WHAT links Jeremy Corbyn and Elon Musk? Both have announced they are establishing a new political party, that’s what.

Musk, former Trump buddy and backer turned fury-spitting frenemy, is setting up the America Party to “give you back your freedom”.

Might that be freedom from the Trump autocracy – a rotten state Musk himself helped secure?

A madman’s vanity project to counter the other madman’s vanity project. It can only end well if one undermines the other, but Trump seems immune from harm or consequence, although death can’t be ruled out. That applies to us all, of course, but Trump stands haltingly near the front of the queue, bathed in cholesterol and sociopathic ill will.

In the thankfully calmer waters of British politics former Labour MP Zarah Sultana has said she is quitting to co-lead a new left-wing party with Jeremy Corbyn.

The man himself, seemingly not expecting her announcement quite yet, said “discussions are ongoing”. One of his allies told the FT that “Zarah has really overplayed her hand” by speaking too soon.

That’s the sort of squabble more commonly found in Reform UK when underlings cross Nigel Farage, although, to be fair, Corbyn is said to favour a collaborative party, and no-one could accuse Farage of running one of those.

Corbyn released a statement saying just what you’d expect, really.

“One year on from the election, this Labour Government has refused to deliver the change people expected and deserved. Poverty, inequality and war are not inevitable. Our country needs to change direction, now.”

Well, a year isn’t exactly long to achieve any of that, and ‘refuse’ is only one way to sum up Keir Starmer’s dull stubborn pragmatism, and former leaders have a weak hand when making demands.

Dissatisfied Labour supporters may well rally to that flag, especially those usual suspects who like Labour until they’re in power when they say, oh, this is the wrong sort of Labour.

Names for the new party are reported to include The Collective and Arise, neither of which seems likely to set hearts racing.

Still, Starmer created this problem thanks to his bad habit of suspending MPs who disagree with him. Sultana and six other MPs faced that fate last year after voting against the government. Corbyn too was suspended and now stands as in independent.

Better, surely, to contain and appease your internal critics rather than erecting a righteous platform for them to stand on.

One fear in all this is that Jeremy Corbyn, who has already lost two elections for Labour, could help them chuck another by diluting the vote and accidentally giving Farage a piggyback.

Still, Farage usually manages to trip himself up. I’m no political Nostradamus, but I’d wager he’ll end up doing the same again, never mind what the polls are saying now. Reform UK is a ragbag protest movement, not a party that deserves to be anywhere near government.

Zarah Sultana is among those who’ve been critical of Keir Starmer’s response to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza as inflicted by Israeli troops. Isn’t it more a case that Starmer has simply gone with the misguided western consensus that supports and funds Israel, never mind what its government does?

It is no longer a stretch to suppose that history will eventually record what is happening as genocide. In that context, the row last weekend about an unknown band leading chants of ‘Death, Death to the IDF’ at Glastonbury seems wildly overblown, as these matters often are.

Sadly, our newspapers and broadcasters seem much more agitated about that chant than by the Israeli military killing innocent Palestinians in Gaza, including those reportedly hit by a 500lb bomb aimed at a Gaza café (The Guardian, July 2).

We seem intent on turning our eyes away from Gaza, much as we are similarly intent on ignoring the climate crisis, even as countries burn and floods in Texas sweep away nearly 50 people.

Incidentally, if you can hold your nerve, Gaza: Doctors Under Attack – the documentary dropped by the BBC and picked up by Channel 4 – is shocking beyond words but deserves to be watched.

 

With so much that is gloomy, here is a chuckle. Trashy Trump has released two colognes called, would you believe it, Fight Fight Fight. They embody “strength, power and victory”, apparently.

My juvenile side prefers Shite Shite Shite, but there you go.

Here is a splendid response on Threads from Sir Michael Take CBE, a satirical account that sometimes sounds all too real:

Jill has a bumper stock of cut price Donald Trump fragrances in the village shop. I bought a bottle yesterday. I immediately liked the subtle scent of sausage & chive. However later in the day I started talking gibberish, became incontinent & tried grabbing my wife Bunty’s crevice.