I have not been active in politics for a while now. And I have not returned to the keyboard to reflect upon our desertion of Europe, the rise of the right and seeming futility and failure of democratic socialism to be the pathfinder for a more compassionate and connected world. Time has passed and grief … Read moreReturning to my historical sources…
‘This statement is all about party political management of the factions in the Tory party – the national interest is a very poor second. What an utter shambles‘…Chuka UmunnaVerified account @ChukaUmunna Oct 15 In a sense, in the midst of a gargantuan flow of promises, policy revision and idealogical selfishness, then it doesn’t really matter what the … Read moreAs we hurtle towards the edge of the cliff…
‘What does it mean to you to have the same democratic rights as everyone else? Join together with people from all over the country to celebrate 90 years since the Representation of the People Act 1928, which gave all men and women over 21 the equal right to vote. Invite your community to share, debate, … Read moreEqualiteas – share, debate, celebrate – not too late
‘Antiuniversity Now is a collaborative experiment to reimagine the 1968 Antiuniversity of London, in an ongoing programme of free and inclusive self-organised radical learning events. Antiuniversity Now challenges academic and class hierarchy through an open invitation to teach and learn any subject, in any form, anywhere’. Now in its fourth year you can, between … Read moreAntiuniversity Now 2018
Jonathan Haidt in this 2008 talk explores the constraints and tensions in the moral psychology of left and right. He uses the context of the American political system and discusses primary moral principles, which for us in the UK, can be seen as a proxy equating to Labour and Conservative ideologies. Given the tensions within … Read moreThe Moral Matrix and 2017
Embed from Getty Images From Jarrow into the future, the never-ending march! Spending time and resources on re-location, post referendum, has been an interesting, if difficult, process over the summer. France has been a comfortable destination, both in terms of culture and prospective places to live. Now we have now widened our search, … Read moreFilm, art, reality and Ken Loach
In Europe recently looking at both projects and for places to live. When looking for information on business services, buildings and local opportunities, the distinctiveness of the Mairie and its conditioning power in small local communities, was a powerful example of how local democracy, decision making and regard for both history and civic presence can … Read moreAnd so to France…
This short Ted Talk, at TED Banff in Canada in June 2016, is by Gerard Ryle, exploring the way investigative journalists collaboratively exploited the leaked Panama Papers to cast light on the borderless nature of capital and how individuals and their secretive companies obscure both their holdings and their interests. What is interesting is how … Read moreBorderless capital
and the consequences
Louis XV of France, in predicting the French Revolution after his demise, cannot have had David Cameron in mind. However, the last week of June 2o16 saw a number of unedifying political manifestations of the turmoil and collapse driven by the ‘Brexiteers’. The titular phrase of this article is derived, according to which source you … Read moreAprès moi, le déluge
I was driving to my office in Cambridge on Friday morning (24th June 2016), from Suffolk and across the land of a large estate owner. The early morning sun was shining through the trees and looking, I saw the deer and pheasants abroad in the verges, seeking their early breakfast. Having an historical sensibility I … Read moreVale Angliae