Stuart Walton’s Post

Had a great Saturday in Malham, walking to Janet’s Foss, Gordale Scar and the Cove itself.

Greater Manchester is RED 🔥

Vietnamese coffee as pulling an all nighter (probs)

Voted Labour - roll on 10pm

Hope and despair. I still remember clearly the election of December 2019, standing in a sea of gammon in a field in Bradwell, Norfolk, realising that Brandon Lewis, the invisible now knighted MP for the impoverished town of Great Yarmouth, was going to be re-elected. Because people loved the chummy shtick of Boris Johnson and the “Get Brexit Done” message. I still remember voting in 1997 in Stoke on Trent, knowing that Tony Blair was about to achieve a landslide. Today, in socialist Manchester, I will vote for Lucy Powell, Shadow Leader of the House, and MP for Manchester Central, with the hope that Sir Keir Starmer represents some hope. I find it remarkable that in just 5 years, Starmer has transformed Labour’s fortunes from fighting a 2019 80 seat majority to the brink of a historic landslide. I’m hoping too that he will be more radical in Downing Street than his beige manifesto indicates. Change is what this country needs. And love him or loathe him, he will be in a different league to Cameron, May, Johnson, Truss and Sunak. I do hope the Tory party are eviscerated today, along with Reform. Today, I have some hope for the future of this country. Vote tactically wherever you are to remove the cronyism, corruption, gaslighting Tories for good.

Oh the joy of drinking San Pellegrino without wincing with pain. And to regale the staff with my Homerian epic tale of private dentistry and the relief I feel today.

Felt inspired to write about my Philosophy group meeting in Saddleworth this week, with thoughts on politics and rural life.

Great night’s sleep because yesterday I skipped the NHS queues and had a tooth removed in a private dental practice in Withington, Manchester. It’s open 24/7 365 days a year and the procedure was exceptional. I contacted them at 4pm, as was sick to the back teeth, literally, of nagging pain, even though I’m single. 6pm X rays revealed a gaping hole in the side of a tooth which couldn’t be saved. By 6.45pm, it was out. I don’t do this to humble brag at all, but to say that me, a left-leaning Liberal, who supports the NHS, was prepared to pay a large amount to get a problem fixed. Don’t judge me either. I did find Keir Starmer’s answer to one question in one of those bland leadership debates disingenuous. He was asked if he’d go private in an emergency and said no. I did, and I slept well last night. I want an NHS that works, of course, but given that I could wait no longer as the pain was debilitating, I paid to get seen immediately. Today, I’m working on a new website project with a hole in my gums and a hole in my wallet, but pain-free and surely that’s worth it.

“Some people feel the rain, others just get wet” Bob Marley. Develop a stoic mindset. Don’t fret over things you can’t control - manage your reactions to them. #philosophy #mindset