15 July 2021
Diary of a Corbynista
Johnson as Life Coach
by Don Urquhart
8 July
Message Board responses to Corbynista in Shaw Sheet 285:
Walsall:
I fully support the view from the current teaching profession and am very pleased for this teacher’s experience.
Given that my view is based on education in the 60’s and 70’s, it is highly likely that things have changed.
However, I think something that occurred to me in the interim is that the very people who were actually vilifying the “swot” in those days are some of the people who now believe in the hogwash spouted by our own Trump-lite. Their belief in ignorance over intelligence has informed them on things like Brexit, voting for a party that has been in charge for the last 11 years and believing that they are likely to change what has kept them in power for that period of time. A significant portion of the baby boomer generation has a lot to answer for.
Sunlounger:
Who manages and runs the Progressive Alliance?
The “About” section (http://www.progressivealliance.org.uk/about/) contains nothing about the people that run it.
It’s obviously a WordPress site because the webmaster hasn’t bothered assigning a site icon. It is certainly an insecure site because the URL is not encrypted. It is packed with stock photos from pixabay, pexels and freepik.
Why is it so opaque? Whose living room is used to maintain the site?
If the Progressive Alliance wants to be taken seriously, it should start appearing serious.
Walsall:
I think you are conflating 2 things.
The progressive alliance to which you are referring is not the progressive alliance that I was talking about.
You are talking about the organisation Progressive Alliance which, as you say, is a think tank and, judging by their website, a fledgling and undeveloped one.
I am talking about an electoral progressive alliance, as proposed by the LibDems, Greens, SNP, Plaid Cymru, and some others, including some from Labour. (see https://twitter.com/TheProgAlliance?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor)
This is more of a notional organisation, rather than a party, aimed at consolidating around the best candidate to oust the Tories in any given constituency.
However, as has been discussed, there seem to be some conflicting methods of going forward, with some looking at it as some form of ongoing coalition and others a being a single purpose vehicle as, were it to work, the first thing that would be done is for PR to be introduced and an election then called.
The ongoing coalition would be doomed to failure as the aims and ideals of each of the parties are different. However, under PR, they would, at least, all have the opportunity to get their ideas aired, proportional to the amount of relative support they have across the country.
9 July
Before the EU Referendum Robert Shrimsley of the FT imagined a conversation between the then Prime Minister and the then London Mayor.
Here’s a flavour:
Boris, you have to take sides. Don’t just dangle on a wire shouting. Be a Churchill. We have a good deal here.
But have we? Have you really gone full Buller on Brussels, Dave? Have you wrecked the quad and debagged the commissioners? Hannibal is at the gates, Dave. Carthago delenda est.
Carthage must be destroyed was the admonition the orator Cato used to end his speeches.
So I am happy to emulate him:
Johnson delenda est.
10 July
A pal put me on to a BBC iPlayer documentary series called Philly DA. Larry Krasner is elected as Philadelphia’s District Attorney on a liberal manifesto – no death penalty; clean up police corruption for example.
The Fraternal Order of Police, a Trade Union, reminded me of The Irishman , a movie which centres on the ruthless criminality of Jimmy Hoffa’s Teamsters Union.
Closer to home as things played out in the new DA’s office I could see a parallel with Jeremy Corbyn’s arrival as Labour Party leader. Larry cleared out or demoted the people who were resistant to his policies, rather as Johnson did with the Tories. History might tell us why Corbyn did not do the same.
11 July
If you have the slightest inclination to give Johnson and his acolytes the benefit of the doubt regarding the pandemic please read “Failures of the State” by Calvert and Arbuthnot. The negligence, incompetence and callousness of the people running the country are breathtaking. Here it quotes Richard Horton of the Lancet about January 2020:
The facts were utterly opposite to the message from Downing Street. There was international scientific consensus. The government had simply chosen to ignore it.
12 July
At the Downing Street Press Briefing the Prime Minister told us that all legal restrictions related to the pandemic would be lifted on July 19th. Professor Whitty was wheeled in to give scientific backing, which he did while trying to hedge his bets by saying that we must proceed slowly. Well at the moment new cases, hospitalisations and deaths are on an upslope and nothing that Chris was giving the nod to would do anything other than make these things happen more quickly. I think it’s called cognitive dissonance. And it is also called taking the public for a ride. You expect it from Johnson but not the Chief Medical Officer.
13 July
There are around 8 billion people on the planet.
Mr Johnson is the leader of the largest party in the House of Commons which gives him the right to pass whatever laws he sees fit.
At the Downing Street Press Briefing he was not talking about what laws he was passing or removing.
He was advising us how to conduct our lives.
There are around 8 billion people on the planet and were I looking for someone to advise me on how to conduct myself Johnson would be my 8 billionth selection.
No more f*cking lockdowns – let the Bodies Pile High in Their Thousands.
14 July
Corbyn tried to make the NHS a major issue in the 2019 election. He presented a document which proved that Johnson was negotiating with the Americans to sell off the NHS. He was outgunned by the mass media including the BBC, ITV and Sky which sold the Tory agenda of Getting Brexit Done with a side dish of Labour Anti-Semitism.
And here it is. The Health and Care Bill currently going through Parliament is aimed at dismantling the NHS.
Caroline Molloy’s article in Open Democracy summarises it well.
The bill enables a power grab by the Treasury, the money men, the private sector and their lobbyists.
