Number Nine, Number Nine...

//Editorial from REVOLUTION[de] #9 //German original

The ninth issue of REVO. Revolution Number Nine.

That's the name of a song by the Beatles on the White Album from 1968. Not so much a song as a sound collage: disconnected bits of conversations, chants and protest songs. Background noise of a profound change in society. And the whole time a professor's voice announces: "Number Nine, Number Nine, Number Nine."

In the more than eight minutes, only one complete sentence can be deciphered: "Take this, brother, may it serve you well."

What does he mean? A gun? A bomb? Perhaps something much more important: a small political newspaper. If we want to carry out a revolution, we need clear ideas about the road and the goal.

So take this paper, brother/sister, may it serve you well!

Because in the year 2005 we can expect all kinds of struggles. The occupation of Iraq, which has already killed 100,000 Iraqis, continues. Daily the resistance grows in Iraq and in the US itself. In Germany we can show George Bush our opposition personally on February 23rd.

The Tsunami in the Indian Ocean shows how dangerous life in global capitalism can be. Hundreds of thousands of people died, because in this system early warning systems are build for military bases, but not for large cities. But no problem, the governments of the West are donating lots of money - the same amount they spend on the Iraq War every two days!

Hartz IV is now the law of the land - poverty wages and forced labour are a reality for hundreds of thousands. And the protests are immediate: there were the monday demonstrations and the national demonstation on October 2nd. (And the amazing Santa-Claus-Action by REVO). "Close down the employment agency" was on January 3rd and January 9th is the Liebknecht-Luxemburg-Demonstration. Then we have the protests against the NATO summit on February 12th, the European demonstration against the EU on March 19th, May Day 2005, etc.

We can make sure that the "order and safety" with which our rules want to plunder the entire world becomes unsafe.

As Rosa Luxemburg wrote 86 years ago:

"Order prevails in Berlin!" You foolish lackeys! Your "order" is built on sand. Tomorrow the revolution will rise up again, clashing its weapons, and to your horror it will proclaim with trumpets blazing: I was, I am, I shall be!

Berlin, January 7th, 2005