Best Of

Lots of grumpy farts about this Monday morning.

We’re largely a bunch of middle aged to old white men on a form of message board that had its heyday 15-20 years ago. And it’s Monday morning. What do you expect?

Good morning

I agree that @Alanbrooke description of Cooper was unkind but then some of the comments on here about Kemi are at times even worse and it is simply unnecessary

I was involved with Cooper and her department over hips with many trips to London to discuss the pros and cons and frankly she just dld not listen

I do not think she or Miliband are labour's answer to the Starmer question but then who is ?

My wife and I are to set off shortly on our 2 day train excursion to Edinburgh so will not be posting much as we want to enjoy the journeys and ever changing scenery

Yes “whatabout” the unkind things that people say about Kemi. Someone should invent a neologism to describe the rhetorical tactic and logical fallacy used to deflect criticism by responding to an accusation with a counter-accusation, shifting focus away from the original issue. Perhaps it’s already been done?

To be honest there are some on here whose use of whataboutery is legend

I’ve not seen such. Just repetitive “what about x” with desperation when various subjects come up.

Quality WhatAboutery used to be a major product of the Northern Ireland service sector. It’s really fallen off though. Another British industry shuttered.

Sad lack of Irish Republicans on this site to pick you up on the "British" descriptor there. Shame. This morning was too good natured - we needed a row.

To be sure, to be sure, to be sure.

Also you can be British and Republican. The monarchy is as anachronistic as the Church.

No, if if you dislike the monarchy and Church of England being established church you should move to the Irish Republic where you can have a President and Popery as your main religion to your hearts content!

The village in which I lived for a few years with my wife's parents has a very amiable Church of Ireland vicar, who I met at a defibrillator bake sale, and it's mainly the Church of Ireland churches that have the bell towers with enough bells to do interesting peals and the like - my daughter came over for a bellringing festival and did a tour of them round here. Not sure if there are many monarchy fans still knocking around. I'll keep a look out.

Kinda sad that you can't accept a few Republicans and atheists as part of Britain's rich tapestry, though.

I thought we had plenty of both.

Why is Britain's economy in the toilet? Answer number 4,982:


"Publicly traded companies in Britain must have, or “explain to the regulator” why they do not have:

- A minimum of 40% women on their board of directors
- A woman CEO, chairman of the board, CFO and/or Senior Independent Director
- A board member who is an ethnic minority

Why is anybody confused about why so few companies want to list here and so few promising startups scale up here?

Would you agree to put people in charge of your company on the basis of their sex or race in order to meet a diversity quota?

These rules were brought in by the Conservative Party in 2022, BTW."

https://x.com/s8mb/status/2033445415555645442?s=20

Note, again, the explicitly racist exclusion of "whites" in the rules

Can you list all the FTSE100 boards with no white members given they are apparently excluded? I'll give you a clue, you should be able to type the full list in no time at all.

.

Why is Britain's economy in the toilet? Answer number 4,982:


"Publicly traded companies in Britain must have, or “explain to the regulator” why they do not have:

- A minimum of 40% women on their board of directors
- A woman CEO, chairman of the board, CFO and/or Senior Independent Director
- A board member who is an ethnic minority

Why is anybody confused about why so few companies want to list here and so few promising startups scale up here?

Would you agree to put people in charge of your company on the basis of their sex or race in order to meet a diversity quota?

These rules were brought in by the Conservative Party in 2022, BTW."

https://x.com/s8mb/status/2033445415555645442?s=20

Note, again, the explicitly racist exclusion of "whites" in the rules

You're absolutely right.

That is indeed about 5000th on the list of reasons, as it barely qualifies at all.

Go for it Labour.

A dowdy dreary nag is just what the nation needs.

You clearly have a massive problem with women. Let’s break this down. From your post I see nothing about what Cooper stands for you object to. I see instead three key words.

First, “Dowdy". This word polices a Cooper’s appearance, implying she is unfashionably dressed or unattractive. Women are subject to this kind of aesthetic judgment in a way men very rarely are. Calling a man "dowdy" barely registers as an insult, while for women, appearance is treated as a moral and social obligation.

Secondly, "Dreary": This frames a woman's personality or presence as a burden to others. It suggests she fails to be entertaining, lively, or pleasing, again, a standard women are held to far more than men

Finally “Nag". This is perhaps the most overtly mysoginistic term of the three. "Nag" (meaning someone who complains or criticises persistently) is almost exclusively applied to women, and specifically to women who assert themselves. When a man does the same thing, he is more likely to be described as "persistent," "principled," or "demanding.". At worst he’ll get “annoying” or maybe “monotonous”, possibly. The word "nag" trivialises and dismisses the substance of what a woman is saying by reframing it as an annoying personality trait rather than a legitimate comceej or political position.

Taken together, you have hatefully reduced a woman simultaneously to her appearance and her disposition, finding fault with both, used language that would not be applied to a man in the same way, and branded Cooper as a failure (aesthetically, socially, and interpersonally) by standards that are themselves gendered. Because she is a woman you dismiss rather than engage with anything she might actually be saying or doing.

Someone on here yesterday suggested it was the left who had the women problem. I present the counterargument in your post.

Christ you do drone on, you whining old bint

Why is Britain's economy in the toilet? Answer number 4,982:


"Publicly traded companies in Britain must have, or “explain to the regulator” why they do not have:

- A minimum of 40% women on their board of directors
- A woman CEO, chairman of the board, CFO and/or Senior Independent Director
- A board member who is an ethnic minority

Why is anybody confused about why so few companies want to list here and so few promising startups scale up here?

Would you agree to put people in charge of your company on the basis of their sex or race in order to meet a diversity quota?

These rules were brought in by the Conservative Party in 2022, BTW."

https://x.com/s8mb/status/2033445415555645442?s=20

Note, again, the explicitly racist exclusion of "whites" in the rules

Can you list all the FTSE100 boards with no white members given they are apparently excluded? I'll give you a clue, you should be able to type the full list in no time at all.

Which proves absolutely fuck all, as you know - or you are too stupid to read the tweet and see the reference I am citing

This is racist discrimination against white people. And it's just one example of hundreds, maybe thousands, all in the name of Diversity and Wokeness

We are surely the first race and civilisation in history to discriminate AGAINST ourselves, and in such overt, destructive ways. The backlash, if it comes, will be ugly indeed, and entirely unnecessary

Grumpy old man moans about modernity is a story as old as time itself.

Why is Britain's economy in the toilet? Answer number 4,982:


"Publicly traded companies in Britain must have, or “explain to the regulator” why they do not have:

- A minimum of 40% women on their board of directors
- A woman CEO, chairman of the board, CFO and/or Senior Independent Director
- A board member who is an ethnic minority

Why is anybody confused about why so few companies want to list here and so few promising startups scale up here?

Would you agree to put people in charge of your company on the basis of their sex or race in order to meet a diversity quota?

These rules were brought in by the Conservative Party in 2022, BTW."

https://x.com/s8mb/status/2033445415555645442?s=20

Note, again, the explicitly racist exclusion of "whites" in the rules

Can you list all the FTSE100 boards with no white members given they are apparently excluded? I'll give you a clue, you should be able to type the full list in no time at all.

Which proves absolutely fuck all, as you know - or you are too stupid to read the tweet and see the reference I am citing

This is racist discrimination against white people. And it's just one example of hundreds, maybe thousands, all in the name of Diversity and Wokeness

We are surely the first race and civilisation in history to discriminate AGAINST ourselves, and in such overt, destructive ways. The backlash, if it comes, will be ugly indeed, and entirely unnecessary

UPDATE ON THE HORMUZ COALITION (Mon, March 16):

🇫🇷 France: REJECTED
🇬🇧 UK: REJECTED
🇮🇹 Italy: REJECTED
🇪🇸 Spain: REJECTED
🇯🇵 Japan: REJECTED
🇳🇴 Norway: REJECTED
🇨🇦 Canada: REJECTED
🇦🇺 Australia: REJECTED
🇩🇪 Germany: REJECTED
🇨🇳 China: NO RESPONSE
🇳🇱 Netherlands: NO RESPONSE
🇰🇷 South Korea: NO CONFIRMATION

Indistinguishable from Tinder

Most interesting is Meloni, the golden girl of MAGA, the European Right Wing flame carrier.

Has been in lock step with Starmer and Merz, more so than Macron.

Great to see.

The new Merkel of Europe

She makes it obvious that she can't stand Macron.

But she can't stand Trump more!

I don't like Meloni's politics, but I think she's done a good job at separating her Italian right populist movement from the Trump/MAGA disaster. That's something Farage hasn't quite mastered yet.

Recently my taxi driver* who is Italian, expressed the view she is good a chess and is able to position herself well within Italian/EU politics

* Assume that taxi driver opinions are a credible political currency from other poster's taxi driver comments.
* * Aware that large numbers of Albanians also speak Italian.