I have brilliant friends. A couple of them are activists, and have turned their brilliant attention to the problem(s) of activism. I learn a lot from listening to these friends. In response to a chapter that I have in an upcoming Routledge book ("On Pathological and Ineffective Activism: What is to be Done?), one friend has... Continue Reading →
#Awalkinthepark – discursive institutionalism yet again
Four papers here, the fourth of which doesn’t quite ‘fit’, but never mind… The TL;DR is that Discursive Institutionalism is a pretty powerful (too powerful?) way of looking at policy change/lack of change. Schmidt, V. 2010. Taking ideas and discourse seriously: explaining change through discursive institutionalism as the fourth ‘new institutionalism’. European Political Science Review,... Continue Reading →
#Awalkinthepark – Islands in the Stream #Kingdon #MultipleStreams
So, these two probably could have been better clumped with the Brunner article (see last post) because they are trying to use/modify the famous “Multiple Streams Framework” of John Kingdon. Winkel, G. and Leipold, S. 2016. Demolishing Dikes: Multiple Streams and Policy Discourse Analysis. Policy Studies Journal, Vol. 44, (1), pp.108-129. Mukherjee, I. and Howlett,... Continue Reading →
TV Smith – “Buried by the Machine”
I described TV Smith as "Chomsky with a Guitar" the other day. That was before I'd listened properly to the two albums I bought at his gig. Having now done so, my opinion.... has not shifted one little bit. Is there a way forward You’ve the will Technology and the skill They tell you to... Continue Reading →
“The responsibility of intellectuals” Or “After I get shot in the head”
Some guy, I forget who, said that it was the responsibility of intellectuals to expose lies and tell the truth. Meh, as far as it goes, sure. Which truths to who gets more interesting…. If I get shot in the head (and given my deteriorating relationship with Manchester City Council, this is not impossible), and... Continue Reading →
Here comes the “2050” bullshit. Be happy for it. #climate
The future is here, and we are avoiding it. 2020 used to be the target year, by which we had done x and y and z. Sadly, we didn't do those things. A mix of complacency, distraction, stupidity and incompetence mostly explains that. So it goes. But this presents the happy shiny people (HSP) who... Continue Reading →
Why the hype over Paris and #COP21? Politics, psychology and money
An essay on hype, history, denialism and the fossil fuel lobby. I hope I am wrong, and that Paris is indeed the “turning point” it is being hyped as. It won't take us long to find out – two or three years, I reckon. Personally, I think it will run into the sand in much... Continue Reading →
“After sustainability” – good questions…
So, if there were a functioning climate movement in Manchester, it would, imho, be answering some of the questions in bold (scroll down if you want to see them). But there isn't. Ho-hum, #gladtobe45andchildfree. Global Discourse special issue: 'After sustainability - what?' Call for Papers Guest editor: John Foster (j.foster@lancaster.ac.uk) It is no longer... Continue Reading →
Climate change and World War 2 analogy
Someone who went on the climate march didn't see the organisers taking the coffins away from protesters and calling for police support. He did however comment "that there were more young faces in the crowd than usual". Memories are funny things. I remembered at that moment my grandfather and one of the recollections he shared... Continue Reading →
On existentialism, guilt, Godard and … Shell’s corporate framing strategy
Shell has a new advert – another clever and slick one extolling the virtues of burning gas, which, by pure coincidence, they happen to sell. Why now with this? Well, a mere three decades after the scientists started saying “we're gonna fry ourselves if we don't get off the fossil fuel habit” we rich white... Continue Reading →
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