Animalism

I recently dipped my toes into the most parasitic region of the private sector in an act of desperation, and unsurprisingly, they very quickly got bitten off. Whilst I’m sure that there are a lot of very principled and decent businesses out there in the vast and formidable ocean of employment, I, unfortunately, didn’t manage to fish any of them out. I was working on our neo-liberal free-market economy’s roughest edge - direct sales and marketing.

I don’t want to chirp on about how difficult I have been finding it as young graduate entering the job market, but eating soup with a fork might be easier as far as I’m concerned. After numerous rejection letters, emails and telephone calls I finally got offered an interview with a Marketing and Sales Company called ‘Parker Worldwide’ based in Southampton. I didn’t actually remember applying for a job with them but I had filled out so many applications that I might not have remembered. The energetic woman on the phone said that they had looked at my CV and wanted to invite me into a first-stage interview for a position on their ‘management training programme’. I was over the moon with delight; finally someone had actually read my CV and seemed to like what they saw.

So I went in for the first round of interviewing. When I stepped into their offices I thought that it seemed like a very cool work environment with bright red walls, fish tanks and a pool table. There were quite a number of other applicants waiting in line for an interview which made me quite nervous and desperate to set myself apart from the rest. The interview itself lasted a total of about 3 minutes and most of which consisted of my interviewer talking about herself and what she did within the organisation. I walked away quite bewildered and not fully understanding the exact specifications of the job at hand.

Alas, I received a call that very evening from my interviewer who claimed that she was very impressed with my interview and wanted to invite me in for the second stage. Again, I couldn’t believe it and celebrated at the fact that I had got this far along the interviewing process.

The second interview consisted of me being taken out onto the street with a bunch of other young graduates and foreign students and being ‘observed’  by a ‘lead account manager’ as they knocked on doors and tried to sign people up for loft and cavity wall insulation. It wasn’t exactly or even slightly what I expected but I was willing to give it a chance, after all, it was promised that this was just the first stage of the ‘management training process’ and I would “soon have my own office and team and be making an average of £1000-£4000 per week.”

Surprise, surprise- I was given the job! From this point onwards it was a downward spiral of lies and greed. I was made to do 2 days of unpaid training which lasted from 10am until 10pm, I was exhausted but keen to prove myself and work my way up the ‘metaphorical hierarchy’. They could justify not paying us because we were technically ‘self-employed’ despite telling us where and when to work (and thus breaking what I understood to be employment law). Everything was commission-based which I would never usually go for but I had no other prospects so I felt like I had to accept this.

I soon got to know my colleagues and quickly found that many of them hadn’t even graduated high school, never mind University, some couldn’t speak or comprehend English fully and one of them had apparently been convicted of a violent crime. It seemed that they were hiring anybody and everybody and not doing any background checks.

Every morning we all gathered in the office with false cheer and hopes, you could see the desperation and greed in people’s eyes; hoping that they might one day ascend into management. I had been drawn into the cult-like atmosphere where we were force fed positivity through American style chanting and daily inspirational stories.

Then we went out in the freezing cold and spend hours knocking on strangers’ doors hoping that we might be able to convince at least a few people to sign-up so that at least our travel expenses would be covered. I actually did quite well, I ‘rang a bell’ most days (this means I got at least 4). I was excited to receive my long awaited pay but was disappointed each week as it came as it was always much less that I had anticipated and the managers were all ‘too busy running a business’ to look into it. I wasn’t the only person in this position, we weren’t supposed to discuss negative topics when working but three of us cracked and had long discussions about all the things that had gone wrong i.e. underpayment, the managers sending us out without badges or insurance or CRBs etc. and we decided to quit.

We decided that we could in fact do it better, we would set up our own business and learn from the mistakes of Parker Worldwide; we would treat each other and our Sales Reps with respect and openness, we would make sure that we were all protected and provided a sense of security to our reps by covering training costs, paying them properly and giving them a higher commission rate alongside making sure that everything was above board; seeking legal advice and writing up contracts and agreements.

HOW WRONG WE WERE. We may have started ‘Blue Monkey Solutions’ up with good intentions but power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. It must have felt something like when Lenin wrote ‘What is to Be Done’ and started the Communist Revolution across Eastern Europe but eventually the ends got forgotten in the means that were taken to get there and true communism was never actually realised because man is inherently selfish and greedy.

To cut a very long and tiresome story short the result was one of my ‘Directors in Partnership’ arguing with me about asbestos outside the front of a back-alley pub and then telling me using his best Alan Sugar impression that I was “out”. A very direct ending to my career in Direct Sales and Marketing. I felt like George Orwell’s Boxer the horse getting taken to the glue factory; I had written the business plan, drafted the contracts for our Sales Representatives, made a leaflet, picked up appointments and set-up our Facebook and email and now I was redundant. I was just another finger in the honey-pot and they wanted more honey to themselves so I was getting carted-off by the knackers.

Our business ‘Blue Monkey Solutions’ had become just like ‘Parker Worldwide’, if not worse, and all within 3 weeks of setting it up. It felt like exactly like the story of ‘Animal Farm’ but also exactly the opposite as our story was reared by capitalism and not communism. Within the first month, the principles on which we had hoped to build our company on had become reduced to a single principle: All directors are equal, but some directors are more equal than others.

I’m writing this article for one core motive: to warn any other naïve young people like myself to not get sucked-up by a Direct Sales and Marketing company and cling on to the hope that it might actually work for you and make you rich.  It’s not a safe and steady environment to work in and it’s full of dodgy dealings and corner cutting fuelled by people’s greed and desperation. It will leave you feeling violated and scammed.

I Buy Therefore I Am

Please check out my second publication: http://www.the3rdimagazine.co.uk/2011/11/i-buy-therefore-i-am/

It's about the effects that consumerist culture, specifically advertising have on reversing the feminist movement.

PLEASE COMMENT :)

Dissertation Published

If you have time and interest in the subject then please have a read of my undergraduate dissertation. The title question is:

To what extent does the issue of water play a role in the Israel-Palestine conflict?

http://www.arij.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=495&Itemid=62

First Publication

Hello,

 Please have a read of my first official publication, the first of many I hope!

http://www.the3rdimagazine.co.uk/2011/10/arab-women-and-their-position-in-society/

It is about Palestine leading the way and acting as a role-model within the women's rights movement across the Middle East and North Africa and how this came to be.

Thank you for your support!

Hollie

The United Nations: Peacemaker or Homewrecker?­

   

     Because of the failure of the League of Nations in preventing war, it was replaced after the Second World War by a new and stronger upgrade in the form of The United Nations (UN). Since the setting up of the UN in 1945, the membership has increased steadily. At present the UN has 193 member states. Most believe that only official member states of the UN can constitute as being sovereign. However, according to The New Internationalist World Guide there are 243 countries. This shows that many countries such as Palestine are not recognised as being sovereign states and thus their people are not being fully represented within this international institution.

   This is just one of the many criticisms made against the United Nations. The claim that ‘The UN seeks to create a just and prosperous world through common action.’ Has been hindered many times by failures and flaws within the UN.  Let’s continue on with a prime example of UN failure that is the Palestine case. The United Kingdom: an important member of the UN, was the initial leader in establishing the ‘Jewish Homeland’ through the Balfour Declaration that is now officially internationally recognised as the State of Israel.  

   It was only a statement of British Policy initially, but it became legally relevant when it was written into the British Mandate for Palestine by the League of Nations. This is where the root of the issue began as from then onwards there was a large influx of Jews. Many of these immigrants were survivors of the Holocaust and were promised ‘A land without a people for a people without a land’. (Weizman cited in Muir 2008: 55). 

   Yet, it was not a land without a people and the Arab population expressed disapproval in November 1918 at first anniversary celebrations of the Balfour Declaration. They felt betrayed by the British, with whom they had sided during the First World War in the hope of gaining freedom from the Ottoman Empire and forming an independent Arab state covering all Arab areas of the Ottoman Empire. Both ethnic groups were filled with hope of a new and peaceful beginning for their people, however these aspirations were shattered by their hopes for their respective homelands clashing with each other; they felt disenchanted by the reality of the situation. ‘Palestine was not desolate and all the land available for cultivation was already being worked by the indigenous Arab population.’ (Finkelstein 2003: 95).

   When League of Nations came into effect Palestine was not invited to be a member state and was viewed as British Territory. It did not attempt to resolve the conflict and supported the illegal settlements of the Jewish on Palestinian land. The UN did no better when it was established and at the end of WW2 approved the partition of Palestine (Resolution 181). It formally recognised the Jewish state. The Palestinians, who represented 70% of the population and owned 93% of the land, were restricted to 43% of the territory. This is only the tip of the iceberg of the injustices that have been committed against the Palestinians, and in itself proves that the statement that the UN seeks to create a just and prosperous world through common action has been proved to not be the case. 

   Although, there has been many sanctions made by the UN against Israel for crimes against humanity e.g. 1987 sanction ‘Calls on Israel to abide by the Geneva Conventions in its treatment of the Palestinians.’ (US vetoes at the UN Security Council). There have been many others along similar lines, the majority of which, however, have been vetoed by the United States. In total over the 30 years between 1972 and 2002 the United States have used their power with a seat on the Security Council to veto precisely 28 sanctions made against Israel. They have used their veto powers more than all the other countries on the UN Security Council put together. 

   The Security Council is made up of fifteen members, five of which are permanent: the United Kingdom, USA, Russia, China and France. The fact that there are permanent members of the UN Security Council is undemocratic. They are not elected by the UN General Assembly as are the other 10 members. The permanent members also officially have more power than the other members of the Security Council; it is only the non-elected permanent members of the Security Council who can use the power of veto to block decisions in which they do not favour. 

   There is widespread criticism in relation to the use and power of the veto. Many countries are demanding that it be scrapped or at the very least the veto system be amended with limitations on its use. ‘Developing countries protest that the veto often prevents politically sensitive issues from being properly discussed.’ (McGuire and McKenzie 1999; p.149). Critics make the point that it cannot and should not be correct to allow the interests, wishes and opinions of one negative voice within the Security Council and ultimately the General Congress determine UN policy. The United State’s veto of Boutros Boutros-Ghali’s re-election as Secretary-General against the wishes of 14 other countries in the Security Council is one of the best examples to support this point. The veto system therefore proves that the UN cannot seek to create a just and prosperous world through common action as it is often the case that this ‘common action’ cannot be continued against the will of certain powerful states within the Permanent members of the Security Council.

   The arid West Bank has transformed into a sea of Palestinian flags this week, hanging from windows, tied to cars, painted on houses, stuck to the side of buses and pinned up in shop windows. This attempt to show their desperate support for the UN statehood bid is heartbreaking because it’s quite obvious that things are not likely to go in their favour, yet again. The US, although claiming that they ultimately support the two-state solution have made clear that they are ready to veto this statehood bid before it hits the table. And even if Palestine is successful and achieves official international recognition and full membership within the UN will this really lead to real change on the ground? Does anybody really think that the Israeli settlements will be evacuated and given to the Palestinians? 

   The main problem with the UN is that it has no sovereignty or any real ability to implement law by force. ‘The concept of sovereignty is very important, especially to Israel whose foreign policy is tinged with Realism. Within the context of the state, sovereignty is often defined as power which is absolute and unlimited’ (Yates 2006; p.5).  The state stands above all other associations; Thomas Hobbes portrayed the state as ‘Leviathan’ (a gigantic monster). This suggests that as there is no higher authority and power than ‘The State’, and International Law is illegitimate. Many states do not abide by laws set by the UN, especially the most powerful ones, and Israel is very powerful having nuclear weapon capacity and being the loyal sidekick of the hegemonic superpower that is the USA.

   ‘The power and the interests of the state are what matters, and law is either a servant of the powerful or an irrelevant curiosity’ (Baylis, Smith and Owens 2008; p.280). One of the best examples of states acting against the will of International Law would be the United States and the United Kingdom invading Iraq. The invasions went against International Law ‘…the use of force is prohibited by the United Nations charter’ (Tutunjian 2004; p.1), similar to NATO’s intervention in Kosovo, the USA began dropping bombs in Iraq without any legal authority from the Security Council. Thus according to International Law the invasion of Iraq was illegal and illegitimate. However, sanctions could not be pressed against the USA or the UK, due to their presence on the Security Council, any sanctions would immediately be vetoed by either state. Two great powers can get away with breaking International Law, even when they are face with an overwhelming majority of opposition. 

   If the UN intends to be more successful in implementing International Law and forcing states to abide by them than many changes will have to be made. The UN should work on being more democratic so that superpowers cannot dictate decisions made (or decisions prevented) on behalf of the United Nations. The UN cannot be effective until these issues are resolved. ‘Failure to intervene effectively in international disputes has led to much criticism of the United Nations Organisation and an international peacekeeping body. I believe that this Friday’s UN statehood bid will only reinforce this criticism and the Palestinians will again be let down by the international community. 

9/11

            September 11^th 2001, dominates almost everything we watch, read and hear this week. It is widely argued that the terrorist attacks changed everything dramatically as the world entered a new and frightening ‘age of terror’. However, has the retaliation: ‘War on Terror’ been successful in counteracting terrorism? Many argue that it has not been a success and has in fact had the opposite effect by increasing global terrorism by inflaming anti-Americanism across the Middle East and beyond.

There are vast variations between definitions of the term ‘terrorism’. According to John Pilger the United States government have infringed their own definition of terrorism more than any other state or organisation. Terrorism is a term with no agreed definition among governments and academic analysts. But if such actions are carried out on behalf of a widely approved cause then the term ‘terrorism’ is usually avoided and something more friendly is substituted. As Noam Chomsky states ‘one person’s terrorist is another person’s freedom fighter.’  According to Tamir Bar-On and Howard Goldstein in the absence of a worldwide consensus definition of terrorism, the term terrorism has today become a political tool used for propaganda purposes by either state or non-state actors such as with the new breed of ‘Eco-terrorists’ i.e. Radical Environmental Groups. Without this clarity, the concept of a ‘war on terror’ is obscure and unclear. Edward Herman focuses on this point claiming that the core basis of a ‘war’ on ‘terror’ itself is a political problem as the definition of ‘terror’ is selectively and loosely applied and the label ‘terrorism’ is an abstract concept with no objective universal  definition.

The War on Afghanistan was the first stage of the ‘war on terror’. Osama Bin Laden was held responsible for the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Al-Qaeda at the time of the attack was considered by most experts to be a small non-state operation, loosely sprawled across the globe and with at most a few thousand operatives. It is clear that such a small and diffuse operation called for an anti-crime and intelligence response, not a war. According to Aiden Hehir’s research in 2007, al-Qaeda groups are now found in 24 states across the globe including the USA and the UK. This reveals that since the ‘War on Terror’ began, this terrorist organisation has spread and grown. ‘The war on Afghanistan, judged purely as an anti-terrorist exercise, has been the worst failure of all.’ (Mahajan). This war has increased political problems; Afghanistan is less stable than it was before the war and al-Qaeda are arguable stronger, despite the capture and death of Osama Bin Laden. Afghan citizens are getting caught in the crossfire which is giving the US and UK bad press, and there is an increase in the intensity of US and UK soldiers killed with no foreseeable end to this conflict. The economic and social state of Afghanistan is deteriorating with not enough funds invested in ‘nation-building’ and reconstruction.

The Iraq Invasion of 2003 was also an important component to the ‘war on terror’ with much opposition. Instead of combating terrorism the war in Iraq has inflamed anti-Americanism across the Middle East, it’s increased the number of people who are willing to die to kill Americans, it created greater sympathy for terrorist groups like al-Qaeda and Hezbollah. In regard to dealing with rogue states it has driven the Syrians, the Iranians and Hezbollah closer together. Syria and Iran are likely to continue supporting Hezbollah, and moreover Iran will probably continue to pursue nuclear weapons, they would be foolish not to given the way the US has been behaving and talking about Iran itself.  According to Mearshiemer and Walt ‘We didn’t make the war in Iraq any better, Iraq as you well know is dominated by Shea, and those Shea in Iraq including the ruling elites are deeply committed or at least have a powerful allegiance to those Shea who compromise Hezbollah. So if anything we have angered our allies in Iraq and that’s definitely not going to make a bad situation better.’

The United Kingdom and United States’ policies have failed in their efforts to combat terrorism through war and have increased the likelihood of a repeat attack. The term ‘war on terror’ in itself is a problem as it is an unclear and even abstract concept. Both invasions have been heavily and widely criticised from all angles but the consensus is that these separate wars aimed at counteracting terrorism and increasing international security have caused many complex political problems and for themselves and for Iraq and Afghanistan. 

Phonetapping

My Palestinian phone began ringing loudly at me last night at about 9pm. I jumped at the sound, still not yet used to the annoying ringtone version of Beethoven’s  ‘Fur Elise’ on my new (well second-hand) phone, which I haven’t yet figured out how to change. I looked at the screen checking it wasn’t that creepy old man again who I now majorly regretted giving my number to- he invited me for tea and I thought I could adopt him as my Palestinian granddad but he seemed to have other ideas.

My phone instead showed a strange number that I didn’t recognise starting with +8. I answered it anyway, too curious not to with my questioning styled “hello??” which I had perfected to answer the phone to unexpected calls from strange numbers. This usually ends up being some desperate call-centre worker from India whose commission won’t cover the cost of feeding her twelve children unless she successfully persuades you to upgrade your phone package. Alas, it was in actual fact my boyfriend, and straight away I asked: “what number are you calling me from?!”  Thinking for a millisecond that he had maybe swanned off with some Beautiful Austrian like-minded bike fanatic he had met at that mad bicycle race last weekend. But he answered “mine of course, why?” And as I explained to him that his number came up with a +8 (which it hadn’t done a couple days before), I also began to notice a strange crackly noise and the phone line was echoing. My boyfriend also claimed that he had heard an unusual series of clicks as the phone call connected. We joked that perhaps the Israeli Authorities were now tapping my phone calls but as soon as we did the crackly echo suddenly stopped.

Perhaps I’m being paranoid (I think I almost definitely am), but nonetheless I googled ‘Israel phonetapping’ and lots of information- call them conspiracies if you may- emerged stating that it was quite commonplace for calls from and to Palestine to be tapped.  

It was only last month when Israel was in the news for being charged with tapping Egypt’s phone network for Mossad. According to Egyptian intelligence services, two Mossad spies: Abu Zeid and Ofer Harari were attempting to intercept international calls coming into Egypt and to transfer them to Israel. Both spies are being tried, Ofer Harari in absentia as he managed to flee the country. If Israel is now attempting to phonetap Egypt, then it is certain that it has managed to do so already in Palestine.

Israel is breaking its own law by phonetapping, however, there seems to be a general Hobbesian mentality in Israel that the ‘Sovereign’ i.e. the Government Secretary (equivalent to the British Cabinet) is above its own self-established laws. Or maybe it’s just corrupt.

Anyway, I’m sure that whatever Mossad spy (of which there are thousands), was listening to my conversation, utterly bored. Perhaps expecting some top secret information from a contact in Britain and they got me and my boyfriend talking about furniture for our new flat.