wo days ago, the British government announced a U-turn on their proposed digital identity, and that the much-anticipated “BritCard” would no longer be mandatory to work in the UK.
This was welcomed as a victory by both fake anti-establishment types whose job is to Pied Piper genuine opposition, and some real resistance who should know better.
The reality is that reports of the death of digital identity have been greatly exaggerated. All they said was that it would no longer be mandatory.
Having a bank account, a cellphone, or an internet connection is not mandatory, but try functioning in this world without them.
As we said on X, anybody who understands governments or human nature knew any digital ID was likely never going to be gun-to-your-head, risking-prison-time mandatory.
All it has to be is a little bit faster and/or a little bit cheaper.
Saving you half an hour when submitting your tax return, faster progress through customs, lower “processing fees” for passport or driver’s license applications.
An hour of extra time and 50 pounds saved per year will do more coercion than barbed wire and billy clubs ever could.
Running alongside this is the manufactured drama around Grok’s generation of images of bikini-clad public figures, something which it suited the press and punditry class to work up into “sexual assault” and “pornography” whilst imploring us all to “think of the children!”
Inside a week, X has changed its policy, and Sir Keir Starmer’s government has promised a swift resolution of the issue using legislation that was (conveniently) passed last year but has yet to be enforced (more on that in the next few days).
This issue became a “problem”, had an hysterical “reaction” and was supplied a ready-made “solution” all inside two weeks. A swifter procession of the Hegelian dialectic would be hard to find.
So, we have the reported demise of mandatory digital identity occurring alongside the rise of the “threat” of AI “deepfakes”.
Nobody in the mainstream press has actually linked these stories together, but the connection is as obvious as the next step is inevitable.
This next step is the UK introducing its own version of the Australian “social media ban” for under-16s. In effect, age-gating all online interaction on major platforms and ending online anonymity.
Hellbound and Down 