Legalise heroin and crystal meth.
Sell guns to anyone with the money to pay for them.
Put cigarette vending machines in schools.
Require the US Air Force to buy the cheapest spares for their planes
Remove Best Before and Use By dates from all food sold in the US
When did the doshmongers buy him though? This switch seems like it came out of nowhere. Something has went down between the election and now. Musk's interference et al. Even that speak of donors protecting corruption spells dodgy...
The Tufton Street neoliberal think-tanks and the development lobby are pushing deregulation very hard indeed.
Any chance of ministers stopping listening to them and listen to those who point out that a successful economy is a well-regulated one?
Astounding that a seizable amount of working/muddle class Americans continue to applaud this shit show failing to grasp the reality that it’s an all-out assault on them.
I mean, personally I’d happily vote for higher taxes.
But, to your general point, I’m not sure there’s a binary choice to be made between higher taxes or deregulation. Eg deregulation of finance ultimately cost untold trillions.
They always think it would be different this time. I also think we suffered more than anywhere else from 2008. Any ideas why the US could shrug it off, and we became a basket case?
Or, ya know, stop dumping all the money into corporate subsidies (which includes the military) & tax breaks plus taxing the wealthy as used to happen during good old days, there ain't main votes up there and corporations can't vote.
There's plenty of money, it's just going to all the wrong places.
You may be right about tax breaks. But I guess they’ve done the Laffer curve projections (cos why wouldn’t they?) - Military?? I know we’re a long way from Moscow, but US is gone.
Corporations can locate wherever they want - look at Ireland. Too easy to be punitive without actually doing any good.
That's a tax break, they don't have to be allowed to off-shore their profits to tax havens, whilst on-hsoring their liabilities.
It's a scam, the people who do the actual HQ jobs aren't all in "Ireland".
Business needs infrastructure, infrastructure costs money.
Thanks to Brexit their economic growth strategy has to involve private companies raiding the nation’s tax income, poisoning or experimenting on its citizens and condemning us to inhumane habitations. Way past time to reverse this.
Yes. Financial crises put rivals out of business and mean businesses can be bought up for pennies in the pound.
More pollution, more sickness, more problems means more jobs and higher GDP, both are great to boast about in elections.
Neoliberalism being antithesis of healthy society is very true.
I'm a retired OSHA manager. If people understood how many people - including teens, grandmas, and grandpas - died on the job in their areas with regulations in place, they would be screaming for more regs and inspectors.
“If it’s not possible now, it’ll never be possible. This is our shot,” he said. “This is the best hand of cards we’re ever going to have. And if we don’t take advantage of this best hand of cards, it’s never going to happen.”
They are also, by extension, protections for capital against itself. But when the outlook deteriorates (against a rising China etc.), so the appetite for risk may increase
Men like Musk grew up on gaming, not literature or sport, and in gaming, all conduct is allowed unless the game prevents it. People raised with sports learn how to play within rules and control behaviour for the good of the game, but the Muskites yearn for the game to let them do whatever they want.
That's an interesting perspective. Personally I've felt a boost of unnecessary aggression after playing violent video games too much years ago. it affected me on a reflexive way that I felt more hostility towards practically anything. A general sort of irritation. I wonder about elon's emotions
This could be part of it. People praise games as being immersive stories, but this casts the player as a character in the story who's trying to win and has much to lose. Read or watch a story and you are a third-party observer who learns from what unfolds. In games, you need to win...or you lose.
Musk is calling for zero regulations in America. He wants a return to the robber-baron era of over 100 years ago, when the rich could destroy the environment, or the health of whole communities, with impunity--a time before FDRs 'New Deal' protected labor from exploitation.
The robber barons in years gone by, maybe to massage their own egos or tax breaks who knows, gifted museums, art galleries and theatre. Guggenheim, Getty etc. but Musk only takes away.
Warren Buffet, Gates and others are doing great things but Elon Musk just takes and destroys lives.
America already allows corporations to use cancer-causing pesticides, herbicides & chemicals banned in other countries, which is one of the factors strongly implicated in America's life expectance being 6 yrs lower than some European nations. If Musk gets his way things will get unimaginably worse.
And the attack on America's institutions is vandalism on a grand scale. They're destroying the bones of America that were 240 yrs in the making. Soon there'll be nothing left--nothing to identify as being part of, not even a public-owned post office, and the environment will soon be beyond repair.
Analysis by Musk’s own AI bot Grok on why he is backing Trump and anti-net-zero politicians.
Plus Business Insider on Musk’s plan to build a Mars base in his lifetime for one million people and his claiming Mars as a free planet outside Earth’s jurisdiction. ⬇️
Business Insider on Musk’s plan to build a Mars base in his lifetime for one million people as “humanity’s backup” and his claiming Mars as a free planet outside Earth’s jurisdiction. ⬇️
For decades we've been persuaded by billionaire propaganda that regulations are bad for us. But I hope everyone now understands that they are all that stands between us and barbarism. Deregulation is class war.
Same as human rights and equality acts, these protect all of us from state overreaching and discrimination. That we have to fight for these says why they are necessary.
Ironically it is now "people" who will be regulated rather than corporates or government. Like frogs in slowly warming water we've been apathetic about the risks of how much data we disclose, how data can be accessed at a granular level & used & the power this confers to data overlords.
The regulatory burden on business is and always was a myth. Between Blair’s light touch approach, leading to the financial crisis and the Tory-Lib Dem ‘red tape challenge’ we have given the green light to slash basic environmental and trading standards services up and down the country.
Shortened for reasons of space, but what Starmer actually said was, "This government will [HAVE LITTLE BOYS WITH SOOT BLACKENED FACES] sweep it away..."
Very dangerous and irresponsible for @georgemonbiot.bsky.social to compare Starmer to Musk six months after Starmer won a landslide record victory in a free election. He has a mandate from the electorate where 29 million people chose to vote.
My understanding is that you are saying that Starmer will deregulate in the same way Musk is, why else mention Musk? Musk sacked 80% of staff at twitter, people who regulated content, look how that went, and it appears to me you are comparing Starmer to Musk who is a libertarian. Sorry if I'm wrong
I keep hoping to hit rock bottom. For weeks I've bemoaned Starmer as a Chamberlain like character against the fascist forces enveloping from East, Middle East and West. Now I pray he is at least like Neville and is buying Britain time. If he is our defence against the dark arts we are in deep shit.
Regulations are introduced to protect customers, users, from abuse by companies esp financial/ banks. Usually they are introduced as a result of such abuse. To deregulate is to forget the lessons of history
It doesn't have to be this way. This is not the best and only way. There are multiple better ways.
Those - maybe only a few - might notice some of my multiple responses to George's threads, and think that I'm a harbinger of doom. But there will always be at least one positive, future thinking post.
Precisely, George. Deregulation will lead to even worse than shit in rivers, it will lead to a scorched earth. Wealthy, powerful unregulated organisations and individuals will take whatever they can for themselves and fight each other to do so. It will lead to a new kind of local and global warfare.
It’s not about how to fight Trump within the confines of what is left of American democracy. This ends with Trump, or more likely Elon — declaring himself Emperor. American democracy has already failed & fallen. Figure out & fight for what comes next.
Many are swayed and hypnotised by the false promises of growth and 'unbridled wealth', but the promises are lies from the ultimate pyramid scheme merchants. The costs of their bullcrap already are and will be far greater than they dare admit even to themselves. Those costs will be paid by all of us.
It’s not about how to fight Trump within the confines of what is left of American democracy. This ends with Trump, or more likely Elon — declaring himself Emperor. American democracy has already failed & fallen. Figure out & fight for what comes next.
Comments
They can fight actions with their loose change
Good in that they move development in a desirable general direction. Elegant solutions.
Legalise heroin and crystal meth.
Sell guns to anyone with the money to pay for them.
Put cigarette vending machines in schools.
Require the US Air Force to buy the cheapest spares for their planes
Remove Best Before and Use By dates from all food sold in the US
https://carboncredits.com/teslas-carbon-credit-revenue-soars-to-2-76-billion-amid-profit-drop/
Any chance of ministers stopping listening to them and listen to those who point out that a successful economy is a well-regulated one?
If you say print it, then my guess is they’ve thought of that. If you say borrow it, I think they thought of that too.
But, to your general point, I’m not sure there’s a binary choice to be made between higher taxes or deregulation. Eg deregulation of finance ultimately cost untold trillions.
Austerity???
The only way the country can grow is to borrow and invest (and not in London). Some key infrastructure hasn't significantly changed since the 1960s!
There's plenty of money, it's just going to all the wrong places.
Corporations can locate wherever they want - look at Ireland. Too easy to be punitive without actually doing any good.
It's a scam, the people who do the actual HQ jobs aren't all in "Ireland".
Business needs infrastructure, infrastructure costs money.
We keep dumping at the top, where it loses, rather than gain value.
More pollution, more sickness, more problems means more jobs and higher GDP, both are great to boast about in elections.
Neoliberalism being antithesis of healthy society is very true.
“If it’s not possible now, it’ll never be possible. This is our shot,” he said. “This is the best hand of cards we’re ever going to have. And if we don’t take advantage of this best hand of cards, it’s never going to happen.”
That's our rallying call. 🛑
International trade needs to be required to exercise due diligence, as the timber legality discourse learned in the early 00s.
Our
Government
Expeditiously
Once destroyed, life will improve for which percent of the population:?
a) 100
b) 10
c) 1
d) the billionaires only
"We've got to make life good for Elon" Trump said.
No-one else matters to them and it doesn't matter if the planet is dead. 🤬
Best of luck & be safe.
Warren Buffet, Gates and others are doing great things but Elon Musk just takes and destroys lives.
Mark Ruffalo has now posted the same. ⬇️
Please look into this.
Details and references on my timeline.
My DMs are open.
My DMs are still open if you want to cover how Musk backing Reform UK, AdF and Trump to kill net zero accelerates his Mars base plan.
Plus Business Insider on Musk’s plan to build a Mars base in his lifetime for one million people and his claiming Mars as a free planet outside Earth’s jurisdiction. ⬇️
Starship, solar power, EVs, boring machines.
BBC, The Elon Musk Show, Episode 3 (@ 49:50 minutes). ⬇️
So how does killing net zero by installing Trump, Reform (UK), AfD fit into his Mars plan?
How does accelerating climate breakdown help their backer Musk?
#FuckMusk
Obviously Musk & Co don't care, hope they don't get demonized.
And I was so ready to support him unequivocally.
He got a little over a third of that vote.
I did pause the pod to check what 'simulacrum' meant and after countless imagined spellings I got there!!
Good job I always have Encyclopedia Brittanica with me on the bus.
https://bsky.app/profile/dangear.bsky.social/post/3lbnejeght22h
Those - maybe only a few - might notice some of my multiple responses to George's threads, and think that I'm a harbinger of doom. But there will always be at least one positive, future thinking post.
#resist #robodebt
How can wealth persuade poverty to use its political freedom to keep wealth in power?
Here lies the whole art of Conservative politics in the 20th century.
Aneurin Bevan, In Place of Fear, 1952
Now why oh why would he want to scrap them?