{"article":{"id":26572,"heading":"All the reasons why ANSWER and NION are Authoritarian dictators","author":"sick of you - Afreen Hamid","created":"2003-01-18 18:49:02","modified":"2013-11-10 23:48:07","last_modified":"Mon, 11 Nov 2013 06:48:07","article":"

yeah go ahead. Say that im stupid. Whatever, but im pro-education. So when you tell me to be open minded, please know that just because im an activist that does not mean im going to support every other group that is an activist. I will see the truth no matter what, and I have seen the bullshit that this group ANSWER and NION stands for.

They bring people together under a blanket statment, and not once do they actually tell people what they stand for.

While we are it, how does ANSWER get all their money? while we are it, why don't the centralized leaders of ANSWER, IAC and Workers World not have a job? how the hell do you make your money?

Is it out of the buckets full of cash that you ask for at every one of your protests. Last Saturday I felt like I was at church, how many times can an evangelical Workers World Authoritarian Communist ask for a donation of money.

Either way time will stand to be greates test for all of you. If am wrong, I will be proven so. In the meantime I'll just sit back and watch you all treat people unfairly, become the authoritarian dictators that you are, be rude, be mean, not support anyone that might not agree with a few of your things, and try to boss, control, and overthrow any other groups that get in your way.

the blind become the bind in one easy lesson

Welcome to the official site of: Authoritarian Opportunists Who Cozy

Up To Genocidal Dictators - for Peace

(International A.O.W.C.U.T.G.D.F.P.)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please come to DC on Jan 18 to help stop Bush's unilateral war on Iraq

Every person counts --

make January 18 a massive gathering for peace

BUT FIRST learn a little about the group organizing the protest:

International A.N.S.W.E.R. is a post-9\/11 creation of the International

Action Center, one of many front groups for the Workers World Party.

The Workers World Party:

» supported the Chinese government's 1989 Tienanmen Square massacre

http:\/\/www.workers.org\/ww\/tienanmen.html<\/a>

» supports the \"socialist\" North Korean dictatorship of Kim Jong Il

http:\/\/www.workers.org\/ww\/2002\/korea0425.php<\/a>

http:\/\/www.workers.org\/ww\/2002\/korea0509.php<\/a>

» and views Iraq's Saddam Hussein as a beacon of anti-imperialist

resistance

http:\/\/www.workers.org\/ww\/2001\/iraq0125.html<\/a>



For these reasons, as well as Workers World's poor track record of

relations with other groups, some people refuse to attend A.N.S.W.E.R.

events, including the January 18 anti-war protest.

On the pro side, A.N.S.W.E.R. has proven skill at organizing massive

demonstrations. Most who attend the group's protests know nothing about

their actual political leanings and merely wish to express their

opposition to war in Iraq

And many people and groups who are repulsed by A.N.S.W.E.R.'s support

for genocidal dictators choose to attend their anti-war protests anyway,

because they feel it is so urgent to stop the Iraq war.

See, for example, Z Magazine's Q&A on the topic (A.N.S.W.E.R. is

discussed in #8):

http:\/\/www.zmag.org\/content\/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=15&ItemID=2527<\/a>)

To help you make up your mind, we've assembled links to a range of

writings on the topic - some more factual, some more polemical, from

various points on the political spectrum:

http:\/\/slash.autonomedia.org\/article.pl?sid=01\/12\/03\/1946241&mode=nocomment&<\/a>

Lengthy, detailed expose of International Action Center's politics

http:\/\/www.infoshop.org\/texts\/wwp.html<\/a>

Anarchist critique of Workers World Party

http:\/\/www.laweekly.com\/ink\/02\/50\/news-corn.php<\/a>

David Corn critique of A.N.S.W.E.R.'s October 26 D.C. anti-war march

http:\/\/www.salon.com\/politics\/feature\/2002\/10\/16\/protest\/<\/a>

Salon reporter's critique of A.N.S.W.E.R. and other far-left anti-war

groups

http:\/\/www.zmag.org\/sustainers\/content\/2002-11\/11dominick.cfm<\/a>

A critical response to Corn and other A.N.S.W.E.R. detractors

http:\/\/www.thenation.com\/doc.mhtml?i=20020513&s=featherstone<\/a>

An example of A.N.S.W.E.R.'s relations with other groups

http:\/\/www.journalofaestheticsandprotest.org\/1\/BenShepard\/index.html<\/a>

Why the A.N.S.W.E.R. style of political mobilization is inherently

disempowering

brought to you by International A.O.W.C.U.T.G.D.F.P.

<\/p>\n","contact":"","link":"","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"text\/plain","summary":"I can think for myself please","numcomment":5,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/","filesize":null,"article_url":"\/news\/2003\/01\/26572.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[{"id":26604,"heading":"Haters Beware","article":"Yes, ANSWER and NION have a problematic past, but who doesn't, including the AFL-CIO, Greenpeace, the Catholic\r\nChurch, etc.\r\n\r\nEveryone's made mistakes in the past. \r\n\r\nThese seems like petty beefs against groups that are not\r\nasking you to jump on their bandwagon, but to participate\r\nin a mass action to stop the war on Iraq.\r\n\r\nCriticism is good for the movement, but "playa-hating" is\r\npetty and divisive.\r\n\r\nJust because you attent the 18th action or any doesn't mean\r\nyou have to join the organization. You can maintain your\r\nautonomy.\r\n\r\nThis person's criticism is better suited for pathetic\r\nleft-bashers like the LA Weaklings.\r\n","author":"apache","parent_id":26572,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-01-18 21:54:42","modified":"2003-01-18 21:54:42","fileurl":""},{"id":26605,"heading":"I'm open minded too..","article":"I hear your criticism, but your choice of critics \r\n(Corn, Salon, et. al.) comes from moderates who \r\ndon't take a stand on anything after all. America\r\nhas no time for moderation anymore when the lives of\r\nUS soldiers and Iraqi civilians are at stake so think\r\nabout what you really stand for and maybe spend more\r\ntime criticising the powers that be in America rather\r\nthan those that are trying to challenge it, for whatever\r\nreason.\r\n\r\nBy the way, why don't you ask Corn about his past\r\nconnections to the CIA?\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n","author":"see your point, but","parent_id":26572,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-01-18 22:00:14","modified":"2003-01-18 22:00:14","fileurl":""},{"id":26623,"heading":"All those critics are not "moderate"","article":"the Zmag piece was written by Michael Alberts who takes plenty of positions (mostly from a left-libertarian\/anarchist perspective). Corn\/Gitlin\/Hitchens are right-wing critics but that doesn't mean that they're wrong about this.\r\n\r\nFacts: WWP\/IAC\/ANSWER support dictatorships. They're against the war on Iraq because Hussein calls himself socialist. They don't condemn his dictatorship. Ditto with Milosevic, Kim Il Jong etc.\r\n\r\nMe? I condemn and oppose the US capitalist war drive which will only hurt innocent people in Iraq. I also condemn Hussein as a dictator and if any of the Iraqi people (who are openly and completely democrats) rise up against him I say we should flood em with free food and weapons.\r\n\r\nIt's their country and their decision.\r\n\r\nANSWER are weakening the anti-war movement by hiding their politics. I'm here in SF for the march in spite of the fact that I know that they're complete kooks and that this is one of the few things I agree with them on. Gosh I even clapped and cheered Martin Sheen when really I'd like him to self-combust for being a rich capitalist.\r\n\r\nCriticize ANSWER and NION. Feel good about it. It's perfectly OK to do so and you make your opposition to the war more believable, cogent and forceful by doing it.","author":"____.....----^^^^----........______","parent_id":26572,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-01-18 23:13:36","modified":"2003-01-18 23:13:36","fileurl":""},{"id":26663,"heading":"Keep your eyes and ears open for provocateurs","article":"Funny how every time there's a well organised an effective organisation resisting imperialism, a defamation campaign begins. If one does there homework properly you will find that most of their claims are false and fabricated. We need to keep our eyes and ears open for provocateurs. If they spend a lot of time of bashing those who are serious about change then there is a lot of reason to be suspicious. One question should always be posed, whose side are you on?\r\n\r\nState agents - Get lost!\r\n\r\n","author":"johnathan","parent_id":26572,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-01-19 11:08:55","modified":"2003-01-19 11:08:55","fileurl":""},{"id":26688,"heading":"uhhh","article":"if the boat is quickly sinking, it doesn't take a "brilliant organizer" to get people into the lifeboats....","author":"uuhhh....","parent_id":26572,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-01-19 23:08:21","modified":"2003-01-19 23:08:21","fileurl":""}]}