Category: Politics

It is quick and easy to blame BP and Shell and others for huge profits, but they have just been doing their job. It is a shame govt. across Europe did not do theirs. In 6the UK we stalled on insulation and fitting solar panels, caved in to rich landowners on on shore wind farms, cut our gas storage capability. We can blame BP for its pathetic investment of £142m out of £2.8b in renewables. Govt. load of nobs as usual!

I do not understand why the government does not continue to subsidise. I think I get about 14p /kwh? I paid for the installation. Yet the government guarantees 6 or 7 times this for nuclear powers stations, also knowing that decommissioning will be a public cost in the future. Hinkley Point is costing billions. Yet that cost would be paid by private individuals, the electricity produced would be cheaper that nuclear, there are no geopolitical issues. Is it really just about maintaining the profits of the energy companies?

So I pay for installation, get half of the energy I produce with a small subsidy. What is there not to like? Oh, and the value of my house rises.

The met office presenters have been trolled in nasty ways. What is it that the nobs refuse to understand? Sea level rising; extreme weather events changing; whole climates changing; glaciers melting; species extinction; coral bleaching; CO2 levels rising; permafrost melting releasing methane; 99% of scientists accept that temperatures are rising; metro-chemical companies spend millions to counter the science and the facts; land is being eroded ever faster by storms; spring is earlier causing havoc to ecosystems.

Well petrol heads and fantasy junkies – carry on as we are and we are all fucked.

To what extent does Labour sell its soul to unfettered capitalism to rid us of the pestilence that is the present government. Starmer has looked at too many focus groups. Winning at the cost of a philosophy and ideology that is not based on fairness and equality is pointless.

There good arguments for union membership and action as Lynch has stated clearly and coherently. A commitment to nationalisation would be foolish in the present world situation, but rejecting it is also foolish. As J.O’B stated today, all politicians and commentators – with few exceptions (and he is not one) have privileged backgrounds. Angela Rayner will understand what it is like to have no financial or social guarantees. People using food banks have no security. Poverty in the UK has gone beyond being poor and not affording holidays and proper meals, to not having a fall back when the cooker or fridge packs up, when illness puts them on sick pay and they cannot meet their rent. I have never been in their situation. Truss and Sunak, Johnson and Sleaze-Dogg, etc. make no effort to understand.

So Starmer – stand by the strikers and make the case for their action loudly and clearly like Mike Lynch. Emphasise that NHS privatisations will be taken back under the NHS with little compensation. State that the NHS will be rationalised to create greater efficiency (most people have a gripe about something). Create a Committee for Standards in Parliament to ban lying. Reform the HoL getting rid of all titles. Proportional Representation is desperately needed but will need a hung Parliament as die hards on left and right (and therefore the trash press) will scream and holler. Climate change will need strong arguments but should not be dodged.

Why has Starmer rejected all things EU? – bloody focus groups. I want him state policies, not just reject them.

The argument that there are hard core voters seems to be turning. 25% Tory; 20% Labour; 10% Lib.Dem/Green? basically 45% are potentially swing voters. Corbyn won the minds of many of these, but was undone by his own party, the press and some blunders (which for a leader on the left are fatal – merely an inconvenience on the right). Starmer is going for the 45% and hoping enough Labour Party members will support him.

The Party Manifesto will be interesting when it comes – it should be forming now to ensure message gets across.

Why do we have party politics in 2022? In the past people needed to gather together for solidarity (and maybe the workers still need a party to represent their unions), but generally MP’s should put their views on all key issues on line. We can then vote for people who follow the views we are most in line with. The MP’s should not be bullied into following a party line.

I will talk about what I know. Education. Head Teachers claim wages over £100 due to the responsibility they have. Why then appoint so many people on inflated salaries to delegate to? When I started teaching management was a Head, 3 Deputies (Academic/curriculum, Finance, Pupil welfare). Now there loads and all supported by secretaries. At the loss of teacher hours for students and an increase in gap between teachers wages and management. More money for management = less for each student.

The justification for this abhorrence was that it would deter people from the dangerous attempt to cross the Channel/La Manche. 442 succeeded on Monday so plan is a failure – what is the next bullsit from govt to justify?

The nobs standing to become PM via leadership of the nasty party. They have collectively been in power for 12 years and seen the economy crash beyond other countries (Covid is not an excuse). There seems to be no philosophy or real vision. Tax cuts so that we can level down.