THE (ir)REGULAR RANT
The minimum read for the maximum knowledge.
IT HAS BEEN A MINUTE.
The world is a hectic place and sometimes we all need to take a moment away from the news. But I'm back for this week, and hopefully back for a while.
No, I missed you more.
No, you hang up first.
If you would like to share this with your friends, please do! You can also send them here.
Right - let's get into it!
Three Things
With COVID-19 stealing the limelight for the past month or so, I thought it was worth looking at a few other things around the world that you may have missed.
(From the title above, you’d think this was going to be three things… but it got late, so instead it’s two, but I’m keeping the title as a bit of motivation - believe & achieve and all of that...)
US Democratic Primaries
Things are finally starting to heat up with the Democratic Primaries, and today is Super Tuesday, so no doubt more news is breaking as we speak.
At the moment of writing (Tuesday night AEDST) it’s a two-horse race: Bernie Sanders representing the left-wing socialist movement, and Joe Biden representing the moderate side.
It’s a win for the underrepresented segment of old white men!
In just the last 48 hours, the field has narrowed considerably, with both Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar withdrawing from the race then subsequently endorsing Biden. Their departure fell just after Biden won his first state, that of South Carolina. SC is known as a bit of a bellweather state and the successor there has ended up being the candidate for the last four Democratic nominations and all of the Republican nominations since 1980 with the exception of 2012. Sanders was successful in New Hampshire and Nevada. Iowa was a bit of a fuckup and maybe Sanders won but maybe Buttigieg won and who can even remember/cares now.
BUT! There’s a third old white man who may yet rock the boat! Michael Bloomberg, a billionaire businessman, has spent millions advertising himself as a credible threat to Trump, and he enters the race today! Although the early states (as above) receive a lot of news coverage, they are low in delegates – and you need the most delegates to win the nomination. Today (Super Tuesday!), 14 states vote for their nominees, so there are big numbers up for grabs. I have a LOT more to say about the primaries and the nominees, so if you would like me to write more in depth, say so here. (Disclaimer: there will be blatant barracking for Elizabeth Warren)
In the meantime, you should definitely keep abreast of:
Delegate totals so far (NYT)
Super Tuesday live coverage (Politico)
Sinn Fein and Affordability in Ireland
If you’re reading this anywhere other than Ireland, it’s possible that you’ve never heard of Sinn Fein, but they’re here to change that. During the Irish election in February left-wing party, Sinn Fein, posted the most first-preference votes and equalled the most seats with 37. And that’s after running for only 42! (There are 160 seats, so a party wins when it receives 80+, or else has to form a coalition). For the first time in over a century neither right-wing party, Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, won majority.
Sinn Fein was the political arm of the IRA, who pushed, often violently, for unification of the Republic and Northern Ireland during the Troubles. Since then, they’ve suffered from the connection – up until this election when they became the most popular party in every age group up until 65. Why, you may ask? Well, there are a number of key factors, namely abortion and ssm vote and housing affordability.
The recent referendums in Ireland on both legalising abortion and passing same-sex marriage made many fear that their bigotry would be on display for the world, but instead the country, including many young voters, returned home to place their preference then see both ballots pass comfortably. This was the first time that many young Irish had voted (it’s not compulsory there), and had organised, advocated and witnessed change. It has shown the community that progress is possible.
Secondly, since the GFC, housing affordability in Ireland has increased rapidly, resulting in Dublin being one of the world’s 10 most expensive cities to rent in 2019 (above Sydney, Tokyo, Singapore and Copenhagen!). And in a market that had one of the world’s highest homeownership percentages, rental laws favour the landlord, which has left many (particularly young) Irish either homeless or living with their parents. People are demanding change.
So are Sinn Fein the new party in charge? Well not quite. As yet, there is no coalition and therefore no new government in Ireland. The two far-right parties have claimed they won’t partner with Sinn Fein, but the two of them forming a coalition is a bad look for the millions that voted for an alternative leadership. Sinn Fein could partner with other smaller left-wing parties, but would still need Independents.
It is highly likely there will be a second election shortly. And when there is, keep your eye out for a new Ireland.
Next time
I was going to write about the new Malaysian PM, but time has run away from me. I’ll save that (and the Israeli election, and the attack on Muslims in India) for next week/update! If there's anything in particular that you'd like to understand more - let me know!
It's great to be back! (And overpromising and underdelivering! #classicjess)
Fun Things
Read:
So, a long, LONG, time ago (last September), I went on a nude tour of the State Library of Victoria with a friend. You should read about it. You know you want to. It was... I mean, something else. It really was something else.
Watch:
Qantas have a new safety video (goodbye those two dicks who had the big night and ordered strong flat whites). What are your thoughts? I have some, and I'd like to share. Tell me what you think.
This had me GIGGLING at work for waaaaay too long.
This for those editors in the back (and clearly -- for me)
Listen:
It's over a year old, but it just gets better with age. Lizzo's single Cuz I Love You single has been playing on repeat for me recently. Those brass/base beats get me.
Another good but (kinda) old one is the third episode of the podcast 1619: The Birth of American Music. Get some tunes (and learning!) up ya.
As of March 3rd 2020, 9 women in Australia have been killed due to domestic violence.
That is one death every 7 days.