(the G8 Conference in
I went up to
Finally got to
A couple of
people put my little tent up: a guy and girl from the P&P head-quarters in
I had learnt that
there was to be an action the next day at Gleneagles (for whoever could get
there), so there wouldn’t be many people on site for workshops… They had reduced the amount of trains to and
from Gleneagles station, thus making it really difficult for people who had to
rely on public trans.
So, apparently, people had started off WALKING from as early as 3 that
afternoon!
“Fuck It!” I
thought. I figured this sort of thing
would happen, in terms of trying to put on a workshop, just because there was
so much going on… Having said that, I
was happy at hearing about people’s determination in making their voice heard
at Gleneagles, despite the control factor of the “powers that be!”
The thing that
really put me out and pissed me off was to later find out that there was a
kid’s protest going on that next day, with clowns, face-painting and the lot;
i.e. when one of the kids had asked the police if they could pass through the
barrier for Gleneagles and they said “no”
So, they just
anchored down in the street, blocking it off with a double-decker bus and had
one big kid’s party… Jasper would have
really enjoyed that. Well, of course we
missed that, having just gotten there late the night before… So we stayed on site the next day. It was sunny, but with little for Jasper to
do, since the kids had gone to the protest…
That evening,
news was coming in of the protest at Gleneagles, how it went or didn’t go… A lot of people said it was really enjoyable
and with little hassle, others couldn’t get close, and spent a frustrating day,
but still thought it was productive and worth it...
In the meantime,
I chased my tail, trying to chase Jasper, while people mumbled (who knows what)
in their own corners… I put him to bed
totally exhausted and drained of energy Wednesday night. I fell asleep, yet at about half 2 in the
morning, woke up to the still party-like sounds of the main fire and other
parts of the site; which were filled with male-driven testosterone/inability to
handle drink-outbursts. They echoed
throughout the night air and tinged the peaceful/steady environment of the
camp! I noted at the fire at that time
of the morning, that the sky was still a faint glow with light, due to being so
far north; no one thought they had seen it actually get totally pitch-black
while we were there.
I went to bed
after shooting the shit with some young student-types, taking the piss out of
this guy because he couldn’t remember my name, after I had told him about 3
times; so when he asked again, I told him my name was sunshine… He wasn’t having it though!
At about 7.00
that morning, the sun was blazing and I woke up, not having slept much, hyped
up and ready for the “stop AIDS/trade justice” rallies that day. I dressed in black, diligently to signify
mourning for the millions dying of AIDS/starvation in
I was in two minds
as to whether to stay on site and enjoy the gorgeous outdoor sunshine,
or fucking go home, having participated in fuck-all, yet releasing my energy
and will among the people we were with… I
resolved to go home and got back to Wales (my quiet spot in Wales) after
hearing about the terrorist bombings in London, while passing through Edinburgh
station, figuring out which way I could come home the simplest and most direct
of routes…
Got back
exhausted, overwhelmed and everything in between Thursday night… I had all the things humming in my head like:
Man, this is
really a democracy in decline i.e. the erosion of the right to protest,
exercise our own opinions, yield people-power to the
ones who we’ve put in power in the first place!!!!
They have taken
away our civil liberties (as a democratised nation) by deliberately shielding
the leaders making all the decisions for us, from what people really think and
not letting us have a voice…
Yet, they can’t
drown out the voice of determination, of clued-up westerners to what’s
happening in Africa, Iraq and elsewhere in the world, while they have a (business as usual) conference in a rich
man’s playground; as people are suffering, both in the industrialised world and
the developing world…
The End Result
Okay, so they
agreed to chuck more millions at the plight of African nations. They decided to cancel the debt in several
countries and possibly (amazingly generously) give people with HIV/AIDS, access
to treatment that might just prolong their lives; Not necessarily allowing those impoverished
countries to build their own economies, in the interest of their own people and
culture… As far as climate
change/trade-justice, huh, it was just as we feared it might be; a watered-down
song-&-dance (for Bush’s benefit)!
This stuff is too
frustrating to put into words! The
complexities of the summit have been eclipsed by yet another reason for “the
state!” to put into place, ID cards, more heavy-handed surveillance and
strangling laws to choke away our rights to protest, voice our opposition and
even suggest alternatives to what the great state/leaders are proposing!!!
So, for the ones
with a little insight, for those of us who know what al-Qaeda are trying to
convey in their desperate extremist mind-set; well, all they are doing (for our
society) is making it more controlling/less democratic… If they want the
Maybe the
terrorists are trying to erode our democracy in the way that there regimes are
and continuing to strangle them and oppress them.
If that’s the
case, then they’re doing it in such a bloody clever way…
All we see here
is more and more secrecy, coercion and less transparency by the day…
Oh, and why do
they like Bob Geldof?,
because he paints the rosy picture they want people to see.
He doesn’t make
waves; he comes up with money-making (big money-making ventures) to fill in the
gaps that they can’t…
Hey, but at least he’s human and well aware of
what he’s doing, as well as the outcome of the “big efforts” put forth…
Click here to return to Dawn’s
Rants