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A thread to catalogue the eloquence, dignity, diplomacy and wisdom of Boris Johnson

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While this (running - as ever in pfm) commentary on the corruption in the media is all true I am finding the calls from the usual protagonists in pfm's Off Topic mafia for media reform a bit hard to take. When the country spent millions on Lord Leveson's report into the press and then decided to ignore the recommendations that would have been the bedrock for wider media reform and independently assessed accountability some of us, through the likes of Hacked Off, campaigned vehemently for their implementation. I myself attended multiple events, became such a nuisance to my then MP that he literally ran away from our last meeting and spent an inordinate amount of my time canvassing for support from the more general public by various means. In my experience the latter was generally met with extreme apathy and sometimes outright hostility.

Now I sit here reading all the above and wondering just how many of those commenting in this way did anything at all (other than posting on an Internet forum that few people read) when Cameron's government decided to ignore Leveson's recommendations completely. I suspect the answer is likely, in most cases, to be very little. You reap what you sow!!
So, what you're saying is, you were into it before it was fashionable?
 
Well, the greatest corrupting force in the ‘Anglosphere’ must be reaching the end of the road now. It will be a genuine cause for celebration when the day comes and it’ll be interesting to see if the sons announce a new way of doing business. No one even a decade ago could have imagined the vision of hell on earth that is Trump-Fox, the British simply inured to The Sun over decades with all attempts to rein it in bought off in Westminster.

He poisoned the well.

Given the path we are on and the toxic media landscape that surround us I fear our destination. There are already observable examples of what this might be.

Chuck in covid chaos and economic hardship with a brexit chaser and there is genuine cause for concern.
 
While this (running - as ever in pfm) commentary on the corruption in the media is all true I am finding the calls from the usual protagonists in pfm's Off Topic mafia for media reform a bit hard to take. When the country spent millions on Lord Leveson's report into the press and then decided to ignore the recommendations that would have been the bedrock for wider media reform and independently assessed accountability some of us, through the likes of Hacked Off, campaigned vehemently for their implementation. I myself attended multiple events, became such a nuisance to my then MP that he literally ran away from our last meeting and spent an inordinate amount of my time canvassing for support from the more general public by various means. In my experience the latter was generally met with extreme apathy and sometimes outright hostility.

Now I sit here reading all the above and wondering just how many of those commenting in this way did anything at all (other than posting on an Internet forum that few people read) when Cameron's government decided to ignore Leveson's recommendations completely. I suspect the answer is likely, in most cases, to be very little. You reap what you sow!!
I campaigned for the Labour Party and donated several times my membership fee to the fighting fund. Good enough for you?
 
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Now I sit here reading all the above and wondering just how many of those commenting in this way did anything at all (other than posting on an Internet forum that few people read) when Cameron's government decided to ignore Leveson's recommendations completely. I suspect the answer is likely, in most cases, to be very little. You reap what you sow!!

What exactly can we do other than sign arguably useless petitions (I signed several) and vote against the Conservative Party at every opportunity? I certainly don’t buy or fund any of the right-wing press (e.g. I have no Sky subscription) and have frequently publicised both #StopFundingHate and LedByDonkeys on this site, an act which has certainly raised money for both. What more do you want?
 
What exactly can we do other than sign arguably useless petitions (I signed several) and vote against the Conservative Party at every opportunity? I certainly don’t buy or fund any of the right-wing press (e.g. I have no Sky subscription) and have frequently publicised both #StopFundingHate and LedByDonkeys on this site, an act which has certainly raised money for both. What more do you want?
This is an object lesson in exactly how little power is in the hands of the people. Taking back control? My arse.
 
What exactly can we do other than sign arguably useless petitions (I signed several) and vote against the Conservative Party at every opportunity? I certainly don’t buy or fund any of the right-wing press (e.g. I have no Sky subscription) and have frequently publicised both #StopFundingHate and LedByDonkeys on this site, an act which has certainly raised money for both. What more do you want?

Don't worry, forget it, the time has passed. Just find the general tone about how awful the press are wearing when 10 years ago very few seemed to want to know. Too late now anyway, this country will likely never see a change in what's left of my lifetime.
 
Her Twitter feed is well worth a read (link). Not a Tory. I like the definition of ‘Johnsonian’.
There’s a groundswell of resentment building, evidenced by the contributions to those threads. I don’t know how widespread it is, but if it is anything like representative of public feeling, then we are possibly closer to a civil uprising than at any time in my life.
 
What exactly can we do other than sign arguably useless petitions (I signed several) and vote against the Conservative Party at every opportunity? I certainly don’t buy or fund any of the right-wing press (e.g. I have no Sky subscription) and have frequently publicised both #StopFundingHate and LedByDonkeys on this site, an act which has certainly raised money for both. What more do you want?
It's a worldwide problem.

In the US, large bipartisan majorities want common sense gun regulations - nobody wants their kid shot by a troubled lunatic. But NRA's stranglehold on the Republican party is such that this just can't happen.

On another US weak spot - our elections are decided by ~100k people in 3-5 states, due to vagaries of Electoral College. However, it's original purpose - keeping assholes out of office - has long atrophied. There is an Interstate Compact to get around it, but the current USSC is likely to declare it unconstitutional. Republicans will not support it having won two recent elections with public vote minorities.

It is a little wonder that authoritarianism/populism is on the rise - democracy is failing at it's main function. US needs a new Constitutional Convention...and before you say anything, consider that the original one had exceedingly low chance of success. Of course, the Founding Fathers were rather better educated than the kind of government leaders we have today - especially in GOP. Can anyone imagine Trump/Jared/Ivanka at a conditional convention? Me neither.
 
Bunter faces the School Board and doesn’t get any right answers. Too long in the pantry and no homework. I gather his appearance before the Commons committee was utterly embarrassing to the office of Prime Minister.


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i'm not sure you understand what "populism" means because you are contradicting yourself in the space of a single sentence.

you may want to read this recent essay by thomas frank:

https://harpers.org/archive/2020/05/how-the-anti-populists-stopped-bernie-sanders/


populism is the main function of democracy.

No it isn't. I mean, without looking at Frank's fine essay, I take it you and he are defining populism as politics responsive to the desires and interests of the masses (to use a fine old word). And I'm sure that is true in a sense, but I think the more general understanding of the word reflects the fact that the desires, at least, of the masses, in possibly the majority of cases, do not reflect habits of deep rational thought, or broadly informed opinion. Populist politicians, therefore, are typically greatly tempted to lead their constituents through emotionally manipulative appeals, often depending on ignorance and mobilizing existing bigotries--in a word, through demagoguery. In this way it may indeed be associated with authoritarianism, all too often, and DimitryZs conflation of the two, in the context of current US politics, is actually sensible.
 
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