Can we talk?

Let's take ten minutes off together, take the weight off, grab a coffee, so I can share my plans with you.

Keeping track of the moving parts in Trump’s world hasn’t been easy, but it’s never been as difficult as it is right now. I often speak of inflexion points, but they seem so numerous as to be irrelevant in this ongoing march to theocratic autocracy. It seems clear to me that the focus must remain on filtering out the noise to identify the key threats and important issues we need to turn our attention to, amidst a barrage of damaging executive actions designed to preserve Trump’s ability to rule by fiat.

He’s a man interested in one thing: ‘Quick wins.’ His strategic thinking extends to threats, maximal pressure, profit, and exit. This applies to everything he does, whether it’s threatening a nation-state or members of his own party. Every step is driven by creating the opportunity for self-enrichment. The economic chaos and loss of life that can result from his decision making are baked into the model. Made-for-TV moments and shit talk are central to a strategy dominated by performative actions, allowing him to constantly control the narrative.

I have thought long and hard for months now about developing a strategy to counter this normalisation of chaos. I’m really hoping you will indulge me on just this one piece, so I can share the personal thoughts I have had over the past six months (though they go back much further). Thoughts of creating a no-cost destination for critical facts driven by innovative presentation, to provide a curated library of FREE resources for those who want to look beyond the chaos, and find an oasis of information that both informs and inspires participation in the political process.

Let me be clear, I never saw this as my mission in the autumn of life, but I’ve been inspired by everyday people who have had the courage to stand up. those who are not prepared to comply in advance. People who believe that fighting for social justice and the creation of a fairer society, far from making us weak, make us a guiding light in a social Darwinistic nightmare, imposed by an out-of-control regime, intent on absolute power. Those who shout the loudest have become the Pied Pipers of a follower class who believe that arrogance, belligerence, and righteous indignation will protect them from the new ruling class, who use them as disposable assets.

My belief is that strength comes not from following the easy path of compliance, but from having the audacity to say NO. It’s a simple word that escapes too many who ingest the narcotics of hate, division and fear. Following the crowd is the easiest thing in the world to do in a hall of mirrors that are distorting the real numbers of those who believe in this white Christofascist illusion. Strength is not born of compliance; it’s born from an ability to deploy critical thinking in a world where dissent will not be tolerated.

I know people are beyond exhausted and frustrated, with many feeling an understandable sense of outrage and despair. As a retiree who is blessed to have the company of a woman who has proved to me over and over that I am infinitely a better man for the often silent love she showers on me each and every day. Her support, her wise words and her ability to unplug me from the world when she detects that this fight is becoming all too much, keep me safe from myself and my tendency to spiral into depression.

The reason I’m able to focus and do what I do each day is powered by her confidence in me to speak my mind for the greater good. A 46-year partnership is a testament to her remarkable patience and dedication to making me the man who presents this vision today. She long since mastered the art of convincing me that her ideas are really my own. Life together has been, shall we say, ‘eventful’, with some memorable highs and massive lows, but here we are still standing, stronger for the experience.

No words have been created to express the love I hold for her, as time after time, she has broken my fall and dragged me back to my feet. I love her more today than the day I set eyes on her in a ‘social activists’ meeting. A moment when I found her view of the world as beautiful as she looked. Those were the days when we believed together we could help change the world. Oh, how the naivety of youth is intoxicating until you are forced to navigate the real world without a safety net.

So here we are, almost half a century on, with the benefit of lived experience, and I’m gifted an opportunity to make a small contribution against a war being waged on the very fabric of our society. An opportunity to bring a lifetime of lived experience to help deliver marginal gains against a cancer that is eating the world alive. To help provide a knowledge base not built on ‘balance’ but on an honest set of values that recognise none of us are born equal, we are all threads in the tapestry of a world shaped by greed and power. My aim has never been to give equal time to those who would do society harm, nor has it been to defend the indefensible, because someone claims to inhabit my political space.

I have written over 400 pieces here that define, with no apology, who I am and what I believe in. I write without fear or favour based on the facts and a set of values that define my thinking and my outlook. The rest is up to those who read what I do to decide if we inhabit common space. We won’t always agree, but I will always treat those who might disagree with respect and a willingness to have my mind changed, and that’s the best I can offer.

My late father was a prominent local politician who helped me understand the value of empathy and that society is better for the contributions of immigrants and the value they bring to society’s rich tapestry. He taught me from his years of community-focused public service that individuals can make a difference, from standing up for those who are unheard, to chairing a non-profit organisation which provided second-hand furniture to families who had fallen on hard times, and families he had helped obtain social housing.

As a young boy, I saw the difference his unpaid efforts made when I would go with him to drop off a fridge, a TV, or a bed to a mum or a dad, who would burst into tears because someone cared. My father was a good man who cared deeply about community, but he was a flawed man, too, who struggled with alcohol problems and smoked like a chimney, a pleasure that would later seal his fate when he died of lung cancer.

He and I had our moments as I got older and challenged him over his drinking and poor treatment of my mum on occasion. She was a woman who, incidentally, worshipped the ground on which he walked. It would be unfair to call him a violent man, but he was a man who definitely had an Irish temper that could become ugly after he had had a drink or five.

I never really grasped his standing in the community until the day of his funeral, when I gave a eulogy to a standing-room-only crowd in the Church he had pushed for planning permission to build. The great and the good turned up, including the town’s mayor, Members of Parliament and local dignitaries, along with families whom he had helped over the years; my mother even received a condolence card from the Prime Minister. I learned in that moment that what he saw as his quiet duty to his community meant more to that community than he could ever have imagined.

I share this story on the anniversary of his passing last week, to provide some insight into a father’s son who, in retirement, is looking to give back to honour his memory and his belief that society operates better when we see and, above all, listen to each other. Call me an old romantic if you will, but I believe in the audacity of hope and ambition to create a better tomorrow.

I understand that in these challenging times, it might be difficult to understand why a retiree from the other side of the Atlantic cares about what happens in America. It’s a good question, and one I’m often asked. The answer really is very simple. The source of the cancer that threatens to end Western Democracy is headquartered in the US, and it accelerated after Trump was elected in 2016. I had spent time observing from afar, beyond the boundaries of social media, simply keeping a journal of my thoughts.

After the murder of George Floyd, my outrage reached a breaking point, so I joined Twitter to share my thoughts and began creating video content. My intention was to stay until the 2020 election, then return to gardening and the things retired people do. What I hadn’t expected was that a number of my videos supporting the Biden-Harris campaign would go viral, and people seemed interested in my contribution to the political conversation.

Early in 2025, I started looking for a platform to publish longer-form political writing, and that’s when I stumbled upon Substack. A little over a year later, I’ve built the Truth Matters community that now stands at over 105,000 subscribers. Don’t misunderstand, I appreciate that mine is just one voice among many, but the Truth Matters Newsletter's engagement is growing consistently and remains very healthy. Only 0.28% of accounts on Substack have over 100,000 subscribers, and over a year, it has a subscriber retention rate of almost 80%, so I think it’s safe to say Truth Matters has become a stable, trusted voice amongst a growing audience.

I made a commitment at the beginning of this journey not to paywall my work, simply because I don’t believe people should have to pay to read the truth. This makes my paid subscriber community a special bunch of people. They pay to support my work, not just to read it, and that’s the precious gift that fuels this adventure. Those who write and do research will know all too well the cost of investing in research to bring substance and meaning to news and commentary. Last month was the first month after a year of work that I broke even on research and content costs, which is a testament to the growing community of paid supporters.

It’s this break-even point that led me to reinvest in plans to expand Truth Matters' footprint, bringing us to where we are today. In an ever more constricting messaging space under siege from a regime hellbent on owning the narrative, it is long overdue that liberal voices begin thinking about messaging redundancy and the need to have safe spaces to retreat to if attempts are made to silence the voice of reason. I’ve given months of thought to the problem from both a practical, technical and presentation perspective. Tomorrow, in a supplementary post, I’ll explain not just the ‘Truth Portal Project’, but the importance of the strategic thinking behind moving forward.

This is a project built on a self-financed foundation, and the reason for that is that INFLUENCE IS NOT FOR SALE. I have explained who I am, and my body of work clearly spells out what I believe. Beyond my extensive long-form writing here, my broader posts serve as a curated news feed of video content that is not driven by political ideology but rather by a diverse selection of views and contributions from trusted content creators and news sources. These are designed to encourage broader thinking and differing perspectives on burning social issues.

This is all great, but it exists in a walled-off area of a larger domain that is part of a corporate media sector policed by the regime, and that, in my mind, represents a threat. Do I need to exist in this moderated space? Absolutely, it’s what informs what I do, but I want to create a go-to resource that's independent of these shark-infested waters.

That’s where the idea of the Truth Portal Project was born. A secure space outside Big Tech's reach that will become a curated online truth library, bringing together informative, fact-checked independent news, writing and creator content, along with original in-house film content, a podcast, and a weekly political news magazine. It will form what I hope will become a truth-anchored ecosystem providing a FREE public information service. One delivering high design value and engaging, emotionally connective content, which makes finding the truth a rewarding experience.

I want to feature new political writers and content-creator talent, while introducing people to new ‘people-first’ political talent. I want it to be almost like a political coffee shop for discussion and an open exchange of ideas on policy thinking and societal ambition. The aim is to make it a place to visit each day, where you can find key information, watch and read informative opinion pieces, and share thoughts. It’s an effort to build a better-informed community able to share its knowledge with others to help people make better decisions when selecting candidates and deciding who deserves their vote.

I have self-funded the platform's infrastructure, in the hope that small-dollar donations will help cover operational and development costs as the project grows. This is why I want it to be a value-added service of the Truth Matters Substack. The beauty of Substack is that it enables readers to seamlessly become stakeholders in the project by simply becoming paid subscribers to this publication. That does two important things: one, it helps support the project, and two, it keeps access to my work here and the wider project FREE for those who can’t afford to make a contribution.

Being part of this community will never depend on whether you have the means to pay. Support comes in many forms, from volunteering time to spreading the word and sharing enthusiasm for the value people get from having access to a community where diversity, equity and inclusion are celebrated, not denigrated. I’ll outline the project's framework in more detail tomorrow and answer some of the many questions people have asked since I announced the imminent introduction of the service earlier in the week.

For those who have asked about making one-off donations to the project, I added a link in my original post, but you can click here if you would like to make a one-off contribution. It’s a secure link that uses the Substack payment processor, so your information is secure. The other option, as stated above, is to simply upgrade to a paid subscription. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out in the comments, and I’ll get back to you. Alternatively, you can reach out by email, but please give me time to respond, given the number of people interested in learning more about the project.

I’ll be featuring my journey to launch here as a series of smaller supplementary posts for those who want an inside track view into what’s involved in bringing the project to life. If you got to the end, thank you for allowing me to deviate from my usual path to share this with you. I appreciate it, and thank you again for your support.

Martin