The Militant - January 21, 2002 -- $600,000 sought for fund

Vol.66/No.3 January 21, 2002

$600,000 sought for fund

BY PATRICK O'NEILL
Volunteer crews have made rapid progress over the last month in reorganizing Pathfinder's printshop. Their labor is helping to transform the printshop into one that can efficiently print Pathfinder titles to the high standards expected by readers around the world, as well as the Militant and Perspectiva Mundial, and that can simultaneously compete for the commercial printing contracts that are necessary to its financial survival in the highly competitive New York market.

Socialist Workers Party national secretary Jack Barnes described this ongoing effort as a "turning point in the work of the international communist movement," when he chaired a December 23 public meeting held to celebrate the volunteers' accomplishments (see "World events make production of revolutionary books more important" in January 14 issue.)

Explaining that the printshop transformation entails substantial up-front expenditures, Barnes announced a goal of raising $600,000 for the Capital Fund. The fund is a long-standing institution of the communist movement, built around larger donations that are invested in major capital resources.

Barnes said the money will cover both present and anticipated expenditures involved in the reorganization, such as those of moving the sheetfed presses--a task which necessitated hours of costly professional assistance, as well as the labor of volunteers and press operators.

Throughout this special effort, he emphasized, the communist movement will not stint on necessary improvements to the presses, computers, and other equipment, at the same time as it scales back areas of its printing operation.

Improvements to web press
In recent months, for example, the productivity of the web press has been boosted substantially by the fitting of automatic tensioners to each of the units that make up the web press.

These electronic controllers, which keep paper at an even tension throughout a run and synchronize the speed of the units, have improved quality and made the machines easier to operate.

A stacking machine has also been added to the press, replacing the labor-intensive work of stacking the freshly printed publications by hand--a tough job known in the trade as "flying." Press operators discovered they can now run the press faster, because the stacker can keep up with high press speeds.

As of January 9, the fund, which was launched on December 15, has grown to $347,500. Twenty-four people have made contributions from a variety of sources, including personal inheritances and other windfalls, and a work bonus on the railroad.

The Capital Fund accepts contributions of $1,000 or more. To find out more or to make a contribution, write to the Capital Fund Committee, 410 West St., New York, N.Y. 10014.

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