Is the left collapsing?

Make your voice heard loudly and clearly on individual political issues.

I have trouble seeing any political party (other than the DUP) making a formal politicial coalition in the near future following the fate of the LDs.

This means any future government might well have to enter a confidence and supply agreement - which means an issue by issue vote.

Currently neither Labour nor the Conservatives have a realistic chance of being able to win a majority.

This matters.

Yes, it does.

What can we do?

Be noisy.

Currently neither Labour nor the Conservatives have a realistic chance of being able to win a majority.

This matters.

Gardengeek,

I am struggling to think of a reason to vote. Apart from the one about the importance of voting on principle.

Bleak doesn't even cut it.

That's where I am, I'm afraid.

I think we've lost the moment forever, to be honest. We're now just flailing about uselessly while we wait for the Chinese to take over and direct things. Socially speaking, I think we'll be a disaster for ages.

I don't disagree.

The recent Dr Who Oxygen keeps springing to mind.

Especially in the context of this type of thing going on in China
uk.businessinsider.com/china-emotional-surveillance-technology-2018-4?r=US&IR=T

Bleak doesn't even cut it.

I have done quite a few of these tests but I am always a paradox

I am socially liberal, but I don't buy into bullshit.
This is currently a political paradox.

Go figure.

I'm really loving this descriptions of our current political basketcasery.

True though, isn't it?!

If they'd found the answers in 2008-10, we'd have a secure centre and some sensible left/right parties. But they didn't. So all the western economies are running around in increasingly destructive circles with their societies becoming more and more divided.

I think we've lost the moment forever, to be honest. We're now just flailing about uselessly while we wait for the Chinese to take over and direct things. Socially speaking, I think we'll be a disaster for ages.

so instead of sane politics orbiting a secure centre, we have the crazies on both sides running around in equally apocalyptic fantasy lands.

I'm really loving this descriptions of our current political basketcasery.

Water is no longer wet in 2018. We just haven't had this written into law yet. That's planned for the 2022 manifesto pledges.

I feel caught in a pincer movement of the idiot children of post modernism and the idiot children of libertarianism both buoyed up by MRA mercenaries.

Yep. Not helped by the centre position collapsing in the wake of the 2008 financial crash so instead of sane politics orbiting a secure centre, we have the crazies on both sides running around in equally apocalyptic fantasy lands.

Here is a quote and a short essay about taking offense as though outrage were a drug designed to stimulate self righteousness.

"The problem with taking offense is that it’s impotent and indulgent. It may feel good, but it doesn’t change anything. It doesn’t matter. Offendedness is a pale, watery substitute for anger.

Anger, that beautiful daughter of hope, demands action. Anger changes things. It seeks to correct the injustice that offendedness merely wants to savor. "

www.patheos.com/blogs/slacktivist/2011/06/29/just-say-no/

I feel caught in a pincer movement of the idiot children of post modernism and the idiot children of libertarianism both buoyed up by MRA mercenaries. It's like Robert Frost's 'Fire and ice' both can equally effectively destroy the world.

I don't think you are alone by any means.

GardenGeek

I think its difficult to do. There are models which try to combine both.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_compass
The best known one is the concept of the political compass which splits it into four quarters.

Personally, I am a little skeptical of it, as I'm not sure it reflects someone like Corbyn who is supposed to be socially liberal in supporting trans-rights, when this is done at the expense of women's rights and through highly authoritarian methods which are at odds with freedom of speech. Identity politics has a habit of almost 'breaking' the model.

I don't seem to fit neatly into the model myself. I think most people tend to move around a little bit.

I just think its a bit clumsy and rather crude, but decent enough as a basic concept for getting your head around the most basic difference between left and right v authoritarian and liberal.

There are other models though

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_spectrum#Multi-axis_models
Which from the sheer number of them, shows that no one really has a magic answer to the question you are asking, in being able to place you into a nice neat little box.

Personally I think thats not a bad thing.

Bowlofbabelfish, thank you so much for speaking my branes – but much more coherently than I ever manage – at Sun 01-Jul-18 15:14:58

Particularly this succinct nugget:
ask
What are you aiming for?
How will you achieve that?
Who/what will benefit/be harmed along the way?

Also for the link to that "Men whose lives are facilitated by women thread", which I was getting a huge amount out of and then mislaid. Have now Watched, to re-read at leisure.

I feel caught in a pincer movement of the idiot children of post modernism and the idiot children of libertarianism both buoyed up by MRA mercenaries. It's like Robert Frost's 'Fire and ice' both can equally effectively destroy the world.