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For Boris Johnson fans, in short BJ sucks – politicalbetting.com

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  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 17,326
    Farooq said:

    Ok Biden. You can now legally have Trump killed. Supreme Court says so.

    Trouble is Biden's so far gone he probably doesn't know who Trump is...
  • numbertwelvenumbertwelve Posts: 6,807
    Cicero said:

    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    CNN just published SC judgement. 'The Supreme Court ruled Monday that former presidents are entitled to immunity from prosecution for official actions – but not his private conduct.'
    https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-immunity-supreme-court-decision-07-01-24/index.html

    "Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts," the ruling says.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw0y5228v1yt
    This is going to end very badly indeed.
    Yup. US democracy is withering and dying before our eyes.
  • 148grss148grss Posts: 4,155
    Pulpstar said:

    SCOTUS are just trolling at this point…

    Judges and the rule of law are infallible according to plenty on here. It's complete tosh in the USA and it's an absurd position here.
    Yup - the law is an ass.
  • 148grss148grss Posts: 4,155

    Cicero said:

    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    CNN just published SC judgement. 'The Supreme Court ruled Monday that former presidents are entitled to immunity from prosecution for official actions – but not his private conduct.'
    https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-immunity-supreme-court-decision-07-01-24/index.html

    "Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts," the ruling says.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw0y5228v1yt
    This is going to end very badly indeed.
    Yup. US democracy is withering and dying before our eyes.
    When was it alive and well?
  • rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 57,037
    Pulpstar said:

    Farooq said:

    Ok Biden. You can now legally have Trump killed. Supreme Court says so.

    The conservative judges will find something to reverse that opinion should that ever come to pass.
    Well, he could start by ordering the killings of the Conservative Justices. (For the avoidance of doubt, that is a joke.)
  • MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 52,484
    Andy_JS said:

    Forecast Lab maj up to 290 with ElectoralCalculus.

    https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/prediction_main.html

    Con seats range: 22 61 157

    Labour seats range: 331 470 510

    LDs seat range: 50 71 83

    Not much wiggle room for "we got it right" there then! Jeez...

  • MexicanpeteMexicanpete Posts: 28,320

    Farooq said:

    Ok Biden. You can now legally have Trump killed. Supreme Court says so.

    Trouble is Biden's so far gone he probably doesn't know who Trump is...
    ...and Trump thinks he's up against Barack Obama. What a carry on!
  • wooliedyedwooliedyed Posts: 10,061
    More in Common will be doing a VI today at 5.30 then final MRP call and VI Weds same time
  • MattWMattW Posts: 23,020
    edited July 1
    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    CNN just published SC judgement. 'The Supreme Court ruled Monday that former presidents are entitled to immunity from prosecution for official actions – but not his private conduct.'
    https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-immunity-supreme-court-decision-07-01-24/index.html

    "Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts," the ruling says.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw0y5228v1yt
    So the next designed delay is caused by wrangling over exactly where those dividing lines lie.

    My Trump will be claiming that they cover everything etc, followed by a reprise of the Appeal when he does not get his way.

    That's an abandonment of the principle that the Presidential part of the US Government is subject to even USA law.

    Amongst other things, does not that now make the excuse for creating black prison-torture centres across the world for waterboarding etc - that US law does not apply - applicable also at home for acts done by the US President?

    That will be one hell of a whirlwind to reap.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 17,326
    Chris said:

    Chris said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    Tories ? A lot of Reform supporters are ex-Labour, the people Mandelson belittled by saying they had nowhere else to go.

    Until they did.
    Do try to follow.

    I'm not talking about the voters - I'm talking about Tory politicians.

    They are the ones who have been pandering to the neo-Nazis and stirring up xenophobia for their own selfish ends.
    Well in a strange land where such people exist Im sure youre right but that is not the UK, We dont have Nazis, we have few Nazi politicians and consistently we are one of the least racist countries on the plant.
    "We don't have Nazis". Fool.
    Correct in the technical definition - a Nazi is surely a member of the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP for short). Oddly I think the Germans never used the term Nazi, only ever National Socialist.
    And don't really have the equivalent to Nazi's either. There are no politicians explicitly blaming everything on International Jewry, seeking to invade neighbouring countries etc. Its just the usual rubbish from the left - any one to their right is a Nazi.
  • RogerRoger Posts: 19,854

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    I think it's quite a good approach though he did miss a trick. Farage is such a ridiculous figure something along these lines might have been better or even a spoof on The Producers

    https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-e&q=john+cleese+doing+nazi+goose+step#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:72c5cb8b,vid:Tms0yk9kqVM,st:0
  • kjhkjh Posts: 11,772

    kjh said:

    Roger said:

    https://x.com/whotargetsme/status/1807720494126227474?s=46

    Priti Patel (Witham, majority 25,669, 353rd safest Tory seat), has started running Facebook ads in the last couple of days. Very unlikely the seat will change hands.

    19th safest Tory seat.

    If you were running those ads your biggest problem would be having to mention the name 'Priti Patel'. I don't know the constituency but that name alone would surely be a call to action for every potential voter to hunt for her nearest challenger
    LOL if I posted that, you'd be calling me a racist.
    ??? So we can't attack someone's politics now if they aren't white? Since when did the right go woke?

    I don't care what colour someone's skin is they get treated the same by me.
    Even funnier
    So you don't agree with that? You think that you can't criticise a black or Asian politician. Really. You really think that?
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 17,326
    eek said:

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    You can't get both - because if people were given a choice between Booths and Waitrose the Waitrose would be closing within a month.
    Have only ever used Booths in the Lake District but bloody love it. No idea if its just because I am in a holiday mood, but its a bloody good shop.
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 51,497
    Farooq said:

    Farooq said:

    Ok Biden. You can now legally have Trump killed. Supreme Court says so.

    As Kissinger said, "It is an act of insanity and national humiliation to have a law prohibiting the President from ordering assassination."
    Cool, cool. You pick Kissinger to be on your team if you think that's helpful...
    You're the one promoting the president ordering assassinations. I'm just pointing out that you're in good company.
  • peter_from_putneypeter_from_putney Posts: 6,956

    I understand that 9,000 of the 14,000 Postal votes in South Devon have been returned.

    Not sure if that tells you much. Other than in 2019, they skewed heavily to the Conservatives.

    9,000/14,000 = 64.3% i.e unsurprisingly very close to the national turnout percentage. How does the figure of 14,000 compare with the total number of postal votes forms issued in 2019? That appears to be approx 19% of the constituency's electorate and therefore likely to be very inflential on the result.
  • SandyRentoolSandyRentool Posts: 22,005

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    I miss not having a Waitrose near me...

    or is that "I miss having a Waitrose near me"...

    Pedants, please help...
    Once on holiday I overheard a conversation between two women trying to out-posh each other. One of them came out with the classic line:

    "I would be a Waitrose shopper, if we had a Waitrose."
  • 148grss148grss Posts: 4,155
    viewcode said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    TOPPING said:

    So, basically an open acknowledgement that financial institutions are being used as economic paramilitaries by the establishment to depose governments they don't like.

    As happened here a couple of years back

    "How markets are ready to ‘do the dirty job’ of fighting Le Pen
    Bond traders are already reacting to the risk of unfettered spending under National Rally."

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/07/01/how-markets-are-ready-to-do-dirty-job-fighting-le-pen/

    Establishment = your pension fund.
    I'm 33 - my pension fund is never going to be realised because in 40 years time either no one will be allowed to retire, or the climate is going to be in such a state that global capitalism will be unable to function as it currently does that the "value" of my pension won't really matter...
    Do you genuinely believe that? What is it about potential climate change that you think will end global capitalism? And 'no-one will be allowed to retire"? Really? If you are so fearful for the future why pay into a pension at all?
    Most people I know my age, even those not on the left, believe some version of this.

    And I didn't say "end global capitalism" I said "unable to function as it currently does". And that's because resource scarcity is going to get much worse over the next few decades.
    Which resources in particular are you worried about?
    Food scarcity is going to increase in the next few decades; we are already seeing drought and flooding hit wheat production globally, and that looks set to get worse. Water scarcity will increase globally as the planet gets warmer. If the Gulf Stream weakens enough, our farming specifically will go haywire
    Do you think that you personally are at risk of starving to death in a famine?
    No - but I live in the imperial core...
    Thinks

    Thinks

    Coruscant????

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Core_countries
  • OmniumOmnium Posts: 10,734

    Farooq said:

    Farooq said:

    Ok Biden. You can now legally have Trump killed. Supreme Court says so.

    As Kissinger said, "It is an act of insanity and national humiliation to have a law prohibiting the President from ordering assassination."
    Cool, cool. You pick Kissinger to be on your team if you think that's helpful...
    You're the one promoting the president ordering assassinations. I'm just pointing out that you're in good company.
    Meanwhile I'll have Henry as MY first pick:)
  • rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 57,037

    Andy_JS said:

    Forecast Lab maj up to 290 with ElectoralCalculus.

    https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/prediction_main.html

    Con seats range: 22 61 157

    Labour seats range: 331 470 510

    LDs seat range: 50 71 83

    Not much wiggle room for "we got it right" there then! Jeez...

    I find the idea that 50 is "the floor" for the LibDems to be bizarre. And while my opinions on their likely seat numbers have crept up during the campaign, they aren't quite so high. I would think the LibDems will end up somewhere between 35 (yes, that low) and 60, with the midpoint being somewhere in the 40s.
  • numbertwelvenumbertwelve Posts: 6,807

    Andy_JS said:

    Forecast Lab maj up to 290 with ElectoralCalculus.

    https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/prediction_main.html

    Con seats range: 22 61 157

    Labour seats range: 331 470 510

    LDs seat range: 50 71 83

    Not much wiggle room for "we got it right" there then! Jeez...

    Yeah I thought it was a bit rich to create those ranges. They have the high end for REF being c.80 seats!
  • BenpointerBenpointer Posts: 34,644
    rcs1000 said:

    Pulpstar said:

    Farooq said:

    Ok Biden. You can now legally have Trump killed. Supreme Court says so.

    The conservative judges will find something to reverse that opinion should that ever come to pass.
    Well, he could start by ordering the killings of the Conservative Justices. (For the avoidance of doubt, that is a joke.)
    Would those he instructed have a 'just carrying out orders' defence?
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 54,509

    Chris said:

    Chris said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    Tories ? A lot of Reform supporters are ex-Labour, the people Mandelson belittled by saying they had nowhere else to go.

    Until they did.
    Do try to follow.

    I'm not talking about the voters - I'm talking about Tory politicians.

    They are the ones who have been pandering to the neo-Nazis and stirring up xenophobia for their own selfish ends.
    Well in a strange land where such people exist Im sure youre right but that is not the UK, We dont have Nazis, we have few Nazi politicians and consistently we are one of the least racist countries on the plant.
    "We don't have Nazis". Fool.
    Correct in the technical definition - a Nazi is surely a member of the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP for short). Oddly I think the Germans never used the term Nazi, only ever National Socialist.
    And don't really have the equivalent to Nazi's either. There are no politicians explicitly blaming everything on International Jewry, seeking to invade neighbouring countries etc. Its just the usual rubbish from the left - any one to their right is a Nazi.
    As a Conservative candidate in Derbyshire has anti-Semitic slogans painted on the windows of his office.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/07/01/tory-candidate-office-daubed-anti-semitic-graffiti/
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 50,048
    bobbob said:

    Heathener said:

    bobbob said:

    I’ve read so much about the election but so little is talked about the elephant in the room

    Rishi Sunak is not white

    Some voters will not vote or be v reluctant to vote for a minority PM even if most won’t admit it

    It is reflected in the CON polling and the final election result though

    It’s taboo to even mention it because it’s not PC to mention race and people in their bubbles like to deny racism exists

    Just so we can cut to the chase, what are your view on Gay Rights? And on Ukraine?
    Gay rights are an important civil liberty as people should be able to do they want but some people are obsessed with an issue that doesn’t matter to most people

    You do bring up a relevent point. I don’t think the UK would vote for a gay man as a leader either . They wouldn’t publicly admit that though !

    From what I saw Ukraine weren’t very good in the euros but thats to be expected given the invasion
    The problem with the whole closet racism theory is that

    1) Rishi was initially somewhat popular, before he started serially torpedoing himself.
    2) There was barely any mention of race - even from the actual Roderick Spode Reenactment Club.
    3) His potential challengers inside the Tory party have a bit of sun tan on average.
  • Luckyguy1983Luckyguy1983 Posts: 28,346

    Farooq said:

    Ok Biden. You can now legally have Trump killed. Supreme Court says so.

    As Kissinger said, "It is an act of insanity and national humiliation to have a law prohibiting the President from ordering assassination."
    I highly doubt the President would be held legally responsible in his current condition anyway.
  • swing_voterswing_voter Posts: 1,464

    I understand that 9,000 of the 14,000 Postal votes in South Devon have been returned.

    Not sure if that tells you much. Other than in 2019, they skewed heavily to the Conservatives.

    9,000/14,000 = 64.3% i.e unsurprisingly very close to the national turnout percentage. How does the figure of 14,000 compare with the total number of postal votes forms issued in 2019? That appears to be approx 19% of the constituency's electorate and therefore likely to be very inflential on the result.
    I thought it was illegal to count them at this point?
  • 148grss148grss Posts: 4,155

    Chris said:

    Chris said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    Tories ? A lot of Reform supporters are ex-Labour, the people Mandelson belittled by saying they had nowhere else to go.

    Until they did.
    Do try to follow.

    I'm not talking about the voters - I'm talking about Tory politicians.

    They are the ones who have been pandering to the neo-Nazis and stirring up xenophobia for their own selfish ends.
    Well in a strange land where such people exist Im sure youre right but that is not the UK, We dont have Nazis, we have few Nazi politicians and consistently we are one of the least racist countries on the plant.
    "We don't have Nazis". Fool.
    Correct in the technical definition - a Nazi is surely a member of the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP for short). Oddly I think the Germans never used the term Nazi, only ever National Socialist.
    And don't really have the equivalent to Nazi's either. There are no politicians explicitly blaming everything on International Jewry, seeking to invade neighbouring countries etc. Its just the usual rubbish from the left - any one to their right is a Nazi.
    They aren't real fascist unless they are grown in the Fasci province of Italy... otherwise they're just fizzy right wingers.
  • algarkirkalgarkirk Posts: 12,493
    edited July 1

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    Yes. There are plenty of dim simplistic folk - most of whom vote for mainstream parties and always have. But terms like 'extreme' 'far' 'nazi' and all that need to be delineated with care.

    Most people - and the exceptions really are deadly - draw their line in two particular areas that characterise the extremes of left and right and of other extremes like religious: the use of state violence or factional violence for political ends; and systemic discrimination on the ground of race etc or religion.

    The number of people in this country content to see refugee children shot in their small boats is small (but not zero). The number of people promoting violent and deadly revolution from the left is small too (but not zero)

    It is in these areas the line should be drawn. The rest of people's rubbishy views is called being a liberal society.
  • SandyRentoolSandyRentool Posts: 22,005
    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    An exercise for someone: What is the closest distance between a branch of Waitrose and a branch of Booths?
  • OmniumOmnium Posts: 10,734
    rcs1000 said:

    Andy_JS said:

    Forecast Lab maj up to 290 with ElectoralCalculus.

    https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/prediction_main.html

    Con seats range: 22 61 157

    Labour seats range: 331 470 510

    LDs seat range: 50 71 83

    Not much wiggle room for "we got it right" there then! Jeez...

    I find the idea that 50 is "the floor" for the LibDems to be bizarre. And while my opinions on their likely seat numbers have crept up during the campaign, they aren't quite so high. I would think the LibDems will end up somewhere between 35 (yes, that low) and 60, with the midpoint being somewhere in the 40s.
    I can see them getting an even lower total. 10-12% or whatever it is can get you some seats, but it's a very fragile thing. (I'm a little biased against them though, albeit for no good reason other than being a little biased against them)
  • TweedledeeTweedledee Posts: 1,405
    148grss said:

    Pulpstar said:

    SCOTUS are just trolling at this point…

    Judges and the rule of law are infallible according to plenty on here. It's complete tosh in the USA and it's an absurd position here.
    Yup - the law is an ass.
    There's two different point here. Judges at some level have to have the final *legal* word, or you get infinite regresses. Hence you can neither appeal from the supreme court nor sue its members for getting it wrong (nor your own legal team). But the courts don't do executive shit so they don't have immunity for anything interesting like assassination. Executive wise we have the principle that the king is above the criminal and civil law, rex non potest errare. Whether that extends to PMs doing stuff under royal prerogative and whether the prerogative covers assassination I have no idea, though the case of Thomas a Becket is instructive
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 17,326

    bobbob said:

    Heathener said:

    bobbob said:

    I’ve read so much about the election but so little is talked about the elephant in the room

    Rishi Sunak is not white

    Some voters will not vote or be v reluctant to vote for a minority PM even if most won’t admit it

    It is reflected in the CON polling and the final election result though

    It’s taboo to even mention it because it’s not PC to mention race and people in their bubbles like to deny racism exists

    Just so we can cut to the chase, what are your view on Gay Rights? And on Ukraine?
    Gay rights are an important civil liberty as people should be able to do they want but some people are obsessed with an issue that doesn’t matter to most people

    You do bring up a relevent point. I don’t think the UK would vote for a gay man as a leader either . They wouldn’t publicly admit that though !

    From what I saw Ukraine weren’t very good in the euros but thats to be expected given the invasion
    The problem with the whole closet racism theory is that

    1) Rishi was initially somewhat popular, before he started serially torpedoing himself.
    2) There was barely any mention of race - even from the actual Roderick Spode Reenactment Club.
    3) His potential challengers inside the Tory party have a bit of sun tan on average.
    Arguably Rishi's biggest problem is not his ethnicity, its his wealth. Its just too easy to slate him for not understanding the common experience of most of the country. Hence the Sky TV anecdote.
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 54,509

    Farooq said:

    Farooq said:

    Ok Biden. You can now legally have Trump killed. Supreme Court says so.

    As Kissinger said, "It is an act of insanity and national humiliation to have a law prohibiting the President from ordering assassination."
    Cool, cool. You pick Kissinger to be on your team if you think that's helpful...
    You're the one promoting the president ordering assassinations. I'm just pointing out that you're in good company.
    Barack Obama will be breathing a sigh of relief tonight, as Trump isn’t going to be able to put him on trial for the murder of Abdulrahman al-Awlaki.

    https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/10/how-team-obama-justifies-the-killing-of-a-16-year-old-american/264028/
  • MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 52,484

    I understand that 9,000 of the 14,000 Postal votes in South Devon have been returned.

    Not sure if that tells you much. Other than in 2019, they skewed heavily to the Conservatives.

    64% turnout of postal with 2 days to go. Not bad
    2019: 12,100 issued with 10,700 returned.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 17,326

    I understand that 9,000 of the 14,000 Postal votes in South Devon have been returned.

    Not sure if that tells you much. Other than in 2019, they skewed heavily to the Conservatives.

    9,000/14,000 = 64.3% i.e unsurprisingly very close to the national turnout percentage. How does the figure of 14,000 compare with the total number of postal votes forms issued in 2019? That appears to be approx 19% of the constituency's electorate and therefore likely to be very inflential on the result.
    I thought it was illegal to count them at this point?
    I think they can be counted, but not the actual votes.
  • FeersumEnjineeyaFeersumEnjineeya Posts: 4,386
    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
  • peter_from_putneypeter_from_putney Posts: 6,956

    I understand that 9,000 of the 14,000 Postal votes in South Devon have been returned.

    Not sure if that tells you much. Other than in 2019, they skewed heavily to the Conservatives.

    9,000/14,000 = 64.3% i.e unsurprisingly very close to the national turnout percentage. How does the figure of 14,000 compare with the total number of postal votes forms issued in 2019? That appears to be approx 19% of the constituency's electorate and therefore likely to be very inflential on the result.
    I thought it was illegal to count them at this point?
    Counting votes yes, but surely not the still sealed envelopes?
  • TweedledeeTweedledee Posts: 1,405

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    An exercise for someone: What is the closest distance between a branch of Waitrose and a branch of Booths?
    Booths Chorley. Waitrose Charnock Richard. Say 5 miles (if you illicitly exit the service area). Mr Speaker spoilt for choice.
  • Nunu5Nunu5 Posts: 963
    148grss said:

    Cicero said:

    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    CNN just published SC judgement. 'The Supreme Court ruled Monday that former presidents are entitled to immunity from prosecution for official actions – but not his private conduct.'
    https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-immunity-supreme-court-decision-07-01-24/index.html

    "Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts," the ruling says.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw0y5228v1yt
    This is going to end very badly indeed.
    Yup. US democracy is withering and dying before our eyes.
    When was it alive and well?
    It's never been one.

    It's a Democratic Republic as opposed to a pure Democracy
  • mwadamsmwadams Posts: 3,582
    Cicero said:

    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    CNN just published SC judgement. 'The Supreme Court ruled Monday that former presidents are entitled to immunity from prosecution for official actions – but not his private conduct.'
    https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-immunity-supreme-court-decision-07-01-24/index.html

    "Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts," the ruling says.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw0y5228v1yt
    This is going to end very badly indeed.
    One day, we may see people argue that this was the event that led to the USA de-federalizing.
  • AnabobazinaAnabobazina Posts: 23,479

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    An exercise for someone: What is the closest distance between a branch of Waitrose and a branch of Booths?
    I assume "who cares?" is the correct answer?

    This 'debate' unites the snobs and inverse snobs in a whirlwind of tedium as they luxuriate in their snobbery, either of the garden or inverse variety.
  • algarkirkalgarkirk Posts: 12,493

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    I miss not having a Waitrose near me...

    or is that "I miss having a Waitrose near me"...

    Pedants, please help...
    Once on holiday I overheard a conversation between two women trying to out-posh each other. One of them came out with the classic line:

    "I would be a Waitrose shopper, if we had a Waitrose."
    Wodehouse "I would horsewhip you if I had a horsewhip".
  • OmniumOmnium Posts: 10,734
    Nigelb said:

    HYUFD said:

    Nigelb said:

    eek said:

    Nigelb said:

    Here it is.
    https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/23-939_e2pg.pdf
    ..Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature
    of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity
    from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclu-
    sive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presump-
    tive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no
    immunity for unofficial acts...

    So basically Biden could order the Supreme court and Trump to be killed and there is no comeback..
    Yes.

    It is an abominable decision, which basically dares Presidents to abuse their powers for fear of their opponents doing so in turn.
    Only if an official act within the powers of the Presidency, the SC affirmed there is no immunity for private, unofficial acts outside the constitutional powers of the Presidency. So lots of room for lawyers to debate which of Trump's acts were official and which unofficial
    https://x.com/steve_vladeck/status/1807788025008587061
    There's an important sub-part of the Trump immunity ruling in which #SCOTUS holds that "protected conduct" (that can't be prosecuted) also can't be used as *evidence* to establish other charges.

    Justice Barrett, otherwise concurring, agrees with the dissenters that that's wrong...

    ..This is a big part of why the ruling is a bigger win for Trump than many of us had been expecting. It’s not just which acts will be immune; it’s how this will hamstring efforts to prosecute even those acts for which there *isn’t* immunity. That’s why Barrett concurs only in part...


    (Note Barrett's partial dissent has no effect on any part the decision, which stands in its entirety.)

    Further:
    "Testimony or private records of the President or his advisers probing such conduct may not be admitted as evidence at trial."

    So private records - which are no part of official acts - are excluded as evidence.
    That the USA should want to cast their smug old constitution (of which I'm a great fan) to the winds to facilitate someone like Trump beggars belief. I really don't understand what they see in him.

    Biden needs to jump off a cliff, or whatever, he needs very urgently to get out of the way.
  • BarnesianBarnesian Posts: 8,578

    148grss said:

    Pulpstar said:

    Nigelb said:

    Supreme Court decision on presidential immunity should be out around 10am Eastern time.

    6 - 3 ruling with opinions by Alito and Thomas arguing the 6 should have gone further
    I mean, obviously the following is a joke and the Dems wouldn't do it: but if the ruling does accept the Trump teams legal theory then Biden could do the funniest thing and have Trump whacked. The Trump team did argue it would be legal for the President to assassinate a political rival or to do a coup, so they can't complain if Biden then does it...

    https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2024/04/25/trump-attorney-john-sauer-doubles-down-on-argument-that-presidents-are-immune-from-assassinating-political-rivals-at-supreme-court/
    Their argument is that Trump won the 2020 election, so Biden isn't legitimately the President, and therefore Biden does not benefit from immunity.

    Expect this argument when they are dragging JR Biden through the courts after Trump returns to the White House.
    But if Trump won the 2020 election he is ineligible for the Presidency in 2024.
  • 148grss148grss Posts: 4,155

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
  • MattWMattW Posts: 23,020
    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    CNN just published SC judgement. 'The Supreme Court ruled Monday that former presidents are entitled to immunity from prosecution for official actions – but not his private conduct.'
    https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-immunity-supreme-court-decision-07-01-24/index.html

    "Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts," the ruling says.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw0y5228v1yt
    Is the nature of USA Government that Biden as President can address how terrible this decision is, and that the Supreme Court has lost its way morally, ethically and legally?

    If the US President officially makes US forces commit a genocide, he cannot be held to account under this decision.
  • peter_from_putneypeter_from_putney Posts: 6,956

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    An exercise for someone: What is the closest distance between a branch of Waitrose and a branch of Booths?
    Booths Chorley. Waitrose Charnock Richard. Say 5 miles (if you illicitly exit the service area). Mr Speaker spoilt for choice.
    Seeking out the better value truffle oil?
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 18,275
    edited July 1

    SCOTUS are just trolling at this point…

    The America that won its independence from the British Crown did so with the firm conviction that they were building on the legacy of those in England who fought against the Crown to ensure that the Monarch was not above the law.

    The Supreme Court has now put the President - the King in a Republican constitution - above the law, overturning nearly four centuries of legal precedence.

    This is the moment at which the American Republic died.
  • FairlieredFairliered Posts: 4,922

    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    What is a Gail's?
    A posh bakery, mainly found in London and the Home Counties plus West Bristol and the posher bits of Cheshire like Knutsford. If you don't have one your area probably isn't expensive enough
    https://gails.com/pages/find-us
    None in Yorkshire - nearest are in Manchester. Explains why I've never heard of them.
    Ah, but you’ve got Booths!
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,679
    Nigelb said:

    HYUFD said:

    Nigelb said:

    eek said:

    Nigelb said:

    Here it is.
    https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/23-939_e2pg.pdf
    ..Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature
    of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity
    from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclu-
    sive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presump-
    tive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no
    immunity for unofficial acts...

    So basically Biden could order the Supreme court and Trump to be killed and there is no comeback..
    Yes.

    It is an abominable decision, which basically dares Presidents to abuse their powers for fear of their opponents doing so in turn.
    Only if an official act within the powers of the Presidency, the SC affirmed there is no immunity for private, unofficial acts outside the constitutional powers of the Presidency. So lots of room for lawyers to debate which of Trump's acts were official and which unofficial
    https://x.com/steve_vladeck/status/1807788025008587061
    There's an important sub-part of the Trump immunity ruling in which #SCOTUS holds that "protected conduct" (that can't be prosecuted) also can't be used as *evidence* to establish other charges.

    Justice Barrett, otherwise concurring, agrees with the dissenters that that's wrong...

    ..This is a big part of why the ruling is a bigger win for Trump than many of us had been expecting. It’s not just which acts will be immune; it’s how this will hamstring efforts to prosecute even those acts for which there *isn’t* immunity. That’s why Barrett concurs only in part...


    (Note Barrett's partial dissent has no effect on any part the decision, which stands in its entirety.)

    Further:
    "Testimony or private records of the President or his advisers probing such conduct may not be admitted as evidence at trial."

    So private records - which are no part of official acts - are excluded as evidence.

    Nixon would have continued as President with this Supreme Court.
    The SC has sent the Georgia case back to the lower court anyway to determine which of Trump's acts were private acts, if any, he could be prosecuted for
  • CiceroCicero Posts: 3,075
    Ismail Kadare, a giant of literature and the foremost man of Albanian letters has died.

    If you have not read his brilliant allegorical and magical realist novels, Broken April, The Castle, The Three Arched Bridge, The Palace of Dreams or the General of the Dead Army, you have missed an extraordinary skill and a majestic vision.
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 70,933
    They also expressedly overturn precedent, to give Trump yet more cover.

    One thing Roberts has done is CITE Blassingame, but vacate it, effectively.

    Blassingame would hold that communications as candidate are not official acts. But this flips that.

    Note, Blassingame is cited just 4 times.

    https://x.com/emptywheel/status/1807791151509819437
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 51,497
    edited July 1
    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Material equality for how many people? 10 billion? 20 billion? If there's a limit, how should the population be controlled?
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,679
    edited July 1

    148grss said:

    Pulpstar said:

    SCOTUS are just trolling at this point…

    Judges and the rule of law are infallible according to plenty on here. It's complete tosh in the USA and it's an absurd position here.
    Yup - the law is an ass.
    There's two different point here. Judges at some level have to have the final *legal* word, or you get infinite regresses. Hence you can neither appeal from the supreme court nor sue its members for getting it wrong (nor your own legal team). But the courts don't do executive shit so they don't have immunity for anything interesting like assassination. Executive wise we have the principle that the king is above the criminal and civil law, rex non potest errare. Whether that extends to PMs doing stuff under royal prerogative and whether the prerogative covers assassination I have no idea, though the case of Thomas a Becket is instructive
    Indeed, King Charles III is immune from prosecution completely in his capacity as monarch and that extends to government acts and acts of the UK PM taken under the royal prerogative, though the Prince of Wales isn't
  • eekeek Posts: 28,269
    edited July 1

    eek said:

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    You can't get both - because if people were given a choice between Booths and Waitrose the Waitrose would be closing within a month.
    Have only ever used Booths in the Lake District but bloody love it. No idea if its just because I am in a holiday mood, but its a bloody good shop.
    You will note that I reference the Booths in Ripon a bit. Even though it's a 30 minute drive away we will make explicit outings to it in November (to get the Christmas Catalogue) and again just before Christmas to collect our purchases.

    I suspect this year our only explicit journey will be in December to collect things but that's because twin B is doing her Masters in the Lakes so will we will be visiting her and so will collect the catalogue form the one in Keswick..
  • viewcodeviewcode Posts: 22,007
    148grss said:

    viewcode said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    TOPPING said:

    So, basically an open acknowledgement that financial institutions are being used as economic paramilitaries by the establishment to depose governments they don't like.

    As happened here a couple of years back

    "How markets are ready to ‘do the dirty job’ of fighting Le Pen
    Bond traders are already reacting to the risk of unfettered spending under National Rally."

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/07/01/how-markets-are-ready-to-do-dirty-job-fighting-le-pen/

    Establishment = your pension fund.
    I'm 33 - my pension fund is never going to be realised because in 40 years time either no one will be allowed to retire, or the climate is going to be in such a state that global capitalism will be unable to function as it currently does that the "value" of my pension won't really matter...
    Do you genuinely believe that? What is it about potential climate change that you think will end global capitalism? And 'no-one will be allowed to retire"? Really? If you are so fearful for the future why pay into a pension at all?
    Most people I know my age, even those not on the left, believe some version of this.

    And I didn't say "end global capitalism" I said "unable to function as it currently does". And that's because resource scarcity is going to get much worse over the next few decades.
    Which resources in particular are you worried about?
    Food scarcity is going to increase in the next few decades; we are already seeing drought and flooding hit wheat production globally, and that looks set to get worse. Water scarcity will increase globally as the planet gets warmer. If the Gulf Stream weakens enough, our farming specifically will go haywire
    Do you think that you personally are at risk of starving to death in a famine?
    No - but I live in the imperial core...
    Thinks

    Thinks

    Coruscant????

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Core_countries
    Thank you
  • Nunu5Nunu5 Posts: 963
    Anyone here good at statistics (I mean I know I'm on pb.......)

    I'm trying to compare two independent variables (age groups and sex) for one dependent variable (disease x prevalence).
    My data does not have a normal distribution. A multiple regression does not work because age groups are ordinal?
  • Nunu5Nunu5 Posts: 963
    Nunu5 said:

    Anyone here good at statistics (I mean I know I'm on pb.......)

    I'm trying to compare two independent variables (age groups and sex) for one dependent variable (disease x prevalence).
    My data does not have a normal distribution. A multiple regression does not work because age groups are ordinal?

    So which stat test should I use .....I think a type of ANOVA but I'm unsure which one
  • eekeek Posts: 28,269
    https://x.com/Gerashchenko_en/status/1807733868088213507

    Peter Fouché, British combat medic and volunteer, has died defending Ukraine.

    Peter saved over 200 lives of our Defenders.

    In March 2022 Peter Fouché came to Ukraine as a volunteer. Later, he joined the Territorial Guards. In January 2024, Peter Fouché officially joined the AFU as a combat medic.

    Peter was the co-founder of Project Konstantin that evacuates injured soldiers and does medical training.

    He has a 15 year old daughter Nichola - he went to Ukraine for her.

    Eternal memory and eternal glory to the Hero. Your sacrifice will never be forgotten.

    📸:
    @KonstantinTeam
    / Facebook
  • Jim_the_LurkerJim_the_Lurker Posts: 187

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    An exercise for someone: What is the closest distance between a branch of Waitrose and a branch of Booths?
    Booths Chorley. Waitrose Charnock Richard. Say 5 miles (if you illicitly exit the service area). Mr Speaker spoilt for choice.
    Wilmslow Waitrose / Knutsford Booths probably similar (may be more like 6 or 7 miles) - sums up the difference between the two towns in my opinion.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 95,994
    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    CNN just published SC judgement. 'The Supreme Court ruled Monday that former presidents are entitled to immunity from prosecution for official actions – but not his private conduct.'
    https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-immunity-supreme-court-decision-07-01-24/index.html

    "Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts," the ruling says.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw0y5228v1yt
    Insanity. Even kings were in practice usually more constrained.
  • FeersumEnjineeyaFeersumEnjineeya Posts: 4,386
    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Rationality is no more an ideology than atheism is a religion.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 95,994
    eek said:

    Nigelb said:

    Here it is.
    https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/23-939_e2pg.pdf
    ..Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature
    of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity
    from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclu-
    sive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presump-
    tive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no
    immunity for unofficial acts...

    So basically Biden could order the Supreme court and Trump to be killed and there is no comeback..
    Trump's lawyer repeatedly suggested such acts might conceivably be official acts which would be protected.
  • boulayboulay Posts: 5,453
    Cicero said:

    Ismail Kadare, a giant of literature and the foremost man of Albanian letters has died.

    If you have not read his brilliant allegorical and magical realist novels, Broken April, The Castle, The Three Arched Bridge, The Palace of Dreams or the General of the Dead Army, you have missed an extraordinary skill and a majestic vision.

    His “Tales told by a Taxi driver” is my fave.
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 70,933
    rcs1000 said:

    Pulpstar said:

    Farooq said:

    Ok Biden. You can now legally have Trump killed. Supreme Court says so.

    The conservative judges will find something to reverse that opinion should that ever come to pass.
    Well, he could start by ordering the killings of the Conservative Justices. (For the avoidance of doubt, that is a joke.)
    Sadly, it really isn't, if a President were to have a military special forces team willing to obey such an order.
    The only remedy would be impeachment - assuming then that Congress even dared to try.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 95,994
    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    OK, this time the Tory is being a crybaby.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,679
    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Yes Stalin was materially committed to equality for all, he just had the royal family and a few million kulaks murdered on the way to ease the path to utopia
  • Sean_FSean_F Posts: 37,280
    HYUFD said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Yes Stalin was materially committed to equality for all, he just had the royal family and a few million kulaks murdered on the way to ease the path to utopia
    Yes, but Stalin’s victims had it coming. Only the far right target innocents.
  • TweedledeeTweedledee Posts: 1,405

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    An exercise for someone: What is the closest distance between a branch of Waitrose and a branch of Booths?
    I assume "who cares?" is the correct answer?

    This 'debate' unites the snobs and inverse snobs in a whirlwind of tedium as they luxuriate in their snobbery, either of the garden or inverse variety.
    The desire to get value for money for grocery shopping is what unites us as one big human family. Snobbery lies in affecting to be above such mundanities.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 122,679
    edited July 1
    MattW said:

    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    CNN just published SC judgement. 'The Supreme Court ruled Monday that former presidents are entitled to immunity from prosecution for official actions – but not his private conduct.'
    https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-immunity-supreme-court-decision-07-01-24/index.html

    "Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts," the ruling says.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cw0y5228v1yt
    Is the nature of USA Government that Biden as President can address how terrible this decision is, and that the Supreme Court has lost its way morally, ethically and legally?

    If the US President officially makes US forces commit a genocide, he cannot be held to account under this decision.
    Unless by US voters now no, assuming the US remains outside the ICJ which might otherwise be an issue if he went abroad
  • wooliedyedwooliedyed Posts: 10,061
    And final weeks polling is off.......
    NEW: @RestisPolitics / JLP poll, June 28th - July 1st 2024

    *Labour lead at 15 points*

    Change on last week in brackets

    LAB: 39% (-2)
    CON: 24% (-1)
    REF: 16% (+1)
    LDEM: 10% (-1)
    GRN: 5% (-)

    Tables: jlpartners.co.uk/polling-results
  • AlanbrookeAlanbrooke Posts: 25,365
    Sean_F said:

    HYUFD said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Yes Stalin was materially committed to equality for all, he just had the royal family and a few million kulaks murdered on the way to ease the path to utopia
    Yes, but Stalin’s victims had it coming. Only the far right target innocents.
    As I was driving through Rouen I found myself on Boulevard Lenine

    Who names a street after a man who mudered between 4 and 8 million people ?
  • Sean_FSean_F Posts: 37,280
    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    The far left just hate different groups to the far right (although far left movements are frequently in practice, racist, anti-Semitic, misogynistic).
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,089
    eek said:

    eek said:

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    You can't get both - because if people were given a choice between Booths and Waitrose the Waitrose would be closing within a month.
    Have only ever used Booths in the Lake District but bloody love it. No idea if its just because I am in a holiday mood, but its a bloody good shop.
    You will note that I reference the Booths in Ripon a bit. Even though it's a 30 minute drive away we will make explicit outings to it in November (to get the Christmas Catalogue) and again just before Christmas to collect our purchases.

    I suspect this year our only explicit journey will be in December to collect things but that's because twin B is doing her Masters in the Lakes so will we will be visiting her and so will collect the catalogue form the one in Keswick..
    Martin Baxter's work is usually top notch but he missed the fact that Booth's shoppers would literally rather die than vote for something as uncouth as Reform :D
  • carnforthcarnforth Posts: 4,541
    edited July 1
    Small Wimbledon Men's bets:

    At 250/1 Frances Tiafoe (as amusing long bets)
    At 100/1 Casper Ruud
    At 40/1 Stafanos Tsitsipas
    At 33/1 Tommy Paul
    At 12/5 Carlos Alcaraz (Just because I support him)

    (Actually, I took all these each-way, at half odds for the second place part).

    Anyone else betting on Wimbledon?
  • 148grss148grss Posts: 4,155
    HYUFD said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Yes Stalin was materially committed to equality for all, he just had the royal family and a few million kulaks murdered on the way to ease the path to utopia
    As I've said many times - I'm an anarchist not a state communist - so I'm going to agree with many of the criticisms of Stalinism.
  • AlanbrookeAlanbrooke Posts: 25,365
    Farooq said:

    HYUFD said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Yes Stalin was materially committed to equality for all, he just had the royal family and a few million kulaks murdered on the way to ease the path to utopia
    So... he made the kulaks and the tsar materially equal :lol:

    But point of pedantry, I've never heard of anything that points to Stalin's involvement in the Romanov's killings.
    Murders I think you mean
  • numbertwelvenumbertwelve Posts: 6,807

    And final weeks polling is off.......
    NEW: @RestisPolitics / JLP poll, June 28th - July 1st 2024

    *Labour lead at 15 points*

    Change on last week in brackets

    LAB: 39% (-2)
    CON: 24% (-1)
    REF: 16% (+1)
    LDEM: 10% (-1)
    GRN: 5% (-)

    Tables: jlpartners.co.uk/polling-results

    That’s an interesting one. Although EC is more pessimistic, I think the Tories would hold about 130-140 or so on that kind of result.
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 70,933
    Sotomayor:
    "...Looking beyond the fate of this particular prosecution, the long-term consequences of today’s decision are stark. The Court effectively creates a law-free zone around the President, upsetting the status quo that has existed since the Founding. This new official-acts immunity now “lies about like a loaded weapon” for any President that wishes to place his own interests, his own political survival, or his own financial gain, above the interests of the Nation. Korematsu v. United States, 323 U. S. 214, 246 (1944) (Jackson, J., dissenting). The President of the United States is the most powerful person in the country, and possibly the world. When he uses his official powers in any way, under the majority’s reasoning, he now will be insulated from criminal prosecution. Orders the Navy’s Seal Team 6 to assassinate a political rival? Immune. Organizes a military coup to hold onto power? Immune. Takes a bribe in exchange for a pardon? Immune. Immune, immune, immune.

    Let the President violate the law, let him exploit the trappings of his office for personal gain, let him use his official power for evil ends. Because if he knew that he may one day face liability for breaking the law, he might not be as bold and fearless as we would like him to be. That is the majority’s message today...
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,089
    edited July 1

    And final weeks polling is off.......
    NEW: @RestisPolitics / JLP poll, June 28th - July 1st 2024

    *Labour lead at 15 points*

    Change on last week in brackets

    LAB: 39% (-2)
    CON: 24% (-1)
    REF: 16% (+1)
    LDEM: 10% (-1)
    GRN: 5% (-)

    Tables: jlpartners.co.uk/polling-results

    Remember JLPartners take the Tory score, add a bit on top then go back and stick fresh lashings on it again. If the Tory vote exceeds 24% it's a heavy polling miss all round.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 50,048
    viewcode said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    TOPPING said:

    So, basically an open acknowledgement that financial institutions are being used as economic paramilitaries by the establishment to depose governments they don't like.

    As happened here a couple of years back

    "How markets are ready to ‘do the dirty job’ of fighting Le Pen
    Bond traders are already reacting to the risk of unfettered spending under National Rally."

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/07/01/how-markets-are-ready-to-do-dirty-job-fighting-le-pen/

    Establishment = your pension fund.
    I'm 33 - my pension fund is never going to be realised because in 40 years time either no one will be allowed to retire, or the climate is going to be in such a state that global capitalism will be unable to function as it currently does that the "value" of my pension won't really matter...
    Do you genuinely believe that? What is it about potential climate change that you think will end global capitalism? And 'no-one will be allowed to retire"? Really? If you are so fearful for the future why pay into a pension at all?
    Most people I know my age, even those not on the left, believe some version of this.

    And I didn't say "end global capitalism" I said "unable to function as it currently does". And that's because resource scarcity is going to get much worse over the next few decades.
    Which resources in particular are you worried about?
    Food scarcity is going to increase in the next few decades; we are already seeing drought and flooding hit wheat production globally, and that looks set to get worse. Water scarcity will increase globally as the planet gets warmer. If the Gulf Stream weakens enough, our farming specifically will go haywire
    Do you think that you personally are at risk of starving to death in a famine?
    No - but I live in the imperial core...
    Thinks

    Thinks

    Coruscant????

    Trantor?
  • JosiasJessopJosiasJessop Posts: 42,472

    "My Lady Jane" on Prime is utterly barmy.

    And utterly wonderful.

    King Edward and Princess Elizabeth are black, but that sort-of becomes inconsequential when it is revealed that Lady Jane Grey marries a horse. ;)

    Sounds like a knock off of The Great

    Asking for a friend - how intimately is lady Jane's marriage portrayed?
    May I ask what "The Great" is/was?

    In the TV series, Jane's marriage starts off as an arranged/forced one, but she and Dudley grow to love each other as it goes on. And as for intimately; yes, there is a fair amount of sex in it, as well as sexual references. Although never when Dudley is a horse...
  • FrancisUrquhartFrancisUrquhart Posts: 81,813
    edited July 1
    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    The danger is if you label all these people as Nazi sympathiser you alienate them and push them even further into false prophets like a Farage or Corbyn. I totally disagree with Corbyn on basically everything, but I never label the wide base of support he had as far left, antisemites, etc (even though a core of his supporters are). Most were good people who the system isn't working for and looking for somebody to make their life better and attracted by somebody who proposed simple solutions that were attractive.

    If we look at the XR. They also had for a while a large support base. I would suggest they were also been hoodwinked by people who are actually Marxists and whose only real goal is to overthrow the capitalist system. They are using the concerns over the environment to garner support.

    If we labelled everybody who went to those protests are Marxist, far left, eco-fascists, it wouldn't have done any good. Instead, pointing out repeatedly the hypocrisy of the leadership and how they aren't just cuddling tree huggers as resulted in XR dying. What we are left with is a hardcore of a few 100 extremists who jump from one cause to another smashing up banks, art galleries, etc.

    You defeat these people by concentrating on the leadership and consistently pointing out their behaviour and flaws in their arguments. You also highlight the actual racists, the marxists, the antisemites... because the British public as a whole really don't like any of that. This is why XR lost support, Corbyn support dissolved away. Farage's will as well if you take the right approach.

    You don't do so by labelling 20% of the population as neo-Nazis, when they aren't.
  • MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 52,484
    Pulpstar said:

    And final weeks polling is off.......
    NEW: @RestisPolitics / JLP poll, June 28th - July 1st 2024

    *Labour lead at 15 points*

    Change on last week in brackets

    LAB: 39% (-2)
    CON: 24% (-1)
    REF: 16% (+1)
    LDEM: 10% (-1)
    GRN: 5% (-)

    Tables: jlpartners.co.uk/polling-results

    Remember JLPartners take the Tory score, add a bit on top then go back and stick fresh lashings on it again. If the Tory vote exceeds 24% it's a heavy polling miss all round.
    Other than by JLPartners!
  • 148grss148grss Posts: 4,155

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Rationality is no more an ideology than atheism is a religion.
    I would like to think that - but it isn't the case. Rationality isn't the same as factual. There are immutable facts (1+1=2, for example) but whether something is rational or not is subjective. I'm sure the average Roman politician who sacrificed a bull to the gods knew, not believed but knew, they were acting rationally because the gods must be appeased and, even if it wouldn't sway the gods or if the gods don't exist, it's still in their interest to be seen to be pious.
  • Casino_RoyaleCasino_Royale Posts: 60,282

    And final weeks polling is off.......
    NEW: @RestisPolitics / JLP poll, June 28th - July 1st 2024

    *Labour lead at 15 points*

    Change on last week in brackets

    LAB: 39% (-2)
    CON: 24% (-1)
    REF: 16% (+1)
    LDEM: 10% (-1)
    GRN: 5% (-)

    Tables: jlpartners.co.uk/polling-results

    Not awful for the Conservatives, particularly if Reform is slightly overcooked.

    LDs look a bit low and Labour too high, FWIW.
  • BarnesianBarnesian Posts: 8,578
    Nigelb said:

    Here's one for our resident conspiracy theorists.

    Here is the very strange flight path the Russian plane that ended up parked beside Trump’s plane at Dulles airport flew to avoid flight restrictions due to sanctions over the war in Ukraine. Apparently the plane was allowed to land in New York and D.C in order to fly diplomats and maybe spies out of the U.S.
    I have flown to both airports many times. There are a lot of spaces to park planes at both JFK and Dulles. Parking the Russian plane in such close proximity to a presidential candidates plane could be considered a security breach if the candidate was not an associate of Russia and possibly a Russian asset.
    Trump’s Secret Service detail had to approve of Putin’s plane parking so close to Trump and his plane. As well as approve a UAE plane lining up beside Trump and the Russian plane. Very suspicious...

    https://x.com/RealMartyT7/status/1807218142889783298

    I think the conspiracy theory is that Biden was somehow nobbled just before the debate. Evidence is the shocking show he put on and the contrast with the day after.
    Here is one theory:
    https://x.com/i/status/1807603930601578971
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,089

    Pulpstar said:

    And final weeks polling is off.......
    NEW: @RestisPolitics / JLP poll, June 28th - July 1st 2024

    *Labour lead at 15 points*

    Change on last week in brackets

    LAB: 39% (-2)
    CON: 24% (-1)
    REF: 16% (+1)
    LDEM: 10% (-1)
    GRN: 5% (-)

    Tables: jlpartners.co.uk/polling-results

    Remember JLPartners take the Tory score, add a bit on top then go back and stick fresh lashings on it again. If the Tory vote exceeds 24% it's a heavy polling miss all round.
    Other than by JLPartners!
    We'll have to take "Don't know" = "Voting Conservative" for a while yet if they're right.
  • algarkirkalgarkirk Posts: 12,493
    edited July 1
    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Sympathise but there's a problem. You have identified and defined the far left entirely in non violent, decent, idealistic terms. You have identified the far right in entirely negative and pejorative terms.

    Ideological centrists (I am one) may use language differently. There are reasons for identifying both particular leftish and rightish movements in negative ways. And of course positive ones too.

    McDonnell isn't Stalin; and Scruton isn't Goebbels.

    Extremes of left and right tend to have a meeting point in a bias towards authoritarianism, and a distrust of a liberal society. Some also have a meeting point WRT the use of political violence.
  • viewcodeviewcode Posts: 22,007
    Nunu5 said:

    Anyone here good at statistics (I mean I know I'm on pb.......)

    I'm trying to compare two independent variables (age groups and sex) for one dependent variable (disease x prevalence).
    My data does not have a normal distribution. A multiple regression does not work because age groups are ordinal?

    Modelling
    • Use logistic regression for categorical data, not linear regression.
    • If you have the tech, you can use generalised linear models (not general linear models) which can cope with non-normal data
    Tests: 2x2 table
    For independent variable 1 (age group) vs disease prevalence you can use a 2x2 table and chi-square, since (IIRC: PLEASE CHECK!) that's not dependent on normality If you want to do age group and sex vs disease prevalence it's more complicated

    Tests: nonparametric tests
    If you don't want to use a 2x2 table, there are other tests that don't assume normality. They are called "nonparametric". See https://www.graphpad.com/quickcalcs/contingency1/
  • MattWMattW Posts: 23,020
    Sandpit said:

    Chris said:

    Chris said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    Tories ? A lot of Reform supporters are ex-Labour, the people Mandelson belittled by saying they had nowhere else to go.

    Until they did.
    Do try to follow.

    I'm not talking about the voters - I'm talking about Tory politicians.

    They are the ones who have been pandering to the neo-Nazis and stirring up xenophobia for their own selfish ends.
    Well in a strange land where such people exist Im sure youre right but that is not the UK, We dont have Nazis, we have few Nazi politicians and consistently we are one of the least racist countries on the plant.
    "We don't have Nazis". Fool.
    Correct in the technical definition - a Nazi is surely a member of the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP for short). Oddly I think the Germans never used the term Nazi, only ever National Socialist.
    And don't really have the equivalent to Nazi's either. There are no politicians explicitly blaming everything on International Jewry, seeking to invade neighbouring countries etc. Its just the usual rubbish from the left - any one to their right is a Nazi.
    As a Conservative candidate in Derbyshire has anti-Semitic slogans painted on the windows of his office.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/07/01/tory-candidate-office-daubed-anti-semitic-graffiti/
    It's all happening in High Peak - that's the one where the Reform Candidate has been suspended.
  • SandyRentoolSandyRentool Posts: 22,005

    algarkirk said:

    Andy_JS said:

    HYUFD said:

    My sense is the Lib Dems are becoming the party of the well-to-do English upper middle classes in the posh areas.

    They don't register very much anywhere else.

    Yes, generally the higher the LD voteshare in general and local elections now, the more likely the area is to have a Waitrose, a Gail's and a well above average house price
    The LDs/Liberals have always been strongest in those types of seats, going back to the 1970s. Richmond was always their strongest seat in London for instance.
    Tim Farron's seat has no Waitrose. But of course has a Booths. It may be that, like the two species of crows in Britain, you will get one but not both. My chavish bit of Cumbria has none of these, but no-one will want to know about our ultra local butchers, bakers, candlestick makers, etc.
    An exercise for someone: What is the closest distance between a branch of Waitrose and a branch of Booths?
    Booths Chorley. Waitrose Charnock Richard. Say 5 miles (if you illicitly exit the service area). Mr Speaker spoilt for choice.
    Wilmslow Waitrose / Knutsford Booths probably similar (may be more like 6 or 7 miles) - sums up the difference between the two towns in my opinion.
    So...

    Straight line distance for Ilkley Booths to Otley Waitrose is 5.16 miles.
  • Luckyguy1983Luckyguy1983 Posts: 28,346

    bobbob said:

    Heathener said:

    bobbob said:

    I’ve read so much about the election but so little is talked about the elephant in the room

    Rishi Sunak is not white

    Some voters will not vote or be v reluctant to vote for a minority PM even if most won’t admit it

    It is reflected in the CON polling and the final election result though

    It’s taboo to even mention it because it’s not PC to mention race and people in their bubbles like to deny racism exists

    Just so we can cut to the chase, what are your view on Gay Rights? And on Ukraine?
    Gay rights are an important civil liberty as people should be able to do they want but some people are obsessed with an issue that doesn’t matter to most people

    You do bring up a relevent point. I don’t think the UK would vote for a gay man as a leader either . They wouldn’t publicly admit that though !

    From what I saw Ukraine weren’t very good in the euros but thats to be expected given the invasion
    The problem with the whole closet racism theory is that

    1) Rishi was initially somewhat popular, before he started serially torpedoing himself.
    2) There was barely any mention of race - even from the actual Roderick Spode Reenactment Club.
    3) His potential challengers inside the Tory party have a bit of sun tan on average.
    Arguably Rishi's biggest problem is not his ethnicity, its his wealth. Its just too easy to slate him for not understanding the common experience of most of the country. Hence the Sky TV anecdote.
    Neither is a particular problem, and they both have profound electoral upsides. Sunak's problem is that he's just let the cost of living crisis happen to people in a totally passive way, and tried to make it seem like it's the new normal. His calling card should be competent and effective Government. It hasn't been competent and it sure as heck hasn't been effective.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 17,326
    carnforth said:

    Small Wimbledon Men's bets:

    At 250/1 Frances Tiafoe (as amusing long bets)
    At 100/1 Casper Ruud
    At 40/1 Stafanos Tsitsipas
    At 33/1 Tommy Paul
    At 12/5 Carlos Alcaraz (Just because I support him)

    (Actually, I took all these each-way, at half odds for the second place part).

    Anyone else betting on Wimbledon?

    Lay Raducanu. Will be backed in the UK but will never win Wimbledon.

    I also have covered Zverev, Draper, Berretini and Dimitrov as I think they are the best shot of an outsider winning the mens tournament (outside the main shouts of Alcaraz, Jokovic, Sinner and Hurcatz).
  • FrancisUrquhartFrancisUrquhart Posts: 81,813
    edited July 1

    And final weeks polling is off.......
    NEW: @RestisPolitics / JLP poll, June 28th - July 1st 2024

    *Labour lead at 15 points*

    Change on last week in brackets

    LAB: 39% (-2)
    CON: 24% (-1)
    REF: 16% (+1)
    LDEM: 10% (-1)
    GRN: 5% (-)

    Tables: jlpartners.co.uk/polling-results

    If the Tories had run a half decent campaign I sure they could have got up to 30%, despite Sunak, despite their record. Labour still wins easily but they might have got the gap down to single figures.
  • viewcodeviewcode Posts: 22,007
    HYUFD said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    Chris said:

    Scott_xP said:

    @elliottengage

    Tory Candidate In Clacton Says Reform Rallies Are "Reminiscent" Of "Nuremberg" Rallies

    https://x.com/elliottengage/status/1807780866107609564

    It is such a dumb approach to combatting Farage. Stick to pointing out he doesn't actually have any workable policies for dealing with real concerns people have than labelling a load of voters Nazi sympathisers.
    On the contrary, the Tories should have been clear all along that these people were neo-Nazis, rather than pandering to them in the hope of gaining a few miserable votes.
    The 15-20% who might vote Reform aren't neo-nazis. The number of genuine far right people in the UK is very small, much smaller than say France or Germany. Labelling the voters as such doesn't help you get their vote back.
    The problem is, as Naomi Shulman wrote, "nice people make the best Nazis":

    “Nice people made the best Nazis. My mom grew up next to them. They got along, refused to make waves, looked the other way when things got ugly and focused on happier things than “politics.” They were lovely people who turned their heads as their neighbours were dragged away. You know who weren’t nice people? Resisters.”

    I can never say with 100% certainty that anyone who supports Reform or Farage or whichever party it is is, in their heart, a Neo-Nazi or a fascist. But the thing is if they would sit back and watch as a "strong man" gets swept into power and "sorts everything out" there's no real difference between them and ideological Nazis. They may have been duped, they may have been bamboozled, they may have believed lies or promises. But they would have ushered the fascists into power just as much as any tatted bonehead.
    I agree, with the proviso that the same goes for the extreme left. Both right and left extremes appeal to the primal fears that lurk deep inside us, of the other, of non-conformity, and present us with simplistic solutions to our problems. But they are mirages, and they lead every society that follows this path to disaster. When the rational centre is abandoned, we are lost.
    See, this is where horseshoe bullshit turns up and "centrists" refuse to see the ideology they swim in. The "rational centre" is as ideological as anything else. And the far left don't want the same things the far right does - the far left want material equality for people so that everyone can live a dignified life. The far right want to purge all the people who they consider to be "outsiders" to create a pure dog-eat-dog society of the strong and powerful. Those are not the same thing.
    Yes Stalin was materially committed to equality for all, he just had the royal family and a few million kulaks murdered on the way to ease the path to utopia
    They were all equally dead. You can't make an omelette without killing tens of millions of eggs who would have died anyway honest :(
  • viewcodeviewcode Posts: 22,007

    viewcode said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    148grss said:

    TOPPING said:

    So, basically an open acknowledgement that financial institutions are being used as economic paramilitaries by the establishment to depose governments they don't like.

    As happened here a couple of years back

    "How markets are ready to ‘do the dirty job’ of fighting Le Pen
    Bond traders are already reacting to the risk of unfettered spending under National Rally."

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/07/01/how-markets-are-ready-to-do-dirty-job-fighting-le-pen/

    Establishment = your pension fund.
    I'm 33 - my pension fund is never going to be realised because in 40 years time either no one will be allowed to retire, or the climate is going to be in such a state that global capitalism will be unable to function as it currently does that the "value" of my pension won't really matter...
    Do you genuinely believe that? What is it about potential climate change that you think will end global capitalism? And 'no-one will be allowed to retire"? Really? If you are so fearful for the future why pay into a pension at all?
    Most people I know my age, even those not on the left, believe some version of this.

    And I didn't say "end global capitalism" I said "unable to function as it currently does". And that's because resource scarcity is going to get much worse over the next few decades.
    Which resources in particular are you worried about?
    Food scarcity is going to increase in the next few decades; we are already seeing drought and flooding hit wheat production globally, and that looks set to get worse. Water scarcity will increase globally as the planet gets warmer. If the Gulf Stream weakens enough, our farming specifically will go haywire
    Do you think that you personally are at risk of starving to death in a famine?
    No - but I live in the imperial core...
    Thinks

    Thinks

    Coruscant????

    Trantor?
    Star's End :)
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 18,275

    And final weeks polling is off.......
    NEW: @RestisPolitics / JLP poll, June 28th - July 1st 2024

    *Labour lead at 15 points*

    Change on last week in brackets

    LAB: 39% (-2)
    CON: 24% (-1)
    REF: 16% (+1)
    LDEM: 10% (-1)
    GRN: 5% (-)

    Tables: jlpartners.co.uk/polling-results

    They were the holdouts at 25%. So the upper bound of Tory polling is down a notch with that poll.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 17,326

    And final weeks polling is off.......
    NEW: @RestisPolitics / JLP poll, June 28th - July 1st 2024

    *Labour lead at 15 points*

    Change on last week in brackets

    LAB: 39% (-2)
    CON: 24% (-1)
    REF: 16% (+1)
    LDEM: 10% (-1)
    GRN: 5% (-)

    Tables: jlpartners.co.uk/polling-results

    Not awful for the Conservatives, particularly if Reform is slightly overcooked.

    LDs look a bit low and Labour too high, FWIW.
    Personal opinion is that Reform IS overcooked, and will not poll more than 10%, Labour will be 38%, the tories probably arpund 25% (those damn shy Tories, yet again). Huge Labour majority, but not a wipeout of the blues, reform to fade as their hopes of surplanting the Tories on the right crumble.
  • nico679nico679 Posts: 6,273
    Trump could if he is re-elected could now order the execution of a political rival by a member of the military and have immunity .

    The Supreme Court is out of control and a danger to Americans.
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