📜 From the Archives Alert 📜 Valve is getting hit with a US lawsuit over its loot boxes being gambling in ugly cosmetic skins and getting under-18s into it. We talked about this "economy" a while ago with @mzc.bsky.social - it's bad and should be stopped. praxiscast.podbean.com/e/e384-rush-...

🚨Reskinned Episode Alert🚨 @mzc.bsky.social joined us to talk gambling, counter-strike 2 skins, the fickleness of Gabe Newell and roulette wheels in every app and website that wants to sell you shit. praxiscast.podbean.com/e/e384-rush-...

Wrote this for the New Statesman

The Greens reaching our potential involves winning over lots of ex-Labour voters Guess what? That comes with welcoming former Labour members I worked with @mzc.bsky.social on setting up @greensorganise.bsky.social - alongside Greens new & old That’s our future www.newstatesman.com/politics/gre...

British politics is recalibrating and Greens Organise can be the vector for a Red/Green alliance 🔴🟢

Thrilled to have been published in the latest edition of @jacobinmag.bsky.social

Government policy is to grow the gambling industry. That means more addiction and more suicide. Time for a rethink. - @endgamblingads.bsky.social & @mzc.bsky.social

"If we have a left wing platform that wants to transform the British economy, we’re going get a lot of people that are opposed to it, and that’s not a bad thing. @mzc.bsky.social speaking at the latest in our 'What next for the Greens' series:

This is a fantastic documentary and thanks to the guys at GEN for speeding my voice up as I know I speak way too slow 🐢

Wrote this with Paddy Power founder Stewart Kenny on how the gambling industry is destroying both horse racing and people’s lives by peddling online casino

Hats off to @carolinerussell.bsky.social for continuing to push the Mayor of London to do the right thing on gambling ads. We can't wait for central government to opine on this topic. We need local leaders up and down the country to demand change.

Dropped into House of Commons for @chapterone-uk.bsky.social launching as a national provider addressing gambling harm. Good to catch @sianberry.bsky.social @mzc.bsky.social and @willprochaska.bsky.social to plan ways of tackling gambling adverts on public transport and in betting shop windows.

My bit on 60 Minutes got another run out on Last Week Tonight during John Oliver’s fantastic takedown of online gambling in the US

Excellent from Matt and Neil on affordability checks and problem gambling. A must watch for anybody with strong opinions on the subject, especially those on the left.

Thanks @racingtv.com for having me on today. Those interested in reducing gambling harm can align with those wanting to defend horse racing by joining growing calls for separate wallets and platforms for online casino and slots

Me and Olly (winner of the Grand National 2018) approve

Fantastic news. The way these lovely dogs are treated by the gambling industry is unacceptable

This is the industry that culture secretary Lisa Nandy has said she wants to see “thrive”

This is a very serious situation. We must stamp out the scourge of players flapping their arms like seagulls or sitting peacefully on the ground after scoring a goal. This post was brought to you by TWATBET – the anonymous bookmakers that don't actually exist who definitely aren't money launderers

Wrote something on LinkedIn that I wanted to share here

You can always count on the Labour Right to eventually run to the media to brag about deceiving Labour’s membership with the Starmer campaign! Even in moments like now where their political project is clearly struggling with trust and credibility issues

Judge condemns SkyBet for unlawful use of customer data after “problem gambler” was sent 1,300 marketing emails based on thousands of data points gathered without proper consent Player protection measures didn’t kick in even though he spent all his wages

I told you so!

Leopard: I will eat your face Bank analysts: Our baseline assumes no face-eating Leopard: Chomp chomp chomp

One of many sliding doors moments that might have prevented Starmer becoming Labour leader and then Prime Minister

If we had effective consumer protection regulation, as well as a gambling ombudsman like the government promised some time ago, then all losing bets would be settled as a cash-out at the point Bet365’s website and app crashed

To be a Labour Chancellor and find yourself in a position where you decide the best course of action is to cut welfare spending is an admission of failure. Rachel Reeves should resign before she does so, she clearly isn’t up to the job

Rachel Reeves is now taking the failure of her economic policies out on the sick and disabled. A desperate coward. I remember the days when we were called naive by people insistent Labour were only posturing right to win an election, and they’d do good things once in government. How is that going?

Keir Starmer’s net approval rating is now at an all time low of -35. He is on track to be the most unpopular Prime Minister ever, and there is nowhere to hide. They can’t blame this on “Long Corbyn” or some other bullshit. He has to own the fact he has failed the country because his agenda sucks

China appears set to become the world's first clean tech hegemon, their global influence & domestic economy secured through a network of minerals, batteries, EVs, solar, wind & nuclear production & exports. Meanwhile, the US under Trump tries to hang on to its role as 20th century petro-hegemon. 🔌💡

This will have huge ramifications for how online gambling operates, which has targeted people to drive engagement on the basis of data harvested addiction profiles

Denise Coates, the owner of Bet365, took a 65% pay cut but still earns £3m per WEEK

In sum, Musk hates unions. He wants the government to crush them. Politicians who say ‘crush unions’ don’t win elections. But politicians who say ‘deport immigrants’ do. Once they’ve won power, then they can go head to head with labour - as Trump is now.

For decades the ignorant and bigoted views of billionaires, mediated through their newspapers, has driven the agenda of broadcasters. Now the undiluted ignorant and bigoted rantings of a billionaire direct to social media is driving the news agenda.

Keir Starmer has no register with which to respond to Elon Musk because he’s spent years sucking up to the “billionaire class”. He could instead have reframed public demands for sovereignty and more control over our lives as being a symptom of economic failure, unaccountable power and inequality

Polling points to Labour heading for Pasokification but no political pundits are talking about this because Starmer has done everything they were asking

They could have used the majority that landed in their laps to actually do some good, but instead we’ve had to endure them huffing their own farts about the importance of “taking tough decisions” — and look where it’s got them

Really profound. Love an intelligent response.

Starmer is going to bring back more washed New Labour grandees because he wants to convey that his government’s inertia up til now is down to current personnel not “knowing the ropes” . The reality is they had virtually nothing in their manifesto so the civil service cannot be compelled into action

"If we fail to deliver real solutions – not just in rhetoric but through policies that improve people’s lives – more demagogues will rise." My article today on a Universal Basic Income in the @bigissue.com : 👇🏼 www.bigissue.com/opinion/univ...

Look at this joyless prick on Christmas day

George Michael forever, RIP

In which, about 15 minutes in, shit is thrown at me for 15 minutes by panel members simultaneously insisting I should be ignored youtu.be/GE93iESTv5E?...

Tax online slots not jobs!

Great to talk about all things gambling with Chris and Ben

Reformers and punters must unite against the corporate gambling lobby