Recreating the conditions of post-war Britain can’t be that hard. All we have to do is build an empire by conquering the world and then give it up in order to conquer the Germans.
With the help of the Americans and Russians. A version of that (US avec Trump, former SU minus Ukraine) might pan out.
Your ‘well actually’ is actually covered in my conment. We didn’t have to mortgage everything to the US and fight on in 1940.
Not much left to mortgage now in any case. Permanent transfer of the talents of Boris and Farage stateside?
Also, rather a lot of mortgaging was done in the Great War.
Recreating the conditions of post-war Britain can’t be that hard. All we have to do is build an empire by conquering the world and then give it up in order to conquer the Germans.
"Recreating the conditions of post-war Britain can't be that hard".
You do this Conservative administration a grave disservice. Once eradicated childhood diseases like rickets, measles and scurvy are back in vogue. I'd say you can tick that box!
Recreating the conditions of post-war Britain can’t be that hard. All we have to do is build an empire by conquering the world and then give it up in order to conquer the Germans.
"Recreating the conditions of post-war Britain can't be that hard".
You do this Conservative administration a grave disservice. Once eradicated childhood diseases like rickets, measles and scurvy are back in vogue. I'd say you can tick that box!
I [edit] agree he must mean 1920 not 1946. One thing they did do in WW2 was try hard to do something about childhood nutrition, with some success.
Recreating the conditions of post-war Britain can’t be that hard. All we have to do is build an empire by conquering the world and then give it up in order to conquer the Germans.
With the help of the Americans and Russians. A version of that (US avec Trump, former SU minus Ukraine) might pan out.
Your ‘well actually’ is actually covered in my conment. We didn’t have to mortgage everything to the US and fight on in 1940.
Not much left to mortgage now in any case. Permanent transfer of the talents of Boris and Farage stateside?
Much as it pains me to say it, but as long as Johnson and Farage remain tax-resident in the UK, their earnings from the US speaker circuit qualify as valuable service sector exports that benefit the balance of payments. We kinda need to hang onto them.
That's an awful lot of words to say "We voted for Brexit cos we hate the forrin but they're still here"
With gullible credulous idiots like Leon about, it becomes easier to see how countries descend into elected authoritarianism, and people lose their freedom. Or worse.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
It was a look and of milk and honey, where small urchins would tug their forelock respectfully as you watched them stitch up the delicate social fabric, and womble happily lived alongside hobbit in peace and harmony.
On the left, crisp fresh green mango. On the right crisp light beer
Is that a custard apple in the middle? If so, why is it orangey yellow, not green?
Call that a beer. This a beer.
Well clearly it wasn't. I seem to have forgotten how to post a picture, but it was a pint of Broadside. A proper pint.
The lack of proper ale outside England is a genuine problem. Why don’t other countries do beer properly? That can of crap Leon is supping looks shit.
Yes I agree. I like Belgium beers and New England beers but they are still cold and fizzy which beer shouldn't be. Broadside in Southwold and Shere Drop anywhere around Dorking beat anything from anywhere. I'm sure others from around the UK will have their favourites. Nothing better than a proper UK real ale from a hand pump.
It’s total bollocks. American beer is brilliant
But then you drink lager so your opinion is suspect
Actually my preferred beer is a craft IPA
But in a really really hot climate I will definitely have a light lager
Don’t like stout. Can’t stand Guinness. No idea why
The US has been the leading brewing nation for at least two decades now, and remains so by some distance. The best brewers in the world are American. In the ranking of beer nations, Belgium probably take second and then the UK and Germany tied for third.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Absolute bollocks that the USA has better beer than here.
Beer has gone downhill over the last 5 years or so, unfortunately. Too much poor quality IPAs that taste like crappy lagers have pushed out more interesting craft beers, and a lot of breweries have been lost.
Alfred's, Andwell, Bowman Flower Pots, Hog's Back, Longdog and Triple fff are all near me within 15-20 miles & all make amazing real ale.
Absolute bollocks that the USA has better beer than here.
Beer has gone downhill over the last 5 years or so, unfortunately. Too much poor quality IPAs that taste like crappy lagers have pushed out more interesting craft beers, and a lot of breweries have been lost.
Alfred's, Andwell, Bowman Flower Pots, Hog's Back, Longdog and Triple fff are all near me within 15-20 miles & all make amazing real ale.
When I first moved to Edinburgh ~2016, I was delighted to discover Stewart Brewing who did a wide range of beers. But as the years went by they did more and more IPAs, and their more interesting beers didn't find their way into pubs.
There was a period where you could go into any random pub and there was a decent chance it would have an interesting beer. Now the token beer that isn't Heineken/Carlsberg or similar piss is always an IPA that tastes little better.
There are still good breweries out there, of course, and a few pubs that champion them, but IPAs have shut them out of the mainstream again.
The original IPAs weren’t pale or bitterly hoppy. Ind Coope Burton Ale was launched as an IPA.
Absolute bollocks that the USA has better beer than here.
Beer has gone downhill over the last 5 years or so, unfortunately. Too much poor quality IPAs that taste like crappy lagers have pushed out more interesting craft beers, and a lot of breweries have been lost.
Alfred's, Andwell, Bowman Flower Pots, Hog's Back, Longdog and Triple fff are all near me within 15-20 miles & all make amazing real ale.
This may-- let me repeat, may -- be a signficant development: "Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) said Tuesday that he will not serve out the rest of his term and will vacate his seat in Congress at the end of next week, further narrowing an already razor-thin House Republican majority. . . . Once Buck departs, Republicans will outnumber Democrats 218 to 213 in the House. That means Republicans can afford to lose only two votes to pass legislation along party lines when everyone is attending and voting." source$: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/03/12/ken-buck-leaving-congress/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Buck
Especially given the lack of party discipline among House Republicans.
Rep. Ken Buck on not running for reelection:
“I am not going to lie on behalf of my presidential candidate, on behalf of my party. And I'm very sad that others in my party have taken the position that as long as we get the White House, it doesn't really matter what we say.” https://twitter.com/AccountableGOP/status/1765046763612934644
On the left, crisp fresh green mango. On the right crisp light beer
Is that a custard apple in the middle? If so, why is it orangey yellow, not green?
Call that a beer. This a beer.
Well clearly it wasn't. I seem to have forgotten how to post a picture, but it was a pint of Broadside. A proper pint.
The lack of proper ale outside England is a genuine problem. Why don’t other countries do beer properly? That can of crap Leon is supping looks shit.
Yes I agree. I like Belgium beers and New England beers but they are still cold and fizzy which beer shouldn't be. Broadside in Southwold and Shere Drop anywhere around Dorking beat anything from anywhere. I'm sure others from around the UK will have their favourites. Nothing better than a proper UK real ale from a hand pump.
It’s total bollocks. American beer is brilliant
But then you drink lager so your opinion is suspect
Actually my preferred beer is a craft IPA
But in a really really hot climate I will definitely have a light lager
Don’t like stout. Can’t stand Guinness. No idea why
The US has been the leading brewing nation for at least two decades now, and remains so by some distance. The best brewers in the world are American. In the ranking of beer nations, Belgium probably take second and then the UK and Germany tied for third.
Except you still can’t get a proper pint of cask ale in the US and Belgium outside the niche brewers.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Absolute bollocks that the USA has better beer than here.
Beer has gone downhill over the last 5 years or so, unfortunately. Too much poor quality IPAs that taste like crappy lagers have pushed out more interesting craft beers, and a lot of breweries have been lost.
Alfred's, Andwell, Bowman Flower Pots, Hog's Back, Longdog and Triple fff are all near me within 15-20 miles & all make amazing real ale.
When I first moved to Edinburgh ~2016, I was delighted to discover Stewart Brewing who did a wide range of beers. But as the years went by they did more and more IPAs, and their more interesting beers didn't find their way into pubs.
There was a period where you could go into any random pub and there was a decent chance it would have an interesting beer. Now the token beer that isn't Heineken/Carlsberg or similar piss is always an IPA that tastes little better.
There are still good breweries out there, of course, and a few pubs that champion them, but IPAs have shut them out of the mainstream again.
Whenever I go into a pub, even here, 2/3rds of the men are drinking lager. Usually European Lagers.
Therein lies the problem. CAMRA still have a job to do.
After falling into a cat of radioactive chemicals, a radioactive cat is now striding thru the streets of Japan. Locals have been warned not to approach the cat, which is bright orange.
Absolute bollocks that the USA has better beer than here.
Beer has gone downhill over the last 5 years or so, unfortunately. Too much poor quality IPAs that taste like crappy lagers have pushed out more interesting craft beers, and a lot of breweries have been lost.
Alfred's, Andwell, Bowman Flower Pots, Hog's Back, Longdog and Triple fff are all near me within 15-20 miles & all make amazing real ale.
Do you remember Gale’s HSB?
God I used to love Gales HSB. My then girlfriend, now full time wife, comes from Horndean, about half a mile from the old Gales brewery. Never the same after Fullers moved production to London with Burtonisation.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
It was a look and of milk and honey, where small urchins would tug their forelock respectfully as you watched them stitch up the delicate social fabric, and womble happily lived alongside hobbit in peace and harmony.
That's why I'm voting for that nice Mr Farage.
Both Jeremy Corbin and Nigel Farage seem to me to be naturals as ruthless political rivals, each seeking to dominate the bowels of Middle Earth, by winning/ramping election as Lord Mayor of Lower Murkwood.
Fox News. Watching Hur hearing, interesting no one has mentioned that the ultimate, bedrock reason Joe Biden was not indicted is longstanding Justice Department policy that a sitting president cannot be indicted. Whatever circumstances, will not happen with Biden in White House. https://twitter.com/ByronYork/status/1767565618813775945
Fact staring in the face anyone capable of reading. The second sentence of Hur’s report outlining his reasons for not charging Biden is: “We would reach the same conclusion even if Department of Justice policy did not foreclose criminal charges against a sitting president.” https://twitter.com/bradheath/status/1767645444627185974
Old people longing for the good old days is a story even older than the people telling it.
Nostalgia combined with feeling like you've been left behind by today's societal norma is all it takes.
Unlike the unpatriotic, nationalist right, I think Britain is a great place to live as a whole. Great cities, great countryside, sport, music, arts, liberal democracy and an openness to other cultures that makes our food a great melting pot rather than sticking with our more limited traditional cuisine.
And Britain's openness means we won't shrivel and die as a nation due to population decline like many others like Japan, South Korea or Italy. We have plenty of opportunities if we collectively take them.
Now there's a million things that need fixing - and voting out this tired government is a necessary step on that journey - but let's wholeheartedly reject the 'old man shouting at clouds' nonsense from loons on twitter.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The charts do tell a fairly statistically stark story though. Tory and Ref voting intention are very closely inversely correlated. Lab and Ref not really at all. So that tells me you can, to a degree, add Reform to the Tories. Assuming swingback and turnout.
Whereas Green and Lib Dem are partly inversely correlated with Lab VI but partly independent. So you can’t just assume they come back to Lab (though they may vote tactically).
Absolute bollocks that the USA has better beer than here.
The beer is much better there than 30 years ago, no one in their right mind could disagree. But, it’s still largely fizzy and cold craft beer. Cask ales remain rare. Most of the time in the States (and yes, Leon, I travel a lot) I find myself gasping for a proper pint.
@Leon might like hoppy craft IPA. Give me a pint of Landlord, Tribute or Broadside any day of the week.
Yes, give me cask over craft any day.
Craft is a hipster trying to write a Guardian article with fermented hops.
Not so much. Craft used to be microbreweries run by hipsters, but now it's just marketing by the big brewers.
It's the same across all counter-culture, just a few years from authenticity to corporate marketing. Bud Light for example.
I keep bottles of Reverend James, Brains SA Gold, Brains Dark and Double Dragon in the beer fridge for wayward travellers. They are welcome to them. I'd much rather a very occasional Peroni.
After falling into a cat of radioactive chemicals, a radioactive cat is now striding thru the streets of Japan. Locals have been warned not to approach the cat, which is bright orange.
Er, not radioactive. Just nasty. That must be at least eight lives used up.
Damnit. I thought it was radioactive. Narrative inevitability insisted on it. I had a whole Garfield Vs Godzilla schtick going on in my head. If it's just poisonous I'll have to downgrade to Jack Nicholson Joker Cat, which is not as funny. Although it'll probably end up as a 300million budget DC movie directed by Zach Snyder, so there's....that.
After falling into a cat of radioactive chemicals, a radioactive cat is now striding thru the streets of Japan. Locals have been warned not to approach the cat, which is bright orange.
Recreating the conditions of post-war Britain can’t be that hard. All we have to do is build an empire by conquering the world and then give it up in order to conquer the Germans.
With the help of the Americans and Russians. A version of that (US avec Trump, former SU minus Ukraine) might pan out.
Your ‘well actually’ is actually covered in my conment. We didn’t have to mortgage everything to the US and fight on in 1940.
Not much left to mortgage now in any case. Permanent transfer of the talents of Boris and Farage stateside?
Much as it pains me to say it, but as long as Johnson and Farage remain tax-resident in the UK, their earnings from the US speaker circuit qualify as valuable service sector exports that benefit the balance of payments. We kinda need to hang onto them.
See also 'Terf island'. Our decision to stop giving out puberty blockers is attracting attention from across the Atlantic.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Absolute bollocks that the USA has better beer than here.
Beer has gone downhill over the last 5 years or so, unfortunately. Too much poor quality IPAs that taste like crappy lagers have pushed out more interesting craft beers, and a lot of breweries have been lost.
Alfred's, Andwell, Bowman Flower Pots, Hog's Back, Longdog and Triple fff are all near me within 15-20 miles & all make amazing real ale.
When I first moved to Edinburgh ~2016, I was delighted to discover Stewart Brewing who did a wide range of beers. But as the years went by they did more and more IPAs, and their more interesting beers didn't find their way into pubs.
There was a period where you could go into any random pub and there was a decent chance it would have an interesting beer. Now the token beer that isn't Heineken/Carlsberg or similar piss is always an IPA that tastes little better.
There are still good breweries out there, of course, and a few pubs that champion them, but IPAs have shut them out of the mainstream again.
Whenever I go into a pub, even here, 2/3rds of the men are drinking lager. Usually European Lagers.
Therein lies the problem. CAMRA still have a job to do.
The one thing in favour of bland IPAs is that they are close enough to lager to encourage lager drinkers to try them. Unfortunately, most pubs and breweries don’t provide the next step, a traditional bitter, and concentrate on IPA and stout.
Absolute bollocks that the USA has better beer than here.
The beer is much better there than 30 years ago, no one in their right mind could disagree. But, it’s still largely fizzy and cold craft beer. Cask ales remain rare. Most of the time in the States (and yes, Leon, I travel a lot) I find myself gasping for a proper pint.
@Leon might like hoppy craft IPA. Give me a pint of Landlord, Tribute or Broadside any day of the week.
Yes, give me cask over craft any day.
Craft is a hipster trying to write a Guardian article with fermented hops.
Not so much. Craft used to be microbreweries run by hipsters, but now it's just marketing by the big brewers.
It's the same across all counter-culture, just a few years from authenticity to corporate marketing. Bud Light for example.
I keep bottles of Reverend James, Brains SA Gold, Brains Dark and Double Dragon in the beer fridge for wayward travellers. They are welcome to them. I'd much rather a very occasional Peroni.
Again, fizzy shit, including the bottled bitters. Cask ale from a pub is where it is at.
Old people longing for the good old days is a story even older than the people telling it.
Nostalgia combined with feeling like you've been left behind by today's societal norma is all it takes.
Unlike the unpatriotic, nationalist right, I think Britain is a great place to live as a whole. Great cities, great countryside, sport, music, arts, liberal democracy and an openness to other cultures that makes our food a great melting pot rather than sticking with our more limited traditional cuisine.
And Britain's openness means we won't shrivel and die as a nation due to population decline like many others like Japan, South Korea or Italy. We have plenty of opportunities if we collectively take them.
Now there's a million things that need fixing - and voting out this tired government is a necessary step on that journey - but let's wholeheartedly reject the 'old man shouting at clouds' nonsense from looms on twitter.
However…
Nostalgia wins votes. Including misplaced nostalgia. A powerful emotion from which none of us is immune. Best not to ignore it.
Labour can, if they play it well, harness a certain kind of nostalgia to their electoral advantage: for a functioning health service, councils that could afford to fix the potholes, the ability to build railways. Maybe even the days when you could hop across the channel and fill up with unlimited booze and cigs.
It’s a reason why the Tories’ “back to square one” jibe is a gift to Labour.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
There's analysis, and there's analysis.
Just like there's a jug of cold, clean water. And a boot full of luke-warm piss.
Your point re: traditional Labour nativist voters IS well-taken. Not too different in viewpoint from many traditional blue-collar Democrats.
Who often turn out to be themselves the grandchildren of immigrants. In USA, only takes a couple generations - and you can be a native (in non-indigenous sense) too!
Indeed, such nativism can be means for demonstrating ones own credentials as a "real" American.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
After falling into a cat of radioactive chemicals, a radioactive cat is now striding thru the streets of Japan. Locals have been warned not to approach the cat, which is bright orange.
Er, not radioactive. Just nasty. That must be at least eight lives used up.
Damnit. I thought it was radioactive. Narrative inevitability insisted on it. I had a whole Garfield Vs Godzilla schtick going on in my head. If it's just poisonous I'll have to downgrade to Jack Nicholson Joker Cat, which is not as funny. Although it'll probably end up as a 300million budget DC movie directed by Zach Snyder, so there's....that.
After falling into a cat of radioactive chemicals, a radioactive cat is now striding thru the streets of Japan. Locals have been warned not to approach the cat, which is bright orange.
"liberals suffer from a form of repetition-compulsion – the pathological urge to re-enact damaging behaviours, as identified in Freudian psychoanalysis. Fixated on reasserting what they believe to be their proper place as the moral guardians of society, and indeed the world order, they are locking themselves into a cycle of failure...
If any single issue can ensure Trump’s re-election, it is chaos on America’s Mexican border, a source of mounting concern that extends far beyond his core supporters. Continuing inflows of illegal aliens have produced dissension and opposition in Texas, New York and “sanctuary cities” such as Chicago, where communities of various ethnicities have protested against its effects on public services. Yet for many Democrat activists, voters’ resistance to mass immigration is not much more than an expression of popular racism. American liberals are reprising the hubristic disregard for their fellow citizens that led to Trump’s victory in 2016"
One wonders what the polling might be if Corbyn were still in charge?
Something I've been toying with on my lunchbreaks of late - what would have happened if Cameron stayed on after the brexit vote for say six months. Allow time for a decent campaign for a new leader and who that might have been.
Old people longing for the good old days is a story even older than the people telling it.
Nostalgia combined with feeling like you've been left behind by today's societal norma is all it takes.
Unlike the unpatriotic, nationalist right, I think Britain is a great place to live as a whole. Great cities, great countryside, sport, music, arts, liberal democracy and an openness to other cultures that makes our food a great melting pot rather than sticking with our more limited traditional cuisine.
And Britain's openness means we won't shrivel and die as a nation due to population decline like many others like Japan, South Korea or Italy. We have plenty of opportunities if we collectively take them.
Now there's a million things that need fixing - and voting out this tired government is a necessary step on that journey - but let's wholeheartedly reject the 'old man shouting at clouds' nonsense from looms on twitter.
However…
Nostalgia wins votes. Including misplaced nostalgia. A powerful emotion from which none of us is immune. Best not to ignore it.
Labour can, if they play it well, harness a certain kind of nostalgia to their electoral advantage: for a functioning health service, councils that could afford to fix the potholes, the ability to build railways. Maybe even the days when you could hop across the channel and fill up with unlimited booze and cigs.
It’s a reason why the Tories’ “back to square one” jibe is a gift to Labour.
Changing demographics though have real political impacts. For example people will increasingly vote along racial lines and the chance of another Thatcher coming to power becomes near impossible.
Absolute bollocks that the USA has better beer than here.
The beer is much better there than 30 years ago, no one in their right mind could disagree. But, it’s still largely fizzy and cold craft beer. Cask ales remain rare. Most of the time in the States (and yes, Leon, I travel a lot) I find myself gasping for a proper pint.
@Leon might like hoppy craft IPA. Give me a pint of Landlord, Tribute or Broadside any day of the week.
Yes, give me cask over craft any day.
Craft is a hipster trying to write a Guardian article with fermented hops.
Not so much. Craft used to be microbreweries run by hipsters, but now it's just marketing by the big brewers.
It's the same across all counter-culture, just a few years from authenticity to corporate marketing. Bud Light for example.
I keep bottles of Reverend James, Brains SA Gold, Brains Dark and Double Dragon in the beer fridge for wayward travellers. They are welcome to them. I'd much rather a very occasional Peroni.
Again, fizzy shit, including the bottled bitters. Cask ale from a pub is where it is at.
At University I lived in a shared house in Splott. Every weekday night (Sunday to Thursday) five of us would trot down to the Splottlands for five pints of Brains Dark. On Friday and Saturday it was to the Old Arcade, the best Brains pub in central Cardiff for Brains SA. I can't think what was wrong with me. I wouldn't touch any of that now. Simply vile
One wonders what the polling might be if Corbyn were still in charge?
Something I've been toying with on my lunchbreaks of late - what would have happened if Cameron stayed on after the brexit vote for say six months. Allow time for a decent campaign for a new leader and who that might have been.
I have little doubt it would have been Johnson; we'd still have ended up in a similar situation to today.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
There's analysis, and there's analysis.
Just like there's a jug of cold, clean water. And a boot full of luke-warm piss.
Your point re: traditional Labour nativist voters IS well-taken. Not too different in viewpoint from many traditional blue-collar Democrats.
Who often turn out to be themselves the grandchildren of immigrants. In USA, only takes a couple generations - and you can be a native (in non-indigenous sense) too!
Indeed, such nativism can be means for demonstrating ones own credentials as a "real" American.
I think a part of the problem is the lack of leadership from politicians. As in, coming up with a plan and trying to actually sell it to the people.
The problem with democracy is that people think they are entitled to a choice. Therefore they need to be persuaded. Which is why I rather like Lincoln - he spent time and great energy in making his case and *moving* public opinion.
One wonders what the polling might be if Corbyn were still in charge?
Something I've been toying with on my lunchbreaks of late - what would have happened if Cameron stayed on after the brexit vote for say six months. Allow time for a decent campaign for a new leader and who that might have been.
I have little doubt it would have been Johnson; we'd still have ended up in a similar situation to today.
Old people longing for the good old days is a story even older than the people telling it.
Nostalgia combined with feeling like you've been left behind by today's societal norma is all it takes.
Unlike the unpatriotic, nationalist right, I think Britain is a great place to live as a whole. Great cities, great countryside, sport, music, arts, liberal democracy and an openness to other cultures that makes our food a great melting pot rather than sticking with our more limited traditional cuisine.
And Britain's openness means we won't shrivel and die as a nation due to population decline like many others like Japan, South Korea or Italy. We have plenty of opportunities if we collectively take them.
Now there's a million things that need fixing - and voting out this tired government is a necessary step on that journey - but let's wholeheartedly reject the 'old man shouting at clouds' nonsense from looms on twitter.
However…
Nostalgia wins votes. Including misplaced nostalgia. A powerful emotion from which none of us is immune. Best not to ignore it.
Labour can, if they play it well, harness a certain kind of nostalgia to their electoral advantage: for a functioning health service, councils that could afford to fix the potholes, the ability to build railways. Maybe even the days when you could hop across the channel and fill up with unlimited booze and cigs.
It’s a reason why the Tories’ “back to square one” jibe is a gift to Labour.
Eammon de Valera yearned to see comely Celtic colleens dancing at Irish crossroads (or was it in Temple Bar strip clubs?)
John Major dreamed of elderly spinsters bicycling down English lanes to Evensong (or was it to their next AA meeting?)
A point about diverse societies. They work well in prosperous times and in prosperous parts of the country. For example diversity works much better in london than rochdale. However when times become harder all bets are off as when resources are limited humans start to become very tribal.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The problem isn’t with HYUFD’s analysis. The problem is with Leon again playing the provocateur, finding excuses to re-post fascistic drivel because it’s “interesting”. The contents of Leon’s Twitter feed, the contents of anyone’s Twitter feed, are not remotely representative of anything. The appropriate response to someone being an edgelord is to tell them to piss off.
A point about diverse societies. They work well in prosperous times and in prosperous parts of the country. For example diversity works much better in london than rochdale. However when times become harder all bets are off as when resources are limited humans start to become very tribal.
At a guess with the absence of capitalised letters for your proper nouns you might be a few days early. On what number post do you plan to go full-frontal anti-vax?
Polls now closing in Georgia 2024 Presidential Primary
Later tonight (or early morning for most PBers) results from Mississippi, Washington State AND Hawaii.
Yours truly dropped WA ballot off at my neighborhood post office earlier today. Deadline for ballot returns here is 8pm Pacific Daylight Time OR postmarked by midnight.
Old people longing for the good old days is a story even older than the people telling it.
Nostalgia combined with feeling like you've been left behind by today's societal norma is all it takes.
Unlike the unpatriotic, nationalist right, I think Britain is a great place to live as a whole. Great cities, great countryside, sport, music, arts, liberal democracy and an openness to other cultures that makes our food a great melting pot rather than sticking with our more limited traditional cuisine.
And Britain's openness means we won't shrivel and die as a nation due to population decline like many others like Japan, South Korea or Italy. We have plenty of opportunities if we collectively take them.
Now there's a million things that need fixing - and voting out this tired government is a necessary step on that journey - but let's wholeheartedly reject the 'old man shouting at clouds' nonsense from loons on twitter.
With regard to great cities. There is one world class city London Edinburgh also pretty nice. After that our cities range between the meh manchester pretty ugly all in all despite an ok centre and the downright awful such as bradford.
Also many of our towns are totally depressing. Then tou have the weather.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The problem isn’t with HYUFD’s analysis. The problem is with Leon again playing the provocateur, finding excuses to re-post fascistic drivel because it’s “interesting”. The contents of Leon’s Twitter feed, the contents of anyone’s Twitter feed, are not remotely representative of anything. The appropriate response to someone being an edgelord is to tell them to piss off.
You’re just quite stupid
Did you not see that poll which had the British as the 2nd most depressed people on earth, behind the Uzbeks?
That viral tweet will chime with many many people. Hence, I guess, its virality
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The charts do tell a fairly statistically stark story though. Tory and Ref voting intention are very closely inversely correlated. Lab and Ref not really at all. So that tells me you can, to a degree, add Reform to the Tories. Assuming swingback and turnout.
Whereas Green and Lib Dem are partly inversely correlated with Lab VI but partly independent. So you can’t just assume they come back to Lab (though they may vote tactically).
That the Tory and Ref voting intention are closely inversely correlated tells you that Ref voters are former Con voters. That doesn’t mean they’re going to return to the Conservatives, any more than 2019 Conservative voters now supporting Labour are going to return to the Conservatives. They might, they might not.
People presume that voters switching from Con to Ref are really Tories that can just be coaxed back with some populist right-wing policies. I think it’s the reverse. The success of Ref UK is a result of people being turned off by the Tories and looking for someone else to support. If Ref UK disappeared overnight, those voters wouldn’t suddenly love the Tories again. They’d find some other non-Tory party to support.
Old people longing for the good old days is a story even older than the people telling it.
Nostalgia combined with feeling like you've been left behind by today's societal norma is all it takes.
Unlike the unpatriotic, nationalist right, I think Britain is a great place to live as a whole. Great cities, great countryside, sport, music, arts, liberal democracy and an openness to other cultures that makes our food a great melting pot rather than sticking with our more limited traditional cuisine.
And Britain's openness means we won't shrivel and die as a nation due to population decline like many others like Japan, South Korea or Italy. We have plenty of opportunities if we collectively take them.
Now there's a million things that need fixing - and voting out this tired government is a necessary step on that journey - but let's wholeheartedly reject the 'old man shouting at clouds' nonsense from loons on twitter.
With regard to great cities. There is one world class city London Edinburgh also pretty nice. After that our cities range between the meh manchester pretty ugly all in all despite an ok centre and the downright awful such as bradford.
Also many of our towns are totally depressing. Then tou have the weather.
Also liberal democracy doesnt seem to be the trend for this century as the number of democracies are falling in the world. We have only had the universal franchise since about 1930 a relatively short time and we are now seeing how democracies cant get anything done. Also you have an older population consistently voting their interests at the expense of the young.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The problem isn’t with HYUFD’s analysis. The problem is with Leon again playing the provocateur, finding excuses to re-post fascistic drivel because it’s “interesting”. The contents of Leon’s Twitter feed, the contents of anyone’s Twitter feed, are not remotely representative of anything. The appropriate response to someone being an edgelord is to tell them to piss off.
You’re just quite stupid
Did you not see that poll which had the British as the 2nd most depressed people on earth, behind the Uzbeks?
That viral tweet will chime with many many people. Hence, I guess, its virality
I think many on pb are in a little bubble older with paid off houses likely living in rich white areas. The classic unconcerned boomers in many cases.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The charts do tell a fairly statistically stark story though. Tory and Ref voting intention are very closely inversely correlated. Lab and Ref not really at all. So that tells me you can, to a degree, add Reform to the Tories. Assuming swingback and turnout.
Whereas Green and Lib Dem are partly inversely correlated with Lab VI but partly independent. So you can’t just assume they come back to Lab (though they may vote tactically).
That the Tory and Ref voting intention are closely inversely correlated tells you that Ref voters are former Con voters. That doesn’t mean they’re going to return to the Conservatives, any more than 2019 Conservative voters now supporting Labour are going to return to the Conservatives. They might, they might not.
People presume that voters switching from Con to Ref are really Tories that can just be coaxed back with some populist right-wing policies. I think it’s the reverse. The success of Ref UK is a result of people being turned off by the Tories and looking for someone else to support. If Ref UK disappeared overnight, those voters wouldn’t suddenly love the Tories again. They’d find some other non-Tory party to support.
There was a rather good YouTube video posted here the other day, about the non posh people who used to vote Conservative.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The charts do tell a fairly statistically stark story though. Tory and Ref voting intention are very closely inversely correlated. Lab and Ref not really at all. So that tells me you can, to a degree, add Reform to the Tories. Assuming swingback and turnout.
Whereas Green and Lib Dem are partly inversely correlated with Lab VI but partly independent. So you can’t just assume they come back to Lab (though they may vote tactically).
That the Tory and Ref voting intention are closely inversely correlated tells you that Ref voters are former Con voters. That doesn’t mean they’re going to return to the Conservatives, any more than 2019 Conservative voters now supporting Labour are going to return to the Conservatives. They might, they might not.
People presume that voters switching from Con to Ref are really Tories that can just be coaxed back with some populist right-wing policies. I think it’s the reverse. The success of Ref UK is a result of people being turned off by the Tories and looking for someone else to support. If Ref UK disappeared overnight, those voters wouldn’t suddenly love the Tories again. They’d find some other non-Tory party to support.
There was a rather good YouTube video posted here the other day, about the non posh people who used to vote Conservative.
Old people longing for the good old days is a story even older than the people telling it.
Nostalgia combined with feeling like you've been left behind by today's societal norma is all it takes.
Unlike the unpatriotic, nationalist right, I think Britain is a great place to live as a whole. Great cities, great countryside, sport, music, arts, liberal democracy and an openness to other cultures that makes our food a great melting pot rather than sticking with our more limited traditional cuisine.
And Britain's openness means we won't shrivel and die as a nation due to population decline like many others like Japan, South Korea or Italy. We have plenty of opportunities if we collectively take them.
Now there's a million things that need fixing - and voting out this tired government is a necessary step on that journey - but let's wholeheartedly reject the 'old man shouting at clouds' nonsense from loons on twitter.
With regard to great cities. There is one world class city London Edinburgh also pretty nice. After that our cities range between the meh manchester pretty ugly all in all despite an ok centre and the downright awful such as bradford.
Also many of our towns are totally depressing. Then tou have the weather.
What about Salisbury?
Impressive cathedral.
Not much else though, and very small. Does a nice cathedral alone make a good city?
Sadly it is not opening for me, which is a shame, as it'd be a change of pace for him to have an interesting tweet as opposed to some trolling try-hard comment which is a bit depressing coming from such a rich and powerful person.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The charts do tell a fairly statistically stark story though. Tory and Ref voting intention are very closely inversely correlated. Lab and Ref not really at all. So that tells me you can, to a degree, add Reform to the Tories. Assuming swingback and turnout.
Whereas Green and Lib Dem are partly inversely correlated with Lab VI but partly independent. So you can’t just assume they come back to Lab (though they may vote tactically).
That the Tory and Ref voting intention are closely inversely correlated tells you that Ref voters are former Con voters. That doesn’t mean they’re going to return to the Conservatives, any more than 2019 Conservative voters now supporting Labour are going to return to the Conservatives. They might, they might not.
People presume that voters switching from Con to Ref are really Tories that can just be coaxed back with some populist right-wing policies. I think it’s the reverse. The success of Ref UK is a result of people being turned off by the Tories and looking for someone else to support. If Ref UK disappeared overnight, those voters wouldn’t suddenly love the Tories again. They’d find some other non-Tory party to support.
There was a rather good YouTube video posted here the other day, about the non posh people who used to vote Conservative.
The servants?
Ha!
No - it was from someone who came from the background in question and even done a PhD on the sociology of the environs he came from.
It was describing a world view and the types of people - some money, but not thinking of themselves as much above the working class the came from, “self made”, suspicious of the state, cash oriented, wanting little change…
In maelstrom of Trump landslide in Georgia, Haley is winning 20% or slightly more in a slew of counties; the Peach State is chopped up into a LOT of small counties.
Suspect most of her best counties have somewhat higher income/education levels and/or a college or university.
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The charts do tell a fairly statistically stark story though. Tory and Ref voting intention are very closely inversely correlated. Lab and Ref not really at all. So that tells me you can, to a degree, add Reform to the Tories. Assuming swingback and turnout.
Whereas Green and Lib Dem are partly inversely correlated with Lab VI but partly independent. So you can’t just assume they come back to Lab (though they may vote tactically).
That the Tory and Ref voting intention are closely inversely correlated tells you that Ref voters are former Con voters. That doesn’t mean they’re going to return to the Conservatives, any more than 2019 Conservative voters now supporting Labour are going to return to the Conservatives. They might, they might not.
People presume that voters switching from Con to Ref are really Tories that can just be coaxed back with some populist right-wing policies. I think it’s the reverse. The success of Ref UK is a result of people being turned off by the Tories and looking for someone else to support. If Ref UK disappeared overnight, those voters wouldn’t suddenly love the Tories again. They’d find some other non-Tory party to support.
There was a rather good YouTube video posted here the other day, about the non posh people who used to vote Conservative.
The servants?
Ha!
No - it was from someone who came from the background in question and even done a PhD on the sociology of the environs he came from.
It was describing a world view and the types of people - some money, but not thinking of themselves as much above the working class the came from, “self made”, suspicious of the state, cash oriented, wanting little change…
Judging from your handle I assume you've seen at some point at least the traditional mixture of Tories one gets in the deep blue Shires - genteel and well to do farmer types, and often urban based unpretentious small c conservative types predominant.
Thesedays there's a bit more fiery young Tories about as well, against the run of play nationally.
Sadly it is not opening for me, which is a shame, as it'd be a change of pace for him to have an interesting tweet as opposed to some trolling try-hard comment which is a bit depressing coming from such a rich and powerful person.
I follow musk. The same way I follow Aaron Bastani. Twitter only works if you harvest a variety of opinions from all over
Musk is definitely trending more to the right with every day, I can see him coming out for Trump
Incidentally Bastani also seems to be moving right. He’s quite an interesting character and far from the unthinking knee jerk corbynite he used to be. He’s more soft left now, with occasional flashes of radical Toryism
Amazing quote from a senior Tory source in ace @MrHarryCole story.
“7 months is a long time in politics. Just imagine what would happen if England won the Euros, Team GB had a hat full of gold at the Olympics — the landscape could be very different.”
Delusional.
If nothing else we've had a very good run at the Olympics since 2008, we might be due for a bad run!
And I get the theory that if people feel good they won't be so hard on the government of the day, but there are limits. People felt good about WW2 ending, they didn't reward the incumbent Prime Minister.
Sadly it is not opening for me, which is a shame, as it'd be a change of pace for him to have an interesting tweet as opposed to some trolling try-hard comment which is a bit depressing coming from such a rich and powerful person.
I follow musk. The same way I follow Aaron Bastani. Twitter only works if you harvest a variety of opinions from all over
Musk is definitely trending more to the right with every day, I can see him coming out for Trump
Incidentally Bastani also seems to be moving right. He’s quite an interesting character and far from the unthinking knee jerk corbynite he used to be. He’s more soft left now, with occasional flashes of radical Toryism
He often has surprising and insightful opinions
Since politics in real life is a bit of a hotchpotch it's more realistic for someone to even just occasionally have an opinion which sits on the 'wrong' side of their general political beliefs, without that undermining that being their identity.
What's weird is when people go on these sorts of journey where they start out with one untrendy opinion for their political tribe, and end up adopting all or most of the position of the opposing tribe over time, as if it is impossible to dabble here and there.
Maybe as a career it is impossible, since you just piss people off, but it is interesting to see Bastani have some nuance.
Or maybe it's just tied to the same weird phenomenom wherein totally unrelated ideas which don't align on an ideological basis are lumped together as if integrally connected.
Amazing quote from a senior Tory source in ace @MrHarryCole story.
“7 months is a long time in politics. Just imagine what would happen if England won the Euros, Team GB had a hat full of gold at the Olympics — the landscape could be very different.”
7 months is a long time in politics. Just imagine if there was a record number of boat crossings - the landscape could be no different than it is right now?
Does it come across as a last minute attempt by senior MPs to stop Team Sunak calling the election? What else could have made it lively debate? A 1922 revolt against a May election they think is about to happen?
Musk should withhold a formal endorsement of Trump no matter how much he likes him for no reason other than that Trump still prefers to post on his twitter knockoff (and will apparently make billions out of it eventually) rather than twitter itself.
Amazing quote from a senior Tory source in ace @MrHarryCole story.
“7 months is a long time in politics. Just imagine what would happen if England won the Euros, Team GB had a hat full of gold at the Olympics — the landscape could be very different.”
Delusional.
If nothing else we've had a very good run at the Olympics since 2008, we might be due for a bad run!
And I get the theory that if people feel good they won't be so hard on the government of the day, but there are limits. People felt good about WW2 ending, they didn't reward the incumbent Prime Minister.
Remember reading strategy report in late 1991, written by Democratic strategist, who said that 1992 Olympics would give George Bush (the Elder & Better) a major boost, what with USA! USA! plus visuals of flag of Kuwait along with those of allies entering the stadium in triumph . . .
Also liberal democracy doesnt seem to be the trend for this century as the number of democracies are falling in the world. We have only had the universal franchise since about 1930 a relatively short time and we are now seeing how democracies cant get anything done. Also you have an older population consistently voting their interests at the expense of the young.
Perhaps the suboptimal voting system in the UK has something to do with the suboptimal outcomes?
I honestly think that the Tories have gone completely potty. They're making all the same PR mistakes Johnson made. Keir Starmer is a lucky general to be facing such a bunch of muppets.
Labour's racist? The Tories will be more racist.
Labour would spend money out of thin air? The Tories will spend more.
Labour's split? The Tories will split more.
Starmer is boring? Rishi will be weird.
It is like the script of how to lose, it's genuinely baffling that they are this bad.
Amazing quote from a senior Tory source in ace @MrHarryCole story.
“7 months is a long time in politics. Just imagine what would happen if England won the Euros, Team GB had a hat full of gold at the Olympics — the landscape could be very different.”
Delusional.
If nothing else we've had a very good run at the Olympics since 2008, we might be due for a bad run!
And I get the theory that if people feel good they won't be so hard on the government of the day, but there are limits. People felt good about WW2 ending, they didn't reward the incumbent Prime Minister.
I’m afraid I really don’t subscribe to the sporting success = election success theory. And even if there is a small impact, the oft used example - Labours loss in 1970 after the World Cup loss - came mere days after the match.
Amazing quote from a senior Tory source in ace @MrHarryCole story.
“7 months is a long time in politics. Just imagine what would happen if England won the Euros, Team GB had a hat full of gold at the Olympics — the landscape could be very different.”
Delusional.
If nothing else we've had a very good run at the Olympics since 2008, we might be due for a bad run!
And I get the theory that if people feel good they won't be so hard on the government of the day, but there are limits. People felt good about WW2 ending, they didn't reward the incumbent Prime Minister.
Remember reading strategy report in late 1991, written by Democratic strategist, who said that 1992 Olympics would give George Bush (the Elder & Better) a major boost, what with USA! USA! plus visuals of flag of Kuwait along with those of allies entering the stadium in triumph . . .
“The appeal of Britain--of England--is that it was a small and settled place, which was homely and cosy, in which a person could feel truly relaxed and at their ease. That people could trust one another, help one another, and believe the people in power were actually doing their best. This made us a polished gem among the nations.
All that is gone now, of course. What was a delicate social fabric that had been woven together through hundreds of years of closeness and companionship was utterly destroyed in only a few decades by the ravages of mass immigration, Blair's social contractism, and the attempt to instantiate an artificial liberal order oriented towards universal recognition for all groups.
Now, nobody feels at home, everyone feels that they must be on their guard, and Britain is a colder and more depressing place for it.
This was not what was asked for and nobody knows how to fix this mess. The country is despondent, dilapidated, and decomposing, but there is nothing to be done. The answers are out of reach to our mediocre political class and the public realise that it isn't that voting won't work, but there is nobody worth voting for because nobody presents a genuine alternative that doesn't seem like pure evil.
Even if some kind of fascist group came to power, they would be unable to bring back the gentle, loving country that once existed here because their means would be alien to this land and their harsh methods would feel like an invasion. The nostalgia that the right has for the time that existed within our living memories can't be brought back by any of the means at our disposal.
So what is to be done? Not much, it seems, as the turnout to elections would suggest there is a malaise that lies over the people of this country… Things will get worse because nothing can be done to make them better, so why wouldn't you simply leave and move somewhere else? It is irrational not to do so, but that means giving up on a historical continuity that almost no other country can boast.
I think this is why people in Britain are among the most unhappy in the world, but they just lack the means by which they can articulate the problem.
This was ours, and it was given away by our political class over the last 25 years. This is why people like Lee Anderson say things like "I want my country back." It is gone and they stole it without our consent and have given it away to people we never invited to share it with us. Then, of all things, we are told that it was never ours to begin with and every foreigner on Earth has as much right to it as we did in the first place.
Depression doesn't even begin to describe what I think the British people are feeling at the moment.“
I’m not sure Britain was ever THAT cosy - hence our enormous empire. But some of this chimes with me
Sounds like the white nationalism that is also voting for Trump, Meloni, Le Pen, NZ First, Vox, the Sweden Democrats etc.
It is not unique to Britain with our rising Reform vote wanting to turn the clock back and move the immigrants back to their birthplace
What a depressing second paragraph. I hope you are reporting rather than advocating.
It is utterly horrible and shames everyone who thinks like that
Indeed I find it difficult to believe @HYUFD could pen such words
Bit of late night virtue signalling as you crave a few likes before going to bed.
@HYUFD was doing analysis not arguing for it, as should be very obvious.
I have no need for likes but will object to the anyone saying tyey want to move immigrants back to their birthplace
Yes but. We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful. I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter. For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too. It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
The charts do tell a fairly statistically stark story though. Tory and Ref voting intention are very closely inversely correlated. Lab and Ref not really at all. So that tells me you can, to a degree, add Reform to the Tories. Assuming swingback and turnout.
Whereas Green and Lib Dem are partly inversely correlated with Lab VI but partly independent. So you can’t just assume they come back to Lab (though they may vote tactically).
That the Tory and Ref voting intention are closely inversely correlated tells you that Ref voters are former Con voters. That doesn’t mean they’re going to return to the Conservatives, any more than 2019 Conservative voters now supporting Labour are going to return to the Conservatives. They might, they might not.
People presume that voters switching from Con to Ref are really Tories that can just be coaxed back with some populist right-wing policies. I think it’s the reverse. The success of Ref UK is a result of people being turned off by the Tories and looking for someone else to support. If Ref UK disappeared overnight, those voters wouldn’t suddenly love the Tories again. They’d find some other non-Tory party to support.
There was a rather good YouTube video posted here the other day, about the non posh people who used to vote Conservative.
The servants?
Ha!
No - it was from someone who came from the background in question and even done a PhD on the sociology of the environs he came from.
It was describing a world view and the types of people - some money, but not thinking of themselves as much above the working class the came from, “self made”, suspicious of the state, cash oriented, wanting little change…
Judging from your handle I assume you've seen at some point at least the traditional mixture of Tories one gets in the deep blue Shires - genteel and well to do farmer types, and often urban based unpretentious small c conservative types predominant.
Thesedays there's a bit more fiery young Tories about as well, against the run of play nationally.
Yes.
I’ve also seen how incomers shove the locals out of the pretty stone houses in the village, into the shitty estate over the hill. Then wonder why they vote to smash things up.
Also liberal democracy doesnt seem to be the trend for this century as the number of democracies are falling in the world. We have only had the universal franchise since about 1930 a relatively short time and we are now seeing how democracies cant get anything done. Also you have an older population consistently voting their interests at the expense of the young.
Perhaps the suboptimal voting system in the UK has something to do with the suboptimal outcomes?
Not as a major factor I suspect. I want a reformed voting system as I think it would be fairer, but people can overplay how much changing it would alter things. Some places with better (in my eyes) voting systems still struggle to get things done, and it's not as though those with the same as ours have never been able to get things done.
Amazing quote from a senior Tory source in ace @MrHarryCole story.
“7 months is a long time in politics. Just imagine what would happen if England won the Euros, Team GB had a hat full of gold at the Olympics — the landscape could be very different.”
Legend has it that Wilson unexpectedly lost the 1970 general election partly as a result of England losing in the World Cup but I'm not sure waiting for England to win the 2024 Euro's is a sensible strategy for Rishi and the Tories...
I honestly think that the Tories have gone completely potty. They're making all the same PR mistakes Johnson made. Keir Starmer is a lucky general to be facing such a bunch of muppets.
Labour's racist? The Tories will be more racist.
Labour would spend money out of thin air? The Tories will spend more.
Labour's split? The Tories will split more.
Starmer is boring? Rishi will be weird.
It is like the script of how to lose, it's genuinely baffling that they are this bad.
The honest truth is that there has been a vacuum of competent people at the heart of government for some time now. Brexit hollowed out/removed a lot of the talent in the party, and the upper echelons are now filled with people who just aren’t very good at politics and media management. People like Truss and Sunak (and their respective acolytes) should never have got as far as Number 10.
Comments
You do this Conservative administration a grave disservice. Once eradicated childhood diseases like rickets, measles and scurvy are back in vogue. I'd say you can tick that box!
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/mar/12/workplace-ai-robots-trackers-quality-of-life-institute-for-work
It was a look and of milk and honey, where small urchins would tug their forelock respectfully as you watched them stitch up the delicate social fabric, and womble happily lived alongside hobbit in peace and harmony.
That's why I'm voting for that nice Mr Farage.
We need to discriminate between those who are engaging in cold analysis, which sometimes is uncomfortable for our own political tribe, and those propounding their own views which we find distasteful.
I agree with @HYUFD's analysis, and I'm a longstanding Labour voter.
For the record, I'm also dubious that their surge comes entirely from the Right of the Tory Party. They are also garnering substantial support from the anti-foreign traditional Labour vote, too.
It's why I don't buy the "just add Reform to the Tories" argument.
“I am not going to lie on behalf of my presidential candidate, on behalf of my party. And I'm very sad that others in my party have taken the position that as long as we get the White House, it doesn't really matter what we say.”
https://twitter.com/AccountableGOP/status/1765046763612934644
Fine if you like fizzy cold beer.
Please think before posting.
Therein lies the problem. CAMRA still have a job to do.
This being Japan, it's probably about 50m tall now, rather than dead.
Goodness, it's getting serious for Sunak.
Watching Hur hearing, interesting no one has mentioned that the ultimate, bedrock reason Joe Biden was not indicted is longstanding Justice Department policy that a sitting president cannot be indicted. Whatever circumstances, will not happen with Biden in White House.
https://twitter.com/ByronYork/status/1767565618813775945
Fact staring in the face anyone capable of reading.
The second sentence of Hur’s report outlining his reasons for not charging Biden is: “We would reach the same conclusion even if Department of Justice policy did not foreclose criminal charges against a sitting president.”
https://twitter.com/bradheath/status/1767645444627185974
Nostalgia combined with feeling like you've been left behind by today's societal norma is all it takes.
Unlike the unpatriotic, nationalist right, I think Britain is a great place to live as a whole. Great cities, great countryside, sport, music, arts, liberal democracy and an openness to other cultures that makes our food a great melting pot rather than sticking with our more limited traditional cuisine.
And Britain's openness means we won't shrivel and die as a nation due to population decline like many others like Japan, South Korea or Italy. We have plenty of opportunities if we collectively take them.
Now there's a million things that need fixing - and voting out this tired government is a necessary step on that journey - but let's wholeheartedly reject the 'old man shouting at clouds' nonsense from loons on twitter.
Whereas Green and Lib Dem are partly inversely correlated with Lab VI but partly independent. So you can’t just assume they come back to Lab (though they may vote tactically).
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamata_disease
https://news.sky.com/story/children-to-no-longer-be-prescribed-puberty-blockers-nhs-england-confirms-13093251
Nostalgia wins votes. Including misplaced nostalgia. A powerful emotion from which none of us is immune. Best not to ignore it.
Labour can, if they play it well, harness a certain kind of nostalgia to their electoral advantage: for a functioning health service, councils that could afford to fix the potholes, the ability to build railways. Maybe even the days when you could hop across the channel and fill up with unlimited booze and cigs.
It’s a reason why the Tories’ “back to square one” jibe is a gift to Labour.
Just like there's a jug of cold, clean water. And a boot full of luke-warm piss.
Your point re: traditional Labour nativist voters IS well-taken. Not too different in viewpoint from many traditional blue-collar Democrats.
Who often turn out to be themselves the grandchildren of immigrants. In USA, only takes a couple generations - and you can be a native (in non-indigenous sense) too!
Indeed, such nativism can be means for demonstrating ones own credentials as a "real" American.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/More-Adventures-Fat-Freddys-Cat/dp/0896200574
https://feelingmyage.co.uk/more-fat-freddys-cat/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jr6CyU-Ev_M
If any single issue can ensure Trump’s re-election, it is chaos on America’s Mexican border, a source of mounting concern that extends far beyond his core supporters. Continuing inflows of illegal aliens have produced dissension and opposition in Texas, New York and “sanctuary cities” such as Chicago, where communities of various ethnicities have protested against its effects on public services. Yet for many Democrat activists, voters’ resistance to mass immigration is not much more than an expression of popular racism. American liberals are reprising the hubristic disregard for their fellow citizens that led to Trump’s victory in 2016"
https://www.newstatesman.com/comment/2024/02/the-trumpian-end-of-the-liberal-world-order
Relevant reading for the discussion re the Sargon of Akkad essay
The problem with democracy is that people think they are entitled to a choice. Therefore they need to be persuaded. Which is why I rather like Lincoln - he spent time and great energy in making his case and *moving* public opinion.
John Major dreamed of elderly spinsters bicycling down English lanes to Evensong (or was it to their next AA meeting?)
Later tonight (or early morning for most PBers) results from Mississippi, Washington State AND Hawaii.
Yours truly dropped WA ballot off at my neighborhood post office earlier today. Deadline for ballot returns here is 8pm Pacific Daylight Time OR postmarked by midnight.
There is one world class city London
Edinburgh also pretty nice.
After that our cities range between the meh manchester pretty ugly all in all despite an ok centre and the downright awful such as bradford.
Also many of our towns are totally depressing.
Then tou have the weather.
Did you not see that poll which had the British as the 2nd most depressed people on earth, behind the Uzbeks?
That viral tweet will chime with many many people. Hence, I guess, its virality
https://twitter.com/anneapplebaum/status/1767652021467750796
Tear gas and a hammer.
I don’t think it was the locals.
People presume that voters switching from Con to Ref are really Tories that can just be coaxed back with some populist right-wing policies. I think it’s the reverse. The success of Ref UK is a result of people being turned off by the Tories and looking for someone else to support. If Ref UK disappeared overnight, those voters wouldn’t suddenly love the Tories again. They’d find some other non-Tory party to support.
Can you tell any difference between SeanT’s and Truman’s posts this evening?
Impressive cathedral.
SSI - Please don't laugh tooooooo loud.
and you get this:
https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1766974165360214400?s=20
“Have you ever sieved sand through a screen?”
No - it was from someone who came from the background in question and even done a PhD on the sociology of the environs he came from.
It was describing a world view and the types of people - some money, but not thinking of themselves as much above the working class the came from, “self made”, suspicious of the state, cash oriented, wanting little change…
Suspect most of her best counties have somewhat higher income/education levels and/or a college or university.
Thesedays there's a bit more fiery young Tories about as well, against the run of play nationally.
Musk is definitely trending more to the right with every day, I can see him coming out for Trump
Incidentally Bastani also seems to be moving right. He’s quite an interesting character and far from the unthinking knee jerk corbynite he used to be. He’s more soft left now, with occasional flashes of radical Toryism
He often has surprising and insightful opinions
If nothing else we've had a very good run at the Olympics since 2008, we might be due for a bad run!
And I get the theory that if people feel good they won't be so hard on the government of the day, but there are limits. People felt good about WW2 ending, they didn't reward the incumbent Prime Minister.
So far his worst, her best county.
PS - County named after William Pitt the Elder, Earl of Chatham.
What's weird is when people go on these sorts of journey where they start out with one untrendy opinion for their political tribe, and end up adopting all or most of the position of the opposing tribe over time, as if it is impossible to dabble here and there.
Maybe as a career it is impossible, since you just piss people off, but it is interesting to see Bastani have some nuance.
Or maybe it's just tied to the same weird phenomenom wherein totally unrelated ideas which don't align on an ideological basis are lumped together as if integrally connected.
Does it come across as a last minute attempt by senior MPs to stop Team Sunak calling the election? What else could have made it lively debate? A 1922 revolt against a May election they think is about to happen?
Labour's racist? The Tories will be more racist.
Labour would spend money out of thin air? The Tories will spend more.
Labour's split? The Tories will split more.
Starmer is boring? Rishi will be weird.
It is like the script of how to lose, it's genuinely baffling that they are this bad.
I’ve also seen how incomers shove the locals out of the pretty stone houses in the village, into the shitty estate over the hill. Then wonder why they vote to smash things up.