17.12.2015

Here’s to 2016

Robbie Rix wonders what Santa will bring this year

This is the final issue of the Weekly Worker for 2015 - and it is a bonus 16-pager, with more than a few really first-class articles. Enjoy.

I am delighted to pass on the thoughts of two of our readers. Comrade NA, writing from New South Wales, accompanied his £50 PayPal donation with these words: “Keep up the good work and, remember, the left should be a broad grouping with different viewpoints … Yours in comradely respect.”

For his part, comrade DV, based nearer to home, sent us a cheque for £25 and commended us on “two excellent issues with terrific letters pages”. He added: “No other publication would allow such criticism of their leading writers as the Weekly Worker does. True accountability.”

Meanwhile, MM did not write anything - he just popped a £20 cheque in an envelope. Sometimes action speaks louder than words!

Someone else who deserves a mention is one of two layout artists, comrade PK. When one of our computer monitors died a sudden death as we were preparing this week’s paper, he marched off to the local Argos store to buy a replacement - and insisted that he didn’t want paying the £129 he had just spent. Like the rest of the Weekly Worker team, he offers his services for free - if any money changes hands, it usually goes in the opposite direction from what you might think. That’s dedication for you!

And it’s why you can expect the same commitment and intellectual quality in 2016, starting on January 7. Last week we had 3,705 online readers, but we could do with a few more of them following the example of the comrades I’ve mentioned. We have to raise £1,750 every month to cover our running costs, and right now our fighting fund for December stands at £925. Which means we need others to step in and make sure we get there.

This week the contributions listed above were supplemented by standing orders from DW (£20), KB (£20) and RP (£5), plus a £10 note handed over by comrade PB after our London Communist Forum. But we still need another £825 by New Year’s Eve. Please don’t leave it until the clock strikes 12!