Jimmy Reid

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Re: Jimmy Reid

Postby ionnsaigh » Mon Jan 24, 2011 3:45 pm

A couple of points... Firstly you fail to take into account the developmental nature of conversation/communication.
I make a bold statement, so bold in fact, that you probably found it incredulous. However when I substantiate my claim.. you begin to cry foul. Your about an inch away from censorship by the back door, insisting that this thread has nothing whatsoever to do with Jimmy Reid, were I would argue that the thread developed ( would you say that that was a bad thing - or do you limit the conversation of house guests ? :D

More to follow.
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Re: Jimmy Reid

Postby gizmo » Mon Jan 24, 2011 4:42 pm

ionnsaigh wrote:More to follow


Never doubted it for one minute.... :lol: :lol:
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Re: Jimmy Reid

Postby ionnsaigh » Tue Jan 25, 2011 10:42 am

The union shared an office with the WPS on Hill Street,Garnethill. Glasgow. This was essentially a printers ( Poenix Press )
I loved the name.. The office always looked like a tornado had swept through, situated in the back was a library and the computer. Matt had a top of the range printing machine, the party produced the People's Voice paper. However it could not print the membership cards, they had to be printed secretly by the Coop, not that the management knew anything about it. I recall the Herald at the time, running a story regarding Matt and his famous machine, he had applied for a government loan ( there is more than one way to skin a cat ) It's well worth pointing out that some wonderful posters were produced... During the campaign we printed many, one that made the news ,was a Wanted Dead or Alive with Jack Woods gob.. thanks Linda. Matt would work long long hours, he was fastidious, at times working through the night. One of my brothers Stephen worked with Matt. I recall a story from HMP Peterhead, Matt was a class A prisoner for Nine years out of a total of Twelve....I think. He had a job in the prison tailor shop, he soon however ran into difficulties with the Authority, or to be more precise the Authority soon ran into difficulties with him. He believed strongly that the work you produce should contain an Aesthetic value.. in much the same way as a painter stands back, and admires the finished article, he advocated that work was an extension of the individual worker, and the dominance of Quality over Quantity. Anyway they had basically ordered him to produce more at the expense of Quality, he flatly refused to compromise.
Class A prisoners are ordered to strip outside the cell each night, they sleep with the lights full on. When they had reduced his category to Class B they suddenly switch the lights off... Matt recalled that first night as being hellish, he asked for the light to be switched back on.

More to follow..... Isn't life exciting :D
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Re: Jimmy Reid

Postby ionnsaigh » Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:27 am

Well worth mentioning the Militant Tendency at this point. During this time they never had a clue how to fight the poll tax, they where torn between the apron strings of the British Labour Party, and their own wee secret society. They virtually lived a lie, a party within a party. ( Deceptive by nature ) One of them became friendly with us during the height of the Anti Apartheid Campaign in South Africa.. My wife worked part time for Asda, she had refused to unpack S. African goods in the store. That is when we got to know Boring Barry, a Millie through and through. I remember going along to one of there meetings ( not poll tax related ) there they where a bunch of student types heads down, busy scribbling away and taking notes. In the corner was a huge pile of their newspapers to be distributed after the meeting, it was nothing more than a paper boys run. The Militant ( Millie's ) had only one objective, that was dominance by political hegemony. They never wanted or cared for ordinary people, taking control of their own destiny, that is one of the reasons they were so far behind the WPS when it came to the Tax... I remember Matt saying that they had paid us great compliment by emulating our strategy, down to the last detail... apart from giving control to the man on the street of course. An important aspect of the Union's early work was going round chapping doors, meeting people face to face and asking them to form Unions, in there own areas. We had covered the whole of Maryhill. Months later Boring Barry pulled me up on the 61 bus, shouting and pointing the finger, " You have been round all the houses in Maryhill " Aye that's right so ? I could read his face like an open book, close to tears he said, " What have you done with all the money " We spent it.. " Aye but wit oan " Guns said I :wink:
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