Greater Fool 2.0 – Contributors wanted

With Greater Fool 2.0 I’m looking for contributors to help make it a more representative and informative platform. To that end I’m looking to collaborate with other people who’ve perhaps liked the idea of writing articles themselves on politics and current affairs but perhaps don’t have time to manage a full blog themselves or don’t want the extra work of keeping it up and running. If you fit that description I’d love to hear from you. I’m not in a position to pay anybody, I’m not doing this to earn money myself, but I am more than happy to share advertising revenue (if any is received!), my preference would be to donate to charity any money that is received above the running costs but that’s up for debate.

Specifically I would like to hear from young writers, BAME, LGBTQI and someone who perhaps is more to the centre ground of politics. Ideally a diverse blend of writers so that we’re not all just writing the same thing. Oh and if you’re good at graphics etc that would be cool too.

So what are the requirements?

• Decent writing skills, you don’t need to be a novelist just English not textspeak!
• An opinion that you’re passionate about sharing with personality and emotion.
• Ability to tell the difference between fact and conspiracy.
• Research based methodology ensuring that what you’re posting is based on fact. (Two independent sources preferably, I’d really like not to go to court for libel!).
• A sense of humour, this stuff can get heavy so a little black humour can go a long way.

If you think that sounds like you then comment below and I’ll get in touch. The idea behind this project is to increase the number of voices challenging the main stream media agenda. I don’t mind if you write once a month or every day. Let’s make this a platform we can all be proud of.

 

Time to ditch the labels and unite

Since last Friday morning we’ve seen many of the MPs who failed to support Jeremy Corbyn as leader and so called columnists of the left who wrote him off come back to the fold eating various degrees of humble pie. The likes of Polly Toynbee and Nick Cohen have admitted they were wrong and many Labour MPs have declared that Jeremy Corbyn now has a mandate to lead. Many of us knew it all along and it would be so easy to say “I told you do” but this is not the time.

First of all it’s important to remember that we’re all part of the same movement. We may say that those we deem to the right of the party had moved too far to the right and they have said that we’ve moved too far to the left. They’re wrong, but we need them to keep us honest.

What is important is to convince those who haven’t believed that what they’re seeing isn’t a blip. Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell and co have been seen by the public, who are sick of austerity, to be genuine. They’ve presented a well costed, although not perfect, manifesto people can get behind. Remember, the reason they didn’t believe in Jeremy is that they didn’t believe the party could sell this manifesto to the public. They’ve believed since Blair’s “Third Way” that you have to find a compromise that you can sell to the public, or more correctly, to Rupert Murdoch. Times have changed.

Thanks to the power of social media, the ability to talk directly to the electorate, rather than through the medium of Uncle Rupert’s office, means that we’re able to present an authentic voice and persuade the electorate of the merits of a Democratic Socialist agenda rather than just pander to the usual right-wing agenda. We’ve seen how effective that’s been even without the assistance of a large portion of the Parliamentary Party. Now we need to amplify that voice.

We are now at a crucial stage. I’ve seen all over social media those members who’ve been fighting by Jeremy’s side for two years deriding the “Blairites”, “Right wingers” and “Traitors” while those who withheld their support apologising with reservations to the “Corbynistas”. This has to stop. The labels have to stop. They’re not “Blairites”, they’re not “Right Wingers” and they’re certainly not “Traitors” and the rest of us are not “Corbynistas”. We’re Labour. We’re part of the Labour Movement. All of us. We’re Comrades fighting against the Tory privileged class.

Yes I know that I have been one of those to use these labels, indeed my party membership was suspended for some rather nasty things I said during the failed coup last year. Rightly so.  I apologise unreservedly to any of my comrades I insulted at that time. Passions ran high in the wake of the EU Referendum and many of us on both sides got seriously carried away. Let’s put it behind us and please, I beg of you, can we put the words “Blairite”, “Brownite”,  “Red Tory” and “Corbynista” behind us.

The people, united, will never be defeated.

#GMB consider withdrawing support from #McNicol

The SKWAWKBOX

Ian McNicol has long enjoyed the support of enough of the NEC to remain in his post, in spite of widespread dissatisfaction – in fact fury – among members at his performance. A key pillar of that has been support from the GMB union, together with that of Unison. With those unions’ representatives behind him, he has enjoyed the backing of the narrowest of majorities on the Labour NEC.

A senior source at the union has told the SKWAWKBOX, however, that the union’s executive is reconsidering its position in the light of recent developments and the historic achievement of the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership last week.

Without the GMB’s support, McNicol’s position begins to look extremely vulnerable – even if Unison remains firm – and with the vast majority of the membership against him because of his perceived failure to co-operate with the party’s leadership and, most recently, Labour HQ’s lack…

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SKWAWKBOX

Ian McNicol has long enjoyed the support of enough of the NEC to remain in his post, in spite of widespread dissatisfaction – in fact fury – among members at his performance. A key pillar of that has been support from the GMB union, together with that of Unison. With those unions’ representatives behind him, he has enjoyed the backing of the narrowest of majorities on the Labour NEC.

A senior source at the union has told the SKWAWKBOX, however, that the union’s executive is reconsidering its position in the light of recent developments and the historic achievement of the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership last week.

Without the GMB’s support, McNicol’s position begins to look extremely vulnerable – even if Unison remains firm – and with the vast majority of the membership against him because of his perceived failure to co-operate with the party’s leadership and, most recently, Labour HQ’s lack…

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Plans for the future and Greater Fool 2.0

When I started this blog I had good intentions to maintain a regular blog of my own to try and help to inform people of the mechanics of UK Politics, filling in the gaps of mainstream media misinformation.

Unfortunately life had another plan and I pretty much ended up just reblogging other people’s work. A combination of my own health issues and family issues meant that I struggled to find the time or energy to maintain the blog.

This is really just a quick post to apologise and let you all know that I will shortly be moving this blog to my own self hosted blog. I’m currently ironing out a few kinks and details before I go live. If you’re subscribed to my blog, thank you but don’t worry, your subscription will be moved over automatically so you won’t miss a thing.

I look forward to engaging fully with all my friends in the blogging community and hopefully a few more in the future on Greater Fool 2.0!

#May’s #DUP crutch and its paramilitary links #ConfidenceAndSupply

SKWAWKBOX

The hypocrisy of Theresa May and the Tory Party sinks to new depths. After their ‘friend of terrorists’ smear campaign against Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn, such is their desperation to cling to power they do not merit that they are leaning on the crutch of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) a ‘party on the hard right fringe of British politics’, according to OpenDemocracy.

A party with strong paramilitary links as well as being anti-LGBT rights, anti-abortion and anti-environment. The evidence is in plain sight if you look.

Loyalist paramilitary group the UDA (Ulster Defence Association) has previously called for the partition of Northern Ireland and said that any Catholics left in protestant territory should be:

expelled, nullified, or interned.

A UDA/UVF mural in Belfast

The UVF (Ulster Volunteer Force) is another protestant paramilitary organisation and is said to have been responsible for more than 500 deaths during the Troubles. Since the peace agreement…

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Think #May’s in trouble now? She’s still facing police investigation for #Abbott lie

SKWAWKBOX

Theresa May is a broken, shambolic figure this morning. It looks like she may try to limp on in a ‘confidence and supply’ arrangement with the Democratic Unionists – to the dismay of huge numbers of Northern Irish people:

English colleague to me this morning: "Fiona, what do you think of the DUP?" pic.twitter.com/AQdto4aHhF

— Fiona McAuley (@fifimcauley) June 9, 2017

But don’t forget that Theresa May’s diminished figure still has a huge shadow hanging over it as another consequence of her negative, despicable campaign:

The threat of a criminal investigation by the North Yorkshire and Metropolitan police services for what appeared to be a clear breach of electoral law when she lied outright on BBC Question Time‘s leaders’ special, claiming that Ms Abbott wanted to remove the DNA records of ‘criminals and terrorists’ from police databases.

A formal complaint has been made and the Met has confirmed that it…

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Tories breaking law at polling stations – photograph, report, do not be fooled #GE17

SKWAWKBOX

Worrying reports are reaching the SKWAWKBOX of apparent illegal behaviour by Tory candidates or their representatives at some polling stations.

The Tories appear to be affixing election posters to the walls of polling stations or of the grounds of the polling station, in clear breach of electoral law regarding campaigning within 250m of a polling station or attaching election materials to polling stations:

https://twitter.com/GregLabour/status/872858401902141440

If you see similar instances in other areas – some are being reported even now – take a picture and tweet or Facebook the SKWAWKBOX.

Even more worryingly, outside at least one polling station queues of young people are being told they’re not entitled to vote, even though registered – and that they can appeal by taking ID to the council offices, but not in time to vote today:

https://twitter.com/RhysHansard/status/872844385137905665

Already called they said im not registered. Even though i have confirmation email and have voted…

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Queues at polling stations. The UK is hungry for change #GE17 #GOTV

SKWAWKBOX

The SKWAWKBOX said years ago that if you give British people an actual alternative worth voting for, they would. They certainly have one now in Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

There’s a consensus that turnout is key in this election – and that a high turnout will favour Labour (at least in England and Wales).

The SKWAWKBOX is receiving reports of queues at polling stations all around the country. One polling station attendant, who has worked at the same station for decades, reports that she hasn’t seen queues like it in at least 25 years.

The Evening Standard is reporting ‘huge’ queues in the capital:

While one polling station in Lincoln reported it saw more voters in the first hour than in the whole day in 2015.

Here are pictures and reports of some of the queues, tweeted by excited voters. If there are queues when you got to vote, send…

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Exclusive: May, Rudd ‘stripped anti-extremism unit to focus on #Brexit’ #GE17

SKWAWKBOX

As the Press Association reported, Theresa May – in the preface to the announcement of her planned assault on the very human rights she says islamist terrorists hate – talked of a ‘security service review’, supposedly to allow security services to “call out extremism here in the United Kingdom”:

Theresa May expects security service review

Theresa May has said she expects police and security services to launch a review after three terrorists slipped through the net to launch the devastating attack at London Bridge.

Mrs May said,

What Government needs to do is, and what the Government that comes in after Thursday’s election needs to be willing to do, is to give more powers to the police and security service when they need them, needs to deal with this issue of terrorism and extremism online and also needs to be able to call out extremism here in the United Kingdom

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Met taking May electoral breach re Abbott ‘very seriously’ #GE17

SKWAWKBOX

As the SKWAWKBOX reported at the weekend, a viewer has made a formal complaint to police about Theresa May’s comments concerning Diane Abbott, which the Tory leader made during the BBC’s Question Time special.

The comments – that Abbott planned to wipe the DNA records of ‘criminals and terrorists’ from police databases – were without foundation and making a false statement about a candidate during an election period is a criminal offence under section 106 of the Representation of the People Act 1983.

An offence that can result in disqualification from public office, as well as leading to criminal penalties.

The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) had originally advised the complainant to report the matter to North Yorkshire Police, as the comments were made from a studio in York.

Now, in a remarkable turnaround, the MPS has decided that it will take on the case. A response from the MPS’ ‘

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