Monday, September 21, 2015

海倫•凱勒:我為何加入世界產業工人

海倫•凱勒:我為何加入世界產業工人

27/06/2015 - 3:39pm
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今日是海倫•凱勒135歲冥壽。世界產業工人(Industrial Workers of the World)香港分部翻譯她近一百年前接受的一個訪問,揭示偉人傳記不會告訴你的海倫•凱勒支持工人運動的另一面。
 

海倫•凱勒何許人也?教科書和學校告訴我們:她是一位克服了失明及失聰的障礙,努力自學、奮發向上的作家、教育家。
但他們沒有告訴我們的是,海倫•凱勒自稱為革命派社會主義者,亦是美國史上最激進工會組織 IWW (Industrial Workers of the World,「世界產業工人」)的活躍成員。
正如愛因斯坦「只能」是一位物理學家,托爾斯泰、巴金「只能」是小說家。他們不會告訴我們,這些科學家、作家同時也是社會主義者、無政府主義者。
6月27日是海倫•凱勒的生日,我們節譯了一篇99年前關於海倫•凱勒同志及IWW的訪問,希望與中文世界的朋友們分享。

海倫•凱勒:我為何加入了IWW
(Barbara Bindley為《紐約論壇報》所作之訪問,刊於1916年1月15日。)
問:我請凱勒女士說明,她從女性雜誌上的多愁善感角色,轉而以一位強硬激進派面目示人的過程。
答:當初我的思想是迷信的。我曾經把失明視為不幸。後來我被任命到一個調查失明成因的委員會。作為一個曾認為失明是人類無法控制之不幸的人,我第一次發現,太多的失明個案可以追溯到錯誤的勞動環境,而這通常是僱主的自私和貪婪所造成。我發現貧困把婦女推進可悲的生活裡,並在失明中終結。
然後我讀了威爾斯(H.G. Wells)的『New World's For Old』,那是馬克思哲學和宣言的摘要。我那時的感覺,就像從一直的沉睡,一下子醒覺到了一個新世界——一個不同於以前所活的世界。有段時間我很消沉,但我的信心一點一點地回來。我意識到,值得驚訝的並非勞動條件是如此地惡劣,而是社會的大幅發展是建立在這些惡劣的條件之上。我正為改變而戰鬥。我可能是一個做夢者,但這些夢想必須要實現!
問:你認為這比活在美麗的虛幻世界中要開心嗎?
答:對。真相,就算它是悲慘的,也比幻象要好。幻象是任由風向擺佈的。真正的快樂,更加是來自內心,來自有堅定目標和信念的同伴——而我現在擁有的同伴,比以往都要多。
問:這些都是你離開大學後才有的嗎?你的大學生活就從沒有得到這些知識嗎?
答:沒有!大學不是得到任何理念的地方。我以為我去大學是接受教育的。但教育制度怎麼對待這個世代?我就是例子。這是一個死局。學校似乎熱愛已死的過去,並活在其中。
問:但你知道的,不是嗎。你的老師都是帶著最良好的意願去執教的。
答:但那並沒有甚麼意義。他們沒有教我任何當下的,或者與群眾切身相關的問題。他們教我希臘戲劇和羅馬歷史,著名的戰爭事蹟,卻不是爭取和平的英雄們。比方說,有十多個章節關於戰爭的時候,關於發明家的只有幾小段。這種對於生命之殘酷面的強份強調,滋生了錯誤的思想。教育想要灌輸的是,當個拿破崙比起培植一個新品種的馬鈴薯重要。
我的天性是一見到錯誤的東西就要與其鬥爭,以改正之。所以當我讀了威爾斯和馬克思並學會了這些後,我加入了社會主義者的陣營。我決心要做些事。而看起來最好的,就是加入一個戰鬥性的黨並協助宣傳。那是四年前了。我開始成為一名產業主義者。
問:產業主義者?你的意思不是IWW——工團主義者(syndicalist)?
答:我加入了IWW,因為我覺得社會黨的步伐太慢了。它正在政治的泥沼中沉沒。只要它還在政府體制內佔有位置並尋求席位,基本上它就不可能保持其革命性質。政府並不支持社會黨所應該代表之階層的利益。
真正的任務是在經濟的基礎上團結並組織所有工人,而工人的自由必需由他們自己去捍衛,他們必須壯大起來。政治行動是不會爭取到任何東西的。所以我加入了IWW。
問:有甚麼特別的事件引導你加入IWW?
答:那是勞倫斯製衣工人罷工(1912 Lawrence Textile Strike)。為什麼?因為我發現IWW的理念並不只是為了所有人爭取勞動條件的改善,而是要立即奪回一切。
問:你投入到甚麼工作——社會教育還是革命?
答:革命。沒有革命就沒有教育。和平的教育,我們已經嘗試了一千九百年,而這已經失敗了。讓我們試試革命吧,看看會怎麼樣。
我並不對任何危機都持和平立場。我對這場戰爭(第一次世界大戰)感到婉惜,但我並不以法國大革命時成千的人們所揮灑的熱血為憾。工人們正在學習如何獨立。他們正在戰壕裡學到將會對他們有益的東西。如果他們能為奴役他們的主人作戰,你也可以肯定,他們也可以為了自己而戰鬥。不要忘記,他們正在戰壕培養出紀律。他們正在練得戰鬥的意志。
我的願景將會在戰壕中實現得比任何時候都要強。在那顯見的戰爭被發動的時候,還有另一場為了人類解放的隱形戰爭。
那些半調子的激進派——我理他個屁!
有時我覺得自己像聖女貞德,整個人都被提升了。我也聽見呼召的聲音說,「來吧」,而我會追隨,無論要付出多少代價,無論會被如何審判。入獄、貧困、中傷,都無所謂。「祂實在告訴你們,坐視我弟兄中最微小的一人受苦,你們有禍了。」

Monday, September 14, 2015

Demands to ban anti-communist films on Chinese tour buses rejected

Demands to ban anti-communist films on Chinese tour buses rejected

2015/09/14 15:02:59

CNA file photo

Taipei, Sept. 14 (CNA) Taiwan's Tourism Bureau turned down a demand Monday from a Chinese travel agency to ban videos with anti-communist content on tour buses transporting Chinese tourists visiting the island.

Any videos can be shown on tour buses as long as they have legal copyright and their content does not violate "good morals," the bureau said. It does not matter if the videos involve anti-communist content or not, it added.

The issue came to the fore after a Chinese tour group visiting Taiwan in August was shown a British-produced documentary video about the late Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong while on a tour bus.

It is customary in Taiwan for tour bus drivers to show movies or other films to tourists during the journey.

According to an investigation by the Tourism Bureau, only one elderly member of the group was dissatisfied with the video, complaining that the image of Mao shown in the video was different from what he perceived it to be.

The Taiwanese tour guide then consulted the opinions of other tourists and was told that they wanted to continue watching the video.

After receiving the tourist's complaint, the Chinese travel agency organizing the tour demanded that the responsible Taiwanese travel agency stop showing anti-communist documentaries on tour buses containing Chinese tourists. It also demanded that Taiwanese tour guides should refrain from expressing standpoints different from the Chinese communists.

The Tourism Bureau said it will ask China's tourism authorities to look into the incident and respect the pluralism and freedom of speech in Taiwan.

Taiwan is a free and democratic society, and as long as the rights of others are not infringed upon, Chinese tourists should not only abide by Taiwan's laws but should also respect different opinions and ideologies, the bureau said.

According to Tourism Bureau statistics, nearly 4 million Chinese nationals visited Taiwan last year, by far the largest group among the country's 9 million inbound visitors in 2014.

(By Wang Shu-fen and Y.F. Low)

Tuesday, September 8, 2015

It Won't Work Ch. # 10 Excerpt: Eyewitness to 911

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and 
incidents either are the  product of the author’s imagination
 or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance
 to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is 
entirely coincidental.

Once in school, he moved his time card to the in-box and proceeded to his first class 7:52; forty-two minutes later, to the teachers’ cafeteria he would go for another cup of coffee and a buttered roll until 9:21 am; period three. He cleaned the chalk board and headed over.
8:51 am, he was standing at the counter about to pay Carol when he overheard the radio that stayed on all day, WINS 1010 news station:
“A plane has just crashed into the World Trade Center,” the reporter said. Carol and Emerson gave an ear.
“What happened?” asked Emerson as he poured milk into his coffee cup.
“An airplane flew into the Trade Center,” she replied nonchalantly, taking his change and ringing him up.
“A big plane?”
“They say a private plane.”
“Hope no one inside got hurt.”

READ THE EXCERPT HERE:
http://iwwnovel.blogspot.tw/2015/09/it-wont-work-ch-10-excerpt-eyewitness.html