UK Politics Thread XII: The Lockdown

[Shamhnan Insir]

Hm I wonder who it was?

The 'usual suspect' for anonymous briefings and leaks to the press would be Gavin Williamson. But it could be any of them who doesn't like Cummings..

He hasn't exactly made many friends I'm led to believe.

[Greater vakolicci haven]

The vultures continue to descend.

I'm not sure why they care so much now? This is going to be very dimb in everyones memories come 2024, the elections result has a lot more to do with the result of Brexit than any part of this.

[Vassenor]

The vultures continue to descend.

I'm not sure why they care so much now? This is going to be very dimb in everyones memories come 2024, the elections result has a lot more to do with the result of Brexit than any part of this.

...Your logic isn't scanning. There are issues outside of Brexit.

[Greater vakolicci haven]

I'm not sure why they care so much now? This is going to be very dimb in everyones memories come 2024, the elections result has a lot more to do with the result of Brexit than any part of this.

...Your logic isn't scanning. There are issues outside of Brexit.

With a party that has such a grasp on the media, the election will be 'about' what they want it to be about. They're going to want another Brexit election.

[An Alan Smithee Nation]

If they have that much of a grasp on the media, you'd think today's front pages would all be more like the Daily Star's.

From Reuters quoting The Sun

“This is not a bubble story. Real people are furious, because they have been doing the right thing and isolating,” the minister said.

A second unnamed minister cited by the newspaper said that retaining the adviser was “increasingly” looking as a “sign of weakness”.

[The Archregimancy]

The government has lost the Daily Mail.



Likewise the Mail's opinion pages:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/arti ... ister.html

That will likely cause some concern at Downing Street this morning.


Though fortunately elsewhere the Mail continues to have its finger on the pulse of the nation, covering the vital stories that really matter to the UK.

[Austria-Bohemia-Hungary]

I guess sometimes the broken clock does get it right... and the Rupert Murdoch agitprop machine does get moments of mental clarity. <.>

[The Blaatschapen]

The government has lost the Daily Mail.

(Image)

Likewise the Mail's opinion pages:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/arti ... ister.html

That will likely cause some concern at Downing Street this morning.


Though fortunately elsewhere the Mail continues to have its finger on the pulse of the nation, covering the vital stories that really matter to the UK.

It's not merely pulsating, it's throbbing.

[Vassenor]

....aaaand now they're using the fact that Cummings' kid is allegedly autistic as an explanation for how what he did is 100% OK.

I just... what.

[The Archregimancy]

I guess sometimes the broken clock does get it right... and the Rupert Murdoch agitprop machine does get moments of mental clarity. <.>

The Mail is not part of the Murdoch media conglomerate.

It's instead part of DMG Media (previously Associated Newspapers); Viscount Rothermere is the chair.

The Times and the Sun are the main Murdoch newspapers in the UK. They're both less critical of the Prime Minister this morning than the Mail is.

[Austria-Bohemia-Hungary]

I guess sometimes the broken clock does get it right... and the Rupert Murdoch agitprop machine does get moments of mental clarity. <.>

The Mail is not part of the Murdoch media conglomerate.

It's instead part of DMG Media (previously Associated Newspapers); Viscount Rothermere is the chair.

The Times and the Sun are the main Murdoch newspapers in the UK. They're both less critical of the Prime Minister this morning than the Mail is.

All the tabloids are clearly starting to merge into one giant agitprop machine in my mind. <.>

[The Blaatschapen]

I guess sometimes the broken clock does get it right... and the Rupert Murdoch agitprop machine does get moments of mental clarity. <.>

The Mail is not part of the Murdoch media conglomerate.

It's instead part of DMG Media (previously Associated Newspapers); Viscount Rothermere is the chair.

The Times and the Sun are the main Murdoch newspapers in the UK. They're both less critical of the Prime Minister this morning than the Mail is.

Ugh... we should blot out the sun.

[Albrenia]

....aaaand now they're using the fact that Cummings' kid is allegedly autistic as an explanation for how what he did is 100% OK.

I just... what.

Why didn't they just contact the people they needed via phone or something? They could literally have a caretaker helicoptered in if they needed.

[Vassenor]

....aaaand now they're using the fact that Cummings' kid is allegedly autistic as an explanation for how what he did is 100% OK.

I just... what.

Why didn't they just contact the people they needed via phone or something? They could literally have a caretaker helicoptered in if they needed.

They also both have relatives in London who could've helped.

[The Archregimancy]

If you'll forgive the double post, it strikes me this morning that Johnson would have done well to remember Jeremy Thorpe's Biblical comment on Harold MacMillan's 1962 cabinet reshuffle (aka the 'Night of the Long Knives):

Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his friends for his life.

Thorpe (who, without trying to downplay his own subsequent scandal, had a fine line in political wit) was being sarcastic, but he was also reflecting a broader political truth - that undying loyalty to your friends is a luxury that few politicians can ultimately afford.

[The Archregimancy]

The Mail is not part of the Murdoch media conglomerate.

It's instead part of DMG Media (previously Associated Newspapers); Viscount Rothermere is the chair.

The Times and the Sun are the main Murdoch newspapers in the UK. They're both less critical of the Prime Minister this morning than the Mail is.

Ugh... we should blot out the sun.

I know a song for that.

[Agarntrop]

The government has lost the Daily Mail.

(Image)

Likewise the Mail's opinion pages:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/arti ... ister.html

That will likely cause some concern at Downing Street this morning.


Though fortunately elsewhere the Mail continues to have its finger on the pulse of the nation, covering the vital stories that really matter to the UK.

reminds me of when major lost the sun

[Salandriagado]

So, I've thrown a lot of (frankly, well-deserved) shit at the utter fucking disaster that is the government's plan to open schools (in a week!), but it occurs to me that I haven't actually publicly suggested an alternative yet. So, here we go:

First, some conditions: the objective here is to get a plan that:

1. Fulfils the government's first stated goal for the reopening (that is: improving the education that children, especially very young children, are receiving) no worse than either the government's plan or doing nothing.
2. Fulfils the government's second stated goal for the reopening (that is: improving the mental wellbeing of children) better than either of those.
3. Leads to no more of an increase in transmission that the government's proposals would.

So, let's get started:

1. First, announce that, effective immediately, lockdown rules are relaxed for under 12s (feel free to tweak the number up or down a bit - I picked this to make sure we hit everybody in primary schools) to allow them to play with their friends outside as much as they like, without worrying about social distancing. The Netherlands did this, way back at the end of April, and experienced no measurable rise in transmission afterwards (in contrast to the school-based outbreaks we saw in France). Thus, this is safer than the government's proposals as regards transmission, and certainly will improve their mental wellbeing significantly. Indeed, even if we accept the government's (frankly absurd) claims that their proposals will improve childrens' mental wellbeing at face value, it's still clear that this option will be better for the vast majority of students than sitting in a classroom not being able to go near their friends (occasionally, between bouts of being locked inside unable to go anywhere at all for 2 weeks at a time). So, that's points 2 and 3 done for the vast majority of children.
2. Now, on to those children with shitty home lives. To help those, we allow schools to extend their current provision for children of key workers and certain vulnerable children to any children whose home life they're worried about. With the smaller numbers, less ridiculous measures will be needed to reduce in-school transmission (honestly, "stay outside as much as possible" probably covers it), so this will be strictly better than the government's proposal in regards mental wellbeing and transmission risk for these children too.
3. Finally, we just need to sort out the education. Firstly, note that this is already no worse than the current situation, but we'll again pretend that we actually believe the government's claims that they'll get some kind of useful teaching done. I'll mostly skip the older pupils - they're quite capable of being effectively taught online, and from talking to them, it seems that they are, indeed, being effectively taught online. Similarly, those covered by point 2 will get a better education under that than either the current situation or the government's plans. That just leaves the younger kids with decent parents. Now, the key bits of academic teaching (number sense, reading, writing), their parents can do (and seem to be doing) perfectly well. That just leaves the non-academic stuff: the teaching of social skills and the like. Here, again, we can copy the Netherlands, with a few improvements: In line with point 1, we also allow children's groups to operate outside, under similar rules (no social distancing between children, adults to social distance as far as practical). Again, the Netherlands also did this back at the end of April, and experienced no rise in infection rates. Obviously, not all children are in such groups, so to boost provision, the government should:
   
   1. Actively encourage parents to send their kids to such groups.
   2. Cover all expenses of such groups for the duration, so long as they do not charge parents anything for their children to attend.
   In order to allow for more provision, the government should also strongly encourage employers to allow volunteers with these groups time off if they wish to run them during the day (or, if that's not sufficient, roll out something like the furlough scheme where the government will cover their wages for days that they take off for this purpose).

So there we are: that's all of the government's stated goals dealt with at least as well as there proposal, and in most cases better, without inflicting massively traumatic situations on young children. Of course, they won't actually do this, because it fails at their real objective, of getting parents back to work as quickly as possible, without any regard for the welfare of the children in question.

[Souseiseki]

i must say that i am loving the nation collectively turning on cummings

[Salandriagado]

i must say that i am loving the nation collectively turning on cummings

It turns out, there is something that the government can do to unite the country. Just not in quite the way that they wanted.

[Albrenia]

i must say that i am loving the nation collectively turning on cummings

Boris seems to be betting any goodwill he might have gained from almost dying on protecting Cummings.

[An Alan Smithee Nation]

Cummings is going to make a statement to the media some time today.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-healt ... 3118K?il=0

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-52798632

It will take some balls/blind arrogance if it isn't a resignation statement.

[Paradeavenlisian States]

It will take some balls/blind arrogance if it isn't a resignation statement.

I have a pretty solid feeling that it won't be a resignation statement and it will likely just be him attempting to defending himself, again, though with little to no success in convincing the public, but we'll see.

[Gormwood]

It would be morbidly amusing if it turns out Cummings is holding the equivalent of a Pee Pee Tape over Johnson's head.

[Souseiseki]

i must say that i am loving the nation collectively turning on cummings

Boris seems to be betting any goodwill he might have gained from almost dying on protecting Cummings.

It would be morbidly amusing if it turns out Cummings is holding the equivalent of a Pee Pee Tape over Johnson's head.

cummings absolutely has some mega dirt on or influence over boris johnson.

everything i have heard about high level tory politics leads me to believe that every single one of them has an entire knife set with the names of others lovingly carved into the blades which are delicately and individually placed behind BREAK IN CASE OF BACKSTAB glass for quick and convenient access should the need ever arise. i am surprised that cummings can still walk at this point. anyone that isn't a rabid leaver must hate him for being a lying dickhead that has tanked us with brexit and the enlightened pragmatists who seek power must hate him for being such a fucking dumbass and pulling this dumb shit.