Greenham Common - Reflect the Base

GREENHAM COMMON –

REFLECT THE BASE

Keeping good on the promise of opening up a new round of demonstrations and actions following the deployment of Cruise missiles, 50,000 women descended upon Greenham Common in the first week of December to take part in a 'Reflect the Base' protest. Encircling the entire base, the women held mirrors up to the police and soldiers behind the fence to reflect their images back to them.

As a peaceful protest it was another inspired idea that also created the space and the opportunity for the slightly more militant to pull down whole sections of the fence. Hundreds of arrests were made and many fingers broken by soldiers lashing out at hands with metal bars but no-one was shot, subsequently making a perfect mockery of Heseltine's idle threats.

Icons Of Filth - Used, Abused, Unamused

ICONS OF FILTH –

USED, ABUSED, UNAMUSED

And then from the Corpus Christi label came Used, Abused, Unamused, a 4-track 7” EP by Icons Of Filth. Based in Cardiff, Wales, they had first started out as friends just following Crass around the country on their tours whereupon they had encountered fellow Crass fans Conflict and Omega Tribe. Inspired by Crass, they had formed themselves into an Anarcho Punk band whose first cassette-only release entitled Not On Her Majesty's Service was put out by Conflict's very own fledgling label, Mortarhate. Following healthy sales of the tape, Corpus Christi offered to release their début single.

Over taut, frenetic and wired hardcore Punk Rock played at breakneck speed, hoarse-voiced lead singer Stig delivered impassioned observations on the system, religion, indoctrination and war. Tried and tested Anarcho Punk subjects one and all but in the hands of Stig, a clearly intelligent thoughtfulness was being applied to each: “Fear is the maintainer of this living death called system... Voting concedes incapability to run your own life. Well, how would you know if you ain't ever tried? Used, abused, unamused? Yeah, every day... God is a measure of our insecurity. We want life after death. We're so afraid that we may be alone, and the responsibility of past, present and future lies with us alone... People always die, we all die in the end and as sure as this is to be expected, we see war as natural.”

In addition to the obvious thought behind the lyrics, what was of particular interest about the record was the artwork adorning the Crass-style fold-out sleeve. Drawn by one Squealing Niallee Wheelee, the style and subject matter was reminiscent of Nick Blinco's; being very detailed pen and ink drawings of skeletal figures and human skulls though it was distinctive enough in its own right that it would be an influence upon and be emulated by other Punk artists for years to come.

Amebix - No Sanctuary

AMEBIX – NO SANCTUARY

From the Spiderleg label came a 7 track, 12” EP by Amebix entitled No Sanctuary, that in a way was far more suited to the general mood of the time due to it being very dark and bleak. With this record Amebix were finally discovering and revealing their own unique sound and in hindsight were actually on their way to creating a whole new musical genre, combining Punk and Heavy Metal to create Crust – a slow but very powerful and heavy form of Punk Rock plumbing sub-Black Sabbath areas of gloom, outrage and horror.

Like a tortured and distorted Discharge on bad drugs, Amebix were emitting an almighty howl of rage from the innermost core of their beings; racked with pain and sick with the state of the world: “And in our ignorance we let them take control, and in their wisdom they decreed that we should bow. When we put our lives into their hands, we put our hands into their chains,” from the track Control, and “They lead you to your slaughter like they lead a horse to water. They can't force you to drink – but you do,” from the track Progress.

Not that Amebix were without humour, however, as shown in such lines as “Roses are red, sometimes violets are blue but we're always puking on cider and glue,” from the track Sunshine Ward. Interestingly, their sense of humour was reminiscent of Disorder's as in “Vomiting green- haired Punks standing on the dole. No money, no clothes, no place left to go,” from Today's World on the Complete Disorder EP. This made sense, however, due to Amebix and Disorder sharing the same squats (and the same drugs) in Bristol.

Disorder were by this time well on their way to being an influence upon squat Punk bands throughout the world whilst Amebix's time was still to come though their influence would eventually turn out to be far greater.

Naked - One Step Forward Towards Reality

NAKED –

ONE STEP FORWARD TOWARDS REALITY

The arrival of Cruise missiles cast a shadow over everything that month, even the release of Anarcho Punk records from some of the best record labels in the land. From the Bluurg label came a 7” EP by Naked called One Step Forward Towards Reality. Naked had first appeared on Bullshit Detector 2 with an Omega Tribe-type Pop Punk song called Mid 1930s Pre-War Germany, that in its own right was another classic of its time, echoing Dancing by Zounds but far more upbeat. On hearing it, a lot of people wanted to know what else Naked had in their repertoire but when it came to their début release on Bluurg, though very melodic it was something of a disappointment due entirely to the poor lyrics.

The arrival of Cruise

THE ARRIVAL OF CRUISE

There was no doubt at all that Mark Mob didn't mean every word he sang and every sentiment he expressed in his songs, and just like everyone else with an iota of awareness was totally dismayed at the way the world was going. Mark's anxiety could only have been ratcheted up another notch when Michael Heseltine announced that any protester caught within the boundary of Greenham Common missile base ran the risk of being shot.

As it was mostly American troops deployed there it obviously meant that British citizens on British soil would be shot dead by agents of a foreign power. And this was meant to be deemed as being acceptable. For his troubles, a short time later when attending Manchester University to address a meeting of Conservative students, to shouts of “Better red than dead!”, Heseltine was sprayed with red paint and pelted with eggs by anti-nuclear weapons protesters.

When Heseltine condemned the attack as being 'undemocratic', as to be expected by that time his condemnation was supported by the CND leadership. Threatening to shoot dead peaceful protesters was acceptable it seemed but not so taking direct action against the perpetrator of that threat.

The atomic bomb might well have been less culturally relevant than the poems of Charles Baudelaire but it was still without question of huge social relevance even to Penny Rimbaud, so when the first Cruise missiles started arriving at Greenham Common on November 14 of 1983, the impact was emotional, to say the least.

Tears were shed and anger was vented in abundance. Outside the House of Commons over 300 mainly women peace protesters were arrested for trying to block the entrance with a lie-down protest, whilst at Greenham another 150 women were arrested after conducting a sit-down protest outside the main gates.

Had it always been a fanciful and naive notion to believe that the deployment of Cruise could be halted? Cynics would have said 'Yes' but then they would also have chosen to remain cynically silent about the whole issue and of course, that silence would always be taken as a sign of consent.

If the anti-nuclear protesters had been even greater in number would they have succeeded in their aims? As there never seemed to be any tipping point in sight it was unlikely. If the anti-nuclear protesters had been more militant would they have been more successful? Possibly.

If all the marchers traipsing off to Hyde Park or Trafalgar Square had stopped off in Whitehall and started rioting or had made their way to the City and brought it to a grinding halt, for example, what might have happened? Whilst potentially giving ammunition to the pro-nuclear brigade both in the government and in the Right-wing press, it would certainly have made Thatcher's (and also Kinnock's) position more difficult and it may also have led to a Constitutional crisis.

Such thoughts, however, were purely hypothetical because rather than rioting or stopping the City, protesters had chosen instead to remain within the law, penned in on marches by police and CND stewards. Contained.

The government had refused to listen and for all the marching and non-violent direct action, Cruise missiles were now in Britain with the only thing to raise the spirits being the promise from anti-war groups that the deployment would open up a whole new round of demonstrations and actions.

The Mob - The Mirror Breaks

THE MOB – THE MIRROR BREAKS

In a more calmer and reflective moment, Penny Rimbaud would remark that the poems of Charles Baudelaire were infinitely more culturally relevant than the atomic bomb, which if true could have just as easily been said about the songs of The Mob. Whilst grounded in the despair of 1980s Britain, their Let The Tribe Increase album had transcended all external forces of fear and repression to shine a light upon a profound sense of virtue. Their follow-up 7” single entitled The Mirror Breaks, released in the Autumn of 1983, acted as a final confirmation of this and sealed their reputation as being a band in possession of a rare poignancy.

Containing all the essential elements of a typical Mob composition – the driving bass, rudimentary guitar, neat drumming, soaring backing vocals and even the tremble in Mark Mob's baritone – there was a melodic lightness of touch to The Mirror Breaks that whether intentional or not made them of even greater appeal than they already were.

The Mob were in the enviable position of being unable to do no wrong and in what was essentially another state of the nation address this latest release not only fulfilled all expectations but surpassed them also, encapsulating all that was good about their album and boiling it down into just under four minutes of sheer beauty.

Opening with an admission of living a life of fear and an acknowledgement of there being very little to be done when facing the overwhelming power of those who rule the earth, Mark Mob was still taking a stand, insisting that his understanding of the way things were was a correct one: “You may think I don't know anything, you may think I've got it wrong but I know what it means when I hear the hangman whistling his song.”

Ranged against “the knives they keep in Whitehall,” Mark sees “hope and fragile love” as the only weapons available to fight back with and once again places his faith in children and that one day when the world is theirs they might use it well. As for their elders, he wishes them all the best but hopes that they “burn in hell”.

His final observation is in regard to himself where he faces the fact that ultimately he is alone, emphasised when the mirror breaks and he is nothing more than a drowning man without even a reflection.

With the release of The Mirror Breaks, The Mob were on their way to greater things. Though still loyal to the squat/DIY circuit, they were at the point of being easily capable of filling more mainstream major venues as well, particularly within London. With this in mind it was strange to say the least that this was the moment when Mark Mob decided to load up his truck and go off travelling with the Peace Convoy, effectively causing The Mob to vanish in the sunlight never to be heard of again (apart from posthumous re-releases) until almost 30 years later.

It may well be better to burn out than it is to rust but for many this was a sad day. The Mob would be missed but the memory of them as being one of the best Anarcho Punk bands and one of the most special groups of the 1980s would always remain.

Grenada invasion

GRENADA INVASION

In a speech delivered to a Christian fundamentalist organisation in America earlier in the year, President Reagan had described Russia as “the focus of evil in the modern world” and called for his audience to “pray for those who live in that totalitarian darkness, pray they will discover the joy of knowing God”. There was no reason to believe that Reagan was just playing to the gallery and telling the congregation what they wanted to hear because after all, he was merely a mouthpiece for his political masters and every speech he made – or rather, had written for him – would have always been sanctioned by his Administration so as not to stray from or contradict official policy.

So essentially, the government of the United States of America was defining Russia as an empire of evil that only through God and a position of military strength would be defeated. God and guns, in other words. Was it any wonder that people viewed America with suspicion, fear and loathing when such sentiments were aired? This was with whom Britain apparently had a 'special relationship' with. The same backwards-looking, bible bashing, gung-ho Administration that was being allowed to site first-strike Cruise nuclear missiles throughout Europe.

Thatcher wasn't oblivious to the anti-American mood even though she was unsettlingly close to Reagan but just three days after the Hyde Park CND rally an event took place on the other side of the world that tested even her own blind trust in him.

The island of Grenada in the Caribbean was a member of the British Commonwealth, meaning that the Queen of England was its Head of State. Since 1979 it had been under the rule of a socialist government who was close allies of Cuba. Even though Cuba along with Nicaragua and of course Russia was considered by America to be an 'enemy of freedom', Grenada itself had never caused any great concern. That all changed, however, on October 19 when Grenada's Prime Minister, Maurice Bishop, was ousted and the governance of the island taken over by a more hardline Marxist group.

Following a flurry of diplomatic activity in London, it was concluded that the coup was an internal affair and that no action should be taken by Britain apart from keeping an eye on the safety of the British nationals who lived there. Thatcher herself could distinguish that there was no comparison with the Falklands and that there was no cause to intervene. America conveyed the same line and let it be known that all it would do is to have a ship on standby in case its own nationals at any point needed to be evacuated.

And that, apparently, was the end of it until Thatcher woke up on the morning of October 25 to the news that without any consultation with Britain, America had launched an invasion of the island. Thatcher was reportedly livid, viewing such an action as not only a flagrant violation of international law but as a betrayal of trust between herself and Reagan.

Only a day earlier, the British Foreign Secretary, Geoffrey Howe, had informed the House of Commons that America had reassured his government that there was no intention to intervene in any way. America, it seemed, had lied and had now invaded a British Commonwealth country resulting in almost 100 deaths, over 500 wounded, and untold political damage.

How could Thatcher now tell the British public that America could be trusted, particularly over the issue of Cruise? How could she now argue this with CND? It was undeniable: There had been no cause for Grenada to be invaded. Thatcher knew it as did everyone else but in a television address that would have been high comedy if it hadn't been so scary, Reagan justified the invasion thus:

“Grenada, we were told, was a friendly isolated paradise for tourism. Well, it wasn't. It was a Soviet/Cuban colony being readied as a major bastion to export terror and undermine democracy. We got there just in time.”

At the same time of the invasion, in a leaked government report to the Guardian newspaper it was revealed that the first of the Cruise missiles were due to arrive at Greenham Common in just over three weeks time...