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The Daily Star sums it up perfectly – politicalbetting.com

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  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,921
    edited July 2022

    HYUFD said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Both of course in the Cabinet which led the Tories to their worst landslide defeat since 1832, trashing the leader who led the Tories to their biggest landslide win since 1987.

    Yet no recognition of that from either of them
    You voted remain. Like they did. No recognition of that from you either.
    I did but unlike them I accepted the result. Heseltine still 6 years later has an absolute loathing of Brexit and as his interview tonight showed still pushing as hard as ever to reject it and rejoin the EU.

    Indeed on Brexit Heseltine is a more vociferous opponent of Boris than even Starmer is now.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 50,267
    maxh said:

    rcs1000 said:

    kle4 said:

    rcs1000 said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Leon said:

    darkage said:

    Leon said:

    Genuinely scary.

    Public universities in Florida will be required to survey both faculty and students on their political beliefs and viewpoints, with the institutions at risk of losing their funding if the responses are not satisfactory to the state's Republican-led legislature.

    The unprecedented project, which was tucked into a law signed Tuesday by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, is part of a long-running, nationwide right-wing push to promote "intellectual diversity" on campuses — though worries over a lack of details on the survey's privacy protections, and questions over what the results may ultimately be used for, hover over the venture.

    Based on the bill's language, survey responses will not necessarily be anonymous — sparking worries among many professors and other university staff that they may be targeted, held back in their careers or even fired for their beliefs.

    According to the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Ray Rodrigues, faculty will not be promoted or fired based on their responses, but, as The Tampa Bay Times reported Tuesday, the bill itself does not back up those claims.


    https://www.salon.com/2021/06/23/desantis-signs-bill-requiring-florida-students-professors-to-register-political-views-with-state/

    No. Completely justified. The horrendous onethink on American campuses has to be challenged. They are 99% Democrat and 98% Woke, yet the rest of America really is not, and this gulf is bad for any country
    I've got little confidence the situation will improve because of 'government surveys'. Too blunt. A softer approach, linking state funding with commitments to viewpoint diversity and freedom of speech would probably be more effective.
    But it is, at least, a start

    Extirpating Extreme Wokeness from Academe is an urgent need. That’s where CRT came from: the universities
    If only you knew as much about US universities and CRT as you do about AI.
    I think you're so embedded into ground zero of liberal California you fail to recognise CRT for the cancer it is.
    CRT is a bogeyman invented by the Right to dogwhistle racism. The people pushing CRT fears are the people who claim Trump won the election and that COVID vaccines are dangerous.
    CRT is a real thing invented by the Left to practice actual racism.
    CRT contains much that is wrong, a fair amount which is unobjectionable, and a few things which are probably right but which are very uncomfortable.

    The parts that look at the fact that we are all - at times - racist without realising it come into the last category.

    Unconscious bias is something that all of us claim not to have. But I'm afraid there's a lot research that suggests it is very real. One study that took me aback involved sending fake job applications from students graduating law schools, with all information identical except the colour of the skin of the applicant in the photo. The white candidates were offered interviews at a rate much higher than the African American ones.

    There is also plenty of evidence that white professors are more likely to call upon other white students over black ones to answer questions in lectures. And are more likely to accept excuses about "circumstances" to account for bad grades.

    For what it's worth, I am sure that the same thing works the other way around too. That black professors see kindred spirits in black students and call on them more often.

    But then we do also need to take a step back.

    Unconscious bias is not just about race. In the UK, there have been studies where people are asked to judge the intelligence of a speaker. Race was not the most important factor - accent was. Even if the actual words were the same, the person with the Liverpudlian accent was considered less intelligent than the one with the soft Edinburgh burr.

    And the level of unconscious bias we now see is far, far less than the explicit and conscious bias we've had in the past. In most of the developed world the equality of opportunity for a person of colour has never been greater. Socioeconomic inequality is - realistically - a bigger issue that unconscious bias or racism.
    I believe unconscious biases are a thing. I do think it gets overblown and the level of focus some put on it, and extreme solutions devised, to be histrionic and counter productive though.
    I think that's probably right.

    But saying that the people who study them are a "cancer" seems to be an overreaction.
    I think you're missing something if you see it as being about studying unconscious biases in order to create a more perfect meritocracy. Often meritocracy is the enemy.
    One of the more interesting aspects of this debate is the heat that is generated around the idea of fragility (usually pre-faced by the word 'white'). Considered through one lens, the responses to @rcs1000 's measured post on unconscious biases display a lot of fragility.

    @Luckyguy1983 responds by sidelining the thing they can't explain away (the CVs example) and focusing on the other areas that could, perhaps, have alternative explanations, and confidently asserts that these are just sifting mechanisms.

    @williamglenn asserts that meritocracy is the enemy, dismissing the idea that CRT could be aiming for meritocracy, but without evidence.

    @Casino_Royale dismisses CRT because it is leveraged by a vocal extreme and asserts that it is having 'terrible real-world effects'.

    etc. (I'm not assuming that all of these posters are white, only reflecting on what they have written).

    There isn't much genuine engagement with what @rcs1000 has written, imo. I can absolutely see the flip side of the coin that any term such as 'white fragility' can be seen as perjorative and designed to shut down debate. But I'm personally more persuaded by the point Robert makes - that this stuff makes us uncomfortable and we try to dismiss, rather than engage with it. That's what I think is going on when CRT is referred to as a 'cancer'.
    A a fun experiment, trying getting the advocates of CRT to use the same analysis on themselves and their groupings.
  • kle4 said:

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    Oh absolutely. I was team Hunt but read some (any) of @HYUFD's posts to understand why the party voted him in.
    Despite our differences in political views, you are one of my favourite posters and one of the most sensible people here. I'd vote for a party led by you any day
    I'd not advise voting for a party led by any PBer. The only question would be who could lead the country to utter collapse the fastest.

    My money would be on Dura Ace, if only because he would be intending to create anarchy.
    If the Tories go back to being a party TOPPING could vote for, I'd genuinely consider it
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 96,103

    Pulpstar said:

    Andrew Mitchell except for Plodgate, always seemed quite sensible to me, perhaps I have a bad memory

    I think he was a bit unlucky over plodgate tbh, got stitched up.
    To be honest I think that was what I recall too, I think the Police lied
    At least one lied about witnessing his outburst and was convicted, IIRC, andI believe Police Federation reps then lied about what he'd said in a meeting with them, proven when he played a recording of it.

    A disgraceful episode which was more shocking then than it would be now.
  • JonathanJonathan Posts: 21,663
    It’s hard to pick a candidate for the likely next leader of the Tory party. I thought Javid, but not so much after today. If I had to guess it would now be Truss. A flat field of meh.
  • StillWatersStillWaters Posts: 8,258

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    I supported Jeremy. But the view was that he had no strategy for resolving the impasse that Theresa had got us into.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 42,957

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    Oh absolutely. I was team Hunt but read some (any) of @HYUFD's posts to understand why the party voted him in.
    Despite our differences in political views, you are one of my favourite posters and one of the most sensible people here. I'd vote for a party led by you any day
    Ha! Sounds like it's been wine o'clock for many of us for a couple of hours but you are very kind to say so.

    I actually think that 85% of PB posters would make a better job of PM than the current incumbent or indeed many in the running for it from any party.
  • Nigel_ForemainNigel_Foremain Posts: 14,310
    Scott_xP said:

    Nadine Dorries tweeted this and then very quickly deleted it. https://twitter.com/scottygb/status/1544435322548883456/photo/1


    I just noticed he is wearing a grey suit!
  • TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    I supported Jeremy. But the view was that he had no strategy for resolving the impasse that Theresa had got us into.
    Johnson just kicked the can down the road
  • StillWatersStillWaters Posts: 8,258

    Surely being Health Sec vs being Chief of Staff (and literally at the centre of power and basically door keeper to the emperor) is a demotion?

    Leo would not have done this.

    Chief of Staff in the Leo sense isn’t a pretendy-made-up role for bit players and wannabes
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 42,957
    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Both of course in the Cabinet which led the Tories to their worst landslide defeat since 1832, trashing the leader who led the Tories to their biggest landslide win since 1987.

    Yet no recognition of that from either of them
    You voted remain. Like they did. No recognition of that from you either.
    I did but unlike them I accepted the result. Heseltine still 6 years later has an absolute loathing of Brexit and as his interview tonight showed still pushing as hard as ever to reject it and rejoin the EU
    We all accepted the result. Doesn't mean we compromised our political beliefs just because the other side won. Or can we expect you to become a fervent Labour supporter if they win the next general election.
  • StillWatersStillWaters Posts: 8,258

    Any word on Lord Falconer?

    He resigned. Twice
  • LeonLeon Posts: 55,288
    kle4 said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    A fair point really. It can be entertaining, but the usual crowd of opponents don't add value to this. It's the Brexiteers, the hard right, the utterly loyal turning on him which signals an end. They are the ones who would demonstrate to the viewers that a tide has turned - not people going 'We bloody told you so!'

    Nothing makes a grateful person ungrateful faster than being told they should be grateful. And nothing makes a person who realises they made a mistake get stubborn faster than being told 'I told you so'.
    On the Knapper’s Gazette (and I believe on other journals) we have a rule that if you really want to drive a point home, successfully, you get an unexpected person to voice it

    So if you are denouncing the basalt butt plug you get Mrs Basalt Mineowner to write the article. An op-Ed against the Lutheran Reformation should be written by Martin Luther’s dad etc. Its way more powerful than the usual suspects

    It’s just lazy that TV news cant find fresh, unheard voices to oppose Boris
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,921
    Jonathan said:

    It’s hard to pick a candidate for the likely next leader of the Tory party. I thought Javid, but not so much after today. If I had to guess it would now be Truss. A flat field of meh.

    Neither, it would be Wallace or Mordaunt
  • SeaShantyIrish2SeaShantyIrish2 Posts: 17,559
    Scott_xP said:

    Nadine Dorries tweeted this and then very quickly deleted it. https://twitter.com/scottygb/status/1544435322548883456/photo/1


    She does make him look pretty smart, just by comparison.

    BTW, is Zahawi now the highest-ranking person of Kurdish ethnicity in the world? Add an Armenian British politico to the ministerial team, and at very least Johnson would be setting positive example for his great-granddaddy's homeland.

    Not much, granted, but at least something.
  • bondegezoubondegezou Posts: 11,064
    TOPPING said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    Because for a considerable period of time such people were dictating to the country how many people were allowed in our homes and many are understandably scarred by the experience.
    So scarred that they are incapable of rational thought today? Yes, perhaps that's it.

    You're just doing the same thing: any acknowledgement that COVID still exists is equated with wanting lockdown. This is bollocks. I don't see anyone, even on iSAGE, arguing for lockdown or anything remotely like it. Choosing to wear a mask on the Tube doesn't mean you want a lockdown. Noting that we're in a new wave doesn't mean you want a lockdown. Suggesting the Government should do more to improve air filtration in schools doesn't mean you want a lockdown.

    Are we really incapable of discussing how to tackle what remains a major public health problem because some people are irrationally scared?
  • darkagedarkage Posts: 5,398

    rcs1000 said:

    kle4 said:

    rcs1000 said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Leon said:

    darkage said:

    Leon said:

    Genuinely scary.

    Public universities in Florida will be required to survey both faculty and students on their political beliefs and viewpoints, with the institutions at risk of losing their funding if the responses are not satisfactory to the state's Republican-led legislature.

    The unprecedented project, which was tucked into a law signed Tuesday by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, is part of a long-running, nationwide right-wing push to promote "intellectual diversity" on campuses — though worries over a lack of details on the survey's privacy protections, and questions over what the results may ultimately be used for, hover over the venture.

    Based on the bill's language, survey responses will not necessarily be anonymous — sparking worries among many professors and other university staff that they may be targeted, held back in their careers or even fired for their beliefs.

    According to the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Ray Rodrigues, faculty will not be promoted or fired based on their responses, but, as The Tampa Bay Times reported Tuesday, the bill itself does not back up those claims.


    https://www.salon.com/2021/06/23/desantis-signs-bill-requiring-florida-students-professors-to-register-political-views-with-state/

    No. Completely justified. The horrendous onethink on American campuses has to be challenged. They are 99% Democrat and 98% Woke, yet the rest of America really is not, and this gulf is bad for any country
    I've got little confidence the situation will improve because of 'government surveys'. Too blunt. A softer approach, linking state funding with commitments to viewpoint diversity and freedom of speech would probably be more effective.
    But it is, at least, a start

    Extirpating Extreme Wokeness from Academe is an urgent need. That’s where CRT came from: the universities
    If only you knew as much about US universities and CRT as you do about AI.
    I think you're so embedded into ground zero of liberal California you fail to recognise CRT for the cancer it is.
    CRT is a bogeyman invented by the Right to dogwhistle racism. The people pushing CRT fears are the people who claim Trump won the election and that COVID vaccines are dangerous.
    CRT is a real thing invented by the Left to practice actual racism.
    CRT contains much that is wrong, a fair amount which is unobjectionable, and a few things which are probably right but which are very uncomfortable.

    The parts that look at the fact that we are all - at times - racist without realising it come into the last category.

    Unconscious bias is something that all of us claim not to have. But I'm afraid there's a lot research that suggests it is very real. One study that took me aback involved sending fake job applications from students graduating law schools, with all information identical except the colour of the skin of the applicant in the photo. The white candidates were offered interviews at a rate much higher than the African American ones.

    There is also plenty of evidence that white professors are more likely to call upon other white students over black ones to answer questions in lectures. And are more likely to accept excuses about "circumstances" to account for bad grades.

    For what it's worth, I am sure that the same thing works the other way around too. That black professors see kindred spirits in black students and call on them more often.

    But then we do also need to take a step back.

    Unconscious bias is not just about race. In the UK, there have been studies where people are asked to judge the intelligence of a speaker. Race was not the most important factor - accent was. Even if the actual words were the same, the person with the Liverpudlian accent was considered less intelligent than the one with the soft Edinburgh burr.

    And the level of unconscious bias we now see is far, far less than the explicit and conscious bias we've had in the past. In most of the developed world the equality of opportunity for a person of colour has never been greater. Socioeconomic inequality is - realistically - a bigger issue that unconscious bias or racism.
    I believe unconscious biases are a thing. I do think it gets overblown and the level of focus some put on it, and extreme solutions devised, to be histrionic and counter productive though.
    I think that's probably right.

    But saying that the people who study them are a "cancer" seems to be an overreaction.
    I don't use that word lightly. Look at what some of them have written and what they advocate.

    Pure poison.

    Eric Kauffman and Douglas Murray have written extensively on this. Read up.
    The proponents of CRT do not own the insight that racism and unconscious bias exists. It is something that is objectively true. It is most clearly explained by pscyhologists like Daniel Kahneman.
    The trouble is that CRT uses the truth of this insight to expound a worldview that makes everything about race.
    There are then people that popularise this, promoting a view of the world that makes white people uniquely evil, playing in to the lack of self confidence in western civilisation and a sense of guilt about things that have happened in the past (slavery, colonialism), which are actually common to all civilisations.
    I'm not sure that this type of thinking can be 'shut down'. But it needs to be challenged.
    And this is the problem - for many people who have been sucked in to this worldview, it effectively attains the status of a belief and they don't 'feel safe' having it challenged, in a university or wherever.
    That is where we have gone completely wrong. People should be able to believe this stuff, but also they should be required to have their views challenged.
    What happens when Universities completely internalise the worldview described above? That is a difficult question. Arguably they just become 'seminaries for woke propogandists', functionally useless and societally destructive.
    When we get to this point, which we are fast approaching.... there may well just be something in the Victor Orban/Donald Trump idea of trying to just shut them all down.
  • wooliedyedwooliedyed Posts: 10,061
    Thing to watch for tomorrow morning is if there are any rumours of Brady meeting with the PM.
    And truss and gove remain figures to watch too.
    Hodges hinting at more to cone in Pincher.......
  • Nigel_ForemainNigel_Foremain Posts: 14,310
    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Both of course in the Cabinet which led the Tories to their worst landslide defeat since 1832, trashing the leader who led the Tories to their biggest landslide win since 1987.

    Yet no recognition of that from either of them
    You voted remain. Like they did. No recognition of that from you either.
    I did but unlike them I accepted the result. Heseltine still 6 years later has an absolute loathing of Brexit and as his interview tonight showed still pushing as hard as ever to reject it and rejoin the EU
    He has a right to that view. Not one that I share. The reality is that Heseltine is still a genuine big beast with strong principles. By your continued support of the morality vacuum that is Johnson you demonstrate that you have no principles, other than blind loyalty, which is, sorry, just plain stupid.
  • YokesYokes Posts: 1,332
    So, will Zahawi get a tax cutting budget out in time before Johnson goes? If he does, the successor is stuck with it.
  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 32,557
    Jonathan said:

    It’s hard to pick a candidate for the likely next leader of the Tory party. I thought Javid, but not so much after today. If I had to guess it would now be Truss. A flat field of meh.

    I used to think Truss but now Mordaunt seems more likely.
  • StillWatersStillWaters Posts: 8,258

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    I supported Jeremy. But the view was that he had no strategy for resolving the impasse that Theresa had got us into.
    Johnson just kicked the can down the road
    No, we’ve brexited. The deal may not be perfect and it will never be final but we are out of purgatory
  • CatManCatMan Posts: 3,058
    kle4 said:

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    Oh absolutely. I was team Hunt but read some (any) of @HYUFD's posts to understand why the party voted him in.
    Despite our differences in political views, you are one of my favourite posters and one of the most sensible people here. I'd vote for a party led by you any day
    I'd not advise voting for a party led by any PBer. The only question would be who could lead the country to utter collapse the fastest.

    My money would be on Dura Ace, if only because he would be intending to create anarchy.
    Dura Ace would make the UK rejoin the EU, give Northern Ireland (or as he would probably put it, The North of Ireland) to Ireland and enter Schengen and the Euro.

    So he's got my vote :innocent:
  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 32,557
    fitalass said:

    Includes resignation letter.

    Twitter
    Alex Chalk@AlexChalkChelt·15m
    With great sadness I am resigning as Solicitor General. I won’t be doing media interviews.

    https://twitter.com/AlexChalkChelt/status/1544437737771655169

    Cheltenham is a top LD target.
  • bondegezoubondegezou Posts: 11,064

    On this forum at least, it strikes me that it's those on the political right who are more in favour of cancel culture and against freedom of speech. Two examples from tonight - CRT and Christina Pagel.

    Us lefties, on the other hand, are more easy-going. Give your views, and let's argue the toss - but don't tell people to shut up.

    Who is cancelling her? Her views are as relevant as what Patsy Palmer or the Gogglebox crew think but she is free to make them if invited by idiot media to do so. As we are to point out we dont care what she thinks.
    Yes, you've all really demonstrated how much you don't care what she thinks, what with the way you constantly obsess over what's she said and post it here all the time. That will show her.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 42,957

    TOPPING said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    Because for a considerable period of time such people were dictating to the country how many people were allowed in our homes and many are understandably scarred by the experience.
    So scarred that they are incapable of rational thought today? Yes, perhaps that's it.

    You're just doing the same thing: any acknowledgement that COVID still exists is equated with wanting lockdown. This is bollocks. I don't see anyone, even on iSAGE, arguing for lockdown or anything remotely like it. Choosing to wear a mask on the Tube doesn't mean you want a lockdown. Noting that we're in a new wave doesn't mean you want a lockdown. Suggesting the Government should do more to improve air filtration in schools doesn't mean you want a lockdown.

    Are we really incapable of discussing how to tackle what remains a major public health problem because some people are irrationally scared?
    You answer your own question. People are allowed to be "irrationally scared" in which case they won't be able to discuss the issue in the terms you would like.
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 29,402
    edited July 2022
    Leon said:

    kle4 said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    A fair point really. It can be entertaining, but the usual crowd of opponents don't add value to this. It's the Brexiteers, the hard right, the utterly loyal turning on him which signals an end. They are the ones who would demonstrate to the viewers that a tide has turned - not people going 'We bloody told you so!'

    Nothing makes a grateful person ungrateful faster than being told they should be grateful. And nothing makes a person who realises they made a mistake get stubborn faster than being told 'I told you so'.
    On the Knapper’s Gazette (and I believe on other journals) we have a rule that if you really want to drive a point home, successfully, you get an unexpected person to voice it

    So if you are denouncing the basalt butt plug you get Mrs Basalt Mineowner to write the article. An op-Ed against the Lutheran Reformation should be written by Martin Luther’s dad etc. Its way more powerful than the usual suspects

    It’s just lazy that TV news cant find fresh, unheard voices to oppose Boris
    There have been plenty today.
    Voices from all wings of the Tory Party.
    Frost, Widdecombe, Finkelstein, Montgomerie. They are everywhere now.
    You should return to the UK.
    It's been a mood shift since the VONC.
    Only the Cabinet HYUFD and you are holding.out.
  • TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    I supported Jeremy. But the view was that he had no strategy for resolving the impasse that Theresa had got us into.
    Johnson just kicked the can down the road
    No, we’ve brexited. The deal may not be perfect and it will never be final but we are out of purgatory
    No we aren't.
  • Given the Chris Pincher scandal, it's worth noting that the new Chancellor, Nadhim Zahawi, never fully explained why he attended the mens-only "Presidents Club" dinner where dozens of women say they were sexually assaulted and harassed by the guests.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 42,957
    CatMan said:

    kle4 said:

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    Oh absolutely. I was team Hunt but read some (any) of @HYUFD's posts to understand why the party voted him in.
    Despite our differences in political views, you are one of my favourite posters and one of the most sensible people here. I'd vote for a party led by you any day
    I'd not advise voting for a party led by any PBer. The only question would be who could lead the country to utter collapse the fastest.

    My money would be on Dura Ace, if only because he would be intending to create anarchy.
    Dura Ace would make the UK rejoin the EU, give Northern Ireland (or as he would probably put it, The North of Ireland) to Ireland and enter Schengen and the Euro.

    So he's got my vote :innocent:
    Six Counties.
  • Richard_TyndallRichard_Tyndall Posts: 32,526

    TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    I supported Jeremy. But the view was that he had no strategy for resolving the impasse that Theresa had got us into.
    Johnson just kicked the can down the road
    No, we’ve brexited. The deal may not be perfect and it will never be final but we are out of purgatory
    No we aren't.
    Some of us are. We are moving on. If you choose to stay in a self imposed purgatory that is your problem.
  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 21,298
    Is there a Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster yet?

    A disgrace if not.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 55,288
    dixiedean said:

    Leon said:

    kle4 said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    A fair point really. It can be entertaining, but the usual crowd of opponents don't add value to this. It's the Brexiteers, the hard right, the utterly loyal turning on him which signals an end. They are the ones who would demonstrate to the viewers that a tide has turned - not people going 'We bloody told you so!'

    Nothing makes a grateful person ungrateful faster than being told they should be grateful. And nothing makes a person who realises they made a mistake get stubborn faster than being told 'I told you so'.
    On the Knapper’s Gazette (and I believe on other journals) we have a rule that if you really want to drive a point home, successfully, you get an unexpected person to voice it

    So if you are denouncing the basalt butt plug you get Mrs Basalt Mineowner to write the article. An op-Ed against the Lutheran Reformation should be written by Martin Luther’s dad etc. Its way more powerful than the usual suspects

    It’s just lazy that TV news cant find fresh, unheard voices to oppose Boris
    There have been plenty today.
    Voices from all wings of the Tory Party.
    Frost, Widdecombe, Finkelstein, Montgomerie. They are everywhere now.
    You should return to the UK.
    It's been a mood shift since the VONC.
    Only the Cabinet HYUFD and you are holding.out.
    You’ve said this twice now. It’s a lie

    Read the threads. I want Boris gone and I’ve said so all day. He was good for getting Brexit done and winning the election but now he is a negative and needs to go. He’s also endangering the Union

    I am annoyed that the resignation weren’t better organised and coordinated! READ THE THREADS
  • TOPPING said:

    TOPPING said:

    Scott_xP said:

    Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Malcolm Rifkind: “He was always unfit to be Prime Minister and a lot of people knew that right from the very beginning.” #Newsnight
    https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1544442808274415616

    Well yes we said that. Tories voted him for leader anyway
    Correct. And Lab thought it would be a great idea to oppose him in 2019 with an unrepentant Britain-hating anti-semite.
    I've said sorry, we've said sorry. He's gone. We made a mistake. We accept it
    Ha! Indeed. Not criticising you but it needs to be pointed out from time to time when we talk about the useless twat Johnson.
    The point I make is that the Tories nonetheless did not need to vote him in as party leader.

    Against Corbyn, get it - still stupid but I get it.

    But against Hunt, no I do not
    I supported Jeremy. But the view was that he had no strategy for resolving the impasse that Theresa had got us into.
    Johnson just kicked the can down the road
    No, we’ve brexited. The deal may not be perfect and it will never be final but we are out of purgatory
    No we aren't.
    Some of us are. We are moving on. If you choose to stay in a self imposed purgatory that is your problem.
    Richard I have moved on - but Brexit is not done, ask NI
  • kyf_100kyf_100 Posts: 4,945

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    I was referring to kle4's mention of a book about human beings who despise / avoid all physical contact. That was certainly how it felt during 2020, and isn't something I'd care to revisit.

    Why am I scared? Because lockdown damn nearly broke me. I've been prescribed benzos/beta blockers on and off ever since, and I'm still not completely "right". I'm not scared of other people's choices. I'm scared of being sent back into the hell that lockdown was and seeing my mind turn to mush again. So, thanks.
  • Nigel_ForemainNigel_Foremain Posts: 14,310
    Time for bed said Zebedee. I look forward to the next exciting instalment of the Adventures of the Greased Pig in Peppa Pig Land tomorrow
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 29,402

    Is there a Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster yet?

    A disgrace if not.

    As long as they aren't from Yorkshire we'll be fine.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 48,651
    darkage said:

    rcs1000 said:

    kle4 said:

    rcs1000 said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Leon said:

    darkage said:

    Leon said:

    Genuinely scary.

    Public universities in Florida will be required to survey both faculty and students on their political beliefs and viewpoints, with the institutions at risk of losing their funding if the responses are not satisfactory to the state's Republican-led legislature.

    The unprecedented project, which was tucked into a law signed Tuesday by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, is part of a long-running, nationwide right-wing push to promote "intellectual diversity" on campuses — though worries over a lack of details on the survey's privacy protections, and questions over what the results may ultimately be used for, hover over the venture.

    Based on the bill's language, survey responses will not necessarily be anonymous — sparking worries among many professors and other university staff that they may be targeted, held back in their careers or even fired for their beliefs.

    According to the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Ray Rodrigues, faculty will not be promoted or fired based on their responses, but, as The Tampa Bay Times reported Tuesday, the bill itself does not back up those claims.


    https://www.salon.com/2021/06/23/desantis-signs-bill-requiring-florida-students-professors-to-register-political-views-with-state/

    No. Completely justified. The horrendous onethink on American campuses has to be challenged. They are 99% Democrat and 98% Woke, yet the rest of America really is not, and this gulf is bad for any country
    I've got little confidence the situation will improve because of 'government surveys'. Too blunt. A softer approach, linking state funding with commitments to viewpoint diversity and freedom of speech would probably be more effective.
    But it is, at least, a start

    Extirpating Extreme Wokeness from Academe is an urgent need. That’s where CRT came from: the universities
    If only you knew as much about US universities and CRT as you do about AI.
    I think you're so embedded into ground zero of liberal California you fail to recognise CRT for the cancer it is.
    CRT is a bogeyman invented by the Right to dogwhistle racism. The people pushing CRT fears are the people who claim Trump won the election and that COVID vaccines are dangerous.
    CRT is a real thing invented by the Left to practice actual racism.
    CRT contains much that is wrong, a fair amount which is unobjectionable, and a few things which are probably right but which are very uncomfortable.

    The parts that look at the fact that we are all - at times - racist without realising it come into the last category.

    Unconscious bias is something that all of us claim not to have. But I'm afraid there's a lot research that suggests it is very real. One study that took me aback involved sending fake job applications from students graduating law schools, with all information identical except the colour of the skin of the applicant in the photo. The white candidates were offered interviews at a rate much higher than the African American ones.

    There is also plenty of evidence that white professors are more likely to call upon other white students over black ones to answer questions in lectures. And are more likely to accept excuses about "circumstances" to account for bad grades.

    For what it's worth, I am sure that the same thing works the other way around too. That black professors see kindred spirits in black students and call on them more often.

    But then we do also need to take a step back.

    Unconscious bias is not just about race. In the UK, there have been studies where people are asked to judge the intelligence of a speaker. Race was not the most important factor - accent was. Even if the actual words were the same, the person with the Liverpudlian accent was considered less intelligent than the one with the soft Edinburgh burr.

    And the level of unconscious bias we now see is far, far less than the explicit and conscious bias we've had in the past. In most of the developed world the equality of opportunity for a person of colour has never been greater. Socioeconomic inequality is - realistically - a bigger issue that unconscious bias or racism.
    I believe unconscious biases are a thing. I do think it gets overblown and the level of focus some put on it, and extreme solutions devised, to be histrionic and counter productive though.
    I think that's probably right.

    But saying that the people who study them are a "cancer" seems to be an overreaction.
    I don't use that word lightly. Look at what some of them have written and what they advocate.

    Pure poison.

    Eric Kauffman and Douglas Murray have written extensively on this. Read up.
    The proponents of CRT do not own the insight that racism and unconscious bias exists. It is something that is objectively true. It is most clearly explained by pscyhologists like Daniel Kahneman.
    The trouble is that CRT uses the truth of this insight to expound a worldview that makes everything about race.
    There are then people that popularise this, promoting a view of the world that makes white people uniquely evil, playing in to the lack of self confidence in western civilisation and a sense of guilt about things that have happened in the past (slavery, colonialism), which are actually common to all civilisations.
    I'm not sure that this type of thinking can be 'shut down'. But it needs to be challenged.
    And this is the problem - for many people who have been sucked in to this worldview, it effectively attains the status of a belief and they don't 'feel safe' having it challenged, in a university or wherever.
    That is where we have gone completely wrong. People should be able to believe this stuff, but also they should be required to have their views challenged.
    What happens when Universities completely internalise the worldview described above? That is a difficult question. Arguably they just become 'seminaries for woke propogandists', functionally useless and societally destructive.
    When we get to this point, which we are fast approaching.... there may well just be something in the Victor Orban/Donald Trump idea of trying to just shut them all down.
    So you are saying that CRT is correct in denouncing unconscious bias?

    Just that it needs to be taught better...
  • fitalassfitalass Posts: 4,300
    Jonathan said:

    It’s hard to pick a candidate for the likely next leader of the Tory party. I thought Javid, but not so much after today. If I had to guess it would now be Truss. A flat field of meh.

    Having read Javid's resignation letter, I have to disagree, he strengthened his leadership ambitions today.
  • Nigel_ForemainNigel_Foremain Posts: 14,310
    Leon said:

    dixiedean said:

    Leon said:

    kle4 said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    A fair point really. It can be entertaining, but the usual crowd of opponents don't add value to this. It's the Brexiteers, the hard right, the utterly loyal turning on him which signals an end. They are the ones who would demonstrate to the viewers that a tide has turned - not people going 'We bloody told you so!'

    Nothing makes a grateful person ungrateful faster than being told they should be grateful. And nothing makes a person who realises they made a mistake get stubborn faster than being told 'I told you so'.
    On the Knapper’s Gazette (and I believe on other journals) we have a rule that if you really want to drive a point home, successfully, you get an unexpected person to voice it

    So if you are denouncing the basalt butt plug you get Mrs Basalt Mineowner to write the article. An op-Ed against the Lutheran Reformation should be written by Martin Luther’s dad etc. Its way more powerful than the usual suspects

    It’s just lazy that TV news cant find fresh, unheard voices to oppose Boris
    There have been plenty today.
    Voices from all wings of the Tory Party.
    Frost, Widdecombe, Finkelstein, Montgomerie. They are everywhere now.
    You should return to the UK.
    It's been a mood shift since the VONC.
    Only the Cabinet HYUFD and you are holding.out.
    You’ve said this twice now. It’s a lie

    Read the threads. I want Boris gone and I’ve said so all day. He was good for getting Brexit done and winning the election but now he is a negative and needs to go. He’s also endangering the Union

    I am annoyed that the resignation weren’t better organised and coordinated! READ THE THREADS
    Yep, closet apologist. lol. Goodnight everyone
  • TimSTimS Posts: 12,994
    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 55,288
    edited July 2022
    kyf_100 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    I was referring to kle4's mention of a book about human beings who despise / avoid all physical contact. That was certainly how it felt during 2020, and isn't something I'd care to revisit.

    Why am I scared? Because lockdown damn nearly broke me. I've been prescribed benzos/beta blockers on and off ever since, and I'm still not completely "right". I'm not scared of other people's choices. I'm scared of being sent back into the hell that lockdown was and seeing my mind turn to mush again. So, thanks.
    Me too. These c*nts like @bondegezou and Christian Pagel with their big houses and big gardens neither understand nor care

    She wants us all to wear masks again like it is perfectly normal and entirely healthy to hide human faces and happy smiles for the rest of time. I HATE people like this. It is a genuine hatred. Pure and good
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 48,651
    Andy_JS said:

    Jonathan said:

    It’s hard to pick a candidate for the likely next leader of the Tory party. I thought Javid, but not so much after today. If I had to guess it would now be Truss. A flat field of meh.

    I used to think Truss but now Mordaunt seems more likely.
    Yes, she is great at being absent in these controversies, and has that useful ability of rising without trace to be the compromise, unity candidate.
  • MJWMJW Posts: 1,728
    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Both of course in the Cabinet which led the Tories to their worst landslide defeat since 1832, trashing the leader who led the Tories to their biggest landslide win since 1987.

    Yet no recognition of that from either of them
    You voted remain. Like they did. No recognition of that from you either.
    I did but unlike them I accepted the result. Heseltine still 6 years later has an absolute loathing of Brexit and as his interview tonight showed still pushing as hard as ever to reject it and rejoin the EU.

    Indeed on Brexit Heseltine is a more vociferous opponent of Boris than even Starmer is now.
    As he's perfectly entitled to. After all. Brexiteers hardly accepted democratic decisions to join and vote in governments that supported membership. They campaigned against it and said they thought it wrong and doomed. That maybe an unwise stance as an active politician (as Keir Starmer's positioning shows), given your job is to make things better for us in the here and now, but he has the luxury of not being one who can speak his mind about where he views the state of the country and conservatism. But it's hardly outlandish to suggest that that governments who fail and are defined by their support of extreme Euroscepticism may taint it in the medium to long term. After all, in many ways that is how we ended up with Brexit in the first place.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,921
    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
    However if it looks like a coup by Remainer Tories to get rid of Boris and align more closely to the EU then that is Boris' best hope of rallying Tory MPs and Tory members to keep him in office
  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 32,557
    edited July 2022
    "We cannot be killed. 'Shortly there will be an election, in which the Conservatives will increase their majority'.

    https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2007/09/labour-majority-increase
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 48,651
    HYUFD said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
    However if it looks like a coup by Remainer Tories to get rid of Boris and align more closely to the EU then that is Boris' best hope of rallying Tory MPs and Tory members to keep him in office
    Sunak was a prominent Brexiteer as I recall.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,921
    Foxy said:

    HYUFD said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
    However if it looks like a coup by Remainer Tories to get rid of Boris and align more closely to the EU then that is Boris' best hope of rallying Tory MPs and Tory members to keep him in office
    Sunak was a prominent Brexiteer as I recall.
    Javid however was a Remainer as was Dowden
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 29,402
    Leon said:

    dixiedean said:

    Leon said:

    kle4 said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    A fair point really. It can be entertaining, but the usual crowd of opponents don't add value to this. It's the Brexiteers, the hard right, the utterly loyal turning on him which signals an end. They are the ones who would demonstrate to the viewers that a tide has turned - not people going 'We bloody told you so!'

    Nothing makes a grateful person ungrateful faster than being told they should be grateful. And nothing makes a person who realises they made a mistake get stubborn faster than being told 'I told you so'.
    On the Knapper’s Gazette (and I believe on other journals) we have a rule that if you really want to drive a point home, successfully, you get an unexpected person to voice it

    So if you are denouncing the basalt butt plug you get Mrs Basalt Mineowner to write the article. An op-Ed against the Lutheran Reformation should be written by Martin Luther’s dad etc. Its way more powerful than the usual suspects

    It’s just lazy that TV news cant find fresh, unheard voices to oppose Boris
    There have been plenty today.
    Voices from all wings of the Tory Party.
    Frost, Widdecombe, Finkelstein, Montgomerie. They are everywhere now.
    You should return to the UK.
    It's been a mood shift since the VONC.
    Only the Cabinet HYUFD and you are holding.out.
    You’ve said this twice now. It’s a lie

    Read the threads. I want Boris gone and I’ve said so all day. He was good for getting Brexit done and winning the election but now he is a negative and needs to go. He’s also endangering the Union

    I am annoyed that the resignation weren’t better organised and coordinated! READ THE THREADS
    He has served your purposes well. But now you want someone better suited to push exactly the same agenda?
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 51,635
    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
    It's very shortsighted though because whoever replaces Boris is not going to reverse course on Brexit, so where will that leave the messaging?
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 62,719
    Leon said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    I was referring to kle4's mention of a book about human beings who despise / avoid all physical contact. That was certainly how it felt during 2020, and isn't something I'd care to revisit.

    Why am I scared? Because lockdown damn nearly broke me. I've been prescribed benzos/beta blockers on and off ever since, and I'm still not completely "right". I'm not scared of other people's choices. I'm scared of being sent back into the hell that lockdown was and seeing my mind turn to mush again. So, thanks.
    Me too. These c*nts like @bondegezou and Christian Pagel with their big houses and big gardens neither understand nor care

    She wants us all to wear masks again like it is perfectly normal and entirely healthy to hide human faces and happy smiles for the rest of time. I HATE people like this. It is a genuine hatred. Pure and good
    To be fair, I don't think she thinks it is perfectly normal and so on. The problem is she and her mates think it is worth, on balance, looking at risk of getting long covid and all that, that we all live our lives like she prescribes.

  • CatManCatMan Posts: 3,058
    Foxy said:

    HYUFD said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
    However if it looks like a coup by Remainer Tories to get rid of Boris and align more closely to the EU then that is Boris' best hope of rallying Tory MPs and Tory members to keep him in office
    Sunak was a prominent Brexiteer as I recall.
    Yes but the definition of a Remainer is now "Someone who doesn't support Boris Johnson"
  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 32,557
    Foxy said:

    Andy_JS said:

    Jonathan said:

    It’s hard to pick a candidate for the likely next leader of the Tory party. I thought Javid, but not so much after today. If I had to guess it would now be Truss. A flat field of meh.

    I used to think Truss but now Mordaunt seems more likely.
    Yes, she is great at being absent in these controversies, and has that useful ability of rising without trace to be the compromise, unity candidate.
    She has a great sense of humour, best exemplified by her famous cock speech in the House of Commons.
  • Leon will be gone soon
  • LeonLeon Posts: 55,288
    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.

    So you’re overriding desire, politically, is to reverse Brexit and rejoin? And that trumps any partisan cause like voting Labour?

    Interesting. Genuinely. This is is what I thought and this is what I expect to emerge when Labour are next in power. A surge of rejoin/Remoaner emotions. I doubt starmer (or whoever) will be able to control them

  • Jim_MillerJim_Miller Posts: 2,999
    The history of Washington state's Initiative 200 sheds some light, I believe, on the political effects of Critical Race Theory: "Initiative 200 was a Washington state initiative to the Legislature promoted by California affirmative-action opponent Ward Connerly, and filed by Scott Smith and Tim Eyman.[1] It sought to prohibit racial and gender preferences by state and local government. It was on the Washington ballot in November 1998 and passed with 58.22% of the vote. It added to Washington's law (but not its constitution) the following language:

    The state shall not discriminate against, or grant preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting.[2]

    Initiative 200 effectively curtailed any form of affirmative action in the state.[3] In April 2019, the Washington Legislature passed Initiative 1000, ending the ban on affirmative action.[4] However, in November 2019, Referendum 88 blocked Initiative 1000 from going into effect."
    source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Initiative_200

    When I-200 was being debated, there was coverage from the Seattle Times, for a change, of the preferences given to women and poitically correct minorities. It turned out that it was often easy for small contractors to become predominantly women-owned. Washington state is a "community property" state, so everything earned during a marriage is by default equally owned by the husband and wife. If they had a minor daughter, they could just transfer a percent or two of the company to her, and get preferences from the state.

    And then there was the odd treatment of Japanese-Americans. For contracting, they were official minorities, but for admission to universities as honorary whites.

    The latter being more important to them, it should be no surprise that they backed I-200 and led the Referendum 88 fight.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 96,103
    HYUFD said:

    Foxy said:

    HYUFD said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
    However if it looks like a coup by Remainer Tories to get rid of Boris and align more closely to the EU then that is Boris' best hope of rallying Tory MPs and Tory members to keep him in office
    Sunak was a prominent Brexiteer as I recall.
    Javid however was a Remainer as was Dowden
    But Sunak still wasn't. It won't magically become a coup by Remainer Tories if it involves non-Remainers. If that line is peddled it just won't fly - politicians might be able to pretend that way, but normal members, even those loyal to Boris, can't entirely ignore facts.
  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 32,557
    Leon said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    I was referring to kle4's mention of a book about human beings who despise / avoid all physical contact. That was certainly how it felt during 2020, and isn't something I'd care to revisit.

    Why am I scared? Because lockdown damn nearly broke me. I've been prescribed benzos/beta blockers on and off ever since, and I'm still not completely "right". I'm not scared of other people's choices. I'm scared of being sent back into the hell that lockdown was and seeing my mind turn to mush again. So, thanks.
    Me too. These c*nts like @bondegezou and Christian Pagel with their big houses and big gardens neither understand nor care

    She wants us all to wear masks again like it is perfectly normal and entirely healthy to hide human faces and happy smiles for the rest of time. I HATE people like this. It is a genuine hatred. Pure and good
    I can't imagine what it must have been like to be someone living at the top of a tower block when you weren't supposed to go outside.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 62,719
    Only a matter of time...

    (((Dan Hodges)))
    @DPJHodges
    ·
    18m
    Watching people seriously trying to discuss Boris’s cabinet appointments tonight is like that moment when they discuss the Steiner attack in the Downfall video.
  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 21,298
    dixiedean said:

    Leon said:

    dixiedean said:

    Leon said:

    kle4 said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    A fair point really. It can be entertaining, but the usual crowd of opponents don't add value to this. It's the Brexiteers, the hard right, the utterly loyal turning on him which signals an end. They are the ones who would demonstrate to the viewers that a tide has turned - not people going 'We bloody told you so!'

    Nothing makes a grateful person ungrateful faster than being told they should be grateful. And nothing makes a person who realises they made a mistake get stubborn faster than being told 'I told you so'.
    On the Knapper’s Gazette (and I believe on other journals) we have a rule that if you really want to drive a point home, successfully, you get an unexpected person to voice it

    So if you are denouncing the basalt butt plug you get Mrs Basalt Mineowner to write the article. An op-Ed against the Lutheran Reformation should be written by Martin Luther’s dad etc. Its way more powerful than the usual suspects

    It’s just lazy that TV news cant find fresh, unheard voices to oppose Boris
    There have been plenty today.
    Voices from all wings of the Tory Party.
    Frost, Widdecombe, Finkelstein, Montgomerie. They are everywhere now.
    You should return to the UK.
    It's been a mood shift since the VONC.
    Only the Cabinet HYUFD and you are holding.out.
    You’ve said this twice now. It’s a lie

    Read the threads. I want Boris gone and I’ve said so all day. He was good for getting Brexit done and winning the election but now he is a negative and needs to go. He’s also endangering the Union

    I am annoyed that the resignation weren’t better organised and coordinated! READ THE THREADS
    He has served your purposes well. But now you want someone better suited to push exactly the same agenda?
    Leon is pretty much unideological, save a barely disguised worship of naked power.
  • bondegezoubondegezou Posts: 11,064
    Leon said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    I was referring to kle4's mention of a book about human beings who despise / avoid all physical contact. That was certainly how it felt during 2020, and isn't something I'd care to revisit.

    Why am I scared? Because lockdown damn nearly broke me. I've been prescribed benzos/beta blockers on and off ever since, and I'm still not completely "right". I'm not scared of other people's choices. I'm scared of being sent back into the hell that lockdown was and seeing my mind turn to mush again. So, thanks.
    Me too. These c*nts like @bondegezou and Christian Pagel with their big houses and big gardens neither understand nor care

    She wants us all to wear masks again like it is perfectly normal and entirely healthy to hide human faces and happy smiles for the rest of time. I HATE people like this. It is a genuine hatred. Pure and good
    Does the ban hammer come down for use of the c-word?

    I do not own a house, just a maisonette. I do not own a garden, but am fortunate to live near a large park.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 55,288

    kyf_100 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    I was referring to kle4's mention of a book about human beings who despise / avoid all physical contact. That was certainly how it felt during 2020, and isn't something I'd care to revisit.

    Why am I scared? Because lockdown damn nearly broke me. I've been prescribed benzos/beta blockers on and off ever since, and I'm still not completely "right". I'm not scared of other people's choices. I'm scared of being sent back into the hell that lockdown was and seeing my mind turn to mush again. So, thanks.
    I'm sorry you suffered during lockdown. I certainly didn't enjoy it either. I've published on the mental health effects of the pandemic. So, let me try and reassure you. We're not going back into lockdown. No-one is suggesting we go back into lockdown.

    The best way to ward off any future risk of lockdown is to introduce sensible public health measures, like good vaccination schemes, improved air filtration and better pandemic preparedness.

    I note that Japan avoided having any national lockdowns. That was, in part, because of high levels of mask wearing on public transport. If you see someone wearing a mask this week, applaud them. They're on your side.
    God help us if you are “publishing on covid” (which I seriously doubt)

    Japan avoided lockdown by entirely closing itself off from the world. They had a national quarantine rather than a lockdown. Only recently has anyone been allowed to visit the country, and even now you can only do it in tightly organised tour groups. Two and a half years later
  • Oh I'm sure Leon will be banned for his use of the c word.

    Oh, only me then that gets banned
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,921
    edited July 2022
    kle4 said:

    HYUFD said:

    Foxy said:

    HYUFD said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
    However if it looks like a coup by Remainer Tories to get rid of Boris and align more closely to the EU then that is Boris' best hope of rallying Tory MPs and Tory members to keep him in office
    Sunak was a prominent Brexiteer as I recall.
    Javid however was a Remainer as was Dowden
    But Sunak still wasn't. It won't magically become a coup by Remainer Tories if it involves non-Remainers. If that line is peddled it just won't fly - politicians might be able to pretend that way, but normal members, even those loyal to Boris, can't entirely ignore facts.
    Sunak also opposed government plans to try and remove the Irish Sea border and Truss' plans to give a tax stimulus for NI

    https://m.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/northern-ireland/rishi-sunak-scraps-reported-protocol-proposal-over-tax-cuts-for-british-businesses-returning-to-northern-ireland-41538955.html


    https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/brexit-northern-ireland-protocol-cabinet-spat-queens-speech-1620213
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 51,635
    @Steven_Swinford
    Boris Johnson was asked by an ally tonight if he was considering quitting

    He responded: “Fuck that”

    Allies claim Zahawi will be a better chancellor for Johnson: ‘We’ve ended up with a more suitable chancellor for growing the economy rather than balancing the books’


    https://twitter.com/Steven_Swinford/status/1544438495288205318
  • darkagedarkage Posts: 5,398
    Foxy said:

    darkage said:

    rcs1000 said:

    kle4 said:

    rcs1000 said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Leon said:

    darkage said:

    Leon said:

    Genuinely scary.

    Public universities in Florida will be required to survey both faculty and students on their political beliefs and viewpoints, with the institutions at risk of losing their funding if the responses are not satisfactory to the state's Republican-led legislature.

    The unprecedented project, which was tucked into a law signed Tuesday by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, is part of a long-running, nationwide right-wing push to promote "intellectual diversity" on campuses — though worries over a lack of details on the survey's privacy protections, and questions over what the results may ultimately be used for, hover over the venture.

    Based on the bill's language, survey responses will not necessarily be anonymous — sparking worries among many professors and other university staff that they may be targeted, held back in their careers or even fired for their beliefs.

    According to the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Ray Rodrigues, faculty will not be promoted or fired based on their responses, but, as The Tampa Bay Times reported Tuesday, the bill itself does not back up those claims.


    https://www.salon.com/2021/06/23/desantis-signs-bill-requiring-florida-students-professors-to-register-political-views-with-state/

    No. Completely justified. The horrendous onethink on American campuses has to be challenged. They are 99% Democrat and 98% Woke, yet the rest of America really is not, and this gulf is bad for any country
    I've got little confidence the situation will improve because of 'government surveys'. Too blunt. A softer approach, linking state funding with commitments to viewpoint diversity and freedom of speech would probably be more effective.
    But it is, at least, a start

    Extirpating Extreme Wokeness from Academe is an urgent need. That’s where CRT came from: the universities
    If only you knew as much about US universities and CRT as you do about AI.
    I think you're so embedded into ground zero of liberal California you fail to recognise CRT for the cancer it is.
    CRT is a bogeyman invented by the Right to dogwhistle racism. The people pushing CRT fears are the people who claim Trump won the election and that COVID vaccines are dangerous.
    CRT is a real thing invented by the Left to practice actual racism.
    CRT contains much that is wrong, a fair amount which is unobjectionable, and a few things which are probably right but which are very uncomfortable.

    The parts that look at the fact that we are all - at times - racist without realising it come into the last category.

    Unconscious bias is something that all of us claim not to have. But I'm afraid there's a lot research that suggests it is very real. One study that took me aback involved sending fake job applications from students graduating law schools, with all information identical except the colour of the skin of the applicant in the photo. The white candidates were offered interviews at a rate much higher than the African American ones.

    There is also plenty of evidence that white professors are more likely to call upon other white students over black ones to answer questions in lectures. And are more likely to accept excuses about "circumstances" to account for bad grades.

    For what it's worth, I am sure that the same thing works the other way around too. That black professors see kindred spirits in black students and call on them more often.

    But then we do also need to take a step back.

    Unconscious bias is not just about race. In the UK, there have been studies where people are asked to judge the intelligence of a speaker. Race was not the most important factor - accent was. Even if the actual words were the same, the person with the Liverpudlian accent was considered less intelligent than the one with the soft Edinburgh burr.

    And the level of unconscious bias we now see is far, far less than the explicit and conscious bias we've had in the past. In most of the developed world the equality of opportunity for a person of colour has never been greater. Socioeconomic inequality is - realistically - a bigger issue that unconscious bias or racism.
    I believe unconscious biases are a thing. I do think it gets overblown and the level of focus some put on it, and extreme solutions devised, to be histrionic and counter productive though.
    I think that's probably right.

    But saying that the people who study them are a "cancer" seems to be an overreaction.
    I don't use that word lightly. Look at what some of them have written and what they advocate.

    Pure poison.

    Eric Kauffman and Douglas Murray have written extensively on this. Read up.
    The proponents of CRT do not own the insight that racism and unconscious bias exists. It is something that is objectively true. It is most clearly explained by pscyhologists like Daniel Kahneman.
    The trouble is that CRT uses the truth of this insight to expound a worldview that makes everything about race.
    There are then people that popularise this, promoting a view of the world that makes white people uniquely evil, playing in to the lack of self confidence in western civilisation and a sense of guilt about things that have happened in the past (slavery, colonialism), which are actually common to all civilisations.
    I'm not sure that this type of thinking can be 'shut down'. But it needs to be challenged.
    And this is the problem - for many people who have been sucked in to this worldview, it effectively attains the status of a belief and they don't 'feel safe' having it challenged, in a university or wherever.
    That is where we have gone completely wrong. People should be able to believe this stuff, but also they should be required to have their views challenged.
    What happens when Universities completely internalise the worldview described above? That is a difficult question. Arguably they just become 'seminaries for woke propogandists', functionally useless and societally destructive.
    When we get to this point, which we are fast approaching.... there may well just be something in the Victor Orban/Donald Trump idea of trying to just shut them all down.
    So you are saying that CRT is correct in denouncing unconscious bias?

    Just that it needs to be taught better...
    If you are really interested in the question about how to manage unconscious bias; you are better reading psychology than CRT.

    But CRT does have some use, as evidence of the impact of unconscious bias on society.
  • bondegezoubondegezou Posts: 11,064

    dixiedean said:

    Leon said:

    dixiedean said:

    Leon said:

    kle4 said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    A fair point really. It can be entertaining, but the usual crowd of opponents don't add value to this. It's the Brexiteers, the hard right, the utterly loyal turning on him which signals an end. They are the ones who would demonstrate to the viewers that a tide has turned - not people going 'We bloody told you so!'

    Nothing makes a grateful person ungrateful faster than being told they should be grateful. And nothing makes a person who realises they made a mistake get stubborn faster than being told 'I told you so'.
    On the Knapper’s Gazette (and I believe on other journals) we have a rule that if you really want to drive a point home, successfully, you get an unexpected person to voice it

    So if you are denouncing the basalt butt plug you get Mrs Basalt Mineowner to write the article. An op-Ed against the Lutheran Reformation should be written by Martin Luther’s dad etc. Its way more powerful than the usual suspects

    It’s just lazy that TV news cant find fresh, unheard voices to oppose Boris
    There have been plenty today.
    Voices from all wings of the Tory Party.
    Frost, Widdecombe, Finkelstein, Montgomerie. They are everywhere now.
    You should return to the UK.
    It's been a mood shift since the VONC.
    Only the Cabinet HYUFD and you are holding.out.
    You’ve said this twice now. It’s a lie

    Read the threads. I want Boris gone and I’ve said so all day. He was good for getting Brexit done and winning the election but now he is a negative and needs to go. He’s also endangering the Union

    I am annoyed that the resignation weren’t better organised and coordinated! READ THE THREADS
    He has served your purposes well. But now you want someone better suited to push exactly the same agenda?
    Leon is pretty much unideological, save a barely disguised worship of naked power.
    And a tendency to parrot extreme right talking points.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,921
    Leon said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.

    So you’re overriding desire, politically, is to reverse Brexit and rejoin? And that trumps any partisan cause like voting Labour?

    Interesting. Genuinely. This is is what I thought and this is what I expect to emerge when Labour are next in power. A surge of rejoin/Remoaner emotions. I doubt starmer (or whoever) will be able to control them

    Brexit will still define our politics for at least the next decade, Boris or no Boris
  • LeonLeon Posts: 55,288
    dixiedean said:

    Leon said:

    dixiedean said:

    Leon said:

    kle4 said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    A fair point really. It can be entertaining, but the usual crowd of opponents don't add value to this. It's the Brexiteers, the hard right, the utterly loyal turning on him which signals an end. They are the ones who would demonstrate to the viewers that a tide has turned - not people going 'We bloody told you so!'

    Nothing makes a grateful person ungrateful faster than being told they should be grateful. And nothing makes a person who realises they made a mistake get stubborn faster than being told 'I told you so'.
    On the Knapper’s Gazette (and I believe on other journals) we have a rule that if you really want to drive a point home, successfully, you get an unexpected person to voice it

    So if you are denouncing the basalt butt plug you get Mrs Basalt Mineowner to write the article. An op-Ed against the Lutheran Reformation should be written by Martin Luther’s dad etc. Its way more powerful than the usual suspects

    It’s just lazy that TV news cant find fresh, unheard voices to oppose Boris
    There have been plenty today.
    Voices from all wings of the Tory Party.
    Frost, Widdecombe, Finkelstein, Montgomerie. They are everywhere now.
    You should return to the UK.
    It's been a mood shift since the VONC.
    Only the Cabinet HYUFD and you are holding.out.
    You’ve said this twice now. It’s a lie

    Read the threads. I want Boris gone and I’ve said so all day. He was good for getting Brexit done and winning the election but now he is a negative and needs to go. He’s also endangering the Union

    I am annoyed that the resignation weren’t better organised and coordinated! READ THE THREADS
    He has served your purposes well. But now you want someone better suited to push exactly the same agenda?
    Actually no. I’d like someone more genuinely right wing and Thatcherite. Small state and low taxes. Boris is not that

    I do like Boris’ socially liberal and indeed libertarian instincts. That’s his last remaining virtue but it is not a small thing. He kept us out of lockdown 4
  • Michael Heseltine is 90 and speaks more sense than BoJo ever has
  • Dura_AceDura_Ace Posts: 13,677
    edited July 2022
    Leon said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.

    So you’re overriding desire, politically, is to reverse Brexit and rejoin? And that trumps any partisan cause like voting Labour?

    Interesting. Genuinely. This is is what I thought and this is what I expect to emerge when Labour are next in power. A surge of rejoin/Remoaner emotions. I doubt starmer (or whoever) will be able to control them

    I doubt he wants to control them. He's just saying whatever it takes now to mollify the Tena For Men Brexitards in the north and make less of them vote tory to save Brexit.

    E2A: fewer can fuck itself. I like less. If you use 'fewer' you sound like Mark out of Peep Show.
  • TheValiantTheValiant Posts: 1,874

    Labour have a narrow window to force a VoNC in the commons?

    To what end? Labour want a GE. The Conservatives do not.
    The Conservatives would just use the VoNC to oust Johnson, then claim an alternative administration could be formed from the remaining 358 loyal Conservative MPs (as once Johnson is gone, his 'allies' will desert him).
    A GE is therefore avoided (at least immediately) and instead a new leader could easily get a good polling bounce and either go to the country in October or next May and win a safe majority for another five years.

    Labour want to replace the government. A VoNC by them would not do this, even if successful.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 55,288

    Leon said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    I was referring to kle4's mention of a book about human beings who despise / avoid all physical contact. That was certainly how it felt during 2020, and isn't something I'd care to revisit.

    Why am I scared? Because lockdown damn nearly broke me. I've been prescribed benzos/beta blockers on and off ever since, and I'm still not completely "right". I'm not scared of other people's choices. I'm scared of being sent back into the hell that lockdown was and seeing my mind turn to mush again. So, thanks.
    Me too. These c*nts like @bondegezou and Christian Pagel with their big houses and big gardens neither understand nor care

    She wants us all to wear masks again like it is perfectly normal and entirely healthy to hide human faces and happy smiles for the rest of time. I HATE people like this. It is a genuine hatred. Pure and good
    Does the ban hammer come down for use of the c-word?

    I do not own a house, just a maisonette. I do not own a garden, but am fortunate to live near a large park.
    Just use an asterisk
  • Jim_MillerJim_Miller Posts: 2,999
    The old political machines in the US almost always practiced what could now be called "critical ethnic theory"; they discriminated in favor of groups, especially Irish Catholics, saying that they had been badly treated in the past -- which was often true enough. As Chicago columnist Mike Royko summarized it, the first (and greatest) Mayor Daley was always a "quota man". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Royko
  • Richard_TyndallRichard_Tyndall Posts: 32,526

    Michael Heseltine is 90 and speaks more sense than BoJo ever has

    Heseltine never spoke sense. He was and is a vindictive shit who was happy stamping on both 'friends' and enemies if they got in his way. A thoroughly nasty piece of work.

    You might however be right in his comparison to Bojo. Both are hopefully destined for whatever hot place they believe in.
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 41,962
    Andy_JS said:

    Foxy said:

    Andy_JS said:

    Jonathan said:

    It’s hard to pick a candidate for the likely next leader of the Tory party. I thought Javid, but not so much after today. If I had to guess it would now be Truss. A flat field of meh.

    I used to think Truss but now Mordaunt seems more likely.
    Yes, she is great at being absent in these controversies, and has that useful ability of rising without trace to be the compromise, unity candidate.
    She has a great sense of humour, best exemplified by her famous cock speech in the House of Commons.
    Humour is such a subjective thing..
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 71,070
  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 32,557
    edited July 2022
    HYUFD said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
    However if it looks like a coup by Remainer Tories to get rid of Boris and align more closely to the EU then that is Boris' best hope of rallying Tory MPs and Tory members to keep him in office
    It looks like they never really accepted the result of the confidence ballot, in the sense that they believed 148 MPs should have been enough for Johnson to resign, and were pretty annoyed when he didn't do what they wanted and expected in response to the vote. They were never going to wait 12 months as the rules state.
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 51,635
    Leon said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.

    So you’re overriding desire, politically, is to reverse Brexit and rejoin? And that trumps any partisan cause like voting Labour?

    Interesting. Genuinely. This is is what I thought and this is what I expect to emerge when Labour are next in power. A surge of rejoin/Remoaner emotions. I doubt starmer (or whoever) will be able to control them
    A lot of people still seem to be stuck in the mindset of revoking Article 50 where we could just change our minds and pretend the vote never happened.

    Rejoining now would be a very convoluted process that in itself could be fairly acrimonious. It would kick off a new generation of euroscepticism among people who've not had to think deeply about it before.
  • If Brexit is such a success and speaks for itself, I wonder why they spend so much time worrying about what silly Remainers think
  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 32,557

    kyf_100 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    I was referring to kle4's mention of a book about human beings who despise / avoid all physical contact. That was certainly how it felt during 2020, and isn't something I'd care to revisit.

    Why am I scared? Because lockdown damn nearly broke me. I've been prescribed benzos/beta blockers on and off ever since, and I'm still not completely "right". I'm not scared of other people's choices. I'm scared of being sent back into the hell that lockdown was and seeing my mind turn to mush again. So, thanks.
    I'm sorry you suffered during lockdown. I certainly didn't enjoy it either. I've published on the mental health effects of the pandemic. So, let me try and reassure you. We're not going back into lockdown. No-one is suggesting we go back into lockdown.

    The best way to ward off any future risk of lockdown is to introduce sensible public health measures, like good vaccination schemes, improved air filtration and better pandemic preparedness.

    I note that Japan avoided having any national lockdowns. That was, in part, because of high levels of mask wearing on public transport. If you see someone wearing a mask this week, applaud them. They're on your side.
    I agree with everything you say except masks.
  • GIN1138GIN1138 Posts: 22,286

    Michael Heseltine is 90 and speaks more sense than BoJo ever has

    Heseltine never spoke sense. He was and is a vindictive shit who was happy stamping on both 'friends' and enemies if they got in his way. A thoroughly nasty piece of work.

    Ghastly man and absolutely bloody useless in any job he was involved with...
  • GIN1138GIN1138 Posts: 22,286

    Leon said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.

    So you’re overriding desire, politically, is to reverse Brexit and rejoin? And that trumps any partisan cause like voting Labour?

    Interesting. Genuinely. This is is what I thought and this is what I expect to emerge when Labour are next in power. A surge of rejoin/Remoaner emotions. I doubt starmer (or whoever) will be able to control them
    A lot of people still seem to be stuck in the mindset of revoking Article 50 where we could just change our minds and pretend the vote never happened.

    Rejoining now would be a very convoluted process that in itself could be fairly acrimonious. It would kick off a new generation of euroscepticism among people who've not had to think deeply about it before.
    I suspect the only way Brexit will fade will be when we have a Labour government and it chooses not to reopen it in any meaningful sense... As New Labour decided to stick with privatization and most of Thatchers economic reforms.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 62,719
    Gotta to be certain that when various Cabinet members wake tomorrow they will know they have massively made a mistake not walking with Sunak and Javid.


    Damn few left.
  • MJWMJW Posts: 1,728
    HYUFD said:

    Foxy said:

    HYUFD said:

    TimS said:

    Leon said:

    It does no favour to the Boris Must Go cause to have embittered old Remoaner Queens like Rifkind and Heseltine denouncing Boris. It just makes normal people think “ugh, this is all about Remainer revenge for Brexit”

    Get these ancient old twats off the telly. Thanks

    Remainers will want to hitch Brexit as closely as possible to Boris. Let the sinking ship drag Brexit down with him.

    So, not great seeing these old remoaner grandees if you’re a Brexiteer Tory who wants shot of Boris, but excellent news if you’re a remainer that first and foremost wants shot of Brexit.
    However if it looks like a coup by Remainer Tories to get rid of Boris and align more closely to the EU then that is Boris' best hope of rallying Tory MPs and Tory members to keep him in office
    Sunak was a prominent Brexiteer as I recall.
    Javid however was a Remainer as was Dowden
    Are either remotely 'remainers' now though, except in a weird world of Westminster fear and loathing in any sense? It's one thing to accuse Labour of not so secretly harbouring a desire 2016 never happened. It's certainly true of a lot of its voters. Not sure it applies to ex-cabinet members who fully committed to the bit.

    As it goes, there maybe a bit of the dog that caught the car politically. As outside fanatics and long-term predictions or hopes, there's a broad acceptance among even those who think Brexit a disaster that it's difficult to undo and there are more important ways to help people before is reopened if at all. While those who did support it are starting to expect results that are failing to materialise. Not sure even among Conservative members being charged with past remainer apostasy is as potent as was even a year ago.

  • Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 32,557
    "Why Sajid Javid and Rishi Sunak finally lost patience with Boris Johnson
    Boris Johnson's insistence that others lie on his behalf proved too much for his senior cabinet colleagues.
    By Harry Lambert"

    https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/conservatives/2022/07/why-sajid-javid-and-rishi-sunak-finally-lost-patience-with-boris-johnson
  • wooliedyedwooliedyed Posts: 10,061
    Anna Soubry comes out for Starmer on Sky. I guess that means Change UK (non LD splitters, continuity Change UK, Nandos variant) and the 3 people that supported them are team Korma now
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 62,719
    Frost: Time for Johnson to go - telegraph.

    Frost? The Frost who would be nothing without Big Dog.


    There is no one left apart from his cabinet of desperates.

    FFS tory MPs end this tomorrow,
  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 21,298
    edited July 2022

    Anna Soubry comes out for Starmer on Sky. I guess that means Change UK (non LD splitters, continuity Change UK, Nandos variant) and the 3 people that supported them are team Korma now

    Like 1997 it will shortly be difficult to find people who didn’t come out for an alternative to the clown show.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 62,719
    Andy_JS said:

    "Why Sajid Javid and Rishi Sunak finally lost patience with Boris Johnson
    Boris Johnson's insistence that others lie on his behalf proved too much for his senior cabinet colleagues.
    By Harry Lambert"

    https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/conservatives/2022/07/why-sajid-javid-and-rishi-sunak-finally-lost-patience-with-boris-johnson

    Eventually.
  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 21,298
    So, does Boris survive?

    Brady needs to be confident he has 50% of the party waiting to depose Boris.
    If not, Boris stays.

    I think he goes, but it’s not a slam dunk.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 62,719
    BF still thinks Sunak will be next leader despite him resigning and upsetting Johnson and losing any chance he had by crossing Big Dog's cult.

  • wooliedyedwooliedyed Posts: 10,061

    Anna Soubry comes out for Starmer on Sky. I guess that means Change UK (non LD splitters, continuity Change UK, Nandos variant) and the 3 people that supported them are team Korma now

    Like 1997 it will shortly be difficult to find people who didn’t come out for an alternative to the clown show.
    Indeed but parading Soubry as 'former tory minister' like she had been anything but completely anti tory for 3 years is Sky mendacity. Shes a defector with the zealotry that goes with it. Its like asking Sean Woodward who he wants as PM.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 62,719
    I seem to recall that Osborne and Gove went to the opera together?
  • wooliedyedwooliedyed Posts: 10,061

    I seem to recall that Osborne and Gove went to the opera together?
    Gove is such a tart. Lol. Im still convinced hes flouncing tomorrow.
  • edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,708
    Leon said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    kle4 said:

    kyf_100 said:

    Leon said:

    Doctor Pagel has some more fun advice for us in the Guardian


    Christina Pagel, professor of operational research at University College London and member of the Independent Sage group of experts

    “I’ve never stopped wearing a mask on public transport and in shops. I now also wear one during face-to-face meetings at work and would if I was going to the cinema, theatre, etc. However, I have chosen to restrict my social activities or meet outside wherever possible during these weeks of very high levels of infection. Many will not be able to restrict their contacts, so a well-fitting, high-quality mask (FFP2/FFP3) is even more important to try to reduce their chance of catching Covid or of spreading it.”

    It's a sort of darwinism, isn't it. These people are just going to stop interacting with other people, and therefore stop breeding.
    I remember reading this in lockdown, and for some of the most intense it seemed on the nose.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Naked_Sun
    I cannot imagine a world without touch. To touch another human being, whether that's a comforting arm around the shoulder of an elderly relative, a hug with a friend you haven't seen in months, a passionate kiss that reignites an old flame, or even the old man on man, testosterone fuelled sparring in the ring that gets all the anger and aggression out. And you shake hands after.

    Being deprived of all of the above almost sent me insane during lockdown. I'm now of the opinion that, come what may, I'll take my chances.
    There's a group of people I call COVID Worriers. I don't mean those who are concerned about catching COVID-19. I'm on day 11 after getting COVID and it's no fun! I mean those who think that any discussion of COVID-19, any acknowledgement that we're in a new wave, any steps taken to avoid infection, are the top of a slippery slope leading inevitably to a complete lockdown.

    Someone making a personal choice to wear a mask on the Tube during a period of high infections is treated as if they are seeking to enslave us. This is such nonsense. Why are some here so scared of others' choices?
    I was referring to kle4's mention of a book about human beings who despise / avoid all physical contact. That was certainly how it felt during 2020, and isn't something I'd care to revisit.

    Why am I scared? Because lockdown damn nearly broke me. I've been prescribed benzos/beta blockers on and off ever since, and I'm still not completely "right". I'm not scared of other people's choices. I'm scared of being sent back into the hell that lockdown was and seeing my mind turn to mush again. So, thanks.
    I'm sorry you suffered during lockdown. I certainly didn't enjoy it either. I've published on the mental health effects of the pandemic. So, let me try and reassure you. We're not going back into lockdown. No-one is suggesting we go back into lockdown.

    The best way to ward off any future risk of lockdown is to introduce sensible public health measures, like good vaccination schemes, improved air filtration and better pandemic preparedness.

    I note that Japan avoided having any national lockdowns. That was, in part, because of high levels of mask wearing on public transport. If you see someone wearing a mask this week, applaud them. They're on your side.
    God help us if you are “publishing on covid” (which I seriously doubt)

    Japan avoided lockdown by entirely closing itself off from the world. They had a national quarantine rather than a lockdown. Only recently has anyone been allowed to visit the country, and even now you can only do it in tightly organised tour groups. Two and a half years later
    That's mainly politics not public health. Japanese people and permanent residents can come and go as they like, and it's never been like Taiwan was at one point where the virus wasn't circulating in the country. We had alpha direct from Wuhan, Beta from foreign tourists and delayed omega by a week or something until the quarantine was broken by returning Japanese and US military.

    To the extent that there's a coherent thought behind not letting foreign tourists in, it's that they can't be relied on to do the things most Japan residents are doing like wearing masks.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 62,719
    Did someone once write a play about about this?

    PM: You could be CoE

    Zahawi: Really? What now, today? Are you sure. I thought I might have to wait a while longer.

    PM: yes. But you have to sell your soul. Total loyalty to me.

    Zahawi: It's sold. What time do I get the car to the treasury?
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 62,719
    Have any of us been more depressed about public life in years?

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