Comrades, Roll up your Sleeves!

By Bruce Wallace

There is a nationwide stampede to get the covid jag. Critical voices are routinely blocked by fact checkers on the net. Any criticism is denounced as being from anti-vax conspiracy theorists. Those who opposing mass vaccination or show vaccine hesitancy are abused for being selfish or dangerous. The government are pushing forward with the idea of a vaccination passport, after months of denying they intended to introduce one. The pro-vaccine propaganda is reaching a crescendo.

I wondered what the response would be from the revolutionary left, so I went to google and came across an article from January 2021 in the paper of the Socialist Party (SP) by Josh Asker, Socialist Party National Committee, entitled Vaccine confidence – a worker’s response [1]

The short article kicks off:

“A successful vaccination programme, if effectively delivered, gives millions of people hope of an easing of Covid-19 restrictions over the course of 2021.

It is in the interests of everyone, especially those with health vulnerabilities, for the vast majority of the population to be vaccinated.

But with trust in politicians, the media and all elements of the capitalist establishment at an all-time low, there is hesitancy among some layers of the population to take the vaccine. There’s also suspicion that big pharmaceutical corporations are exploiting the pandemic for profit.”

Surely not? Who could imagine that big pharma would exploit the lockdown and the pandemic hysteria to make a killing … literally? Obviously the SP doesn’t think so as it’s in the interests of ‘everyone’ to take the snake oil.

In fact, on social media, SP members have been in raptures about the vaccine. One member posted on FB: ‘I’ve got my appointment to get the covid vaccine. That’s made my week!’

A leading party member responded: ‘Great news!’

One could suggest that the SP has just been swept along by the manufactured pandemic mass hysteria, despite the fact that the risk posed to those under 65 is very similar to seasonal flu and the average age of death has just increased to 84 (two years more than average life expectancy).

That the article came from an National Committee member would suggest that an internal decision had been made that the SP backed mass vaccination for SARS-CoV-2.

Big Pharma

Yet in November 2020 there was a much more critical article in The Socialist from a health worker and UNITE member Jon Dale: Covid, vaccines, ‘big pharma’ – and the need for socialism. [2]

This article noted the 2010 narcolepsy scandal related to the administering of a vaccine for Swine Flu. The Swine Flu epidemic turned out to be a manufactured medical fraud yet thousands were injured by a totally pointless vaccine. [3]

The article put forward a solid position on vaccine safety:

‘As socialists, we demand that all trial designs and results are open to public scrutiny. There should be independent evaluation of the safety and effectiveness of all new vaccines and medicines under trade union supervision. Trade unions such as UCU, Prospect, Unite, and the BMA, the medical professional body (and their international equivalents), have members with the necessary expertise. This would expose any corner-cutting by profit-making pharmaceutical corporations.

Anyone developing a serious side effect from a vaccine should be compensated for full loss of earnings, any care needed and any other loss they suffer – for life if necessary.’

Asker’s recent article reiterates this point briefly, but as anybody should know none of this has, or is likely to, happen. Quite the reverse. The so-called vaccines have been rushed through development. There have been no animal trials. From around the world disturbing reports are coming in of widespread adverse reactions and serious injury including death from mass vaccination. These reports are legion from Norway [4], the USA [5], Greece [6] and Israel [7]. I could go on but the negative results of this unprecedented mass medical experiment are being drowned by a sea of pro-vax propaganda.

If people think that Big Pharma are attempting to profiteer from vaccine production, Dale is very clear:

“According to David Mitchell, founder of the US campaign group Patients for Affordable Drugs, companies such as US-based Moderna are having all their costs covered by the government.

‘That means anything over the cost of goods is pure gravy for these companies,’ he said. ‘Their oft-made claim that they need to charge high prices because of the risks that are involved in developing new drugs is no longer valid.’

‘We’re socialising all the risk and privatising all the profit,’ he added.”

The US government has already hugely funded big Pharma during the pandemic:

• AstraZeneca/Oxford University $1.7 billion+
• Johnson&Johnson/Biological E $1.5 billion
• Pfizer/BioNTech $2.5 billion
• GlaxoSmithKline/Sanofi Pasteur $2.1 billion
• Novavax/Serum Institute of India $2 billion-
• Moderna/Lonza $2.48 billion

A similar process is occurring in the UK. I wonder where all of this suspicion of Big Pharma profiteering is coming from? Probably from members of the Socialist Party itself. Anybody who raises criticism of the vaccination campaign internally are denounced as anti-vaxxers.

When government waives manufacturers liability for vaccine injury [8], limits compensation, aggressively coerces uptake for a new technology that’s still in clinical trials and ignores safe alternatives, people are right to be super cautious. Workers organisations need to doubly cautious, but not the vanguard of the proletariat the Socialist Party.

Truth be told the Socialist Party has totally capitulated to the bio-security state. It buys the whole nine yards of social distancing, masking and the lockdown. It swallows without a hint of criticism all the phony bull of the plague narrative.

A Disgrace

Martin Powell-Davies, an SP member, is running to be National Education Union (NEU) Deputy General Secretary. He is campaigning against the early reopening of schools, citing the warnings of the gurus of SAGE. On his website, Martin Powell-Davies-teacher-trade unionist-socialist [9], he calls for blended faux learning, social distancing of pupils and wearing of masks in all classes for all school students, primary and secondary! Basically he supports the psychological abuse of children who are at essentially zero risk from covid. Quite frankly he is a disgrace! A disgrace to teaching, trade unionism and socialism.

Comrades, don’t be downhearted as we can still take the struggle to the bosses, says The Socialist, via an online workers’ rally [10].

In between, pop down to the vax centre and roll up your sleeves. It’s in the interests of everyone, workers and bosses.

I wonder what the Swappies are saying?

References

[1] Socialist Party :: Vaccine confidence – a worker’s response

[2] Socialist Party :: Covid, vaccines, ‘big pharma’ – and the need for socialism

[3] Swine flu “false pandemic” seems to be biggest pharma-fraud of century — RT World News

[4] 23 die in Norway after receiving Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine (nypost.com)

[5] At least 271 deaths, 9,845 adverse events after COVID vaccination so far: CDC data | News | LifeSite (lifesitenews.com)

[6] https://sputniknews.com/europe/202102231082161385-greek-vaccination-committee-confirms-5-cases-of-severe-side-effects-from-covid-19-shot/

[7] Deaths reported after taking COVID vaccine – Israel National News

[8] Coronavirus vaccine: Pfizer given protection from legal action by UK government | The Independent

[9] Martin Powell-Davies – teacher, trade unionist and socialist: A new ‘5 Tests’ to avoid an unsafe, unprepared, premature school opening (mpdnut.com)

[10] Socialist Party :: Online workers’ rally: Taking fight to the bosses