for cosmetic purposes. The same thing may well happen with 'individual eugenics,' creating a new dimension of consumerism with the public being bombarded with incentives to buy the best genetic modifications on the market for their foetus. Of course, only those with enough cash would be able to afford such advantages which would compound the rich-poor divide. SchNEWS has been unable to confirm that the gene for right-wing stupidity has been identified, but there is hope that rich parents will be able to ensure that their designer babies don't grow up to be eugenicists.

Unfortunately, eugenics is unlikely to be put to such good uses: all experiments with eugenics and sterilisation so far have been focused on poor minorities and those who might present a threat to the state. That means activists would be in the firing line, road protesters would definately be given the snip and as for the SchNEWS crew.....we just hope those bastards never find out where we live.

For more on eugenics and genetic engineering, check Genethics News PO Box 6313, London N16 0DY Email: genethicsnews@compuserve.com Web: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/genethicsnews/

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CLASS WAR

In Montreal, students have been protesting over the lack of extra-curricular activities - because teachers are on a work-to-rule. More than 1,000 students walked out of classes last week and their "disorganized" demonstration, is getting the cops all hot under the collar. "We cannot tolerate this spontaneous action" bemoaned one officer "It's important to note that these demonstrations are spontaneous and disorganized, and this worries us. We want school directors to take responsibility, and to tell the students to stay in their classrooms. What they are doing poses a danger for themselves, drivers and for pedestrians.

This week 270 pupils aged from 12 to 15 were arrested by riot cops for disorderly conduct.

• In the same city, university students demonstrating and asking for budget surpluses to be spent on education, attacked the Montreal stock market. "The stock exchange is a symbol of capitalism and the business class who ask the government to make cuts," said one studenbt. 18 people were arrested.

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MEANWHILE IN BRITAIN.....

Kick off the student protest season in Oxford! Demo against tuition fees at 2pm Sun 10th October, at Balliol College. For transport, or for the new Campaign for Free Education campaign pack Contact CFE at PO Box 22615, London N4 1WT. Tel: 0958 556 756 http://members.xoom.com/nus_cfe/main.htm

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HORSING AROUND

The City of London mounted police branch was facing closure, but thankfully a generous bank has stepped forward to save it. HSBC holdings will 'sponsor' the pigs on horses, in return for getting its logo on the horseboxes and saddlecloths worn on ceremonial occasions. The 126 year old horse unit will now be free to ponce around the Square Mile looking like tits and trample protestors again, until their new corporate masters decide that rozzers on horseback are totally fucking useless and pull the plug...or untill the Met takes over the whole incompetent force.A police spokesperson commented "Hong Kong & Shanghai Corp's financial package will provide the glue to keep the service running & cost-effective while we stick to beating crime and people we don't like."

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BANG, BANG YOU'RE NICKED

Earth First! activists Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney have finally been allowed to begin their lawsuit against the FBI and the Oakland Police Department (OPD) for false arrest, illegal search and seizure and wrongfully associating EF! with violent action. On May 24th 1990 a motion triggered pipe bomb exploded underneath Judi Bari's car seat as she drove through Oakland disabling her until she died in 1997. So when Oakland's finest showed up, they promptly arrested her for carrying a bomb! The Appeals Court now recognises that the FBI, who had the activists under surveillance, wrongfully claimed the bomb had been in view in the back seat (ie they were carrying a detonated motion-detecting bomb in a car... not recommended!) and that the blast hole was directly under the drivers seat. The court ruled that the police did "inhibit Bari and Cherney's First Amendment activities, and that they entered a conspiracy to further this goal." This included lying to the media, monitoring EF! prior to the bombing, and acting "in close co-operation with [FBI] conspirators'" while obtaining search warrants for their homes. The FBI knew about death threats towards Judi Bari, a non-violent campaigner against notoriously aggressive logging companies in the Redwoods, yet she was arrested for the bomb that was meant to kill her. Contact: Redwood Summer Justice Project, Tanya Brannan (707) 887-0262, http://www.monitor.???/

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SCHNEWS IN BRIEF

• Do or Die Issue 8 is not so much a zine as a phone directory sized eco-action journal stuffed with in-depth articles and analysis on the June 18 ^th demonstrations, bio-diversity, pirates, beavers (not that kind!), football...plus extensive reviews and contacts. Essential reading. £5 (in UK), £6 (else where). c/o 6 Tilbury Place, Brighton, E.Sussex, BN2 2GY

• Remember the 30's ? Us neither - but after reading our history we do know that unemployed workers were at the forefront of direct action against capital and the starvation it caused. Find out more and see what we can learn from earlier struggles. Brighton Against Benefit Cuts video and discussion - 5pm, Sun 10 Oct at the Unemployed Workers Centre, 4 Crestway Parade, Hollingdean, 01273 540 717 And a date for yer diary: Friday 10 December is gonna be an international day of action against workfare and other such nasty measures.

• Remember that big bit of land next to Brighton Station? Well, Sainsbury's are still trying to turn it into a megastore, and Brighton Urban Design & Development are still trying to stop em, and get the site used usefully. BUDD are holding a meeting to discuss the plans at 7:30, Oct 7 at St Peter's Hall, London Road. The next day, the community (that's us) are going be consulted about the plans at a "Community Planning Event", so it's important to sort out what we want first..

• After a battering from the cops the week before, Stockholm Reclaim the City held a demo against police violence last Saturday. Media presence was enormous and policing minimal. Chanting "No Police on Our Streets", over 1500 people marched to the scene of the previous week's events. Many bystanders joined the demonstration or showed support. The day ended peacefully with a party of over 2000 people.

• End the fur trade by 2000 - if you can spare an hour or several to join the intensive midweek and Sat demos outside London's remaining fur shops. Fur picket tel 0786 762 7491 or London Animal Action Office 0171 278 3068

• Brighton and Hove World Development Movement group is staging a public debate on " Can GM crops feed the Third World ?" Hove Town Hall 6th October 7.30pm.

• There's a Save The Shamrock Monkeys march and rally in Horsham Park (near the Park Recreation Centre) on Sat 9 ^th Oct 12 noon Tel 07020 936956. There's also a phone and fax campaign aimed at the monkey prison Tel 01903 879191/fax 01903 812532

• Plain Wordz is an 'anti authoritarian pro working class' independent distributor of books, leaflets, etc. For a catalogue send an SAE to PO Box 381, Huddersfield, HD1 3XX

• Congrats to the The Shoreham Protestor newsletter 100 issues old. The fortnightly animal rights newsletter is available for 30p + SAE 7 Stoneham Rd., Hove, BN3 5HJ

• Keep The Tube Public are having a free festival in Trafalgar Square on Sat.9th October 12 noon - 4 pm More details about the campaign Tel: 0181 981 8065, or http://www.catp.infomen.co.uk/

• Hockley road protest camp in Essex needs more people - and they're having an open day. Prospective parents come along Oct 2nd or 9th. Tel: 0831 717 815.

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SCHNEWS QUIZ

• Q.What do British Nuclear Fuels Limited, British Association of Shooting and Conserveration, British Bankers Association, Countryside Alliance, Lockheed Martin, Nestle, Quarry Products, Society of British Aerospace Companies ('as the aerospace industry national trade association the society has a powerful policy making influence in the politicial arena') and Bell Pottinger (Monsanto's PR company) et al have in common?
• A.They're all employing ex Tories, now going clothcap in hand begging for govt shekels at the new-stylee Labour Party Conference this week.

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SCHNEWS GETS SERIOUS - J18 WARNING

Photos of 170 people police want to arrest for the June 18th City of London demonstrations have been circulated to 42 police forces around the country. As a result people have already been arrested. Some of those nicked have been shown photos of themselves on the day and thought it best to admit the picture was of them, if this happens to you refuse to identify yourself. It is the responsibility of the police to prove it's you and not somebody who looks similar. If you are arrested contact a solicitor (Moss and Co 0171 240 6350 or Bindmans 0171 833 444). If you think the police may be interested in you get rid of clothing you wore on the day, change your appearance, possibly leave the country for a while. Otherwise keep a low profile. If you have photos of the day burn them. City police are sending squads to demos to identify and arrest people. Do not go if you think you may be wanted for something serious. Good Luck!

• Onofrio LoVerso, an Italian, received a 12 month sentence for violent disorder at J18 on 29/9/99. He is currently being held at: TC 3014, HMP-YOI, Remand centre, Bedfont Rd Feltham Middlesex, TW13 4ND.

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NEW IN TOWN?

Like to get politically active?(or at least sit in an office eating biscuits talking about the revolution) Then why not come along to the

SCHNEWS STUDENT TRAINING DAY

WEDNESDAY 4th OCTOBER 12 noon

ring the office on 01273 685913 to book your place now

sponsored by Biscuit Liberation Front

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AND FINALLY

Book of the New Deal Testament:

And the messiah spake: "The Class War is dead". And his flock waved and cheered.

But maybe, O Great One, you should tell that to:

• Hotel, bar and conference staff. Non unionised, low payed workers some not even getting the minimum wage, hardly acknowledged by the delegates who are obviously too busy to whisper a hello or thank-you.
• 16,000 class-less members of the Countryside Alliance (and some fascists spotted in the crowd for good measure) whose Horse and Hounds placards screamed that they have the right to kill foxes. 15,000 police (!) from seven forces* keep them and the 400 anti-hunt supporters apart. But guess which way the bank of surveillance cameras are pointing?
• The landowners who are furious over the creation of two new National Parks, or that class-free organisation, the Scottish Landowners Federation, who are doing their nut over plans to give people greater access to land and a right to buy for local communities when estates are put on sale. The Fed, which represents 3,500 landowners, said it could cost up to £20m annually to provide 'infrastructure, maintenance and public education' needed to ensure the "well managed" rights of access urged in the bill.

Yes, the class war is dead. We are all equal. Citizens. Together. As one. Party and nation joined in the same cause for the same purpose: to set our people free. (Or at least free to be forced to do crap McDead end jobs on the New Deal).

* Gosh, how much does that many cops cost? Doesn't matter because... under the provisions of the Criminal Justice Act, there is no ceiling on police costs at party conferences. So that's alright then.

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DISCLAIMER

SchNEWS warns all readears that there's nothing like an early morning dip in the gene pool. Honest.

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