Can The Right Save The Left?

January 20th, 2025 is the date that everything changed. The end of the world as we know it.

 

The world we knew

Since the Obama years, America had been gradually dragged leftwards against the will of the people. Complicit in this were the mass media–including the news agencies Reuters and Associated Press. From corporate boardrooms to elementary schools, wokeness held away, and woe betide anyone who dared to oppose it. People were unhappy but couldn't say a thing for fear of social ostracism and losing their jobs. Cancel culture metastasised while some pundits denied its existence. 

I was all for Obama in 2012. Handsome, urbane, and compassionate, he appeared to embody the virtues I thought a president should have. That was the blue corner.

In the red corner sat the greedy, selfish, religious hypocrites who railed against abortion until one of their politicians knocked up his mistress. Rinse and repeat ad nauseam. They made laws that SNAP, the welfare payments cards, were only to be spent on food or seeds for growing food--not soap or toothpaste or sanitary towels. And their candidate was a Mormon with the tact and diplomatic skills of a rabid rhinoceros. 

When they lost in 2012, the Republicans believed that they'd failed because they hadn't made their message clear enough. The truth was, they'd made it all too clear and spent eight years out of power because of it. Their salvation arrived in the unlikely form of the lumbering, crass, and downright creepy p****-grabbing Donald Trump.

Democrats lost after Obama because political correctness, which had always been a fringe craze, became mandatory, enforced with shaming and ostracism. Minorities gained outsized support at the expense of working folk–and nothing was done about the SNAP spending rules on their watch.

Four years of Trump's idiocracy in the White House--which featured his daughter Ivanka flogging her tat from the Oval office and government posts going unfilled–sent sickened voters running back to the Democrats. Biden won on the basis of not being Trump, but in the four years he had in office, two things happened: Biden began to show signs of incipient dementia, and wokeness became a totalitarian straitjacket on public discourse. Trump returned on a wave of hope that his bull-in-a-china shop approach to All The Things would free up speech and put an end to the barbarity of gender identitarianism. 

The game-changer

Politicians make all kinds of promises before taking office–some of which they keep as window-dressing–others fall by the wayside. Remember Bush Senior's “Read my lips–no new taxes”? That didn't last long. Trump, however, is keeping his. And this time, Ivanka and Jared are out of the picture, though it seems that Mr. Kushner is still advising his father-in-law from behind the curtain, as it were.

And this new, more effective Trump administration is already sending shockwaves around the world. The loosening of the woke stranglehold on social media is letting people speak out where they'd usually face being banned for hate speech. British LBGT-alphabet-soup special rights organisation Stonewall is losing all of the once-lucrative corporate sponsorship it used to enjoy. Even the oh-so-woke Green Party has quietly dropped them. As the saying goes: get woke, go broke. Other countries are rethinking “gender-affirming care” as questions continue to arise about the efficacy of this approach to treating distressed kids. Basically, they have no real answer and they can't defend it anymore. 

Hilariously, the American left is having a public meltdown as Trump appointee Elon Musk rampages through USAID shutting down programmes and departments and uncovering scandals. They're not indignant about the scandals, but about putting an end to them. While some of the more outlandish stories spread by Musk himself have proven to be hoaxes, it turns out that there really is no smoke without fire. 

What does this mean for the left?

The influence wielded by colourful characters like Trump and Musk is smothering the Democrats, particularly those on the left. Since they've abandoned their core demographics for political edge cases and unpopular causes, it doesn't matter if Musk is exaggerating–the message they themselves are broadcasting is that they're unfit to govern. The only way out of this epic self-ownage is to demonstrate the ability to serve “we, the people,” not just “cause du jour.” By creating the impression that they can be trusted to serve the American people (whether this is actually true or not), Trump has put them on the back foot.

So then, how can the right possibly save the left? By showing them how service to the people is better than serving pet projects. By demonstrating how being willing to listen to and work with people they disagree with on principle can effect change. And by showing how diversity (of opinion) really is a strength. 

I firmly believe that if the left starts genuinely caring about the Joe Bloggs's of this world instead of engaging in performative virtue signalling, they will win the next election. Until they do, they have no chance. 

Tickle V Giggle: Australia Is Officially Nuts

The media outlets that claim to counter misinformation are busily spreading it, presenting a man called Roxanne Tickle as a woman scorned who rightfully won justice against an evil bigot.

Just look at the state of them! I'm furious. According to that eejit Judge Robert Bromwich, any man who puts on a skirt and claims a feminine gender identity (which, let me remind you, is merely a personal belief or feelings about oneself) is an actual woman like me. No. That's not how it works. 

Women are human beings in our own right and men have no right to arrogate to themselves the right to define us in their own terms. Let us define ourselves.

I've been lectured over and over again by the vilest of men about how Ts have feelings, etc., but basically, if we express fear or discomfort around male people in our spaces, we are somehow defective. So only they have feelings of fear or discomfort. Only they are vulnerable. Only they are worthy of consideration. 

This is my contention: any man who denies us the right to exclusivity on the basis of our biological sex discriminates against us on the basis of sex. Moreover, he paternalistically arrogates to himself the right to define us and to make choices on our behalf, even when they are against our interests. He basically relegates us to slave status, demanding complete subservience at all times without question in every area of our lives. No. Hell, no.

Sall Grover needs your help to appeal this case. Give what you can, however meagre the amount. Every penny put towards this case asserts that women are a discrete sex class with demands, needs, and rights of our own. To let that man Tickle win lets every woman and girl down. It tells every man that we are nothing, that we're nobody and that only men have the right to make choices for us. 

Sall Grover must prevail!

JK Rowling And The Irresponsible Media

 

She was right. They all know she's right but will they admit it? Hell, no. In fact, the left-leaning press is a) doubling down, and b) complaining about how toxic and divisive the subject of trans rights is. But whose fault is that?

Vice News Layoffs -- Get Woke, Go Broke

Vice News, that paragon of woke news blogging, has taken a little tumble off the cliff. But why? I think I know.

Who Decides What Constitutes "Hate Speech?"

I'm watching Graham Linehan and Helen Staniland talking to the Communications and Digital Committee about censorship by Twitter and Facebook on the subject of freedom of expression online. It's worth seeing, so check it out.

Shaping The Narrative: How Astroturfing Warps People's Perceptions

I realise the subject matter of this blog has focussed on trans issues for a while, but as long as I've got men (and some women) telling me to accept men as women on say-so alone, that will continue. The question is, why the hell are they doing this and what can we do about it?

Free Speech: Causes, Consequences, And The Mob

I've been trying to talk about cancel culture for a while now. I thought that while everyone was talking about it they would talk about the dizzying rise of trans rights rhetoric and its growing role in law and policy, but nobody would touch it. Too hot a potato. Well the good news is it's not a hate crime to talk about it here (yet), so I will. Basically, I'm trying to hold a middle-ground position while fending off accusations from both sides that I don't care about either of them.

Why Can't Right Wing Conservatives Handle The Truth?

I don't know if you've noticed this but it seems that people who call themselves conservative (they're mostly right-wingers), have a massively complicated relationship with truth, particularly when it contradicts their worldview. Why is that?

Rape Culture: When Do We Let Bygones Be Bygones?

Yesterday I asked when we can talk about reputation following a tragedy. The answer was, per Sam Klein, "At least wait till the families have been informed." Today I want to talk about grace and letting go — and how damn hard it is to do so. WARNING: Controversial content.

When Can We Discuss Reputation Following A Tragedy?

When is it okay to talk about grievances against an individual or group if a tragedy affects them? WARNING: I'm not going to pull my punches. If you're easily offended, hit the back button.

Why "Nasty" Is The New Normal

The way I see it, there was a time when all the incidents we consider to be downright horrible were condemned and the people who committed them were censured. Today, we've got elected politicians cheering such incidents on on when not putting the boot in themselves. What has happened to our society? I have a few ideas. WARNING: I will not pull any punches. As usual.

How The Internet Can Help Or Hinder Hate Speech

I've been called all sorts of names over my stances on freedom of speech and on the issues that are important to me. Basically, I believe in personal freedom. However, this freedom ends where other people's freedoms begin, which is why we're forever debating it. Some new items have come up which help shed light on the complexity of this debate, which I'm going to discuss tonight.

Happy New Year 2018: My Hopes And Fears For The Year Ahead

Last year I wrote thirty nine posts, twenty two of which were about Brexit, twenty three featured US president Donald Trump, nine were about freedom of speech, and the rest were about a mixed bag of issues that caught my attention. Let's take a trip down memory lane and see if any of my predictions came true.

Brexit: Leavers Bank On "Democracy," EU, To Make It Work.

If there was ever a reason to attempt the reversal of the Brexit process it's the fact that Leavers utterly refuse to take responsibility for the mess they've made. This is a problem across the political spectrum in which ideological dogma rules the roost. Is there anything we can do about it?

Rape Culture: Where The Left Lets Us Down

In my last post I pointed out that rape culture is a patriarchal problem and that the Right, which claims to uphold traditional values, is dreadfully hypocritical, to say the least. But is the left any better? Trigger warning: Go read something else if you're easily offended; the snark is strong with this one.

Who Has A Lock On Morality — The Left, The Liberals, Or The Right?

One of the most fascinating aspects of political discourse at the moment is the role of morality in framing discussions over healthcare and the welfare state. With the passage of the AHCA in America and elections looming over here I think it's time we took a closer look at it.

Normalising Nuts: How Trump Hornswoggled America Into Loving Neoliberalism

The Trump regime in America has, to date, alienated allies, prostituted the office of president, made a huge fool of itself over and over again, and is in the process of bringing the government to a standstill even though it holds both Houses. Why is he still in office?

Trump's Missile Strikes On Syria: Are The Neocons Creeping Back Into Power?

The neocons are a horrible lot. Reality-averse faith-driven ideologues who believe the end justifies the means, they believe that they and they alone have the answers to the world's problems despite the fact that they've only made them worse when they get involved. Trump voters voted against them; now it looks as though, in an effort to get away from the pointing and laughing, Trump is permitting them to set policy on Syria. This is the state of play.

UK, USA Going to Hell In A Handbasket

What do Brexit and the clown-car pileup better known as the Trump administration have in common? Anyone? It's all at the behest of a nasty-minded bunch of xenophobic paranoiacs. Well we're reaping what we've sown, the chickens are coming home to roost, people. This is the state of play.

How Exceptionalism Destroys Democracy

Exceptionalism is the overarching theme of the week so far. It's the engine that drives the hubris of the political pillocks whose misbegotten ideologies are making our lives a misery. It's gone into overdrive lately and I think it's time we had a look at it, then called it out for what it is. This is why.