Thread by @Max12to1

1/12 SALTED EARTH: We are living in the land poisoned by Thatcherism. We have been brought low by a doctrine of “me-first” selfishness and a devil-take-the-hindmost philosophy which, together, hobble any effective action against the huge problems we now face… 🧵 #Max12to1

2/12 Economically, we were torn apart in the 1980s as #inequality and #poverty soared to levels not seen since the 1920s. We have not recovered. Gross #inequality now seems the norm. No subsequent government has even tried to reverse the damage wrought in the 1980s. #Max12to1

3/12 Socially, the UK is starkly divided. We have a three-tier education system, a two tier-health system, and a wealth chasm between those who rent or own their home. #Poverty stalks foodbank Britain. We meekly gave up on collective provision. #Max12to1 jrf.org.uk/report/uk-pove…

4/12 Politically, the UK is hugely split, reflecting our underlying economic and social divisions. Brexit and the culture wars may have been exploited by grifting right-wing charlatans and politicians, but the combustible material was already there. #Max12to1

5/12 Environmentally, we are in trouble. To address climate change, we need a cohesive society with a high degree of trust between people and a sense of common purpose - the very opposite of what Thatcherism bequeathed to us. #Max12to1 theguardian.com/environment/20…

6/12 Not everything can be laid at the feet of Thatcher and her disciples. The left and the Labour party has to take some of the blame. Intellectually and practically, there was a failure to renew social democratic thought and Thatcherism filled the void. #Max12to1

7/12 New Labour may have offered a methadone alternative to the Tories’ real heroin, but then we went back to the hard stuff. Now Starmer is trying the same trick. It may work for a while, but will it last more than a term or two? How much will change? #Max12to1

8/12 And even if the Corbyn project was seen by the Tories, the City, and the right-wing media as the second coming of Lenin, all it really offered was a bit more tax and spend. The earth is so salted that even modest proposals cannot flourish. #Max12to1 conceptually.org/concepts/overt…

9/12 So, here we are. Social solidarity has withered and to preserve our social position we must live, elbows out, always kick down and never punch up. We live in a coarsened and harsh country, one where the Home Secretary relishes deporting desperate people to Rwanda. #Max12to1

10/12 And yet, the solutions exist: a Max12:1 pay ratio, a Green New Deal, a Wealth Tax, a Financial Transactions Tax, common ownership of utilities and public services, and a massively enlarged co-operative and employee-owned business sector. #Max12to1 neweconomics.org/2022/01/five-s…

11/12 These together with full #PR and a constitutional overhaul are the building blocks. It all seems beyond reach at the moment but to construct it you first have to visualise and articulate it, so let’s at least do that with energy and hope. #Max12to1 getprdone.org.uk

12/12 And our first task is clear: we must get the #Tories out of our lives. Vote them out at the upcoming local elections and then vote them out at the general election (and vote tactically!). Then we can create a much fairer and better UK. #Max12to1
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