Blog discussing the ethics of Rihanna's looting choices, from a communist perspective.
As mentioned in the new Aufheben, it has been widely discussed in left and anarchist circles about the targeting of small businesses or large chain retailers during the August outbreak of looting.
Many, such as anarchist group ALARM, have sided with small businesses against looters. Others have argued that all capitalist businesses are qualitatively the same.
However Rihanna seems to make her views (and praxis) clear in her new video (from 2:17):
[youtube]tg00YEETFzg[/youtube]
Now, rather than a political choice this could just be, as Aufheben suggests, due to the restructuring (/destruction) of the high street in recent years, as high-value chain stores relocate from town centres to out-of-town shopping complexes. Thus leaving opportunistic looters with few options other than small businesses selling low value goods - which were hit in inner-city areas such as Hackney.
Views?
Comments
Does the post-Tottenham riots
Does the post-Tottenham riots bring back love of all things British?
The main problem I have, is the looting/property destruction is given alongside a montage about the ups and downs of their relationship, which kind of implies its a parallel to their hedonistic lifestyle.
Him writing MINE on her bum
Him writing MINE on her bum was a fun experience for all. Maybe she's been following Chris Knight's anthropological experiances; having overthrown male authority in her relationship she allows him to play at owning her in order to repeat the moment of emancipation.
It's great to see this mainstream looter solidarity. Rihanna is using a shopping trolley for her looting conveneince, implying a larger store. It's correct to say "not this one mate, local business; go for that one there"; this starts a conversation about the roll of the petit bourgeois; if the looter came up with a winning argument then fair enough. We should certainly defend the workers coop but also we should fight the bigger injustices first; the anti union superstore can be worse than the family run shop; not theory divorced from practice.
The field scene was filmed in Ulster by the way, until it was stopped by a DUP supporting farmer who claimed to have seen her boob. She has done the unlikely, coming from the slums of Barbados to getting rich.
No, she should just fuck off
No, she should just fuck off with her shite music
AIW wrote: the anti union
AIW
Smaller shops are also anti-union, only difference is they don't have enough surplus capital to fund stupid drives to discourage people from joining unions. It happens on a local level, if the threat of USDAW was ever to manifest :confused:
By the nature of being a smaller business they are usually more vulnerable to competition from the bigger stores, therefore in my experiences wages are lower and people are expected to work longer hours without ever seeing a contract like you might in Tescos or whatnot. For this very reason they tend to hire friends or family.
For the reason of working harder to maintain their position as small business holders, the left used to make some allowances to them for being more progressive, but it does not change the relationship between the workers and shop owner.
Battlescarred wrote: No, she
Battlescarred
Innit, what a terrible song with trite sentiments and a desperate attempt at the recuperation of hedonistic 'yoof'.
The better half put it well:
No words can describe the
No words can describe the infinite hatred I have for "small businesses." Smash those petit bourgeois cunts to fuck right now!!!11!
Re Rhianna: Meh...
Vid shot in Belfast for some
Vid shot in Belfast for some reason, the flats are New Lodge.
lol the shop is North Street
lol the shop is North Street Market, grim as fuck shop that
Choccy wrote: Vid shot in
Choccy
don't get much more of a "hopeless place" in Belfast
Battlescarred
so, you do have flaws then!
Caiman del Barrio
badly digested Situationist rhetoric LOL
Isn't it just another attempt
Isn't it just another attempt by image consultants to get people to form an opinion (and here we are) in what is otherwise an over-saturated pool of well-rinsed, bland, formulaic, meaningless and inconsequential crud? As a whole heap of manufactured pop manekins and rappers can testify, notoriety sells records - especially to the thirteen year olds who buy most of this piss poor crap - a sales tactic going right back to the fifties.
As has been said about small traders, some are most definitely shits, but some are just people trying to survive, escaping having a boss, are avoiding paying taxes, etc. or even just trying to have some creative control over their working life. They are, much like skilled tradesmen (and women), a reflection of life I guess. Like every business, they set themselves up to make money and inevitably become a target for expropriation in one form or another.
PS Does there really need to be a line on everything, even Rihanna? :)
inconsequential crud?
inconsequential crud?
Quote: No words can describe
hope you had a lie down after that outburst!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b22foyWvuUU