We’re going to need a bigger swingometer

We’re going to need a bigger swingometer

Why it could be worse than 1997 for the Tories For me when it comes to general election the best pointers are the leader ratings and the economic ratings, I live by the mantras that it’s the economy, stupid and the leaders. It’s not looking good for Sunak’s team and the above findings show why it could be much worse for the Tories. As we can see in 1997 Ken Clarke and the Tories were preferred to Labour on the…

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Why cutting interest rates will be no panacea for the Tories

Why cutting interest rates will be no panacea for the Tories

There are some Tories who think an interest rate cut will help them in the polls as mortgage costs come down yet this polling points to the exact opposite happening, I think there’s a couple of things driving this. Firstly if mortgage costs do come down a bit they will still be substantially higher than when the perpetuator of an antisemitic trope Liz Truss became Prime Minister so the financial hurt is still real. Secondly as we can see with…

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Solarpunk

Solarpunk

INTRODUCTION What happens if the Greens win? I mean not just win elections, but win comprehensively, so much so that there’s no need for a Green party anymore. What does society look like in this scenario? To answer that question we need to look at Green’s imagined futures. There are many such and include anarcho-primitivism and (rarely) ecofascism, but the most attractive is arguably Solarpunk. So let’s look at that. SOLARPUNK Solarpunk is a literary and artistic movement, not a…

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Lessons from history

Lessons from history

I like this analysis by Tom Calver of The Times. My key takeaway is from the final tweet is how accurate the polls are two weeks before the election. The other key takeaway is the polls always narrow once the election is called which is something punters and everybody else should remember lest it lead to panic/pessimism/false optimism depending on your view point. Betting on a hung parliament now appears to be a courageous decision in the Yes, Prime Minister…

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The Eurovision open thread

The Eurovision open thread

Since the voting system changed I haven’t bet heavily on Eurovision other than to occasionally lay Le Royaume-Uni. I cannot see any value on current prices but I will enjoy the annual bit of European unity and cultural enrichment. TSE

Guilt and Shame

Guilt and Shame

I am an adoptive father, twice over. Like all adopters, I have been mandated/encouraged/enabled to undertake a range of training and education on how the minds of children develop and work, and how trauma and neglect can affect that. Many adopters say lightheartedly that we are lucky, because all parents should have access to what we learn. A lightbulb moment for me was encountering the concept of the different mindsets of guilt and shame. I feel strongly that understanding this…

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The Swinney slump continues

The Swinney slump continues

This is the second poll since Humza Yousaf’s announcement that he was going to resign and it is another poll showing the SNP falling back in the polls. I would wait until we have first poll conducted entirely after John Swinney became First Minister before making definitive pronouncements. I would also consider the Holyrood polls a bit of an irrelevance at the moment, the result of the Westminster election in any direction could alter voting intentions there particularly if the…

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