Once Trump abandons Europe and freezes the Ukraine conflict, we need a new European Defence Pact, with guarantees for each others defence. Completely outside NATO and the EU.
This needs to include, at a minimum, the UK, France, Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states.
Other nations to be invited contingent on meeting minimum defence spending and not having a veto on military action.
Europe has the economic and military capacity to be vastly superior to Russia. We don't need the US to do that, not so we need to cede any further land.
Why should other countries be “invited” - every EU country should be mandated as part of continued membership that they must spend over 3 and maybe 5% gdp on defence. Why should countries like Ireland freeload knowing that everyone else would have to step in to cover their backsides.
Countries that can’t or won’t provide acceptable and useful ships or planes or troops should have to offset with extra financial contributions.
I'm sure the EU will be most grateful to hear from outwith about what the rules should be.
From where is the £60 billion additional defence spending to come?
5p on basic rate tax and 10p on higher rate tax? I’m sure everyone will support it as a way of keeping the country safe in an uncertain world.
Mr. Stodge, in an alternate reality, in which we hadn't run up crippling debt which continues to rise, we could pay £60bn more on Defence rather than the annual debt interest.
Once Trump abandons Europe and freezes the Ukraine conflict, we need a new European Defence Pact, with guarantees for each others defence. Completely outside NATO and the EU.
This needs to include, at a minimum, the UK, France, Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states.
Other nations to be invited contingent on meeting minimum defence spending and not having a veto on military action.
Europe has the economic and military capacity to be vastly superior to Russia. We don't need the US to do that, not so we need to cede any further land.
Why should other countries be “invited” - every EU country should be mandated as part of continued membership that they must spend over 3 and maybe 5% gdp on defence. Why should countries like Ireland freeload knowing that everyone else would have to step in to cover their backsides.
Countries that can’t or won’t provide acceptable and useful ships or planes or troops should have to offset with extra financial contributions.
Hungary is more likely to side with Russia than Ukraine.
Germany or Ireland would try to veto any action.
We need a coalition of the willing and not setting the terms based on the lowest common denominator. Other countries will likely want to join over time, but will have much less influence than it they were founding members.
And that’s where the EU has real leverage - Hungary - are you in/in or out/out? Time to decide.
Ireland, you want to be in the EU, now it’s time to start protecting the EU’s western flank and cables or frankly fuck off out of the EU. What do you think they will choose?
Germany will pull its weight but you need to make sure there are no vetos. It’s a clear defensive pact that any incursion or attack on territory is an attack on all and will be met with equal or greater retaliation.
The only advantage Russia has over such a pact is Nuclear and their happiness to use dark arts. They sure as shit don’t have the conventional forces to defeat such a collective though.
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
Yep. The US is caving to Russia's main demands - Ukraine never joining NATO, Ukraine never getting 2014 borders back - before negotiations even start. Plus throwing in "the US isn't interested in defending Europe any more" as a free bonus. This looks like shit "deal artistry" if you don't yet realise that Trump is more or less pro-Putin.
There was a chap on the radio this morning who said along the lines of “I haven’t read The art of the deal so don’t know if it recommends giving everything the other side wants to them before the negotiations”.
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
I posted on last thread something about the sheer scale of what Europe has on its plate just as you ended the thread (I’m trying not to take it personally) that was highlighted this morning that I will repost below.
Good interview with General Wesley Clark this morning in the World Service. Clearly agitated about the current US direction re Ukraine. Made the key point that he thinks it would need a peacekeeping force of 150,000 to be effective which requires 500,000 “men at arms” and that Europe just doesn’t have that capacity.
Bear in mind that “Europe” also needs to deploy troops in the arctic north down through the Baltic, Poland etc its even more impossible.
It raises questions about whether EU should be courting Turkey and ignoring concerns about Erdogan - if of course it’s not too late and Turkey are so over them now. Turkey has a huge military and could make it work with the EU.
Maybe China should step up on the world stage and provide a huge number of men for a peacekeeping force - in their interests as they can start flexing and being the new global policeman and get kudos - also no way Russia are going to risk shooting Chinese troops. Maybe offer them the resources in Ukraine instead of the US.
But the fact that the whole of Europe can no longer 500,000 quality troops to provide rotating 150,000 shows how complacent the continent (and us) has become.
Poland is the one nation that's taking it seriously, and has stepped up.
You can't fault Poland.
We have a couple of warships out this morning, practicing sailing around, one behind the other. So all is not lost.
Once Trump abandons Europe and freezes the Ukraine conflict, we need a new European Defence Pact, with guarantees for each others defence. Completely outside NATO and the EU.
This needs to include, at a minimum, the UK, France, Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states.
Other nations to be invited contingent on meeting minimum defence spending and not having a veto on military action.
Europe has the economic and military capacity to be vastly superior to Russia. We don't need the US to do that, not so we need to cede any further land.
Why should other countries be “invited” - every EU country should be mandated as part of continued membership that they must spend over 3 and maybe 5% gdp on defence. Why should countries like Ireland freeload knowing that everyone else would have to step in to cover their backsides.
Countries that can’t or won’t provide acceptable and useful ships or planes or troops should have to offset with extra financial contributions.
I'm sure the EU will be most grateful to hear from outwith about what the rules should be.
Cool, I guess the EU won’t be telling anyone else what their rules should be or how things should be done from outwith?
From where is the £60 billion additional defence spending to come?
5p on basic rate tax and 10p on higher rate tax? I’m sure everyone will support it as a way of keeping the country safe in an uncertain world.
Mr. Stodge, in an alternate reality, in which we hadn't run up crippling debt which continues to rise, we could pay £60bn more on Defence rather than the annual debt interest.
Yes but when I suggested borrowing wasn’t a good idea in the days of the Conservative government, I was set upon by a couple of that Government and Party’s most fervent advocates who told me borrowing when interest rates were low was a great idea and we wouldn’t have to worry about repayments.
This is why the Conservatives can never be trusted with the economy or public finances.
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
Yep. The US is caving to Russia's main demands - Ukraine never joining NATO, Ukraine never getting 2014 borders back - before negotiations even start. Plus throwing in "the US isn't interested in defending Europe any more" as a free bonus. This looks like shit "deal artistry" if you don't yet realise that Trump is more or less pro-Putin.
There was a chap on the radio this morning who said along the lines of “I haven’t read The art of the deal so don’t know if it recommends giving everything the other side wants to them before the negotiations”.
Everything about Trump makes me want to scream but this idea he is a master deal maker - based on a book he didn't write and most likely hasn't even read - is the craziest bullshit of all. Meanwhile, he is intent on handing over a country that has sacrificed its young men (and women) to defend itself to the dead-eyed psychopath in the Kremlin, putting the security of Europe at risk in the process. And yet he still has his fan boys on here.
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
For European leaders the question has to be how long MAGA will last. Trump can blow hot and cold, contradicting himself shamelessly and rapidly - so any positional change now could be reversed.
Alternately, if the MAGA / P25 plan really is to completely subsume the old republic and replace it with autocracy then we're in this for the long haul and it isn't just on the whim of Trump.
As things stand, NATO is over. Europe has no choice other than to step up and organise its own security, and with respect to Ukraine we can't include them as the resources are needed inside our own borders.
Britain is broken and crumbling - but we make excellent kit when we turn our minds to it. Just floating an idea here, but could we not combine our AI prowess with our defence industry capabilities and develop the battlefield kit of the future? We can't afford traditional kit, but the Ukraine war has shown that the coming fight is with drones.
The cold war was an excellent driver of economic output, and what we need is economic drive...
Once Trump abandons Europe and freezes the Ukraine conflict, we need a new European Defence Pact, with guarantees for each others defence. Completely outside NATO and the EU.
This needs to include, at a minimum, the UK, France, Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states.
Other nations to be invited contingent on meeting minimum defence spending and not having a veto on military action.
Europe has the economic and military capacity to be vastly superior to Russia. We don't need the US to do that, not so we need to cede any further land.
Why should other countries be “invited” - every EU country should be mandated as part of continued membership that they must spend over 3 and maybe 5% gdp on defence. Why should countries like Ireland freeload knowing that everyone else would have to step in to cover their backsides.
Countries that can’t or won’t provide acceptable and useful ships or planes or troops should have to offset with extra financial contributions.
Hungary is more likely to side with Russia than Ukraine.
Germany or Ireland would try to veto any action.
We need a coalition of the willing and not setting the terms based on the lowest common denominator. Other countries will likely want to join over time, but will have much less influence than it they were founding members.
And that’s where the EU has real leverage - Hungary - are you in/in or out/out? Time to decide.
Ireland, you want to be in the EU, now it’s time to start protecting the EU’s western flank and cables or frankly fuck off out of the EU. What do you think they will choose?
Germany will pull its weight but you need to make sure there are no vetos. It’s a clear defensive pact that any incursion or attack on territory is an attack on all and will be met with equal or greater retaliation.
The only advantage Russia has over such a pact is Nuclear and their happiness to use dark arts. They sure as shit don’t have the conventional forces to defeat such a collective though.
The EU has no leverage whatsoever for precisely the reason you just said, there are too many nations dragging their heels.
The EU is a sclerotic mess that comes with the lowest common denominator, which includes the likes of Ireland and Hungary.
The only way to fix that is for the EU to be a federal nation that abolishes the independence of Hungary and Ireland etc but countries don't want that either.
Any coalition needs to be a coalition of the willing, not the coerced. There are multiple willing nations, like Poland, to work with.
Once Trump abandons Europe and freezes the Ukraine conflict, we need a new European Defence Pact, with guarantees for each others defence. Completely outside NATO and the EU.
This needs to include, at a minimum, the UK, France, Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states.
Other nations to be invited contingent on meeting minimum defence spending and not having a veto on military action.
Europe has the economic and military capacity to be vastly superior to Russia. We don't need the US to do that, not so we need to cede any further land.
Why should other countries be “invited” - every EU country should be mandated as part of continued membership that they must spend over 3 and maybe 5% gdp on defence. Why should countries like Ireland freeload knowing that everyone else would have to step in to cover their backsides.
Countries that can’t or won’t provide acceptable and useful ships or planes or troops should have to offset with extra financial contributions.
I'm sure the EU will be most grateful to hear from outwith about what the rules should be.
Cool, I guess the EU won’t be telling anyone else what their rules should be or how things should be done from outwith?
No one has to listen to them since Boris got Brexit done surely? Tbf though they haven't quite realised the suddenly popular EU army, they might be justified in asking how many divisons does some random on the internet have.
I see Reform are coming after my storage battery and the reactionaries who watch GB News are supporting it.
I guess they really are Luddites.
What they should go after, are the companies who are actually selling lethally dangerous batteries. Mostly for e-bikes.
What about those gas explosions that keep blowing up people's homes?
Very rare.
The e-bike batteries can include cells that have been rejected by quality control. There was a tear down of some on YouTube, where the cells had a stamp on them saying “failed” in Chinese…
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
Yep. The US is caving to Russia's main demands - Ukraine never joining NATO, Ukraine never getting 2014 borders back - before negotiations even start. Plus throwing in "the US isn't interested in defending Europe any more" as a free bonus. This looks like shit "deal artistry" if you don't yet realise that Trump is more or less pro-Putin.
There was a chap on the radio this morning who said along the lines of “I haven’t read The art of the deal so don’t know if it recommends giving everything the other side wants to them before the negotiations”.
Everything about Trump makes me want to scream but this idea he is a master deal maker - based on a book he didn't write and most likely hasn't even read - is the craziest bullshit of all. Meanwhile, he is intent on handing over a country that has sacrificed its young men (and women) to defend itself to the dead-eyed psychopath in the Kremlin, putting the security of Europe at risk in the process. And yet he still has his fan boys on here.
Not just has them, they are slowly but surely increasing in number. Kleptocractic autocracy is being normalised and successfully promoted ahead of democracy a sliver of the population at a time.
I voted leave in 2016 for two reasons; I didn't want the UK to be in the political structures of the EU. The second reason was related: the EU was an 'ever closer union' political, fiscal and economic but was not then capable of having a common defence policy. In 2016 Sweden, Finland, Ireland and Austria were not in NATO and therefore relied on a defence policy incompatible with and radically different from that of a NATO country. So I supported and still support a UK version of 'Norway for Now' perhaps via EEA/EFTA.
Events since 2016 and up to yesterday suggest that of all the bad and worse options this + developing a common European defence policy (you can't leave Norway out - look at a map) would be the optimal.
I see Reform are coming after my storage battery and the reactionaries who watch GB News are supporting it.
I guess they really are Luddites.
Outrageous and uncalled for slur on the Luddites.
I quite agree re the poor insulted Luddites.
Was just looking at this - another thing Reform are coming after is the Scottish Parliament. But it will not be a popular approach once people cotton on to this up north. More for the poor overburdened @TSE perhaps.
You are Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, and I claim my £10.
Has he won?
Simple question.
Plenty of PBers called this wrong
I said it was impossible for Putin to lose.
Rejoice the body bags will no longer be required
PB Nature Notes. The Increasingly Lesser Spotted Red Owl. Distinguishable from its sharp squawk, proclivity to feed from scraps, and as the only owl on earth to look solely in one direction.
I see Reform are coming after my storage battery and the reactionaries who watch GB News are supporting it.
I guess they really are Luddites.
What they should go after, are the companies who are actually selling lethally dangerous batteries. Mostly for e-bikes.
What about those gas explosions that keep blowing up people's homes?
Very few and usually caused by people deciding to mess with their gas supply in some way. On the other hand the British Safety Council say there is a serious and growing risk from Lithium Ion Batteries independent of people misusing them.
"Lithium-ion batteries have many advantages, but their safety depends on how they are manufactured, used, stored and recycled".
Reading the article it seems to me that much of this could be dealt with by better education and some changes in regulations. But it is clear that the batteries are a recognised risk.
If you ever do a firefighting course they will show you what happens when a camping gas canister gets hot and the size of the explosion when that happens. Tens of thousands of people have those in storage in their garages or under the stairs. After doing my first fire fighting course I went home and moved my canisters down to the shed at the end of the garden. It didn't mean I was going to stop using them or that there was anything inherently wrong with them, just that they were/are a potential risk beyond that which I was willing to accept in the house. I think perhaps we should start regarding lithium ion batteries in the same way. Don't stop using them but educate people about the risks and make sure they are kept at a safe distance.
Once Trump abandons Europe and freezes the Ukraine conflict, we need a new European Defence Pact, with guarantees for each others defence. Completely outside NATO and the EU.
This needs to include, at a minimum, the UK, France, Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states.
Other nations to be invited contingent on meeting minimum defence spending and not having a veto on military action.
Europe has the economic and military capacity to be vastly superior to Russia. We don't need the US to do that, not so we need to cede any further land.
Why should other countries be “invited” - every EU country should be mandated as part of continued membership that they must spend over 3 and maybe 5% gdp on defence. Why should countries like Ireland freeload knowing that everyone else would have to step in to cover their backsides.
Countries that can’t or won’t provide acceptable and useful ships or planes or troops should have to offset with extra financial contributions.
I'm sure the EU will be most grateful to hear from outwith about what the rules should be.
Cool, I guess the EU won’t be telling anyone else what their rules should be or how things should be done from outwith?
No one has to listen to them since Boris got Brexit done surely? Tbf though they haven't quite realised the suddenly popular EU army, they might be justified in asking how many divisons does some random on the internet have.
Zinger.
Going to be quiet on here if we can only discuss matters where we have a huge physical stake.
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
Yes it is and it was clear this would happen. The Trumpdozer feels that Europe has had a free ride off the US for too long and has wanted Europe to pay its way. He is simply forcing their hand.
On this I think he is correct.
We need to take our defence seriously and stop relying on the US.
Well we're stepmom'd then. We have a population of aged and frail pensioners who can't fight, infantilised young adults who scream at micro aggressions, and a heavy industry consisting of James May's shed.
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
Yep. The US is caving to Russia's main demands - Ukraine never joining NATO, Ukraine never getting 2014 borders back - before negotiations even start. Plus throwing in "the US isn't interested in defending Europe any more" as a free bonus. This looks like shit "deal artistry" if you don't yet realise that Trump is more or less pro-Putin.
There was a chap on the radio this morning who said along the lines of “I haven’t read The art of the deal so don’t know if it recommends giving everything the other side wants to them before the negotiations”.
Everything about Trump makes me want to scream but this idea he is a master deal maker - based on a book he didn't write and most likely hasn't even read - is the craziest bullshit of all. Meanwhile, he is intent on handing over a country that has sacrificed its young men (and women) to defend itself to the dead-eyed psychopath in the Kremlin, putting the security of Europe at risk in the process. And yet he still has his fan boys on here.
Not just has them, they are slowly but surely increasing in number. Kleptocractic autocracy is being normalised and successfully promoted ahead of democracy a sliver of the population at a time.
The problem being that the alternative is often woke liberalism or globalised capitalism which have their own negative effects on too many people.
Bad news for death and destruction fans this morning.
Well done Trump.
SKS fans why has your boy promised £300Bn to Ukraine but is cutting disability payments at home.
Presumably all the Ukranians over here have no excuse not to return home now
"Well done Trump"?
You do realise that the actions of the US government are actually massively destabilisng to the world, and are more likely to lead to wider conflict?
This is appeasement Mk 2.
He is an appeaser, so he's happy with that.
Boo hoo
Your boy that you assured us was going to win
Hasnt
So I take it you are on Putin's side? You want war and destruction? You want the imperialism and fascism ro sweep over Ukraine and eastern Europe?
Just because you hate Starmer?
Side of a more peaceful world and a stop to pissing our taxes into a unwinnable war black hole.
Putins an arse but him not winning was just an impossible wet dream
Have you not noticed how Russia has spent three years not winning, with the west doing the absolute minimum possible to help Ukraine?
The concept of 'Russia stronk' died out in March 2022. They are easily defeatable. But the political will to do so isn't currently there. This makes wider war much more likely.
But it seems you support both Hamas and Putin: what is it about imperialism and fascism, mass murder and anti-Semitism that you like so much?
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
Reminding us this is exactly what Trump did when he negotiated the withdrawal from Afghanistan.
That’s a bit pessimistic. We could probably give Putin the Baltic states, buying us precious time to import 47m more people from MENA/Africa/South Asia who have no respect for our culture and no intention of fighting for it
Yep, that's Brexit for you.
Brexit now has the same migration rules for non EU and EU immigrants and Rishi tightened the visa requirements for both
Bad news for death and destruction fans this morning.
Well done Trump.
SKS fans why has your boy promised £300Bn to Ukraine but is cutting disability payments at home.
Presumably all the Ukranians over here have no excuse not to return home now
"Well done Trump"?
You do realise that the actions of the US government are actually massively destabilisng to the world, and are more likely to lead to wider conflict?
This is appeasement Mk 2.
He is an appeaser, so he's happy with that.
Boo hoo
Your boy that you assured us was going to win
Hasnt
So I take it you are on Putin's side? You want war and destruction? You want the imperialism and fascism ro sweep over Ukraine and eastern Europe?
Just because you hate Starmer?
Side of a more peaceful world and a stop to pissing our taxes into a unwinnable war black hole.
Putins an arse but him not winning was just an impossible wet dream
Have you not noticed how Russia has spent three years not winning, with the west doing the absolute minimum possible to help Ukraine?
The concept of 'Russia stronk' died out in March 2022. They are easily defeatable. But the political will to do so isn't currently there. This makes wider war much more likely.
But it seems you support both Hamas and Putin: what is it about imperialism and fascism, mass murder and anti-Semitism that you like so much?
He waxes lyrical over Israeli war crimes, but seems perfectly happy when his fascist soulmates do worse.
Once Trump abandons Europe and freezes the Ukraine conflict, we need a new European Defence Pact, with guarantees for each others defence. Completely outside NATO and the EU.
This needs to include, at a minimum, the UK, France, Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states.
Other nations to be invited contingent on meeting minimum defence spending and not having a veto on military action.
Europe has the economic and military capacity to be vastly superior to Russia. We don't need the US to do that, not so we need to cede any further land.
Why should other countries be “invited” - every EU country should be mandated as part of continued membership that they must spend over 3 and maybe 5% gdp on defence. Why should countries like Ireland freeload knowing that everyone else would have to step in to cover their backsides.
Countries that can’t or won’t provide acceptable and useful ships or planes or troops should have to offset with extra financial contributions.
I'm sure the EU will be most grateful to hear from outwith about what the rules should be.
Cool, I guess the EU won’t be telling anyone else what their rules should be or how things should be done from outwith?
No one has to listen to them since Boris got Brexit done surely? Tbf though they haven't quite realised the suddenly popular EU army, they might be justified in asking how many divisons does some random on the internet have.
Zinger.
Going to be quiet on here if we can only discuss matters where we have a huge physical stake.
Yeah. You may have mistaken a random having a dig at another random's crazy mixed up views with being forbidden to discuss stuff.
Bad news for death and destruction fans this morning.
Well done Trump.
SKS fans why has your boy promised £300Bn to Ukraine but is cutting disability payments at home.
Presumably all the Ukranians over here have no excuse not to return home now
"Well done Trump"?
You do realise that the actions of the US government are actually massively destabilisng to the world, and are more likely to lead to wider conflict?
This is appeasement Mk 2.
He is an appeaser, so he's happy with that.
Boo hoo
Your boy that you assured us was going to win
Hasnt
So I take it you are on Putin's side? You want war and destruction? You want the imperialism and fascism ro sweep over Ukraine and eastern Europe?
Just because you hate Starmer?
Side of a more peaceful world and a stop to pissing our taxes into a unwinnable war black hole.
Putins an arse but him not winning was just an impossible wet dream
Have you not noticed how Russia has spent three years not winning, with the west doing the absolute minimum possible to help Ukraine?
The concept of 'Russia stronk' died out in March 2022. They are easily defeatable. But the political will to do so isn't currently there. This makes wider war much more likely.
But it seems you support both Hamas and Putin: what is it about imperialism and fascism, mass murder and anti-Semitism that you like so much?
I support an end to the killing in both conflicts.You support kids been shot in the head as long as there only Arabs.
Seems you just can't get enough death and destruction
Your goodie baddie and Western World police depiction of world affairs is over for the next 4 years
Not sure how the appeasement of hard right authoritarianism - where the working class are brutalised for the benefit of the ruling autocrats - promotes world socialism but whatever.
Some good economic news for Rachel Reeves. Real wage growth has been strong.
"Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), was 2.5% for regular pay and 2.4% for total pay.
Annual average regular earnings growth for the private sector was 6.0%, while for the public sector, it was 4.1%."
Bad news for death and destruction fans this morning.
Well done Trump.
SKS fans why has your boy promised £300Bn to Ukraine but is cutting disability payments at home.
Presumably all the Ukranians over here have no excuse not to return home now
"Well done Trump"?
You do realise that the actions of the US government are actually massively destabilisng to the world, and are more likely to lead to wider conflict?
This is appeasement Mk 2.
He is an appeaser, so he's happy with that.
Boo hoo
Your boy that you assured us was going to win
Hasnt
So I take it you are on Putin's side? You want war and destruction? You want the imperialism and fascism ro sweep over Ukraine and eastern Europe?
Just because you hate Starmer?
Side of a more peaceful world and a stop to pissing our taxes into a unwinnable war black hole.
Putins an arse but him not winning was just an impossible wet dream
Have you not noticed how Russia has spent three years not winning, with the west doing the absolute minimum possible to help Ukraine?
The concept of 'Russia stronk' died out in March 2022. They are easily defeatable. But the political will to do so isn't currently there. This makes wider war much more likely.
But it seems you support both Hamas and Putin: what is it about imperialism and fascism, mass murder and anti-Semitism that you like so much?
He waxes lyrical over Israeli war crimes, but seems perfectly happy when his fascist soulmates do worse.
Though for balance there's quite a coterie of those who wax lyrical over Russian war crimes, but seems perfectly happy when the IDF do similar.
If they said they were banning subsidies on these things, then OK. Free market rulez & all that. But forcing the grid to bury cables? Banning battery storage? Every policy here is going to raise bills, not lower them!
It seems that if you’re pro-development the only party you can reasonably vote for right now (no matter how flawed) is the Labour Party.
Bad news for death and destruction fans this morning.
Well done Trump.
SKS fans why has your boy promised £300Bn to Ukraine but is cutting disability payments at home.
Presumably all the Ukranians over here have no excuse not to return home now
"Well done Trump"?
You do realise that the actions of the US government are actually massively destabilisng to the world, and are more likely to lead to wider conflict?
This is appeasement Mk 2.
He is an appeaser, so he's happy with that.
Boo hoo
Your boy that you assured us was going to win
Hasnt
So I take it you are on Putin's side? You want war and destruction? You want the imperialism and fascism ro sweep over Ukraine and eastern Europe?
Just because you hate Starmer?
Side of a more peaceful world and a stop to pissing our taxes into a unwinnable war black hole.
Putins an arse but him not winning was just an impossible wet dream
Have you not noticed how Russia has spent three years not winning, with the west doing the absolute minimum possible to help Ukraine?
The concept of 'Russia stronk' died out in March 2022. They are easily defeatable. But the political will to do so isn't currently there. This makes wider war much more likely.
But it seems you support both Hamas and Putin: what is it about imperialism and fascism, mass murder and anti-Semitism that you like so much?
I support an end to the killing in both conflicts.You support kids been shot in the head as long as there only Arabs.
Seems you just can't get enough death and destruction
Your goodie baddie and Western World police depiction of world affairs is over for the next 4 years
You're a liar.
You support death and destruction, when it's inflicted upon people you hate (Jews, Ukrainians).
I see Reform are coming after my storage battery and the reactionaries who watch GB News are supporting it.
I guess they really are Luddites.
What they should go after, are the companies who are actually selling lethally dangerous batteries. Mostly for e-bikes.
What about those gas explosions that keep blowing up people's homes?
Very few and usually caused by people deciding to mess with their gas supply in some way. On the other hand the British Safety Council say there is a serious and growing risk from Lithium Ion Batteries independent of people misusing them.
"Lithium-ion batteries have many advantages, but their safety depends on how they are manufactured, used, stored and recycled".
Reading the article it seems to me that much of this could be dealt with by better education and some changes in regulations. But it is clear that the batteries are a recognised risk.
If you ever do a firefighting course they will show you what happens when a camping gas canister gets hot and the size of the explosion when that happens. Tens of thousands of people have those in storage in their garages or under the stairs. After doing my first fire fighting course I went home and moved my canisters down to the shed at the end of the garden. It didn't mean I was going to stop using them or that there was anything inherently wrong with them, just that they were/are a potential risk beyond that which I was willing to accept in the house. I think perhaps we should start regarding lithium ion batteries in the same way. Don't stop using them but educate people about the risks and make sure they are kept at a safe distance.
The reason that electric cars have orders of magnitude less fires than diesel/petrol is because of careful design.
A professor in the field - Japanese lady, forget her name - published a paper, years back which established that if you used batteries that were slightly less than peak power to weight (last years design essentially) and were careful with charging, the risk collapses near zero.
Tesla used just obsolete cells from the start - they originally bought the entire output from “last years” Panasonic battery factories. They combined this with carefully controlled charging, fuses to isolate parts of the pack and water cooling. The water cooling keeps the temperature of the pack very even during charging and mitigates fire risk. The final touch is armouring around the pack (used as structure in the car, to save weight).
These ideas all came from the custom electrification industry in LA - pre-Tesla, you could get any car turned into electric by a small number of custom shops. The first Teslas were about systematising this into small volume production.
All the serious EV makers do similar stuff.
The e-bike batteries have none of this, and poor quality control on top.
If they said they were banning subsidies on these things, then OK. Free market rulez & all that. But forcing the grid to bury cables? Banning battery storage? Every policy here is going to raise bills, not lower them!
It seems that if you’re pro-development the only party you can reasonably vote for right now (no matter how flawed) is the Labour Party.
They will have to prise the battery storage unit from my cold dead hands.
I am saving an absolute fortune with mine thanks to solars and having smart meter with an EV/2 rate tariff.
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
One country not mentioned is Poland, which owing to geography, and the history with several centuries of imperial Russia (in its various forms), has pretty much the same skin in the game as does Ukraine. And is rapidly re-arming.
If NATO is de facto dead (though I'd prefer to treat it as de facto suspended for the next four years), then a collective European security arrangement is absolutely essential, and quickly.
Russian military spending, on a purchasing power parity basis, currently exceeds European spending. At nearly 7% of GDP, and under sanctions, it's not sustainable - but if Trump throws Putin an economic lifeline, which looks fairly likely, then it might become so.
We have a change to credibly deter further invasions, but only if we build up both production capacity, and stocks of war fighting materiel. Quickly. That has to take priority over vanity projects like fielding carriers in the far east.
Once Trump abandons Europe and freezes the Ukraine conflict, we need a new European Defence Pact, with guarantees for each others defence. Completely outside NATO and the EU.
This needs to include, at a minimum, the UK, France, Poland, Ukraine and the Baltic states.
Other nations to be invited contingent on meeting minimum defence spending and not having a veto on military action.
Europe has the economic and military capacity to be vastly superior to Russia. We don't need the US to do that, not so we need to cede any further land.
Why should other countries be “invited” - every EU country should be mandated as part of continued membership that they must spend over 3 and maybe 5% gdp on defence. Why should countries like Ireland freeload knowing that everyone else would have to step in to cover their backsides.
Countries that can’t or won’t provide acceptable and useful ships or planes or troops should have to offset with extra financial contributions.
Hungary is more likely to side with Russia than Ukraine.
Germany or Ireland would try to veto any action.
We need a coalition of the willing and not setting the terms based on the lowest common denominator. Other countries will likely want to join over time, but will have much less influence than it they were founding members.
Germany depends on the outcome of the imminent election.
Not sure how the appeasement of hard right authoritarianism - where the working class are brutalised for the benefit of the ruling autocrats - promotes world socialism but whatever.
It's easy to understand why fascists would support Putin - he's the man they would like to be.
It's impossible to understand why anyone claiming to be on the Left would support him, unless their professed beliefs are a lie.
It's lonely being on topic, but here goes. Phillipson's performance is being commented upon, and judged, entirely on the concerns of the affluent middle classes: private school fees, support programmes for Latin and 'A' level maths/further maths etc. But there is more to education than this. For example, it hasn't been mentioned on here I think, but this week she announced two pretty big changes to apprenticeship requirements, namely the removal of the requirement for all apprentices to pass level 2 English and maths before being awarded their apprenticeship (implemented immediately), and a reduction in the length of some apprenticeships. Both these measures should increase significantly the number of apprentices who successfully complete. There's lots of other stuff going on that's designed to improve the lot of those more inclined to vocational rather than academic education. And, contrary to what it says in the header, I think the Ofsted changes have been handled pretty well.
PB's, and the media's, concerns about education invariably focus on the top 30% or so, who already get a pretty good deal. How dare a Labour government be more concerned about the other 70%?
Some good economic news for Rachel Reeves. Real wage growth has been strong.
"Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), was 2.5% for regular pay and 2.4% for total pay.
Annual average regular earnings growth for the private sector was 6.0%, while for the public sector, it was 4.1%."
If it's not matched by productivity growth, which has been pretty dismal, then it will simply translate into inflation down the line.
The poor performance of our economy in the post-war years wasn't because we weren't paying ourselves enough, it was because we weren't producing enough to justify it - hence stagflation in the 70s.
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
One country not mentioned is Poland, which owing to geography, and the history with several centuries of imperial Russia (in its various forms), has pretty much the same skin in the game as does Ukraine. And is rapidly re-arming.
If NATO is de facto dead (though I'd prefer to treat it as de facto suspended for the next four years), then a collective European security arrangement is absolutely essential, and quickly.
Russian military spending, on a purchasing power parity basis, currently exceeds European spending. At nearly 7% of GDP, and under sanctions, it's not sustainable - but if Trump throws Putin an economic lifeline, which looks fairly likely, then it might become so.
We have a change to credibly deter further invasions, but only if we build up both production capacity, and stocks of war fighting materiel. Quickly. That has to take priority over vanity projects like fielding carriers in the far east.
And giving eleventy trillion pounds to a Chinese ally to TAKE strategic UK territory
Surely the Chagos deal is deader than dead. Diego Garcia is one way to bind the USA to our mutual defence
If starmer pursues it he should be keel hauled and disgraced
Not sure how the appeasement of hard right authoritarianism - where the working class are brutalised for the benefit of the ruling autocrats - promotes world socialism but whatever.
It's easy to understand why fascists would support Putin - he's the man they would like to be.
It's impossible to understand why anyone claiming to be on the Left would support him, unless their professed beliefs are a lie.
It's simple. The Far Left in this country hate the West. They hate NATO. Therefore, they'll side with anyone who is opposed to us.
Some good economic news for Rachel Reeves. Real wage growth has been strong.
"Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), was 2.5% for regular pay and 2.4% for total pay.
Annual average regular earnings growth for the private sector was 6.0%, while for the public sector, it was 4.1%."
Pushback against Hegseth and Chump on Ukraine from John Healey The Defence Secretary and the Secretary General of NATO, which is positive news. I'll be interested to see what James Cartlidge (Shad Def Sec) and whoever is Reform's Defence Spokesperson have to say on this.
Defence Secretary John Healey says there will be no talks about Ukraine without Ukraine involved
Healey adds the UK remains committed to ensuring Kyiv is in the strongest negotiating and fighting position as he says "durable peace" remains the goal
Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte says any peace agreement reached must ensure Russia will make no further attempts to annexe Ukrainian land in the future
The comments come after Donald Trump said he and Vladimir Putin had agreed to start negotiations on ending the war "immediately"
Whatever our ministers say makes little difference if Trump and Putin agree a carve-up and present Ukraine with a fait accompli. Successive Conservative governments have hollowed out our armed forces for decades. There is nothing we can do now.
The attitude of modern US “conservatives” to international relations is similar to that of the 1960’s anti-war activists - albeit, they’re more willing to bully their neighbours.
I think social proof and peer pressure - I.e. the social dynamics of one's "group" - have far more to do with politics than natural opinion.
Which is scary, because it means that most people could be socially conditioned to most things, provided their social group agreed.
Not sure how the appeasement of hard right authoritarianism - where the working class are brutalised for the benefit of the ruling autocrats - promotes world socialism but whatever.
It's easy to understand why fascists would support Putin - he's the man they would like to be.
It's impossible to understand why anyone claiming to be on the Left would support him, unless their professed beliefs are a lie.
Because quite a few on the far left are, in fact, fascists. The Soviet Union should have taught us all that.
They like strongmen and distrust institutions. Unless those institutions are implemented by strongmen. Like Russia’s promised new “LGBT register”.
Not sure how the appeasement of hard right authoritarianism - where the working class are brutalised for the benefit of the ruling autocrats - promotes world socialism but whatever.
It's easy to understand why fascists would support Putin - he's the man they would like to be.
It's impossible to understand why anyone claiming to be on the Left would support him, unless their professed beliefs are a lie.
For the older ones, it's the folk memory of Uncle Joe.
That's not the point, is it? Hotels have cleaners. Or is Rupe just complaining that refugees eat in their rooms? Heaven knows there are criticisms to be made but is this really one of them?
Not sure how the appeasement of hard right authoritarianism - where the working class are brutalised for the benefit of the ruling autocrats - promotes world socialism but whatever.
It's easy to understand why fascists would support Putin - he's the man they would like to be.
It's impossible to understand why anyone claiming to be on the Left would support him, unless their professed beliefs are a lie.
Because quite a few on the far left are, in fact, fascists. The Soviet Union should have taught us all that.
They like strongmen and distrust institutions. Unless those institutions are implemented by strongmen. Like Russia’s promised new “LGBT register”.
Being anti-western is also important.
Destroying the western world is required for their socialist paradise to be created.
Some good economic news for Rachel Reeves. Real wage growth has been strong.
"Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), was 2.5% for regular pay and 2.4% for total pay.
Annual average regular earnings growth for the private sector was 6.0%, while for the public sector, it was 4.1%."
So it looks like Trump's promise of peace in Gaza and Ukraine lasted less than a month. Hamas already now refusing to release more hostages and Netanyahu threatening more Israeli bombing and special forces raids.
Now the US Defence Secretary giving Zelensky terms he clearly can't and won't accept so that conflict continues too. European defence spending still needed to be increased regardless anyway given the US is more focused on containing China and its own borders militarily than protecting NATO Europe
Trump is giving Netanyahu the All Clear to finish Gaza off for good. I suspect that will now happen. Israel will return to the fray - either next weekend or next year - and entirely level Gaza so that not even an ascetic hamster could reoccupy it
All the facts are a-changing. Pity the Gazans
Which will just create even more Hamas terrorists whether they stay in Gaza or are forced out to Jordan or Egypt
Israel won’t care. Better the Jew-haters are in Jordan or Egypt - beyond the world’s biggest walls - than “inside” Israel
Provided they can secure their borders to then keep Hamas out
Israel has excellent security. Have you ever flown El Al?
However even the best security cannot defend against an angry and open prison occupying a large chunk of the nation in the southwest corner
So, logically, it will be ended
I am not cheerleading this. I say again if I was a young Palestinian lad I would be CONSUMED with hatred for everything Israeli and Jewish, and for very very good reasons. But that just makes Israel’s logic more inexorable
There was a brief chance of peace under Clinton. It has gone forever
I am appalled at what's likely to happen but...
That seems to be a lot of people's line on imminent genocide.
Collective punishment is not justified.
But if it happens it has been wrought by Hamas, Fatah and the PLO and their actions over decades.
Pre-1967 the Palestinians lived in Egypt and Jordan, their returning to Egypt and Jordan albeit in their current borders might be a solution to end eternal conflict.
And for all the talk about how collective punishment is not justified, its happened many times before, including for example Germans being kicked out of areas they were no longer welcome in post-WWII.
So, you've gone back to supporting ethnic cleansing, a crime against humanity. What credo can support such a position? You cannot believe in property rights, in the rule of law, in individual liberty. Why is it fine to throw all those away when it's the Palestinians?
I don't support it, but if Hamas won't lay down their arms and surrender, it might be the least worst option.
My preferred option is an unconditional Hamas surrender and peace can occur, but if that won't happen then war is hell and war leads to sup-optimal results sometimes.
There have been hundreds of wars in history. We didn't need ethnic cleansing to end 99% of them. Why on earth would it be the "least worst option" here?
Hamas can be defeated militarily, if necessary. But what is threatening the current ceasefire is Trump and Netanyahu's talk of ethnic cleansing. What about we make it clear that ethnic cleansing is not an option? That shouldn't be a difficult statement for any country to make. No-one should be promoting it. How is this a difficult idea?
Ethnic cleansing has ended a lot of conflicts. War in Europe in the 40s ended with a lot of it happening.
If Hamas want to lay down their arms and surrender then I'd be delighted, but if they don't then Israel should take the gloves off and do whatever it takes to destroy them.
Anyone who wants to seek refuge away from the conflict should be able to do so in a neighbouring state, that's what refugee status exists for.
The Palestinians are fighting, almost certainly in vain, for their very survival. There is nothing they can do to escape from subjugation or annihilation by the Israelis, so I guess they figure they may as well go down fighting. Much like the Native Americans to European settlers or the British Celts to the Romans.
The Israelis are the ones fighting for their survival. If they don't stop Hamas, they will gladly kill every Jew "from the river to the sea". If Israel lays down its arms, they and the only Jewish state on the entire planet die.
On the other hand if Hamas lays down it's arms, the fighting is over.
If Hamas want to fight, I bloody well hope it is in vain and they are annihilated. You should 100% be calling for Hamas to surrender and stop fighting unconditionally.
Gaza has been reduced to rubble. Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa have not. Israel’s survival is not under threat.
Just because they're losing doesn't mean Hamas aren't threatening Israel's survival. They would gladly kill every Jew in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa. They are explicit about their aims and trying to do it.
Which is why they need to be destroyed and defeated if they won't lay down their arms.
There's no reason to accord losers more rights or take their atrocities less seriously. If Gaza is destroyed it is because of Hamas and their actions and their refusal to surrender.
Hamas are vile. But bluntly, so too are West Bank settlers and their champions in the Israeli cabinet. Two cheeks of the same arse.
We discovered this in the 1930s and 1940s.
Both sides want to fight to the death for the Holy Land.
Trump's approach to Ukraine is the litmus test for the allies as to whether they confront him and face him down or appease him and Putin. If they don't, then they will be rendered redundant for 4 years.
Make no mistake, this is a pivotal day in this century. Pulling the plug on Ukraine, US disinvesting in European security, and the big powers redrawing the boundaries of smaller ones. A new reality faces Europe and it’s going to require urgent investment in defence & security.
Yep. The US is caving to Russia's main demands - Ukraine never joining NATO, Ukraine never getting 2014 borders back - before negotiations even start. Plus throwing in "the US isn't interested in defending Europe any more" as a free bonus. This looks like shit "deal artistry" if you don't yet realise that Trump is more or less pro-Putin.
There was a chap on the radio this morning who said along the lines of “I haven’t read The art of the deal so don’t know if it recommends giving everything the other side wants to them before the negotiations”.
Everything about Trump makes me want to scream but this idea he is a master deal maker - based on a book he didn't write and most likely hasn't even read - is the craziest bullshit of all. Meanwhile, he is intent on handing over a country that has sacrificed its young men (and women) to defend itself to the dead-eyed psychopath in the Kremlin, putting the security of Europe at risk in the process. And yet he still has his fan boys on here.
When Chump published his book, the Ghost Writer asked him for half the royalties.
And Mr Chump gave it to him. Obviously he tried to walk away from other promises he had made (Refs over at Wiki):
Trump and Schwartz had an agreement to split royalties from the sale of the book on a 50–50 basis.[23][24]
In 1988, Trump set up the Donald J. Trump Foundation to give away the book's royalties, in Trump's words, promising four or five million dollars "to the homeless, to Vietnam veterans, for AIDS, multiple sclerosis".[23][24] According to a Washington Post investigation those promised donations largely failed to materialize; the paper said "he gave less to those causes than he did to his older daughter's ballet school".[24] The Washington Post asked the Trump's 2016 presidential campaign if he had donated the $55,000 of royalties he had earned from the book in the first six months of 2016 to charity, as he promised in the 1980s, and it did not respond.[25]
By 2016, Schwartz said he had received some $1.6 million in royalty payments.[23] Schwartz said he would be donating six months of royalties (worth $55,000) to the National Immigration Law Center, which advocates for immigrants to remain in the United States regardless of whether or not their entry was legal. Schwartz had earlier donated royalties he received in the second half of 2015, worth $25,000, to a number of charities including the National Immigration Forum. Schwartz said he wanted to help the people Trump was attacking.[25]
Financial disclosures by Trump for 2018 revealed the book earned over $1 million that year, and it was the only title of his dozen-plus authored books that made money.[26] Trump's financial disclosures for 2019 reported royalties for The Art of the Deal in the $100,000 to $1 million range.[27]
Not sure how the appeasement of hard right authoritarianism - where the working class are brutalised for the benefit of the ruling autocrats - promotes world socialism but whatever.
It's easy to understand why fascists would support Putin - he's the man they would like to be.
It's impossible to understand why anyone claiming to be on the Left would support him, unless their professed beliefs are a lie.
For the older ones, it's the folk memory of Uncle Joe.
During the Balkan Wars the ultra-left supported the Serbians. To the point that some were applauding Arkan - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkan
Some good economic news for Rachel Reeves. Real wage growth has been strong.
"Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), was 2.5% for regular pay and 2.4% for total pay.
Annual average regular earnings growth for the private sector was 6.0%, while for the public sector, it was 4.1%."
Some good economic news for Rachel Reeves. Real wage growth has been strong.
"Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), was 2.5% for regular pay and 2.4% for total pay.
Annual average regular earnings growth for the private sector was 6.0%, while for the public sector, it was 4.1%."
Hang on, private sector pay growing more than public sector? Have I been misinformed by people on here? What about the incoming Labour government caving in to all those excessive public sector pay demands?
When asked whether Ukraine should cede its territories for the sake of peace, Trump stressed that Zelenskyy "is going to have to do what he has to do."
"But you know his poll numbers aren't particularly great...
That's not the point, is it? Hotels have cleaners. Or is Rupe just complaining that refugees eat in their rooms? Heaven knows there are criticisms to be made but is this really one of them?
Perhaps the asylum seekers should be prevented from eating in their rooms? Should we fund them going down to the Hotel restaurant? 3 course meal? wine?
The "Munich security" element of the Munich security conference seems to be somewhat in doubt.
Unless it is like my friend's mum, who in her eighties got the pedals confused and totalled six cars in a Tesco car park, including a very high-end Merc.
That's not the point, is it? Hotels have cleaners. Or is Rupe just complaining that refugees eat in their rooms? Heaven knows there are criticisms to be made but is this really one of them?
Perhaps the asylum seekers should be prevented from eating in their rooms? Should we fund them going down to the Hotel restaurant? 3 course meal? wine?
just asking....
A lot of PBers don’t understand ordinary people. On an ordinary income
For them, to loaf about a nice 4 star hotel for weeks on end with nothing to do but eat nice marks and Spencer food - and then get it all cleaned by cleaners - is a dream. That will never come true
So, yes, tiny examples like this are grievously insulting to millions of Brits
If they said they were banning subsidies on these things, then OK. Free market rulez & all that. But forcing the grid to bury cables? Banning battery storage? Every policy here is going to raise bills, not lower them!
It seems that if you’re pro-development the only party you can reasonably vote for right now (no matter how flawed) is the Labour Party.
What is the rationale for banning battery storage ? Inefficiency ? Safety ?
Some good economic news for Rachel Reeves. Real wage growth has been strong.
"Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), was 2.5% for regular pay and 2.4% for total pay.
Annual average regular earnings growth for the private sector was 6.0%, while for the public sector, it was 4.1%."
Hang on, private sector pay growing more than public sector? Have I been misinformed by people on here? What about the incoming Labour government caving in to all those excessive public sector pay demands?
Are people only reporting the statistics they like? I'm shocked. Shocked.
That's not the point, is it? Hotels have cleaners. Or is Rupe just complaining that refugees eat in their rooms? Heaven knows there are criticisms to be made but is this really one of them?
Perhaps the asylum seekers should be prevented from eating in their rooms? Should we fund them going down to the Hotel restaurant? 3 course meal? wine?
just asking....
A lot of PBers don’t understand ordinary people. On an ordinary income
For them, to loaf about a nice 4 star hotel for weeks on end with nothing to do but eat nice marks and Spencer food - and then get it all cleaned by cleaners - is a dream. That will never come true
So, yes, tiny examples like this are grievously insulting to millions of Brits
On top of this we get all the stories of illegal migrant Albanian rapist-murderers being allowed to stay because their wife’s pet parakeet dislikes Tirana
If the left REALLY wants a reform government, way to go
Why do so many Europeans think it's okay to insult America all the time while also lecturing the country on how it should deploy its military and other assets? Seems like an odd combination.
When asked whether Ukraine should cede its territories for the sake of peace, Trump stressed that Zelenskyy "is going to have to do what he has to do."
"But you know his poll numbers aren't particularly great...
Vietnam was not a good war to go into.
Afghanistan was not a good war to go into.
Iraq was not a good war to go into.
These were wars of choice. They were not wars as a result of US territory being invaded.
By Trump's logic, America should have given up Hawaii to the Japanese because "people were being killed".
But of course, there is no Trump logic. Just a call with Putin, who reminds him of the dirt Russia has on him. And lo, Ukraine gets thrown under the bus.
The "Munich security" element of the Munich security conference seems to be somewhat in doubt.
Unless it is like my friend's mum, who in her eighties got the pedals confused and totalled six cars in a Tesco car park, including a very high-end Merc.
Pictures show the car was a Mini, and the incident was close to a rally for striking drivers. It all sounds more like an accident rather than terrorism or any sort of attempted murder – the car is too light and Islamists normally attack people having fun. We should not rule out some idiot who understands neither physics nor politics but we shall see.
If they said they were banning subsidies on these things, then OK. Free market rulez & all that. But forcing the grid to bury cables? Banning battery storage? Every policy here is going to raise bills, not lower them!
It seems that if you’re pro-development the only party you can reasonably vote for right now (no matter how flawed) is the Labour Party.
What is the rationale for banning battery storage ? Inefficiency ? Safety ?
Comments
Ireland, you want to be in the EU, now it’s time to start protecting the EU’s western flank and cables or frankly fuck off out of the EU. What do you think they will choose?
Germany will pull its weight but you need to make sure there are no vetos. It’s a clear defensive pact that any incursion or attack on territory is an attack on all and will be met with equal or greater retaliation.
The only advantage Russia has over such a pact is Nuclear and their happiness to use
dark arts. They sure as shit don’t have the conventional forces to defeat such a collective though.
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/07/25/donald-trumps-ghostwriter-tells-all
https://x.com/RupertLowe10/status/1889942712377565460
This is why the Conservatives can never be trusted with the economy or public finances.
Alternately, if the MAGA / P25 plan really is to completely subsume the old republic and replace it with autocracy then we're in this for the long haul and it isn't just on the whim of Trump.
As things stand, NATO is over. Europe has no choice other than to step up and organise its own security, and with respect to Ukraine we can't include them as the resources are needed inside our own borders.
Britain is broken and crumbling - but we make excellent kit when we turn our minds to it. Just floating an idea here, but could we not combine our AI prowess with our defence industry capabilities and develop the battlefield kit of the future? We can't afford traditional kit, but the Ukraine war has shown that the coming fight is with drones.
The cold war was an excellent driver of economic output, and what we need is economic drive...
The EU is a sclerotic mess that comes with the lowest common denominator, which includes the likes of Ireland and Hungary.
The only way to fix that is for the EU to be a federal nation that abolishes the independence of Hungary and Ireland etc but countries don't want that either.
Any coalition needs to be a coalition of the willing, not the coerced. There are multiple willing nations, like Poland, to work with.
As is lower spending on the old and the poor.
No exceptions, everyone must lose out for it to be seen as fair.
Tbf though they haven't quite realised the suddenly popular EU army, they might be justified in asking how many divisons does some random on the internet have.
Well done Trump.
SKS fans why has your boy promised £300Bn to Ukraine but is cutting disability payments at home.
Presumably all the Ukranians over here have no excuse not to return home now
Those who are working a steady job on PAYE, not claiming benefits, are already taxed enough and don't get much spent on them.
The problem is those on non-PAYE incomes or getting expenditure are much better off, and don't appreciate it either.
You do realise that the actions of the US government are actually massively destabilisng to the world, and are more likely to lead to wider conflict?
This is appeasement Mk 2.
They've always sided with the brutal foreign dictators?
That's who they were supposed to unite under.
The e-bike batteries can include cells that have been rejected by quality control. There was a tear down of some on YouTube, where the cells had a stamp on them saying “failed” in Chinese…
Your boy that you assured us was going to win
Hasnt
Next to him, Badenoch is an intellectual colossus - the Tories dodged a bullet not choosing Jenrick.
Events since 2016 and up to yesterday suggest that of all the bad and worse options this + developing a common European defence policy (you can't leave Norway out - look at a map) would be the optimal.
Simple question.
Plenty of PBers called this wrong
I said it was impossible for Putin to lose.
Rejoice the body bags will no longer be required
Just because you hate Starmer?
And I daresay the body bags will be needed, in greater numbers.
Putins an arse but him not winning was just an impossible wet dream
Was just looking at this - another thing Reform are coming after is the Scottish Parliament. But it will not be a popular approach once people cotton on to this up north. More for the poor overburdened @TSE perhaps.
https://euppublishingblog.com/2025/02/13/a-parcel-of-rogues/
https://www.euppublishing.com/doi/abs/10.3366/scot.2025.0533
Bit of a stretch
.
"Lithium-ion batteries have many advantages, but their safety depends on how they are manufactured, used, stored and recycled".
https://www.britsafe.org/safety-management/2024/lithium-ion-batteries-a-growing-fire-risk
Reading the article it seems to me that much of this could be dealt with by better education and some changes in regulations. But it is clear that the batteries are a recognised risk.
If you ever do a firefighting course they will show you what happens when a camping gas canister gets hot and the size of the explosion when that happens. Tens of thousands of people have those in storage in their garages or under the stairs. After doing my first fire fighting course I went home and moved my canisters down to the shed at the end of the garden. It didn't mean I was going to stop using them or that there was anything inherently wrong with them, just that they were/are a potential risk beyond that which I was willing to accept in the house. I think perhaps we should start regarding lithium ion batteries in the same way. Don't stop using them but educate people about the risks and make sure they are kept at a safe distance.
Going to be quiet on here if we can only discuss matters where we have a huge physical stake.
https://x.com/YouGov/status/1889974534260113482
No doubt, you'd have been urging the UK to stop spending money on an "unwinnable war" in 1940.
The concept of 'Russia stronk' died out in March 2022. They are easily defeatable. But the political will to do so isn't currently there. This makes wider war much more likely.
But it seems you support both Hamas and Putin: what is it about imperialism and fascism, mass murder and anti-Semitism that you like so much?
You may have mistaken a random having a dig at another random's crazy mixed up views with being forbidden to discuss stuff.
Seems you just can't get enough death and destruction
Your goodie baddie and Western World police depiction of world affairs is over for the next 4 years
Not sure how the appeasement of hard right authoritarianism - where the working class are brutalised for the benefit of the ruling autocrats - promotes world socialism but whatever.
"Annual growth in real terms, adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), was 2.5% for regular pay and 2.4% for total pay.
Annual average regular earnings growth for the private sector was 6.0%, while for the public sector, it was 4.1%."
https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/bulletins/averageweeklyearningsingreatbritain/january2025
If they said they were banning subsidies on these things, then OK. Free market rulez & all that. But forcing the grid to bury cables? Banning battery storage? Every policy here is going to raise bills, not lower them!
It seems that if you’re pro-development the only party you can reasonably vote for right now (no matter how flawed) is the Labour Party.
You support death and destruction, when it's inflicted upon people you hate (Jews, Ukrainians).
A professor in the field - Japanese lady, forget her name - published a paper, years back which established that if you used batteries that were slightly less than peak power to weight (last years design essentially) and were careful with charging, the risk collapses near zero.
Tesla used just obsolete cells from the start - they originally bought the entire output from “last years” Panasonic battery factories. They combined this with carefully controlled charging, fuses to isolate parts of the pack and water cooling. The water cooling keeps the temperature of the pack very even during charging and mitigates fire risk. The final touch is armouring around the pack (used as structure in the car, to save weight).
These ideas all came from the custom electrification industry in LA - pre-Tesla, you could get any car turned into electric by a small number of custom shops. The first Teslas were about systematising this into small volume production.
All the serious EV makers do similar stuff.
The e-bike batteries have none of this, and poor quality control on top.
I am saving an absolute fortune with mine thanks to solars and having smart meter with an EV/2 rate tariff.
But it's not quite as gloomy as painted.
One country not mentioned is Poland, which owing to geography, and the history with several centuries of imperial Russia (in its various forms), has pretty much the same skin in the game as does Ukraine. And is rapidly re-arming.
If NATO is de facto dead (though I'd prefer to treat it as de facto suspended for the next four years), then a collective European security arrangement is absolutely essential, and quickly.
Russian military spending, on a purchasing power parity basis, currently exceeds European spending. At nearly 7% of GDP, and under sanctions, it's not sustainable - but if Trump throws Putin an economic lifeline, which looks fairly likely, then it might become so.
We have a change to credibly deter further invasions, but only if we build up both production capacity, and stocks of war fighting materiel. Quickly.
That has to take priority over vanity projects like fielding carriers in the far east.
It's impossible to understand why anyone claiming to be on the Left would support him, unless their professed beliefs are a lie.
PB's, and the media's, concerns about education invariably focus on the top 30% or so, who already get a pretty good deal. How dare a Labour government be more concerned about the other 70%?
The poor performance of our economy in the post-war years wasn't because we weren't paying ourselves enough, it was because we weren't producing enough to justify it - hence stagflation in the 70s.
Surely the Chagos deal is deader than dead. Diego Garcia is one way to bind the USA to our mutual defence
If starmer pursues it he should be keel hauled and disgraced
What is going on?
Which is scary, because it means that most people could be socially conditioned to most things, provided their social group agreed.
The alternative is that we risk losing everything, up to and including the ongoing existence of our country.
They like strongmen and distrust institutions. Unless those institutions are implemented by strongmen. Like Russia’s promised new “LGBT register”.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czdl6594835o
Destroying the western world is required for their socialist paradise to be created.
https://x.com/sikorskiradek/status/1889800931254116396
Joint statement of the Foreign Ministers of the Weimar Triangle meeting plus Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom
First the Munich conference, now Weimar...
Both sides want to fight to the death for the Holy Land.
And Mr Chump gave it to him. Obviously he tried to walk away from other promises he had made (Refs over at Wiki):
Trump and Schwartz had an agreement to split royalties from the sale of the book on a 50–50 basis.[23][24]
In 1988, Trump set up the Donald J. Trump Foundation to give away the book's royalties, in Trump's words, promising four or five million dollars "to the homeless, to Vietnam veterans, for AIDS, multiple sclerosis".[23][24] According to a Washington Post investigation those promised donations largely failed to materialize; the paper said "he gave less to those causes than he did to his older daughter's ballet school".[24] The Washington Post asked the Trump's 2016 presidential campaign if he had donated the $55,000 of royalties he had earned from the book in the first six months of 2016 to charity, as he promised in the 1980s, and it did not respond.[25]
By 2016, Schwartz said he had received some $1.6 million in royalty payments.[23] Schwartz said he would be donating six months of royalties (worth $55,000) to the National Immigration Law Center, which advocates for immigrants to remain in the United States regardless of whether or not their entry was legal. Schwartz had earlier donated royalties he received in the second half of 2015, worth $25,000, to a number of charities including the National Immigration Forum. Schwartz said he wanted to help the people Trump was attacking.[25]
Financial disclosures by Trump for 2018 revealed the book earned over $1 million that year, and it was the only title of his dozen-plus authored books that made money.[26] Trump's financial disclosures for 2019 reported royalties for The Art of the Deal in the $100,000 to $1 million range.[27]
Even if they don't think they are or admit they are.
https://hromadske.ua/en/world/239605-trump-refuses-to-name-ukraine-as-participant-in-negotiations-to-end-war-once-again-calls-for-peace
..When asked whether he considered Ukraine an equal participant in this peace process, Trump replied: "it's an interesting question. I think they have to make peace. Their people are being killed and I think they have to make peace. I said that was not a good war to go into and I think they have to make peace. That's what I think.”
When asked whether Ukraine should cede its territories for the sake of peace, Trump stressed that Zelenskyy "is going to have to do what he has to do."
"But you know his poll numbers aren't particularly great...
just asking....
Unless it is like my friend's mum, who in her eighties got the pedals confused and totalled six cars in a Tesco car park, including a very high-end Merc.
For them, to loaf about a nice 4 star hotel for weeks on end with nothing to do but eat nice marks and Spencer food - and then get it all cleaned by cleaners - is a dream. That will never come true
So, yes, tiny examples like this are grievously insulting to millions of Brits
If the left REALLY wants a reform government, way to go
Afghanistan was not a good war to go into.
Iraq was not a good war to go into.
These were wars of choice. They were not wars as a result of US territory being invaded.
By Trump's logic, America should have given up Hawaii to the Japanese because "people were being killed".
But of course, there is no Trump logic. Just a call with Putin, who reminds him of the dirt Russia has on him. And lo, Ukraine gets thrown under the bus.
https://www.hartpunkt.de/helsing-baut-6-000-ki-befaehigte-hx-2-kampfdrohnen-fuer-die-ukraine/
Unless you can speak or understand some Welsh many jobs are unavailable