u/Hurbahns

Since Starmer purged all the real leftists and working-class socialists from Labour, I don't feel inspired by any of the current crop.

Labour was once the party of giants, like Nye Bevan, Tony Benn, Ken Livingstone, Bernie Grant. People who were actually impressive and true-believers in socialism. When I look at the current crop of MPs and councillors, I don't see any of that, which is sad.

The party has disconnected itself from being a Labour movement - heavily involved in social movements, out on picket lines, etc. To being a managerialist, bureaucratic apparatus waging war on said social movements.

If this was the 1960s or 1970s, the politics of the Green Party (for example) would be subsumed under Labour. But nowadays, it has shifted so far to the right, and is full of such venal, cretinous, spineless MPs - landlords, zionists, civil service types, the bourgeoisie - that it does not have an organic link with the social movements and the class-conscious working-class.

The party has bought into the conventional economic thinking of the capitalist class, whereas the science of political economy has shown ample evidence (New Keynesians, MMT) that massive public investment, jobs guarantees, universal trade unionism, nationalisation of the commanding heights, can lead to economic recovery.

What's the point of a renters' rights bill that doesn't establish caps on rent rises? What's the point of GBE that doesn't nationalise energy assets? What's the point of Ofcom policing porn websites rather than social media and AI generated hate and disinformation? What's the point of punching down on trans people? It's all a shitshow.

Sometimes I wonder why I don’t just quit my job, buy a tent, and spend my life walking around the world and sleeping in the woods.

What’s the point of working when all the money goes to other people in the form of taxes, student loans, rent, bills, and maybe a little bit extra for food.

If I’m going to have nothing, I might as well be freed from 8-hours a day of wage-slavery and dropout of capitalist society.

Dear Keir Starmer,

You have managed to unite the whole of society against you.

Pensioners and students. Trade unionists and CEOs. Zionists and anti-Zionists. Militarists and pacifists. Countryfolk and cityfolk. North, south, east, and west. England, Scotland, and Wales.

You did not win the last General Election, the Conservatives simply lost it. You won fewer votes than Corbyn in 2019. You became leader through lies. You lied to Corbyn. You lied to the members who voted for you. You lied to the country about Mandelson. You suspended Labour MPs who stood on picket lines alongside trade-unionists. You used state repression to lock up hundreds of peaceful protestors. You censored the internet. You tried to take away jury trials.

The country is pissed off at you, and we think you should just piss off.

You are a mediocre civil servant, not a great leader of the working-class, and you never will be. Your political career was stillborn and baseless, and the longer you remain in office the more likely the country will end up with a far-right government at the next election.

So do everyone a favour and piss off.

Yours sincerely,

An angry citizen

I see some criminal defence firms offering pre-charge representation services; essentially making a submission to the CPS that a case will fail to meet either public interest test or sufficient evidence test, with a view to obtaining an NFA outcome for the client.

Is there any evidence on the effectiveness of such approaches?

Any recs?

I feel like a like a life full of trauma, chronic stress, burnout, depression, self-sabotage and low self esteem really took its toll on me.

I take 90mg of duloxetine now, which is definitely beneficial but not really sufficient for resolving depression. Been considering trying ketamine based antidepressants instead.

My psychotherapist keeps telling me to try to meet people, join some groups or clubs, and build a social life. But deep down, I just don’t care anymore.

I know loneliness is terrible for physical and mental health - probably worse than smoking in some respects in terms of its chronic damage. But as a guy in my 30s, I’ve given up trying.

I wonder how many of you experience a similar sense of isolation.

How bad is this going to be if I run out cold turkey?