The Anxious Generation was published two years ago today, in a very different world. Back then, the most common objection I got was resignation: "The train has left the station." "You can't put toothpaste back in the tube." "It's how the kids connect today."
Today, the world looks very different. It turns out that if our kids were all on a train and we learned it was heading toward a collapsed bridge, we'd find a way to stop it and bring them safely back to the station. That’s what’s happening now.
After the historic verdicts in Los Angeles and New Mexico, today is a great day to reflect on the capacity of people in democratic societies to take action, even when opposing some of the most powerful corporations in history. We're getting access to the courts. We're getting phone-free schools. We're seeing whole neighborhoods letting kids out to play, unsupervised, which is what we older folk all remember as the best part of childhood.
So I want to recognize:
--The mothers (and, right behind them, fathers) who rose up by the millions and powered the movement.
--The farsighted governors and legislators in red states and blue states who have been innovating on policy solutions.
--The leaders of a dozen of nations, who are raising the age to 16 for opening social media accounts (with a special shoutout to Australia, for going first).
--The teachers and school administrators who had their classrooms disrupted for 15 years, and who are now eager to think through new solutions as screens have taken over and obstructed learning.
--The grassroots organizations who have been dedicating their efforts to advocate for all of the above in their local communities.
--The millions of members of Gen Z who have been rising up, demanding agency over how they spend their lives in the digital era, and finding better ways to connect in real life.
And one final group: the survivor parents--the ones you saw in those pictures of people embracing on the front steps of the LA courthouse. I have met many over the years. I am in awe of their courage and tenacity, their willingness to tell their stories of loss, over and over again, to different audiences, in the hope that no other parent would have to endure what they have endured. At long last, juries and legislatures are hearing you, and are acting.
Together, we are calling the train back to the station. Together, we are rolling back the phone based childhood and reclaiming life in the real world.
The work continues. If you’re not already involved, join us: https://t.co/HdJDTKOQ3T
Thanks, but personally I'd rather pay the one-off £60 and forgo the snake oil surveillance system which will have a huge impact on this entire country.
I recently spoke with someone buying a house with her partner.
She told me that she had to pay just to verify who she was.
With digital ID that could be done in seconds and wipe out the costs.
Digital ID will save you time and money.
In the last few years we've seen:
- The plot to kidnap Gretchen Whitmer
- The Storming of the Capitol and pipe bombs left at the RNC and DNC
- The break-in to kidnap Nancy Pelosi and the brutal on Paul Pelosi
- Multiple assassination attempts against Trump
- The assassination of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband and the shooting of on State Senator John Hoffman and his wife
- Luigi Mangione's assassination of Brian Thompson
- The assassination of Charlie Kirk
Political violence is contagious. It is spreading. It is not confined to one side or belief system. It should terrify us all.
The foundation of a free society is the ability to participate in it without fear of violence. Political violence is always an attack against us all. You have to be so blind not to see that.
Today’s judgment from the High Court - which dismissed Equity’s challenge to Spotlight’s fees - is disappointing for our 50,000 members.
Those members will perhaps be most surprised by the finding by the judge, Her Honourable Justice Howells, that Spotlight “does not provide services for the purposes of finding persons employment with employers, or of supplying employers with persons for employment by them.” The common sense understanding of Spotlight’s purpose is to provide services for the purposes of finding persons employment; any actor will tell you that they subscribe to Spotlight to find work.
The judgment states that Spotlight is “a marketing tool to promote the identity and skill set of the performer”, which, if correct, would leave the traditional assertion that they are the ‘home of casting’ in doubt. Casting is our industry’s term for the exchange and supply of labour for performing in productions, and this judgment finds that Spotlight’s role in that is, at best, incidental.
Equally worrying are the implications for working people across the UK, who may now be left unprotected from up front charges by similar platforms elsewhere in the growing gig economy.
Equity has a number of considerations following the ruling. The legal merits of appeal on the basis of the current legislation and regulations are under active consideration by our legal team. We have already made contact with the wider trades union movement and the Labour government today, both of whom were waiting on this judgment to consider their collective response. Equity Council meets next Tuesday, and a further update to members following their deliberations will follow.
We must also put on record our thanks to the claimants in this case, and to all the members who are backing this David versus Goliath campaign. It is incumbent on the union to be brave in challenging abuses of power in the industry where we see it, and this disappointing initial ruling will not deter us from continuing to take the fight to our industry’s gatekeepers.
https://t.co/J82fgQTPaR
Freelancers are in urgent need of protection from AI technologies, insufficient pay and a decline in work post-Covid lockdowns, according to a new report by @WeAreCreativeUK 👇 https://t.co/5oF3MU0IFp
I miss ten years ago when people in theatreland would talk about Imelda Staunton in Gypsy like she was a footballer.
'Incredible performance from Staunton. Absolute Masterclass.'
Jodie Comer: "To any kids who haven't been to drama school, who can't afford to go, have been rejected - don't let anyone tell you it's impossible."
There are so few working class actors breaking into the industry, she is a ray of hope and a much needed role model. Thank you ❤
Dear Bill takes a much weirder and mildly sinister turn if you think about the fact that, in the world of the show, Hester is singing it to a cement wall in a dark corner of an underground bunker.
ACTION: CUT THE RENT! #RentControlsNow!
Rising rents destroy our communities. The government is more interested in building expensive flats than stopping the rent hikes.
Tenants in Europe are taking action and winning. Now, we must take to the streets to demand housing justice!
Crikey, that Jonty fella is pretty special, isn’t he. Delightful to be accidentally present for a second cover debut - and he absolutely smashed it 👏🤝 Never in doubt! Congratulations @PeachJonty !