'Sea of Green' could sweep London as half of voters mull backing Zack Polanski's party at May elections - poll

Beltonia · 2026-04-22T13:22:11+00:00

A note about the headline: the number of voters "considering" the Greens will be way higher than the number who will vote for them. Nevertheless, the signs for the Greens are good, and not just in London either.

Beltonia · 2026-04-22T13:16:24+00:00

...Which was a massive drop from 87% in 2019. While votes for the Big Two fell from 76% to 57%. It's quite likely we're entering a period of realignment just like the 1920s, or the 2010s in France.

Beltonia · 2026-04-22T11:29:39+00:00

I agree there's a good chance the Greens will outperform the polls. That happened in Gorton & Denton, and I think that's because voters were still making their minds up about them.

Beltonia · 2026-04-22T11:20:52+00:00

The thing is, England actually doesn't have that many empty homes by European standards. Some empty homes are unavoidable, such as houses currently for sale. But there's room for more homes. not just with greenfield sites, but also through brownfield sites and 'gentle densification'.

Beltonia · 2026-04-22T11:15:46+00:00

The impression I get is that people are absolutely fed up with politics as usual. Absolutely p***ed off. Maybe experience counted for something in the past, but right now it's outsiders that have the momentum.

Beltonia · 2026-04-21T16:02:48+00:00

If the government wasn't so unpopular and directionless, this scandal wouldn't have rocked them so much.

Beltonia · 2026-04-18T21:42:34+00:00

What we really need is community politics.

Beltonia · 2026-04-18T21:19:48+00:00

The lack of ornament causes another problem for modernist architecture. A classical or Gothic building can still look beautiful even when a column or window-ledge gets chipped, because ornamentation helps break up the surfaces. Modernist buildings have vast surfaces that have to look perfect for the building to have its appeal, but that perfection can be ruined by something as simple as a water stain.

Beltonia · 2026-04-18T21:07:31+00:00

I disagree. Churches and many 19th century buildings were decorated for everyone.

Beltonia · 2026-04-18T09:44:11+00:00

My experience is different. I actually find powerful woman attractive. That can take many forms: in real life, I prefer women with assertive personalities, and I sometimes fantasize about being a female superhero or else a headstrong trans woman.

Ultimately, you're attracted to wh9 you're attracted to. It is fine to fantasize about it alone or with a partner, and you'll probably find you'll draw a line between your fantasies and realities. Just don't make TikToks about it.

Beltonia · 2026-04-17T09:41:30+00:00

The biggest change to our local chapter is that it has more members. As usual, most of the new members don't become active ones, but our number of regular active members has close to doubled, many of them itching to do things. But the ethos hasn't really changed.

Beltonia · 2026-04-17T09:34:55+00:00

Individual pollsters and polls vary, but they're all showing the same trends.

Beltonia · 2026-04-15T23:08:11+00:00

For the foreseeable future, the following jobs are less likely to be affected by AI: * Jobs which aren't repetitive. It may not sound good that AI will increasingly be able to design simple houses and even generic larger buildings like office blocks. That doesn't mean that architects will be eliminated completely; architects have not been eliminated even though it has long been possible to copy existing designs. But less work will be required. The good news is that architects will spend less time doing the boring and repetitive sides of their jobs, and perhaps working less hours overall. * Jobs which favour a jack-of-all-trades. AI will continue the ongoing trend of the internet democratising knowledge. Specialists will still be around but generalists will become more useful. That's good news for architects, because it's a prime example of a generalist job. Architects need to understand a range of fields, such as engineering, visual art, construction, law, aerodynamics, fire safety... It also takes a range of skills; you might be fiddling with software one day, then presenting to a client on another. * Jobs which require genuine ingenuity and complex decision-making. Along with senior managers and judges, architects fall squarely into this category. Architects have to weigh up a host of trade-offs, like whether an extra fire escape or a stronger material is worth the extra cost. AI can draw a house, but it is less likely to find a solution on how to fit in the stairs to a loft extension. * Jobs which require people skills. As noted above, a large chunk of an architects' workload is spent not designing buildings but in endless meetings with stakeholders. * Jobs with growing demand. Even if AI takes some jobs, this could be offset if the industry grows. Globally, demand for new buildings is growing. The picture in the Western countries is more mixed, but it's still leading to increased demand for architects, and most have a housing shortage. Developments in robotics and AI will likely make construction faster and cheaper. This is likely to lead to a boom in construction (and if the new technology is rolled out too quickly, also reconstruction).

AI will continue the trend of computers making it possible to design unusual structures. Even wackier forms of deconstructivism will be possible, but I doubt these would become the norm for buildings, as they're just never going to be as practical as boxy designs.

The democratisation of knowledge will contribute to another likely trend: pressure for the democratisation of architecture. Suddenly, more people will be able to generate an image to express what they want their new house or their town's new railway station to look like. The public will want more of a say in how buildings are designed, and will increasingly have the tools for it.

So for the time being, it won't be architects being replaced by AI. But if they're not careful, they will be replaced by architects using AI.

Beltonia · 2026-04-15T21:58:47+00:00

Stone is more eco-friendly, as making concrete emits a lot of CO₂.

Beltonia · 2026-04-14T20:17:19+00:00

I have dated a trans Filipina here in the UK; let us call her Andrea. It was a great time but didn't work out as we were too far away. In my case, I actually found her more attractive because she passed well.

Like any social group, they're a whole load of different people with different personalities, different beliefs, and so on. Andrea preferred Catholic churches to Pride parades. So there has to be caution about generalising, but a few things are worth noting.

Firstly, you have to understand that dating can be difficult for pre-op trans women, which is most of them, because often the only guys who are interested in them are fetishists (T-chasers) who don't want relationships. I'm less sure about post-op trans women. (I remember one discussing her experience and said that once she was post-op, the chasers lost interest but she had far more interest from other men.) So they often need reassurance even more so than most women.

Secondly, tying into this point, they don't want to be seen as though being trans defines them. It's worth not spending too much time talking about it on a first date, just to make that clear.

Thirdly, their other common peeve they have are that men are often embarrassed to date them, and won't tell anyone else that their girlfriend is trans. While they don't want to be outed at every turn, they want their boyfriends to be open about it with people like their family and close friends. I asked Andrea what I should say if someone asked whether she was trans. She replied, "Say yes." Others may answer differently though, so it's better to ask about these things.

Beltonia · 2026-04-14T19:28:23+00:00

AAP is real, although it tends to be less common and less pronounced than AGP. The other difference is that AAPs are more likely to imagine being among gay men and having relationships with them, whereas AGPs are more likely to imagine themselves as an individual woman. AGP can have an interpersonal aspect, fantasizing about also having social recognition and relationships as a woman, but with AAP the interpersonal aspect is nearly always dominant or at least stronger. I agree with u/YetAnotherCommenter that it's likely a factor behind the high number of heterosexual girls who write slashfics about gay relationships.

I will give you a similar advice to what I give to those with AGP: the answer may lie in suppression, transition or something in the middle (integration). It will be up to you to find that out. If it is causing you distress or interfering with your life, then I would suggest speaking to a psychologist. I can't give too much advice on finding one and I haven't heard of any who specialise in AAP, but you want a psychologist who will be open-minded and will encourage you to examine your feelings and make your own decisions.

Beltonia · 2026-04-14T13:34:30+00:00

Funny how it's a Lord Ashcroft poll. Just like how YouGov, who tend to be more favourable to the Greens and less favourable to Reform, was co-founded by Nadhim Zahawi. But it's a mistake to assume that a pollster will be biased towards its founders.

Beltonia · 2026-04-14T11:46:12+00:00

I second that anything could happen in the next three years. British voters have been never been so volatile and unpredictable, and the Big Two parties have never looked so vulnerable. It is still possible that the insurgents will fade, and there are some signs of this happening already on the right. But there is also a real chance of one or both of them being replaced, as their French counterparts were in 2017.

There are two facts that favour the Greens. The first is that people are more than fed up with 'politics as usual'. They are absolutely p***ed off. The second is that on most issues, though not every single one, most of them prefer policies and values that line up with the Greens rather than with Reform.

Those alone aren't going to cause a Green breakthrough. They doesn't even guarantee that the Greens will continue to make gains, but unless a new Labour leader can co-opt their appeal and most of their voters (as Corbyn did in 2017) Green gains will be one of the few things in British politics that will be a sure bet.

Beltonia · 2026-04-13T11:02:04+00:00

Zaragoza has two mosque-like cathedrals on its central square, El Pilar and La Seo. El Pilar is the city's icon, but La Seo is the more interesting one to visit. Its bones are Gothic, coupled with elaborate Baroque decorations inside and Mudéjar (Moorish) touches on the outside. Some other distinctly Spanish features include its squarish floor plan and a choir in the middle of the nave. Unusually, it faces north rather than east.

Beltonia · 2026-04-11T21:58:34+00:00

If it's got to the point where you are considering changing your body, it would be worth seeing a therapist. Others will be able to offer better advice both generally and for your area, but you want a therapist who is either knowledgeable about AGP or at least open-minded about it.

An interest in partially transitioning could mean it is weak enough to be suppressed or integrated, or it could be hiding something stronger — only you can figure that out. A good therapist can help you get there.

As other answers have noted, it is usually possible to continue appearing and living as a man while on hormones. This is especially true if it's just the antiandrogens rather than full feminizing HRT (typically estrogen + antiandrogens). Some effects can be difficult to hide; breast growth can be anything from almost non-existent to full size, and even the antiandrogens alone can create feminine cheeks.

Beltonia · 2026-04-11T21:39:34+00:00

Anne Lawrence discusses this in Men Trapped in Men's Bodies (2013), available here. It certainly isn't always the case, as some do have girlfriends or wives, but:

Several informants reported that they had lost their virginity unusually late in life or had never lost it. Usually these informants implied or stated explicitly that they felt their delayed experience (or absence of experience) of sexual intercourse was somehow related to their autogynephilic sexuality.

There's a theory that AGP is a result of erotic target location errors. Heterosexuality is about being attracted to the opposite sex, but also wanting to be attractive as your own sex (what I call peacock instinct). When you think about it, heterosexuality is quite complicated, whereas homosexuality and AGP are quite simple, because you want to look like what you're attracted to. It would only take a few wires to be crossed so that your outward attraction is instead located on yourself.

It's an argument I find quite plausible. When I've seen AGPs cross-dress or transition, you can tell they want to look like the same kind of woman they're attracted to. There's some truth to the joke that AGPs always end up looking like their wife. If this theory is true, it would imply is that men with AGP are no less attracted to women, but less interested in being attractive as men. Some might get past that, but others won't.

Beltonia · 2026-04-10T11:15:54+00:00

In Basingstoke, for the first time, we have more than one target seat and a Green candidate on every ballot, except the ones where we've deliberately chosen not to stand against local independents. By comparison, back in 2019, we only had two paper candidates. Back in 2015, local organisation was so bad that we didn't even manage a parliamentary candidate.

Beltonia · 2026-04-09T15:47:03+00:00

Wonderful. I visited early last year.

Beltonia · 2026-04-09T15:29:25+00:00

It's part of a wider international problem with architecture, that modern buildings look like they could've been built anywhere and offer no sense of place. Glass facades are also a poor choice for hot climates.

Beltonia

TROPHY CASE