“Sir Keir Starmer’s “national security” justification for handing over the Chagos islands was proposed by one of his closest friends, who represented Mauritius in a case against the UK”
We need a Britain Trump to wipe out the Woke Politico-Juridical Complex. Entirely
Artists who exalt war are not thought of kindly.
"We want to glorify war - the only cure for the world - militarism, patriotism, the destructive gesture of the anarchists, the beautiful ideas which kill, and contempt for woman. We want to demolish museums and libraries, fight morality, feminism and all opportunist and utilitarian cowardice....we want to deliver Italy from its gangrene of professors, archaeologists, tourist guides and antiquaries." - Filippo Tommaso Marinetti in The Futurist Manifesto, 1909
Yeah the futurists were big proponents of war ("war is the world's only hygiene") right up until shedloads of them were, er, killed in the war.
At least our Vorticists restricted themselves to writing angry manifestos. Although some of the art they produced during and at war was extraordinary. Wyndham Lewis was at Passchendaele.
Or Nevinson: never forgotten his work at the IWM of soldiers marching.
All the things considered, there hasn't been a huge number of Con to Ref defections. Certainly some, but maybe not as many as you might expect.
Will there be many red wall Lab to Ref defections? Must've been quite lonely for this lady.
Tom Harwood@tomhfh · 31m NEW: Ashfield Labour Councillor Cathy Mason has defected to the Reform Party.
There are now no longer any Labour Party representatives left on the Ashfield District Council.
Interesting.
Note quite as startling as it sounds - the last time Labour had more than 2 seats was in May 2019. Cons have 2. Ashfield Independents have 32 iirc.
But the Leeanderthal Man will be pleased, and I bet he was involved.
The big thing that will impact here is the Council Leader up in Crown Court later this month:
A date has been set for the trial of Ashfield District Council's leader Jason Zadrozny following the latest hearing in the case. Councillor Zadrozny has pleaded not guilty to 12 counts of fraud by false representation and four counts of income tax evasion.
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
Let them freeze and live with the consequences of their actions.
If it were a referendum between nuclear power and people speaking Welsh, then chuck me the uranium and let's build a power station on every Welsh medium school.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
Yes, it's nonsense, isn't it. Joins a long list of such sayings.
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger ... what?
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
Quite right. Service charges increasingly take the piss, the economics are irrational, it appropriates what was formerly a return to labour (tipping) to capital, and introduces unnecessary uncertainty and emotional strife to all involved in the transaction.
Spend a year in a country where you don't tip or pay charges and the stupidity of it becomes obvious.
Agree with the overall sentiment but disagree the economics are irrational. Tipping is a means by which restaurants turn a fixed cost for them into a variable cost for their customers.
I don't object to a service charge unless the service was poor
I don't object to paying a reasonable amount for the service provided. I do object to it being smuggled into the bill.
Pay staff properly. If the service was poor, say so. If you don't want to take it up in person (though that's better if possible), there's always Tripadvisor.
Always take it up in person. I despise people who put negative comments on Tripadvisor or similar from the safety of their keyboard without thought for the damage they might create to a business that might have had an off day
Yes, I almost always only give good reviews. If I get bad service (in any area) I always give the provider the chance to put things right first. Everyone can have bad luck or an off day, and a good way to judge a provider is by the way they deal with a mistake.
But I did, very unusually, write a bad review recently. This was for a plumber whose efforts to repair a leak actually made it worse. After a month of excuses and missed appointments to fix the problem, I eventually gave up and got another (competent) plumber to fix it properly. The first plumber was incompetent and unreliable, but I still felt bad about giving him a bad review.
Trustpilot is great for getting responses from otherwise unresponsive companies. A 1-star review gets you a call from someone who can actually fix the problem, rather than the level 1 flunkies whose main job appears to be to fob you off. The now largely defunct Cazoo being a case in point - several days of frustration before we left the review and then got contacted by someone who took charge of the problem personally and gave us his direct number (I did then update the review).
I've never bothered with Tripadvisor. In places where you pay after you've received the service the time to bring it up is when paying, I think. Exceptions of course for where the bad service becomes apparent later (as with your plumber - but I guess that wasn't tripadvisor?!)
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
On topic, Reform aren't going to win anything (you heard it here first). They are the descendants of fruitcakes and loonies and closet racists and that's not how we roll in this country.
That's not quite right.
Whilst Reform does attract a fringe of 'fruitcakes and loonies and closet racists", it's chief concern - immigration - is shared by a significant percentage of voters.
For me, the main drawback of Reform is that they have no serious economic policy and have done no serious thinking on how to cut net migration.
I just don't see anything in the history of Reform to make me think they'll win more than a handful of seats despite what the opinion polls say. They have a leader with barely any interest in actually leading a political party and no more appealing alternatives. Their on the ground organisation is shambolic to non existent and their candidate selection is notoriously awful. To cap it all off their corporate structure is weird which will cause huge problems if Farage ever needs to be replaced. Of course Reform could change all this but I don't see any real signs of it.
All true, but the present time seems to be one where current outcomes don't have a great deal of regard for what happened last week, last year or last several decades.
Politics is all relative. If voters decide that Lab/Con is are not competent or serious enough to govern, then something else will happen.
Perhaps the most sensible thing the total electorate can do is decide that the next contest should be between LDs representing the centre left and Reform representing the right/centre right.
Correct.
On-the-ground support matters in local by-elections (and, indeed, parliamentary by-elections). But local data and activists isn't hugely influential in national campaigns. It makes a marginal difference and that could matter but national databanks and the ability to microtarget messages to individuals matters much more. If Reform are sensible then that's what they'll be doing. It's not 1985 any more.
The radical right international ecosystem has been pretty smart at that kind of campaigning, including the Brexit Leave campaigns, and I see no reason to assume that Reform will depart from a model which has worked effectively and which they and their peers know well.
An increasingly prominent tool in their box, the national populist shysters, is the promise of vigour and dynamism. Eg the latest from RUK saying they can (dreaded word) "fix" the country in 30 days. This is appealing to the large number of voters who are low information, high frustration.
"This is appealing to the large number of voters who are low information, high frustration."
Are you referring to the average naïve Labour supporter who things the country's ills can be solved by putting in a bunch of droners and CV-fraudsters who would struggle to get a job above middle management in a private sector company?
Anyone who thinks the current Labour Party have any of the answers is very very low on information.
Thinking that any party or politician can make a speedy positive transformational difference to the country is a sign of ignorance and stupidity.
Hmmmm
Not so sure. I think changes in process and systems can be put through quite rapidly. The results will take longer.
For example, a planning process similar to the that used for offshore wind could be introduced quite rapidly, in other areas. By specifying the documentation that guarantees success and virtually eliminates the serial appeal comedy, years can be removed from the process.
That could be done within 30 days of a new government. But would take much longer to have an effect.
Yes, I agree. I was more talking about the impact - the famous "people really feeling it".
But you absolutely can get cracking on things that are going to pay big dividends over time.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
You're not allowing for energy saving schemes that extinguish the street lights a little while after midnight
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
The faux anti-French or anti-Welsh racism that infests pb is a bit juvenile, n'est ce pas?
Is it even faux? There's a long and ignoble tradition of justifying all kinds of -isms because "bants" - especially against Wales, which is relatively small and not fashionable and therefore lacks defenders.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
On topic, Reform aren't going to win anything (you heard it here first). They are the descendants of fruitcakes and loonies and closet racists and that's not how we roll in this country.
That's not quite right.
Whilst Reform does attract a fringe of 'fruitcakes and loonies and closet racists", it's chief concern - immigration - is shared by a significant percentage of voters.
For me, the main drawback of Reform is that they have no serious economic policy and have done no serious thinking on how to cut net migration.
I just don't see anything in the history of Reform to make me think they'll win more than a handful of seats despite what the opinion polls say. They have a leader with barely any interest in actually leading a political party and no more appealing alternatives. Their on the ground organisation is shambolic to non existent and their candidate selection is notoriously awful. To cap it all off their corporate structure is weird which will cause huge problems if Farage ever needs to be replaced. Of course Reform could change all this but I don't see any real signs of it.
All true, but the present time seems to be one where current outcomes don't have a great deal of regard for what happened last week, last year or last several decades.
Politics is all relative. If voters decide that Lab/Con is are not competent or serious enough to govern, then something else will happen.
Perhaps the most sensible thing the total electorate can do is decide that the next contest should be between LDs representing the centre left and Reform representing the right/centre right.
Correct.
On-the-ground support matters in local by-elections (and, indeed, parliamentary by-elections). But local data and activists isn't hugely influential in national campaigns. It makes a marginal difference and that could matter but national databanks and the ability to microtarget messages to individuals matters much more. If Reform are sensible then that's what they'll be doing. It's not 1985 any more.
The radical right international ecosystem has been pretty smart at that kind of campaigning, including the Brexit Leave campaigns, and I see no reason to assume that Reform will depart from a model which has worked effectively and which they and their peers know well.
An increasingly prominent tool in their box, the national populist shysters, is the promise of vigour and dynamism. Eg the latest from RUK saying they can (dreaded word) "fix" the country in 30 days. This is appealing to the large number of voters who are low information, high frustration.
"This is appealing to the large number of voters who are low information, high frustration."
Are you referring to the average naïve Labour supporter who things the country's ills can be solved by putting in a bunch of droners and CV-fraudsters who would struggle to get a job above middle management in a private sector company?
Anyone who thinks the current Labour Party have any of the answers is very very low on information.
Thinking that any party or politician can make a speedy positive transformational difference to the country is a sign of ignorance and stupidity.
Hmmmm
Not so sure. I think changes in process and systems can be put through quite rapidly. The results will take longer.
For example, a planning process similar to the that used for offshore wind could be introduced quite rapidly, in other areas. By specifying the documentation that guarantees success and virtually eliminates the serial appeal comedy, years can be removed from the process.
That could be done within 30 days of a new government. But would take much longer to have an effect.
Yes, I agree. I was more talking about the impact - the famous "people really feeling it".
But you absolutely can get cracking on things that are going to pay big dividends over time.
Then again, my proposal Ito eliminate illegal employment would probably work inside 30 days.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
The solution, surely, is to give it a name in Welsh that is broadly accurate but in no way suggests it's a nuclear power station? Such as 'canolfan dadelfennu allyriadau sero'*, maybe.
*apologies to any Welsh speakers for the (no doubt) mangling of the language of the bards by the US tech giant
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
Yes, it's nonsense, isn't it. Joins a long list of such sayings.
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger ... what?
The phenomenon of surviving unpleasant experiences making *some* people mentally stronger is well attested.
To the point that it is used as a training method.
The shareholders and bondholders should be sh!tting themselves right now.
The shareholders shouldn’t be trying to extract £790m from the £1.5bn being borrowed while others charge £210m for facilitating the early repayment of debt
I can see the court rejecting the deal for being a con while also complaining about the amount of information they tried to hide from the court
Can anyone tell me why the following is a bad idea -
1) Let Thames Water go bust. 2) Shareholders and bondholders get wiped out (partially?) 3) The government backs the bills of suppliers, so the network of suppliers is protected and they are paid on time. 4) Without the debt mountain, the company is extremely profitable. It can easily repay the government for (3)
I thought the justification for capitalist investors' high returns and low taxation thereof, CGT below the level fo income tax, dividends ditto, was the risk taking in the first place? So what have they to complain about?
I'm reminded of a Steve Bell cartoon decades ago - at the time of some City scandal. I forget the details, so don't want to name the name I dimly recollect, but basically the investors (who were, one assumes, all grown ups) were demanding that they be repaid - perhaps [edit] at public expense. Mr Bell's response was to have his penguins attend the Derby, troop up to the bookie, put their houses on a horse that would have been slower than the one used in the Great Escape, with the obvious results, and then demand to be paid their winnings as if it had come first.
I remember Spitting Image mocking the Lloyds names with a similar joke.
In the case of the Lloyds names, there was a systematic fraud where people were sold a "safe investment" which was actually structured to make them first in line for loses, while protecting the people running the scheme.
Interesting. The way it was presented at the time was that Lloyds names were just toffs who took a gamble, made lots of money in the good times, and when it went against them were whining.
How could Lloyds names possibly know that losses were possible? It's not like they had the omniscience of Waspi women. These were more like masters of the universe bankers being bailed out after yet another sure bet went pear-shaped but it wasn't their fault and anyway they didn't do anything and look squirrel.
WASPI women are, mainly, entitled middle class white boomers who are victims of their own stupidity or lack of attention to detail.
The allegation about Lloyds Names is it was deliberate fraud. I don't know either way. I just found it interesting given how it was presented at the time.
Some middle aged women not reading a letter or forgetting about having it is not fraud.
The Lloyds names scandal is interesting, apparently they knew of the risk of asbestos liabilities from ~1970. Then they made it easier to become a "name" so more could be recruited, mention of number of MPs who were existing names and therefore benefited from dilution of the liabilities. There's a website with a summary of events but it brought up several security warnings so I won't link.
All the things considered, there hasn't been a huge number of Con to Ref defections. Certainly some, but maybe not as many as you might expect.
Will there be many red wall Lab to Ref defections? Must've been quite lonely for this lady.
Tom Harwood@tomhfh · 31m NEW: Ashfield Labour Councillor Cathy Mason has defected to the Reform Party.
There are now no longer any Labour Party representatives left on the Ashfield District Council.
Interesting.
Note quite as startling as it sounds - the last time Labour had more than 2 seats was in May 2019. Cons have 2. Ashfield Independents have 32 iirc.
But the Leeanderthal Man will be pleased, and I bet he was involved.
The big thing that will impact here is the Council Leader up in Crown Court later this month:
A date has been set for the trial of Ashfield District Council's leader Jason Zadrozny following the latest hearing in the case. Councillor Zadrozny has pleaded not guilty to 12 counts of fraud by false representation and four counts of income tax evasion.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
The solution, surely, is to give it a name in Welsh that is broadly accurate but in no way suggests it's a nuclear power station? Such as 'canolfan dadelfennu allyriadau sero'*, maybe.
*apologies to any Welsh speakers for the (no doubt) mangling of the language of the bards by the US tech giant
Or, as part of building the power station, build a number of large, elegant houses in the neighbourhood, so that house prices remain affordable for the locals despite the increase in population from people working at the power station.
Hitachi carried out a Welsh language impact assessment as part of its application, which found that the project would need to bring 7,500 workers from outside the area. Anglesey has 70,000 residents and one of the highest concentrations of Welsh speakers in the country.
The impact assessment concluded the extra workers “could have a major adverse effect on the balance of Welsh and non-Welsh speakers” in the area and “could adversely affect the use and prominence of the Welsh language within communities”.
But the assessment also found that by creating high-skilled jobs for young people, the project would help preserve the Welsh language on the island. It would have created more than 2,000 local construction jobs for nine years, and about 85% of the plant’s workforce would be local under the plans.
The shareholders and bondholders should be sh!tting themselves right now.
The shareholders shouldn’t be trying to extract £790m from the £1.5bn being borrowed while others charge £210m for facilitating the early repayment of debt
I can see the court rejecting the deal for being a con while also complaining about the amount of information they tried to hide from the court
Can anyone tell me why the following is a bad idea -
1) Let Thames Water go bust. 2) Shareholders and bondholders get wiped out (partially?) 3) The government backs the bills of suppliers, so the network of suppliers is protected and they are paid on time. 4) Without the debt mountain, the company is extremely profitable. It can easily repay the government for (3)
I thought the justification for capitalist investors' high returns and low taxation thereof, CGT below the level fo income tax, dividends ditto, was the risk taking in the first place? So what have they to complain about?
I'm reminded of a Steve Bell cartoon decades ago - at the time of some City scandal. I forget the details, so don't want to name the name I dimly recollect, but basically the investors (who were, one assumes, all grown ups) were demanding that they be repaid - perhaps [edit] at public expense. Mr Bell's response was to have his penguins attend the Derby, troop up to the bookie, put their houses on a horse that would have been slower than the one used in the Great Escape, with the obvious results, and then demand to be paid their winnings as if it had come first.
I remember Spitting Image mocking the Lloyds names with a similar joke.
In the case of the Lloyds names, there was a systematic fraud where people were sold a "safe investment" which was actually structured to make them first in line for loses, while protecting the people running the scheme.
Interesting. The way it was presented at the time was that Lloyds names were just toffs who took a gamble, made lots of money in the good times, and when it went against them were whining.
How could Lloyds names possibly know that losses were possible? It's not like they had the omniscience of Waspi women. These were more like masters of the universe bankers being bailed out after yet another sure bet went pear-shaped but it wasn't their fault and anyway they didn't do anything and look squirrel.
WASPI women are, mainly, entitled middle class white boomers who are victims of their own stupidity or lack of attention to detail.
The allegation about Lloyds Names is it was deliberate fraud. I don't know either way. I just found it interesting given how it was presented at the time.
Some middle aged women not reading a letter or forgetting about having it is not fraud.
The Lloyds names scandal is interesting, apparently they knew of the risk of asbestos liabilities from ~1970. Then they made it easier to become a "name" so more could be recruited, mention of number of MPs who were existing names and therefore benefited from dilution of the liabilities. There's a website with a summary of events but it brought up several security warnings so I won't link.
Yes. It was deliberate. There was also a game of shuffling liabilities to schemes, so those in the know could remove a liability. The new schemes, taking on these liabilities were stuffed with the marks....
“Sir Keir Starmer’s “national security” justification for handing over the Chagos islands was proposed by one of his closest friends, who represented Mauritius in a case against the UK”
We need a Britain Trump to wipe out the Woke Politico-Juridical Complex. Entirely
Artists who exalt war are not thought of kindly.
"We want to glorify war - the only cure for the world - militarism, patriotism, the destructive gesture of the anarchists, the beautiful ideas which kill, and contempt for woman. We want to demolish museums and libraries, fight morality, feminism and all opportunist and utilitarian cowardice....we want to deliver Italy from its gangrene of professors, archaeologists, tourist guides and antiquaries." - Filippo Tommaso Marinetti in The Futurist Manifesto, 1909
Ooh, i quite like the sound of that
Not sure about “contempt for women”tho. Women are nice. Just make them a tiny bit sub and we’re all good
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
The solution, surely, is to give it a name in Welsh that is broadly accurate but in no way suggests it's a nuclear power station? Such as 'canolfan dadelfennu allyriadau sero'*, maybe.
*apologies to any Welsh speakers for the (no doubt) mangling of the language of the bards by the US tech giant
Or, as part of building the power station, build a number of large, elegant houses in the neighbourhood, so that house prices remain affordable for the locals despite the increase in population from people working at the power station.
Presumably they'd have built a portacabin village with the ensuing social problems/economic opportunities that 7,000 temporary workers bring.
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
The solution, surely, is to give it a name in Welsh that is broadly accurate but in no way suggests it's a nuclear power station? Such as 'canolfan dadelfennu allyriadau sero'*, maybe.
*apologies to any Welsh speakers for the (no doubt) mangling of the language of the bards by the US tech giant
Or, as part of building the power station, build a number of large, elegant houses in the neighbourhood, so that house prices remain affordable for the locals despite the increase in population from people working at the power station.
Ah. I see you've actually thought about the thing and come up with a reasonable solution. Isn't that frowned upon nowadays?
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
So the really big news of the day is that I've extended nm stay at this hotel by ten days, but they've offered me a new room with a slightly larger balcony, albeit with a less buzzy view of the sois
What to do?
Later on today I face another cruel dilemma when I have to decide between eating fresh watermelon or mango as I read THE RINGS OF SATURN (probably on the balcony)
Eating fresh watermelon. Truly the height of luxury.
I can't offhand think of the circumstances whereby people would not eat fresh watermelon. I don't think they tin it, do they?
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
Yes, it's nonsense, isn't it. Joins a long list of such sayings.
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger ... what?
..."The exception that proves the rule"...
actually, that one used to make sense. The word 'prove' used to mean 'test' (as in 'the proof of the pudding'). So the exception that proves - or tests - the rule - shows that the rule doesn't work. So nowadays, we might instead say 'the exception that disproves the rule' to be more true to its original sense.
I don't think 'darkest before the dawn' falls into the same category, mind. That was never true.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
The faux anti-French or anti-Welsh racism that infests pb is a bit juvenile, n'est ce pas?
Is it even faux? There's a long and ignoble tradition of justifying all kinds of -isms because "bants" - especially against Wales, which is relatively small and not fashionable and therefore lacks defenders.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
Yes, it's nonsense, isn't it. Joins a long list of such sayings.
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger ... what?
The phenomenon of surviving unpleasant experiences making *some* people mentally stronger is well attested.
To the point that it is used as a training method.
Yes, it works but not literally. Like "darkest hour" in fact.
Some do work literally though. Eg you can't make an omelette without breaking eggs. I'd like to hear that one a bit more from politicians - so long as it's referring to something I agree with, otherwise it would irritate me intensely.
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
USAID = US imperialism ?
It’s sent you bonkers, certainly.
“The right people” ? Twat.
No, it is correct. A large share of governmental aid is used to further the soft power of the donor, so does have the donors national interest at heart. A lot is spent on domestic purchases too such as US grain and rice etc.
It's the benign and paternalistic end of Imperialism, and one that has now been delivered to rivals such as China.
The US pre Trump spend a lower portion of GDP (around 0.2%) on overseas aid than almost any developed nation. And more on defence spending.
Calling it a “key instrument of imperialism” is obvious bollocks.
I can buy the argument about soft power. I don't buy how eliminating that soft power (rather than perhaps retargeting it better) helps them or us.
They can see what’s actually important once the $60bn swamp has been drained. It’s probably a few hundred million of actual direct foreign aid. Right now they can’t see the wood for the trees.
How much MAGA Koop-Aid to you have to drink to believe that over 99% of USAID’s budget is lost to administration and corrupt? Sandpit, please come back to reality.
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
You're not handling this very well are you. In fact it reads like it's affecting you. I always said there should be an "open door" policy at PB where morons like you are welcomed but you really have me doubting my inclusiveness here.
Just like to point out that I said on about October 17th 2023 that Israel’s strategy in Gaza only made sense if they were trying to make Gaza uninhabitable - thereby changing the facts on the ground and driving the poor Gazans into the sea - or Somaliland
So it is
NB: I did not applaud this (and still don’t, it’s horrific) but there WAS a logic to what they were doing (despite many saying otherwise on here)
Last night by elections showed Reform breaking through the 20% barrier and winning 30% and even 40% in Tendring. I dont see an alliance between Tories and Reform any time soon but there are many potential bumps in the road for Reform. Much better to bet against Labour. They are heading for a complete wipeout maybe existential threat. In Essex they are getting 3% in a council election in Essex and 5% in Surrey. This is getting to Panda joke status. At what time do the Labour MPs start to panic?
From Election Maps UK:
Aggregate Result of the 185 Council By-Elections (for 190 Seats) Since the 2024 General Election:
On topic, Reform aren't going to win anything (you heard it here first). They are the descendants of fruitcakes and loonies and closet racists and that's not how we roll in this country.
That's not quite right.
Whilst Reform does attract a fringe of 'fruitcakes and loonies and closet racists", it's chief concern - immigration - is shared by a significant percentage of voters.
For me, the main drawback of Reform is that they have no serious economic policy and have done no serious thinking on how to cut net migration.
I just don't see anything in the history of Reform to make me think they'll win more than a handful of seats despite what the opinion polls say. They have a leader with barely any interest in actually leading a political party and no more appealing alternatives. Their on the ground organisation is shambolic to non existent and their candidate selection is notoriously awful. To cap it all off their corporate structure is weird which will cause huge problems if Farage ever needs to be replaced. Of course Reform could change all this but I don't see any real signs of it.
All true, but the present time seems to be one where current outcomes don't have a great deal of regard for what happened last week, last year or last several decades.
Politics is all relative. If voters decide that Lab/Con is are not competent or serious enough to govern, then something else will happen.
Perhaps the most sensible thing the total electorate can do is decide that the next contest should be between LDs representing the centre left and Reform representing the right/centre right.
Correct.
On-the-ground support matters in local by-elections (and, indeed, parliamentary by-elections). But local data and activists isn't hugely influential in national campaigns. It makes a marginal difference and that could matter but national databanks and the ability to microtarget messages to individuals matters much more. If Reform are sensible then that's what they'll be doing. It's not 1985 any more.
The radical right international ecosystem has been pretty smart at that kind of campaigning, including the Brexit Leave campaigns, and I see no reason to assume that Reform will depart from a model which has worked effectively and which they and their peers know well.
An increasingly prominent tool in their box, the national populist shysters, is the promise of vigour and dynamism. Eg the latest from RUK saying they can (dreaded word) "fix" the country in 30 days. This is appealing to the large number of voters who are low information, high frustration.
"This is appealing to the large number of voters who are low information, high frustration."
Are you referring to the average naïve Labour supporter who things the country's ills can be solved by putting in a bunch of droners and CV-fraudsters who would struggle to get a job above middle management in a private sector company?
Anyone who thinks the current Labour Party have any of the answers is very very low on information.
Thinking that any party or politician can make a speedy positive transformational difference to the country is a sign of ignorance and stupidity.
Hmmmm
Not so sure. I think changes in process and systems can be put through quite rapidly. The results will take longer.
For example, a planning process similar to the that used for offshore wind could be introduced quite rapidly, in other areas. By specifying the documentation that guarantees success and virtually eliminates the serial appeal comedy, years can be removed from the process.
That could be done within 30 days of a new government. But would take much longer to have an effect.
Yes, I agree. I was more talking about the impact - the famous "people really feeling it".
But you absolutely can get cracking on things that are going to pay big dividends over time.
Then again, my proposal Ito eliminate illegal employment would probably work inside 30 days.
Yes, well if you were calling the shots, Malmesbury, all bets would be off. Paradigm shift.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
Black Doves Pyramids Topping
Black Doves and Pyramids neither "on this topic" nor "this morning".
Anyway Black Doves is truly crap. Don't waste any time on it.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
Has it? I don't think I've heard a normal person mention it. Is there any polling on it?
It's a fairly abstract argument about made up numbers, some obscure naval base that the UK isn't even allowed to use with a dose of liminal and weak minded Sinophobia chucked in.
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
You're not handling this very well are you. In fact it reads like it's affecting you. I always said there should be an "open door" policy at PB where morons like you are welcomed but you really have me doubting my inclusiveness here.
Lying shit it is then.
I've always said pompous gits should be tolerated if they occasionally say something that isn't utterly moronic, but I don't think you ever have.
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
USAID = US imperialism ?
It’s sent you bonkers, certainly.
“The right people” ? Twat.
No, it is correct. A large share of governmental aid is used to further the soft power of the donor, so does have the donors national interest at heart. A lot is spent on domestic purchases too such as US grain and rice etc.
It's the benign and paternalistic end of Imperialism, and one that has now been delivered to rivals such as China.
The US pre Trump spend a lower portion of GDP (around 0.2%) on overseas aid than almost any developed nation. And more on defence spending.
Calling it a “key instrument of imperialism” is obvious bollocks.
I can buy the argument about soft power. I don't buy how eliminating that soft power (rather than perhaps retargeting it better) helps them or us.
My point was pretty clearly about its significance as projection of foreign policy, compared with its humanitarian benefits.
The latter's significance to its recipients vastly outweighs Topping's "projection of power". And when the US wants to do that, it provides aid through other means - as, for example, military assistance to Israel, or S Korea.
Soft power as a primary US foreign policy tool would be exemplified by something like the Marshall Plan. But even that wasn't really about imperialism, but an alternative to it. The US could have chose to occupy Japan indefinitely after WWII, and kept it in economic subjugation. It chose rather (after several years' debate) to finance the rebuilding of its industrial economy in order to create a regional ally.
You fucking idiot:
"As Essex rightly contends, USAID is one of the more deeply internationalized institutions within the US state and thus offers a key site through which to examine the historical and evolving nature of US hegemony. In detailing the various forces that have shaped this agency and its work abroad, Essex provides insight into how the United States has sought to remake developing states and ‘bring them under the umbrella of American hegemony’ (Essex, 2013: 86)."
It's the same thing. Different ends of the telescope.
To some people a radio station broadcasting from abroad was a beacon of truth. For others, the same radio station was an attack on the noble goals of Socialism and The People's State.
What do you reckon a British DOGE uncovers?
Presumably nothing, given that’s what the US DOGE has uncovered (if you ignore the MAGA conspiracy theories).
Just like to point out that I said on about October 17th 2023 that Israel’s strategy in Gaza only made sense if they were trying to make Gaza uninhabitable - thereby changing the facts on the ground and driving the poor Gazans into the sea - or Somaliland
So it is
NB: I did not applaud this (and still don’t, it’s horrific) but there WAS a logic to what they were doing (despite many saying otherwise on here)
Thomas Friedman (NYT) said early on that a huge problem for Isreal is that could very easily end up having to run the place having destroyed it and with no exit strategy. He has been saying all through this that Isreal has no exit strategy.
He obviously hadn't imagined Trump would bail them out by offering to turn the whole place into a golf resort!
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
Has it? I don't think I've heard a normal person mention it. Is there any polling on it?
It's a fairly abstract argument about made up numbers, some obscure naval base that the UK isn't even allowed to use with a dose of liminal and weak minded Sinophobia chucked in.
Every other post on the august PB this Wednesday was about Chagos. Granted 99% of those posts were Leon's.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
We're paying 18 BILLION (!) to give away Chagos. Let's keep it and fund our NHS instead.
That's the bus. It's game over. Might as well start dotting the ashtrays around number ten now.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
Nuclear power plant ‘blocked after concerns for Welsh language’
There were fears the £20bn project on Anglesey would lead to the departure of Welsh speakers, who make up 57 per cent of the island’s residents
A nuclear power station was blocked after officials raised concerns over the impact it would have on the Welsh language.
As Sir Keir Starmer seeks to launch a generation of mini nuclear plants, senior figures in the industry figures vented their frustration at existing barriers to building.
In one case government planning inspectors rejected a multibillion-pound project on Anglesey on grounds including the negative “socio-economic” impact on the local community.
They said it could put pressure on housing, forcing locals to relocate. “In turn, given the number of Welsh-speaking residents, this could adversely affect Welsh language and culture,” the five planning inspectors said in their report, published in 2021.
The solution, surely, is to give it a name in Welsh that is broadly accurate but in no way suggests it's a nuclear power station? Such as 'canolfan dadelfennu allyriadau sero'*, maybe.
*apologies to any Welsh speakers for the (no doubt) mangling of the language of the bards by the US tech giant
Or, as part of building the power station, build a number of large, elegant houses in the neighbourhood, so that house prices remain affordable for the locals despite the increase in population from people working at the power station.
Presumably they'd have built a portacabin village with the ensuing social problems/economic opportunities that 7,000 temporary workers bring.
I was reading a history of Dunbar - a small seaside resort in SE Scotland. The building of Torness AGR nearby had a huge effect on it - basically booked up a lot of the holiday accommodation solid IIRC, and the results were fairly predictable, incl. the streets on payday. I suspect this rapidly accelerated the burgh's evolution to a douce commuter dormitory for Edinburgh once construction was completed.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
We're paying 18 BILLION (!) to give away Chagos. Let's keep it and fund our NHS instead.
That's the bus. It's game over. Might as well start dotting the ashtrays around number ten now.
I don't suppose the Rwanda £700m freebie would even touch the NHS sides. Probably better value if it is used to furtively invade DRC.
Last night by elections showed Reform breaking through the 20% barrier and winning 30% and even 40% in Tendring. I dont see an alliance between Tories and Reform any time soon but there are many potential bumps in the road for Reform. Much better to bet against Labour. They are heading for a complete wipeout maybe existential threat. In Essex they are getting 3% in a council election in Essex and 5% in Surrey. This is getting to Panda joke status. At what time do the Labour MPs start to panic?
From Election Maps UK:
Aggregate Result of the 185 Council By-Elections (for 190 Seats) Since the 2024 General Election:
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
Yes, it's nonsense, isn't it. Joins a long list of such sayings.
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger ... what?
..."The exception that proves the rule"...
actually, that one used to make sense. The word 'prove' used to mean 'test' (as in 'the proof of the pudding'). So the exception that proves - or tests - the rule - shows that the rule doesn't work. So nowadays, we might instead say 'the exception that disproves the rule' to be more true to its original sense.
I don't think 'darkest before the dawn' falls into the same category, mind. That was never true.
Or alternatively, 'the exception is a category / data error' and the rule is fine, which is often the case.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
Yes, it's nonsense, isn't it. Joins a long list of such sayings.
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger ... what?
..."The exception that proves the rule"...
actually, that one used to make sense. The word 'prove' used to mean 'test' (as in 'the proof of the pudding'). So the exception that proves - or tests - the rule - shows that the rule doesn't work. So nowadays, we might instead say 'the exception that disproves the rule' to be more true to its original sense.
I don't think 'darkest before the dawn' falls into the same category, mind. That was never true.
Ah interesting. Unfortunately "the exception that disproves the rule" is not going to cut the mustard as a saying. It's too much of a simple obvious statement. Like "it all adds up". A 'saying' has to have a bit more about it than that.
"A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step."
This is another one (in addition to eggs and omelettes) I'd quite like to hear more of from politicians of all parties.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
Has it? I don't think I've heard a normal person mention it. Is there any polling on it?
It's a fairly abstract argument about made up numbers, some obscure naval base that the UK isn't even allowed to use with a dose of liminal and weak minded Sinophobia chucked in.
YouGov did a follow up to their initial polling yesterday. Beginning to cut through more:
Support proposed deal: 23% (-2 from 9 Jan) Oppose proposed deal: 27% (+6) Don't know: 50% (-4)
Electoral Calculus is much more damning:
40% disagree 18% agree
If the details of the deal were mentioned in the question, I'd imagine support will plummet. As it will when finalised.
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
You're not handling this very well are you. In fact it reads like it's affecting you. I always said there should be an "open door" policy at PB where morons like you are welcomed but you really have me doubting my inclusiveness here.
Lying shit it is then.
I've always said pompous gits should be tolerated if they occasionally say something that isn't utterly moronic, but I don't think you ever have.
What a funny old sausage you are.
I have made rationale, cogent, intelligent, insightful, but above all frankly incontrovertible points about USAID which you seem to have been singularly (no, Nigel also) unable to grasp. I am tempted to put this down solely to your immense stupidity but I think, rather, that it contradicts your "truth" and hence you get all snarky. I mean yes, you are immensely stupid, that everyone can see, but to get hung up on the nature of USAID when there is an enormous amount of analysis supporting my position is, well, bizarre.
So looking forward to your next scathing "lying shit" post.
Last night by elections showed Reform breaking through the 20% barrier and winning 30% and even 40% in Tendring. I dont see an alliance between Tories and Reform any time soon but there are many potential bumps in the road for Reform. Much better to bet against Labour. They are heading for a complete wipeout maybe existential threat. In Essex they are getting 3% in a council election in Essex and 5% in Surrey. This is getting to Panda joke status. At what time do the Labour MPs start to panic?
From Election Maps UK:
Aggregate Result of the 185 Council By-Elections (for 190 Seats) Since the 2024 General Election:
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
Just like to point out that I said on about October 17th 2023 that Israel’s strategy in Gaza only made sense if they were trying to make Gaza uninhabitable - thereby changing the facts on the ground and driving the poor Gazans into the sea - or Somaliland
So it is
NB: I did not applaud this (and still don’t, it’s horrific) but there WAS a logic to what they were doing (despite many saying otherwise on here)
Thomas Friedman (NYT) said early on that a huge problem for Isreal is that could very easily end up having to run the place having destroyed it and with no exit strategy. He has been saying all through this that Isreal has no exit strategy.
He obviously hadn't imagined Trump would bail them out by offering to turn the whole place into a golf resort!
Another possibility - and I agree with those who think that Israel had a particular agenda in reducing Gaza to rubble as soon as an abominable atrocity gave a ground for doing so - is that Israel plans to decline to run the place having reduced it to rubble, which they hope will in the end require someone else to find an exit strategy involving large scale relocation. This very simply combines with the fact that the October atrocity provides a ground for simply excluding a two state solution from consideration.
Perhaps Israel will hand the matter over to that nonexistent entity so beloved of the BBC 'The International Community'.
I've only met one American who's ever been to NSF Diego Garcia. It took him 41 hours on a C-130 from Norfolk, VI via Lajes, Naples, Crete, Bahrain and Muscat. Tinnitus is now the defining feature of his life.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
We're paying 18 BILLION (!) to give away Chagos. Let's keep it and fund our NHS instead.
That's the bus. It's game over. Might as well start dotting the ashtrays around number ten now.
I don't suppose the Rwanda £700m freebie would even touch the NHS sides. Probably better value if it is used to furtively invade DRC.
Yes, sorry Pete. I'm not helping, am I. Mocking only gives more oxygen. Let's get this TORY RWANDA SCANDAL up the charts. Our money given away to fund bloodshed in Africa. Surely worth some coverage.
Hopefully Apple will tell the UK government to shove it.
Even if you think "if you nothing to hide you have nothing to fear" which is a terrible argument, does anyone really want a backdoor into Apple's systems when we have no idea who may form a future government? You might not worry about a government led by Starmer abusing such powers, but do want a government led by Farage able to read everything?
Oh and CALEA (lawful access of telecoms in the US) has completely blown up with the Chinese Salt Typhoon exploting it to intecept communications in the US across essentially all telecoms companies. The US government has actually told citizens to use end-to-end encyrpted services as a consequence.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
I thought the saying was "coldest before dawn"
Which happens to be true according to the weather forecast for where I live
'Both Angela Rayner and Yvette Cooper are predicted to lose their seats as revealed in a shock poll which forecasts that Labour, Conservatives and Reform UK will be locked in a three-way tie.
A new MRP poll shows Reform at the top with 24 per cent of the vote, with Labour and the Tories just inches behind at 23 per cent each.
The survey of 5,743 British adults, the largest post-Election poll to date, shows that the Conservatives could win 178 seats (up from 121), Labour 174 (down from 412), and Reform UK 175 (a huge rise from only five seats).
The poll conducted national communications agency PLMR and Electoral Calculus predicted that multiple Labour ministers will have to give up their seats.
Rayner will lose her seat of Ashton-under-Lyne to Nigel Farage's party, whilst Home Secretary Cooper is also forecast to give up her seat of Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley to Reform UK.
Jonathan Reynolds, Secretary of State for Business and Trade, is also forecast to lose Stalybridge and Hyde to Reform, whilst Wes Streeting is expected to lose hold of Ilford North to the Tories.'
I've only met one American who's ever been to NSF Diego Garcia. It took him 41 hours on a C-130 from Norfolk, VI via Lajes, Naples, Crete, Bahrain and Muscat. Tinnitus is now the defining feature of his life.
I know someone who used to be the deputy commissioner. Largely a London based job but they did get to go there a few times and had a jolly snorkeling, not much else to do.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
I thought the saying was "coldest before dawn"
Which happens to be true according to the weather forecast for where I live
Speaking as someone who has spent an entire night in a genuinely haunted and terrifying Plantation House in Louisiana, I can confirm that it is, indeed, “darkest before dawn”
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
Alba's general secretary has been suspended after being accused of gross misconduct.
The removal of Chris McEleny, a former SNP councillor, comes as infighting dominates the party's attempt to find a new leader following the death of founder Alex Salmond.
McEleny is understood to have launched a separate complaint against acting leader and former justice secretary Kenny MacAskill.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
We're paying 18 BILLION (!) to give away Chagos. Let's keep it and fund our NHS instead.
That's the bus. It's game over. Might as well start dotting the ashtrays around number ten now.
I don't suppose the Rwanda £700m freebie would even touch the NHS sides. Probably better value if it is used to furtively invade DRC.
Yes, sorry Pete. I'm not helping, am I. Mocking only gives more oxygen. Let's get this TORY RWANDA SCANDAL up the charts. Our money given away to fund bloodshed in Africa. Surely worth some coverage.
But wait. You guys are in charge of the world’s great agenda setting social media called
<<< checks phone >>>
bluski. Blueski. bloosky
Just use that to get your favoured stories into the headlines
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
Black Doves Pyramids Topping
Black Doves and Pyramids neither "on this topic" nor "this morning".
Anyway Black Doves is truly crap. Don't waste any time on it.
Thanks, I won't. In fact I have 3 months of free Apple and plan to watch Slow Horses.
(don't say if that's crap too because I'm mentally committed)
Here you go. The FBI saying in essence for God's sake use end-to-end encryption because the Chinese government have exploited the CALEA mandated lawful intercept capabilities (a backdoor in common parlance).
I do not believe for a moment that the UK government could justify how they having full access to Apple's cloud storage would somehow not face the exact same problems.
Apple should withdraw from the UK entirely if the government will not change their demands.
Hopefully Apple will tell the UK government to shove it.
Even if you think "if you nothing to hide you have nothing to fear" which is a terrible argument, does anyone really want a backdoor into Apple's systems when we have no idea who may form a future government? You might not worry about a government led by Starmer abusing such powers, but do want a government led by Farage able to read everything?
Fukker members are the type of people who can't get their printers to work and whose microwave clocks blink 00:00 for years on end. They will never work out how to read your email. Nothing to worry about.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
We're paying 18 BILLION (!) to give away Chagos. Let's keep it and fund our NHS instead.
That's the bus. It's game over. Might as well start dotting the ashtrays around number ten now.
I don't suppose the Rwanda £700m freebie would even touch the NHS sides. Probably better value if it is used to furtively invade DRC.
Yes, sorry Pete. I'm not helping, am I. Mocking only gives more oxygen. Let's get this TORY RWANDA SCANDAL up the charts. Our money given away to fund bloodshed in Africa. Surely worth some coverage.
But wait. You guys are in charge of the world’s great agenda setting social media called
<<< checks phone >>>
bluski. Blueski. bloosky
Just use that to get your favoured stories into the headlines
I'm not on it. Sounds like that needs to change ASAP if I want to be a part of shaping the future.
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
Black Doves Pyramids Topping
Black Doves and Pyramids neither "on this topic" nor "this morning".
Anyway Black Doves is truly crap. Don't waste any time on it.
Thanks, I won't. In fact I have 3 months of free Apple and plan to watch Slow Horses.
(don't say if that's crap too because I'm mentally committed)
Black Doves has a much better script. Genuinely funny
Slow Horses is more absorbing in its character work
Both are utterly ludicrous with corpses strewn over london and huge mass murders all tidied up in minutes and no one notices
Favouring one over the other is a sign of middling intellect or worse
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
You're not handling this very well are you. In fact it reads like it's affecting you. I always said there should be an "open door" policy at PB where morons like you are welcomed but you really have me doubting my inclusiveness here.
Lying shit it is then.
I've always said pompous gits should be tolerated if they occasionally say something that isn't utterly moronic, but I don't think you ever have.
What a funny old sausage you are.
I have made rationale, cogent, intelligent, insightful, but above all frankly incontrovertible points about USAID which you seem to have been singularly (no, Nigel also) unable to grasp. I am tempted to put this down solely to your immense stupidity but I think, rather, that it contradicts your "truth" and hence you get all snarky. I mean yes, you are immensely stupid, that everyone can see, but to get hung up on the nature of USAID when there is an enormous amount of analysis supporting my position is, well, bizarre.
So looking forward to your next scathing "lying shit" post.
Go for it.
Give me a quote from me that illustrates this then.
Or even find a single person who has mentioned "American cultural imperialism" except you.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
What is remarkable both on here and in the wider media is Chagos has captured the zeitgeist and is instrumental in trashing Labour, yet Rwanda using the UKs £700m small boats bung to smash DRC doesn't get a look in.
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
We're paying 18 BILLION (!) to give away Chagos. Let's keep it and fund our NHS instead.
That's the bus. It's game over. Might as well start dotting the ashtrays around number ten now.
I don't suppose the Rwanda £700m freebie would even touch the NHS sides. Probably better value if it is used to furtively invade DRC.
Yes, sorry Pete. I'm not helping, am I. Mocking only gives more oxygen. Let's get this TORY RWANDA SCANDAL up the charts. Our money given away to fund bloodshed in Africa. Surely worth some coverage.
Just like to point out that I said on about October 17th 2023 that Israel’s strategy in Gaza only made sense if they were trying to make Gaza uninhabitable - thereby changing the facts on the ground and driving the poor Gazans into the sea - or Somaliland
So it is
NB: I did not applaud this (and still don’t, it’s horrific) but there WAS a logic to what they were doing (despite many saying otherwise on here)
Thomas Friedman (NYT) said early on that a huge problem for Isreal is that could very easily end up having to run the place having destroyed it and with no exit strategy. He has been saying all through this that Isreal has no exit strategy.
He obviously hadn't imagined Trump would bail them out by offering to turn the whole place into a golf resort!
I reckon the Israelis should think twice before encouraging Trump.
A Disney-run Holy Land theme park could be pretty profitable, if only the locals could be shipped off somewhere.
Hopefully Apple will tell the UK government to shove it.
Even if you think "if you nothing to hide you have nothing to fear" which is a terrible argument, does anyone really want a backdoor into Apple's systems when we have no idea who may form a future government? You might not worry about a government led by Starmer abusing such powers, but do want a government led by Farage able to read everything?
Fukker members are the type of people who can't get their printers to work and whose microwave clocks blink 00:00 for years on end. They will never work out how to read your email. Nothing to worry about.
Sounds like a body of people I would be at home with.
1) All printers are bastards.
2) I take the long view with digital clocks on appliances. I keep them permanently on BST. During the winter months, I'm quite capable of mentally subtracting 1; and by March, while all those other fools are running round resetting everything, all my clocks are right and my indolence pays off.
The other factor militating against betting on Reform is that Farage looks fucking old for 61 lately so a health event can't be ruled out before the next GE. The bill will come due for the thousands of Silk Cut consumed eventually.
Silk Cut is for wimps. It's not proper smoking. Guy's a fraud.
Dunno. Never smerked a tab in my life. Apparently Belomors are the final boss of ciggies.
Good on you. It was my worst life choice. But if you did ... well Players NAVY Cut obvs.
Those or Capstan Full Strength were the Class As when I was starting. High tar, no filter, every drag hitting deep and the bonus of getting some loose tobacco stuck in your teeth.
Never a smoker but my Grandad was a Woodbines (or rollies) man. He was church mouse poor so an indulgence on high days and holidays were Passing Clouds.
Not a filter in sight.
Back to UK politics.
More Labour immigration failure.
Rwanda / DRC kicking off and don't forget Rwanda destabilising a neighbour (supporting the M23) can't be happening because Rwanda is a safe country.
It's not looking good, is it. A powerful wave is building and Farage is surfing it with all the grace and skill of Elvis in Blue Hawaii. But the darkest hour is just before the dawn. That's what they say and there's a reason they do. Hubris will soon kick in and he'll fall off his board.
It's also not true. The darkest hour is at local midnight. Just before dawn is usually pretty bright.
Yes, it's nonsense, isn't it. Joins a long list of such sayings.
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger ... what?
..."The exception that proves the rule"...
actually, that one used to make sense. The word 'prove' used to mean 'test' (as in 'the proof of the pudding'). So the exception that proves - or tests - the rule - shows that the rule doesn't work. So nowadays, we might instead say 'the exception that disproves the rule' to be more true to its original sense.
I don't think 'darkest before the dawn' falls into the same category, mind. That was never true.
You prove the rule through deduction by elimination, as long as you identify all exceptions.
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
Black Doves Pyramids Topping
You do love a good pushing from the back post.
"sonny" ... lol
Terrific stuff.
I suppose you dream of the days when people called you sonny.
One other thought. Remember Reeves blathering about Europe's Silicon Valley being built between Cambridge and Oxford? Who the hell is going to want to build cloud services in the UK when we have a more authoritarian stance on encryption than the Chinese? China only demands that iCloud for Chinese users runs on Chinese systems, they don't expect to be able to get at all data worldwide.
Bonkers. Is this the Home Office blob getting loose again?
It supposedly applies worldwide. How does that work?
The article speculates on UK-specific storage being created.
So what do they do with apps that encrypt everything on the way out first? Ban them?
They really aren't going to like my self-installed NextCloud instance.
There is already a law that says you must divulge a key/password on police demand. Failure to do so is a criminal offence.
The next step is to make using encryption without a government back door a crime.
At least the law regarding divulgence is specific to individuals, rather than giving them a licence to trawl.
Presumably the cloud files could be accessed on this basis via any connected device but what they really want is to be able to read things without the user knowing.
[We seem to be very keen on an 'international rule based order'. So what happens when China asks for access on the same basis?]
One other thought. Remember Reeves blathering about Europe's Silicon Valley being built between Cambridge and Oxford? Who the hell is going to want to build cloud services in the UK when we have a more authoritarian stance on encryption than the Chinese? China only demands that iCloud for Chinese users runs on Chinese systems, they don't expect to be able to get at all data worldwide.
We are becoming a ridiculous nation
This government needs to step down. They have virtually no ideas, and the only ideas they have are bad
One other thought. Remember Reeves blathering about Europe's Silicon Valley being built between Cambridge and Oxford? Who the hell is going to want to build cloud services in the UK when we have a more authoritarian stance on encryption than the Chinese? China only demands that iCloud for Chinese users runs on Chinese systems, they don't expect to be able to get at all data worldwide.
"The laws of Australia the UK prevail in Australia the UK, I can assure you of that," he said on Friday. "The laws of mathematics are very commendable, but the only law that applies in Australia the UK is the law of Australia the UK."
Bastard Americans throwing their weight around acting like the world's policeman with their cultural, economic, and military imperialism.
Also fpt
Bastard Americans withdrawing a key instrument of aforementioned imperialism from the globe when the world needs it most and millions will die as a result.
The fantastic thing about Trump is that he is sending all the right people absolutely stark raving mad.
Is your point that you think it's "absolutely stark raving mad" to criticise cutting off aid from one day to the next?
Either you are a huge fan of the US's (multi-dimensional) force projection around the globe or you are not.
If you are, then don't complain when they engage in force projection around the globe. If you are not, then don't complain when they reduce force projection around the globe.
Your first sentence is wrong. Ergo, your conclusion is wrong.
What is wrong about it.
One can have a more nuanced position in the US’s global influence.
translation: I want the US to do exactly what I think it should do and not do what I don't think it should do.
I mean yes, that's pretty nuanced, but also unrealistic, dontcha think?
So we've moved from 'absolutely stark raving mad' to 'unrealistic' in a couple of posts. I suppose it's progress...
I suppose understanding the subtleties of rhetoric aren't your strong point. It's stark raving mad to expect US foreign policy to accord to "your" precise view of the world.
1. It's valid to be in against US humanitarian aid being cut off *even if that aid is entirely in the service of promoting US foreign policy goals*, while at the same time being against the US illegally invading other countries. I don't know if you are pretending to think that there is some contradiction, or what, as this seems very obvious and simple to understand. 2. You haven't given a single example of a stark raving mad post from the previous thread, so it's impossible to know what you are talking about.
I haven't read every post, but I saw posts implying it's a bad thing if people are losing life saving treatment from one day to the next, posts saying Marco Rubio was lying when he said this wouldn't happen, and posts saying it's not in America's interest for this to happen. So where were the absolutely stark raving mad posts oh master of the subtleties of rhetoric?
It is stark raving mad to try to cherry pick the foreign policy of any country in particular Trump America. Of course we like bits and bobs of any country's policies. But this has a strategic element.
USAID has, to quote the wiki scholar article, "served as a key institutional site for the promotion of US interests abroad". People are now upset that they are reining back their operations (or at least have announced something to that effect).
So not liking US cultural imperialism, and at the same time moaning about the restriction of a key tool which was designed to promote US interests abroad is stark raving mad.
Your welcome.
I can only conclude that you are stupid AND dishonest. You're welcome.
Well all your conclusions on this topic so far have been spectacularly misguided and almost wilfully ignorant so I will sleep easy tonight with your assessment.
I find it pathetic that you start off by calling unnamed posters stark raving mad, but can't give a single example of what you mean.
I bet you are unable to give a single example of my spectacularly misguided and wilfully ignorant posts either.
I have explained countless times why posters, you included, were, and still are stark raving mad.
And your entire oeuvre this morning displays heroic quantities of ignorance, wilful or otherwise.
Like I said, no actual examples. Pathetic.
Look if you want to defend cutting USAID from one day to the next on some real grounds, go ahead, otherwise piss off.
The fact that your tiny brain cannot understand the conversations this morning about USAID and its role in American foreign policy is not my problem.
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
So not willing to defend the cut off USAID.
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
You're not handling this very well are you. In fact it reads like it's affecting you. I always said there should be an "open door" policy at PB where morons like you are welcomed but you really have me doubting my inclusiveness here.
Lying shit it is then.
I've always said pompous gits should be tolerated if they occasionally say something that isn't utterly moronic, but I don't think you ever have.
What a funny old sausage you are.
I have made rationale, cogent, intelligent, insightful, but above all frankly incontrovertible points about USAID which you seem to have been singularly (no, Nigel also) unable to grasp. I am tempted to put this down solely to your immense stupidity but I think, rather, that it contradicts your "truth" and hence you get all snarky. I mean yes, you are immensely stupid, that everyone can see, but to get hung up on the nature of USAID when there is an enormous amount of analysis supporting my position is, well, bizarre.
So looking forward to your next scathing "lying shit" post.
Go for it.
Give me a quote from me that illustrates this then.
Or even find a single person who has mentioned "American cultural imperialism" except you.
Also, are you defending the cutting off of USAID?
Oh FFS. I can't even remember what you are trying to prove I haven't proven.
My point was and is that people bemoan USAID curtailing its activities. But USAID is a tool of the US government designed to promote its soft power (or to undertake cultural imperialism, or expand US hegemony, take your pick of phrases).
The same people - you perhaps, if you could string together a coherent post about it - who bemoan US imperialist pretensions at the same time are upset that one of the main tools of US imperialism - USAID - is being scaled back.
Now, readers, I'm sorry if I appear to be repeating myself, but it has become evident that The Kamskmeister requires it.
Comments
Note quite as startling as it sounds - the last time Labour had more than 2 seats was in May 2019. Cons have 2. Ashfield Independents have 32 iirc.
But the Leeanderthal Man will be pleased, and I bet he was involved.
The big thing that will impact here is the Council Leader up in Crown Court later this month:
A date has been set for the trial of Ashfield District Council's leader Jason Zadrozny following the latest hearing in the case. Councillor Zadrozny has pleaded not guilty to 12 counts of fraud by false representation and four counts of income tax evasion.
Northampton Crown Court has now confirmed that the trial is currently listed to begin on February 24, 2025.
https://www.nottinghampost.com/news/local-news/start-date-trial-ashfield-district-9733871
(They seem to have dropped the cocaine charge.)
I suggest you acquaint yourself with some facts, or it might just be all too complicate for you, sonny.
The French tried to teargas me for no reason for example.
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger ... what?
They just wanted it knee-high to hide the shoes.
I've never bothered with Tripadvisor. In places where you pay after you've received the service the time to bring it up is when paying, I think. Exceptions of course for where the bad service becomes apparent later (as with your plumber - but I guess that wasn't tripadvisor?!)
But you absolutely can get cracking on things that are going to pay big dividends over time.
*apologies to any Welsh speakers for the (no doubt) mangling of the language of the bards by the US tech giant
To the point that it is used as a training method.
Then they made it easier to become a "name" so more could be recruited, mention of number of MPs who were existing names and therefore benefited from dilution of the liabilities. There's a website with a summary of events but it brought up several security warnings so I won't link.
A "Welsh language impact assessement"
Hitachi carried out a Welsh language impact assessment as part of its application, which found that the project would need to bring 7,500 workers from outside the area. Anglesey has 70,000 residents and one of the highest concentrations of Welsh speakers in the country.
The impact assessment concluded the extra workers “could have a major adverse effect on the balance of Welsh and non-Welsh speakers” in the area and “could adversely affect the use and prominence of the Welsh language within communities”.
But the assessment also found that by creating high-skilled jobs for young people, the project would help preserve the Welsh language on the island. It would have created more than 2,000 local construction jobs for nine years, and about 85% of the plant’s workforce would be local under the plans.
Not sure about “contempt for women”tho. Women are nice. Just make them a tiny bit sub and we’re all good
You can't give a single quote from me can you? Shouldn't be hard as it was only this morning. If you can't give me even one actual quote from me to help my tiny brain understand what you mean by my ignorance, I'll just assume that you are a lying shit. Fair?
I need to lobby Leon to spam the site for days in order for the Rwanda scandal to gain any traction
Pyramids
Topping
actually, that one used to make sense. The word 'prove' used to mean 'test' (as in 'the proof of the pudding'). So the exception that proves - or tests - the rule - shows that the rule doesn't work. So nowadays, we might instead say 'the exception that disproves the rule' to be more true to its original sense.
I don't think 'darkest before the dawn' falls into the same category, mind. That was never true.
Some do work literally though. Eg you can't make an omelette without breaking eggs. I'd like to hear that one a bit more from politicians - so long as it's referring to something I agree with, otherwise it would irritate me intensely.
So it is
NB: I did not applaud this (and still don’t, it’s horrific) but there WAS a logic to what they were doing (despite many saying otherwise on here)
Anyway Black Doves is truly crap. Don't waste any time on it.
It's a fairly abstract argument about made up numbers, some obscure naval base that the UK isn't even allowed to use with a dose of liminal and weak minded Sinophobia chucked in.
I've always said pompous gits should be tolerated if they occasionally say something that isn't utterly moronic, but I don't think you ever have.
He obviously hadn't imagined Trump would bail them out by offering to turn the whole place into a golf resort!
Nonetheless, hats off to the old fellow.
That's the bus. It's game over. Might as well start dotting the ashtrays around number ten now.
Lab 209
Con 156
Ref 151
LD 62
SNP 43
https://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/prediction_main.html
"A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step."
This is another one (in addition to eggs and omelettes) I'd quite like to hear more of from politicians of all parties.
Support proposed deal: 23% (-2 from 9 Jan)
Oppose proposed deal: 27% (+6)
Don't know: 50% (-4)
Electoral Calculus is much more damning:
40% disagree
18% agree
If the details of the deal were mentioned in the question, I'd imagine support will plummet. As it will when finalised.
I have made rationale, cogent, intelligent, insightful, but above all frankly incontrovertible points about USAID which you seem to have been singularly (no, Nigel also) unable to grasp. I am tempted to put this down solely to your immense stupidity but I think, rather, that it contradicts your "truth" and hence you get all snarky. I mean yes, you are immensely stupid, that everyone can see, but to get hung up on the nature of USAID when there is an enormous amount of analysis supporting my position is, well, bizarre.
So looking forward to your next scathing "lying shit" post.
Go for it.
Perhaps Israel will hand the matter over to that nonexistent entity so beloved of the BBC 'The International Community'.
https://www.cloudynights.com/uploads/monthly_04_2020/post-235546-0-11694700-1586207866.jpg
It supposedly applies worldwide. How does that work?
Even if you think "if you nothing to hide you have nothing to fear" which is a terrible argument, does anyone really want a backdoor into Apple's systems when we have no idea who may form a future government? You might not worry about a government led by Starmer abusing such powers, but do want a government led by Farage able to read everything?
Oh and CALEA (lawful access of telecoms in the US) has completely blown up with the Chinese Salt Typhoon exploting it to intecept communications in the US across essentially all telecoms companies. The US government has actually told citizens to use end-to-end encyrpted services as a consequence.
Which happens to be true according to the weather forecast for where I live
Just get on with it, Donald
Terrific stuff.
Note that the Government is demanding unlimited, warrantless access.
Alba's general secretary has been suspended after being accused of gross misconduct.
The removal of Chris McEleny, a former SNP councillor, comes as infighting dominates the party's attempt to find a new leader following the death of founder Alex Salmond.
McEleny is understood to have launched a separate complaint against acting leader and former justice secretary Kenny MacAskill.
<<< checks phone >>>
bluski. Blueski. bloosky
Just use that to get your favoured stories into the headlines
(don't say if that's crap too because I'm mentally committed)
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/us-officials-urge-americans-use-encrypted-apps-cyberattack-rcna182694
I do not believe for a moment that the UK government could justify how they having full access to Apple's cloud storage would somehow not face the exact same problems.
Apple should withdraw from the UK entirely if the government will not change their demands.
They really aren't going to like my self-installed NextCloud instance.
Slow Horses is more absorbing in its character work
Both are utterly ludicrous with corpses strewn over london and huge mass murders all tidied up in minutes and no one notices
Favouring one over the other is a sign of middling intellect or worse
Or even find a single person who has mentioned "American cultural imperialism" except you.
Also, are you defending the cutting off of USAID?
The next step is to make using encryption without a government back door a crime.
A Disney-run Holy Land theme park could be pretty profitable, if only the locals could be shipped off somewhere.
Imagine the hilarity if he goes for Philippe Sands
1) All printers are bastards.
2) I take the long view with digital clocks on appliances. I keep them permanently on BST. During the winter months, I'm quite capable of mentally subtracting 1; and by March, while all those other fools are running round resetting everything, all my clocks are right and my indolence pays off.
Of course it would be wrong and barbaric and unjustifiable, and as America consigned Mr Sands to Gitmo I would be upset and angry for 0.00043 seconds
Presumably the cloud files could be accessed on this basis via any connected device but what they really want is to be able to read things without the user knowing.
[We seem to be very keen on an 'international rule based order'. So what happens when China asks for access on the same basis?]
This government needs to step down. They have virtually no ideas, and the only ideas they have are bad
Fuck them. Just go. Get rid. PURGE
My point was and is that people bemoan USAID curtailing its activities. But USAID is a tool of the US government designed to promote its soft power (or to undertake cultural imperialism, or expand US hegemony, take your pick of phrases).
The same people - you perhaps, if you could string together a coherent post about it - who bemoan US imperialist pretensions at the same time are upset that one of the main tools of US imperialism - USAID - is being scaled back.
Now, readers, I'm sorry if I appear to be repeating myself, but it has become evident that The Kamskmeister requires it.
Who says the internet has no use.
Save a lot of pointless hassle