The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
I agree in your assessment of the American national anthem, but I have to say I think you're being generous to the Argentinian national anthem by keeping it off the bottom.
The very very worst ever though surely has to be the old East German national anthem - Auferstanden Aus Ruinen.
Absolute balls as to lyrics, the first couplet and indeed first 2 stanzas of SSB are magnificently visually arresting. Whereas GSTK is mythical being, semi-mythical being, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction.
Which will fall first? A few years ago I would have guessed Microsoft but they seem to have upped their game. Now I’d guess Meta
You missed out Netflix, which is the one that looks shakiest to me.
Yes, it used to FAANG:
Facebook Amazon Apple Netflix Google
But Netflix has cratered, and now MSFT is worth much more than Google.
Which shows that impermanence is the only permanent thing.
I think you may be burying Netflix prematurely. Its Q3 numbers this year were miles better than expected and the markets reacted very favourably to them. That is on top of a 23% increase in revenue in 2021. I don't think they will be going anywhere for a long time.
The FANGS were a cheap money phenomenom...much employee motivation rests on stock options and when they are massively underwater employee retention becomes a problem
I have a friend at a FAANG in the US who has been complaining that, when the stock value halved whilst his stock options could not be sold, he must under US law pay tax on the value of them when granted. Effectively doubling the tax rate.
He has downsized so as to live within the means of the base salary.
GSTK is absolutely rubbish. Switch it to Jerusalem, which I think is a lovely hymn.
Some people just have no taste.
The Italian and the Fijian anthems are magnificent.
As I have mentioned before on this site I like the Polish National Anthem. Its original version was used by Elgar in a piece called Polonia.
The genuine Kazakh national anthem isn't bad. It's got a half decent tune even if Nursultan Nazarbayev should have stuck to mass murder not poetry writing.
Ireland's is good musically even if the lyrics are a bit well - odd.
Just perusing some Georgia polling and I am once again amazed that Trafalgar is the only pollster who consistently finds 18-24 year old samples in swing states that are heavily GOP leaning.
GSTK is absolutely rubbish. Switch it to Jerusalem, which I think is a lovely hymn.
Some people just have no taste.
The Italian and the Fijian anthems are magnificent.
Only the Italians could try to fit the same (largely meaningless) words to two completely different tunes and create a decent sounding anthem out of it, that even domesticated birds can sing.
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
Neither of you have any taste it seems.
Some folk would get upset with A Man's a Man or Scots Wha Hae. Both far better in my opinion.
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
I agree in your assessment of the American national anthem, but I have to say I think you're being generous to the Argentinian national anthem by keeping it off the bottom.
The very very worst ever though surely has to be the old East German national anthem - Auferstanden Aus Ruinen.
Absolute balls as to lyrics, the first couplet and indeed first 2 stanzas of SSB are magnificently visually arresting. Whereas GSTK is mythical being, semi-mythical being, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction.
Pompous abstraction? You don't even find it just a little bit ironic that 'the land of the free' was the last country in the developed world to abolish slavery?
Just about to watch the final part of SAS Rogue Heroes - thoroughly enjoyable. You can tell it is the Peeky Blinders team when The Damned is the soundtrack to a raid on an airfield!
Bit too much of a modernist take for me - too many fucks and metal music.
Too many fucks in an Army context is modern?
I'm under no illusions the squaddies have always been like that.
I struggle with General Auckinleck and Ritchie competing to see how hard they can tell David Stirling to fuck off, or a trooper on sentry duty telling Stirling (an officer) to fuck off because he tried to play the class card.
Just wasn't like that back then.
Ah, thanks. Not class-conscious enough, then. Definitely need Noel Coward and In Which We Serve for that.
I'm not trying to make a point on preference or my own view - just don't think it's accurate.
Things were much more stiff, formal and conformist in the 1940s.
I say, old fruit, don't take it personally, what? I was entirely serious about suggesting IWWS - IIRC an attempt to portray different classes and ranks as all in it together.
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
I agree in your assessment of the American national anthem, but I have to say I think you're being generous to the Argentinian national anthem by keeping it off the bottom.
The very very worst ever though surely has to be the old East German national anthem - Auferstanden Aus Ruinen.
Absolute balls as to lyrics, the first couplet and indeed first 2 stanzas of SSB are magnificently visually arresting. Whereas GSTK is mythical being, semi-mythical being, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction.
Pompous abstraction? You don't even find it just a little bit ironic that 'the land of the free' was the last country in the developed world to abolish slavery?
All national anthems are balls. But TSSB is, at least, great fun to sing.
GSTK is absolutely rubbish. Switch it to Jerusalem, which I think is a lovely hymn.
Some people just have no taste.
The Italian and the Fijian anthems are magnificent.
As I have mentioned before on this site I like the Polish National Anthem. Its original version was used by Elgar in a piece called Polonia.
The genuine Kazakh national anthem isn't bad. It's got a half decent tune even if Nursultan Nazarbayev should have stuck to mass murder not poetry writing.
Ireland's is good musically even if the lyrics are a bit well - odd.
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
I agree in your assessment of the American national anthem, but I have to say I think you're being generous to the Argentinian national anthem by keeping it off the bottom.
The very very worst ever though surely has to be the old East German national anthem - Auferstanden Aus Ruinen.
Absolute balls as to lyrics, the first couplet and indeed first 2 stanzas of SSB are magnificently visually arresting. Whereas GSTK is mythical being, semi-mythical being, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction.
Pompous abstraction? You don't even find it just a little bit ironic that 'the land of the free' was the last country in the developed world to abolish slavery?
It doesn't say other people don't also live there. Rule, Britannia! and Heart of Oak also make some pretty questionable claims about freedom relative to the national stance at time of writing.
I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
I agree in your assessment of the American national anthem, but I have to say I think you're being generous to the Argentinian national anthem by keeping it off the bottom.
The very very worst ever though surely has to be the old East German national anthem - Auferstanden Aus Ruinen.
Absolute balls as to lyrics, the first couplet and indeed first 2 stanzas of SSB are magnificently visually arresting. Whereas GSTK is mythical being, semi-mythical being, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction.
Pompous abstraction? You don't even find it just a little bit ironic that 'the land of the free' was the last country in the developed world to abolish slavery?
It doesn't say other people don't also live there. Rule, Britannia! and Heart of Oak also make some pretty questionable claims about freedom relative to the national stance at time of writing.
But neither is our national anthem...
(I will admit to a smile whenever I hear the words 'to freedom we call you, not press you like slaves,' but I have always assumed Garrick was being ironic there.)
I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
I agree in your assessment of the American national anthem, but I have to say I think you're being generous to the Argentinian national anthem by keeping it off the bottom.
The very very worst ever though surely has to be the old East German national anthem - Auferstanden Aus Ruinen.
Just about to watch the final part of SAS Rogue Heroes - thoroughly enjoyable. You can tell it is the Peeky Blinders team when The Damned is the soundtrack to a raid on an airfield!
Bit too much of a modernist take for me - too many fucks and metal music.
Too many fucks in an Army context is modern?
I'm under no illusions the squaddies have always been like that.
I struggle with General Auckinleck and Ritchie competing to see how hard they can tell David Stirling to fuck off, or a trooper on sentry duty telling Stirling (an officer) to fuck off because he tried to play the class card.
Just wasn't like that back then.
Ah, thanks. Not class-conscious enough, then. Definitely need Noel Coward and In Which We Serve for that.
I'm not trying to make a point on preference or my own view - just don't think it's accurate.
Things were much more stiff, formal and conformist in the 1940s.
I say, old fruit, don't take it personally, what? I was entirely serious about suggesting IWWS - IIRC an attempt to portray different classes and ranks as all in it together.
This is the first TV show that has been anything like the North Africa campaign my grandfather (RAF ground crew) described to me. Including the relative informality between the officers and men (which all changed in Sicily/Italy), and the lethargy then extreme violence.
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I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Meta's acute problems are largely a result of governance failures. Most shareholders do not have voting rights and so Zuckerberg can use the cash generated from the core business as his plaything for a fantasy world he is convinced is the future, rather than focussing investment on incremental improvements and the threats posed by TikTok etc for the younger generation.
Rather than shareholders being able to vote to monetise products (Facebook, Instagram) that are still wildly profitable, albeit with questionable longevity, their profits are being gambled on red by a minority shareholder with outsized voting rights (13% shares, 54% voting rights).
I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
Betting on the length of time taken to sing the anthem at the Super Bowl, has to be one of the quirkiest markets of the year - complete with some way-over-the-top analyses of the the singer, when they’ve sung anthems before, whether they usually sing songs fast or slow, who are the accompanying band and what’s their record, who is the TV broadcaster and even if there’s a fly past at the conclusion.
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
I actually use the music from that (speaking of anthems!) as my go-to closing piece for funerals.
I love how mournful and slow it is. Sets up a suitably sombre atmosphere as the coffin leaves.
Does sometimes cause some comment that it's that Hovis theme.
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
Nice! Love the advert, always used to think it was in Yorkshire for some reason. Also the hill itself disappoints except from certain angles, but it’s still great.
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
I actually use the music from that (speaking of anthems!) as my go-to closing piece for funerals.
I love how mournful and slow it is. Sets up a suitably sombre atmosphere as the coffin leaves.
Does sometimes cause some comment that it's that Hovis theme.
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
Nice! Love the advert, always used to think it was in Yorkshire for some reason. Also the hill itself disappoints except from certain angles, but it’s still great.
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
I agree in your assessment of the American national anthem, but I have to say I think you're being generous to the Argentinian national anthem by keeping it off the bottom.
The very very worst ever though surely has to be the old East German national anthem - Auferstanden Aus Ruinen.
Absolute balls as to lyrics, the first couplet and indeed first 2 stanzas of SSB are magnificently visually arresting. Whereas GSTK is mythical being, semi-mythical being, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction.
Pompous abstraction? You don't even find it just a little bit ironic that 'the land of the free' was the last country in the developed world to abolish slavery?
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
I actually use the music from that (speaking of anthems!) as my go-to closing piece for funerals.
I love how mournful and slow it is. Sets up a suitably sombre atmosphere as the coffin leaves.
Does sometimes cause some comment that it's that Hovis theme.
For a long time I thought the Mendelssohn wedding march was an original part of the soundtrack of the Rocky Horror Show.
PoliticsVerse 🇺🇸 @PoliticsVerse List of Companies who have suspended Twitter Ad’s:
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The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
Neither of you have any taste it seems.
When we are independent we will need a new anthem. I would choose A Man’s a Man, just to annoy Sturgeon.
"More than 15,000 people have signed up for 'Orgy on Shchekavystsa: Official,' a mass romp set up on a Telegram group in the event of Putin launching a nuclear blast."
This easily beats the People's Assembly's boring call for a general election in Britain.
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
I actually use the music from that (speaking of anthems!) as my go-to closing piece for funerals.
I love how mournful and slow it is. Sets up a suitably sombre atmosphere as the coffin leaves.
Does sometimes cause some comment that it's that Hovis theme.
Dvorak's Symphony from the New World, surely?
Yes, the Largo movement.
Also set to words as 'Going Home.' I'm not sure whether that's deliberate irony or not, given the whole symphony is redolent of the homesickness Dvorak was feeling coupled with the death of his daughter.
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
I actually use the music from that (speaking of anthems!) as my go-to closing piece for funerals.
I love how mournful and slow it is. Sets up a suitably sombre atmosphere as the coffin leaves.
Does sometimes cause some comment that it's that Hovis theme.
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
Neither of you have any taste it seems.
When we are independent we will need a new anthem. I would choose A Man’s a Man, just to annoy Sturgeon.
The English anthem is great, so long as the words are sung right - "these dark Satanic mills."
The British one is idiotic, like standing up and saluting for Emperor Franz Joseph - for pillocks only.
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
I agree in your assessment of the American national anthem, but I have to say I think you're being generous to the Argentinian national anthem by keeping it off the bottom.
The very very worst ever though surely has to be the old East German national anthem - Auferstanden Aus Ruinen.
Absolute balls as to lyrics, the first couplet and indeed first 2 stanzas of SSB are magnificently visually arresting. Whereas GSTK is mythical being, semi-mythical being, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction.
Pompous abstraction? You don't even find it just a little bit ironic that 'the land of the free' was the last country in the developed world to abolish slavery?
"More than 15,000 people have signed up for 'Orgy on Shchekavystsa: Official,' a mass romp set up on a Telegram group in the event of Putin launching a nuclear blast."
This easily beats the People's Assembly's boring call for a general election in Britain.
Can’t help liking the Ukrainians. The Russian response would involve stupid threats and fictional weapons from an old Commando comic.
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
Same old Tories...
Williamson may be a favourite of the king. Some were surprised when he was given a knighthood earlier this year. He sounds like such a lovely guy. Minister without portfolio, huh? Has he got any spads by any chance?
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
Same old Tories...
Williamson may be a favourite of the king. Some were surprised when he was given a knighthood earlier this year. He sounds like such a lovely guy.
Well, apparently he is, in person.
Can't see it myself but then I've never spoken to him directly.
Back from afternoon tea at the Mandarin Oriental in Knightsbridge with Mrs Stodge. Decent but I think the Corinthia does it better (you'll note it's not just @Leon who dines in 5-star squalor or splendour).
Some were talking about the "creaking" nature of public services yesterday - can I add Transport for London to the list of those institutions visibly creaking? Huge gaps in service (in excess of 10 minutes) at times on the District, Piccadilly (12 minutes) and Hammersmith & City with the Circle line completely shut not due to engineering work but due to "train cancellations".
What does this euphemism really mean? Does it mean there aren't enough serviceable trains, there aren't enough drivers available to run a service or has TfL senior management consciously decided to reduce the service to save money?
The residual impact of the pandemic continues in passenger transport numbers - nearly 1,000 days on and tube passenger numbers are roughly 80% of pre-virus levels on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and 70-75% on Monday and Friday. Weekend numbers, however, are around 90-100% of pre-virus levels suggesting working at home hasn't translated to playing at home (so to speak).
We know Government finances are stretched and we also know TfL and other transport providers are basically on life support provided by the Government without which they would be basically insolvent as their primary operational model no longer works (or at least travels to work).
Will we see the Government impose inflation or indeed higher than inflation fare increases for London passengers in January onwards or will TfL be forced once again to look at reducing services (day time off peak is the place to start I'd argue) and even mothballing the Bakerloo Line?
Sticking 10-15% on people's transport costs isn't exactly going to alleviate cost of living concerns primarily, I'd argue, in the "Blue Wall" areas but elsewhere as well.
If I were choosing an anthem for a newly independent or rebranded country I’d plump for the happy birthday tune.
No need for anyone to learn it or the lyrics, and I could sit back in satisfaction knowing that at any moment round the world thousands of people are singing our country’s national anthem then blowing out candles.
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
Same old Tories...
Williamson may be a favourite of the king. Some were surprised when he was given a knighthood earlier this year. He sounds like such a lovely guy. Minister without portfolio, huh? Has he got any spads by any chance?
After seeing these screenshots I think we can discount the "lovely bloke in real life" chatter.
Also never trust a man who goes out of his way to post pictures of his dog shit production facilities on social media.
I've always liked the fact that the US doesn't freak out when someone interprets their anthem in their own way, unless the performance is bad. Whitney Houston, 1991:
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
Same old Tories...
Williamson may be a favourite of the king. Some were surprised when he was given a knighthood earlier this year. He sounds like such a lovely guy.
Well, apparently he is, in person.
Can't see it myself but then I've never spoken to him directly.
I am informed that Williamson has an excellent selection of reliable pens, which he is happy to lend to HMK.
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
Same old Tories...
Williamson may be a favourite of the king. Some were surprised when he was given a knighthood earlier this year. He sounds like such a lovely guy.
Well, apparently he is, in person.
Can't see it myself but then I've never spoken to him directly.
I am informed that Williamson has an excellent selection of reliable pens, which he is happy to lend to HMK.
"reliable penis" surely? Judging by favourites of previous kings.
On the merits (and demerits) of "direct democracy". One of the things that has fascinated me over the years is the issues on which initiatives and referendums produce different results than votes in legislatures. In the US, one of the most striking example is that majorities of voters almost always prefer civil rights -- everyone treated equally, regardless of race -- over "affirmative action" -- special help for disadvantaged groups.
That's been true in California and Washington state, neither especially conservative places.
(The different results can be explained, in some cases, by the greater influence of "intense minorities" on legislatures.)
It can also, perhaps, be explained by the strong tendency of US ballot initiatives to be deeply misleading.
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
Same old Tories...
Williamson may be a favourite of the king. Some were surprised when he was given a knighthood earlier this year. He sounds like such a lovely guy.
Well, apparently he is, in person.
Can't see it myself but then I've never spoken to him directly.
I am informed that Williamson has an excellent selection of reliable pens, which he is happy to lend to HMK.
"reliable penis" surely? Judging by favourites of previous kings.
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
Same old Tories...
Williamson may be a favourite of the king. Some were surprised when he was given a knighthood earlier this year. He sounds like such a lovely guy. Minister without portfolio, huh? Has he got any spads by any chance?
After seeing these screenshots I think we can discount the "lovely bloke in real life" chatter.
Also never trust a man who goes out of his way to post pictures of his dog shit production facilities on social media.
He does come across as an attention-seeking turd himself tbf.
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
I actually use the music from that (speaking of anthems!) as my go-to closing piece for funerals.
I love how mournful and slow it is. Sets up a suitably sombre atmosphere as the coffin leaves.
Does sometimes cause some comment that it's that Hovis theme.
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
I actually use the music from that (speaking of anthems!) as my go-to closing piece for funerals.
I love how mournful and slow it is. Sets up a suitably sombre atmosphere as the coffin leaves.
Does sometimes cause some comment that it's that Hovis theme.
A Scottish national anthem should set words by Burns, I am sure they will find something good.
As for England, well I am happy enough with Jerusalem, but what else? "I vow to thee my country" (perhaps jingoistic like "Land of Hope and Glory:) suffers from the fact that second verse is never remembered (or is regarded as too religious).
Shakespeare? A setting of "This royal throne of kings", perhaps not.
"The Rain It Raineth Every Day." might be the one.
That's despite the fact I'm now working from home.
That's all about not needing the heating.
Still haven't turned it on, for the matter of that. It's just on frost protection.
We've already had a frost here in Dorset. 11 October 2022 @ 05:54 -0.4°C
Had a couple in Wilts too. Definite car scraping.
And I haven't had one! Weird! Urban heat plume effect?
Local conditions, clear sky in the northerly a few weeks back. Also our house sits in a frost hollow (cold air seeps down the shallow fields to the south).
Ditto here. We're in a pronounced frost hollow, just off the Shaftesbury escarpment (famous for the Hovis advert, 'ee by gum')
I actually use the music from that (speaking of anthems!) as my go-to closing piece for funerals.
I love how mournful and slow it is. Sets up a suitably sombre atmosphere as the coffin leaves.
Does sometimes cause some comment that it's that Hovis theme.
Bit unfortunate if it’s a cremation ?
Makes no odds. Dead is dead, however you slice it.
As per Sunday Times, former Tory Party Chair Jake Berry confirms he informed Rishi Sunak & his incoming Chief-of-Staff about the complaint against Gavin Williamson... but he was appointed to a cabinet post anyway. https://twitter.com/Gabriel_Pogrund/status/1588945227511103489
Curious to read the Prime Minister's comments on the Times front page this morning - in some ways welcome but the truth is since the pandemic we have all become that bit more "reliant" on the State whether it was furlough, or other schemes to help business during the virus or to the bailing out of effectively insolvent transport operators.
I understand as a Conservative Sunak doesn't want to be a socialist or perhaps more accurately a State interventionist though many Conservative leaders and Prime Ministers have been quite happy to be interventionist in the not too distant past.
As an example, the amount people will pay in Council Tax is, for many local authorities, entirely dependent on what they receive from the Government as much as what they can raise locally.
Both Labour Newham and Conservative Surrey spend about two thirds of their income on services for Adults and Children. Surrey raises 70% of its income through Council Tax whereas Newham is dependent on Government grants for about two thirds of their income.
Currently, I believe, Councils are prevented from seeking high tax rises by capping but this didn't anticipate inflation of 10% and with Councils getting less and being able to raise less we are going to see a number of Councils in real trouble and falling back on Section 114 notices with all the political flak that follows.
A Scottish national anthem should set words by Burns, I am sure they will find something good.
As for England, well I am happy enough with Jerusalem, but what else? "I vow to thee my country" (perhaps jingoistic like "Land of Hope and Glory:) suffers from the fact that second verse is never remembered (or is regarded as too religious).
Shakespeare? A setting of "This royal throne of kings", perhaps not.
"The Rain It Raineth Every Day." might be the one.
Burns possibilities
Twa wives:
"There was twa wives, and twa witty wives, As e'er play'd houghmagandie, And they coost oot, upon a time, Out o'er a drink o brandy; Up Maggie rose, and forth she goes, An she leaves auld Mary flytin, And she farted by the byre-en' For she was gaun a shiten.
She farted by the byre-en', She farted by the stable; And thick and nimble were her steps As fast as she was able: Till at yon dyke-back the hurly brak, But raxin for some dockins, The beans and pease cam down her thighs, And she cackit a' her stockins."
Johnie Lad, cock up your beaver:
"When first my brave Johnie lad came to this town, He had a blue bonnet that wanted the crown; But now he has gotten a hat and a feather, Hey, brave Johnie lad, cock up your beaver! Cock up your beaver, and cock it fu' sprush, We'll over the border, and gie them a brush; There's somebody there we'll teach better behaviour, Hey, brave Johnie lad, cock up your beaver!"
Opinium is out, labour increase lead to 18 (46 28), taking 2 from the LDs otherwise unchanged but Starmer back in the lead by 3 30 27 as best PM...........
Opinium is out, labour increase lead to 18 (46 28), taking 2 from the LDs otherwise unchanged but Starmer back in the lead by 3 30 27 as best PM...........
Opinium is out, labour increase lead to 18 (46 28), taking 2 from the LDs otherwise unchanged but Starmer back in the lead by 3 30 27 as best PM...........
The French anthem is bouncy and cheering - it’s a top ten - but it’s really hard to sing which is a key failing. The Welsh anthem is considerably more stirring
I’d put the Welsh first, then Russia, then France third
Scotland bottom
Scotland doesn't really have a national anthem. They just play a Corrie's song, and pretend it's the national anthem.
I'd put the US bottom. The Star Spangled Banner is weak musically, and utter nonsense lyrically.
I agree in your assessment of the American national anthem, but I have to say I think you're being generous to the Argentinian national anthem by keeping it off the bottom.
The very very worst ever though surely has to be the old East German national anthem - Auferstanden Aus Ruinen.
Absolute balls as to lyrics, the first couplet and indeed first 2 stanzas of SSB are magnificently visually arresting. Whereas GSTK is mythical being, semi-mythical being, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction, pompous abstraction.
Pompous abstraction? You don't even find it just a little bit ironic that 'the land of the free' was the last country in the developed world to abolish slavery?
Opinium is out, labour increase lead to 18 (46 28), taking 2 from the LDs otherwise unchanged but Starmer back in the lead by 3 30 27 as best PM...........
Nice away win for the Foxes. Not shit at defending any more.
Maddison with two assists but won't get picked by Southgate.
Good game for Ward too. Should be Wales goalie.
Yeah. We were super poor though today. Very frustrating stop start season. Look a decent side 1 in 3 games. Dire in the other two.
I think Leicester now make other teams look poor. I am increasingly optimistic now for the rest of the season. West Ham away next week looks like we can get something, and while our Belgians may be away for a while, most of our team will get a good break. Ward and Amartey will be away for a bit.
Opinium is out, labour increase lead to 18 (46 28), taking 2 from the LDs otherwise unchanged but Starmer back in the lead by 3 30 27 as best PM...........
Opinium is out, labour increase lead to 18 (46 28), taking 2 from the LDs otherwise unchanged but Starmer back in the lead by 3 30 27 as best PM...........
That's a solid 15% swing from Conservative to Labour.
Add in the tactical voting swing and you get a Labour majority of over 200 with the Conservatives losing more than two thirds of their seats so not an extinction event but worse than 1997.
Comments
He has downsized so as to live within the means of the base salary.
Ireland's is good musically even if the lyrics are a bit well - odd.
It is truly impressive.
"Poland has not yet perished, So long as we still live."
But TSSB is, at least, great fun to sing.
Irelands call is abysmal.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=N_lCmBvYMRs
Imagine someone doing that to GSTK.
Bonus video: Horowitz at the White House has fun making the president stand up, and being a good émigré at the same time:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5TnIntmIm5g
(I will admit to a smile whenever I hear the words 'to freedom we call you, not press you like slaves,' but I have always assumed Garrick was being ironic there.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZMQJy53lBg&ab_channel=AmpFF
And then used it at a state occasion.
The Queen looked like she was eating a wasp.
Can't find the video of it, unfortunately.
https://youtu.be/LxUdL0CGgOU
@PoliticsVerse
List of Companies who have suspended Twitter Ad’s:
General Mills
CVS
United Airlines
GM
Audi
Mazda
Porsche
Volkswagen
American Express
Coca-Cola
Johnson & Johnson
Levi Strauss
Spotify
Ford
Dyson
Forbes
DIRECTV
Nintendo
Unilever
PBS
https://twitter.com/PoliticsVerse/status/1588903623207317504
Pretty much the Dow 30, right there
For a moment I thought you had linked to Rosanne Barr's attempt, which was musically the worst:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ls1YVhcLD2c
Rather than shareholders being able to vote to monetise products (Facebook, Instagram) that are still wildly profitable, albeit with questionable longevity, their profits are being gambled on red by a minority shareholder with outsized voting rights (13% shares, 54% voting rights).
I wouldn't touch it with a bargepole.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMzIk2pUuNU
By Roseanne Barr, decades before she emerged briefly as a pro-Trump spokes-whatever, prior to torpedoing her own TV sit-com come-back.
ADDENDUM - There is ONE truly revolutionary interpretation & performance of the US National Anthem -
by Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock 1969
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezI1uya213I
Admittedly, they shouldn't have done if they'd had batsmen instead of Brook and Livingstone. But they did.
Impermanence is the only permanent thing (apart from taxes)
I love how mournful and slow it is. Sets up a suitably sombre atmosphere as the coffin leaves.
Does sometimes cause some comment that it's that Hovis theme.
“Call Me Trump In A Dress”
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2022/11/05/kari-lake-republicans-rising-star-who-thinks-donald-trump-won/
"More than 15,000 people have signed up for 'Orgy on Shchekavystsa: Official,' a mass romp set up on a Telegram group in the event of Putin launching a nuclear blast."
This easily beats the People's Assembly's boring call for a general election in Britain.
Also set to words as 'Going Home.' I'm not sure whether that's deliberate irony or not, given the whole symphony is redolent of the homesickness Dvorak was feeling coupled with the death of his daughter.
Nice away win for the Foxes. Not shit at defending any more.
Maddison with two assists but won't get picked by Southgate.
Good game for Ward too. Should be Wales goalie.
The British one is idiotic, like standing up and saluting for Emperor Franz Joseph - for pillocks only.
The Cornish one is far too threatening.
https://twitter.com/mikeysmith/status/1588961320380076033
Some were surprised when he was given a knighthood earlier this year.
He sounds like such a lovely guy.
Minister without portfolio, huh? Has he got any spads by any chance?
Can't see it myself but then I've never spoken to him directly.
Back from afternoon tea at the Mandarin Oriental in Knightsbridge with Mrs Stodge. Decent but I think the Corinthia does it better (you'll note it's not just @Leon who dines in 5-star squalor or splendour).
Some were talking about the "creaking" nature of public services yesterday - can I add Transport for London to the list of those institutions visibly creaking? Huge gaps in service (in excess of 10 minutes) at times on the District, Piccadilly (12 minutes) and Hammersmith & City with the Circle line completely shut not due to engineering work but due to "train cancellations".
What does this euphemism really mean? Does it mean there aren't enough serviceable trains, there aren't enough drivers available to run a service or has TfL senior management consciously decided to reduce the service to save money?
The residual impact of the pandemic continues in passenger transport numbers - nearly 1,000 days on and tube passenger numbers are roughly 80% of pre-virus levels on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and 70-75% on Monday and Friday. Weekend numbers, however, are around 90-100% of pre-virus levels suggesting working at home hasn't translated to playing at home (so to speak).
We know Government finances are stretched and we also know TfL and other transport providers are basically on life support provided by the Government without which they would be basically insolvent as their primary operational model no longer works (or at least travels to work).
Will we see the Government impose inflation or indeed higher than inflation fare increases for London passengers in January onwards or will TfL be forced once again to look at reducing services (day time off peak is the place to start I'd argue) and even mothballing the Bakerloo Line?
Sticking 10-15% on people's transport costs isn't exactly going to alleviate cost of living concerns primarily, I'd argue, in the "Blue Wall" areas but elsewhere as well.
No need for anyone to learn it or the lyrics, and I could sit back in satisfaction knowing that at any moment round the world thousands of people are singing our country’s national anthem then blowing out candles.
Also never trust a man who goes out of his way to post pictures of his dog shit production facilities on social media.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxHnXajIex4
We were super poor though today.
Very frustrating stop start season. Look a decent side 1 in 3 games. Dire in the other two.
Search for ‘misleading ballot initiatives’, and there are inumerable articles like these.
https://www.americanbar.org/groups/crsj/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/voting-rights/ballot-measure-inaccessibility--obscuring-voter-representation/
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/cp/opinion/election-night-2016/why-are-many-ballot-measures-so-confusingly-worded
https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2020/11/6/21549654/california-ballot-initiative-proposition-direct-democracy
Twitter advertiser boycott organized by dark money Soros, Clinton, and foreign networks
https://twitter.com/JordanSchachtel/status/1588644704652255232?s=20&t=ZzmxzOu883KGIR_0eUMwaA
I'm not sure it's an improvement on the BA pilots.
Surprising to see them active on a Saturday, mind.
Cut him adrift from Government.
As for England, well I am happy enough with Jerusalem, but what else?
"I vow to thee my country" (perhaps jingoistic like "Land of Hope and Glory:) suffers from the fact that second verse is never remembered (or is regarded as too religious).
Shakespeare? A setting of "This royal throne of kings", perhaps not.
"The Rain It Raineth Every Day." might be the one.
https://twitter.com/ArchRose90/status/1588678764657283072?s=20&t=ZzmxzOu883KGIR_0eUMwaA
I understand as a Conservative Sunak doesn't want to be a socialist or perhaps more accurately a State interventionist though many Conservative leaders and Prime Ministers have been quite happy to be interventionist in the not too distant past.
As an example, the amount people will pay in Council Tax is, for many local authorities, entirely dependent on what they receive from the Government as much as what they can raise locally.
Both Labour Newham and Conservative Surrey spend about two thirds of their income on services for Adults and Children. Surrey raises 70% of its income through Council Tax whereas Newham is dependent on Government grants for about two thirds of their income.
Currently, I believe, Councils are prevented from seeking high tax rises by capping but this didn't anticipate inflation of 10% and with Councils getting less and being able to raise less we are going to see a number of Councils in real trouble and falling back on Section 114 notices with all the political flak that follows.
Twa wives:
"There was twa wives, and twa witty wives,
As e'er play'd houghmagandie,
And they coost oot, upon a time,
Out o'er a drink o brandy;
Up Maggie rose, and forth she goes,
An she leaves auld Mary flytin,
And she farted by the byre-en'
For she was gaun a shiten.
She farted by the byre-en',
She farted by the stable;
And thick and nimble were her steps
As fast as she was able:
Till at yon dyke-back the hurly brak,
But raxin for some dockins,
The beans and pease cam down her thighs,
And she cackit a' her stockins."
Johnie Lad, cock up your beaver:
"When first my brave Johnie lad came to this town,
He had a blue bonnet that wanted the crown;
But now he has gotten a hat and a feather,
Hey, brave Johnie lad, cock up your beaver!
Cock up your beaver, and cock it fu' sprush,
We'll over the border, and gie them a brush;
There's somebody there we'll teach better behaviour,
Hey, brave Johnie lad, cock up your beaver!"
Take your choice.
You meant it.
Saturdays by appointment only, catch my drift?
Add in the tactical voting swing and you get a Labour majority of over 200 with the Conservatives losing more than two thirds of their seats so not an extinction event but worse than 1997.