Reversal of fortunes

What a difference a few weeks can make. This time last month the promise of competent, if unexciting, government courtesy of Keir Starmer meant I was cautiously optimistic about the immediate future of the UK; conversely, developments in the US, where Joe Biden’s faltering campaign seemed set to gift Donald Trump a second term in the White House, had left me feeling thoroughly bummed out.

Fast forward to today and the tables have been turned. The Democrats, having had the good sense to ditch Biden in favour of a balanced and inspiring Harris/Walz ticket, look well-placed to win in November, while on this side of the Atlantic we are coming to terms with the fact that we live in a country where fascist mobs can seemingly be conjured out of nowhere to riot in the streets and burn down migrant hostels.

I guess it’s probably not as bad, or as good, as it looks. The rioters, much like the January 6th would-be insurrectionists, will soon find out that fighting the state is not as consequence-free as posts on Telegram may have led them to believe, and retreat back to their alt-right internet swamps. Despite the excitement generated by the reset of the Democrat campaign, Trump is still the narrow favourite. I expect I’ll manage a few more posts on these topics before matters are settled.