Westminstenders: Political vacuums are very bad things

[RedToothBrush]

Johnson has been notible (once again) but his absence.

Whilst we appreciate he has been ill and has a new baby, we are in the midst of a national crisis and a sense of leadership and guidance from our prime minister has been lacking.

And its not gone unnoticed.

Not just by the press. And not just by opposition. Nor NHS and care managers. But on the ground where it matters.

The lack of the sense of seriousness has dissipated. The sense of duty to country to behave. The idea that it will some how be all over this week when it doesn't appear to be the government strategy. The total lack of policy for a week whilst it's become clear bit by bit that these things have been under discussion and decided upon prior to the supposed key meeting on Thursday from the announcements from the regional assemblies. All in favour of a TV stunt tomorrow night.

Let's see how that goes.

The grandstanding isn't a substitute for detail and substance in a crisis. And we still have the looming show down at the end of June over extension of transition. More optics. More lack of practicality at a time when things will really be on the brink.

The next month will be telling and we hit the wall of economic reality which will bring the whole world crashing in on the lives of so many people.

This is the calm before the storm. Enough the sunshine. Enjoy the time with families. Before this is over everything will have changed for so many.

This is just the start of things unravelling and it needs someone to take control and draw up solid blueprints for all our futures. Is a man who is so frequently awol from where he is supposed to be and doesn't take commitments and responsibilities seriously, really the man for that?

Churchill had a vision for the country that cited housing as our second social service, the NHS being our first.

Will Johnson manage to some how forge out so grand new venture which gives the resource and rewards it deserves to the NHS (beyond lipservice and empty platitudes and clapping, that recognises the importance of social care and can stop the almost inevitable coming wave of homelessness and unemployment

And can he do it without selling us off as a basement bargain to the us?

DGR Quite possibly he is. But is Armageddon the goal for all of them? I can’t see Johnson wanting his epitaph to be PM when the UK became a failed state.

I wonder if the rush to get us back together again has come because despite the assumption that the entire nation communicating on social media would be what the Dark Forces wanted, it's turned out that you actually need people to physically meet socially to transmit bollocks ?

Could it be that self isolating actually makes it harder to propagandise ?

DGR Quite possibly he is. But is Armageddon the goal for all of them? I can’t see Johnson wanting his epitaph to be PM when the UK became a failed state.

"Riding the dragon".

Cummings has got where he is because he's given people what they want and most of them are thick enough to think that makes him "one of them". He's just using them to achieve his - and his backers - goal.

We're back to asymmetric warfare, and mysterious stays in Russia ...

DGR or could it be that they realise they've fucked up and they have killed off too many supporters so now they have to find ways to blame the undeserving people who 'didn't follow the rules' and therefore have ruined it for the rest of us, rather than taking responsibility for their initial fucking up and lack of prompt response?

The Government 50 page Plan

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachmentdata/file/884171/FINALL6.6637COOHMGC199RecoveryFINALL110520v22WEB11.pdf

I can’t see Johnson wanting his epitaph to be PM when the UK became a failed state.

It depends on what your definition of "failed state" is If your success criteria is a state where you and your cronies are able to make shedloads of money and are insulated from the effects of economic collapse, and have convinced the proletariat that this is somehow good for them , then that is not a "failed state" even if it is for most of the people who live in it

Non-clinically vulnerable
e,g, women suffering DV, children with SEN

Additional Support: just suck it up

Sent to me by a friend

The Janey Godley voice-overs are brilliant

....even Nicola Sturgeon loves them

😂

DGR you are taking this to an altogether darker more North American style conspiracy theory.

Given that the current situation would seem to shrink the timescale to Cummings goal of Armageddon by a good few months, if not years, I'd say they are grinning like Cheshire cats right now.

I'd prefer to think the poor comms are due to the fact that Cummings and co haven't had their usual decade or so to dream up a preferred 3-word slogan. As well as the fact that they're M.O. is to keep to the dark, and to keep the public in the dark (and quite a few ministers). Not to mention that they really don't know what they're doing... At least, that's what I'm hoping.

I just got back from work.

Motorway significantly busier than last week.
Some shockingly bad driving people have got into the habit of not coming to a halt at stop lines

Multiple country pubs with cleaners and maintenance vans outside ....

But people I was talking to at work thought that until the schools are open, parents will be within their rights to dig heels in
and many childless people are looking out for their parents so will also be warier than bosses might expect

Interesting times

Loving that mrslaughlan 😂😂

Not very impressed that Boris is apparently speaking to a 10 minute time limit. I’m guessing this is normal but if he goes slower, he’s clearer. Mixed bag so far.

Such a statesman!!
A 10 min limit and he has to speak slowly to his poor widdle bwain gets all confused...
Embarrassing

Good line of Qus from Starmer so far

DGR you are taking this to an altogether darker conspiracy theory.

Maybe.

However I do read a fucktonne of history, and a very common theme is how often powerful groups of men (it's always men) are beguiled into accepting help from what is their eventual nemesis. I am yet to be 100% convinced that Johnson and co. aren't riding the dragon of Cummings. Someone who returned from Russia with some quite interesting perspectives on the direction politics needs to take.

If history tells us anything, it's that while we should be wary of people like Johnson who are obviously and understandably only in politics for their own selfish ends, we should be even more wary of people who get into politics to help their fellow man ... I leave you with C.S. Lewis ...

Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience. They may be more likely to go to Heaven yet at the same time likelier to make a Hell of earth. This very kindness stings with intolerable insult. To be "cured" against one's will and cured of states which we may not regard as disease is to be put on a level of those who have not yet reached the age of reason or those who never will; to be classed with infants, imbeciles, and domestic animals.

The Lesson of History I'll offer is:

Good Times create confidence but bad times require resilience.

BJ is trying to bluff his way through a crisis on good-time confidence. His dodgy evasive non-answers are a matter of national shame. A full house of commons would eat him alive.

Ian Dunt on Twitter having a slight meltdown as he reports from commons.

mobile.twitter.com/IanDunt/status/1259853860681789441

“Total blather. Like watching a man juggle seaweed.”

History calling ?

I've just looked through the document.

Its less a policy and more an appeal to 'common sense'.

Which is an interesting way to go. Its lacking in (any) enforcement and doesn't really address the problem of selfish and abusive twats.

Its extremely liberal (or maybe more libertarian I should say) in its ambition. Perhaps to the point of naviety (and I say this as a committed liberal) rather than by active design. Its hardly 'taking back control' in terms of government. Its much more an abdication of responsibility by the state. Though it does carry the threat of 'don't fuck it up'.

I'd like to think that people can just 'do what they like' and it be ok as they are thinking of social distancing etc.

BUT I can see it last about 5 minutes at the school gates for example.

The whole thing is also dependant on the new independent advisory body and adequate testing and tracking being in place in three weeks time. Given the 100,000 test fiasco, I find that 'ambitious' and wonder if we will take the 'cliff end' response or whether we will take the 'extension' route should we fail to be at that point at the end of 3 weeks. Its a definite passing of responsibility to experts from government in this section of the planning... And we know that Hancock is known to have been having big rows with the rest of the Quad in the last couple of weeks (do you think this is because he knows he's been set up as a fall guy as hes said that 1st June isn't doable and they've said 'tough, you get it sorted regardless'???)

So yeah, watch the mood music over enforcement issue and meeting the June 1st deadline in terms of infrustructure (rather than spread of the disease itself).

He sounds like such an idiot with his "stay alert" slogan.....maybe because every time I here I him he say it, I think "the world needs more Lerts "

So no numbers today? He's made his announcement and now we have no need for information........

They want to keep the population in ignorance- so they blithely go back to work.......

This is going to get messy....

If nothing else, we are living through a renewed age of political commentary by imagery ... funny how cartoons and commentary from publications such as Punch! formed such a memorable part of my history lessons ....

Surely anyone can see that 1 June isn’t doable? That’s exactly when the VE Day conga deaths will be happening