This Once Great Movement Of Ours

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

So, uh, what exactly has happened to the Labour Party in the past few years? I don't mean the immediate aftermath of Corbyn being replaced--all that was expected--but a total surrender of nearly everything Labour historically stood for to an extent not seen since the Blair years. Starmer has come out against nationalizations (which have overwhelming public support), against increased public spending (and also against tax hikes, if the concern is over deficits), and is seemingly trying to out-Tory the Tories on immigration and trans rights. What, outside of maybe climate commitments, distinguishes Starmer from Sunak at this point?

My best guess is that Starmer is afraid of doing anything that could jeopardize Labour's massive polling lead, but playing Thomas Dewey and promising absolutely nothing to anyone is exactly how you lose that polling lead by next year.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

So, uh, what exactly has happened to the Labour Party in the past few years? I don't mean the immediate aftermath of Corbyn being replaced--all that was expected--but a total surrender of nearly everything Labour historically stood for to an extent not seen since the Blair years. Starmer has come out against nationalizations (which have overwhelming public support), against increased public spending (and also against tax hikes, if the concern is over deficits), and is seemingly trying to out-Tory the Tories on immigration and trans rights. What, outside of maybe climate commitments, distinguishes Starmer from Sunak at this point?

My best guess is that Starmer is afraid of doing anything that could jeopardize Labour's massive polling lead, but playing Thomas Dewey and promising absolutely nothing to anyone is exactly how you lose that polling lead by next year.

Ah yes, the Blair years, renowned for a dearth of public spending.

I'm speaking overall--Blair spent quite a lot but his tenure as leader of Labour was still a major shift to the right (as was the case for most left-of-center parties in the 1990s). Starmer seems unwilling to commit to anything at all. And, again, the total abandonment of any sort of commitment to trans rights or migrant rights.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Is this not overtly to the right of basically the entire US Democratic Party?

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

‘Blairites’ don’t exist anymore beyond (a) a handful of pathetic, bitter MPs who still bear grudges over Gordon Brown and (b) LARPers on Twitter with a tendency to support Andrew Tate.

You’ve never met a Labour Party staffer have you?

As I said, LARPers. They should watch less The Thick of It and stop harassing children who ‘stan’ Gordon Brown online!

I prefer A Very British Coup myself.