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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260704T130000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260704T150000
DTSTAMP:20260621T103118Z
CREATED:20260602T095414Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260621T103118Z
UID:756-1783170000-1783177200@www.freethinkers.org.uk
SUMMARY:America at 250. Is the Dream of Life\, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness Over?
DESCRIPTION:The United States of America celebrates its 250th birthday on this very day. This is the day that the Declaration of Independence was drafted by the founding fathers in 1776. \n\n\n\nEven the biggest critic has to agree that America has had an extraordinary two and a half centuries. Progressing from a backwater\, primarily agricultural outpost of the British Empire\, to an industrial and military giant. \n\n\n\nThe nation’s leaders have sold the notion of ‘Life\, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’ to millions of immigrants who have flocked there from places as far afield as Ireland and Russia throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries. \n\n\n\nThe great 1849 gold rush saw a vast expansion westwards and many Native Americans lost their lands and their culture during the relentless profiteering of this era. \n\n\n\nAmerica twice came to Europe’s aid during both World Wars. Uncle Sam then became Europe’s protector during the Cold War. \n\n\n\nSince then the nation has become the world’s principal economic and military superpower. It has dominated the global geopolitical scene being the principal funder of the World Bank\, the UN\, NATO and many other NGOs. \n\n\n\nAmerican popular culture has also been dominant through the media of music\, films and television. Then we have the F.A.N.G.S. which have hegemony of the internet\, all listed on NASDAQ and developed from start-ups in Silicon Valley \n\n\n\nHowever\, recently the American Dream and the perception of ‘Land of the Free’ has sunk to new depths of despair. The re-election of Donald J. Trump as president\, as well as the increasing multipolar political sabre-rattling has seen America lose a lot of respect. \n\n\n\nThis month we will debate this issue. So please join us and all’s we ask is that you are respectful of other people’s views\, whilst refraining from abusive language. \n\n\n\n\nSIGN UP AT MEETUP
URL:https://www.freethinkers.org.uk/event/america-at-250-is-the-dream-of-life-liberty-and-the-pursuit-of-happiness-over/
LOCATION:Forest Recreational Ground Cafe\, The Homemade Cafe\, Nottingham\, NG7 6QH\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Talk
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260815T130000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260815T150000
DTSTAMP:20260720T180218Z
CREATED:20260625T155708Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260720T180218Z
UID:809-1786798800-1786806000@www.freethinkers.org.uk
SUMMARY:Sebastian Moore - SDP Candidate in Gorton & Denton By-election
DESCRIPTION:‘The Crisis is Coming. The Only Solution is Nationbuilding.’ \n\n\n\nAcross the political spectrum\, there is broad agreement that Britain is in trouble. The NHS is barely functioning. Small boat crossings remain high. Businesses are struggling with rising costs. Theft and petty crime has become commonplace. Over a million young people aren’t in work or education\, and key institutions appear incapable of performing their purpose. \n\n\n\nIs this a series of individual policy issues or is there something more going on? \n\n\n\nBeneath the headlines\, lies a deeper issue: the gradual erosion of the nation itself. As our shared identity weakens\, politics becomes more divisive. Compromise is replaced by moral condemnation\, and fellow citizens begin to be viewed as enemies rather than neighbours. Common institutions lose credibility\, separate communities arise\, and governments become more inclined to use censorship and force over consent. \n\n\n\nIf Britain is to recover\, addressing individual policy failures will not be enough. But how do we find a shared sense of purpose that would allow us to restore the social bonds and political culture that make a functioning democracy possible? \n\n\n\nSebastian Moore argues that the challenge facing Britain is not just one of economics or culture\, but of nationhood. To navigate the coming crisis\, we must reinvent the nation.
URL:https://www.freethinkers.org.uk/event/sebastian-moore-sdp-candidate-in-gorton-denton-by-election/
LOCATION:The Hop Merchant\, Nottingham\, 64-68 Upper Parliament Street\, Nottingham\, NG1 2AG\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://static.freethinkers.org.uk/uploads/2026/06/Seb-Moore.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260912T130000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260912T150000
DTSTAMP:20260819T080816Z
CREATED:20260819T080702Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260819T080816Z
UID:831-1789218000-1789225200@www.freethinkers.org.uk
SUMMARY:Policing in the 21st Century: Do We Need to Rethink?
DESCRIPTION:The result of our AV poll saw members put this topic ahead for our monthly discussion. \n\n\n\nThe world’s first Police Service was founded 1829 in Britain. Bobbies took their nickname from the Prime Minister of the day\, Robert Peel (they were also known as Peelers in the early days). \n\n\n\nBefore this time\, local sheriffs/magistrates or Constables were responsible for maintaining order. Any riots or mob activity would be suppressed (often quite brutally) by the armed militia\, as in the Peterloo Massacre of 1819. \n\n\n\nLuckily\, we’ve moved on quite a lot from these dark times\, and by the mid 20th century\, the modern police force was respected by many citizens. Since this time\, several Acts of Parliament have been passed in order to further modernise the Police. \n\n\n\nHowever\, over the past few years\, we’ve witnessed an epidemic of demonstrations\, some peaceful as in road blockages by JSO and others quite violent as with the recent attacks. \n\n\n\nPeople from working-class communities are beginning to ask serious questions about two-tier policing. Many now believe that bias exists within our police forces. Are Police Crime Commissioners effective? Do we need more engagement with local communities to stop further violent clashes? \n\n\n\nAre politicians to blame? Are they merely abandoning our Police Service to its own devices? During Lockdowns\, many police officers were bemused as to ‘what regulations they should enact’. \n\n\n\nAre the Police just being used as scapegoats in a political arena that has become toxic and with no accountability from the Home Office. \n\n\n\nJoin us for a lively Saturday afternoon debate\, all’s we ask is that you respect the opinions of others\, and we expect everyone to respect yours. Also\, we don’t condone the use of inappropriate language. \n\n\n\nThe bar downstairs serves drinks (a lime cordial only costs 50p)\, so we’d appreciate it if you were curtious enough to buy a beverage or two. \n\n\n\nLook forward to debating with everyone. Please bring along any evidence you may have as regards the topic.
URL:https://www.freethinkers.org.uk/event/policing-in-the-21st-century-do-we-need-to-rethink/
LOCATION:The Hop Merchant\, Nottingham\, 64-68 Upper Parliament Street\, Nottingham\, NG1 2AG\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Talk
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261010T160000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261010T180000
DTSTAMP:20260925T090509Z
CREATED:20260925T085642Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260925T090509Z
UID:854-1791648000-1791655200@www.freethinkers.org.uk
SUMMARY:How Can We Rebuild A Nation In Britain?
DESCRIPTION:Join Philip Cunliffe and Emily Jones to explore the national interest from contemporary and historical perspectives\, asking what it might me \n\n\n\nThe national interest has been conspicuously absent from British politics for decades. While governments of both Left and Right prioritised frictionless trade and stronger global alliances\, domestic industries disappeared\, along with many of the social and political institutions around which British national life had been built. \n\n\n\nToday\, amid growing concern about energy costs\, broken supply chains\, failing defence and industrial capacity\, politicians are once again invoking the national interest. But what does it mean\, and who gets to define it? After decades of decline\, is there still a ‘British people’ with the solidarity and sense of common interests needed to assert shared priorities? \n\n\n\nBritain has faced such questions before. In 1945\, a Labour government set out to build a ‘New Jerusalem’ from the rubble of six years of total war. A century earlier\, Disraeli\, later mythologised as the founder of One Nation Conservatism\, famously described a country divided into ‘two nations’\, rich and poor. Both traditions emphasised national unity and obligations across class divisions. \n\n\n\nCan these national stories and traditions offer inspiration today\, or is it the responsibility of every generation to imagine the nation anew? \n\n\n\nPhilip Cunliffe and Emily Jones explore the national interest from contemporary and historical perspectives\, asking what it might mean for British people to think and act as a nation once again. \n\n\n\nPhilip Cunliffe is an author\, academic and podcaster known for his work in international relations\, particularly in the areas of sovereignty\, international order\, conflict management and global politics. He is an Associate Professor of International Relations at the Department of Risk and Disaster Reduction at University College London. \n\n\n\nAuthor of The National Interest: Politics After Globalization (Polity\, 2025) and Taking Control: Sovereignty and Democracy After Brexit (Polity\, 2023\, co-authored with George Hoare\, Lee Jones\, and Peter Ramsay) \n\n\n\nEmily Jones is an author and academic at University of Manchester who has written and reviewed for the Financial Times\, the New Statesman\, and History Today\, and provided various radio commentary\, including for BBC Radio 4\, ABC Australia\, and ORF Austria. The Disraeli Myth: The Making of a Conservative Tradition\, provides an authoritative account of the afterlives of Benjamin Disraeli and the highly significant construction of a socially minded brand of Conservatism following his death in 1881.
URL:https://www.freethinkers.org.uk/event/how-can-we-rebuild-a-nation-in-britain/
LOCATION:Pendulum Hotel\, Sackville Street\, Manchester\, M1 3BB
CATEGORIES:Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://static.freethinkers.org.uk/uploads/2026/09/cunliffe-jones.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20261017T130000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20261017T150000
DTSTAMP:20260917T090624Z
CREATED:20260917T082200Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260917T090624Z
UID:842-1792242000-1792249200@www.freethinkers.org.uk
SUMMARY:Geoengineering and Cloud Seeding: 'Should we be worried?'
DESCRIPTION:Julie Tasker will be hosting this event. \n\n\n\nWhat affects the weather? \n\n\n\nHistorically\, different communities have done various things to influence the weather and its effects\, such as Native American Rain Dancing; and church buildings installed with lightning conductors (often made of copper or aluminium tape / lead components). \n\n\n\nMore modern times have enabled technology to be accessed to change the weather; and apparently it is even possible to pay to have potentially good weather for a wedding\, and / or presumably other event(s). \n\n\n\nGeoengineering\, weather modification\, and weather manipulation\, such as Cloud Seeding\, are some of the terminology used for such human influences to influence the weather. \n\n\n\nWeather modification is said to have started in the 1940s – though historically there have been human influences on the weather much before that. \n\n\n\nThe concept of the ownership and regulation of Cloud-Seeding Activities is supposed to be to National Discretion. Who decides on National Discretion? \n\n\n\nDid you know there were extremes of weather during World War 1? \n\n\n\nWhat might have instigated such World War 1 weather extremes? \n\n\n\nHopefully this presentation and discussion will help you to consider: \n\n\n\nHow might we develop truly ethical approaches to how we live our lives\, including the many different influences that are happening to affect weather? \n\n\n\nAs time allows:Please share what your own ‘weather’ experiences have been; and any ideas you might have as to what you feel Your ‘Discretion’ is regarding the Technological Influences on Weather\, such as Cloud Seeding\, and beyond that to You experiencing other Influences in your Daily Life which may enable Positivity … Or … Perhaps seem to be for the ‘good’ of certain individuals; and without genuine care and compassion for the majority of us. \n\n\n\n\nSIGN UP AT MEETUP
URL:https://www.freethinkers.org.uk/event/geoengineering-and-cloud-seeding-should-we-be-worried/
LOCATION:The Hop Merchant\, Nottingham\, 64-68 Upper Parliament Street\, Nottingham\, NG1 2AG\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://static.freethinkers.org.uk/uploads/2026/09/highres_535723605.webp
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