I'm glad it's not just me that was starting to think toxicbilberries seemed to be steadily smelling more and more dan-esque...
OMM, as someone (me) who, in the past may have had sight tendencies to believe the media/elite were a bit too all powerful, some of yourast posts have been quite thought provoking. It's funny, as it's all quite simple stuff but I hadn't really considered it much from that angle before.
I wonder what political analysts will consider was the true starting point of the recent descent of the Tories to a total laughing stock. I'd maybe go with Theresa May thinking she had such a strong following that the could push through some insanely right wing policies and still have a big majority. But you could argue it stared sooner and just took a while for the public to catch up? Austerity+?
That one is still affecting the public psyche (people still believe it's effective), so much so Labour don't even want to consider changing.
I've said this before, but given the utterly dismal potential future we have with climate change, we need someone who can just be the adult in the room and say "we're going to have to spend big on the right things, and sod the future burden". My inkling is this would actually lead to big job growth.
Either way, when we're in a doom spiral of war, famine, crop failure etc. Whose gonna give two fucks about national debt?
Personally, that's my biggest gripe with the manifesto but it's the best we've got so, as others have said, let's get them in based on this and spend the next 4 years convincing everyone that we can go even further....
(see Barcelona green council elections on this, will try to link the story later)
I think, the change is in progress and will accelerate.
If, hypothetically, you set aside the idea that the “Elite” are an inhuman cabal intent on, whatever and substitute them with a bunch of poorly aligned, competing, very human, individuals, whose life goals align far more closely with you or I and even Toxic’s “Daz and his pals”, for moment.
After all, they also have to drop their trousers to take a shit.
Then you can view the obstacles to change in a much more mundane light.
Illustration: If you go to switch on your computer on Monday morning and it’s dead, nada, but the lights are on and the coffee machine is hot; there exists the possibility that the CIA, broke into your office, nabbed you hard drive and fried the rest. But, really, it’s probably not plugged in.
So, taking my hypothetical human elite with my silly illustration (it’s just Occam’s razor, innit).
The obstacle to change, it seems logical, is probably one many academics (and those in industry) will recognise.
Change in consensus and accepted doctrine depends far more on who dies and who retires than any other single factor.
Those reaching positions of power, in both industry and politics, now, grew up in a very different world to those that they succeed.
Andy mentioned the rats leaving the sinking Tory ship.
Good, this might just herald a different crop of younger Tory politicians, dismayed by their precedent’s woeful performance and bursting with new ideas.
They may, turn out to be Hitler youth on ‘roids and more swivel eyed than Marty Feldman on Acid.
But they will most likely be different and direction will likely change.