#online business support uk

[webxsoftech]

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[662607015]

i've been too busy to post about it lately but the current situation surrounding disability rights in the uk is horrifying in a way that most people have zero awareness of. i would appreciate it if more people could spread awareness of this, because the situation is dire to the point that the united nations have officially recognised it as a human rights violation, and there is still little to no discussion about this present online that i'm aware of.

on march 22 this year, the united nations published a follow-up report - found here - on its 2016 inquiry into the human rights of disabled people in the uk. the original inquiry found "grave and systemic violations" of the human rights of disabled people, and the follow-up concludes that no significant progress has been made concerning the situation. the report details "deep poverty" becoming increasingly common for disabled people; media rhetoric "aimed at raising hostility against welfare claimants, including disabled people"; increasing rates of institutionalisation of disabled people; concern about ai tools being used to automate fraud detection in social security with little oversight; and reports of "benefit deaths": the phenomenon of disabled people resorting to suicide after having their social security removed by the state, which has evidently become so common that they have a name for it.

on april 19, just 28 days after the un's official condemnation, the uk government published a new press release announcing a "moral mission" to "reform" our disability welfare system - meaning plans to even further reduce or entirely remove what little finanical support is available to disabled people, in addition to removing the ability of gps to issue sick notes and the introduction of a "fraud bill" which would enable warrants for seizes, searches and arrests in addition to increased digital surveillance of any welfare claimant suspected of fraud. again, this comes less than a month after the un announced that the uk has taken no action to address human rights abuses of disabled people - and the only action they're taking on this is to actively make the situation worse. i don't know how to end this post other than that it's legitimately terrifying to be a disabled person here at present, and this is made even worse by how little media attention the situation is getting - if you're able to speak out about this, please do. the human rights of disabled people are being violated and our government needs to be held accountable.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Tech monopolists use their market power to invade your privacy

On SEPTEMBER 24th, I'll be speaking IN PERSON at the BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY!

It's easy to greet the FTC's new report on social media privacy, which concludes that tech giants have terrible privacy practices with a resounding "duh," but that would be a grave mistake.

Much to the disappointment of autocrats and would-be autocrats, administrative agencies like the FTC can't just make rules up. In order to enact policies, regulators have to do their homework: for example, they can do "market studies," which go beyond anything you'd get out of an MBA or Master of Public Policy program, thanks to the agency's legal authority to force companies to reveal their confidential business information.

Market studies are fabulous in their own right. The UK Competition and Markets Authority has a fantastic research group called the Digital Markets Unit that has published some of the most fascinating deep dives into how parts of the tech industry actually function, 400+ page bangers that pierce the Shield of Boringness that tech firms use to hide their operations. I recommend their ad-tech study:

https://www.gov.uk/cma-cases/online-platforms-and-digital-advertising-market-study

In and of themselves, good market studies are powerful things. They expose workings. They inform debate. When they're undertaken by wealthy, powerful countries, they provide enforcement roadmaps for smaller, poorer nations who are being tormented in the same way, by the same companies, that the regulator studied.

But market studies are really just curtain-raisers. After a regulator establishes the facts about a market, they can intervene. They can propose new regulations, and they can impose "conduct remedies" (punishments that restrict corporate behavior) on companies that are cheating.

Now, the stolen, corrupt, illegitimate, extremist, bullshit Supreme Court just made regulation a lot harder. In a case called Loper Bright, SCOTUS killed the longstanding principle of "Chevron deference," which basically meant that when an agency said it had built a factual case to support a regulation, courts should assume they're not lying:

https://jacobin.com/2024/07/scotus-decisions-chevron-immunity-loper

The death of Chevron Deference means that many important regulations – past, present and future – are going to get dragged in front of a judge, most likely one of those Texas MAGA mouth-breathers in the Fifth Circuit, to be neutered or killed. But even so, regulators still have options – they can still impose conduct remedies, which are unaffected by the sabotage of Chevron Deference.

Pre-Loper, post-Loper, and today, the careful, thorough investigation of the facts of how markets operate is the prelude to doing things about how those markets operate. Facts matter. They matter even if there's a change in government, because once the facts are in the public domain, other governments can use them as the basis for action.

Which is why, when the FTC uses its powers to compel disclosures from the largest tech companies in the world, and then assesses those disclosures and concludes that these companies engage in "vast surveillance," in ways that the users don't realize and that these companies "fail to adequately protect users, that matters.

What's more, the Commission concludes that "data abuses can fuel market dominance, and market dominance can, in turn, further enable data abuses and practices that harm consumers." In other words: tech monopolists spy on us in order to achieve and maintain their monopolies, and then they spy on us some more, and that hurts us.

So if you're wondering what kind of action this report is teeing up, I think we can safely say that the FTC believes that there's evidence that the unregulated, rampant practices of the commercial surveillance industry are illegal. First, because commercial surveillance harms us as "consumers." "Consumer welfare" is the one rubric for enforcement that the right-wing economists who hijacked antitrust law in the Reagan era left intact, and here we have the Commission giving us evidence that surveillance hurts us, and that it comes about as a result of monopoly, and that the more companies spy, the stronger their monopolies become.

But the Commission also tees up another kind of enforcement: Section 5, the long (long!) neglected power of the agency to punish companies for "unfair and deceptive methods of competition," a very broad power indeed:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/10/the-courage-to-govern/#whos-in-charge

In the study, the Commission shows – pretty convincingly! – that the commercial surveillance sector routinely tricks people who have no idea how their data is being used. Most people don't understand, for example, that the platforms use all kinds of inducements to get web publishers to embed tracking pixels, fonts, analytics beacons, etc that send user-data back to the Big Tech databases, where it's merged with data from your direct interactions with the company. Likewise, most people don't understand the shadowy data-broker industry, which sells Big Tech gigantic amounts of data harvested by your credit card company, by Bluetooth and wifi monitoring devices on streets and in stores, and by your car. Data-brokers buy this data from anyone who claims to have it, including people who are probably lying, like Nissan, who claims that it has records of the smells inside drivers' cars, as well as those drivers' sex-lives:

https://nypost.com/2023/09/06/nissan-kia-collect-data-about-drivers-sexual-activity/

Or Cox Communications, which claims that it is secretly recording and transcribing the conversations we have in range of the mics on our speakers, phones, and other IoT devices:

https://www.404media.co/heres-the-pitch-deck-for-active-listening-ad-targeting/

(If there's a kernel of truth to Cox's bullshit, my guess it's that they've convinced some of the sleazier "smart TV" companies to secretly turn on their mics, then inflated this into a marketdroid's wet-dream of "we have logged every word uttered by Americans and can use it to target ads.)

Notwithstanding the rampant fraud inside the data brokerage industry, there's no question that some of the data they offer for sale is real, that it's intimate and sensitive, and that the people it's harvested from never consented to its collection. How do you opt out of public facial recognition cameras? "Just don't have a face" isn't a realistic opt-out policy.

And if the public is being deceived about the collection of this data, they're even more in the dark about the way it's used – merged with on-platform usage data and data from apps and the web, then analyzed for the purposes of drawing "inferences" about you and your traits.

What's more, the companies have chaotic, bullshit internal processes for handling your data, which also rise to the level of "deceptive and unfair" conduct. For example, if you send these companies a deletion request for your data, they'll tell you they deleted the data, but actually, they keep it, after "de-identifying" it.

De-identification is a highly theoretical way of sanitizing data by removing the "personally identifiers" from it. In practice, most de-identified data can be quickly re-identified, and nearly all de-identified data can eventually be re-identified:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/03/08/the-fire-of-orodruin/#are-we-the-baddies

Breaches, re-identification, and weaponization are extraordinarily hard to prevent. In general, we should operate on the assumption that any data that's collected will probably leak, and any data that's retained will almost certainly leak someday. To have even a hope of preventing this, companies have to treat data with enormous care, maintaining detailed logs and conducting regular audits. But the Commission found that the biggest tech companies are extraordinarily sloppy, to the point where "they often could not even identify all the data points they collected or all of the third parties they shared that data with."

This has serious implications for consumer privacy, obviously, but there's also a big national security dimension. Given the recent panic at the prospect that the Chinese government is using Tiktok to spy on Americans, it's pretty amazing that American commercial surveillance has escaped serious Congressional scrutiny.

After all, it would be a simple matter to use the tech platforms targeting systems to identify and push ads (including ads linking to malicious sites) to Congressional staffers ("under-40s with Political Science college degrees within one mile of Congress") or, say, NORAD personnel ("Air Force enlistees within one mile of Cheyenne Mountain").

Those targeting parameters should be enough to worry Congress, but there's a whole universe of potential characteristics that can be selected, hence the Commission's conclusion that "profound threats to users can occur when targeting occurs based on sensitive categories."

The FTC's findings about the dangers of all this data are timely, given the current wrangle over another antitrust case. In August, a federal court found that Google is a monopolist in search, and that the company used its data lakes to secure and maintain its monopoly.

This kicked off widespread demands for the court to order Google to share its data with competitors in order to erase that competitive advantage. Holy moly is this a bad idea – as the FTC study shows, the data that Google stole from us all is incredibly toxic. Arguing that we can fix the Google problem by sharing that data far and wide is like proposing that we can "solve" the fact that only some countries have nuclear warheads by "democratizing" access to planet-busting bombs:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/08/07/revealed-preferences/#extinguish-v-improve

To address the competitive advantage Google achieved by engaging in the reckless, harmful conduct detailed in this FTC report, we should delete all that data. Sure, that may seem inconceivable, but come on, surely the right amount of toxic, nonconsensually harvested data on the public that should be retained by corporations is zero:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/09/19/just-stop-putting-that-up-your-ass/#harm-reduction

Some people argue that we don't need to share out the data that Google never should have been allowed to collect – it's enough to share out the "inferences" that Google drew from that data, and from other data its other tentacles (Youtube, Android, etc) shoved into its gaping maw, as well as the oceans of data-broker slurry it stirred into the mix.

But as the report finds, the most unethical, least consensual data was "personal information that these systems infer, that was purchased from third parties, or that was derived from users’ and non-users’ activities off of the platform." We gotta delete that, too. Especially that.

A major focus of the report is the way that the platforms handled children's data. Platforms have special obligations when it comes to kids' data, because while Congress has failed to act on consumer privacy, they did bestir themselves to enact a children's privacy law. In 2000, Congress passed the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which puts strict limits on the collection, retention and processing of data on kids under 13.

Now, there are two ways to think about COPPA. One view is, "if you're not certain that everyone in your data-set is over 13, you shouldn't be collecting or processing their data at all." Another is, "In order to ensure that everyone whose data you're collecting and processing is over 13, you should collect a gigantic amount of data on all of them, including the under-13s, in order to be sure that not collecting under-13s' data." That second approach would be ironically self-defeating, obviously, though it's one that's gaining traction around the world and in state legislatures, as "age verification" laws find legislative support.

The platforms, meanwhile, found a third, even stupider approach: rather than collecting nothing because they can't verify ages, or collecting everything to verify ages, they collect everything, but make you click a box that says, "I'm over 13":

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/09/how-to-make-a-child-safe-tiktok/

It will not surprise you to learn that many children under 13 have figured out that they can click the "I'm over 13" box and go on their merry way. It won't surprise you, but apparently, it will surprise the hell out of the platforms, who claimed that they had zero underage users on the basis that everyone has to click the "I'm over 13" box to get an account on the service.

By failing to pass comprehensive privacy legislation for 36 years (and counting), Congress delegated privacy protection to self-regulation by the companies themselves. They've been marking their own homework, and now, thanks to the FTC's power to compel disclosures, we can say for certain that the platforms cheat.

No surprise that the FTC's top recommendation is for Congress to pass a new privacy law. But they've got other, eminently sensible recommendations, like requiring the companies to do a better job of protecting their users' data: collect less, store less, delete it after use, stop combining data from their various lines of business, and stop sharing data with third parties.

Remember, the FTC has broad powers to order "conduct remedies" like this, and these are largely unaffected by the Supreme Court's "Chevron deference" decision in Loper-Bright.

The FTC says that privacy policies should be "clear, simple, and easily understood," and says that ad-targeting should be severely restricted. They want clearer consent for data inferences (including AI), and that companies should monitor their own processes with regular, stringent audits.

They also have recommendations for competition regulators – remember, the Biden administration has a "whole of government" antitrust approach that asks every agency to use its power to break up corporate concentration:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2021/08/party-its-1979-og-antitrust-back-baby

They say that competition enforcers factor in the privacy implications of proposed mergers, and think about how promoting privacy could also promote competition (in other words, if Google's stolen data helped it secure a monopoly, then making them delete that data will weaken their market power).

I understand the reflex to greet a report like this with cheap cynicism, but that's a mistake. There's a difference between "everybody knows" that tech is screwing us on privacy, and "a federal agency has concluded" that this is true. These market studies make a difference – if you doubt it, consider for a moment that Cigna is suing the FTC for releasing a landmark market study showing how its Express Scripts division has used its monopoly power to jack up the price of prescription drugs:

https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/payers/express-scripts-files-suit-against-ftc-demands-retraction-report-pbm-industry

Big business is shit-scared of this kind of research by federal agencies – if they think this threatens their power, why shouldn't we take them at their word?

This report is a milestone, and – as with the UK Competition and Markets Authority reports – it's a banger. Even after Loper-Bright, this report can form the factual foundation for muscular conduct remedies that will limit what the largest tech companies can do.

But without privacy law, the data brokerages that feed the tech giants will be largely unaffected. True, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau is doing some good work at the margins here:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/16/the-second-best-time-is-now/#the-point-of-a-system-is-what-it-does

But we need to do more than curb the worst excesses of the largest data-brokers. We need to kill this sector, and to do that, Congress has to act:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/12/06/privacy-first/#but-not-just-privacy

The paperback edition of The Lost Cause, my nationally bestselling, hopeful solarpunk novel is out this month!

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/09/20/water-also-wet/#marking-their-own-homework

Image: Cryteria (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HAL9000.svg

CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en

[creature-wizard]

"I'm in a bad place and need to get out, what can I do?"

I figured I'd make a post with all the resources/tips I've collected to help people get out of shitty situations so far, since it's easier than linking to a bunch of posts each time.

Seek out appropriate resources. This can include support groups (online or offline), helplines, and the like.

If you're in the US, you can call 211 to help you find resources.

Crisis Text Line offers services to the US, Ireland, Canada, and the UK.

RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) is a US service offers a lot of information for sexual abuse survivors.

The Trevor Lifeline is a service for queer youth in the US.

If you're a minor, you may wish to read How To Escape Abusive Parents: A Guide For Minors.

If you're an adult, you may wish to read How To Escape Abusive Parents: A Guide For Adults.

You might also Duckduckgo something like "resources for people in abuse" or "abuse resources help" or "domestic violence survivors resources".

Ask people for help in finding resources. If you can't find anything on your own, there are other people who know where to direct you. It might take awhile to find what you're looking for, but keep asking.

A WORD OF CAUTION: there are many predatory spiritual groups and conspiracy theorists out there who prey on abuse survivors and mentally ill people. You will often see these people claiming that channeling or hypnosis can help you remember past life memories or repressed traumatic memories. This is nonsense and quackery.

Relevant posts of mine:

Hypnosis is unreliable for memory recovery, and this is one way we know.

False past life memories among the starseed movement

Here’s the trouble with hypnotic regression…

If you're on a website that claims to support cult survivors and you see any of these names in the citations (and make sure you check the citations!), leave immediately - all of these people are far right conspiracy theorists. (Unfortunately, many people today are unwittingly perpetuating the BS of Fritz Springmeier in particular. See this and this for more info on that.)

Change who and what you surround yourself with. Start associating with different people/groups as much as you can. Get hobbies to fill your time. Unfollow blogs that reinforce the beliefs you're trying to get away from, and follow blogs that provide a healthier alternative.

You might follow blogs like:

A Kind Place

Trauma Survivors Helping Trauma Survivors

Compassionate Reminders

Trauma Survivors Activities

Reasons For Hope

Bluest Fluff

If you're trying to rebuild your worldview without conspiratorial/culty elements, go take a look at my Resources page.

Remember that your first job is looking after yourself. You don't owe the group. You aren't responsible for the group, or for anyone in it. It might feel that way, but it's vitally important to acknowledge when you're unqualified or suffering burnout. You might feel like bad things will happen if you leave, but that's a fear, not a fact.

You also don't have to justify your departure to the group. You can just leave. If you feel that you must give a reason, you can offer something as simple as "I need to take some time to focus on my mental health" or "I'm really busy lately and don't have time to spend here." If they throw a fit over this, that's honestly just more proof that you need to get out.

If any practices the group taught you actually helped, you can keep doing them. If doing affirmations helped you, keep doing affirmations. If listening to so-called healing frequencies actually made you feel better, you don't have to stop listening to them. If you were practicing something like the Law of Assumption, you can carry on with a lot of that under a psychological model rather than Neville Goddard's wacky metaphysical model. (See this video for an example.) If it genuinely helps you and doesn't hurt anyone else, by all means, keep doing it.

You might look at my Manifestation Without Woo posts:

Manifestation Without Woo: Changing Your Brain

Manifestation Without Woo: People React To Your Projections, & Your Projections Affect Your Perceptions

Manifestation Without Woo: Setting Reasonable Goals

Manifestation Without Woo: Make It Fun!

Manifestation Without Woo: What If It's Not Working?

Get some critical thinking skills. In order to keep yourself from falling into another bad group, it's important to develop your critical thinking skills.

Learn to apply the Five W's (who, what, when, where, and why) when encountering any information.

Learn common logical fallacies.

Learn the difference between fact, opinion, belief, and prejudice.

Don't equate emotional reactions with some kind of innate or higher moral guidance.

Ask yourself if you're "thinking for yourself" or being led to believe you're thinking for yourself.

Know what emotional manipulation tactics look like.

Watch out for these behaviors in any new group you join.

Yes, there are ways to confirm the age of an old text without having the original text itself.

Learn how propaganda works.

Watch out for these red flags in spiritual groups.

And watch out for this red flag.

Understand that belief doesn't have to be binary.

So yeah, hopefully this'll give folks some actionable advice. I can't promise it's going to help each and every person out there, but hopefully it'll give a lot of you something that will help.

[zvaigzdelasas]

Officials from the UK Foreign Office and the business department held an online meeting with British business leaders in November to encourage companies to take advantage of the “great opportunity” to support Azerbaijan president Ilham Aliyev’s rebuilding agenda.[...]

In the days after Baku’s military operations the UK government publicly condemned the Aliyev regime’s “unacceptable use of force” in Nagorno-Karabakh and warned that it had “put at risk efforts to find a lasting peaceful settlement” in the region.

But a recording of the online meeting, shared with the Guardian by campaigners at Global Witness, includes one senior UK government official encouraging business leaders to take advantage of the financial opportunities in the “huge western chunk of the country that needs to be rebuilt from the ground up”.

“The Azerbaijan government is supporting what it calls ‘the great return’, which is essentially providing the opportunity for the 700,000 [internally displaced people], these refugees, to basically return to Karabakh. So you have this great opportunity here actually,” the official said.

It is not clear whether the official was referring to Nagorno-Karabakh specifically, part of the far larger Karabakh region. Aliyev set out plans in 2020 to rebuild the “liberated districts” of the Karabakh region in western Azerbaijan, which includes Nagorno-Karabakh. The president said it was important that all displaced Azerbaijan citizens return to Nagorno-Karabakh and adjacent districts where they used to live.

A second government official told business leaders: “[There’s] a great opportunity here actually. [It was] just an empty land that was ready to be built over from scratch.”

Jonathan Noronha-Gant, a senior campaigner at Global Witness, said: “Behind closed doors, the UK government is calling Azerbaijan’s ethnic cleansing of Nagorno-Karabakh a ‘great opportunity’. What century are these officials living in? It’s not a great opportunity for the UK, nor for the people who were displaced.”

In the recording the first official said UK companies were “well-placed” to collaborate with the Azerbaijan government to provide infrastructure advice to “a government which has financial means given that it has very large energy resources”. Azerbaijan owns one of the world’s largest gasfields, Shah Deniz in the Caspian Sea, and is a growing exporter of gas to Europe.[...]

A UK government spokesperson said: “These comments from UK officials have been misrepresented. Discussions of reconstruction referred to the UK government’s public work to assist with possible future development in the new towns being built for those displaced by decades of conflict.

“The UK is not involved in commercial activity or reconstruction efforts in the area of Nagorno-Karabakh region recovered by Azerbaijan through its September 2023 military operation.[...]

The Guardian revealed last year that Azerbaijan’s share of two large oil and gas projects operated by British oil company BP had earned its government almost $35bn (£28.6bn), or more than four times its military spending since 2020 when war broke out in the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.[...]

BP also plans to build a 240MW solar farm in Azerbaijan’s “liberated lands”, according to Azerbaijan’s deputy energy minister. The Azerbaijani prime minister, Ali Asadov, met with the BP head of production, Gordon Birrell, recently to discuss the Sunrise solar project, which is planned for an area near the ghost city of Jabrayil, which was left in ruin after the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.

22 Feb 24

[qqueenofhades]

Hi, I have a question, and it ties in to one of your recent posts about the far-left's damage done for otherwise well-intentioned Palestinian causes. I'm sure you've heard of some "marches" that took place yesterday in Manhattan, directed towards a pediatric cancer ward, all while being led by otherwise Pro-Palestine individuals. If it's alright with you, I'd like to know your thoughts on the matter, and why you think so many "Pro-Palestine" organizations think it to be wise in targeting entirely innocent businesses like these.

One, they're very fucking stupid. This isn't a scholarly analysis per se, but it's the truth. It's the same thing as when some British people decided that the UK high street clothing chain Zara was "supporting Israeli genocide" due to having an ad campaign with a white scarf in it, or something. Even aside from the fact that ad campaigns are planned and shot months in advance and it took serious brainworms to decide that was the Hidden Message, it resulted in the same kind of idiotic March on Zara for Justice!! event.

Second, the air of rabid and cartoonish antisemitism, both online and off, means that anything can be justified as "praxis" if you call it "Pro-Palestine/anti-Israeli." Such as with the post I saw on my dash the other day sweetly wishing total destruction on Israel, which 10k+ people reblogged in the name of, I suppose, solidarity.

Third, it's a common cult/religious control technique used to enforce in-group solidarity. It's the same reason Mormons and Jehovahs Witnesses send their people out to proselytize in public: not necessarily because they think they'll convert anyone, but so its members can experience Cruel Rejection from members of the uncaring public unwilling to see the Truth, and bind more closely and devotedly to the in-group and its beliefs as a result, regardless of how disjointed this is with the rest of reality. So yes.

[coochiequeens]

But the TQ+ cult continues to deny that children are transed

Dr Helen Webberley said that her licence had been revoked on a technicality

ADRIAN SHERRATT FOR THE TIMES

James Beal, Social Affairs Editor Friday July 19 2024

The General Medical Council has revoked the licence to practise of a controversial British doctor whose offshore clinic treats transgender children.

Dr Helen Webberley, 55, will lose her licence in Britain from Friday but will remain on the GMC’s register, following the decision by the medical regulator.

The decision was made by the GMC after she did not comply with a registered doctor’s legal obligation to revalidate their licence every five years.

Webberley runs GenderGP, an online company registered in Singapore, which facilitates access to puberty blockers and hormones for adults and children.

She told The Times that the decision would not prevent her from continuing in her role at GenderGP and said that she did not personally treat the patients.

Michael Webberley was struck off in 2022 for prescribing hormones to patients as young as nine without proper assessments

Webberley said: “I fought incredibly hard to keep my licence, both for myself and also for the community, because it’s important to set precedent. Now to have it taken away on a technicality, if you like, is very heartbreaking, but I will continue my work as I have done.”

GenderGP assesses adults and children with gender dysphoria and connects them to doctors outside Britain, in the European Economic Area (EEA), for prescriptions for hormones.

This means UK children as young as eight can access puberty blockers, despite the Cass Report, a review of trans healthcare led by the paediatrician Dr Hilary Cass, concluding there was no good evidence for prescribing them.

Webberley was suspended from practising medicine in 2022 after she was found to have committed serious misconduct by a Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service panel over her treatment of three trans children. She successfully appealed against the decision at the High Court in 2023.

Dr Hilary Cass’s review found there was no good evidence to support the global clinical practice of prescribing hormones to under-18s to pause puberty

TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER RICHARD POHLE

Webberley said that she had not used her licence to practise since 2017, when investigations into her conduct by the GMC began. She said that she could not revalidate her licence because she could not find a “responsible officer”, or suitable person, to vouch for her fitness to practise.

Doctors are required to notify the GMC of a designated body and responsible officer to do this.

Webberley said: “The difficulty is … I no longer have a connection with an NHS trust or a GP surgery. I don’t have a responsible officer. It’s also very difficult to get that connection after what I’ve been through.”

She says she was offered the chance to take an exam in order to revalidate her licence, but declined because they “don’t have one for doctors working in transgender medicine”.

Michael and Helen Webberley are now thought to be living in Spain while their business is registered in Singapore

The GMC then withdrew her licence, which it can do if it determines that guidance to revalidate has not been complied with “without reasonable excuse”.

Webberley, from south Wales, said that she would carry on her work at GenderGP.

She said: “I’m not allowed to directly treat and manage individual patients [but] I’m not treating them.

“Treatment means sitting down with somebody, making a diagnosis, making a treatment management plan, prescribing medication, following up investigations and results.

“With GenderGP we have a whole team of professionals who do that. I don’t treat patients individually. They [the GMC] don’t have a regulatory role in my wider work.”

A GMC spokesman said: “Every licensed doctor must take part in the revalidation process, which provides assurance that they are keeping their knowledge up to date, are fit to practise and that no concerns have been raised about them.

“Doctors who do not have a connection to a designated body or suitable person are able to revalidate in a number of ways, including by passing a written multiple choice test called a revalidation assessment.

“There are 12 assessments to choose from, and doctors are encouraged to choose one closest to their most recent area of specialty. We cannot tailor assessments to every doctor’s specific area of practice.

“If doctors do not comply with our guidance on revalidation without reasonable excuse, we may withdraw their licence to practise.”

Webberley and her husband Michael, who set up GenderGP in 2015, are now believed to live in Spain.

As an online business based abroad it is not registered with the Care Quality Commission, but Helen Webberley has denied basing it in Asia to avoid scrutiny.

Michael Webberley, 67, a former gastroenterologist, was struck off in 2022 for prescribing hormones to patients as young as nine without proper assessments.

GenderGP was also criticised in the High Court earlier this year for giving “dangerously high” levels of hormones to a 16-year-old, who was born female but identified as male, that could have resulted in sudden death.

Webberley has called the court claim “untrue”. The Times reported last month that GenderGP, which has more than 10,000 patients, had ditched health advisers in favour of an AI algorithm providing “self-service” treatment.

Behind the story

The health secretary Wes Streeting has indicated that he will seek to make permanent the temporary three-month ban on puberty blockers being supplied to children (James Beal writes).

But Helen Webberley said children at her clinic were still getting hold of them.

Laws to ban the drugs being supplied by private or offshore clinics were passed by Victoria Atkins, Streeting’s predecessor, in emergency legislation before the general election.

They are due to expire on September 3, but the Labour government suggested last week that it would, subject to court proceedings, renew the ban with a view to making it permanent.

It followed the Cass Report, which found there was no good evidence to support the global clinical practice of prescribing hormones to under-18s to pause puberty or transition.

However, Webberley, in an interview with The Times last month, said patients at her offshore clinic were going abroad, using foreign doctors and chemists, to side-step the ban.

She said: “The parents of young people who are affected by this ban will find another way. The last thing is that they will allow their child to stop the puberty blocker and start going through puberty. That’s going to really really affect them mentally and physically.

“I know mums and dads who are just going on holiday to get their puberty blocker instead. They’re going to wherever they’re going on holiday this year.”

Distancing GenderGP, her clinic, from their actions, she said: “We don’t have to find those opportunities, the parents find those ways of managing it.”

Now the revelation that she has lost her GMC licence to practise may increase concerns about her clinic, which operates out of reach of regulators such as the Care Quality Commission.

It follows disclosures that GenderGP had created an AI algorithm to make treatment recommendations rather than using health advisers.

However, given the state of transgender healthcare in the UK, with long waiting lists for treatment, it may not deter transgender patients from turning to GenderGP.

[rjzimmerman]

From what I can read online without a paywall block, US medical schools are moving in the direction of requiring or offering courses on climate change. I'm copying this directly from my Duck Duck Go search results:

The number of medical schools in the United States that include climate change in their curriculum has been increasing, with 65% of MD-granting schools requiring or offering courses on the topic in 2022.  A survey by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) found that the percentage of medical schools with climate change in their curriculum increased from 27% in 2019–2020 to 55% in 2021–2022, and then to 65% in 2022. 

Excerpt from this EcoWatch story:

A network of universities across Europe has launched an initiative to train medical students on climate change-related illnesses as well as provide education on more sustainable healthcare.

The initiative includes 25 universities that have formed the European Network on Climate & Health Education (ENCHE), which will incorporate climate change education into the existing curriculum. The goal is to better prepare students to treat humans facing health disparities linked to climate change as well as to improve the sustainability of the healthcare system.

“From the spread of infectious diseases to increasingly deadly heatwaves, the health impacts of climate change are becoming ever more dangerous,” Iain McInnes, co-chair of ENCHE and vice principal and Head of College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences at the University of Glasgow, said in a statement. “As educators, it is our responsibility to ensure that the next generation of doctors, health professionals and medical leaders have the skills they need to face these challenges and can provide patients with the best care possible.”

The network will be led by the University of Glasgow and supported by the World Health Organization (WHO), and universities from Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden, Spain, Switzerland and the UK will be involved in ENCHE.

Other health organizations, part of the Sustainable Markets Initiative Health Systems Task Force, will provide additional support to ENCHE. The network will serve as a regional hub for the Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education (GCCHE) at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, with GCCHE providing collaboration and expert support for the initiative.

ENCHE has a goal to train 10,000 or more medical students on treating climate change health impacts in the first three years of the program. According to the University of Glasgow, there is not a consistent curriculum in medical schools that teaches on the links between climate change and health impacts.

This training could help save many more lives, as human health becomes increasingly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. According to the WHO, about 99% of humans globally are exposed to air quality below WHO standards, while more than 7 million people die from air pollution-related health impacts. Rising heat is another concern, with heat-related deaths expected to triple by 2050 in a business-as-usual scenario. 

[webxsoftech]

1. Submitting your website in search engines will make your website visible on the Internet and to the search engines.

2. A proper sitemap helps search engines to know your website's link structures in a better way. And thus search engines can show your website in search results in a better & structured way.

3. Schema Markup is a structured data of your website. With the help of structured data, search engines like Google, Bing can understand your website precisely like what your website is all about. What services or products your website offer, your working hours and more and hence your website will get visible more precisely to your target audience.

4. Google Analytics helps you to monitor website traffic and track activity on your website. Like how many users visiting your website, average time duration spent by your website visitors, their location, devices and much more. It gives you a detailed insight about your website visitors so that you can understand how your website is performing and you can make better strategies for the future.

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

by Nellie Bowles

→ Hard right goes White Genocide: The right-wing brand of antisemitism is people saying something to the effect of: Jews hate white people. And we’re seeing that a lot right now, all of a sudden, in very mainstream places. 

Let’s start with The Daily Wire: Candace Owens, a charismatic black conservative, has been harshly critical of Israel. Daily Wire co-founder Ben Shapiro, an observant Jew, was recorded at a private event saying her rhetoric was “absolutely disgraceful.” Candace Owens then posted: “You cannot serve both God and money. Christ is King.” Okay. Random time to bring that up, but okay? 

Then Candace went on former Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson’s new online show. And there, things got weirder. Here’s Tucker Carlson admonishing the Jewish philanthropists who are now refusing to donate to Ivy League schools. Those donors are put off by the woke antisemitism, but Carlson is mad they supported the modern Ivy League to begin with.

“I get why donors are mad. I have no problem with that at all. However, then I thought, well, wait a second, if the biggest donors at, say, Harvard, have decided well, we’re gonna shut it down now, where were you the last ten years when they were calling for white genocide? You were allowing this. And then I found myself really hating those people, actually. You’re okay with that? On what grounds were you okay with that? You were paying for it, actually. As you were calling my children immoral for their skin color. You paid for that. So why shouldn’t I be mad at you? I don’t understand.”

Candace Owens replies: “And obviously, you have a ton of white people that are asking that question, and they’re being called antisemitic, and I think that’s wrong. I think these are meaningful questions that deserve to be answered.” 

Adding to the chorus now is Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter/X. First, a random Twitter user responded to a prompt about what Hitler got right (I wish I was kidding) and wrote the following: “Jewish communities have been pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them. I’m deeply disinterested in giving the tiniest shit now about western Jewish populations coming to the disturbing realization that those hordes of minorities that support flooding their country don’t exactly like them too much.” Then Elon Musk himself responded to that random user, writing simply: “You have said the actual truth.” 

And then here’s Charlie Kirk, founder of conservative youth group Turning Point USA, defending Musk: “It is true that some of the largest financiers of left-wing antiwhite causes have been Jewish Americans.” It’s not news that American Jews tend to be liberal. What’s being implied now (and in some cases said quite out loud) is something different, a deep and old conspiracy. And everyone toying with it knows that.

America: we’ve got it all. We’ve got Soviet antisemitism against Israel and Jewish particularity; we’ve got right-wing antisemitism around the question of do Jews want to kill white people and also are they white or what? The gang’s back together. And Jews are screwed.

→ Recess jihad: A Brooklyn parent group has been organizing students to protest the war. The teachers are on board. And so we have scenes out of Brooklyn this week of 700 students from some 100 schools marching, yelling pro-peace slogans like “Fuck the Jews.” Or there’s this great call and response the kids were doing as they marched. Call: Takbir! Response: Allahu Akbar! The kids stopped by some Jewish-owned businesses and did their chants. It was organized by the official parent advisory board, which is funded by taxpayers. I used to think “children are the future” was a hopeful phrase. . . anyway. Takbir! 

→ This man was almost the UK’s prime minister: This week, longtime Labor Party star Jeremy Corbyn refused to call Hamas a terror group, even as a very assertive Piers Morgan pushed him. It’s fun TV to watch because Morgan asked and asked (14 times!) and Corbyn refused, got mad, and eventually just crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. 

But we already know the answer. Here’s Jeremy Corbyn in 2009: “Tomorrow evening it will be my pleasure and my honor to host an event in Parliament where our friends from Hezbollah will be speaking. I’ve also invited friends from Hamas to come and speak as well. . . . the idea that an organization that is dedicated towards the good of the Palestinian people and bringing about long-term peace and social justice and political justice in the whole region should be labeled as a terrorist organization by the British government is really a big, big historical mistake.” 

Kumbahezbollah. 

And this week Corbyn’s brother, former politician Piers Corbyn, called October 7 a “false flag” operation. “The whole thing, whatever happened, was done with the connivance of the government of Israel or they used what happened as a pretext, it was a prepared thing. . . . It was a false flag operation. . . . A bit like Pearl Harbor.” Just like Pearl Harbor. Looks like brother Corbyn has been watching a little too much TikTok. 

In America, presidential candidate and professor Cornel West said this week that the Hamas terrorists were love warriors: “We dish out love warriors and freedom fighters every generation, which means that we stand in solidarity with anybody who’s occupied.” 

[bestofsophieturner]

Sophie is thriving love it! I am so hyped for the gothic horror she is doing with Kit and already another project. I know these things don't happen over night but Sophie no longer having to put a manchild's needs first is the best thing to happen to her.

I hope she knows how much her fans love her and want the best for her.

Honestly, I'm happy she didn't let her divorce stop her. But to be honest, I'm not very surprised. Sophie never seemed to me like someone who wanted to stop her career. Maybe taking a break for her personal life and/or to focus on her studies (her criminal classes online she talked about in 2019/2020). Since a few years, she clearly stated she wants to choose her projects thoughtfully and do news things in UK. 'Joan' is one example of it. But not gonna lie, when you have to compromise with someone (especially when it's someone like Joe) it's difficult to do what you want when you want.

Remember back in 2019 when their agenda matched so well ? This documentary (Happiness something) and the Sucker clip were released around the same time of GoT season 8 & Dark Phoenix ? I found it kind of weird and I was a bit annoyed to be honest. But I thought Sucker was fun and nice. The clip, the scenery, the photography. I can't judge the music, I'm so bad at it. But then, there was another clip, another documentary... with Danielle, Priyanka and Sophie being the focus. They kind of used their wives for fame didn't they ? I remember reading Danielle was unconfortable doing those things because she wasn't from the business.

We can only guess why she's retired from two projects (Wardriver & Come as you are)... to be honest, I don't think Joe is the sole reason why she had to refuse some projects/take some breaks. She has two children and they're so young. The first one didn't even start school. So I tend to think they came first when she was thinking about her career. Plus, the covid certainly didn't help.

I believe with her family and friends' support, without Joe and her eldest going to school (or soon) help her. And she can choose her projects more freely. Plus the mediation around the divorce seems to be done.

Sorry for the long post. I had a lot to say...

[sussex-newswire]

"Prince Harry’s efforts to maintain contact with old friends, coupled with an evident desire to repair his relationship with the King, have prompted renewed speculation that he is seeking a fresh start and even an official working role within the family fold.

"But multiple sources close to the Duke have said this is not the case and he is happy and settled in California, with an 'amazing' new set of friends and several projects on the horizon.

...

"Prince Harry has made no secret of his wish to reunite with the King in particular, despite conflicting narratives emerging from the two camps about efforts to make contact and who is rebuffing who.

"The security issue also remains a key factor, with UK visits all but ruled out amid claims that it is too dangerous for the Duke to return with no access to automatic police protection.

"Those close to him maintain that, despite the ongoing rift with his father and brother, he is incredibly happy and is determined to look forwards, not back.

"He is preparing for a trip to New York, where he will take part in engagements connected to his various charities, including African Parks, the Halo Trust, the Diana Award, and Travalyst.

"The visit later this month coincides with the UN General Assembly’s High-level Week, which focuses on issues such as climate change, poverty and inequality, as well as the city’s annual Climate Week.

"The Duke is also said to be heavily focused on the next iteration of the Invictus Games, which takes place in Vancouver and Whistler in February next year, as well as various US-based projects that have not yet been announced.

"More overseas visits, similar to the recent quasi-royal tour of Colombia, are planned, while the Duke is also keeping himself busy with a new Archewell initiative called the Parents��� Network, a support group for parents whose children have suffered harm online."

[scotianostra]

St Andrews Scottis dug at the bus station.

Scotties by the Sea features 30 giant Scottie Dog sculptures, forming a free, 10-week art trail of discovery for local people and visitors of all ages to explore and enjoy.

Each sculpture is sponsored by local businesses, community groups and education organisations. They are decorated by local artists and communities – all designed to celebrate our vibrant history, culture, and coastal heritage.

The sculptures are displayed in locations across St Andrews and along the Northeast Fife Coast, where visitors can use a bespoke map and mobile app to help them navigate the trail, discover new places and unlock exciting rewards and discounts provided by sponsors.

Following a farewell weekend where they will be shown together, the Scottie sculptures will be auctioned at a special event to raise funds that will support our charity partner, Maggie’s Everyone’s Home of Cancer Care – working locally and nationally providing free cancer support and information in centres across the UK and online. https://scottiesbythesea.com/art-trail/

[louisupdates]

EXCLUSIVE: Inside Louis Tomlinson's Faith in the Future tour as support act praises 'mentor'

Louis Tomlinson has been entertaining his stateside fans with his Faith In The Future tour and up-and-coming singer and support act Andrew Cushin has heaped the praise on the star

By Jamie Roberts | 3 AUG 2023

Louis Tomlinson has once again been wowing the crowds as he continues his hugely successful solo career.

The former One Direction man, 31, has recently finished his immensely popular stateside leg of his Faith in the Future tour, playing at some of the most iconic venues the country has to offer - and having his shirt ripped off his back along the way. One man who has been up close and personal with the singer over the past few months is fellow musician Andrew Cushin.

The confident English rising talent was selected to be a support act on a number of the shows, playing in the likes of Chicago, Las Vegas and New York. It's been a dream come true for the talented Newcastle native who has opened up to Mirror US about the epic experience.

Labelling Louis a "mentor," Andrew - who is signed to Pete Doherty's record label, Strap Originals - explained he has been able to lean on the star for advice at times on the tour, and admitted it had been "such a good learning experience".

📸 Stephen Lovekin

He's a busy lad as you can imagine," Andrew said. "We've spoke and we've had a couple of drinks and all that and there's been bits of advice when I've needed it. So it's good that I know that he's there if I ever need anything. He's been there and done it all, so he's been a very good tour mentor."

Andrew continued to say he had been extremely impressed with how everything runs on a tour of this magnitude. "Everybody's such a seasoned pro on this tour," he admitted, revealing how it seems nobody is fazed by anything.

He said the entire behind-the-scenes staff show such a high level of professionalism which in turn has given him a huge aspiration and something to work for.

"There's things that I can look at on this tour and take to my own gigs which will make a massive difference," he added. While Andrew has got a big following of his own building nicely at home in the UK, he admits Louis' fans have been nothing short of phenomenal as he tried to turn them into fans of his own - something he seems to have had big success in doing, with homemade signs, bracelets and even tattoos being shared in support.

"These fans really are so, so dedicated to everything that Louis is doing and it's an absolute pleasure to play for them. I was a bit nervous for the first few shows to see how it was going to go down because I'm here without the band and all that and I didn't know if it would have the same effect just me and an acoustic and piano but it's getting the same reception, so it's just a credit to the audience. It's been amazing.

"It's been one massive learning curve and it's so much fun and I'm enjoying it."

Andrew, whose previous tune Where's My Family Gone featured former Oasis man Noel Gallagher, has also released two records during his time with Louis. It's Coming Round Again has been winning rave reviews online by those at the gigs and was filmed at one of the concerts, so too has newest hit Wor Flags.

[tomblomfield]

Taking Risk

I just spent a week talking with some exceptional students from three of the UK's top universities; Cambridge, Oxford and Imperial College. Along with UCL, these British universities represent 4 of the top 10 universities in the world. The US - a country with 5x more people and 8x higher GDP - has the same number of universities in the global top 10.

On these visits, I was struck by the world-class quality of technical talent, especially in AI and biosciences. But I was also struck by something else. After their studies, most of these smart young people wanted to go and work at companies like McKinsey, Goldman Sachs or Google.

I now live in San Francisco and invest in early-stage startups at Y Combinator, and it's striking how undergraduates at top US universities start companies at more than 5x the rate of their British-educated peers. Oxford is ranked 50th in the world, while Cambridge is 61st. Imperial just makes the list at #100. I have been thinking a lot about why this is. The UK certainly doesn't lack the talent or education, and I don't think it's any longer about access to capital.

People like to talk about the role of government incentives, but San Francisco politicians certainly haven't done much to help the startup ecosystem over the last few years, while the UK government has passed a raft of supportive measures.

Instead, I think it's something more deep-rooted - in the UK, the ideas of taking risk and of brazen, commercial ambition are seen as negatives. The American dream is the belief that anyone can be successful if they are smart enough and work hard enough. Whether or not it is the reality for most Americans, Silicon Valley thrives on this optimism.

The US has a positive-sum mindset that business growth will create more wealth and prosperity and that most people overall will benefit as a result. The approach to business in the UK and Europe feels zero-sum. Our instinct is to regulate and tax the technologies that are being pioneered in California, in the misguided belief that it will give us some kind of competitive advantage.

Young people who consider starting businesses are discouraged and the vast majority of our smart, technical graduates take "safe" jobs at prestigious employers. I am trying to figure out why that is.

___

Growing up, every successful adult in my life seemed to be a banker, a lawyer or perhaps a civil engineer, like my father. I didn't know a single person who programmed computers as a job. I taught myself to code entirely from books and the internet in the late 1990s. The pinnacle of my parents' ambition for me was to go to Oxford and study law.

And so I did. While at university, the high-status thing was to work for a prestigious law firm, an investment bank or a management consultancy, and then perhaps move to Private Equity after 3 or 4 years. But while other students were getting summer internships, I launched a startup with two friends. It was an online student marketplace - a bit like eBay - for students. We tried to raise money in the UK in 2006, but found it impossible. One of my cofounders, Kulveer, had a full-time job at Deutsche Bank in London which he left to focus on the startup. His friends were incredulous - they were worried he'd become homeless. My two cofounders eventually got sick of trying to raise money in the UK and moved out to San Francisco. I was too risk-averse to join them - I quit the startup to finish my law degree and then became a management consultant - it seemed like the thing that smart, ambitious students should do. The idea that I could launch a startup instead of getting a "real" job seemed totally implausible.

But in 2011, I turned down a job at McKinsey to start a company, a payments business called GoCardless, with two more friends from university. We managed to get an offer of investment (in the US) just days before my start date at McKinsey, which finally gave me the confidence to choose the startup over a prestigious job offer. My parents were very worried and a friend of my father, who was an investment banker at the time, took me to one side to warn me that this would be the worst decision I ever made. Thirteen years later, GoCardless is worth $2.3bn.

I had a similar experience in 2016, when I was starting Monzo, I had to go through regulatory interviews before I was allowed to work as the CEO of a bank. We hired lawyers and consultants to run mock interviews - and they told me plainly that I was wasting my time. It was inconceivable that the Bank of England would authorise me, a 31 year old who'd never even worked in a bank, to act as the CEO of the UK's newest bank. (It turned out they did.) So much of the UK felt like it was pushing against me as an aspiring entrepreneur. It was like an immune system fighting against a foreign body. The reception I got in the US was dramatically different - people were overwhelmingly encouraging, supportive and helpful. For the benefit of readers who aren't from the UK, I hope it's fair to say that Monzo is now quite successful as well.

___

I don't think I was any smarter or harder working than many of the recent law graduates around me at Oxford. But I probably had an unusual attitude to risk. When we started GoCardless, we were 25 years old, had good degrees, no kids and supportive families. When fundraising was going poorly, we discussed using my parents' garage as an office. McKinsey had told me to contact them if I ever wanted a job in future. I wonder if the offer still stands.

Of course, I benefitted from immense privilege. I had a supportive family whose garage I could have used as an office. I had a good, state-funded education. I lived in a safe, democratic country with free healthcare. And I had a job offer if things didn't work out. And so the downside of the risks we were taking just didn't seem that great.

But there's a pessimism in the UK that often makes people believe they're destined to fail before they start. That it's wrong to even think about being different. Our smartest, most technical young people aspire to work for big companies with prestigious brands, rather than take a risk and start something of their own.

And I still believe the downside risk is small, especially for privileged, smart young people with a great education, a supportive family, and before they accumulate responsibilities like childcare or a mortgage. If you spend a year or two running a startup and it fails, it's not a big deal - the job at Google or McKinsey is still there at the end of it anyway. The potential upside is that you create a product that millions of people use and earn enough money that you never have to work again if you don't want to.

This view is obviously elitist - I'm aware it's not attainable for everyone. But, as a country, we should absolutely want our smartest and hardest working people building very successful companies - these companies are the engines of economic growth. They will employ thousands of people and generate billions in tax revenues. The prosperity that they create will make the entire country wealthier. We need to make our pie bigger, not fight over the economic leftovers of the US. Imagine how different the UK would feel if Google, Microsoft and Facebook were all founded here.

___

When I was talking with many of these smart students this week, many asked me how these American founders get away with all their wild claims. They seem to have limitless ambition and make outlandish claims about their goals - how can they be so sure it will pan out like that? There's always so much uncertainty, especially in scientific research. Aren't they all just bullshitters? Founders in the UK often tell me "I just want to be more realistic," and they pitch their business describing the median expected outcome, which for most startups is failure.

The difference is simple - startup founders in the US imagine the range of possible scenarios and pitch the top one percent outcome. When we were starting Monzo, I said we wanted to build a bank for a billion people around the world. That's a bold ambition, and one it's perhaps unlikely Monzo will meet. Even if we miss that goal, we've still succeeded in building a profitable bank from scratch that has almost 10 million customers.

And it turns out that this approach matches exactly what venture capitalists are looking for. It is an industry based on outlier returns, especially at the earliest stages. Perhaps 70% of investments will fail completely, and another 29% might make a modest return - 1x to 3x the capital invested. But 1% of investments will be worth 1000x what was initially paid. Those 1% of successes easily pay for all the other failures.

On the contrary, many UK investors take an extremely risk-averse view to new business - I lost count of the times that a British investor would ask for me a 3 year cash-flow forecast, and expect the company to break even within that time. UK investors spend too much time trying to mitigate downside risk with all sorts of protective provisions. US venture capital investors are more likely to ask "if this is wildly successful, how big could it be?". The downside of early-stage investing is that you lose 1x your money - it's genuinely not worth worrying much about. The upside is that you make 1000x. This is where you should focus your attention.

___

A thriving tech ecosystem is a virtuous cycle - there's a flywheel effect that takes several revolutions to get up-to-speed. Early pioneers start companies, raise a little money and employ some people. The most successful of these might get acquired or even IPO. The founders get rich and become venture capital investors. The early employees start their own companies or become angel investors. Later employees learn how to scale up these businesses and use their expertise to become the executives of the next wave of successful growth-stage startups.

Skype was a great early example of this - Niklas Zenstrom, the co-founder, launched the VC Atomico. Early employees of Skype started Transferwise or became seed investors at funds like Passion Capital, which invested in both GoCardless and Monzo. Alumni of those two companies have created more than 30 startups between them. Matt Robinson, my cofounder at GoCardless, was one of the UK's most prolific angel investors, before recently becoming a Partner at Accel, one of the top VCs in the world. Relative to 15 or 20 years ago, the UK tech ecosystem is flourishing - our flywheel is starting to accelerate. Silicon Valley has just had a 50 year head start.

There is no longer a shortage of capital for great founders in the UK (although most of the capital still comes from overseas investors). I just believe that people with the highest potential aren't choosing to launch companies, and I want that to change.

___

I don’t think the world is prepared for the tidal wave of technological change that’s about to hit over the next handful of years. Primarily because of the advances in AI, companies are being started this year that are going to transform entire industries over the next decade.

It doesn't seem hyperbolic to say that we should expect to see very significant breakthroughs in quantum computers, nuclear fusion, self-driving vehicles, space exploration and drug discovery in the next 10 or 20 years. I think we are about to enter the biggest period of transformation humanity has ever seen.

Instead of taking safe, well-paying jobs at Goldman Sachs or McKinsey, our young people should take the lead as the world is being rebuilt around us.

[ettawritesnstudies]

[alt text: Bookshop.org header showing two stacked books and saying "A better way to buy books online" followed by text reading:

Hey, fellow indie bookstore lovers! 

Every day is a good day to bash that site named after a rainforest, am I right

This Anti-Prime Day (and every day), we celebrate our beloved indies for the pivotal role they play in all of our lives. Let us continue to redistribute and keep our money in our communities by buying books at our local, indie bookstores. 

If you're not able to visit your favorite bookstore in person, you can always support them through your affiliate storefront! Every sale that you earn, we match that and donate to our indie bookstore pool.

We're offering FREE SHIPPING today (October 8) and tomorrow (October 9)!

Thank you for being a part of our mission to support indie bookstores!

end alt text.]

This is a cool platform that gives back to local and small businesses so I'm affiliated with them. If you want to use my link to buy anything I'll get a small cut which is appreciated, but regardless this is still a neat opportunity! It's also Latine heritage month so there's a TON of books by Latine authors on sale too! Shipping is US and UK only I think.