During the 2017 General Election campaign the Tory party thought that they could simply buy social media popularity by pumping £millions into an unprecedented campaign of social media dark ads.
The strategy backfired spectacularly because the Tories just didn't understand that you can't buy social media virality, you have to produce content that people want to share (something I'm apparently quite good at having written the #1. #2, and #7 most viral articles of the entire 2017 General Election campaign).
The Tories got absolutely trounced on social media, and now that they know they can't buy social media success, they're expressing hatred and contempt for it.
The Tory MP for South East Cornwall Sheryll Murray (the one who went viral when she was caught on camera saying that she thinks food bank Britain is a good thing) has been calling for a crackdown on social media free speech, and the Tory MP for South West Devon Gary Streeter has said that he hates social media "because it gives voices to people who don't deserve one".
The idea that some people don't deserve a political voice is exactly the kind of digracefully elitist Tory rubbish that has alienated millions of younger people, and made the Tory party so damned unpopular on social media.
The idea that there is a kind of special establishment elite who deserve to have their political opinions heard, and the rest of us are political untermenschen who deserve no political voice might well appeal to bitter old right-wing authoritarians who want to be dominated and repressed by a powerful political elite, but it's absolutely toxic to anyone with liberal social values or even the slightest amount of self-respect.
The last three decades has seen a dramatic reversal in social mobility, with higher percentages of privately educated elitists in front bench politics and in the mainstream media than back in the 1980s, but social media is levelling the playing field a little by allowing state educated people from ordinary backgrounds (like me) the opportunity to express our political opinions.
The Tories hate the freedom of political ideas that social media and the Internet allow, and that's why they're so damned keen to censor it.
The idea of uppity plebs having political ideas of their own, rather than rote learning and mindlessly regurgitating the propaganda they're fed by the political establishment makes them sick with fear.
Thankfully the scale of the social media fightback meant that Theresa May threw away her parliamentary majority in her vanity election, so now she's going to have a hell of a fight on her hands (inside and outside of parliament) if she's going to try to impose self-serving Tory censorship on social media and the Internet.
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Progress is the right-wing pro-austerity, pro-privatisation, pro-imperialism, pro-globalisation, pro-PFI faction of the Labour Party that ruled the roost for two decades between 1994 and 2015, and they absolutely hate what's going on now so much that they've deliberately sidelined themselves from influence with their petulant refusals to serve in Jeremy Corbyn's cabinet, their coup-plotting and wrecking tactics, and their regular displays of naked contempt for the party membership.
The Progress ideology is that the only way to win an election in the UK is to imitate the Tory party.
It doesn't matter how far off into bonkers hard-right austerity dogma and privatisation mania the Tories go there are Labour right-wingers who are certain that the only course of action is to continually track rightwards to stay next to them, hence the shockingly inept 2015 General Election strategy of promoting austerity-lite instead of properly opposing Tory austerity dogma as the socially and economically ruinous ahistorical nonsense that it is, and always was.
Despite being vilified in the mainstream press like no other political leader before him, Jeremy Corbyn managed to win 3.6 million voters back to Labour in the first general election in decades that the party hasn't been dominated by the right-wing Progress faction.
Who would have thought that a Labour leader could appeal to millions by offering people what they want (decent wages; properly funded public services; repatriated national infrastructure; education as a right rather than a commodity; job security; more cops, nurses and firefighters; real action to combat the energy market profiteers; no more privatisation scams; no more warmongering in the Middle East) rather than lecturing them they they're too stupid to understand politics for themselves and that Tory-lite is the only alternative to pure Toryism?
It's almost as if Progress and their ilk are actually completely wrong about everything, and it's their determination that the role of the opposition is to imitate the government rather than oppose it that's the toxifying force that gradually rendered Labour "unelectable".
As Jeremy Corbyn was being cheered by tens of thousands at Glastonbury Paul Mason faced a much harder audience at the Progress conference.
Paul Mason was lied about, booed and hissed by the Progress mob as he tried to explain to them that they need to get with the project or form their own centre-right pro-EU, pro-war, pro-privatisation party.
Listen to how the leader of this mob Richard Angell desperately tries to spin and misrepresent what Mason is saying in order to make himself and his ilk out as the poor victims of censorship, even as the Progress mob simultaneously boo and hiss and shout at Paul Mason for expressing "thought crime"!.
This outrageous stuff is the behaviour of an out-of-touch and increasingly sidelined faction of the Labour Party that is absolutely intent on telling people what to think, rather than listening to what they're actually saying.
Mason's views went down like a lead balloon because the Progress mob still think that the Labour Party belongs to them and that this period of genuine democratic socialism is just a frustrating but brief interregnum before they can retake the party and top-down impose centre-right neoliberalism-lite again.
They've already shown that they will stop at nothing to try to undermine Jeremy Corbyn's leadership, and Angell has clearly expressed his anti-democratic determination to prevent local Labour Party members from choosing their own candidates in favour of parachuting in yet more Progress-approved centre-right political drones.
Angell also accused Paul Mason (first joined the party at the age of 19) of being an "entryist" on stage, a lie which elicited a round of applause from the Progress mob.
Not only do Progress want to ape hard-right Tory economic policy, they also ape the Tory tactic of accusing their opponents of that which they are guilty of themselves.
Progress are the "unelectable" ones who couldn't even beat David Cameron in 2015 despite five years of toxic austerity dogma, shockingly chaotic governance, near-constant lies and evasions, constant demeaning economic baby-talk, and extraordinary complacency about abject incompetence in his top team (Iain Duncan Smith, George Osborne, Theresa May, Chris Grayling ...).
Progress are the "entryists" who took over a democratic socialist party and set about turning it into a centre-right neoliberal party and driving away millions of voters in the process.
And Progress MPs are the "extremists" who actually queued up to vote in favour of Tory austerity dogma in 2015 when the public were crying out for an opposition party to actually oppose it.
Make no mistake about it, the Progress mob will do everything in their power to hobble the Labour Party because they'd much rather exist in the political wilderness of the unpopular, unelectable and almost totally abandoned centre-right territory than actually win power from the centre-left.
Don't take my word for it, take Tony Blair's.
Another Angry Voice is a "Pay As You Feel" website. You can have access to all of my work for free, or you can choose to make a small donation to help me keep writing. The choice is entirely yours.
Over 100 noted economists have written a letter saying that Britain needs a change of direction away from seven years of ruinous Tory austerity dogma, and towards an the investment based recovery strategy detailed in the Labour Party manifesto.
The pro-Tory mainstream press march in lockstep with the Tories, promoting the Orwellian propaganda narrative that the Tories are the party of economic competence.
This fiction is still ubiquitously parroted in the mainstream media despite the fact that the Tories have missed all of their headline economic targets since 2010 (remember how they were going to eliminate the budget deficit before May 2015, yet it's still over £50 billion now?) and as a result of all of these missed targets they've created more new public debt in seven years than every single Labour government in history combined!
Tory austerity dogma was always "race to the bottom" rubbish. They missed their economic targets over and again, and only succeeded in helping the mega-rich minority to literally double their wealth, while ordinary British workers suffered the longest and most severe wage squeeze in recorded history.
The extreme right-wing dominance of the UK media is such that millions of people actually believe this widespread, but completely backwards fairy story of Tory economic competence.
Anyway, here's the letter that over 100 economics experts (including the fantastic Steve Keen and Ha-Joon Chang) have signed in support of Labour's investment-based recovery strategy:
On 8 June, voters will go to the polls for perhaps the most important UK general election since 1945. The importance arises in great part from profound differences in economic policy, reflecting different views of the nature and health of the British economy.
The Conservative manifesto calls for continued austerity, which will tend to slow the economy at a crucial juncture, against the backdrop of Brexit negotiations.
Their spending cuts have hurt the most vulnerable and failed to achieve their intended debt and deficit reduction targets.
In contrast, Labour’s manifesto proposals are much better designed to strengthen and develop the economy and ensure that its benefits are more fairly shared and sustainable, as well as being fiscally responsible and based on sound estimations.
We point to the proposed increases in investment in the future of the UK and its people, labour market policies geared to decrease inequality and to protect the lower paid and those in insecure work, and fair and progressive changes in taxation.
There is no future for the UK in a race to the bottom, which would only serve to increase social and economic inequality and further damage our social fabric. On the contrary, the UK urgently needs a government committed, as is Labour, to building an economy that really works "for the many, and not only the few".
- Dr Adotey Bing-Pappoe, lecturer in economics
- Alan Freeman (personal capacity)
- Alfredo Saad Filho, Professor of Political Economy, SOAS University of London
- Andrew Cumbers, Professor of Regional Political Economy, University of Glasgow
- Andrew Simms, author of The New Economics, co-director New Weather Institute
- Andy Ross FAcSS, Visiting Professor, Birkbeck University of London
- Andy Kilmister, Department of Accounting, Finance and Economics, Oxford Brookes University
- Ann Pettifor, Director of PRIME Economics (Policy Research in Macroeconomics)
- Dr Antonio Andreoni (PhD Cambridge), Senior Lecturer in Economics, SOAS University of London
- Anwar Shaikh, Professor, New School for Social Research, USA
- Arturo Hermann, Senior research fellow, Italian National Institute of Statistics, Rome, Italy
- Professor Ben Fine, Department of Economics, SOAS University of London
- Robert Rowthorn, Emeritus Professor of Economics, University of Cambridge
- Bruce Cronin, Professor of Economic Sociology, Director of Research, Director of the Centre for Business Network Analysis, University of Greenwich
- Dr Bruno Bonizzi, Lecturer in Political Economy, University of Winchester
- Carlos Oya, Reader in Development Studies, SOAS University of London
- Carolina Alves, PhD Economics
- Carolyn Jones, Director, Institute of Employment Rights
- Cem Oyvat, Lecturer, University of Greenwich
- Christopher Cramer, Professor of the Political Economy of Development, SOAS University of London
- Ciaran Driver FAcSS, Professor of Economics, SOAS University of London
- Clive Lawson, University of Cambridge
- Professor Colin Haslam, Professor of Accounting and Finance, Queen Mary University of London
- Costas Lapavitsas, Professor of Economics, SOAS University of London
- Cyrus Bina, Distinguished Research Professor of Economics, University of Minnesota, USA
- Dr Dan O’Neill, Lecturer in Ecological Economics, University of Leeds
- Daniela Gabor, Professor of Economics and Macro-Finance, University of the West of England
- Daniele Archibugi, Professor, Birkbeck College
- Professor Danny Dorling, University of Oxford, Writer and Academic
- Dean Baker, Co-Director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, Washington, DC
- Dr Deborah Johnston, Pro-Director (Learning and Teaching) SOAS (University of London)
- Diego Sánchez-Ancochea, Associate Professor in Political Economy, Director, Latin American Centre, University of Oxford
- Dr Dimitris P. Sotiropoulos, The Open University Business School
- Elisa Van Waeyenberge, Lecturer of Economics, SOAS University of London
- Dr Emanuele Lobina, Public Services International Research Unit, University of Greenwich
- Professor Engelbert Stockhammer, Kingston University
- Dr Faiza Shaheen, Economist (in a personal capacity)
- Frances Stewart, Professor of Development Economics and Director, Centre for Research on Inequality, Human Security and Ethnicity, University of Oxford
- Gary Dymski, Professor of Applied Economics, Leeds University Business School
- Geoff Harcourt, Honorary Professor, UNSW Australia
- Gerald Epstein, Co-Director, Political Economy Research Institute, and Department of Economics, University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA
- Dr Giorgos Galanis, Lecturer in Economics, Goldsmiths University
- Gregor Semieniuk, Lecturer in Economics, SOAS University of London
- Guglielmo Forges Davanzati, Associate professor of Political Economy, University of Salento, Italy
- Dr Guy Standing FAcSS, Professorial Research Associate, SOAS University of London
- Ha-Joon Chang, University of Cambridge
- Hannah Bargawi, Lecturer in Economics, SOAS University of London, and Research Partner, Centre for Development Policy and Research
- Dr Hassan Hakimian, Reader in Economics, SOAS University of London
- Professor Dr Heiner Flassbeck, former Chief Economist of UNCTAD, Geneva
- Heikki Patomäki, Professor of World Politics, University of Helsinki
- Howard M. Wachtel, Professor Emeritus of Economics, American University, Washington, DC, USA
- Howard Reed, Director, Landman Economics
- Dr Hugh Goodacre, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Westminster, Teaching Fellow, University College London
- Hugo Radice, University of Leeds
- Hulya Dagdeviren, Professor of Economic Development, University of Hertfordshire
- Ilhan Dögüs, Department of Socioeconomics, University of Hamburg, Germany
- James K. Galbraith, Professor of Government, University of Texas, USA
- Jan Toporowski, Professor of Economics and Finance, SOAS University of London
- Dr Jane Lethbridge, Public Services International Research Unit, University of Greenwich
- Jeanette Findlay, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Glasglow
- Jeff Faux, Founder & former Director, Economic Policy Institute, Washington D C
- Dr Jeff Powell, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Greenwich
- Dr Jeff Tan, Economist, Aga Khan University in the UK, Jeremy Smith, co-director, PRIME Economics (Policy Research in Macroeconomics)
- Dr Jo Michell, Senior Lecturer in Economics, UWE Bristol
- Professor John Grahl, Economics Department, Middlesex University
- John Palmer, former Political Director of the European Policy Centre
- Dr Johnna Montgomerie, Senior Lecturer in Economics, Deputy Director of the Political Economy Research Centre, Goldsmiths University of London
- Jonathan Dawson, Coordinator of Economics, Schumacher College
- Professor Jonathan Michie, Professor of Innovation & Knowledge Exchange, University of Oxford
- Dr Jonathan Perraton, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Sheffield
- Jorge Buzaglo, Associate Professor of Economics, University of Stockholm, Sweden
- Dr Julian Wells, Principal Lecturer of Economics, Kingston University
- Kate Bayliss, Research Fellow, Economics Department, SOAS University of London
- Professor Kate Pickett, University of York Champion for Research on Justice & Equality
- Dr Kevin Deane, Senior Lecturer in International Development, University of Northampton (personal capacty)
- Dr Kitty Stewart, Associate Professor of Social Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science
- Klaus Nielsen, Professor of Institutional Economics, Birkbeck University of London
- László Andor, Associate Professor, Corvinus University, Hungary
- Professor Lawrence King, University of Cambridge
- Laurie Macfarlane, Economics Editor, Open Democracy
- Leslie Huckfield, Yunus Centre for Social Business & Health, Glasgow Caledonian University
- Malcolm Sawyer, Emeritus Professor of Economics, University of Leeds
- Marco Veronese Passarella, Economics Division, Leeds University Business School
- Maria Nikolaidi, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Greenwich
- Dr Mario Seccareccia, Full Professor, Department of Economics, University of Ottawa, Canada
- Dr Martin Watts, Emeritus Professor of Economics, The University of Newcastle
- Massoud Karshenas, Professor of Economics, SOAS University of London
- Dr Matteo Rizzo, Senior Lecturer, Department of Economics, SOAS University of London
- Meghnad Desai, London School of Economics
- Mehmet Ugur, Professor of Economics and Institutions, University of Greenwich Business School
- Michael Roberts, financial economist and author of The Long Depression
- Professor Mushtaq Khan, Department of Economics, SOAS, University of London
- Professor Ozlem Onaran, Director of Greenwich Political Economy Research Centre, University of Greenwich
- Pallavi Roy, Lecturer in International Economics, SOAS, University of London
- Paulo dos Santos, Assistant Professor of Economic, New School for Social Research, USA
- Paul Mason, economics writer
- Prem Sikka, Emeritus Professor of Accounting, University of Essex
- Dr Pritam Singh, Professor of Economics, Oxford Brookes University
- Radhika Desai, Professor, Department of Political Studies, University of Manitoba, USA
- Richard McIntyre, Professor, Chair, Department of Economics, University of Rhode Island, USA
- Richard Murphy, Professor of Practice in International Political Economy at City University of London and Director of Tax Research LLP
- Richard Parker, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, USA
- Richard Wilkinson, Emeritus Professor of Social Epidemiology, University of Nottingham
- Dr Robert Calvert Jump, Lecturer in Economics, Kingston University
- Robert Neild, Professor Emeritus of Economics, University of Cambridge
- Robert Pollin, Distinguished Professor of Economics and Co-Director, Political Economy Research Institute, University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA
- Roberto Veneziani, Queen Mary University of London
- Susan Himmelweit, Emeritus Professor of Economics, Open University
- Dr Sara Gorgoni, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Greenwich
- Dr Sara Maioli, Lecturer in Economics, Newcastle University
- Dr Satoshi Miyamura, Lecturer in the Economy of Japan, SOAS University of London
- Shawky Arif, The University of Northampton, Simon Wren-Lewis, Professor of Economic Policy, Oxford University
- Professor Steve Keen, Department of Economics, Kingston University
- Simon Mohun, Emeritus Professor of Political Economy, Queen Mary University of London
- Dr Sunil Mitra Kumar, Lecturer in Economics, King’s College London
- Susan Newman, Senior Lecturer of Economics, University of West England
- Dr Susan Pashkoff, Economist
- Dr Suzanne J Konzelmann, Director, Postgraduate Programmes in Corporate Governance and Business Ethics, Director, London Centre for Corporate Governance and Ethics, Co-Executive Editor, Cambridge Journal of Economics
- Tom Palley, Former Chief Economist, US-China Economic and Security Review Commission
- Tomás Rotta, Lecturer in Economics, University of Greenwich
- Trevor Evans, Emeritus Professor of Economics, Berlin School of Economics and Law, Germany
- Will Davies, Reader in Political Economy, Goldsmiths, University of London
- Dr William Van Lear, Economics Professor, Belmont Abbey College, USA
- Yanis Varoufakis, Former Minister of Finance, Greece
- Yannis Dafermos, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of the West of England
- José Gabriel Palma, University of Cambridge
- Yulia Yurchenko, University of Greenwich
Make sure you read the Labour Party manifesto for yourself, and don't let the right-wing propaganda barons or the pro-establishment BBC tell you what to think about it.
Another Angry Voice is a "Pay As You Feel" website. You can have access to all of my work for free, or you can choose to make a small donation to help me keep writing. The choice is entirely yours.
