HY was spot on actually with a post yesterday, you only get 4%+ Labour lead at the moment by stealing from Lib Dems and greens to a degree that looks unreal. I’ll add the fact the combined Lab, ldem, and green total has been dropping quite sharply recently, nearer just 50 now than 57. I’ll also throw in, in this yougov poll, reform + Tory = labour Behind?
I follow the aggregate Lab/Lib/Green share. It's important because in our polarized politics, with wedge issues and 'values' trumping more traditional debates around tax & spend, people having to choose a side even if they'd rather not, what we could be looking at at the next election is a bit of an American type 'trads v progs' situation, a binary fight where one of the 2 sides will prevail and form the government, Tories outright or Labour in a loose alliance.
That's the sort of election the Tories have in mind. They'll seek to paint Labour, in an impressionistic way rather than based on official policy positions, as unsafe on traditional values, and other parties on the centre left as enablers of this. This, plus "vote Starmer get Sturgeon" is going to be the Tory pitch. It's unedifying but they have no choice, really, because with their Brexitification, and the man they've embraced as leader, on most substantial issues they've become, not to put too fine a point on it, intellectually vacant.
The LDs need to throw the kitchen sink at the new Westmorland & Eden & Highland North seats to keep their experienced MPs in Parliament, plus Brecon & Radnor in Wales & St lves in Cornwall to regain a toehold in previous areas of strength. Concentrating on remain areas is not enough if they wish to make a serious comeback.
Will the Tories face such a drubbing in the local elections?
Remember in the 2018 locals May's Tories only got 35% NEV anyway, close to what the Conservatives are still polling now.
In fact the biggest shift may be from LD to Labour, given Corbyn Labour only got 35% in 2018 and the LDs got 16% and Starmer Labour are now polling higher than that and the LDs polling lower (albeit taking into account the LDs do a bit better in local than national elections) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_United_Kingdom_local_elections
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
HY was spot on actually with a post yesterday, you only get 4%+ Labour lead at the moment by stealing from Lib Dems and greens to a degree that looks unreal. I’ll add the fact the combined Lab, ldem, and green total has been dropping quite sharply recently, nearer just 50 now than 57. I’ll also throw in, in this yougov poll, reform + Tory = labour Behind?
I follow the aggregate Lab/Lib/Green share. It's important because in our polarized politics, with wedge issues and 'values' trumping more traditional debates around tax & spend, people having to choose a side even if they'd rather not, what we could be looking at at the next election is a bit of an American type 'trads v progs' situation, a binary fight where one of the 2 sides will prevail and form the government, Tories outright or Labour in a loose alliance.
That's the sort of election the Tories have in mind. They'll seek to paint Labour, in an impressionistic way rather than based on official policy positions, as unsafe on traditional values, and other parties on the centre left as enablers of this. This, plus "vote Starmer get Sturgeon" is going to be the Tory pitch. It's unedifying but they have no choice, really, because with their Brexitification, and the man they've embraced as leader, on most substantial issues they've become, not to put too fine a point on it, intellectually vacant.
I wonder if, when push comes to shove, a lot of 'Conservative' voters will be 'unable' to vote for the current PM & cabinet and simply stay at home.
I wonder that too. I wonder it very intensely!
We can get a handle on it from here. Let's see when the GE is upon us how many PB Tories, many of whom by that time will have written squillions of posts saying what a disgrace Johnson is, are nevertheless planning to 'hold their nose' because the prospect of a Labour government relying on SNP support is just *too* horrendous for words.
Anyway my sore throat has now gone to my chest, which almost invariably happens. Bugger! I am wrapped up with so many layers. The heating has been off for ages now and is not getting switched back on for the foreseeable future.
How will people expected to work from home feel about their employers dumping them with the increased heating and lighting costs, I wonder? I'd be furious. I wonder if will make any change to those coming into the office.
And hasn't HMG axed the (small) tax relief for working from home?
If you cannot turn the heating on, you could look at those electric throws so you just heat you up, rather than the whole house.
Look at the backwards timeline from that link and tell me they've not messed up:- Timeline 1 April 2022 - Low carbon heating systems that are commissioned on or after this date will be entitled to support under the scheme. (Commissioning is the completion of installation and set up of the system).
11 April 2022 - Installers will be able to open an account for the scheme with Ofgem, the scheme administrator.
23 May 2022 - The scheme opens for grant applications and payments.
Wind power by contrast had a death tally of 150 deaths per trillion kWh.
Not to mention the bird life.
I don't mind wind power but it's not the greatest thing if you're being authentic about green life.
The number of birds killed by wind turbines is insignificant compared to the numbers killed by glass-fronted buildings and domestic cats. Not to mention the ones that will die out due to loss of habitat resulting from climate change which, of course, wind power is intended to counter.
Sounds like whataboutery to me.
Estimates put the number of birds killed by wind turbines as between 10,000 and 100,000 a year in the UK.
I'm not anti wind turbines. I actually think they can look quite cool. But they're not particularly efficient at around 30%.
I'm struggling to understand why efficiency is of any relevance whatsoever.
It does matter because it's a basic tenet of economics and because we should be seeking the most efficient energy sources we can in our move to more sustainable and long-term viable ways of producing energy. That's why energy efficiency is such a huge topic in the global discussion and in policy setting by governments.
One of the problems we have is that some of the so-called greener forms of energy are not particularly efficient. So, for example, you have to build one hell of a lot of wind turbines, or install field loads of solar panels, in order to yield the kind of comparable results with other, less sustainable, forms of energy.
The more efficient we can make things like solar panels, the more we solve the energy crisis. If we could get a solar panel that was 50% efficient, then 70% etc. then we really are getting close to cracking the energy crisis. Not only can all homes be lit and heated by solar but we may well get solar powered cars. That's just one example of why the efficiency chase is so hot at the moment.
Even if you had a 100% efficient solar panel, you couldn't power a car off it. Not enough area on the car to collect power.
Yes, people have built "solar powered cars", which are closer to 4 wheeled bicycles with no real world usefulness.
Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds.
Once upon a time the same technology that enables me to type on this MacBook would have required several factories filled with computer machinery and, even then, it wouldn't have come close.
Likewise battery storage capacity has come on staggeringly from fifty, thirty and even twenty years ago.
And so it has been with every scientific advance.
We WILL get there with solar power until the day dawns when most everything, including your car, could be powered by solar tech as small as the palm of your hand.
And battery storage tech will also advance unrecognisably.
Until you hit the barriers of the laws of physics e.g. the speed of light, there is nothing to stop this. And we will do it.
"Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds."
AIUI, you will *never* get a car-sized solar panel that will generate enough power for a car to move (at least a modern-sized car). Simply because not enough energy comes from the sun over the footprint of the car for it to do so. Even with 100% efficient solar panels, in hotter countries.
It doesn't matter how much science advances: you cannot make a 'solar panel' that will generate more power than the power the area receives from the sun.
A more interesting question is how much distance a solar panel on top of a car would generate over the course of a year.
As far as I can work out one square metre of solar panel can generate 120 kWh in one year in Edinburgh when facing upwards. A reasonable estimate for electric car efficiency is 20 kWh per 100 km.
So you'd get about 600 km over a year.
It's not nothing, but it's a long way from fully powering the car.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
We need a much stronger word than 'hypocrisy' for the Russia's attitude.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Tell your people there's no difference between Russia nd Ukraine and they are bound to get confused.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
They've been secretive about their air operations throughout so that's not surprising.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
Also: 1) it would be a pretty bloody daring raid, and 2) to what purpose? Is it going to hurt the Russian invasion? I don't know.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
This is the regime that, in what they insist is in all sincerity, has loudly complained about hostile words being directed at them as being entirely unreasonable, even as they launch an invasion and kill thousands. Their sockpuppets literally complain about Ukrainians defending themselves on the basis it leads to more killing.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Think this was because there was no confirmation from the Ukrainian government. Yet.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
Also: 1) it would be a pretty bloody daring raid, and 2) to what purpose? Is it going to hurt the Russian invasion? I don't know.
Yes, for the same reason that Russia has been hitting Ukrainian fuel depots with cruise missiles. It will also force Russia to tie up more of its resources on protecting its own territory.
Anyway my sore throat has now gone to my chest, which almost invariably happens. Bugger! I am wrapped up with so many layers. The heating has been off for ages now and is not getting switched back on for the foreseeable future.
How will people expected to work from home feel about their employers dumping them with the increased heating and lighting costs, I wonder? I'd be furious. I wonder if will make any change to those coming into the office.
And hasn't HMG axed the (small) tax relief for working from home?
If you cannot turn the heating on, you could look at those electric throws so you just heat you up, rather than the whole house.
A blanket and hot water bottle will do. I grew up in an unheated house so I know all the tricks. My income is irregular so I have to keep a tight lid on costs, like everyone.
Morning all. Cold today; heat from the fusion reactor in the sky is, somehow, being blocked, although it's bright enough. Snowflakes on our car (which lives outside).
Morning too OKC. Same sort of bright but wersh [Anglice, thin, insipid] day up here, though yesterday's squalls' loads of expanded polystyrene lentils have mostly melted.
That’s interesting, I only used wersh for something sour or bitter, wasn’t aware of the insipid alternative meaning until today. Odd that if not absolutely contradictory, at least very different meanings.
Will the Tories face such a drubbing in the local elections?
Remember in the 2018 locals May's Tories only got 35% NEV anyway, roughly what the Conservatives are still polling now.
In fact the biggest shift may be from LD to Labour, given Corbyn Labour only got 35% in 2018 and the LDs got 16% and Starmer Labour are now polling higher than that and the LDs polling lower (albeit taking into account the LDs do a bit better in local than national elections) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_United_Kingdom_local_elections
Yes, if the Labour lead is not more than 5% going into the local elections, I do think Labour will struggle to end up more than 2% in the NEV.
I also think in some ways there is the most riding on it for the LDs TBH and they need to gain one big prize such as Somerset or they are in trouble.
Wind power by contrast had a death tally of 150 deaths per trillion kWh.
Not to mention the bird life.
I don't mind wind power but it's not the greatest thing if you're being authentic about green life.
The number of birds killed by wind turbines is insignificant compared to the numbers killed by glass-fronted buildings and domestic cats. Not to mention the ones that will die out due to loss of habitat resulting from climate change which, of course, wind power is intended to counter.
Sounds like whataboutery to me.
Estimates put the number of birds killed by wind turbines as between 10,000 and 100,000 a year in the UK.
I'm not anti wind turbines. I actually think they can look quite cool. But they're not particularly efficient at around 30%.
I'm struggling to understand why efficiency is of any relevance whatsoever.
It does matter because it's a basic tenet of economics and because we should be seeking the most efficient energy sources we can in our move to more sustainable and long-term viable ways of producing energy. That's why energy efficiency is such a huge topic in the global discussion and in policy setting by governments.
One of the problems we have is that some of the so-called greener forms of energy are not particularly efficient. So, for example, you have to build one hell of a lot of wind turbines, or install field loads of solar panels, in order to yield the kind of comparable results with other, less sustainable, forms of energy.
The more efficient we can make things like solar panels, the more we solve the energy crisis. If we could get a solar panel that was 50% efficient, then 70% etc. then we really are getting close to cracking the energy crisis. Not only can all homes be lit and heated by solar but we may well get solar powered cars. That's just one example of why the efficiency chase is so hot at the moment.
Even if you had a 100% efficient solar panel, you couldn't power a car off it. Not enough area on the car to collect power.
Yes, people have built "solar powered cars", which are closer to 4 wheeled bicycles with no real world usefulness.
Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds.
Once upon a time the same technology that enables me to type on this MacBook would have required several factories filled with computer machinery and, even then, it wouldn't have come close.
Likewise battery storage capacity has come on staggeringly from fifty, thirty and even twenty years ago.
And so it has been with every scientific advance.
We WILL get there with solar power until the day dawns when most everything, including your car, could be powered by solar tech as small as the palm of your hand.
And battery storage tech will also advance unrecognisably.
Until you hit the barriers of the laws of physics e.g. the speed of light, there is nothing to stop this. And we will do it.
"Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds."
AIUI, you will *never* get a car-sized solar panel that will generate enough power for a car to move (at least a modern-sized car). Simply because not enough energy comes from the sun over the footprint of the car for it to do so. Even with 100% efficient solar panels, in hotter countries.
It doesn't matter how much science advances: you cannot make a 'solar panel' that will generate more power than the power the area receives from the sun.
A more interesting question is how much distance a solar panel on top of a car would generate over the course of a year.
As far as I can work out one square metre of solar panel can generate 120 kWh in one year in Edinburgh when facing upwards. A reasonable estimate for electric car efficiency is 20 kWh per 100 km.
So you'd get about 600 km over a year.
It's not nothing, but it's a long way from fully powering the car.
Probably a reasonably efficient front-facing windmill on the car roof would generate enough energy to power it.
Good, sensible article on COVID! by the ever rational and astute Nick Triggle. Breathtaking expense on mass testing.
Interestingly, reading roughly off his graph, it looks as if MOST covid hospitalisations are now ‘incidental’ i.e. they are not for covid at all, people simply happen to have it when they have been admitted for something else.
Thanks for the replies yesterday morning, I had to rush off to a major work event (in person, hundreds there, only two masks spotted all day!) so wasn’t able to continue the debate.
Much of PBers’ response struck me as irrational - what’s the point wearing a mask sometimes on a train for example then removing it at work/in the pub etc?
We are all going to catch covid, probably several times. I think with the modern milder fast-spreading ‘defanged’ strains sporadic masking isn’t going to make much difference to individual outcomes.
It's suggested that household energy costs are going up towards £3000 pa. While this is terrible it may be worth bearing in mind proportionality. 10 fags, and a single daily pint in a pub will set you back about £3250 pa.
The opening is a reminder that whatever we did, short of allowing continued Russian domination of its former satellite states, it would have been regarded as 'provocation'.
Unless democracies defend themselves, the forces of autocracy will destroy them. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2022/05/autocracy-could-destroy-democracy-russia-ukraine/629363/ ...In February 1994, in the grand ballroom of the town hall in Hamburg, Germany, the president of Estonia gave a remarkable speech. Standing before an audience in evening dress, Lennart Meri praised the values of the democratic world that Estonia then aspired to join. “The freedom of every individual, the freedom of the economy and trade, as well as the freedom of the mind, of culture and science, are inseparably interconnected,” he told the burghers of Hamburg. “They form the prerequisite of a viable democracy.” His country, having regained its independence from the Soviet Union three years earlier, believed in these values: “The Estonian people never abandoned their faith in this freedom during the decades of totalitarian oppression.”
But Meri had also come to deliver a warning: Freedom in Estonia, and in Europe, could soon be under threat. Russian President Boris Yeltsin and the circles around him were returning to the language of imperialism, speaking of Russia as primus inter pares—the first among equals—in the former Soviet empire. In 1994, Moscow was already seething with the language of resentment, aggression, and imperial nostalgia; the Russian state was developing an illiberal vision of the world, and even then was preparing to enforce it. Meri called on the democratic world to push back: The West should “make it emphatically clear to the Russian leadership that another imperialist expansion will not stand a chance.”
At that, the deputy mayor of St. Petersburg, Vladimir Putin, got up and walked out of the hall....
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
That would be bloody hilarious squared. And the whining about it would be hilarious to the power of 3,405,574.
That’s not good. Alas similar stories in England. My wife having to wait 12 months for just the booking appointment to get on the waitlist for a critical, life changing surgical procedure.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
Also: 1) it would be a pretty bloody daring raid, and 2) to what purpose? Is it going to hurt the Russian invasion? I don't know.
Apparently it is the fuel re-supply. So perhaps. Not fatally. But it's the psychology. Bombing Berlin at the height of the battle of Britain was probably military folly. But mentally priceless.
It's suggested that household energy costs are going up towards £3000 pa. While this is terrible it may be worth bearing in mind proportionality. 10 fags, and a single daily pint in a pub will set you back about £3250 pa.
Fags are a niche luxury purchase these days. In my student days a bottle of wine cost about 2 packets of cigarettes. That has now inverted, 2 bottles of drinkable wine = 20 B&H. even quite rich smokers smoke smuggled rolling tobacco if they smoke at all.
The opening is a reminder that whatever we did, short of allowing continued Russian domination of its former satellite states, it would have been regarded as 'provocation'.
Quite right. That is what believe in allowing Russia its 'spheres' means, that's what saying nations should not be able to chose which alliances they join means, it means buying into the Russian state mindset that they are owed those areas, even though they can no longer control them by any means but force of arms.
Anyway my sore throat has now gone to my chest, which almost invariably happens. Bugger! I am wrapped up with so many layers. The heating has been off for ages now and is not getting switched back on for the foreseeable future.
How will people expected to work from home feel about their employers dumping them with the increased heating and lighting costs, I wonder? I'd be furious. I wonder if will make any change to those coming into the office.
And hasn't HMG axed the (small) tax relief for working from home?
If you cannot turn the heating on, you could look at those electric throws so you just heat you up, rather than the whole house.
A blanket and hot water bottle will do. I grew up in an unheated house so I know all the tricks. My income is irregular so I have to keep a tight lid on costs, like everyone.
My income is non-existent, as my redundancy has morphed into retirement. Last night I gave in and turned the heating back on.
ETA an electric throw might be better than a hot water bottle as it can heat all of you.
Wind power by contrast had a death tally of 150 deaths per trillion kWh.
Not to mention the bird life.
I don't mind wind power but it's not the greatest thing if you're being authentic about green life.
The number of birds killed by wind turbines is insignificant compared to the numbers killed by glass-fronted buildings and domestic cats. Not to mention the ones that will die out due to loss of habitat resulting from climate change which, of course, wind power is intended to counter.
Sounds like whataboutery to me.
Estimates put the number of birds killed by wind turbines as between 10,000 and 100,000 a year in the UK.
I'm not anti wind turbines. I actually think they can look quite cool. But they're not particularly efficient at around 30%.
I'm struggling to understand why efficiency is of any relevance whatsoever.
It does matter because it's a basic tenet of economics and because we should be seeking the most efficient energy sources we can in our move to more sustainable and long-term viable ways of producing energy. That's why energy efficiency is such a huge topic in the global discussion and in policy setting by governments.
One of the problems we have is that some of the so-called greener forms of energy are not particularly efficient. So, for example, you have to build one hell of a lot of wind turbines, or install field loads of solar panels, in order to yield the kind of comparable results with other, less sustainable, forms of energy.
The more efficient we can make things like solar panels, the more we solve the energy crisis. If we could get a solar panel that was 50% efficient, then 70% etc. then we really are getting close to cracking the energy crisis. Not only can all homes be lit and heated by solar but we may well get solar powered cars. That's just one example of why the efficiency chase is so hot at the moment.
Even if you had a 100% efficient solar panel, you couldn't power a car off it. Not enough area on the car to collect power.
Yes, people have built "solar powered cars", which are closer to 4 wheeled bicycles with no real world usefulness.
Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds.
Once upon a time the same technology that enables me to type on this MacBook would have required several factories filled with computer machinery and, even then, it wouldn't have come close.
Likewise battery storage capacity has come on staggeringly from fifty, thirty and even twenty years ago.
And so it has been with every scientific advance.
We WILL get there with solar power until the day dawns when most everything, including your car, could be powered by solar tech as small as the palm of your hand.
And battery storage tech will also advance unrecognisably.
Until you hit the barriers of the laws of physics e.g. the speed of light, there is nothing to stop this. And we will do it.
"Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds."
AIUI, you will *never* get a car-sized solar panel that will generate enough power for a car to move (at least a modern-sized car). Simply because not enough energy comes from the sun over the footprint of the car for it to do so. Even with 100% efficient solar panels, in hotter countries.
It doesn't matter how much science advances: you cannot make a 'solar panel' that will generate more power than the power the area receives from the sun.
A more interesting question is how much distance a solar panel on top of a car would generate over the course of a year.
As far as I can work out one square metre of solar panel can generate 120 kWh in one year in Edinburgh when facing upwards. A reasonable estimate for electric car efficiency is 20 kWh per 100 km.
So you'd get about 600 km over a year.
It's not nothing, but it's a long way from fully powering the car.
There was a Japanese TV series that went on for years and years where they modified a kei-van (which is a little light van that weighs a little under 1000 kg and usually runs off a 660cc petrol engine) to run off a battery powered by a solar panel on the roof, then drove around Japan in it.
It's TV so it may all be fake but they claim they made 17,704km over 8 years, which would be a little over 2000 km per year. I guess that's not too far off your numbers since they're using a teensy little k thing not a normal car, and Japan is quite a bit further south than Edinburgh.
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
The following has been circulated - no idea if this is just internet chatter... The Russian government tried to bribe a considerable number of local officials in Ukraine, to do nothing when the invasion happened.
In many cases, the attempted bribes were reported to the government and gone along with, to gain information on what the Russians were going to do.
In the case of Kherson, the local defence plan wasn't activated. Apparently a couple of bridges are the key to access, but weren't blown. The suspicion was that someone took the Russian bribes.
Has anyone watched Servant of the People on All4 yet? I have not, is it worth a try or lost in translation?
Apparently deals in how to handle Russian bribery, as taxes paid for Ukr public services, and it has happened that way in a good number of cases. If Zelensky always intended to launch a political career that would count as some bit of 5 dimensional chess there.
Only watched the first three episodes and the humour is fairly unsubtle, but I’m quite enjoying it. Can’t work out if that’s from the interest generated by a huge dollop of hindsight though.
Wind power by contrast had a death tally of 150 deaths per trillion kWh.
Not to mention the bird life.
I don't mind wind power but it's not the greatest thing if you're being authentic about green life.
The number of birds killed by wind turbines is insignificant compared to the numbers killed by glass-fronted buildings and domestic cats. Not to mention the ones that will die out due to loss of habitat resulting from climate change which, of course, wind power is intended to counter.
Sounds like whataboutery to me.
Estimates put the number of birds killed by wind turbines as between 10,000 and 100,000 a year in the UK.
I'm not anti wind turbines. I actually think they can look quite cool. But they're not particularly efficient at around 30%.
I'm struggling to understand why efficiency is of any relevance whatsoever.
It does matter because it's a basic tenet of economics and because we should be seeking the most efficient energy sources we can in our move to more sustainable and long-term viable ways of producing energy. That's why energy efficiency is such a huge topic in the global discussion and in policy setting by governments.
One of the problems we have is that some of the so-called greener forms of energy are not particularly efficient. So, for example, you have to build one hell of a lot of wind turbines, or install field loads of solar panels, in order to yield the kind of comparable results with other, less sustainable, forms of energy.
The more efficient we can make things like solar panels, the more we solve the energy crisis. If we could get a solar panel that was 50% efficient, then 70% etc. then we really are getting close to cracking the energy crisis. Not only can all homes be lit and heated by solar but we may well get solar powered cars. That's just one example of why the efficiency chase is so hot at the moment.
Even if you had a 100% efficient solar panel, you couldn't power a car off it. Not enough area on the car to collect power.
Yes, people have built "solar powered cars", which are closer to 4 wheeled bicycles with no real world usefulness.
Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds.
Once upon a time the same technology that enables me to type on this MacBook would have required several factories filled with computer machinery and, even then, it wouldn't have come close.
Likewise battery storage capacity has come on staggeringly from fifty, thirty and even twenty years ago.
And so it has been with every scientific advance.
We WILL get there with solar power until the day dawns when most everything, including your car, could be powered by solar tech as small as the palm of your hand.
And battery storage tech will also advance unrecognisably.
Until you hit the barriers of the laws of physics e.g. the speed of light, there is nothing to stop this. And we will do it.
Not always and everywhere. Smartphone batteries haven't noticeably improved over 15 years of smartphones
The batteries have actually improved a lot. The increase in usage of power for faster processors has "used up" the improvement in performance, mostly.
Yes people may think they haven't but they maybe don't realise how much more processing power and capability they now handle. Smartphone batteries are vastly better than 15 years ago.
Original iPhone battery 1400 mAh.
iPhone 13 Pro Max battery 4352 mAh.
It's only three times larger, and is that because the phone is larger, so there's more space?
iPhone 13 Pro Max 240g compared to 136g for the original iPhone.
So, hard to tell how much the capacity: weight ratio has improved over 15 years. Certain it's by nowhere near as much as the power consumption efficiency of the chips themselves.
Gérard Dépardieu, who once received a Russian passport from Putin personally and praised him for years, now denounces Russia’s "crazy and unacceptable excesses" in Ukraine.
The Kremlin comments: "I suppose Depardieu does not fully understand what is happening," Dmitry Peskov says. "If necessary, we are ready to explain all of this to him so that he does. If he wants."
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
Depends why he's sacked them, but even there some leeway should be given. Churchill fired Halifax for concluding Britain couldn't win the war and recommending peace talks, but he's not usually considered authoritarian for doing so.
Has he actually had them arrested, or just dismissed? If the latter, maybe again we should remember most of the senior officers of the Russian Army and intelligence service are currently mysteriously absent from their posts.
If of course he's arrested them for telling him facts about the current Russian position he doesn't like, that's altogether different.
I don't think we'll know much more until they face trial - or don't. Zelensky appears to have happily devolved the management of fighting to the defence ministry and the armed forces, so doesn't thus far appear to be a nascent autocrat - and has referred several times to the responsibility of his successors - so I'm inclined for now to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I don't think Ukraine would tolerate an autocrat anyway.
But it is an entirely legitimate concern.
Rather it could be a legitimate concern one day. I've read this argument this morning and was a bit baffled at the idea a couple of guys being sacked or even arrested is prima facie a concerning development. I'd think a bit more of a trend or pattern, or at least reporting it was not justified, would be needed before it was presumed to be a sign of authoritarianism.
As someone mentioned Ukraine was and is not perfect, it and Zelensky might and probably will do things we consider not ok, hes not Jesus. But going 'oooh, is this a sign of authoritarianism?' seems like it requires a bit more than a couple of sackings and arrests during a war. Macron's just sacked an intelligence head is that a sign of authoritarianism or is there a non sinister explanation?
Maybe we pause the hunt until there's more to it.
Alternatively all governments involved in existential wars are essentially authoritarian. The UK banged people up for selling frothy coffee after all.
Wind power by contrast had a death tally of 150 deaths per trillion kWh.
Not to mention the bird life.
I don't mind wind power but it's not the greatest thing if you're being authentic about green life.
The number of birds killed by wind turbines is insignificant compared to the numbers killed by glass-fronted buildings and domestic cats. Not to mention the ones that will die out due to loss of habitat resulting from climate change which, of course, wind power is intended to counter.
Sounds like whataboutery to me.
Estimates put the number of birds killed by wind turbines as between 10,000 and 100,000 a year in the UK.
I'm not anti wind turbines. I actually think they can look quite cool. But they're not particularly efficient at around 30%.
I'm struggling to understand why efficiency is of any relevance whatsoever.
It does matter because it's a basic tenet of economics and because we should be seeking the most efficient energy sources we can in our move to more sustainable and long-term viable ways of producing energy. That's why energy efficiency is such a huge topic in the global discussion and in policy setting by governments.
One of the problems we have is that some of the so-called greener forms of energy are not particularly efficient. So, for example, you have to build one hell of a lot of wind turbines, or install field loads of solar panels, in order to yield the kind of comparable results with other, less sustainable, forms of energy.
The more efficient we can make things like solar panels, the more we solve the energy crisis. If we could get a solar panel that was 50% efficient, then 70% etc. then we really are getting close to cracking the energy crisis. Not only can all homes be lit and heated by solar but we may well get solar powered cars. That's just one example of why the efficiency chase is so hot at the moment.
Even if you had a 100% efficient solar panel, you couldn't power a car off it. Not enough area on the car to collect power.
Yes, people have built "solar powered cars", which are closer to 4 wheeled bicycles with no real world usefulness.
Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds.
Once upon a time the same technology that enables me to type on this MacBook would have required several factories filled with computer machinery and, even then, it wouldn't have come close.
Likewise battery storage capacity has come on staggeringly from fifty, thirty and even twenty years ago.
And so it has been with every scientific advance.
We WILL get there with solar power until the day dawns when most everything, including your car, could be powered by solar tech as small as the palm of your hand.
And battery storage tech will also advance unrecognisably.
Until you hit the barriers of the laws of physics e.g. the speed of light, there is nothing to stop this. And we will do it.
"Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds."
AIUI, you will *never* get a car-sized solar panel that will generate enough power for a car to move (at least a modern-sized car). Simply because not enough energy comes from the sun over the footprint of the car for it to do so. Even with 100% efficient solar panels, in hotter countries.
It doesn't matter how much science advances: you cannot make a 'solar panel' that will generate more power than the power the area receives from the sun.
A more interesting question is how much distance a solar panel on top of a car would generate over the course of a year.
As far as I can work out one square metre of solar panel can generate 120 kWh in one year in Edinburgh when facing upwards. A reasonable estimate for electric car efficiency is 20 kWh per 100 km.
So you'd get about 600 km over a year.
It's not nothing, but it's a long way from fully powering the car.
Probably a reasonably efficient front-facing windmill on the car roof would generate enough energy to power it.
I'm genuinely surprised Heathener hasn't taken the bait and endorsed this yet...
That’s not good. Alas similar stories in England. My wife having to wait 12 months for just the booking appointment to get on the waitlist for a critical, life changing surgical procedure.
Officially not waiting in the stats.
I waited just over 36 months for a bi lateral hernia operation and before covid
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
The following has been circulated - no idea if this is just internet chatter... The Russian government tried to bribe a considerable number of local officials in Ukraine, to do nothing when the invasion happened.
In many cases, the attempted bribes were reported to the government and gone along with, to gain information on what the Russians were going to do.
In the case of Kherson, the local defence plan wasn't activated. Apparently a couple of bridges are the key to access, but weren't blown. The suspicion was that someone took the Russian bribes.
Has anyone watched Servant of the People on All4 yet? I have not, is it worth a try or lost in translation?
Apparently deals in how to handle Russian bribery, as taxes paid for Ukr public services, and it has happened that way in a good number of cases. If Zelensky always intended to launch a political career that would count as some bit of 5 dimensional chess there.
Only watched the first three episodes and the humour is fairly unsubtle, but I’m quite enjoying it. Can’t work out if that’s from the interest generated by a huge dollop of hindsight though.
I can't vouch for the subtitles but there are some jokes that might not translate. For example at one point Zelensky's character is asked to choose a watch, and is told that Putin wears a Hublot. "Putin Hublot?" he asks, which sounds like "Putin huilo" in Ukrainian, i.e. Putin is a dickhead.
Wind power by contrast had a death tally of 150 deaths per trillion kWh.
Not to mention the bird life.
I don't mind wind power but it's not the greatest thing if you're being authentic about green life.
The number of birds killed by wind turbines is insignificant compared to the numbers killed by glass-fronted buildings and domestic cats. Not to mention the ones that will die out due to loss of habitat resulting from climate change which, of course, wind power is intended to counter.
Sounds like whataboutery to me.
Estimates put the number of birds killed by wind turbines as between 10,000 and 100,000 a year in the UK.
I'm not anti wind turbines. I actually think they can look quite cool. But they're not particularly efficient at around 30%.
I'm struggling to understand why efficiency is of any relevance whatsoever.
It does matter because it's a basic tenet of economics and because we should be seeking the most efficient energy sources we can in our move to more sustainable and long-term viable ways of producing energy. That's why energy efficiency is such a huge topic in the global discussion and in policy setting by governments.
One of the problems we have is that some of the so-called greener forms of energy are not particularly efficient. So, for example, you have to build one hell of a lot of wind turbines, or install field loads of solar panels, in order to yield the kind of comparable results with other, less sustainable, forms of energy.
The more efficient we can make things like solar panels, the more we solve the energy crisis. If we could get a solar panel that was 50% efficient, then 70% etc. then we really are getting close to cracking the energy crisis. Not only can all homes be lit and heated by solar but we may well get solar powered cars. That's just one example of why the efficiency chase is so hot at the moment.
Even if you had a 100% efficient solar panel, you couldn't power a car off it. Not enough area on the car to collect power.
Yes, people have built "solar powered cars", which are closer to 4 wheeled bicycles with no real world usefulness.
Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds.
Once upon a time the same technology that enables me to type on this MacBook would have required several factories filled with computer machinery and, even then, it wouldn't have come close.
Likewise battery storage capacity has come on staggeringly from fifty, thirty and even twenty years ago.
And so it has been with every scientific advance.
We WILL get there with solar power until the day dawns when most everything, including your car, could be powered by solar tech as small as the palm of your hand.
And battery storage tech will also advance unrecognisably.
Until you hit the barriers of the laws of physics e.g. the speed of light, there is nothing to stop this. And we will do it.
"Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds."
AIUI, you will *never* get a car-sized solar panel that will generate enough power for a car to move (at least a modern-sized car). Simply because not enough energy comes from the sun over the footprint of the car for it to do so. Even with 100% efficient solar panels, in hotter countries.
It doesn't matter how much science advances: you cannot make a 'solar panel' that will generate more power than the power the area receives from the sun.
A more interesting question is how much distance a solar panel on top of a car would generate over the course of a year.
As far as I can work out one square metre of solar panel can generate 120 kWh in one year in Edinburgh when facing upwards. A reasonable estimate for electric car efficiency is 20 kWh per 100 km.
So you'd get about 600 km over a year.
It's not nothing, but it's a long way from fully powering the car.
Probably a reasonably efficient front-facing windmill on the car roof would generate enough energy to power it.
I'm genuinely surprised Heathener hasn't taken the bait and endorsed this yet...
I was going to say "with some left over" but thought that might be overegging it.
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
Depends why he's sacked them, but even there some leeway should be given. Churchill fired Halifax for concluding Britain couldn't win the war and recommending peace talks, but he's not usually considered authoritarian for doing so.
Has he actually had them arrested, or just dismissed? If the latter, maybe again we should remember most of the senior officers of the Russian Army and intelligence service are currently mysteriously absent from their posts.
If of course he's arrested them for telling him facts about the current Russian position he doesn't like, that's altogether different.
I don't think we'll know much more until they face trial - or don't. Zelensky appears to have happily devolved the management of fighting to the defence ministry and the armed forces, so doesn't thus far appear to be a nascent autocrat - and has referred several times to the responsibility of his successors - so I'm inclined for now to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I don't think Ukraine would tolerate an autocrat anyway.
But it is an entirely legitimate concern.
Rather it could be a legitimate concern one day. I've read this argument this morning and was a bit baffled at the idea a couple of guys being sacked or even arrested is prima facie a concerning development. I'd think a bit more of a trend or pattern, or at least reporting it was not justified, would be needed before it was presumed to be a sign of authoritarianism.
As someone mentioned Ukraine was and is not perfect, it and Zelensky might and probably will do things we consider not ok, hes not Jesus. But going 'oooh, is this a sign of authoritarianism?' seems like it requires a bit more than a couple of sackings and arrests during a war. Macron's just sacked an intelligence head is that a sign of authoritarianism or is there a non sinister explanation?
Maybe we pause the hunt until there's more to it.
Alternatively all governments involved in existential wars are essentially authoritarian. The UK banged people up for selling frothy coffee after all.
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
Depends why he's sacked them, but even there some leeway should be given. Churchill fired Halifax for concluding Britain couldn't win the war and recommending peace talks, but he's not usually considered authoritarian for doing so.
Has he actually had them arrested, or just dismissed? If the latter, maybe again we should remember most of the senior officers of the Russian Army and intelligence service are currently mysteriously absent from their posts.
If of course he's arrested them for telling him facts about the current Russian position he doesn't like, that's altogether different.
I don't think we'll know much more until they face trial - or don't. Zelensky appears to have happily devolved the management of fighting to the defence ministry and the armed forces, so doesn't thus far appear to be a nascent autocrat - and has referred several times to the responsibility of his successors - so I'm inclined for now to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I don't think Ukraine would tolerate an autocrat anyway.
But it is an entirely legitimate concern.
Rather it could be a legitimate concern one day. I've read this argument this morning and was a bit baffled at the idea a couple of guys being sacked or even arrested is prima facie a concerning development. I'd think a bit more of a trend or pattern, or at least reporting it was not justified, would be needed before it was presumed to be a sign of authoritarianism.
As someone mentioned Ukraine was and is not perfect, it and Zelensky might and probably will do things we consider not ok, hes not Jesus. But going 'oooh, is this a sign of authoritarianism?' seems like it requires a bit more than a couple of sackings and arrests during a war. Macron's just sacked an intelligence head is that a sign of authoritarianism or is there a non sinister explanation?
Maybe we pause the hunt until there's more to it.
Alternatively all governments involved in existential wars are essentially authoritarian. The UK banged people up for selling frothy coffee after all.
Quite right too. Black is the only way to take coffee.
That’s not good. Alas similar stories in England. My wife having to wait 12 months for just the booking appointment to get on the waitlist for a critical, life changing surgical procedure.
Officially not waiting in the stats.
I waited just over 36 months for a bi lateral hernia operation and before covid
Not good. I fear this will be at least as long, 12-15 months just to get on the waiting list is not a good sign. Unfortunately the problem is nasty and she already is nearly broken by it.
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
The following has been circulated - no idea if this is just internet chatter... The Russian government tried to bribe a considerable number of local officials in Ukraine, to do nothing when the invasion happened.
In many cases, the attempted bribes were reported to the government and gone along with, to gain information on what the Russians were going to do.
In the case of Kherson, the local defence plan wasn't activated. Apparently a couple of bridges are the key to access, but weren't blown. The suspicion was that someone took the Russian bribes.
Has anyone watched Servant of the People on All4 yet? I have not, is it worth a try or lost in translation?
Apparently deals in how to handle Russian bribery, as taxes paid for Ukr public services, and it has happened that way in a good number of cases. If Zelensky always intended to launch a political career that would count as some bit of 5 dimensional chess there.
Only watched the first three episodes and the humour is fairly unsubtle, but I’m quite enjoying it. Can’t work out if that’s from the interest generated by a huge dollop of hindsight though.
Zelensky's humour progression from 'play piano with dick' to 'unsubtle' to 'super dark sarcasm' has been a real journey.
The poor can always go into whoring or menial char-lady/below stairs type services.
What’s the problem? Cheaper blow jobs for the respectable classes. They stay warm and alive. Win/win
That's pretty much the mindset, I think. Predict a job offer for you in the engine room.
Btw I really enjoyed your lengthy and passionate debate with @Cyclefree about trans issues yesterday.
It gave me an easy excuse to scroll past entire pages of PB while thinking “Jesus I don’t give a fuck what cyclefree and kinabalu think about trans issues, especially if it takes 19 paragraphs for them to express themselves” thus speeding up my entire day
So, gratitude
An unkind person might say that it is unsurprising you're not interested in matters affecting womens' rights.
But I scroll past endless threads (never mind paragraphs) about Formula 1, cricket, football and rugby.
So we're evens I think.
What about Gardening Tips? 🙂
I tried growing dolphins, but I didn’t use multi porpoise compost ☹
Since Ms Cyclefree is currently laid up in one of her fur coats, now might be a good time.
Morning all. Cold today; heat from the fusion reactor in the sky is, somehow, being blocked, although it's bright enough. Snowflakes on our car (which lives outside).
Morning too OKC. Same sort of bright but wersh [Anglice, thin, insipid] day up here, though yesterday's squalls' loads of expanded polystyrene lentils have mostly melted.
That’s interesting, I only used wersh for something sour or bitter, wasn’t aware of the insipid alternative meaning until today. Odd that if not absolutely contradictory, at least very different meanings.
My main use of the word is for scrumpy type cider - I like the thin, unsweet, sour ciders. But it depends on context. It's the sunlight that was insipid earlier - the cider is also insipid in terms of the lack of sweetness, tbf.
That’s not good. Alas similar stories in England. My wife having to wait 12 months for just the booking appointment to get on the waitlist for a critical, life changing surgical procedure.
Officially not waiting in the stats.
I waited just over 36 months for a bi lateral hernia operation and before covid
Not good. I fear this will be at least as long, 12-15 months just to get on the waiting list is not a good sign. Unfortunately the problem is nasty and she already is nearly broken by it.
I am so sorry to hear that and hope your wife gets treated soon
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
The following has been circulated - no idea if this is just internet chatter... The Russian government tried to bribe a considerable number of local officials in Ukraine, to do nothing when the invasion happened.
In many cases, the attempted bribes were reported to the government and gone along with, to gain information on what the Russians were going to do.
In the case of Kherson, the local defence plan wasn't activated. Apparently a couple of bridges are the key to access, but weren't blown. The suspicion was that someone took the Russian bribes.
Has anyone watched Servant of the People on All4 yet? I have not, is it worth a try or lost in translation?
Apparently deals in how to handle Russian bribery, as taxes paid for Ukr public services, and it has happened that way in a good number of cases. If Zelensky always intended to launch a political career that would count as some bit of 5 dimensional chess there.
Only watched the first three episodes and the humour is fairly unsubtle, but I’m quite enjoying it. Can’t work out if that’s from the interest generated by a huge dollop of hindsight though.
I can't vouch for the subtitles but there are some jokes that might not translate. For example at one point Zelensky's character is asked to choose a watch, and is told that Putin wears a Hublot. "Putin Hublot?" he asks, which sounds like "Putin huilo" in Ukrainian, i.e. Putin is a dickhead.
Well, that would definitely have passed me by! The subtitles struck me as pretty dodgy even if I don’t speak Ukranian. I’ve often wondered why subtitle translations don’t go through a second process, ie will this sound right to a speaker/reader of the second language? Perhaps it does happen as some translated subtitles are better than others.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
Also: 1) it would be a pretty bloody daring raid, and 2) to what purpose? Is it going to hurt the Russian invasion? I don't know.
Apparently it is the fuel re-supply. So perhaps. Not fatally. But it's the psychology. Bombing Berlin at the height of the battle of Britain was probably military folly. But mentally priceless.
It's described as a fuel depot, it's only 40k from Ukraine and on the main Moscow-Kharkiv road.
Also
"Since the alleged attack, a video has emerged online that appears to show long queues at a petrol station in the Belgorod region as Russian citizens are said to fear more Ukrainian strikes, driving some to stock up on essential goods.
However, Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said the incident would not affect the region's fuel supplies or prices for consumers.
which is an invitation to go out and stockpile fuel if ever I heard one. And the Russians have been running out of fuel since about day 3 of the war already.
That’s not good. Alas similar stories in England. My wife having to wait 12 months for just the booking appointment to get on the waitlist for a critical, life changing surgical procedure.
Officially not waiting in the stats.
I waited just over 36 months for a bi lateral hernia operation and before covid
Not good. I fear this will be at least as long, 12-15 months just to get on the waiting list is not a good sign. Unfortunately the problem is nasty and she already is nearly broken by it.
I am so sorry to hear that and hope your wife gets treated soon
Thanks. Looks like I will have spend our savings and extend the mortgage a bit to conjure up a plan B.
She can't go on living like this, which sounds like a throw away phrase - but I fear she really can't.
HY was spot on actually with a post yesterday, you only get 4%+ Labour lead at the moment by stealing from Lib Dems and greens to a degree that looks unreal. I’ll add the fact the combined Lab, ldem, and green total has been dropping quite sharply recently, nearer just 50 now than 57. I’ll also throw in, in this yougov poll, reform + Tory = labour Behind?
I follow the aggregate Lab/Lib/Green share. It's important because in our polarized politics, with wedge issues and 'values' trumping more traditional debates around tax & spend, people having to choose a side even if they'd rather not, what we could be looking at at the next election is a bit of an American type 'trads v progs' situation, a binary fight where one of the 2 sides will prevail and form the government, Tories outright or Labour in a loose alliance.
That's the sort of election the Tories have in mind. They'll seek to paint Labour, in an impressionistic way rather than based on official policy positions, as unsafe on traditional values, and other parties on the centre left as enablers of this. This, plus "vote Starmer get Sturgeon" is going to be the Tory pitch. It's unedifying but they have no choice, really, because with their Brexitification, and the man they've embraced as leader, on most substantial issues they've become, not to put too fine a point on it, intellectually vacant.
I wonder if, when push comes to shove, a lot of 'Conservative' voters will be 'unable' to vote for the current PM & cabinet and simply stay at home.
I wonder that too. I wonder it very intensely!
We can get a handle on it from here. Let's see when the GE is upon us how many PB Tories, many of whom by that time will have written squillions of posts saying what a disgrace Johnson is, are nevertheless planning to 'hold their nose' because the prospect of a Labour government relying on SNP support is just *too* horrendous for words.
See, I'm getting pissed off already.
You'd think the Tories didn't think that it was legitimate to have voters in Scotland elect whomsoever they might want to represent them. I wonder what that mentality might be called?
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
That would be bloody hilarious squared. And the whining about it would be hilarious to the power of 3,405,574.
How on earth do you mistakenly attack your own oil depot?
However impressive / unlikely surely a Ukranian attack has to be the most probably explanation? It’s not as if a false flag like this is going to achieve much at this point in the war.
On a personal note it was our grandsons 13th birthday yesterday and we had a little party to which his only invite was a coloured lad who has not had a stable home and they have really bonded
It was lovely to see how our grandson really cares and a pleasure to meet his new friend
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
Also: 1) it would be a pretty bloody daring raid, and 2) to what purpose? Is it going to hurt the Russian invasion? I don't know.
Apparently it is the fuel re-supply. So perhaps. Not fatally. But it's the psychology. Bombing Berlin at the height of the battle of Britain was probably military folly. But mentally priceless.
It's described as a fuel depot, it's only 40k from Ukraine and on the main Moscow-Kharkiv road.
Also
"Since the alleged attack, a video has emerged online that appears to show long queues at a petrol station in the Belgorod region as Russian citizens are said to fear more Ukrainian strikes, driving some to stock up on essential goods.
However, Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said the incident would not affect the region's fuel supplies or prices for consumers.
which is an invitation to go out and stockpile fuel if ever I heard one. And the Russians have been running out of fuel since about day 3 of the war already.
So the thing about Putin is that if you think of him as a leader trying to strengthen Russia and restore the greatness of his nation then he seems like a total idiot, but if you think he's a dude who owns a load of oil company shares and wants the oil price to go up then everything he does makes sense.
It's good to see everyone of influence now is on the same page on the important stuff, even as they can (and should) still disagree on so many other policy matters.
David Lammy: "For too long, parts of the left, even some members of my own party, falsely divided the world into two camps. America and the West on one side, and their victims on the other. This has never been right, but this view has now been exposed for all to see as a farce."
That’s not good. Alas similar stories in England. My wife having to wait 12 months for just the booking appointment to get on the waitlist for a critical, life changing surgical procedure.
Officially not waiting in the stats.
I waited just over 36 months for a bi lateral hernia operation and before covid
Not good. I fear this will be at least as long, 12-15 months just to get on the waiting list is not a good sign. Unfortunately the problem is nasty and she already is nearly broken by it.
I am so sorry to hear that and hope your wife gets treated soon
Thanks. Looks like I will have spend our savings and extend the mortgage a bit to conjure up a plan B.
She can't go on living like this, which sounds like a throw away phrase - but I fear she really can't.
I am sure she cannot and really hope you will find a solution soon
Morning all. Cold today; heat from the fusion reactor in the sky is, somehow, being blocked, although it's bright enough. Snowflakes on our car (which lives outside).
Morning too OKC. Same sort of bright but wersh [Anglice, thin, insipid] day up here, though yesterday's squalls' loads of expanded polystyrene lentils have mostly melted.
That’s interesting, I only used wersh for something sour or bitter, wasn’t aware of the insipid alternative meaning until today. Odd that if not absolutely contradictory, at least very different meanings.
My main use of the word is for scrumpy type cider - I like the thin, unsweet, sour ciders. But it depends on context. It's the sunlight that was insipid earlier - the cider is also insipid in terms of the lack of sweetness, tbf.
Wind power by contrast had a death tally of 150 deaths per trillion kWh.
Not to mention the bird life.
I don't mind wind power but it's not the greatest thing if you're being authentic about green life.
The number of birds killed by wind turbines is insignificant compared to the numbers killed by glass-fronted buildings and domestic cats. Not to mention the ones that will die out due to loss of habitat resulting from climate change which, of course, wind power is intended to counter.
Sounds like whataboutery to me.
Estimates put the number of birds killed by wind turbines as between 10,000 and 100,000 a year in the UK.
I'm not anti wind turbines. I actually think they can look quite cool. But they're not particularly efficient at around 30%.
I'm struggling to understand why efficiency is of any relevance whatsoever.
It does matter because it's a basic tenet of economics and because we should be seeking the most efficient energy sources we can in our move to more sustainable and long-term viable ways of producing energy. That's why energy efficiency is such a huge topic in the global discussion and in policy setting by governments.
One of the problems we have is that some of the so-called greener forms of energy are not particularly efficient. So, for example, you have to build one hell of a lot of wind turbines, or install field loads of solar panels, in order to yield the kind of comparable results with other, less sustainable, forms of energy.
The more efficient we can make things like solar panels, the more we solve the energy crisis. If we could get a solar panel that was 50% efficient, then 70% etc. then we really are getting close to cracking the energy crisis. Not only can all homes be lit and heated by solar but we may well get solar powered cars. That's just one example of why the efficiency chase is so hot at the moment.
Even if you had a 100% efficient solar panel, you couldn't power a car off it. Not enough area on the car to collect power.
Yes, people have built "solar powered cars", which are closer to 4 wheeled bicycles with no real world usefulness.
Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds.
Once upon a time the same technology that enables me to type on this MacBook would have required several factories filled with computer machinery and, even then, it wouldn't have come close.
Likewise battery storage capacity has come on staggeringly from fifty, thirty and even twenty years ago.
And so it has been with every scientific advance.
We WILL get there with solar power until the day dawns when most everything, including your car, could be powered by solar tech as small as the palm of your hand.
And battery storage tech will also advance unrecognisably.
Until you hit the barriers of the laws of physics e.g. the speed of light, there is nothing to stop this. And we will do it.
"Not yet. But this is assuredly one of those areas, like computers and chip tech, where time and science will advance in incredible leaps and bounds."
AIUI, you will *never* get a car-sized solar panel that will generate enough power for a car to move (at least a modern-sized car). Simply because not enough energy comes from the sun over the footprint of the car for it to do so. Even with 100% efficient solar panels, in hotter countries.
It doesn't matter how much science advances: you cannot make a 'solar panel' that will generate more power than the power the area receives from the sun.
A more interesting question is how much distance a solar panel on top of a car would generate over the course of a year.
As far as I can work out one square metre of solar panel can generate 120 kWh in one year in Edinburgh when facing upwards. A reasonable estimate for electric car efficiency is 20 kWh per 100 km.
So you'd get about 600 km over a year.
It's not nothing, but it's a long way from fully powering the car.
It's easier to use a battery as an intermediate stage
Those usage numbers are in the correct ballpark. But a normal 4 kWp solar array on your roof is about 32 sqm.
When I worked it out for my largish but not perfectly orientated solar array, it generated approximately 30,000 Tesla-km per annum.
A normal solar panel is approx 1.2x1.8m = 2 sqm. Ish. I still have 2 spares in the garage I requested just before I accepted the quote on the install.
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
The following has been circulated - no idea if this is just internet chatter... The Russian government tried to bribe a considerable number of local officials in Ukraine, to do nothing when the invasion happened.
In many cases, the attempted bribes were reported to the government and gone along with, to gain information on what the Russians were going to do.
In the case of Kherson, the local defence plan wasn't activated. Apparently a couple of bridges are the key to access, but weren't blown. The suspicion was that someone took the Russian bribes.
Has anyone watched Servant of the People on All4 yet? I have not, is it worth a try or lost in translation?
Apparently deals in how to handle Russian bribery, as taxes paid for Ukr public services, and it has happened that way in a good number of cases. If Zelensky always intended to launch a political career that would count as some bit of 5 dimensional chess there.
Only watched the first three episodes and the humour is fairly unsubtle, but I’m quite enjoying it. Can’t work out if that’s from the interest generated by a huge dollop of hindsight though.
I can't vouch for the subtitles but there are some jokes that might not translate. For example at one point Zelensky's character is asked to choose a watch, and is told that Putin wears a Hublot. "Putin Hublot?" he asks, which sounds like "Putin huilo" in Ukrainian, i.e. Putin is a dickhead.
I can live unsubtle if it looks to be building to something more interesting.
I could have easily ceased Don Camillo after two chapters thinking it a lame Tom and Jerry facsimile, but that it came as a present and on recommendation from Mrs Rata.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
That would be bloody hilarious squared. And the whining about it would be hilarious to the power of 3,405,574.
How on earth do you mistakenly attack your own oil depot?
However impressive / unlikely surely a Ukranian attack has to be the most probably explanation? It’s not as if a false flag like this is going to achieve much at this point in the war.
It would be an impressively bonkers potlatch kind of move
But the Russian o.g. theory must surely be wrong? I mean even on a commercial airliner and with a flightsafe phone you can get gps if you are in a window seat, so couldn't they look on google maps? It's 40k from Ukraine
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
Depends why he's sacked them, but even there some leeway should be given. Churchill fired Halifax for concluding Britain couldn't win the war and recommending peace talks, but he's not usually considered authoritarian for doing so.
Has he actually had them arrested, or just dismissed? If the latter, maybe again we should remember most of the senior officers of the Russian Army and intelligence service are currently mysteriously absent from their posts.
If of course he's arrested them for telling him facts about the current Russian position he doesn't like, that's altogether different.
I don't think we'll know much more until they face trial - or don't. Zelensky appears to have happily devolved the management of fighting to the defence ministry and the armed forces, so doesn't thus far appear to be a nascent autocrat - and has referred several times to the responsibility of his successors - so I'm inclined for now to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I don't think Ukraine would tolerate an autocrat anyway.
But it is an entirely legitimate concern.
Rather it could be a legitimate concern one day. I've read this argument this morning and was a bit baffled at the idea a couple of guys being sacked or even arrested is prima facie a concerning development. I'd think a bit more of a trend or pattern, or at least reporting it was not justified, would be needed before it was presumed to be a sign of authoritarianism.
As someone mentioned Ukraine was and is not perfect, it and Zelensky might and probably will do things we consider not ok, hes not Jesus. But going 'oooh, is this a sign of authoritarianism?' seems like it requires a bit more than a couple of sackings and arrests during a war. Macron's just sacked an intelligence head is that a sign of authoritarianism or is there a non sinister explanation?
Maybe we pause the hunt until there's more to it.
Alternatively all governments involved in existential wars are essentially authoritarian. The UK banged people up for selling frothy coffee after all.
Quite right too. Black is the only way to take coffee.
I wonder if Italian cafes were one of the few sources for really good coffee (of whatever composition) pre war? My paternal gran and grandad who were newly minted Edinburgh middle class in the 30s would make journeys to Crolla’s at the top of Leith Walk for coffee beans to grind their own coffee and other delicacies no doubt. I assume that all came to a shuddering halt in 1939, but sadly no one left alive to ask.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
Also: 1) it would be a pretty bloody daring raid, and 2) to what purpose? Is it going to hurt the Russian invasion? I don't know.
Apparently it is the fuel re-supply. So perhaps. Not fatally. But it's the psychology. Bombing Berlin at the height of the battle of Britain was probably military folly. But mentally priceless.
It's described as a fuel depot, it's only 40k from Ukraine and on the main Moscow-Kharkiv road.
Also
"Since the alleged attack, a video has emerged online that appears to show long queues at a petrol station in the Belgorod region as Russian citizens are said to fear more Ukrainian strikes, driving some to stock up on essential goods.
However, Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said the incident would not affect the region's fuel supplies or prices for consumers.
which is an invitation to go out and stockpile fuel if ever I heard one. And the Russians have been running out of fuel since about day 3 of the war already.
Targets in Russia / Belarus are legitimate of course. Though not oil storage depots, unless they are military.
A couple of hundred tomahawk cruise missiles, and Ukr could sink most of both the Baltic and Black Sea fleets, take out much of the strategic Ru radar system, a series of superyachts, and put one through Putin's office window in Moscow for good measure.
Incidentally, do we still have 3 months of strategic oil stocks? IIRC it used to be a requirement, but it may be exactly the sort of thing a traditional Conservative Govt would let slip.
HY was spot on actually with a post yesterday, you only get 4%+ Labour lead at the moment by stealing from Lib Dems and greens to a degree that looks unreal. I’ll add the fact the combined Lab, ldem, and green total has been dropping quite sharply recently, nearer just 50 now than 57. I’ll also throw in, in this yougov poll, reform + Tory = labour Behind?
I follow the aggregate Lab/Lib/Green share. It's important because in our polarized politics, with wedge issues and 'values' trumping more traditional debates around tax & spend, people having to choose a side even if they'd rather not, what we could be looking at at the next election is a bit of an American type 'trads v progs' situation, a binary fight where one of the 2 sides will prevail and form the government, Tories outright or Labour in a loose alliance.
That's the sort of election the Tories have in mind. They'll seek to paint Labour, in an impressionistic way rather than based on official policy positions, as unsafe on traditional values, and other parties on the centre left as enablers of this. This, plus "vote Starmer get Sturgeon" is going to be the Tory pitch. It's unedifying but they have no choice, really, because with their Brexitification, and the man they've embraced as leader, on most substantial issues they've become, not to put too fine a point on it, intellectually vacant.
I wonder if, when push comes to shove, a lot of 'Conservative' voters will be 'unable' to vote for the current PM & cabinet and simply stay at home.
I wonder that too. I wonder it very intensely!
We can get a handle on it from here. Let's see when the GE is upon us how many PB Tories, many of whom by that time will have written squillions of posts saying what a disgrace Johnson is, are nevertheless planning to 'hold their nose' because the prospect of a Labour government relying on SNP support is just *too* horrendous for words.
See, I'm getting pissed off already.
*Raises hand*
I don't want to vote for a Conservative Party led by Boris Johnson. It's not his record - which I maintain is ok on the big stuff - I just don't want him as Prime Minister. But in all honesty I didn't want to vote for a Conservative Party led by Boris Johnson last time, and still did because the alternative was Corbyn. And actually, Boris has more than exceeded mylow expectations. If Boris was facing a nutter again I would be more likely to vote for him, not less.
But I'm almost certainly not going to vote Labour. They appear to be going for dully competent, but it's not apparent from this angle that they'd be doing anything better than the Conservatives. And they - and particularly my local MP - were far too pro-lockdown. But yes - while the prospect of PM Starmer is no worse than underwhelming, the prospect of deputy PM Blackford or Sturgeon IS too horrendous for words. I'm not against Scottish independence on principle, but I am against the SNP having a say in the governance of the UK. The SNP have absolutely no interest in a functioning United Kingdom- in fact, it is inimical to what they are trying to achieve - and to invite them to help govern England would be insane. Plus, aside from their constitutional position, they are pretty much diametrically opposite me politically.
See, Boris is a poor PM, but that is only one of a number of issues which needs weighing up. It's not, for me, unlike you I think, 'literally anyone but Boris' in the same way that the last election was 'literally anyone but Corbyn'.
Actually, I have the luxury of living in a safe seat, so I can vote for who I want, not against who I don't want (though I still voted Con last time because the slightest chance of keeping Corbyn out was worth taking). So I'd like to give the Lib Dems a good look - I liked the approach they took to the pandemic, and if the last two years have shown us anything it's that liberty can't be taken for granted. They're probably winning for me at the moment. Not least because But if they run another campaign like last time which felt like it was designed explicitly to alienate me I expect I'll go off them.
Obviously I'm not going to vote for the Green Party and barring anyone unexpectedly suitable turning up in Wythenshawe and Sale East probably not any of the other rag, tag and bobtail parties.
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
Depends why he's sacked them, but even there some leeway should be given. Churchill fired Halifax for concluding Britain couldn't win the war and recommending peace talks, but he's not usually considered authoritarian for doing so.
Has he actually had them arrested, or just dismissed? If the latter, maybe again we should remember most of the senior officers of the Russian Army and intelligence service are currently mysteriously absent from their posts.
If of course he's arrested them for telling him facts about the current Russian position he doesn't like, that's altogether different.
I don't think we'll know much more until they face trial - or don't. Zelensky appears to have happily devolved the management of fighting to the defence ministry and the armed forces, so doesn't thus far appear to be a nascent autocrat - and has referred several times to the responsibility of his successors - so I'm inclined for now to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I don't think Ukraine would tolerate an autocrat anyway.
But it is an entirely legitimate concern.
Rather it could be a legitimate concern one day. I've read this argument this morning and was a bit baffled at the idea a couple of guys being sacked or even arrested is prima facie a concerning development. I'd think a bit more of a trend or pattern, or at least reporting it was not justified, would be needed before it was presumed to be a sign of authoritarianism.
As someone mentioned Ukraine was and is not perfect, it and Zelensky might and probably will do things we consider not ok, hes not Jesus. But going 'oooh, is this a sign of authoritarianism?' seems like it requires a bit more than a couple of sackings and arrests during a war. Macron's just sacked an intelligence head is that a sign of authoritarianism or is there a non sinister explanation?
Maybe we pause the hunt until there's more to it.
Alternatively all governments involved in existential wars are essentially authoritarian. The UK banged people up for selling frothy coffee after all.
Quite right too. Black is the only way to take coffee.
I wonder if Italian cafes were one of the few sources for really good coffee (of whatever composition) pre war? My paternal gran and grandad who were newly minted Edinburgh middle class in the 30s would make journeys to Crolla’s at the top of Leith Walk for coffee beans to grind their own coffee and other delicacies no doubt. I assume that all came to a shuddering halt in 1939, but sadly no one left alive to ask.
1940 to be pedantic; yes, when Mr Churchill had the menfolk thrown into internment camps, like our local small burgh cafe - these last died in the Arandora Star (as I have mentioned here before) and so too did one of the Crollas. Though there were traditional non-Italian grocers which also roasted beans and ground coffee on demand - the smell of the coffee when going shopping with my parents is a (very early) childhood memory.
It's good to see everyone of influence now is on the same page on the important stuff, even as they can (and should) still disagree on so many other policy matters.
David Lammy: "For too long, parts of the left, even some members of my own party, falsely divided the world into two camps. America and the West on one side, and their victims on the other. This has never been right, but this view has now been exposed for all to see as a farce."
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
There's been plenty of mention of it, also as a possible false-flag operation.
In England, the estimated number of people testing positive for #COVID19 increased to a record level (week ending 26 March 2022). Around 1 in 13 people, not in care homes, hospitals or other institutional settings would have tested positive for COVID-19
That’s not good. Alas similar stories in England. My wife having to wait 12 months for just the booking appointment to get on the waitlist for a critical, life changing surgical procedure.
Officially not waiting in the stats.
I waited just over 36 months for a bi lateral hernia operation and before covid
Not good. I fear this will be at least as long, 12-15 months just to get on the waiting list is not a good sign. Unfortunately the problem is nasty and she already is nearly broken by it.
I am so sorry to hear that and hope your wife gets treated soon
Thanks. Looks like I will have spend our savings and extend the mortgage a bit to conjure up a plan B.
She can't go on living like this, which sounds like a throw away phrase - but I fear she really can't.
Waiting lists are very lumpy at the moment as they are coming rapidly down as just a few stragglers waiting over a year now, and with outpatients reduced for much of last year due to redeployment, not many went on. There are a lot of referrals to be seen, but what the conversion rate for surgical specialities to surgical waiting list will be, we don't know yet.
No one really knows whether 100% or 20% of the missing referrals from the last 2 years will materialise as there are few precedents. So waiting lists are a bit of a guessing game.
Anything requiring an anaesthetist, theatre staff or a surgical bed is not going to be quick. These are all in short supply, with staff vacancies and burnout, and beds still occupied by covid patients.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
There's been plenty of mention of it, also as a possible false-flag operation.
Guardian a couple of minutes ago: Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said he could not confirm or deny Ukraine’s alleged involvement in a strike on a fuel depot in the Russian city of Belgorod because he was not privy to all military information
That’s not good. Alas similar stories in England. My wife having to wait 12 months for just the booking appointment to get on the waitlist for a critical, life changing surgical procedure.
Officially not waiting in the stats.
I waited just over 36 months for a bi lateral hernia operation and before covid
Not good. I fear this will be at least as long, 12-15 months just to get on the waiting list is not a good sign. Unfortunately the problem is nasty and she already is nearly broken by it.
I am so sorry to hear that and hope your wife gets treated soon
Thanks. Looks like I will have spend our savings and extend the mortgage a bit to conjure up a plan B.
She can't go on living like this, which sounds like a throw away phrase - but I fear she really can't.
Waiting lists are very lumpy at the moment as they are coming rapidly down as just a few stragglers waiting over a year now, and with outpatients reduced for much of last year due to redeployment, not many went on. There are a lot of referrals to be seen, but what the conversion rate for surgical specialities to surgical waiting list will be, we don't know yet.
No one really knows whether 100% or 20% of the missing referrals from the last 2 years will materialise as there are few precedents. So waiting lists are a bit of a guessing game.
Anything requiring an anaesthetist, theatre staff or a surgical bed is not going to be quick. These are all in short supply, with staff vacancies and burnout, and beds still occupied by covid patients.
Talking to people I know in the NHS, Covid is currently playing merry hell with staffing levels. It may not be killing very many people, or even putting them into intensive care, but it is rampant in the country & the levels of staff sickness are off the scale.
Combine that with shortages due to burnout & lack of training / recruitment in prior years & things are really not great.
It's good to see everyone of influence now is on the same page on the important stuff, even as they can (and should) still disagree on so many other policy matters.
David Lammy: "For too long, parts of the left, even some members of my own party, falsely divided the world into two camps. America and the West on one side, and their victims on the other. This has never been right, but this view has now been exposed for all to see as a farce."
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
Also: 1) it would be a pretty bloody daring raid, and 2) to what purpose? Is it going to hurt the Russian invasion? I don't know.
Apparently it is the fuel re-supply. So perhaps. Not fatally. But it's the psychology. Bombing Berlin at the height of the battle of Britain was probably military folly. But mentally priceless.
It's described as a fuel depot, it's only 40k from Ukraine and on the main Moscow-Kharkiv road.
Also
"Since the alleged attack, a video has emerged online that appears to show long queues at a petrol station in the Belgorod region as Russian citizens are said to fear more Ukrainian strikes, driving some to stock up on essential goods.
However, Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said the incident would not affect the region's fuel supplies or prices for consumers.
which is an invitation to go out and stockpile fuel if ever I heard one. And the Russians have been running out of fuel since about day 3 of the war already.
So the thing about Putin is that if you think of him as a leader trying to strengthen Russia and restore the greatness of his nation then he seems like a total idiot, but if you think he's a dude who owns a load of oil company shares and wants the oil price to go up then everything he does makes sense.
That’s not good. Alas similar stories in England. My wife having to wait 12 months for just the booking appointment to get on the waitlist for a critical, life changing surgical procedure.
Officially not waiting in the stats.
I waited just over 36 months for a bi lateral hernia operation and before covid
Not good. I fear this will be at least as long, 12-15 months just to get on the waiting list is not a good sign. Unfortunately the problem is nasty and she already is nearly broken by it.
I am so sorry to hear that and hope your wife gets treated soon
Thanks. Looks like I will have spend our savings and extend the mortgage a bit to conjure up a plan B.
She can't go on living like this, which sounds like a throw away phrase - but I fear she really can't.
Waiting lists are very lumpy at the moment as they are coming rapidly down as just a few stragglers waiting over a year now, and with outpatients reduced for much of last year due to redeployment, not many went on. There are a lot of referrals to be seen, but what the conversion rate for surgical specialities to surgical waiting list will be, we don't know yet.
No one really knows whether 100% or 20% of the missing referrals from the last 2 years will materialise as there are few precedents. So waiting lists are a bit of a guessing game.
Anything requiring an anaesthetist, theatre staff or a surgical bed is not going to be quick. These are all in short supply, with staff vacancies and burnout, and beds still occupied by covid patients.
Thanks. It's a difficult situation. What bothers me is how politics make it more difficult. In my view and please correct me if I am wrong, it seems that the booking funnel is carefully managed to ensure that reportable stats are minimised. Games are being played to create a rose-tinted view. This leads to a vacuum of information for the patient and avoidable stress.
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
Also: 1) it would be a pretty bloody daring raid, and 2) to what purpose? Is it going to hurt the Russian invasion? I don't know.
Apparently it is the fuel re-supply. So perhaps. Not fatally. But it's the psychology. Bombing Berlin at the height of the battle of Britain was probably military folly. But mentally priceless.
It's described as a fuel depot, it's only 40k from Ukraine and on the main Moscow-Kharkiv road.
Also
"Since the alleged attack, a video has emerged online that appears to show long queues at a petrol station in the Belgorod region as Russian citizens are said to fear more Ukrainian strikes, driving some to stock up on essential goods.
However, Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said the incident would not affect the region's fuel supplies or prices for consumers.
which is an invitation to go out and stockpile fuel if ever I heard one. And the Russians have been running out of fuel since about day 3 of the war already.
So the thing about Putin is that if you think of him as a leader trying to strengthen Russia and restore the greatness of his nation then he seems like a total idiot, but if you think he's a dude who owns a load of oil company shares and wants the oil price to go up then everything he does makes sense.
He's a petrochemical gangster.
Glorified gangster would be a pretty good description of rulers of a lot of states throughout history, but they are supposed to have slightly wider ambitions thesedays.
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
Depends why he's sacked them, but even there some leeway should be given. Churchill fired Halifax for concluding Britain couldn't win the war and recommending peace talks, but he's not usually considered authoritarian for doing so.
Has he actually had them arrested, or just dismissed? If the latter, maybe again we should remember most of the senior officers of the Russian Army and intelligence service are currently mysteriously absent from their posts.
If of course he's arrested them for telling him facts about the current Russian position he doesn't like, that's altogether different.
I don't think we'll know much more until they face trial - or don't. Zelensky appears to have happily devolved the management of fighting to the defence ministry and the armed forces, so doesn't thus far appear to be a nascent autocrat - and has referred several times to the responsibility of his successors - so I'm inclined for now to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I don't think Ukraine would tolerate an autocrat anyway.
But it is an entirely legitimate concern.
Rather it could be a legitimate concern one day. I've read this argument this morning and was a bit baffled at the idea a couple of guys being sacked or even arrested is prima facie a concerning development. I'd think a bit more of a trend or pattern, or at least reporting it was not justified, would be needed before it was presumed to be a sign of authoritarianism.
As someone mentioned Ukraine was and is not perfect, it and Zelensky might and probably will do things we consider not ok, hes not Jesus. But going 'oooh, is this a sign of authoritarianism?' seems like it requires a bit more than a couple of sackings and arrests during a war. Macron's just sacked an intelligence head is that a sign of authoritarianism or is there a non sinister explanation?
Maybe we pause the hunt until there's more to it.
Alternatively all governments involved in existential wars are essentially authoritarian. The UK banged people up for selling frothy coffee after all.
Quite right too. Black is the only way to take coffee.
I wonder if Italian cafes were one of the few sources for really good coffee (of whatever composition) pre war? My paternal gran and grandad who were newly minted Edinburgh middle class in the 30s would make journeys to Crolla’s at the top of Leith Walk for coffee beans to grind their own coffee and other delicacies no doubt. I assume that all came to a shuddering halt in 1939, but sadly no one left alive to ask.
1940 to be pedantic; yes, when Mr Churchill had the menfolk thrown into internment camps, like our local small burgh cafe - these last died in the Arandora Star (as I have mentioned here before) and so too did one of the Crollas. Though there were traditional non-Italian grocers which also roasted beans and ground coffee on demand - the smell of the coffee when going shopping with my parents is a (very early) childhood memory.
Their main argument against apologies for eg slavery or burning old women alive seems to be that these events are outwith living memory. This wouldn’t apply to the treatment of Italians during the war so I’m sure PBTories would be fine with it. 🙃
How bloody hilarious that the Russians have been trying to pound Ukraine into submission, without regard for the laws of war or common humanity, for the last five weeks, and yet the moment they're given the smallest dose of their own medicine they start whining like a startled child.
There's a suggestion in the Guardian that the raid on the oil depot may actually have been a Russian mistake.
Any evidence for this or just someone suggesting it?
Only that Ukraine hasn't admitted it.
Also: 1) it would be a pretty bloody daring raid, and 2) to what purpose? Is it going to hurt the Russian invasion? I don't know.
Apparently it is the fuel re-supply. So perhaps. Not fatally. But it's the psychology. Bombing Berlin at the height of the battle of Britain was probably military folly. But mentally priceless.
It's described as a fuel depot, it's only 40k from Ukraine and on the main Moscow-Kharkiv road.
Also
"Since the alleged attack, a video has emerged online that appears to show long queues at a petrol station in the Belgorod region as Russian citizens are said to fear more Ukrainian strikes, driving some to stock up on essential goods.
However, Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said the incident would not affect the region's fuel supplies or prices for consumers.
which is an invitation to go out and stockpile fuel if ever I heard one. And the Russians have been running out of fuel since about day 3 of the war already.
So the thing about Putin is that if you think of him as a leader trying to strengthen Russia and restore the greatness of his nation then he seems like a total idiot, but if you think he's a dude who owns a load of oil company shares and wants the oil price to go up then everything he does makes sense.
It's good to see everyone of influence now is on the same page on the important stuff, even as they can (and should) still disagree on so many other policy matters.
David Lammy: "For too long, parts of the left, even some members of my own party, falsely divided the world into two camps. America and the West on one side, and their victims on the other. This has never been right, but this view has now been exposed for all to see as a farce."
It's suggested that household energy costs are going up towards £3000 pa. While this is terrible it may be worth bearing in mind proportionality. 10 fags, and a single daily pint in a pub will set you back about £3250 pa.
Fags are a niche luxury purchase these days. In my student days a bottle of wine cost about 2 packets of cigarettes. That has now inverted, 2 bottles of drinkable wine = 20 B&H. even quite rich smokers smoke smuggled rolling tobacco if they smoke at all.
It's my single biggest line of personal expenditure and by quite a long way. A great pity I can afford it, in a sense.
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
Depends why he's sacked them, but even there some leeway should be given. Churchill fired Halifax for concluding Britain couldn't win the war and recommending peace talks, but he's not usually considered authoritarian for doing so.
Has he actually had them arrested, or just dismissed? If the latter, maybe again we should remember most of the senior officers of the Russian Army and intelligence service are currently mysteriously absent from their posts.
If of course he's arrested them for telling him facts about the current Russian position he doesn't like, that's altogether different.
I don't think we'll know much more until they face trial - or don't. Zelensky appears to have happily devolved the management of fighting to the defence ministry and the armed forces, so doesn't thus far appear to be a nascent autocrat - and has referred several times to the responsibility of his successors - so I'm inclined for now to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I don't think Ukraine would tolerate an autocrat anyway.
But it is an entirely legitimate concern.
Rather it could be a legitimate concern one day. I've read this argument this morning and was a bit baffled at the idea a couple of guys being sacked or even arrested is prima facie a concerning development. I'd think a bit more of a trend or pattern, or at least reporting it was not justified, would be needed before it was presumed to be a sign of authoritarianism.
As someone mentioned Ukraine was and is not perfect, it and Zelensky might and probably will do things we consider not ok, hes not Jesus. But going 'oooh, is this a sign of authoritarianism?' seems like it requires a bit more than a couple of sackings and arrests during a war. Macron's just sacked an intelligence head is that a sign of authoritarianism or is there a non sinister explanation?
Maybe we pause the hunt until there's more to it.
Alternatively all governments involved in existential wars are essentially authoritarian. The UK banged people up for selling frothy coffee after all.
Quite right too. Black is the only way to take coffee.
I wonder if Italian cafes were one of the few sources for really good coffee (of whatever composition) pre war? My paternal gran and grandad who were newly minted Edinburgh middle class in the 30s would make journeys to Crolla’s at the top of Leith Walk for coffee beans to grind their own coffee and other delicacies no doubt. I assume that all came to a shuddering halt in 1939, but sadly no one left alive to ask.
1940 to be pedantic; yes, when Mr Churchill had the menfolk thrown into internment camps, like our local small burgh cafe - these last died in the Arandora Star (as I have mentioned here before) and so too did one of the Crollas. Though there were traditional non-Italian grocers which also roasted beans and ground coffee on demand - the smell of the coffee when going shopping with my parents is a (very early) childhood memory.
Their main argument against apologies for eg slavery or burning old women alive seems to be that these events are outwith living memory. This wouldn’t apply to the treatment of Italians during the war so I’m sure PBTories would be fine with it. 🙃
The Michael Caine If you kill us speech to the Italians in Italian Job doesn't look too good in light of that then rather recent history
It's suggested that household energy costs are going up towards £3000 pa. While this is terrible it may be worth bearing in mind proportionality. 10 fags, and a single daily pint in a pub will set you back about £3250 pa.
Fags are a niche luxury purchase these days. In my student days a bottle of wine cost about 2 packets of cigarettes. That has now inverted, 2 bottles of drinkable wine = 20 B&H. even quite rich smokers smoke smuggled rolling tobacco if they smoke at all.
It's my single biggest line of personal expenditure and by quite a long way. A great pity I can afford it, in a sense.
It's all part of a brilliant plan. The Russians will retreat, to lure the Ukrainians into a decisive battle. On the outskirts of Moscow.
*If* true, and not a temporary feint, how best can Ukraine defend the frontier and not tie down tens of thousands of troops and many tanks? Destroy railway lines and roads at the border? Make other areas hard to travel through in the dry seasons?
Incidentally, how well do 'traditional' mines work with a thick snow covering in winter? I guess the non-magnetic/pressure ones don't work very well.
In Ukraine. Not sure what to make of this. Legitimate hunt for infiltrators, or a worrying bit of authoritarianism?
Zelenskyy fires 2 senior members of national security on the ground. Andriy Naumov- former head SBU main dept of internal security Serhiy Kryvoruchko-former head of SBU in Kherson Oblast "I do not have time to deal with all the traitors but they will gradually all be punished"
He also fired two ambassadors, to Georgia and Morocco.
They are fighting a defensive war. They are under siege and the enemy has made multiple attempts to kill him. No other country has seriously come to their rescue. They have been left alone to fight one of the worlds biggest armies.
There is pressure to concede to the enemy in 'peace' talks. Factionalism and paranoia is inevitable. It isn't even worth seriously questioning, in my view.
To suggest that Zelensky is an authoritarian is to peddle a Russian talking point.
So any criticism of Zelensky is playing the Russians game. Okay.
We are moving into the realms of North Korean levels of deference.
Not really. You can observe what is going on without playing in to the 'two sides' analysis.
Obviously one of the aims of Russian propoganda is to undermine Zelensky and western support for him.
The same can be said the other way.
Of course the Russians are the bad guys here and the Ukrainians on the side of right but that does not mean we should simply ignore any concerns we have with Zelenskyy and his govt.
Calling it out is not being a shill for Putin
Depends why he's sacked them, but even there some leeway should be given. Churchill fired Halifax for concluding Britain couldn't win the war and recommending peace talks, but he's not usually considered authoritarian for doing so.
Has he actually had them arrested, or just dismissed? If the latter, maybe again we should remember most of the senior officers of the Russian Army and intelligence service are currently mysteriously absent from their posts.
If of course he's arrested them for telling him facts about the current Russian position he doesn't like, that's altogether different.
I don't think we'll know much more until they face trial - or don't. Zelensky appears to have happily devolved the management of fighting to the defence ministry and the armed forces, so doesn't thus far appear to be a nascent autocrat - and has referred several times to the responsibility of his successors - so I'm inclined for now to give him the benefit of the doubt. And I don't think Ukraine would tolerate an autocrat anyway.
But it is an entirely legitimate concern.
Rather it could be a legitimate concern one day. I've read this argument this morning and was a bit baffled at the idea a couple of guys being sacked or even arrested is prima facie a concerning development. I'd think a bit more of a trend or pattern, or at least reporting it was not justified, would be needed before it was presumed to be a sign of authoritarianism.
As someone mentioned Ukraine was and is not perfect, it and Zelensky might and probably will do things we consider not ok, hes not Jesus. But going 'oooh, is this a sign of authoritarianism?' seems like it requires a bit more than a couple of sackings and arrests during a war. Macron's just sacked an intelligence head is that a sign of authoritarianism or is there a non sinister explanation?
Maybe we pause the hunt until there's more to it.
Alternatively all governments involved in existential wars are essentially authoritarian. The UK banged people up for selling frothy coffee after all.
Quite right too. Black is the only way to take coffee.
I wonder if Italian cafes were one of the few sources for really good coffee (of whatever composition) pre war? My paternal gran and grandad who were newly minted Edinburgh middle class in the 30s would make journeys to Crolla’s at the top of Leith Walk for coffee beans to grind their own coffee and other delicacies no doubt. I assume that all came to a shuddering halt in 1939, but sadly no one left alive to ask.
1940 to be pedantic; yes, when Mr Churchill had the menfolk thrown into internment camps, like our local small burgh cafe - these last died in the Arandora Star (as I have mentioned here before) and so too did one of the Crollas. Though there were traditional non-Italian grocers which also roasted beans and ground coffee on demand - the smell of the coffee when going shopping with my parents is a (very early) childhood memory.
The apology-trolling for the sinking of the Arandora Star (taking internees to Oz in 1940) or for internment is a bit much. That looks like a PR stunt.
Who is expected to apologise?
The Italian Govt for Mussolini declaring war on the UK in 1940? The Glaswegian hate-mob who smashed up the coffee-shop? The UK Govt the for precautionary internment of some Italians, after Italy allied with Germany, and Mussolini declared war? The German Govt for Hitler's policy of unrestricted submarine warfare in violation of International Treaties (to which I am not totally clear whether Germany was a signatory - Italy was but had previously violated), which led to the deportation passenger liner being sunk? The Kriegsmarine for sinking it? Person or persons unknown?
I don't think even Sturgeon will dive into that one.
It's good to see everyone of influence now is on the same page on the important stuff, even as they can (and should) still disagree on so many other policy matters.
David Lammy: "For too long, parts of the left, even some members of my own party, falsely divided the world into two camps. America and the West on one side, and their victims on the other. This has never been right, but this view has now been exposed for all to see as a farce."
Comments
Pensioner left 'moaning in agony' on pavement for 10 hours before ambulance came
https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/pensioner-left-moaning-agony-pavement-23545802#ICID=Android_DailyPostNewsApp_AppShare
Remember in the 2018 locals May's Tories only got 35% NEV anyway, close to what the Conservatives are still polling now.
In fact the biggest shift may be from LD to Labour, given Corbyn Labour only got 35% in 2018 and the LDs got 16% and Starmer Labour are now polling higher than that and the LDs polling lower (albeit taking into account the LDs do a bit better in local than national elections)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_United_Kingdom_local_elections
We can get a handle on it from here. Let's see when the GE is upon us how many PB Tories, many of whom by that time will have written squillions of posts saying what a disgrace Johnson is, are nevertheless planning to 'hold their nose' because the prospect of a Labour government relying on SNP support is just *too* horrendous for words.
See, I'm getting pissed off already.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/check-if-you-may-be-eligible-for-the-boiler-upgrade-scheme-from-april-2022
Look at the backwards timeline from that link and tell me they've not messed up:-
Timeline
1 April 2022 - Low carbon heating systems that are commissioned on or after this date will be entitled to support under the scheme. (Commissioning is the completion of installation and set up of the system).
11 April 2022 - Installers will be able to open an account for the scheme with Ofgem, the scheme administrator.
23 May 2022 - The scheme opens for grant applications and payments.
As far as I can work out one square metre of solar panel can generate 120 kWh in one year in Edinburgh when facing upwards. A reasonable estimate for electric car efficiency is 20 kWh per 100 km.
So you'd get about 600 km over a year.
It's not nothing, but it's a long way from fully powering the car.
We need a much stronger word than 'hypocrisy' for the Russia's attitude.
Hypercrisy ?
https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/fcgi-bin/usercode.py?scotcontrol=Y&CON=33&LAB=37&LIB=9&Reform=5&Green=6&UKIP=&TVCON=&TVLAB=&TVLIB=&TVReform=&TVGreen=&TVUKIP=&SCOTCON=18.3&SCOTLAB=20.2&SCOTLIB=6.6&SCOTReform=0.9&SCOTGreen=3&SCOTUKIP=&SCOTNAT=48&display=AllChanged&regorseat=(none)&boundary=2019nbbase
I am looking forward to working with the PM, Ministers and Members of Parliament on the issues that matter most to our country
https://twitter.com/RoryStewartUK/status/1509794232411828224
I also think in some ways there is the most riding on it for the LDs TBH and they need to gain one big prize such as Somerset or they are in trouble.
Interestingly, reading roughly off his graph, it looks as if MOST covid hospitalisations are now ‘incidental’ i.e. they are not for covid at all, people simply happen to have it when they have been admitted for something else.
Thanks for the replies yesterday morning, I had to rush off to a major work event (in person, hundreds there, only two masks spotted all day!) so wasn’t able to continue the debate.
Much of PBers’ response struck me as irrational - what’s the point wearing a mask sometimes on a train for example then removing it at work/in the pub etc?
We are all going to catch covid, probably several times. I think with the modern milder fast-spreading ‘defanged’ strains sporadic masking isn’t going to make much difference to individual outcomes.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-60945452
The opening is a reminder that whatever we did, short of allowing continued Russian domination of its former satellite states, it would have been regarded as 'provocation'.
Unless democracies defend themselves, the forces of autocracy will destroy them.
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2022/05/autocracy-could-destroy-democracy-russia-ukraine/629363/
...In February 1994, in the grand ballroom of the town hall in Hamburg, Germany, the president of Estonia gave a remarkable speech. Standing before an audience in evening dress, Lennart Meri praised the values of the democratic world that Estonia then aspired to join. “The freedom of every individual, the freedom of the economy and trade, as well as the freedom of the mind, of culture and science, are inseparably interconnected,” he told the burghers of Hamburg. “They form the prerequisite of a viable democracy.” His country, having regained its independence from the Soviet Union three years earlier, believed in these values: “The Estonian people never abandoned their faith in this freedom during the decades of totalitarian oppression.”
But Meri had also come to deliver a warning: Freedom in Estonia, and in Europe, could soon be under threat. Russian President Boris Yeltsin and the circles around him were returning to the language of imperialism, speaking of Russia as primus inter pares—the first among equals—in the former Soviet empire. In 1994, Moscow was already seething with the language of resentment, aggression, and imperial nostalgia; the Russian state was developing an illiberal vision of the world, and even then was preparing to enforce it. Meri called on the democratic world to push back: The West should “make it emphatically clear to the Russian leadership that another imperialist expansion will not stand a chance.”
At that, the deputy mayor of St. Petersburg, Vladimir Putin, got up and walked out of the hall....
Officially not waiting in the stats.
ETA an electric throw might be better than a hot water bottle as it can heat all of you.
https://www.ntv.co.jp/dash/solar/index.html
It's TV so it may all be fake but they claim they made 17,704km over 8 years, which would be a little over 2000 km per year. I guess that's not too far off your numbers since they're using a teensy little k thing not a normal car, and Japan is quite a bit further south than Edinburgh.
iPhone 13 Pro Max battery 4352 mAh.
It's only three times larger, and is that because the phone is larger, so there's more space?
iPhone 13 Pro Max 240g compared to 136g for the original iPhone.
So, hard to tell how much the capacity: weight ratio has improved over 15 years. Certain it's by nowhere near as much as the power consumption efficiency of the chips themselves.
The Kremlin comments: "I suppose Depardieu does not fully understand what is happening," Dmitry Peskov says. "If necessary, we are ready to explain all of this to him so that he does. If he wants."
https://twitter.com/maxseddon/status/1509827366352306212
The subtitles struck me as pretty dodgy even if I don’t speak Ukranian. I’ve often wondered why subtitle translations don’t go through a second process, ie will this sound right to a speaker/reader of the second language? Perhaps it does happen as some translated subtitles are better than others.
Also
"Since the alleged attack, a video has emerged online that appears to show long queues at a petrol station in the Belgorod region as Russian citizens are said to fear more Ukrainian strikes, driving some to stock up on essential goods.
However, Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said the incident would not affect the region's fuel supplies or prices for consumers.
Roman Starovoit, governor of the neighbouring Kursk region, said its fuel supplies were sufficient to last several weeks and called on the population not to stockpile fuel." https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1589563/Russia-oil-depot-explosion-emergency-ukraine-latest-Vyacheslav-Gladkov-Belgorod-ont
which is an invitation to go out and stockpile fuel if ever I heard one. And the Russians have been running out of fuel since about day 3 of the war already.
She can't go on living like this, which sounds like a throw away phrase - but I fear she really can't.
However impressive / unlikely surely a Ukranian attack has to be the most probably explanation? It’s not as if a false flag like this is going to achieve much at this point in the war.
It was lovely to see how our grandson really cares and a pleasure to meet his new friend
David Lammy: "For too long, parts of the left, even some members of my own party, falsely divided the world into two camps. America and the West on one side, and their victims on the other. This has never been right, but this view has now been exposed for all to see as a farce."
https://twitter.com/siennamarla/status/1509544535159889926
All the best
On checking, it does seem to have a varied usage - my cider/sour usage is there, all right eg 'The goosegogs hadna ripened and were affa wersh.'
https://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/wersh
https://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/sndns4100
Those usage numbers are in the correct ballpark. But a normal 4 kWp solar array on your roof is about 32 sqm.
When I worked it out for my largish but not perfectly orientated solar array, it generated approximately 30,000 Tesla-km per annum.
A normal solar panel is approx 1.2x1.8m = 2 sqm. Ish. I still have 2 spares in the garage I requested just before I accepted the quote on the install.
I could have easily ceased Don Camillo after two chapters thinking it a lame Tom and Jerry facsimile, but that it came as a present and on recommendation from Mrs Rata.
But the Russian o.g. theory must surely be wrong? I mean even on a commercial airliner and with a flightsafe phone you can get gps if you are in a window seat, so couldn't they look on google maps? It's 40k from Ukraine
A couple of hundred tomahawk cruise missiles, and Ukr could sink most of both the Baltic and Black Sea fleets, take out much of the strategic Ru radar system, a series of superyachts, and put one through Putin's office window in Moscow for good measure.
Incidentally, do we still have 3 months of strategic oil stocks? IIRC it used to be a requirement, but it may be exactly the sort of thing a traditional Conservative Govt would let slip.
I don't want to vote for a Conservative Party led by Boris Johnson. It's not his record - which I maintain is ok on the big stuff - I just don't want him as Prime Minister. But in all honesty I didn't want to vote for a Conservative Party led by Boris Johnson last time, and still did because the alternative was Corbyn. And actually, Boris has more than exceeded mylow expectations. If Boris was facing a nutter again I would be more likely to vote for him, not less.
But I'm almost certainly not going to vote Labour. They appear to be going for dully competent, but it's not apparent from this angle that they'd be doing anything better than the Conservatives. And they - and particularly my local MP - were far too pro-lockdown. But yes - while the prospect of PM Starmer is no worse than underwhelming, the prospect of deputy PM Blackford or Sturgeon IS too horrendous for words. I'm not against Scottish independence on principle, but I am against the SNP having a say in the governance of the UK. The SNP have absolutely no interest in a functioning United Kingdom- in fact, it is inimical to what they are trying to achieve - and to invite them to help govern England would be insane. Plus, aside from their constitutional position, they are pretty much diametrically opposite me politically.
See, Boris is a poor PM, but that is only one of a number of issues which needs weighing up. It's not, for me, unlike you I think, 'literally anyone but Boris' in the same way that the last election was 'literally anyone but Corbyn'.
Actually, I have the luxury of living in a safe seat, so I can vote for who I want, not against who I don't want (though I still voted Con last time because the slightest chance of keeping Corbyn out was worth taking). So I'd like to give the Lib Dems a good look - I liked the approach they took to the pandemic, and if the last two years have shown us anything it's that liberty can't be taken for granted. They're probably winning for me at the moment. Not least because But if they run another campaign like last time which felt like it was designed explicitly to alienate me I expect I'll go off them.
Obviously I'm not going to vote for the Green Party and barring anyone unexpectedly suitable turning up in Wythenshawe and Sale East probably not any of the other rag, tag and bobtail parties.
https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12492271.victor-crolla-visionary-behind-the-valvona-crolla-delicatessen/
And something to trigger the PBTories: what happened to Mr Paolozzi the sculptor (statues, see?):
https://www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/play-sparks-debate-over-whether-italians-deserve-apology-wartime-internment-1730439
https://twitter.com/ONS/status/1509848383695073288?s=20&t=1vyoNRBts1QQ59pdKXCoGA
No one really knows whether 100% or 20% of the missing referrals from the last 2 years will materialise as there are few precedents. So waiting lists are a bit of a guessing game.
Anything requiring an anaesthetist, theatre staff or a surgical bed is not going to be quick. These are all in short supply, with staff vacancies and burnout, and beds still occupied by covid patients.
https://twitter.com/Osinttechnical/status/1509813153542160387
Huge defeat for Russia.
Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said he could not confirm or deny Ukraine’s alleged involvement in a strike on a fuel depot in the Russian city of Belgorod because he was not privy to all military information
Combine that with shortages due to burnout & lack of training / recruitment in prior years & things are really not great.
Incidentally, how well do 'traditional' mines work with a thick snow covering in winter? I guess the non-magnetic/pressure ones don't work very well.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00szn9q
The apology-trolling for the sinking of the Arandora Star (taking internees to Oz in 1940) or for internment is a bit much. That looks like a PR stunt.
Who is expected to apologise?
The Italian Govt for Mussolini declaring war on the UK in 1940?
The Glaswegian hate-mob who smashed up the coffee-shop?
The UK Govt the for precautionary internment of some Italians, after Italy allied with Germany, and Mussolini declared war?
The German Govt for Hitler's policy of unrestricted submarine warfare in violation of International Treaties (to which I am not totally clear whether Germany was a signatory - Italy was but had previously violated), which led to the deportation passenger liner being sunk?
The Kriegsmarine for sinking it?
Person or persons unknown?
I don't think even Sturgeon will dive into that one.