Andrew James
@a-bluejay
Internationalist based in Cheshire, UK. Strongly averse to irrationalism in public policy but in favour of the same in art and to allow MCFCTID! Admirer of a fine phrase bringing wisdom from the past. No direct donations- already set up thro charities.
So it was! I hadn’t realised. Thank you. How ironic that the wolf in question is now looking like an agent of finance capital and the sheep’s fleece the corrupted remnants of Fabianism
Starmer got elected on his decent 10 pledges only to go to the right of any Tory PM. It must have been planned that way with McSweeney & co. Blue Lab MP resigns to get Burnham in. Streeting stands aside. It’s planned again! Looking very like another neo- lib wolf in sheep’s clothing!
One can only think Tuchel has had lessons from Starmer. When you get ahead; - completely undermine the core of your team/voters, & core purpose, - promote the key attack of your opposition by adopting the ground they’d prefer to fight on. Simmer & wait for the inevitable.
Robin Williams: “Politicians should wear sponsor jackets like NASCAR drivers, then we know who owns them”
It’s going to be a fascinating by-election…. But only to see how super fans Chris Mason, Laura Kuenssberg & Fiona Bruce (& their backup crews of producers etc) can try to dig Farage out of this hole of his own making: “vote for my right to secret £ms from sponsors abroad” vs Binface 🤣
BBC Damage Control Central: Shift from morality to boring procedure✔️ “Ally”-not convicted fraudster✔️ “Benefits”-don’t mention huge amounts of money involved✔️ Repeat ‘not in politics’ dates- don’t mention owning the party throughout✔️ Add ‘I’m the victim here’ headshot✔️ You’re welcome Nige, as usual
At least his friends at the BBC can be relied upon to spin this for him- Including the ‘I’m the victim here’ wistful headshot & harmless ’ally’ not ‘convicted criminal’ & ‘benefits’ not real hard cash spent for him! If the BBC Newsroom were his Publicist what would be different?
The Guardian has faults but it’s infinitely better than Reform backing BBC news: Guardian -factual headline Nigel Farage did not declare gifts from crypto entrepreneur convicted of fraud BBC- Reform’s opinion headline Farage denies rules broken after reports benefits from ally were not declared
Would you steal sweets from a baby? Would you hand in a dropped wallet? give to charity? Capitalism tells us that human nature is selfish. But we all make choices & follow rules that don’t benefit us directly Human Evolution until relatively recently was all about cooperation & care for the group
Absolutely! It's popular, not economically challenging and moral. It will show if he is trapped by 'establishment think' or free to make the decent decision.
You're right. Andy Burnham is 'establishment think' through & through. Against the views of the maj of voters who want public ownership of utilities (&NHS), to tax the mega-rich fairly, that Israel has done horrendous things & that immigrants make a valuable contribution.
For those, especially Blue Lab types, who deny there is a genocide & ethnic cleansing- here it is again. How many times do the Israelis themselves have to tell you what it is? Every genocide denier should be asked why they know better than the people actually undertaking the crime & are proud of it!
Labour are building an authoritarian state! "The Sentencing Act 2020 allows judges to send people down for crimes for which they have not been tried or convicted, with far longer sentences and far more draconian conditions than they would otherwise face." bsky.app/profile/geor...
Where there is state secrecy I think we're entitled to believe that the judgements made are in line with all the other info we have about this govt's position re Israel & Gaza ... & that has always put Israeli state interests above attacked Palestinians & business above human rights in general.
Can't believe we're still having this conversation- Gaza: genocide or not? www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
Better late than never but way, way too late. Still we are where we are and Labour MPs need to get their act together to do all they can to protect the survivors and prevent further deterioration. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Absolutely! Pervasive is the right word. Across so many fronts they're preparing the mechanisms of authoritarianism, & with a Reform govt a distinct possibility it's extremely troubling.
The billionaires are using their massive wealth thro virtually every other media format to repeatedly lie & misinform as we head towards climate, economic & human rights crises & continual war. Democracies depend on freedom of accurate information- something must be done when democrats are elected
There are a list of questions for Mr Burnham- what's he going to do about each one of Starmer's 'paving the way for authoritarianism' steps?
There's no easy answer to misinformation but it should be made harder to misinform: - 20% max ownership of any mass media/information company - Social media sites become publishers (with that liability) when they pay a contributor or promote contributions beyond viewers' declared interests
Reform won because Labour legitimised the false premise of the far right: That there is one thing called ‘immigration’ & that it’s a problem. Reform have no other non-toxic policy; and it's made up! The real issue is race which Reform will embrace & Labour can't win. bsky.app/profile/saul...
Gaza: at least 70,000 killed, 20,000 children killed, many shot dead. 21,000 children disabled, 97% schools, 94% hospitals destroyed. 135 children dead from starvation. We can't directly affect Israel but we can hold our own government to account: bsky.app/profile/saul...
Wow, Guardian really sinking to be Lab’s Daily Mail! The article on alleged antisemitism in the Greens was close to pushing a bias but kept just the right side of a genuine if rare issue. But having the rabid view of a minor minister as the top headline on the web- scurrilous electioneering- shame!
This govt has done some good things. But, for goodness sake, they don't offset the horrendous attacks on some of the most vulnerable- victims of genocide, immigrants (legit'g racism), disabled... the list is getting far, far too long. It's Starmer who's paving for Reform- Politically incompetent!
It's not as though his whole political career wasn't based on lying and dirty tricks (see activities of Euan Philipps AKA David Gordstein when filing antisemitism complaints (incl against Jewish members eg Riva Joffe) to the Labour Party)
Our current education system is not fit for purpose. Not fit for 21st Century dynamic problem solving or addressing societal or personal needs. Educators must be better enabled by the system to empower learners to succeed in the real world & to lay the foundations necessary for society to progress.
Labour have legitmised the false premise of the far right. That there is one thing called ‘immigration’ and that it’s a problem. The only unifying factor they’re referring to is race. No progressive politician should answer a question about ‘immigration’ without asking ‘which sort?’
Gaza: at least 70,000 killed, 20,000 children killed, many shot dead. 21,000 children disabled, 97% schools, 94% hospitals destroyed. 135 children dead from starvation. We can't directly affect Israel but we can hold our own government to account: bsky.app/profile/saul...
Free the Media - As a start, no one person/organisation should own or control more than 20% of a media organisation's shares and the staff should have 20% of voting rights.