Brexit and the waning days of the United Kingdom

[crazy canuck]

The giant doth protest too much

To be honest, my problem is the opposite of being skinny.

[Savonarola]

Can't be.  John Kerry is a monster. 

Didn't he techically win? :p

That depends on which conspiracy theory you believe. 

[HVC]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C1HmsUqpNmP/?igsh=bWJpbTAxZXl5dnFm

 British drunk people discussing new drunk driving laws in 1967

[Sheilbh]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C1HmsUqpNmP/?igsh=bWJpbTAxZXl5dnFm

 British drunk people discussing new drunk driving laws in 1967

Barbara Castle who also introduced mandatory seatbelts - and loads of other stuff (I love her). But those two are arguably two of the most unambiguously successful policies from any minister and that have had a huge impact. Number of road deaths and those by drink driving have plummeted since the late 60s/70s.

Separately from latest stats UK is first G20 country to have more than halved its carbon emissions from the peak:



That's production based, a bit less dramatic but still strong fall on consumption based models:


France and Germany will be next, though Germany has a higher peak and France has a lower one (because nuclear). On a per capita basis the UK has largely moved from German levels of emissions to French levels.

More broadly wind and solar as a share of power generation globally is now up to 12% (from 3% in 2012) and is basically doubling every five years (3% to 6% in 2012-17, 6% to 12% 2017-22). Obviously that's primarily being driven by China's rapid and escalating shift to renewables (also doubling fairly regularly). Another chart for our world being hockey sticks of hope and despair:

[Admiral Yi]

Nice work You Kay.

Shame on you Canada.

[Admiral Yi]

Random thought I had Shelf: another advantage of the center is no group think.  No echo chambers.

[Sheilbh]

Random thought I had Shelf: another advantage of the center is no group think.  No echo chambers.

What prompted that?

I'm not saying "the centre" is bad - I think the criticism of "centrist dads" and the "centre" has a bit of a point.

In the UK, there's plenty of centrist echo chambers. I've mentioned it before but The Rest is Politics podcast with millions of listens with Alastair Campbell former New Labour spin doctor and Rory Stewart former Tory minister and leadership campaigner. Their thing is "disagreeing agreeably" but (as I think they can be interesting) I don't think I've ever really heard them disagree. As the Times' review of their sell-out performance in the Royal Albert Hall put it:

Campbell and Stewart's tone is "irate centrist dad". The country is broken. Politics has been captured by extremists. Any criticism of Boris Johnson, Liz Truss or Brexit is greeted with wild cheers. Campbell's dig at Jeremy Corbyn gets applause too. Regular listeners will have heard many of the stories before — Campbell's visit to Putin's dacha with Tony Blair, Stewart's time working under Boris Johnson at the foreign office. But they're good stories and this is an audience of fans — they want Campbell and Stewart to play the hits.

There's also the News Agents - a podcast downloaded by millions and starring three ex-BBC journalists. They've done literally hundreds of episodes focused on Boris Johnson - nothing has made me realise the value of the BBC impartiality rules and journalists doing original reporting quite like star hosts just getting paid to bloviate. It'll shock you that their main theme is exactly as the Rest is Politics. Same goes for "Oh God, What Now", or "The Bunker" other podcasts downloaded by millions, or James O'Brien on talk radio or any number of Twitter commentators. It's all a massive echo chamber - and one that I think is very much enabled by new media and parasitic on reporting. It's all comment, very superficial, very parochial and, basically, interchangeable (and broadly avoids inconvenient facts).

As I say the thing that annoys me is the lack of curiosity. I always find Stewart the most frustrating because I think his analysis is good but his solutions are basically putting good chaps like him in charge of things, citizens' assemblies and planting lots of trees, which is, I think, a little insufficient.

It's like the opposite of the great Tallking Politics (RIP) podcast

[Jacob]

I'm not sure I understand the mechanism by which centrists in general would be immune to echo chambers or group think.

[Admiral Yi]

I'm not sure I understand the mechanism by which centrists in general would be immune to echo chambers or group think.

Because as I see it in the center there are no GREAT REVEALED TRUTHS which one has to compete in demonstrating support for and which one can be banished for insufficiently supporting.  Every issue has pros and cons.  Conflicting principles.

[Sheilbh]

What are the great revealed truths of the right or left?

I think Christopher Clark's point on the centre has some truth to it: "There's this idea that you, as a centrist, have an overview of the whole system and so you can see where the centre is. You've navigated it all and you've created a kind of cartography of politics in which you occupy this space of virtue. There's a kind of arrogance about it."

It may not be a great revealed truth but I think it is, perhaps, of epistemological certainty - maybe the "centrist gaze" to go with "centrist dads" By definition it's a politics that is declaring the centre and the periphery which seems like a pretty big truth.

[Admiral Yi]

What are the great revealed truths of the right or left?

The left is easy: the underdog is always right.

I think Christopher Clark's point on the centre has some truth to it: "There's this idea that you, as a centrist, have an overview of the whole system and so you can see where the centre is. You've navigated it all and you've created a kind of cartography of politics in which you occupy this space of virtue. There's a kind of arrogance about it."

It may not be a great revealed truth but I think it is, perhaps, of epistemological certainty - maybe the "centrist gaze" to go with "centrist dads" By definition it's a politics that is declaring the centre and the periphery which seems like a pretty big truth.

You call it arrogance, I call it listening to what people say and evaluating their claims on the merits.  And yes, I do think that is a virtue.

[Josquius]

What are the great revealed truths of the right or left?

The left is easy: the underdog is always right.

I think Christopher Clark's point on the centre has some truth to it: "There's this idea that you, as a centrist, have an overview of the whole system and so you can see where the centre is. You've navigated it all and you've created a kind of cartography of politics in which you occupy this space of virtue. There's a kind of arrogance about it."

It may not be a great revealed truth but I think it is, perhaps, of epistemological certainty - maybe the "centrist gaze" to go with "centrist dads" By definition it's a politics that is declaring the centre and the periphery which seems like a pretty big truth.

You call it arrogance, I call it listening to what people say and evaluating their claims on the merits.  And yes, I do think that is a virtue.

It's arrogance to think only you do that though.
Like the left don't do research and figure out what people want?
The right don't focus group how to sell tax breaks for the rich to te poor?

[Jacob]

Because as I see it in the center there are no GREAT REVEALED TRUTHS which one has to compete in demonstrating support for and which one can be banished for insufficiently supporting.  Every issue has pros and cons.  Conflicting principles.

I'm also suspicious of GREAT REVEALED TRUTHS. I do not, however, believe that GRT nor the ability to evaluate conflicting principles are exclusive to the right, left, or centre.

You call it arrogance, I call it listening to what people say and evaluating their claims on the merits.  And yes, I do think that is a virtue.

Agreed that it's a virtue, but think it is incorrect to assume that it's a virtue exclusive to the standpoint you yourself have.

[Sheilbh]

I'm also suspicious of GREAT REVEALED TRUTHS. I do not, however, believe that GRT nor the ability to evaluate conflicting principles are exclusive to the right, left, or centre.

Agreed.

I also just don't really recognise Yi's description of politics.

Agreed that it's a virtue, but think it is incorrect to assume that it's a virtue exclusive to the standpoint you yourself have.

Yeah and the kind of arrogance Clark is talking about is not in listening and evaluating, but determining that you have surveyed the entire political scene, you know where the centre and it just so happens (what are the odds?!) to be the things you personally believe

[Admiral Yi]

Agreed that it's a virtue, but think it is incorrect to assume that it's a virtue exclusive to the standpoint you yourself have.

I have not said it's a virtue exclusive to the center.