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Phil Syrpis Profile picture
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23 Jun, 5 tweets, 1 min read
I've just seen the full lyrics for OBON song... and it is as bad as everyone says. 1/

pbs.twimg.com/media/E4iXeafW…
First, one nation. Not a union of nations?

Then, the 'Britain' branding. Was Northern Ireland consulted? 2/
Then, 'we've opened our doors, widened our island's shores'.

On the plus side, doors does rhyme with shores.

But is this a message that Priti Patel and the Home Office can in all conscience sign up to? 3/
In verse two, we have races 'standing in the same place' and faces 'moving at the same pace'. So, do the races stand while the faces move? 4/
And finally, the 'outro'. Strong Britain, Great Nation. Strong Britain, Great Na-a-tion. Really? 5/5

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More from @syrpis

Phil Syrpis Profile picture
20 Jun
There's lots of thinking about a so-called progressive alliance. It is perhaps useful to distinguish between various forms of progressive alliance. Let me set out three versions - there are clearly many varieties within each. 1/12
First, a bottom-up strategy, relying on voters to make the sensible choice, and coalesce behind the candidate most likely to beat the Conservative. This may be accompanied by a non-aggression pact (of sorts) and an absence of campaigning in non-target seats. 2/
Second, a more formal electoral alliance between the opposition parties, with agreements not to stand candidates in particular seats. 3/
Read 12 tweets
Phil Syrpis Profile picture
18 Jun
Excellent as ever.

I was struck by the part on the EU - whether it will continue to try to find flexibilities and compromises, or whether it will start taking a much tougher line. 1/8
The post references the Orbanized flavour of the Johnson regime... and the EU faces similar questions as regards both the UK and Poland and Hungary. 2/
The UK is determinedly seeking to avoid its obligations under the NI Protocol, seeking to free itself from the chamber it has gotten itself into. Attempts to enforce the Protocol will be slow and difficult. 3/
Read 8 tweets
Phil Syrpis Profile picture
15 Jun
A quick thread on coronavirus restrictions and universities - which are, I was reminded, just 12 weeks away from welcoming students for the new academic year in September.

The postponement of 'freedom day' has a number of serious implications. 1/8
There was a lot of focus on 'double-jabbing' in order to slow the increase in transmission rates in yesterday's briefing.

Will UK-based school leavers be double-jabbed by September? 2/8
Will unis be able to responsible for ensuring that students have been vaccinated (and is there a link between that and the ability to run lectures of up to 500 students; or will those be online only)?

If so, will support be made available? 3/8
Read 8 tweets
Phil Syrpis Profile picture
9 Jun
Brexit is topping the news again today. But it is puzzling to see how the arguments are framed.

We are not 'back in 2019', though we face the same challenges as we did then. 1/7
In case people have forgotten, Brexit was 'done'. The Withdrawal Agreement, the NI Protocol, and, later, the TCA (Trade and Cooperation Agreement) were agreed - by the EU and the UK. 2/7
These agreements involve a lot of commitments on both sides. They establish a set of Committees in which ongoing issues will be addressed. They include dispute resolution procedures. 3/7
Read 7 tweets
Phil Syrpis Profile picture
31 May
The endless comparisons between Boris Johnson and Winston Churchill are wide of the mark.

All the while there has been an obvious historical parallel hiding in plain sight.

Henry VIII. 1/3
✅ Known for his many marriages
✅ Schism with the Church/Treaty of Rome
✅ Investing in the Royal Navy
✅ The divine right of Kings
✅ (For the lawyers...) Clauses
✅ Rocky relations with Chief Ministers 2/3
And, to quote the venerable wikipedia:

✅ An extravagant spender, continually on the verge of financial ruin
✅ Numerous 'costly and largely unsuccessful' wars
✅ Frequently characterised in his later life as a 'lustful, egotistical, paranoid and tyrannical' monarch 3/3
Read 4 tweets
Phil Syrpis Profile picture
30 May
This is a bit different; some thoughts about how we *listen* to people. I'm putting it here because it may, as I'll try to explain, have political resonance. THREAD 1/15
We listen (and read) for lots of different reasons, and in lots of different contexts.

I think that, fundamentally, we can listen in 2 ways, and that those 2 ways are markedly different. 2/
We can listen either from our perspective, with our own frame of reference in place, seeking to work out how what is being said interacts with our own world view. 3/
Read 15 tweets

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