I suspect that a fair few SNP members who voted for Kate Forbes were expecting Humza Yousaf to offer her nothing less than the post of Deputy FM, and they too will see this as a humiliating snub. Humza is making no attempt to even heal the splits among his Parliamentary party and the remaining SNP membership grassroots, far less the wider Independence movement.
"Now, some will say that Forbes, a Highland MSP, ought to have taken the rural affairs job and used it to improve the lot of those parts of Scotland that were neglected under Sturgeon’s government. But rural affairs is not going to be a priority under Yousaf either. He’s a city boy. He loves cities so much that he represents one while living in another. He shows no particular interest in or understanding of rural Scotland. That he considers the rural affairs post a demotion with which to punish an opponent is perhaps an indication of the regard in which he holds this brief. For Forbes to have taken it under these circumstances would have been to acquiesce in an act of disrespect for communities that have been disrespected more than enough by the SNP."
Rural Scottish seats held by the SNP like Gordon, Angus, Argyll and Bute, Ayrshire Central and Perth and North Pershire are now prime Conservative targets
Ayrshire Central is certainly not a rural seat. The Conservative vote consists mainly of comfortably off retirees in Troon and Prestwick and staunch orangemen in Irvine and Dreghorn.
Plenty of rural villages in South Ayrshire included in that seat and small towns like Troon as you say are hardly likely to be pro Yousaf either
I suspect that a fair few SNP members who voted for Kate Forbes were expecting Humza Yousaf to offer her nothing less than the post of Deputy FM, and they too will see this as a humiliating snub. Humza is making no attempt to even heal the splits among his Parliamentary party and the remaining SNP membership grassroots, far less the wider Independence movement.
"Now, some will say that Forbes, a Highland MSP, ought to have taken the rural affairs job and used it to improve the lot of those parts of Scotland that were neglected under Sturgeon’s government. But rural affairs is not going to be a priority under Yousaf either. He’s a city boy. He loves cities so much that he represents one while living in another. He shows no particular interest in or understanding of rural Scotland. That he considers the rural affairs post a demotion with which to punish an opponent is perhaps an indication of the regard in which he holds this brief. For Forbes to have taken it under these circumstances would have been to acquiesce in an act of disrespect for communities that have been disrespected more than enough by the SNP."
Rural Scottish seats held by the SNP like Gordon, Angus, Argyll and Bute, Ayrshire Central and Perth and North Pershire are now prime Conservative targets
Ayrshire Central is certainly not a rural seat. The Conservative vote consists mainly of comfortably off retirees in Troon and Prestwick and staunch orangemen in Irvine and Dreghorn.
I would have thought the Ayrshire seats are amongst the seats the SNP are least likely to lose. A lot of unionists are going to be confused whether to vote Labour or Tory there at the next GE. Gordon and Angus are another story.
Big smile at Cicero towers this evening. I was not even going to watch the match, and just had the alert on in the background. Second half began to pay attention and the last 30 minutes have been agony: Its never the despair, Scotland, its the hope.. But wow. what. a. result.
On topic, while I realise the bar is lower than an earthworm’s tummy, I don’t think we should be giving Gav too much credit for doing the bare minimum we should expect of a professional politician.
On topic, while I realise the bar is lower than an earthworm’s tummy, I don’t think we should be giving Gav too much credit for doing the bare minimum we should expect of a professional politician.
The Humza Yousaf exit markets are going to be fun.
I'm going to go for late 2024/earlier 2025.
All dependent on the next GE.
I've discovered something very disturbing about Humza Yousaf.
He went to a grammar school.
No, he went to a private school like us. 'Hutchesons' Grammar School is an independent day school for boys and girls aged 3–18 in Glasgow, Scotland.' Indeed the leader of Scottish Labour, Anas Sarwar went to the same private school. Albeit Douglas Ross went to a comprehensive https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutchesons'_Grammar_School
Hurrah, it is remarkable what a private education for the children/grandchildren of humble immigrants from Pakistan.
What does it do for arrogant ones?
Not that you would know of course, Mr Eagles, given your legendary modesty...
I hate arrogance.
But I'm not a humble immigrant to this country.
Neither humble nor immigrant?
And perhaps French as well?
Recently I was described as a banker.
I see it is insult me month.
Sorry, not intended to insult. Apologies.
Isn't Mons. Macaron a French Banker?
Incidentally if you want do the full South Asian heritage Leaders thing, you could add in Leo Varadkar.
I am trying to think if any chancellors other than Butler and Zahawi have ever accepted another office in cabinet rather than going to The Top or resigning altogether.
If I'm honest, the only other one I can think of is Callaghan in 1967 who was shunted sideways to the Home Office after the devaluation debacle.
I hope the celebrations this evening are a bit more lively than the desultory efforts earlier in an admittedly damp Glasgow city centre. I was there for the day and became vaguely aware there were a few men wandering around in Spain scarves but it was all a bit muted.
A bit later, but before kickoff, some half hearted chanting about Diego Maradona (why?) from the Wetherspoons on George Square.
The Humza Yousaf exit markets are going to be fun.
I'm going to go for late 2024/earlier 2025.
All dependent on the next GE.
I've discovered something very disturbing about Humza Yousaf.
He went to a grammar school.
No, he went to a private school like us. 'Hutchesons' Grammar School is an independent day school for boys and girls aged 3–18 in Glasgow, Scotland.' Indeed the leader of Scottish Labour, Anas Sarwar went to the same private school. Albeit Douglas Ross went to a comprehensive https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutchesons'_Grammar_School
Hurrah, it is remarkable what a private education for the children/grandchildren of humble immigrants from Pakistan.
What does it do for arrogant ones?
Not that you would know of course, Mr Eagles, given your legendary modesty...
I hate arrogance.
But I'm not a humble immigrant to this country.
Neither humble nor immigrant?
And perhaps French as well?
Recently I was described as a banker.
I see it is insult me month.
Sorry, not intended to insult. Apologies.
Isn't Mons. Macaron a French Banker?
Incidentally if you want do the full South Asian heritage Leaders thing, you could add in Leo Varadkar.
And Bobby Jindal / Nikki Haley
Kamala Harris too. Just a heartbeat away from the top job.
I am trying to think if any chancellors other than Butler and Zahawi have ever accepted another office in cabinet rather than going to The Top or resigning altogether.
If I'm honest, the only other one I can think of is Callaghan in 1967 who was shunted sideways to the Home Office after the devaluation debacle.
Which order did Major do his round robin in?
Foreign Sec for about three months first, replacing Howe, then Chancellor after Lawson resigned.
But what about the returning Chancellors still to come? Like when Phil Hammond is welcomed back to Number 11 under Prime Minister George Osborne?
The Humza Yousaf exit markets are going to be fun.
I'm going to go for late 2024/earlier 2025.
All dependent on the next GE.
I've discovered something very disturbing about Humza Yousaf.
He went to a grammar school.
I believe any school in Scotland appended by 'grammar' only has it for historical reasons, mine certainly did.
Thanks.
Hopefully it won't be long until England follows Scotland's lead.
Far better if we followed Northern Ireland's lead instead.
In England some areas like Tyneside and Northumberland, Norfolk and Suffolk, Sussex and Surrey, Hertfordshire and Hampshire, inner London, Cornwall and Somerset, Bristol, Oxfordshire and Cambridgeshire, Herefordshire and Shropshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Leicestershire don't even have a single grammar school left now.
Fortunately here in Essex we still do, in Chelmsford, Colchester and Southend
It genuinely is moving for me that London, Scotland, and the UK are run by non white people, from different parties.
Why? I admit it is interesting in an historical sense and might be moving if you are of say Indian heritage but if you are part of the white majority i find your emotions weird.
He is of Pakistani heritage. Might be a way to go until we get a white PM of Pakistan or India though, although a few whites live, work or retire in Delhi and Mumbai now
Sonia Gandhi was leader of the Opposition in India, so came close. She was born Italian.
It genuinely is moving for me that London, Scotland, and the UK are run by non white people, from different parties.
Why? I admit it is interesting in an historical sense and might be moving if you are of say Indian heritage but if you are part of the white majority i find your emotions weird.
He is of Pakistani heritage. Might be a way to go until we get a white PM of Pakistan or India though, although a few whites live, work or retire in Delhi and Mumbai now
Sonia Gandhi was leader of the Opposition in India, so came close. She was born Italian.
Indeed but she never became PM and her mixed race son who is a former Congress Party Leader of the Opposition is facing jail
It genuinely is moving for me that London, Scotland, and the UK are run by non white people, from different parties.
Why? I admit it is interesting in an historical sense and might be moving if you are of say Indian heritage but if you are part of the white majority i find your emotions weird.
He is of Pakistani heritage. Might be a way to go until we get a white PM of Pakistan or India though, although a few whites live, work or retire in Delhi and Mumbai now
{Sonia Gandhi has entered the chat}
She was passed over for PM in favour of Manmohan Singh. Too white, you see.
It genuinely is moving for me that London, Scotland, and the UK are run by non white people, from different parties.
Why? I admit it is interesting in an historical sense and might be moving if you are of say Indian heritage but if you are part of the white majority i find your emotions weird.
He is of Pakistani heritage. Might be a way to go until we get a white PM of Pakistan or India though, although a few whites live, work or retire in Delhi and Mumbai now
Sonia Gandhi was leader of the Opposition in India, so came close. She was born Italian.
Indeed but she lost to the BJP and her mixed race son who is a former Congress Party Leader of the Opposition is facing jail
In fact she won the 2004 election. But was passed over for PM in favour of Manmohan Singh. India wasn't ready for an Italian-heritage PM!
"US teens say they have new proof for 2,000-year-old mathematical theorem New Orleans students Calcea Johnson and Ne’Kiya Jackson recently presented their findings on the Pythagorean theorem"
"US teens say they have new proof for 2,000-year-old mathematical theorem New Orleans students Calcea Johnson and Ne’Kiya Jackson recently presented their findings on the Pythagorean theorem"
I wonder whether Jeremy Corbyn is the only person to have ever defeated two sitting MPs at the same time, when he was first elected in 1983 (as mentioned earlier).
It genuinely is moving for me that London, Scotland, and the UK are run by non white people, from different parties.
Why? I admit it is interesting in an historical sense and might be moving if you are of say Indian heritage but if you are part of the white majority i find your emotions weird.
He is of Pakistani heritage. Might be a way to go until we get a white PM of Pakistan or India though, although a few whites live, work or retire in Delhi and Mumbai now
Sonia Gandhi was leader of the Opposition in India, so came close. She was born Italian.
Indeed but she lost to the BJP and her mixed race son who is a former Congress Party Leader of the Opposition is facing jail
In fact she won the 2004 election. But was passed over for PM in favour of Manmohan Singh. India wasn't ready for an Italian-heritage PM!
Zambia had a White president in 2014, following the incumbent's death in office:
Stupid, stupid move by Yousless. Truss may be holding her breath about her record.
Meanwhile Scotland suffers.
It will be interesting to see what the SNP membership figures are six months from now, and also if some SNP associations are struggling for activists to do leaflet drops etc? Hopefully there will be the odd Scottish poll too.
I suspect that a fair few SNP members who voted for Kate Forbes were expecting Humza Yousaf to offer her nothing less than the post of Deputy FM, and they too will see this as a humiliating snub. Humza is making no attempt to even heal the splits among his Parliamentary party and the remaining SNP membership grassroots, far less the wider Independence movement.
"Now, some will say that Forbes, a Highland MSP, ought to have taken the rural affairs job and used it to improve the lot of those parts of Scotland that were neglected under Sturgeon’s government. But rural affairs is not going to be a priority under Yousaf either. He’s a city boy. He loves cities so much that he represents one while living in another. He shows no particular interest in or understanding of rural Scotland. That he considers the rural affairs post a demotion with which to punish an opponent is perhaps an indication of the regard in which he holds this brief. For Forbes to have taken it under these circumstances would have been to acquiesce in an act of disrespect for communities that have been disrespected more than enough by the SNP."
If a whistle-blower should pop up and say Yousaf had, er, advanategeous treatment by the SNP machine, he is going to be given no quarter, no second chances. The ton of bricks will descend from great height - and with great accuracy.
My energy utilities direct debit is falling by over 40%.
That's 40% from the top line before the government £66.67 we've had for the last six months - but still a reduction from what I've been paying.
If this is widespread then there might well be a boost to consumer spending and government support.
Increasing signs that Putin has (touch wood) lost the gas war.
As for the battlefield I'd like to get some idea of exactly how much stuff the west has sent to Ukraine. I'm thinking mainly about tanks, fighting vehicles etc. All the focus is on tanks, Germany has sent 18 Leopards but also 40 Mordar fighting vehicles. The US has sent something like 140 Bradleys/Strykers. Or has it? Certainly plenty of stuff arriving by ship in Germany.
"Yousaf’s questionable decision-making hasn’t escaped the scrutiny of shrewd political commentators or even his own supporters. Safe to say, they’re less than impressed…"
"‘What a cheek,’ one senior SNP figure cried of the offer. ‘This move is going down like a cup of cold sick with the members,’ says another."
"And while SNP MP Joanna Cherry reacts to Forbes’s resignation – ‘what a shame’ – political commentator Kenny Farquharson writes soberingly: ‘FM pushing Forbes out is a sign of weakness, not strength. I would respectfully suggest keeping 48 per cent of your party on side is more important than pandering to the Greens.’"
I suspect that a fair few SNP members who voted for Kate Forbes were expecting Humza Yousaf to offer her nothing less than the post of Deputy FM, and they too will see this as a humiliating snub. Humza is making no attempt to even heal the splits among his Parliamentary party and the remaining SNP membership grassroots, far less the wider Independence movement.
"Now, some will say that Forbes, a Highland MSP, ought to have taken the rural affairs job and used it to improve the lot of those parts of Scotland that were neglected under Sturgeon’s government. But rural affairs is not going to be a priority under Yousaf either. He’s a city boy. He loves cities so much that he represents one while living in another. He shows no particular interest in or understanding of rural Scotland. That he considers the rural affairs post a demotion with which to punish an opponent is perhaps an indication of the regard in which he holds this brief. For Forbes to have taken it under these circumstances would have been to acquiesce in an act of disrespect for communities that have been disrespected more than enough by the SNP."
If a whistle-blower should pop up and say Yousaf had, er, advanategeous treatment by the SNP machine, he is going to be given no quarter, no second chances. The ton of bricks will descend from great height - and with great accuracy.
How many of those SNP MSPs/MPs that rushed to endorse continuity candidate Humza Yousaf thought that when the leadership contest was over that the same Sturgeon/Murrell background party machine would still be in charge at Holyrood and at SNP HQ at the end off it? They have all gone in six short weeks along with Nicola Sturgeon and John Swinney....
Isn't it odd that a 34 year old woman Sir David had an affair with while he was doing a play in 1970 didn't reveal they'd had a child together before her death in 1996? Even though Sir David found household fame with Only Fools And Horses, A Touch Of Frost and many, many more... Why should that be? We'll probably never know but what a strange story....
I suspect that a fair few SNP members who voted for Kate Forbes were expecting Humza Yousaf to offer her nothing less than the post of Deputy FM, and they too will see this as a humiliating snub. Humza is making no attempt to even heal the splits among his Parliamentary party and the remaining SNP membership grassroots, far less the wider Independence movement.
"Now, some will say that Forbes, a Highland MSP, ought to have taken the rural affairs job and used it to improve the lot of those parts of Scotland that were neglected under Sturgeon’s government. But rural affairs is not going to be a priority under Yousaf either. He’s a city boy. He loves cities so much that he represents one while living in another. He shows no particular interest in or understanding of rural Scotland. That he considers the rural affairs post a demotion with which to punish an opponent is perhaps an indication of the regard in which he holds this brief. For Forbes to have taken it under these circumstances would have been to acquiesce in an act of disrespect for communities that have been disrespected more than enough by the SNP."
Rural Scottish seats held by the SNP like Gordon, Angus, Argyll and Bute, Ayrshire Central and Perth and North Perthshire are now prime Conservative targets
Well if you are right, you are some kind of soothsayer because there isn't a shred of evidence thus far to suggest the Cons are going to hoover up Scotland.
Isn't it odd that a 34 year old woman Sir David had an affair with while he was doing a play in 1970 didn't reveal they'd had a child together before her death in 1996? Even though Sir David found household fame with Only Fools And Horses, A Touch Of Frost and many, many more... Why should that be? We'll probably never know but what a strange story....
Isn't it odd that a 34 year old woman Sir David had an affair with while he was doing a play in 1970 didn't reveal they'd had a child together before her death in 1996? Even though Sir David found household fame with Only Fools And Horses, A Touch Of Frost and many, many more... Why should that be? We'll probably never know but what a strange story....
The mother didn't die in 1996 - her husband did, which makes rather more sense.
"Yousaf’s questionable decision-making hasn’t escaped the scrutiny of shrewd political commentators or even his own supporters. Safe to say, they’re less than impressed…"
"‘What a cheek,’ one senior SNP figure cried of the offer. ‘This move is going down like a cup of cold sick with the members,’ says another."
"And while SNP MP Joanna Cherry reacts to Forbes’s resignation – ‘what a shame’ – political commentator Kenny Farquharson writes soberingly: ‘FM pushing Forbes out is a sign of weakness, not strength. I would respectfully suggest keeping 48 per cent of your party on side is more important than pandering to the Greens.’"
Struggling to see how the member for *Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch* squares 'Rural Affairs are so unimportant it's insulting to be given the opportunity to represent them in the Cabinet of the national government'.
Just catching up so the failed Health Secretary First Minister has appointed failed Health Secretary Sturgeon best mate and architect of her career ending GRR bill as Deputy First minister and made an offer she couldn’t refuse demotion to the close runner up in the leadership race, which she refused?
How can Prince Harry sue anyone for invading of his privacy when he has invaded everyone else's privacy including the girl who took his virginity in 2001 (before revealing after his cherry was popped she smacked his ass and sent him on his way) and exposing intimate details of Prince William's penis? 🤷♂️
Not really. Entirely consistent with Republican dogma that has sought to discredit the government, state agencies, etc, at every turn, as part of their ideology of small government.
In that sense it is dishonest because there is plenty that Congress could do on gun control, if it so chose, that would improve the situation without messing it up.
Not really, since they have to deal with the Second Amendment, and a Supreme Court that interprets it literally.
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
Not sure how you interpret that literally. It's gibberish.
The original (ha ha) intent was -
"A well regulated Militia" - the militia was the volunteer army created by getting everyone to down tools and get their guns.
"being necessary to the security of a free State" - there was a deep belief that the militia with their rifled hunting guns had seen off the British professionals. This was a myth. It took George Washington a lot of effort to train the army to be... professional.
"the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed" - it was believed that if you had a bunch of hardy frontiersmen, with their trusty long rifles, all able to shoot the corners of an ace of spades at a zillion yards, from hunting all the time... well, then you wouldn't need a standing army.
Also note that the Constitution gives Congress the power “ To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia”.
Always struck me as strange this provision is held separate from personal ownership of weapons.
Saw Lily in Newcastle in the ‘80s before she was famous - she had a great line about what you need in a riot (then very topical) “a pair of flat heels and a shopping trolley”.
TV presenter and comedian Paul O'Grady has died at the age of 67, his partner Andre Portasio says.
He died "unexpectedly but peacefully" on Tuesday evening.
O'Grady rose to fame in the 1990s with his iconic scouse drag queen persona Lily Savage, going on to present game show Blankety Blank and other light entertainment programmes.
Saw Lily in Newcastle in the ‘80s before she was famous - she had a great line about what you need in a riot (then very topical) “a pair of flat heels and a shopping trolley”.
TV presenter and comedian Paul O'Grady has died at the age of 67, his partner Andre Portasio says.
He died "unexpectedly but peacefully" on Tuesday evening.
O'Grady rose to fame in the 1990s with his iconic scouse drag queen persona Lily Savage, going on to present game show Blankety Blank and other light entertainment programmes.
Saw Lily in Newcastle in the ‘80s before she was famous - she had a great line about what you need in a riot (then very topical) “a pair of flat heels and a shopping trolley”.
TV presenter and comedian Paul O'Grady has died at the age of 67, his partner Andre Portasio says.
He died "unexpectedly but peacefully" on Tuesday evening.
O'Grady rose to fame in the 1990s with his iconic scouse drag queen persona Lily Savage, going on to present game show Blankety Blank and other light entertainment programmes.
Dry sad about Paul O’Grady. He wasn’t that old too. Used to enjoy his BBC Radio 2 show before the unceremoniously dumped him.
As for Cilla Black, really unpleasant character. Some great stories about her appalling prima Donna nature abound on places like Popbitch and digital spy,
Saw Lily in Newcastle in the ‘80s before she was famous - she had a great line about what you need in a riot (then very topical) “a pair of flat heels and a shopping trolley”.
TV presenter and comedian Paul O'Grady has died at the age of 67, his partner Andre Portasio says.
He died "unexpectedly but peacefully" on Tuesday evening.
O'Grady rose to fame in the 1990s with his iconic scouse drag queen persona Lily Savage, going on to present game show Blankety Blank and other light entertainment programmes.
Dry sad about Paul O’Grady. He wasn’t that old too. Used to enjoy his BBC Radio 2 show before the unceremoniously dumped him.
As for Cilla Black, really unpleasant character. Some great stories about her appalling prima Donna nature abound on places like Popbitch and digital spy,
Twitter Chris Musson@ChrisMusson BREAKING: SNP leadership candidate Kate Forbes was tonight offered a demotion to Rural Affairs Secretary by Humza Yousaf - after finishing a narrow second to him - and turned it down. Forbes, the Finance Secretary until today, will resign and return to the backbenches https://twitter.com/ChrisMusson/status/1640753485632118784
Chris Musson@ChrisMusson Source on Kate Forbes rejecting Humza Yousaf's offer of a demotion to Rural Affairs Secretary:
Wise move by Kate Forbes. This huge mistake by Humza Yousaf is right up there with the biggest error Theresa May made in her first 24hrs as PM when she sacked George Osborne instead of retaining the most politically astute Minister in Cameron's Cabinet in a very senior role in her new Government. But also right up there is appointing Shona Robison as his Deputy FM, she is no John Swinney and that will quickly become evident as she will be about as much use as a chocolate teapot when it comes to defending him and his government on bad news days at Holyrood. And there is going to be a lot of those in the coming weeks and months.
That 'stick it' quote/characterisation may come back to haunt her. I'm always wary of those sort of accounts, designed to make someone look particularly tough or good - remember May's people leaking about how she tore Osborne a new strip or whatever? Might have sounded good at the time, but in hindsight not the best move.
STV and BBC Scotland were both out on the streets getting the reaction from the public yesterday, one comment from a gentleman in Dundee stood out as he said he quite liked Kate Forbes as she was fiesty and she sounded honest. The SNP have a lot of Westminster and Holyrood seats to defend in the Highlands, and Kate is one of the most popular and high profile politicians from that area with a huge majority that reflects that.
SNP may hang on to Highland seats that they hold because of split Unionist vote. However Angus MacNeil in the Western Isles is toast. He'll lose to Labour. Ferrygate is the final nail in his electoral coffin. It's no wonder he backed Forbes for leader.
I definitely have Na h-Eileanan an Iar as a Labour gain at the next GE, good decision by SLabour to select Torcuil Crichton as the candidate there. Speaking of the worsening ferry crisis faced by our Island communities..
The Nashville school shooter legally purchased 7 guns, 3 used in the massacre, while being treated for an "emotional disorder." Tell me again how there's nothing that lawmakers -- whose literal job is to make laws -- can do anything about mass shootings. https://mobile.twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1640794251419176960
The Nashville school shooter legally purchased 7 guns, 3 used in the massacre, while being treated for an "emotional disorder." Tell me again how there's nothing that lawmakers -- whose literal job is to make laws -- can do anything about mass shootings. https://mobile.twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1640794251419176960
I won’t link to it but the Nashville police have posted bodycam footage of them going into the school - at least they acted bravely and swiftly compared to their peers in Texas.
The Nashville school shooter legally purchased 7 guns, 3 used in the massacre, while being treated for an "emotional disorder." Tell me again how there's nothing that lawmakers -- whose literal job is to make laws -- can do anything about mass shootings. https://mobile.twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1640794251419176960
I won’t link to it but the Nashville police have posted bodycam footage of them going into the school - at least they acted bravely and swiftly compared to their peers in Texas.
Very well done by the police there, apparently the whole incident was over in four minutes. They get a lot of grief, sometimes for good reason, but it can’t be an easy job to police somewhere with a routinely armed population and a lot of mental illness around.
How they can stop bad people getting hold of guns, on the other hand, appears to be one of those unsolvable problems. IIRC, getting a gun licence in the UK requires a letter from your GP stating that you are of sound mind.
How can Prince Harry sue anyone for invading of his privacy when he has invaded everyone else's privacy including the girl who took his virginity in 2001 (before revealing after his cherry was popped she smacked his ass and sent him on his way) and exposing intimate details of Prince William's penis? 🤷♂️
Because he has the same rights to sue as anyone else. And because he’s a self-absorbed narcissistic chancer.
Saw Lily in Newcastle in the ‘80s before she was famous - she had a great line about what you need in a riot (then very topical) “a pair of flat heels and a shopping trolley”.
TV presenter and comedian Paul O'Grady has died at the age of 67, his partner Andre Portasio says.
He died "unexpectedly but peacefully" on Tuesday evening.
O'Grady rose to fame in the 1990s with his iconic scouse drag queen persona Lily Savage, going on to present game show Blankety Blank and other light entertainment programmes.
Dry sad about Paul O’Grady. He wasn’t that old too. Used to enjoy his BBC Radio 2 show before the unceremoniously dumped him.
As for Cilla Black, really unpleasant character. Some great stories about her appalling prima Donna nature abound on places like Popbitch and digital spy,
Was going to say the same re. Cilla, a notoriously difficult person (though for some reason - good job I double-checked - I had mentally ascribed the infamous ‘coffee table’ story to her rather than Una Stubbs).
The Nashville school shooter legally purchased 7 guns, 3 used in the massacre, while being treated for an "emotional disorder." Tell me again how there's nothing that lawmakers -- whose literal job is to make laws -- can do anything about mass shootings. https://mobile.twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1640794251419176960
I won’t link to it but the Nashville police have posted bodycam footage of them going into the school - at least they acted bravely and swiftly compared to their peers in Texas.
Very well done by the police there, apparently the whole incident was over in four minutes. They get a lot of grief, sometimes for good reason, but it can’t be an easy job to police somewhere with a routinely armed population and a lot of mental illness around.
How they can stop bad people getting hold of guns, on the other hand, appears to be one of those unsolvable problems. IIRC, getting a gun licence in the UK requires a letter from your GP stating that you are of sound mind.
It's a very easily solveable problem. Bring in a licensing system and ban the sale of automatic and semi automatic assault weapons.
What makes it difficult is there are lying scum on the Supreme Court who value guns more than they do children, for all their pompous bluster on abortion.
And you can't repeal the ludicrous second amendment of the ludicrous constitution because the states are full of people who are even more hypocritical.
"Yousaf’s questionable decision-making hasn’t escaped the scrutiny of shrewd political commentators or even his own supporters. Safe to say, they’re less than impressed…"
"‘What a cheek,’ one senior SNP figure cried of the offer. ‘This move is going down like a cup of cold sick with the members,’ says another."
"And while SNP MP Joanna Cherry reacts to Forbes’s resignation – ‘what a shame’ – political commentator Kenny Farquharson writes soberingly: ‘FM pushing Forbes out is a sign of weakness, not strength. I would respectfully suggest keeping 48 per cent of your party on side is more important than pandering to the Greens.’"
The Nashville school shooter legally purchased 7 guns, 3 used in the massacre, while being treated for an "emotional disorder." Tell me again how there's nothing that lawmakers -- whose literal job is to make laws -- can do anything about mass shootings. https://mobile.twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1640794251419176960
I won’t link to it but the Nashville police have posted bodycam footage of them going into the school - at least they acted bravely and swiftly compared to their peers in Texas.
Very well done by the police there, apparently the whole incident was over in four minutes. They get a lot of grief, sometimes for good reason, but it can’t be an easy job to police somewhere with a routinely armed population and a lot of mental illness around.
How they can stop bad people getting hold of guns, on the other hand, appears to be one of those unsolvable problems. IIRC, getting a gun licence in the UK requires a letter from your GP stating that you are of sound mind.
It's a very easily solveable problem. Bring in a licensing system and ban the sale of automatic and semi automatic assault weapons.
What makes it difficult is there are lying scum on the Supreme Court who value guns more than they do children, for all their pompous bluster on abortion.
And you can't repeal the ludicrous second amendment of the ludicrous constitution because the states are full of people who are even more hypocritical.
There is no saving them- you get what you vote for. The usual shrieks online that the solution is armed guards in schools. So whatever - if they like having their children murdered for freedom its not for us to interfere...
The Nashville school shooter legally purchased 7 guns, 3 used in the massacre, while being treated for an "emotional disorder." Tell me again how there's nothing that lawmakers -- whose literal job is to make laws -- can do anything about mass shootings. https://mobile.twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1640794251419176960
I won’t link to it but the Nashville police have posted bodycam footage of them going into the school - at least they acted bravely and swiftly compared to their peers in Texas.
Very well done by the police there, apparently the whole incident was over in four minutes. They get a lot of grief, sometimes for good reason, but it can’t be an easy job to police somewhere with a routinely armed population and a lot of mental illness around.
How they can stop bad people getting hold of guns, on the other hand, appears to be one of those unsolvable problems. IIRC, getting a gun licence in the UK requires a letter from your GP stating that you are of sound mind.
It's a very easily solveable problem. Bring in a licensing system and ban the sale of automatic and semi automatic assault weapons.
What makes it difficult is there are lying scum on the Supreme Court who value guns more than they do children, for all their pompous bluster on abortion.
And you can't repeal the ludicrous second amendment of the ludicrous constitution because the states are full of people who are even more hypocritical.
There is no saving them- you get what you vote for. The usual shrieks online that the solution is armed guards in schools. So whatever - if they like having their children murdered for freedom its not for us to interfere...
The problem in the US is that their appalling constitution means they often don't get what they vote for.
Which is one reason it urgently needs updating.
But it will never happen due to how badly thought through the amendment/redrafting process is.
The Nashville school shooter legally purchased 7 guns, 3 used in the massacre, while being treated for an "emotional disorder." Tell me again how there's nothing that lawmakers -- whose literal job is to make laws -- can do anything about mass shootings. https://mobile.twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1640794251419176960
I won’t link to it but the Nashville police have posted bodycam footage of them going into the school - at least they acted bravely and swiftly compared to their peers in Texas.
Very well done by the police there, apparently the whole incident was over in four minutes. They get a lot of grief, sometimes for good reason, but it can’t be an easy job to police somewhere with a routinely armed population and a lot of mental illness around.
How they can stop bad people getting hold of guns, on the other hand, appears to be one of those unsolvable problems. IIRC, getting a gun licence in the UK requires a letter from your GP stating that you are of sound mind.
It's a very easily solveable problem. Bring in a licensing system and ban the sale of automatic and semi automatic assault weapons.
What makes it difficult is there are lying scum on the Supreme Court who value guns more than they do children, for all their pompous bluster on abortion.
And you can't repeal the ludicrous second amendment of the ludicrous constitution because the states are full of people who are even more hypocritical.
There is no saving them- you get what you vote for. The usual shrieks online that the solution is armed guards in schools. So whatever - if they like having their children murdered for freedom its not for us to interfere...
Unfortunately the solution they need would never be acceptable.
Firstly you ban magazine loaded pistols - the only pistols allowed are revolvers with a maximum chamber of 6. You can only keep 6 bullets at home per gun and only one pistol per adult registered at the household. This allows those who are determined that they need to be able to defend themselves in their homes to still believe that but limits the danger of someone picking up their six glocks with larger semi-automatic magazines and going on a rampage.
Anyone who wants a long barrelled gun for “hunting”, well that’s fine - you can have a non semi-automatic breach loading rifle and, say ten rounds at home but you also have to show you have a hunting licence to buy the gun and the ammo - after all if you are using it for hunting then you need the licence anyway so no imposition by the state.
If you are determined that when you want to go hunting you need a magazine fed semi-automatic to kill hundreds of deer in an afternoon then you can have one but you have to keep the magazines at the gun shop, gun club or local police station and collect them before hunting. This would stop people having instant access to bigger fire power and anyone in a crazy state about to go on a shooting spree is less likely to be able to withdraw their magazines and ammo from the official custodian.
But it would never pass because of some bs about freedom to bear arms.
The Nashville school shooter legally purchased 7 guns, 3 used in the massacre, while being treated for an "emotional disorder." Tell me again how there's nothing that lawmakers -- whose literal job is to make laws -- can do anything about mass shootings. https://mobile.twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1640794251419176960
I won’t link to it but the Nashville police have posted bodycam footage of them going into the school - at least they acted bravely and swiftly compared to their peers in Texas.
Very well done by the police there, apparently the whole incident was over in four minutes. They get a lot of grief, sometimes for good reason, but it can’t be an easy job to police somewhere with a routinely armed population and a lot of mental illness around.
How they can stop bad people getting hold of guns, on the other hand, appears to be one of those unsolvable problems. IIRC, getting a gun licence in the UK requires a letter from your GP stating that you are of sound mind.
It's a very easily solveable problem. Bring in a licensing system and ban the sale of automatic and semi automatic assault weapons.
What makes it difficult is there are lying scum on the Supreme Court who value guns more than they do children, for all their pompous bluster on abortion.
And you can't repeal the ludicrous second amendment of the ludicrous constitution because the states are full of people who are even more hypocritical.
There is no saving them- you get what you vote for. The usual shrieks online that the solution is armed guards in schools. So whatever - if they like having their children murdered for freedom its not for us to interfere...
The problem in the US is that their appalling constitution means they often don't get what they vote for.
Which is one reason it urgently needs updating.
But it will never happen due to how badly thought through the amendment/redrafting process is.
They do though. The congressman for this area posing with his family on their Christmas card with machine guns. People voted for him! They think that is both normal and admirable!
I suspect that a fair few SNP members who voted for Kate Forbes were expecting Humza Yousaf to offer her nothing less than the post of Deputy FM, and they too will see this as a humiliating snub. Humza is making no attempt to even heal the splits among his Parliamentary party and the remaining SNP membership grassroots, far less the wider Independence movement.
"Now, some will say that Forbes, a Highland MSP, ought to have taken the rural affairs job and used it to improve the lot of those parts of Scotland that were neglected under Sturgeon’s government. But rural affairs is not going to be a priority under Yousaf either. He’s a city boy. He loves cities so much that he represents one while living in another. He shows no particular interest in or understanding of rural Scotland. That he considers the rural affairs post a demotion with which to punish an opponent is perhaps an indication of the regard in which he holds this brief. For Forbes to have taken it under these circumstances would have been to acquiesce in an act of disrespect for communities that have been disrespected more than enough by the SNP."
Rural Scottish seats held by the SNP like Gordon, Angus, Argyll and Bute, Ayrshire Central and Perth and North Pershire are now prime Conservative targets
Ayrshire Central is certainly not a rural seat. The Conservative vote consists mainly of comfortably off retirees in Troon and Prestwick and staunch orangemen in Irvine and Dreghorn.
Fairlie, no mention of the Burgh of Culture, I am disappointed
Stupid, stupid move by Yousless. Truss may be holding her breath about her record.
Meanwhile Scotland suffers.
It will be interesting to see what the SNP membership figures are six months from now, and also if some SNP associations are struggling for activists to do leaflet drops etc? Hopefully there will be the odd Scottish poll too.
Comments
Ayrshire Central is certainly not a rural seat. The Conservative vote consists mainly of comfortably off retirees in Troon and Prestwick and staunch orangemen in Irvine and Dreghorn.I would have thought the Ayrshire seats are amongst the seats the SNP are least likely to lose. A lot of unionists are going to be confused whether to vote Labour or Tory there at the next GE.
Gordon and Angus are another story.
Meanwhile Scotland suffers.
A bit later, but before kickoff, some half hearted chanting about Diego Maradona (why?) from the Wetherspoons on George Square.
But what about the returning Chancellors still to come? Like when Phil Hammond is welcomed back to Number 11 under Prime Minister George Osborne?
That's 40% from the top line before the government £66.67 we've had for the last six months - but still a reduction from what I've been paying.
If this is widespread then there might well be a boost to consumer spending and government support.
New Orleans students Calcea Johnson and Ne’Kiya Jackson recently presented their findings on the Pythagorean theorem"
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/mar/24/new-orleans-pythagoras-theorem-trigonometry-prove
One of them discovered by a US President.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Scott
As for the battlefield I'd like to get some idea of exactly how much stuff the west has sent to Ukraine. I'm thinking mainly about tanks, fighting vehicles etc. All the focus is on tanks, Germany has sent 18 Leopards but also 40 Mordar fighting vehicles. The US has sent something like 140 Bradleys/Strykers. Or has it? Certainly plenty of stuff arriving by ship in Germany.
The Spectator - Humza’s latest gaffe has cost him a finance secretary
https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/humzas-latest-gaffe-costs-him-a-finance-secretary/
"Yousaf’s questionable decision-making hasn’t escaped the scrutiny of shrewd political commentators or even his own supporters. Safe to say, they’re less than impressed…"
"‘What a cheek,’ one senior SNP figure cried of the offer. ‘This move is going down like a cup of cold sick with the members,’ says another."
"And while SNP MP Joanna Cherry reacts to Forbes’s resignation – ‘what a shame’ – political commentator Kenny Farquharson writes soberingly: ‘FM pushing Forbes out is a sign of weakness, not strength. I would respectfully suggest keeping 48 per cent of your party on side is more important than pandering to the Greens.’"
https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/sir-david-jasons-wife-shock-29574562
Isn't it odd that a 34 year old woman Sir David had an affair with while he was doing a play in 1970 didn't reveal they'd had a child together before her death in 1996? Even though Sir David found household fame with Only Fools And Horses, A Touch Of Frost and many, many more... Why should that be? We'll probably never know but what a strange story....
Everything’s going so well….
How can Prince Harry sue anyone for invading of his privacy when he has invaded everyone else's privacy including the girl who took his virginity in 2001 (before revealing after his cherry was popped she smacked his ass and sent him on his way) and exposing intimate details of Prince William's penis? 🤷♂️
https://twitter.com/301military/status/1640828111355781121
Always struck me as strange this provision is held separate from personal ownership of weapons.
TV presenter and comedian Paul O'Grady has died at the age of 67, his partner Andre Portasio says.
He died "unexpectedly but peacefully" on Tuesday evening.
O'Grady rose to fame in the 1990s with his iconic scouse drag queen persona Lily Savage, going on to present game show Blankety Blank and other light entertainment programmes.
https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-65108130
(Back when comedy was fun and no one gave a fuck about "Pronouns" )
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LOIGfjcxZE
As for Cilla Black, really unpleasant character. Some great stories about her appalling prima Donna nature abound on places like Popbitch and digital spy,
https://mobile.twitter.com/nhannahjones/status/1640794251419176960
How they can stop bad people getting hold of guns, on the other hand, appears to be one of those unsolvable problems. IIRC, getting a gun licence in the UK requires a letter from your GP stating that you are of sound mind.
What makes it difficult is there are lying scum on the Supreme Court who value guns more than they do children, for all their pompous bluster on abortion.
And you can't repeal the ludicrous second amendment of the ludicrous constitution because the states are full of people who are even more hypocritical.
Which is one reason it urgently needs updating.
But it will never happen due to how badly thought through the amendment/redrafting process is.
Firstly you ban magazine loaded pistols - the only pistols allowed are revolvers with a maximum chamber of 6. You can only keep 6 bullets at home per gun and only one pistol per adult registered at the household. This allows those who are determined that they need to be able to defend themselves in their homes to still believe that but limits the danger of someone picking up their six glocks with larger semi-automatic magazines and going on a rampage.
Anyone who wants a long barrelled gun for “hunting”, well that’s fine - you can have a non semi-automatic breach loading rifle and, say ten rounds at home but you also have to show you have a hunting licence to buy the gun and the ammo - after all if you are using it for hunting then you need the licence anyway so no imposition by the state.
If you are determined that when you want to go hunting you need a magazine fed semi-automatic to kill hundreds of deer in an afternoon then you can have one but you have to keep the magazines at the gun shop, gun club or local police station and collect them before hunting. This would stop people having instant access to bigger fire power and anyone in a crazy state about to go on a shooting spree is less likely to be able to withdraw their magazines and ammo from the official custodian.
But it would never pass because of some bs about freedom to bear arms.