No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
I’ve no doubt that Hamas steals aid. The issue is whether one should therefore starve a population.
There doesn't appear to be a shortage of food in Gaza. The problem is distribution. So who is to blame? Israel, the UN or Hamas?
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either: - peacefully by hungry people, or - forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404 Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065 Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC. This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
One interesting thing in this poll is that the youngsters are the least likely to say "don't know". That is very unusual for opinion polling.
Gaza is a big thing for young voters. It was a major part of why neither of my boys would vote Labour last year.
Too late for Starmer to get them onside. As ever he does too little too late.
The extent to which Israel/Palestine dominates left discourse in this country when other foreign conflicts with far greater death tolls & distribution of misery are completely ignored has always depressed me. Why this conflict in particular?
1. Classic David V Golliath. The left supports the underdog. 1,000 Israeli casualties V 71,000 Palestinian 2 Apartheid. Since South Africa it's been an absolute taboo for the left 3. Colonialism. They have shown a total disregard for Palestinian life 4. Until Paul Theroux most didn't understand the the settler movement 5. Their spokespeople have been straight out of central casting. The most arrogant liars any of us have seen or heard 6. Several openly racist senior Ministers. Smodrich and Ben GVir.are just two obvious examples 7. Most didn't understand what living under the Israeli yoke was like until recently. Many of us did but Israel is not a country many have visited 8. Netanyahu. A psychpath without humanity. Happy to blow up apartment blocks with families inside. 83,000 at the last count 9. The Israelis. A people without boundaries. Prepared to starve children in order to achieve their objectives. This was the point that it wasn't just the left but the right- including in the US right-also started feeling queasy
Louis Theroux surely?
& all (mostly) true of course, but that hardly makes this conflict unique on the global stage, nor does it explain why I/P specifically has dominated leftist discourse for decades, long before many of these specific issues came to the fore.
The fact that Roger won't acknowledge antisemitism as a factor really does make me wonder.
As for Louis Theroux, I have no problem with him making a programme about bigoted settlers. But in the interest of balance how about a documentary on the Kibbutz people near the Gaza border, who were desperate for peace with the Palestinians and were rewarded by being raped, tortured and murdered in the most unspeakably graphic manner. Would the BBC commission such a project?
Are you really explaining antisemitism to a Jewish man?
I’ve seen it all now.
Not explaining no. But if the vast majority of Jews think that antisemitism is likely to be a factor (and I suggest they do) is it wrong of me to agree with them?
I actually think there is a more generalised anti-western mindset too that China is only too willing to exploit as the Soviet Union did before it.
How many Jewish people do you know?
I've spent quite a lot of time since 7 October listening to the opinions of British Jews through social media. They come across as very normal, educated, decent and probably liberal people. They feel increasingly afraid and abandoned in their own country and Roger is a total outlier.
Many people are anti-Semitic but kept it quiet. Israel's attack on Gaza has allowed them to voice their previously hidden prejudice.
Many people are Islamophobic but keep it quiet. Hamas's attack on Israel has allowed them to voice their previously hidden prejudice.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
The Apple Intelligence team is continuing to endure a brain drain following a fourth researcher's move over to Meta.
Reports across the summer have indicated that Apple has at least some trouble holding onto its AI researchers. The latest incident has Meta pulling a fourth engineer from the Apple Intelligence team over the course of a month.
Bowen Zhang departed Apple on Friday for Meta, according to unnamed sources in a new Bloomberg report. Zhang joins Meta's Superintelligence Labs (MSL), a group working on producing an AI that can surpass human intelligence.
BBC jettisoning any attempt at non partisanship over Gaza on the R4 2 o clock news.
Only a withering criticism of Starmer and no alternative point of view.
The BBC as the mouthpiece of Government has moved on considerably since it substituted Johnson's Prime Ministerial upside down wreath faux pas at the Cenotaph with fault free footage at the Cenotaph whilst he was Mayor.
Remind me what publication is Robbie Gibb involved with?
French President Emanuel Macron said the EU failed to leverage its massive single market and sufficiently scare the US into accepting a better deal than the one it reached Sunday.
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
I’ve no doubt that Hamas steals aid. The issue is whether one should therefore starve a population.
There doesn't appear to be a shortage of food in Gaza. The problem is distribution. So who is to blame? Israel, the UN or Hamas?
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either: - peacefully by hungry people, or - forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404 Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065 Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC. This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
Isn't the solution here to then flood the region with food/water and other aid so that it becomes ubiquitous and Hamas have nothing to gain by stealing it to sell? Scarcity is the ultimate cause of this so make it so there's no scarcity and not only will we prevent the terrible scenes of starving people, but given how quickly the aid will devalue it cuts off their income source too. Surely between Israel, US, UAE, Saudi, UK, France, Qatar we could make this happen? What prevents us from pursuing a strategy of plenty using continuous airdrops?
One interesting thing in this poll is that the youngsters are the least likely to say "don't know". That is very unusual for opinion polling.
Gaza is a big thing for young voters. It was a major part of why neither of my boys would vote Labour last year.
Too late for Starmer to get them onside. As ever he does too little too late.
The extent to which Israel/Palestine dominates left discourse in this country when other foreign conflicts with far greater death tolls & distribution of misery are completely ignored has always depressed me. Why this conflict in particular?
1. Classic David V Golliath. The left supports the underdog. 1,000 Israeli casualties V 71,000 Palestinian 2 Apartheid. Since South Africa it's been an absolute taboo for the left 3. Colonialism. They have shown a total disregard for Palestinian life 4. Until Paul Theroux most didn't understand the the settler movement 5. Their spokespeople have been straight out of central casting. The most arrogant liars any of us have seen or heard 6. Several openly racist senior Ministers. Smodrich and Ben GVir.are just two obvious examples 7. Most didn't understand what living under the Israeli yoke was like until recently. Many of us did but Israel is not a country many have visited 8. Netanyahu. A psychpath without humanity. Happy to blow up apartment blocks with families inside. 83,000 at the last count 9. The Israelis. A people without boundaries. Prepared to starve children in order to achieve their objectives. This was the point that it wasn't just the left but the right- including in the US right-also started feeling queasy
Louis Theroux surely?
& all (mostly) true of course, but that hardly makes this conflict unique on the global stage, nor does it explain why I/P specifically has dominated leftist discourse for decades, long before many of these specific issues came to the fore.
The fact that Roger won't acknowledge antisemitism as a factor really does make me wonder.
As for Louis Theroux, I have no problem with him making a programme about bigoted settlers. But in the interest of balance how about a documentary on the Kibbutz people near the Gaza border, who were desperate for peace with the Palestinians and were rewarded by being raped, tortured and murdered in the most unspeakably graphic manner. Would the BBC commission such a project?
Are you really explaining antisemitism to a Jewish man?
I’ve seen it all now.
Not explaining no. But if the vast majority of Jews think that antisemitism is likely to be a factor (and I suggest they do) is it wrong of me to agree with them?
I actually think there is a more generalised anti-western mindset too that China is only too willing to exploit as the Soviet Union did before it.
How many Jewish people do you know?
I've spent quite a lot of time since 7 October listening to the opinions of British Jews through social media. They come across as very normal, educated, decent and probably liberal people. They feel increasingly afraid and abandoned in their own country and Roger is a total outlier.
Many people are anti-Semitic but kept it quiet. Israel's attack on Gaza has allowed them to voice their previously hidden prejudice.
Throughout my originally working class and now middle class life, I don't remember anyone of my acquaintance expressing views one way or the other on Jews or Jewishness, and I highly doubt that they were hiding latent anti-Semitism. What has happened since the Israeli devastation of Gaza is that many people, wrongly and contemptibly, have come to associate all Jews with the actions of the Israeli government which is, of course, anti-Semitic. However, they have been encouraged in this attitude by Israeli and other commentators who seem happy to conflate criticism of Israeli actions with anti-Jewish sentiment. This is also contemptible behaviour.
BBC jettisoning any attempt at non partisanship over Gaza on the R4 2 o clock news.
Only a withering criticism of Starmer and no alternative point of view.
The BBC as the mouthpiece of Government has moved on considerably since it substituted Johnson's Prime Ministerial upside down wreath faux pas at the Cenotaph with fault free footage at the Cenotaph whilst he was Mayor.
Remind me what publication is Robbie Gibb involved with?
Well as much as possible they should always aim for balance.
Any other examples of the the BBC's pro Israel bias or just that one? My social media feed is full of countless examples of supposed anti Israel bias from the BBC.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
Donald Trump has described Nicola Sturgeon as a "terrible first minister", in a parting shot at the former SNP leader after his four-day trip to Scotland.
The US president was speaking to journalists on Air Force One following the visit where he met Scotland's current first minister John Swinney.
Trump praised Swinney, but said he "did not have a lot of respect" for "the woman that preceded him".
A source close to Sturgeon, who stood down as first minister in 2023, told BBC Scotland News that "the feeling was entirely mutual"...Swinney spoke with Trump at a dinner for about two hours on Monday night.
The first minister said he made the case for granting Scotch whisky an exemption from US trade tariffs.
However, Trump told journalists on the presidential aircraft that the pair "did not really discuss" tariffs during the meeting.
But he said he had "a lot of respect" for Swinney.
Unprompted, he continued: "I didn't have a lot of respect for the woman that preceded him.
"I thought she was terrible as a first minister of Scotland. But I think John is doing a very good job as first minister."
"'Simmering' division in town where hotel for asylum seekers is beacon for unrest Anti-migration demonstrators and counter-protesters have been gathering on either side of the A56 in Altrincham - where the Cresta Court Hotel has been repurposed to house asylum seekers."
I see that the Spectator magazine, as requested by a PB editorial, is all over the Online Safety Act
Feel the power of the PB mods!
That Sean Thomas bloke has whipped up an articles incredibly quickly...I thought he was otherwise engaged making a website with AI.
Peter Kyle must be the most effective political wind-up merchant in history. I'm not happy about the act but you've got to give him some grudging respect.
I was told by a political adviser that Trump/Robinson/Tate is where Nigel Farage is really weak with floating voters.
It’s why he polls worse with women.
It’s allowed content to be pumped out on social media.
Yes, to win most seats and a majority and 25-30%+ Farage needs 2024 Tory voters and Labour redwall voters, neither of whom like Tommy Robinson or Tate and are not fans of Trump much either.
The problem for Farage is the Reform core vote of 15% or so love Trump and Tommy Robinson and like Tate too
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
No 10 is hosting a reception with online influencers in Downing Street for the first time ever, as part of its push to “go where people are” and reach voters on platforms beyond the traditional media.
French President Emanuel Macron said the EU failed to leverage its massive single market and sufficiently scare the US into accepting a better deal than the one it reached Sunday.
Europe is too reliant on the US militarily. Trump has exploited that fact.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
No 10 is hosting a reception with online influencers in Downing Street for the first time ever, as part of its push to “go where people are” and reach voters on platforms beyond the traditional media.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
Does the Wendy House come from Toys'r-Us and does it have a blue plastic roof or a red plastic roof?
No 10 is hosting a reception with online influencers in Downing Street for the first time ever, as part of its push to “go where people are” and reach voters on platforms beyond the traditional media.
Seems a load of popular lefties haven't been invited though. There won't be any Gary Bullshitter turning up in his trackies.
I like Gary Bullshitter!
You can like who you like, but he is a bullshitter not only about his backstory but his whole YouTube channel was a paid and ramped by his book publishers to sell books.
The thing that actually really pissed me off is when the publishers said they wouldn't pay for its running costs anymore, "best trader in the world" 2012 (or whatever year he lies about) and supposed multi-millionaire allegedly still making trillions in the market asked his viewers to front the cost of running the channel.
It's a great relief that he no longer posts his old rubbish on here anymore.
I won't be reading the "article".:
The author (Sean Thomas) is saying that political discourse these days features far too much lurid hyperbole.
Strong point.
I think political discourse these days involves too much people making up conversations they supposedly overheard that just happen to confirm their political prejudices and/or weird sexual kinks.
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
I’ve no doubt that Hamas steals aid. The issue is whether one should therefore starve a population.
There doesn't appear to be a shortage of food in Gaza. The problem is distribution. So who is to blame? Israel, the UN or Hamas?
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either: - peacefully by hungry people, or - forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404 Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065 Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC. This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
May 19 - July 23 is 65 days. Feeding a population of 2 million requires around 1,200 tons of food per day. So 65 day's worth of food is 78,000 tons. If 19,000 tons of aid is 85% of the aid provided, then the amount of aid supplied by the UN is about 22,400 tons, which is far short of the amount needed, even if it were all food.
Unless the Gazans have been receiving large amounts of food from elsewhere, then they must have been close to starving. Starving people are desperate, and will do anything for food. So it's not surprising that disorder ensues, especially given the Israeli destruction of Gaza's police force.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
A lot of the stuff you make up is shit, is that the same thing?
I see that the Spectator magazine, as requested by a PB editorial, is all over the Online Safety Act
Feel the power of the PB mods!
That Sean Thomas bloke has whipped up an articles incredibly quickly...I thought he was otherwise engaged making a website with AI.
Peter Kyle must be the most effective political wind-up merchant in history. I'm not happy about the act but you've got to give him some grudging respect.
I was told by a political adviser that Trump/Robinson/Tate is where Nigel Farage is really weak with floating voters.
It’s why he polls worse with women.
It’s allowed content to be pumped out on social media.
Yes, to win most seats and a majority and 25-30%+ Farage needs 2024 Tory voters and Labour redwall voters, neither of whom like Tommy Robinson or Tate and are not fans of Trump much either.
The problem for Farage is the Reform core vote of 15% or so love Trump and Tommy Robinson and like Tate too
It's the standard problem in politics, isn't it. How to keep your base happy whilst at the same time attracting floating voters.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
Are they your friends or friends of that bloke at the Speccie you keep citing?
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
How come you still live in a bedsit above the launderette in Camden?
An earlier Spectator columnist would already have grifted a free gaff out of a major Staffordshire Industrialist.
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
I’ve no doubt that Hamas steals aid. The issue is whether one should therefore starve a population.
There doesn't appear to be a shortage of food in Gaza. The problem is distribution. So who is to blame? Israel, the UN or Hamas?
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either: - peacefully by hungry people, or - forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404 Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065 Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC. This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
May 19 - July 23 is 65 days. Feeding a population of 2 million requires around 1,200 tons of food per day. So 65 day's worth of food is 78,000 tons. If 19,000 tons of aid is 85% of the aid provided, then the amount of aid supplied by the UN is about 22,400 tons, which is far short of the amount needed, even if it were all food.
Unless the Gazans have been receiving large amounts of food from elsewhere, then they must have been close to starving. Starving people are desperate, and will do anything for food. So it's not surprising that disorder ensues, especially given the Israeli destruction of Gaza's police force.
Again, isn't this just solved with continuous airdrops of food and water to the point that it become ubiquitous and of such low value that it is unsellable and therefore unstealable?
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
I’ve no doubt that Hamas steals aid. The issue is whether one should therefore starve a population.
There doesn't appear to be a shortage of food in Gaza. The problem is distribution. So who is to blame? Israel, the UN or Hamas?
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either: - peacefully by hungry people, or - forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404 Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065 Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC. This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
"I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population." Because Israel controls Gaza and are responsible, under the Geneva conventions, for ensuring the local population are fed. Because even Israeli groups think genocide is being committed: https://www.btselem.org/publications/202507_our_genocide
The Yorkshire County Cricket Club is delighted to confirm that the sale of Northern Superchargers to the Sun Group has now completed. The Sun Group, who also own Sunrisers Hyderabad and Sunrisers Eastern Cape, have purchased 100% of the Northern Superchargers and will take operational control from October 1 2025.
The Yorkshire County Cricket Club is delighted to confirm that the sale of Northern Superchargers to the Sun Group has now completed. The Sun Group, who also own Sunrisers Hyderabad and Sunrisers Eastern Cape, have purchased 100% of the Northern Superchargers and will take operational control from October 1 2025.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
How come you still live in a bedsit above the launderette in Camden?
An earlier Spectator columnist would already have grifted a free gaff out of a major Staffordshire Industrialist.
I love my bedsit. No, seriously. I do
It’s near-perfect (for my purposes) and even if I was a billionaire I wouldn’t change much. I would want what I have now, a smallish, easily managed apartment in a lovely Georgian townhouse in NW1 - something I can lock up and leave
The only thing I would change is I’d want one more bedroom and better balconies. I might move 150 yards closer to Primrose Hill
As I’ve aged I’ve realised that the more you own the more you worry. Big houses are a hassle. Gardens need upkeep. Second homes are an even bigger hassle and you have to keep visiting them to justify them
Keep it simple. Travel lightly in this world (but in some luxury and with tramadol). That’s my advice
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
I’ve no doubt that Hamas steals aid. The issue is whether one should therefore starve a population.
There doesn't appear to be a shortage of food in Gaza. The problem is distribution. So who is to blame? Israel, the UN or Hamas?
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either: - peacefully by hungry people, or - forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404 Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065 Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC. This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
May 19 - July 23 is 65 days. Feeding a population of 2 million requires around 1,200 tons of food per day. So 65 day's worth of food is 78,000 tons. If 19,000 tons of aid is 85% of the aid provided, then the amount of aid supplied by the UN is about 22,400 tons, which is far short of the amount needed, even if it were all food.
Unless the Gazans have been receiving large amounts of food from elsewhere, then they must have been close to starving. Starving people are desperate, and will do anything for food. So it's not surprising that disorder ensues, especially given the Israeli destruction of Gaza's police force.
Again, isn't this just solved with continuous airdrops of food and water to the point that it become ubiquitous and of such low value that it is unsellable and therefore unstealable?
To do it by air, you'd need at least 120 airdrop flights per day, probably more given it's not an efficient way of distrubuting aid. I don't know if this is logistically feasible or whether the Israelis would permit it. I guess it would require an effort similar to the Berlin Airlift.
Palestine Action has won permission to challenge its controversial ban by the UK government under terrorism legislation.
In a major decision, the High Court ruled that the proscription of the group, that has carried out break-ins at defence firms linked to Israel as part of direct action protests, should be reviewed.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper banned the organisation last month after followers caused an estimated £7m of damage to jets at RAF Brize Norton.
Lawyers for the group's co-founder Huda Ammori have argued that the ban breaches the right free speech and has acted like a gag on legitimate protest. The government says its ban is justified because it narrowly targets a group that was organising serious criminality
But Mr Justice Chamberlain said that the ban might conflict with rights to free speech and the Home Secretary could have consulted Palestine Action before going ahead.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
How come you still live in a bedsit above the launderette in Camden?
An earlier Spectator columnist would already have grifted a free gaff out of a major Staffordshire Industrialist.
I love my bedsit. No, seriously. I do
It’s near-perfect (for my purposes) and even if I was a billionaire I wouldn’t change much. I would want what I have now, a smallish, easily managed apartment in a lovely Georgian townhouse in NW1 - something I can lock up and leave
The only thing I would change is I’d want one more bedroom and better balconies. I might move 150 yards closer to Primrose Hill
As I’ve aged I’ve realised that the more you own the more you worry. Big houses are a hassle. Gardens need upkeep. Second homes are an even bigger hassle and you have to keep visiting them to justify them
Keep it simple. Travel lightly in this world (but in some luxury and with tramadol). That’s my advice
The population of England and Wales is estimated to have jumped by more than 700,000 in the year to June 2024, the second largest rise in more than 75 years, figures show.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), external said almost all of the increase was due to international migration, despite it being lower than the previous year at 690,100 compared with 833,700 in the 12 months to June 2023.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
Why on earth would anyone without school children go to the Algarve in August? Shame I will miss you. I will be at my friend's villa in late September. The sensible time to go.
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
I’ve no doubt that Hamas steals aid. The issue is whether one should therefore starve a population.
There doesn't appear to be a shortage of food in Gaza. The problem is distribution. So who is to blame? Israel, the UN or Hamas?
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either: - peacefully by hungry people, or - forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404 Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065 Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC. This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
May 19 - July 23 is 65 days. Feeding a population of 2 million requires around 1,200 tons of food per day. So 65 day's worth of food is 78,000 tons. If 19,000 tons of aid is 85% of the aid provided, then the amount of aid supplied by the UN is about 22,400 tons, which is far short of the amount needed, even if it were all food.
Unless the Gazans have been receiving large amounts of food from elsewhere, then they must have been close to starving. Starving people are desperate, and will do anything for food. So it's not surprising that disorder ensues, especially given the Israeli destruction of Gaza's police force.
Again, isn't this just solved with continuous airdrops of food and water to the point that it become ubiquitous and of such low value that it is unsellable and therefore unstealable?
To do it by air, you'd need at least 120 airdrop flights per day, probably more given it's not an efficient way of distrubuting aid. I don't know if this is logistically feasible or whether the Israelis would permit it. I guess it would require an effort similar to the Berlin Airlift.
It is not logistically difficult to get aid into Gaza. It's a thin strip of land, you can just drive the stuff in. It just needs Israel's cooperation.
French President Emanuel Macron said the EU failed to leverage its massive single market and sufficiently scare the US into accepting a better deal than the one it reached Sunday.
Europe is too reliant on the US militarily. Trump has exploited that fact.
Yes. Macron can huff and puff but the fact is France is broke, like most of Europe, and therefore can’t afford to massively and speedily ramp up defence spending, even as Putin menaces us in the east
Which leaves Europe scared and vulnerable
As a veteran dealmaker Trump saw the pain point, made noises about leaving NATO, frightened the shit out of European capitals - and thus leveraged Europe into surrendering on trade lest America desert us militarily
I don’t know how macron would or could have fixed that disparity in raw power
The Yorkshire County Cricket Club is delighted to confirm that the sale of Northern Superchargers to the Sun Group has now completed. The Sun Group, who also own Sunrisers Hyderabad and Sunrisers Eastern Cape, have purchased 100% of the Northern Superchargers and will take operational control from October 1 2025.
Sorry can't deal with this at the moment, I am currently in with HR raising a complaint about somebody who said something really offensive to me/about me.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
Why on earth would anyone without school children go to the Algarve in August? Shame I will miss you. I will be at my friend's villa in late September. The sensible time to go.
Maybe that is why the house is free.....I will also be there in September, which IMO is the perfect time.
I once made the mistake of going to the Silver Coast during school holidays, although far less British tourists go there, absolutely rammed with Portuguese families and too bloody hot.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
Why on earth would anyone without school children go to the Algarve in August? Shame I will miss you. I will be at my friend's villa in late September. The sensible time to go.
Maybe that is why the house is free.....I will also be there in September, which IMO is the perfect time.
Yes. There’s no way I would pay to go to the algarve in August
However the house is free and beautiful and - more importantly - I have to be out of my flat for several days as it’s being painted. So the offer of the house was well timed
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
How come you still live in a bedsit above the launderette in Camden?
An earlier Spectator columnist would already have grifted a free gaff out of a major Staffordshire Industrialist.
I love my bedsit. No, seriously. I do
It’s near-perfect (for my purposes) and even if I was a billionaire I wouldn’t change much. I would want what I have now, a smallish, easily managed apartment in a lovely Georgian townhouse in NW1 - something I can lock up and leave
The only thing I would change is I’d want one more bedroom and better balconies. I might move 150 yards closer to Primrose Hill
As I’ve aged I’ve realised that the more you own the more you worry. Big houses are a hassle. Gardens need upkeep. Second homes are an even bigger hassle and you have to keep visiting them to justify them
Keep it simple. Travel lightly in this world (but in some luxury and with tramadol). That’s my advice
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
Why on earth would anyone without school children go to the Algarve in August? Shame I will miss you. I will be at my friend's villa in late September. The sensible time to go.
It’s hot enough up here in the north, sunny 28C feels like 29C right now, and it’s nearly 5pm. After a mornings activity Mr Dog and I are sheltering from the heat in the hotel.
Yet however hot it is, the Finns absolutely love sitting around a real fire. Finding one going at a cafe at lunchtime, with people actually sitting around it, yet nothing cooking, was bizarre.
Incidentally I see massive heat is building now over the US south
My day in south london yesterday. As I wrote, yesterday:
“I actually had a delightful day with my older daughter. She’s quite goth and said she wanted to see one of the “magnificent seven” cemeteries of london (she’s already seen Highgate)
So we met at Borough market - insanely crowded and busy and fun - then got a train through Peckham to Nunhead. And Nunhead cemetery. That was as eerily overgrown and evocative as promised, then we came back to town
And this is where I had the biggest jolt of positive energy. Elephant and castle. Has anyone been recently????
It’s amazing. They’ve turned one of the worst toilets in london into a plush new neighbourhood of lovely apartment blocks and elegant squares and swish new gardens. It looks like a rich new burb in, say, Melbourne or Vancouver. And this is elephant and bleeding castle. What happened to the barrier blocks and smack dealers?!?
It all felt very affluent and agreeable and multiracial in a GOOD way. London at its best
So I actually hied home feeling quite upbeat about London and the UK. And then my friend gave me his brutal diagnosis of Britain’s future
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
I didn't know there'd been a Betfair hack.
I think it was Betfair - had a message a few weeks ago - I may be misremembering. Previously I know there was a BA security breach via a hack and a LinkedIn before this and others.
The population of England and Wales is estimated to have jumped by more than 700,000 in the year to June 2024, the second largest rise in more than 75 years, figures show.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), external said almost all of the increase was due to international migration, despite it being lower than the previous year at 690,100 compared with 833,700 in the 12 months to June 2023.
Currently sitting in a Wetherspoons where the guy on the next table is having a loud rant about how stupid it is we haven't joined the Euro and Schengen.
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
Some people here are quick to dismiss much reporting of events in Gaza as Hamas propaganda, e.g. from the Guardian, the BBC, the UN. I think it's useful to see what the Israeli media are saying, as I presume no-one's going to claim that Haaretz or the Jerusalem Post are Hamas mouthpieces.
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
VPN’s are virtual private networks basically they allow you / companies to create a secure connection an external laptop or phone into corporate systems.
For consumers the important bit is the gateway the VPN has that connects to the rest of the internet. If the gateway is say in Paris to all intents and purposes it looks like you are surfing the internet from a Cafe in Paris rather than you bedroom in Blackpool
And internet requests from Paris won’t trigger the please give us your age checks that some sites apply to visitors from UK ip addresses
Currently sitting in a Wetherspoons where the guy on the next table is having a loud rant about how stupid it is we haven't joined the Euro and Schengen.
Honest...
I'm currently sitting in an office calculating the odds ratios for a dataset. I've just had a Teams about an analysis plan. It's almost a rant.
The population of England and Wales is estimated to have jumped by more than 700,000 in the year to June 2024, the second largest rise in more than 75 years, figures show.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), external said almost all of the increase was due to international migration, despite it being lower than the previous year at 690,100 compared with 833,700 in the 12 months to June 2023.
I'm guessing, by definition, it excludes illegals?
The ONS will give its full methodology somewhere. As far as I remember, they don't include people who have entered the country illegally and not sought asylum or otherwise reported themselves to the authorities, as these people are hard to track and the government estimates they are few in number. Those who have sought asylum are, of course, not illegal, and are included.
The big question is over visa overstayers, those who were here illegally but no longer are. This is the largest group of people illegally in the country. I think I recall they are included, but I'd have to dig through the methods.
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
VPN’s are virtual private networks basically they allow you / companies to create a secure connection an external laptop or phone into corporate systems.
For consumers the important bit is the gateway the VPN has that connects to the rest of the internet. If the gateway is say in Paris to all intents and purposes it looks like you are surfing the internet from a Cafe in Paris rather than you bedroom in Blackpool
And internet requests from Paris won’t trigger the please give us your age checks that some sites apply to visitors from UK ip addresses
The important bit for consumers is when connecting to publicly available wifi e.g. coffee shops, hotels, airports, etc. It is far too easy to connect to a dodgy hotspot or suffer a man in the middle attack.
That is why these days you want a VPN when connecting to any wifi you don't control yourself.
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
VPN’s are virtual private networks basically they allow you / companies to create a secure connection an external laptop or phone into corporate systems.
For consumers the important bit is the gateway the VPN has that connects to the rest of the internet. If the gateway is say in Paris to all intents and purposes it looks like you are surfing the internet from a Cafe in Paris rather than you bedroom in Blackpool
Thanks. What are the downsides other than monthly subscriptions? How do I know I can trust the VPN provider who will presumably have my details? How do I choose between, say, Express, Proton, Nord (I've seen adverts for all three claiming to be the best)?
Edit: a particular benefit is that - I think - I would be able to access betting sites and BBC iplayer and Now tv and Netflix etc while abroad).
Currently sitting in a Wetherspoons where the guy on the next table is having a loud rant about how stupid it is we haven't joined the Euro and Schengen.
Honest...
That’s the spirit! It’s a game we can all play…call it the ‘opinionated Albanian’ game?
Currently sitting in a Wetherspoons where the guy on the next table is having a loud rant about how stupid it is we haven't joined the Euro and Schengen.
Honest...
I'm working from home. Both cats have loudly complained that they weren't given enough cat treats. Neither have sought to link this to Brexit.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
Why on earth would anyone without school children go to the Algarve in August? Shame I will miss you. I will be at my friend's villa in late September. The sensible time to go.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
You can't drop names without er, dropping names.
As I’ve accumulated ultra rich friends I’ve noticed that they nearly all have something in common. They tend to be extremely private and averse to publicity (so I can’t name drop)
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
Why on earth would anyone without school children go to the Algarve in August? Shame I will miss you. I will be at my friend's villa in late September. The sensible time to go.
Quality one upmanship
In late September we will be on a Marella Cruise.
A bit rude and ungallant. And I thought her surname was "Frostrup".
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
VPN’s are virtual private networks basically they allow you / companies to create a secure connection an external laptop or phone into corporate systems.
For consumers the important bit is the gateway the VPN has that connects to the rest of the internet. If the gateway is say in Paris to all intents and purposes it looks like you are surfing the internet from a Cafe in Paris rather than you bedroom in Blackpool
Thanks. What are the downsides other than monthly subscriptions? How do I know I can trust the VPN provider who will presumably have my details? How do I choose between, say, Express, Proton, Nord (I've seen adverts for all three claiming to be the best)?
Edit: a particular benefit is that - I think - I would be able to access betting sites and BBC iplayer and Now tv and Netflix etc while abroad).
Trusting your VPN provider can always be an issue. Some promise that they don't log your activities, some providers have been found to lie, others it has been found to be 100% true.
Of the major brands they are basically 2 big companies that own all of the ones you will see widely advertised. Proton is the exception that they are their own thing.
Currently sitting in a Wetherspoons where the guy on the next table is having a loud rant about how stupid it is we haven't joined the Euro and Schengen.
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
VPN’s are virtual private networks basically they allow you / companies to create a secure connection an external laptop or phone into corporate systems.
For consumers the important bit is the gateway the VPN has that connects to the rest of the internet. If the gateway is say in Paris to all intents and purposes it looks like you are surfing the internet from a Cafe in Paris rather than you bedroom in Blackpool
Thanks. What are the downsides other than monthly subscriptions? How do I know I can trust the VPN provider who will presumably have my details? How do I choose between, say, Express, Proton, Nord (I've seen adverts for all three claiming to be the best)?
Edit: a particular benefit is that - I think - I would be able to access betting sites and BBC iplayer and Now tv and Netflix etc while abroad).
I finally succumbed to getting Nord, for my travels, having held out for some time. It was a cracking deal, a decent discount from Nord (which I suspect they offer routinely as a sales gambit), with a years cashback from Quidco, so that it’s essentially free for twelve months.
Yes, you can access Betfair and BBC iPlayer as if you’re at home, if you choose to connect through the UK. You also get adverts on YouTube and the like for whichever country you choose - I quite like the Norwegian adverts as they seem fun, and always short, compared to the annoying English language ones. If you have to endure the ads it adds a little bit of interest.
Downsides, it does slow things down a little and there are some things you can’t do without pausing the VPN, such as editing Wikipedia, or ordering Waitrose shopping (on my home PC; it seems to work on the iPad). And a few other niggles that I can’t remember.
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
I’ve no doubt that Hamas steals aid. The issue is whether one should therefore starve a population.
There doesn't appear to be a shortage of food in Gaza. The problem is distribution. So who is to blame? Israel, the UN or Hamas?
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either: - peacefully by hungry people, or - forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404 Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065 Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC. This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
You're quoting a tweet, though.
If you go to the UN link, the most recent data are for June. This is what it says: "..In June 2025, 12.7K metric tonnes (t) of humanitarian aid processed through the UN 2720 Mechanism were delivered to Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem or Erez West/Zikim crossings. Since the limited resumption of humanitarian aid movements on 18 May, all UN-manifested aid has been tracked and monitored by UN 2720 through a combination of on-the-ground Monitors and cross- verification with partners. UN 2720 Monitors continue to verify the collection and delivery of aid to its intended civilian destination within Gaza, subject to access permissions. Out of the total 111.7K t overall aid deliveredthrough the Mechanism, food constitutes most of the consignments (74%) followed by shelter items (18%). As of 30 June, a total of over 105,000 t (over 151,000 pallets) of aid are in the pipeline of the UN 2720 Mechanism, approved by COGAT (including Ready to Dispatch) but still pending delivery to Gaza."
I'm not sure where the figures in the tweet come from ?
Lets talk about the West Bank and how it could serve as a homeland. Here is the actual amount of land available to the Palestinians in comparison to that available to settlers and the IDF. It's been sliced and diced by roads between settlements that disrupt life there and kettles the population. Gaza is now being prepared for the same slice and dice with the various corridors.
Even the wannabe Nobel Peace Prize winner hasn't the influence to change the facts on the ground. Note where the water for is.
That’s a very misleading chart by combining settlers, military, state land and roads. Presumably if it were an independent homeland the military state and transport infrastructure would belong to the new state not Israel
The areas in white are where the IDF are in control. Those roads and other infrastructure are for the use of the Israeli military and settlers only. Palestinians are not allowed.
Its a slow but inexorable strangulation and encroachment of Area B.
But yes, you are right. For the West Bank to become a viable state +/- Gaza and East Jerusalem the Israeli military and settlers need to go. I can't see that happening.
Not least because the Israeli military and settlers were removed from Gaza in 2005.
For which Israel received neither thanks nor security.
I'm not sure why the Israelis should be thanked for ceasing to occupy someone else's country.
The 'someone else' being at war with Israel and committed to destroying Israel.
And Israel being at war with "someone else" and committed to occupying their country and establishing settlers on it.
Which ended in 2005 when Israel withdrew its military and settlers from Gaza.
Now which side started the current war ? Did Israel attack Gaza or did Gaza attack Israel ?
You would be on more reasonable ground to complain about Israel's behaviour in the West Bank or its treatment of its own Palestinian population than how it acted towards Gaza between 2005 and 2023.
Gaza is part of Palestine, which the Israelis are still occupying.
Yes Hamas started the current war. The argument is about the Israelis' conduct in responding to it.
Yes true.
Potted history:
Israel's view - they left Gaza completely to see if the Palestinians could live peacefully alongside Israel. At the time there were great investment plans (eg for the port) and billions committed to the regeneration of Gaza. Then, on account of the corruption of the PA, the Palestinians voted in Hamas and the rest is history.
Palestinian view - Israel continues to occupy Palestine which comprises Gaza and the West Bank (and arguably the bit in between) and it is only via armed struggle that Israel agreed to leave Gaza and therefore the struggle continues.
That is yer problem right there.
Interesting to note that on the 2006 election ballot paper, Hamas did not use that name and were instead listed as 'Change and Reform'.
Currently sitting in a Wetherspoons where the guy on the next table is having a loud rant about how stupid it is we haven't joined the Euro and Schengen.
Honest...
Wow! Has Tim Martin changed his mind about Brexit?
More than anyone, it's probably @Cyclefree who has moved me in the direction of voting Reform. Not that she is in any way a supporter, but her accounts of what the "mainstream centrists" do, when they possess power, has convinced me that they need to be swept away.
Her accounts are of what people do when in power. Mainstream centrists probably have had five years of Blair and another five under the coalition when they have been in power. The rest of the time they have not been listened to. The supporters of Reform have already had more time than that in power imo.
The scandals she describes stretch back decades.
Anyone who thinks a Reform government will be pure & unsullied by any of the temptations that have led to previous administrations and bureaucracies leaving the path of righteousness is deluded though.
The problems identified by Cyclefree are endemic to large organisations made up of people. The solution is not to throw out the old leaders & replace them with new ones - which changes nothing - but instead to consider carefully the structures by which we govern ourselves & to put in place checks & balances that act against the natural tendency of bureaucracies to turn inward & resist criticism above all other things.
This is hard work, unrewarding work of course - which is why we get the government we deserve, including any future Reform government which, I predict, will fail in many of the same ways that past UK governments have failed & for the same reasons.
The mistake being made by @Sean_F is attributing the proclaimed moral values of the #NU10K and their process state to genuine belief.
Sure, Paula Vennells would probably claim to be deeply in favour LGBTQ+, Black Lives Matter and on the side of the oppressed. Probably has bunch of awards for the same. She created & presided, of course, over a system that brutally oppressed people of a lower social group.
Punched down, and very hard she punched down, at that.
This is because the #NU10K profess the beliefs that are required of their social standing. But they have contracted out their morality to the Process. See Starmer and his beliefs of trans being whatever the Supreme Court says.
Since the nostrum they repeat are not part of their inner lives, it’s barely hypocritical when they act against them.
Their deep beliefs are in their right to power and the right to power of People Like Them. The rest is as superficial as a car wrap. And as easily changed.
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
VPN’s are virtual private networks basically they allow you / companies to create a secure connection an external laptop or phone into corporate systems.
For consumers the important bit is the gateway the VPN has that connects to the rest of the internet. If the gateway is say in Paris to all intents and purposes it looks like you are surfing the internet from a Cafe in Paris rather than you bedroom in Blackpool
Thanks. What are the downsides other than monthly subscriptions? How do I know I can trust the VPN provider who will presumably have my details? How do I choose between, say, Express, Proton, Nord (I've seen adverts for all three claiming to be the best)?
Edit: a particular benefit is that - I think - I would be able to access betting sites and BBC iplayer and Now tv and Netflix etc while abroad).
I finally succumbed to getting Nord, for my travels, having held out for some time. It was a cracking deal, a decent discount from Nord (which I suspect they offer routinely as a sales gambit), with a years cashback from Quidco, so that it’s essentially free for twelve months.
Yes, you can access Betfair and BBC iPlayer as if you’re at home, if you choose to connect through the UK. You also get adverts on YouTube and the like for whichever country you choose - I quite like the Norwegian adverts as they seem fun, and always short, compared to the annoying English language ones. If you have to endure the ads it adds a little bit of interest.
Downsides, it does slow things down a little and there are some things you can’t do without pausing the VPN, such as editing Wikipedia, or ordering Waitrose shopping (on my home PC; it seems to work on the iPad). And a few other niggles that I can’t remember.
Any VPN advertised by a YouTuber is probably selling your web browsing details to the highest bidder. Bonus points if they’re actually a CIA front.
Since Leon was asking for views on this just the other day, and the article will have to have been reviewed and edited, and because he evidently has been spending time with all his very rich friends, I assume he did virtually f-all deep research into the topic, and just splurged words down onto a screen?
More than anyone, it's probably @Cyclefree who has moved me in the direction of voting Reform. Not that she is in any way a supporter, but her accounts of what the "mainstream centrists" do, when they possess power, has convinced me that they need to be swept away.
Her accounts are of what people do when in power. Mainstream centrists probably have had five years of Blair and another five under the coalition when they have been in power. The rest of the time they have not been listened to. The supporters of Reform have already had more time than that in power imo.
The scandals she describes stretch back decades.
Anyone who thinks a Reform government will be pure & unsullied by any of the temptations that have led to previous administrations and bureaucracies leaving the path of righteousness is deluded though.
The problems identified by Cyclefree are endemic to large organisations made up of people. The solution is not to throw out the old leaders & replace them with new ones - which changes nothing - but instead to consider carefully the structures by which we govern ourselves & to put in place checks & balances that act against the natural tendency of bureaucracies to turn inward & resist criticism above all other things.
This is hard work, unrewarding work of course - which is why we get the government we deserve, including any future Reform government which, I predict, will fail in many of the same ways that past UK governments have failed & for the same reasons.
The mistake being made by @Sean_F is attributing the proclaimed moral values of the #NU10K and their process state to genuine belief.
Sure, Paula Vennells would probably claim to be deeply in favour LGBTQ+, Black Lives Matter and on the side of the oppressed. Probably has bunch of awards for the same. She created & presided, of course, over a system that brutally oppressed people of a lower social group.
Punched down, and very hard she punched down, at that.
This is because the #NU10K profess the beliefs that are required of their social standing. But they have contracted out their morality to the Process. See Starmer and his beliefs of trans being whatever the Supreme Court says.
Since the nostrum they repeat are not part of their inner lives, it’s barely hypocritical when they act against them.
Their deep beliefs are in their right to power and the right to power of People Like Them. The rest is as superficial as a car wrap. And as easily changed.
Vennells’s main hobby was poncing about as a CofE priest, so are you sure that are that painting her as an LGBTQ warrior isn’t your projection rather than the reality? I suspect she had small c conservative views.
The population of England and Wales is estimated to have jumped by more than 700,000 in the year to June 2024, the second largest rise in more than 75 years, figures show.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), external said almost all of the increase was due to international migration, despite it being lower than the previous year at 690,100 compared with 833,700 in the 12 months to June 2023.
Have looked at the figures and in the 10 years to 2024 the increase is 4mn+. The odd thing is that the period 2005/2014 it's also 4mn+. Looks like Covid did a lot to supress and then Boris decided to wave.
More than anyone, it's probably @Cyclefree who has moved me in the direction of voting Reform. Not that she is in any way a supporter, but her accounts of what the "mainstream centrists" do, when they possess power, has convinced me that they need to be swept away.
Her accounts are of what people do when in power. Mainstream centrists probably have had five years of Blair and another five under the coalition when they have been in power. The rest of the time they have not been listened to. The supporters of Reform have already had more time than that in power imo.
The scandals she describes stretch back decades.
Anyone who thinks a Reform government will be pure & unsullied by any of the temptations that have led to previous administrations and bureaucracies leaving the path of righteousness is deluded though.
The problems identified by Cyclefree are endemic to large organisations made up of people. The solution is not to throw out the old leaders & replace them with new ones - which changes nothing - but instead to consider carefully the structures by which we govern ourselves & to put in place checks & balances that act against the natural tendency of bureaucracies to turn inward & resist criticism above all other things.
This is hard work, unrewarding work of course - which is why we get the government we deserve, including any future Reform government which, I predict, will fail in many of the same ways that past UK governments have failed & for the same reasons.
The mistake being made by @Sean_F is attributing the proclaimed moral values of the #NU10K and their process state to genuine belief.
Sure, Paula Vennells would probably claim to be deeply in favour LGBTQ+, Black Lives Matter and on the side of the oppressed. Probably has bunch of awards for the same. She created & presided, of course, over a system that brutally oppressed people of a lower social group.
Punched down, and very hard she punched down, at that.
This is because the #NU10K profess the beliefs that are required of their social standing. But they have contracted out their morality to the Process. See Starmer and his beliefs of trans being whatever the Supreme Court says.
Since the nostrum they repeat are not part of their inner lives, it’s barely hypocritical when they act against them.
Their deep beliefs are in their right to power and the right to power of People Like Them. The rest is as superficial as a car wrap. And as easily changed.
Since Leon was asking for views on this just the other day, and the article will have to have been reviewed and edited, and because he evidently has been spending time with all his very rich friends, I assume he did virtually f-all deep research into the topic, and just splurged words down onto a screen?
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
VPN’s are virtual private networks basically they allow you / companies to create a secure connection an external laptop or phone into corporate systems.
For consumers the important bit is the gateway the VPN has that connects to the rest of the internet. If the gateway is say in Paris to all intents and purposes it looks like you are surfing the internet from a Cafe in Paris rather than you bedroom in Blackpool
And internet requests from Paris won’t trigger the please give us your age checks that some sites apply to visitors from UK ip addresses
Hasn't France got some sort of interweb porn ban or was it just floated in their election?
More than anyone, it's probably @Cyclefree who has moved me in the direction of voting Reform. Not that she is in any way a supporter, but her accounts of what the "mainstream centrists" do, when they possess power, has convinced me that they need to be swept away.
Her accounts are of what people do when in power. Mainstream centrists probably have had five years of Blair and another five under the coalition when they have been in power. The rest of the time they have not been listened to. The supporters of Reform have already had more time than that in power imo.
The scandals she describes stretch back decades.
Anyone who thinks a Reform government will be pure & unsullied by any of the temptations that have led to previous administrations and bureaucracies leaving the path of righteousness is deluded though.
The problems identified by Cyclefree are endemic to large organisations made up of people. The solution is not to throw out the old leaders & replace them with new ones - which changes nothing - but instead to consider carefully the structures by which we govern ourselves & to put in place checks & balances that act against the natural tendency of bureaucracies to turn inward & resist criticism above all other things.
This is hard work, unrewarding work of course - which is why we get the government we deserve, including any future Reform government which, I predict, will fail in many of the same ways that past UK governments have failed & for the same reasons.
The mistake being made by @Sean_F is attributing the proclaimed moral values of the #NU10K and their process state to genuine belief.
Sure, Paula Vennells would probably claim to be deeply in favour LGBTQ+, Black Lives Matter and on the side of the oppressed. Probably has bunch of awards for the same. She created & presided, of course, over a system that brutally oppressed people of a lower social group.
Punched down, and very hard she punched down, at that.
This is because the #NU10K profess the beliefs that are required of their social standing. But they have contracted out their morality to the Process. See Starmer and his beliefs of trans being whatever the Supreme Court says.
Since the nostrum they repeat are not part of their inner lives, it’s barely hypocritical when they act against them.
Their deep beliefs are in their right to power and the right to power of People Like Them. The rest is as superficial as a car wrap. And as easily changed.
Vennells’s main hobby was poncing about as a CofE priest, so are you sure that are that painting her as an LGBTQ warrior isn’t your projection rather than the reality? I suspect she had small c conservative views.
She had views?
That’s the point. With these people it’s all performative. They don’t actually believe in anything apart from their own interest.
More than anyone, it's probably @Cyclefree who has moved me in the direction of voting Reform. Not that she is in any way a supporter, but her accounts of what the "mainstream centrists" do, when they possess power, has convinced me that they need to be swept away.
Her accounts are of what people do when in power. Mainstream centrists probably have had five years of Blair and another five under the coalition when they have been in power. The rest of the time they have not been listened to. The supporters of Reform have already had more time than that in power imo.
The scandals she describes stretch back decades.
Anyone who thinks a Reform government will be pure & unsullied by any of the temptations that have led to previous administrations and bureaucracies leaving the path of righteousness is deluded though.
The problems identified by Cyclefree are endemic to large organisations made up of people. The solution is not to throw out the old leaders & replace them with new ones - which changes nothing - but instead to consider carefully the structures by which we govern ourselves & to put in place checks & balances that act against the natural tendency of bureaucracies to turn inward & resist criticism above all other things.
This is hard work, unrewarding work of course - which is why we get the government we deserve, including any future Reform government which, I predict, will fail in many of the same ways that past UK governments have failed & for the same reasons.
The mistake being made by @Sean_F is attributing the proclaimed moral values of the #NU10K and their process state to genuine belief.
Sure, Paula Vennells would probably claim to be deeply in favour LGBTQ+, Black Lives Matter and on the side of the oppressed. Probably has bunch of awards for the same. She created & presided, of course, over a system that brutally oppressed people of a lower social group.
Punched down, and very hard she punched down, at that.
This is because the #NU10K profess the beliefs that are required of their social standing. But they have contracted out their morality to the Process. See Starmer and his beliefs of trans being whatever the Supreme Court says.
Since the nostrum they repeat are not part of their inner lives, it’s barely hypocritical when they act against them.
Their deep beliefs are in their right to power and the right to power of People Like Them. The rest is as superficial as a car wrap. And as easily changed.
Vennells’s main hobby was poncing about as a CofE priest, so are you sure that are that painting her as an LGBTQ warrior isn’t your projection rather than the reality? I suspect she had small c conservative views.
She had views?
That’s the point. With these people it’s all performative. They don’t actually believe in anything apart from their own interest.
Lack of believe is a core requirement for your typical CofE vicar...
I jest but I find it very hard to see how a CofE can see many of the things they see and keep their faith...
More than anyone, it's probably @Cyclefree who has moved me in the direction of voting Reform. Not that she is in any way a supporter, but her accounts of what the "mainstream centrists" do, when they possess power, has convinced me that they need to be swept away.
Her accounts are of what people do when in power. Mainstream centrists probably have had five years of Blair and another five under the coalition when they have been in power. The rest of the time they have not been listened to. The supporters of Reform have already had more time than that in power imo.
The scandals she describes stretch back decades.
Anyone who thinks a Reform government will be pure & unsullied by any of the temptations that have led to previous administrations and bureaucracies leaving the path of righteousness is deluded though.
The problems identified by Cyclefree are endemic to large organisations made up of people. The solution is not to throw out the old leaders & replace them with new ones - which changes nothing - but instead to consider carefully the structures by which we govern ourselves & to put in place checks & balances that act against the natural tendency of bureaucracies to turn inward & resist criticism above all other things.
This is hard work, unrewarding work of course - which is why we get the government we deserve, including any future Reform government which, I predict, will fail in many of the same ways that past UK governments have failed & for the same reasons.
The mistake being made by @Sean_F is attributing the proclaimed moral values of the #NU10K and their process state to genuine belief.
Sure, Paula Vennells would probably claim to be deeply in favour LGBTQ+, Black Lives Matter and on the side of the oppressed. Probably has bunch of awards for the same. She created & presided, of course, over a system that brutally oppressed people of a lower social group.
Punched down, and very hard she punched down, at that.
This is because the #NU10K profess the beliefs that are required of their social standing. But they have contracted out their morality to the Process. See Starmer and his beliefs of trans being whatever the Supreme Court says.
Since the nostrum they repeat are not part of their inner lives, it’s barely hypocritical when they act against them.
Their deep beliefs are in their right to power and the right to power of People Like Them. The rest is as superficial as a car wrap. And as easily changed.
Vennells’s main hobby was poncing about as a CofE priest, so are you sure that are that painting her as an LGBTQ warrior isn’t your projection rather than the reality? I suspect she had small c conservative views.
She had views?
That’s the point. With these people it’s all performative. They don’t actually believe in anything apart from their own interest.
Lack of believe is a core requirement for your typical CofE vicar...
I jest but I find it very hard to see how a CofE can see many of the things they see and keep their faith...
Fundamentalist grade belief in weak cups of tea, I believe.
Also anyone who doesn’t believe in vague niceness is burnt at the stake.
Since Leon was asking for views on this just the other day, and the article will have to have been reviewed and edited, and because he evidently has been spending time with all his very rich friends, I assume he did virtually f-all deep research into the topic, and just splurged words down onto a screen?
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
Some of us made no such claim.
I asked you what his tipple was? Response came there none .
Since Leon was asking for views on this just the other day, and the article will have to have been reviewed and edited, and because he evidently has been spending time with all his very rich friends, I assume he did virtually f-all deep research into the topic, and just splurged words down onto a screen?
He’s probably just gloating that he did 2 minutes work and got this
They are a gullible and excitable demographic, the Spectatorate.
I wonder how many of those were bots?
(I can't read it as it is behind a paywall, and wants me to use my credit card to prove I can afford a subscription. I can see the mug-sketch, and Sean looks surprised - as if he has just done a Kozo Nishino.)
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
Some of us made no such claim.
I asked you what his tipple was? Response came there none .
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
Some of us made no such claim.
I asked you what his tipple was? Response came there none .
Guinness. Surprisingly
Thanks.
OK - so that's not whom I thought you were hinting at, who is (allegedly) a teetotaller (and a Nat Con of sorts). He's also worth a bit more than 100 million.
I’m at itsu at Gatwick airport (they’ve closed all the oyster bars)
I am overhearing one of the most fascinating conversations as I pretend to focus on my phone. Two girls - about 20? - are are off on holiday to Prague. I thing they are uni friends. And this is their first holiday together so there’s a slight awkwardness. Both highly articulate and well educated - probably at UCL
One is rather pretty slender white British - much jewellery with bdsm hints - the other is Indian British (I think) more demure, less pretty
They just spent 20 minutes discussing sex in great detail, with the white girl in particular being very candid “I used to think I was a lesbian but recently I’ve been trying polyamory with men as well”. The Indian girl was more reticent - but still engaged
Then they moved on to politics. The white girl was trotting out fairly standard woke opinions about the evil of the British empire and colonialism - and then, amazingly - to me - the Indian girl cake back with 1. Positive arguments for Brexit 2. Very insightful remarks about how Danish social democrats are (in a good way)very right wing on woke issues 3 an argument that Trump is underestimated 4. Mass migration is really bad
The white British girl kinda sat there confounded. But intrigued. Because the Indian girl said everything very confidently and with correct examples etc
I love eavesdropping at airports. That was a great example
Then the tannoy blared out and woke you up.
I love the fact that PB continuously believes I just make shit up
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
Some of us made no such claim.
I asked you what his tipple was? Response came there none .
Guinness. Surprisingly
Thanks.
OK - so that's not whom I thought you were hinting at, who is (allegedly) a teetotaller (and a Nat Con of sorts). He's also worth a bit more than 100 million.
Back to square one !
Ah. You were trying to work out who it is
I doubt I’ve given anywhere near enough info TBH
In brighter news, my plane is moving towards the runway. Yay
My day in south london yesterday. As I wrote, yesterday:
“I actually had a delightful day with my older daughter. She’s quite goth and said she wanted to see one of the “magnificent seven” cemeteries of london (she’s already seen Highgate)
So we met at Borough market - insanely crowded and busy and fun - then got a train through Peckham to Nunhead. And Nunhead cemetery. That was as eerily overgrown and evocative as promised, then we came back to town
And this is where I had the biggest jolt of positive energy. Elephant and castle. Has anyone been recently????
It’s amazing. They’ve turned one of the worst toilets in london into a plush new neighbourhood of lovely apartment blocks and elegant squares and swish new gardens. It looks like a rich new burb in, say, Melbourne or Vancouver. And this is elephant and bleeding castle. What happened to the barrier blocks and smack dealers?!?
It all felt very affluent and agreeable and multiracial in a GOOD way. London at its best
So I actually hied home feeling quite upbeat about London and the UK. And then my friend gave me his brutal diagnosis of Britain’s future
Oh well. Nice while it lasted”
Just goes to show, spend more time in South East London and you will feel a lot happier with the state of the world! Although I preferred Elephant the way it was.
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say
The IDF responded to that by releasing video footage of Hamas stealing aid. There is loads of footage filmed by Palestinians of them doing it earlier in the conflict and plenty of photos of the tunnels being incredibly well stocked with supplies
I think a better question is what proportion of aid going in get diverted in this way.
That is just the NYT article paraphrased. Its now classic "journalism", you take a story from another outlet, and you write a report that says such and such outlet says this, which doesn't add anything.
I’ve no doubt that Hamas steals aid. The issue is whether one should therefore starve a population.
There doesn't appear to be a shortage of food in Gaza. The problem is distribution. So who is to blame? Israel, the UN or Hamas?
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either: - peacefully by hungry people, or - forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404 Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065 Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC. This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
that does not fit the story they want broadcast though
Comments
I'm not entirely sure but I don't understand why so many are convinced Israel is forcibly starving the population.
https://x.com/emilykschrader/status/1949536618127274462
I'm not sure why this is being disputed since the evidence comes from the UN itself.
According to the UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Report, covering May 19 – July 23, 2025, 85% of UN aid trucks were intercepted (did not reach their distribution point at all).
More specifically, 1,404 trucks carrying over 19,000 tons of aid were intercepted during transit in Gaza, which the UN describes as either:
- peacefully by hungry people, or
- forcefully by armed actors, including Hamas-affiliated looters.
This corresponds to approximately 85% of the UN-manifested humanitarian aid trucks during that period, a staggering figure, and a direct admission from UN-tracked data.
Here’s the summary as shown in the report:
Total Intercepted Trucks: 1,404
Total Intercepted Pallets: 21,065
Total Intercepted Weight: 19,483.2 metric tons
Top contributors: WFP (1,258 trucks), WCK, UNICEF, ICRC.
This confirms that the majority of aid trucks were not reaching their intended distribution sites intact, a result of looting, chaos, and a breakdown of security within Gaza, not Israeli obstruction.
He suffers for his art.
Reports across the summer have indicated that Apple has at least some trouble holding onto its AI researchers. The latest incident has Meta pulling a fourth engineer from the Apple Intelligence team over the course of a month.
Bowen Zhang departed Apple on Friday for Meta, according to unnamed sources in a new Bloomberg report. Zhang joins Meta's Superintelligence Labs (MSL), a group working on producing an AI that can surpass human intelligence.
https://appleinsider.com/articles/25/07/29/apples-ai-brain-drain-continues-as-fourth-researcher-goes-to-meta
Zuckerberg spending so much money on transfers, making even Todd Boehly jealous.
Only a withering criticism of Starmer and no alternative point of view.
The BBC as the mouthpiece of Government has moved on considerably since it substituted Johnson's Prime Ministerial upside down wreath faux pas at the Cenotaph with fault free footage at the Cenotaph whilst he was Mayor.
Remind me what publication is Robbie Gibb involved with?
Any other examples of the the BBC's pro Israel bias or just that one? My social media feed is full of countless examples of supposed anti Israel bias from the BBC.
Coincidentally, I am sitting in Gatwick en route to the algarve to go stay in a free house loaned me by one of those ultra-rich friends I mentioned yesterday. The friends you all claimed I was inventing
The US president was speaking to journalists on Air Force One following the visit where he met Scotland's current first minister John Swinney.
Trump praised Swinney, but said he "did not have a lot of respect" for "the woman that preceded him".
A source close to Sturgeon, who stood down as first minister in 2023, told BBC Scotland News that "the feeling was entirely mutual"...Swinney spoke with Trump at a dinner for about two hours on Monday night.
The first minister said he made the case for granting Scotch whisky an exemption from US trade tariffs.
However, Trump told journalists on the presidential aircraft that the pair "did not really discuss" tariffs during the meeting.
But he said he had "a lot of respect" for Swinney.
Unprompted, he continued: "I didn't have a lot of respect for the woman that preceded him.
"I thought she was terrible as a first minister of Scotland. But I think John is doing a very good job as first minister."
https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-online-safety-act-is-plumbing-new-depths-of-stupidity/
I do like being helpful
The problem for Farage is the Reform core vote of 15% or so love Trump and Tommy Robinson and like Tate too
https://www.politicshome.com/news/article/no10-embedding-online-influencers-government-communications-strategy
Seems a load of popular lefties haven't been invited though. There won't be any Gary Bullshitter turning up in his trackies.
My very richest friend (an actual billionaire) doesn’t even have an account on social media. Not anywhere. Nothing
Turns out the super rich people we read about - coz they love showing off and being in the media - are actually the exception
The thing that actually really pissed me off is when the publishers said they wouldn't pay for its running costs anymore, "best trader in the world" 2012 (or whatever year he lies about) and supposed multi-millionaire allegedly still making trillions in the market asked his viewers to front the cost of running the channel.
Unless the Gazans have been receiving large amounts of food from elsewhere, then they must have been close to starving. Starving people are desperate, and will do anything for food. So it's not surprising that disorder ensues, especially given the Israeli destruction of Gaza's police force.
An earlier Spectator columnist would already have grifted a free gaff out of a major Staffordshire Industrialist.
The Yorkshire County Cricket Club is delighted to confirm that the sale of Northern Superchargers to the Sun Group has now completed. The Sun Group, who also own Sunrisers Hyderabad and Sunrisers Eastern Cape, have purchased 100% of the Northern Superchargers and will take operational control from October 1 2025.
It’s near-perfect (for my purposes) and even if I was a billionaire I wouldn’t change much. I would want what I have now, a smallish, easily managed apartment in a lovely Georgian townhouse in NW1 - something I can lock up and leave
The only thing I would change is I’d want one more bedroom and better balconies. I might move 150 yards closer to Primrose Hill
As I’ve aged I’ve realised that the more you own the more you worry. Big houses are a hassle. Gardens need upkeep. Second homes are an even bigger hassle and you have to keep visiting them to justify them
Keep it simple. Travel lightly in this world (but in some luxury and with tramadol). That’s my advice
In a major decision, the High Court ruled that the proscription of the group, that has carried out break-ins at defence firms linked to Israel as part of direct action protests, should be reviewed.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper banned the organisation last month after followers caused an estimated £7m of damage to jets at RAF Brize Norton.
Lawyers for the group's co-founder Huda Ammori have argued that the ban breaches the right free speech and has acted like a gag on legitimate protest. The government says its ban is justified because it narrowly targets a group that was organising serious criminality
But Mr Justice Chamberlain said that the ban might conflict with rights to free speech and the Home Secretary could have consulted Palestine Action before going ahead.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cqlerg1n67no
The Office for National Statistics (ONS), external said almost all of the increase was due to international migration, despite it being lower than the previous year at 690,100 compared with 833,700 in the 12 months to June 2023.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c207nzgrz3vo
Which leaves Europe scared and vulnerable
As a veteran dealmaker Trump saw the pain point, made noises about leaving NATO, frightened the shit out of European capitals - and thus leveraged Europe into surrendering on trade lest America desert us militarily
I don’t know how macron would or could have fixed that disparity in raw power
They said I possess Donald Trump like subtlety.
I once made the mistake of going to the Silver Coast during school holidays, although far less British tourists go there, absolutely rammed with Portuguese families and too bloody hot.
However the house is free and beautiful and - more importantly - I have to be out of my flat for several days as it’s being painted. So the offer of the house was well timed
Would a VPN have protected against the recent Betfair privacy information hack?
Would a VPN better protect my security credentials on bank accounts and other things?
(Forgive my ignorance but I don't understand VPNs and people including some on here seem to think they are essential. If the answer to my questions above is 'yes' then why wouldn't I use a VPN (note I would have a paid-for VPN not a free one)?)
Yet however hot it is, the Finns absolutely love sitting around a real fire. Finding one going at a cafe at lunchtime, with people actually sitting around it, yet nothing cooking, was bizarre.
Incidentally I see massive heat is building now over the US south
My day in south london yesterday. As I wrote, yesterday:
“I actually had a delightful day with my older daughter. She’s quite goth and said she wanted to see one of the “magnificent seven” cemeteries of london (she’s already seen Highgate)
So we met at Borough market - insanely crowded and busy and fun - then got a train through Peckham to Nunhead. And Nunhead cemetery. That was as eerily overgrown and evocative as promised, then we came back to town
And this is where I had the biggest jolt of positive energy. Elephant and castle. Has anyone been recently????
It’s amazing. They’ve turned one of the worst toilets in london into a plush new neighbourhood of lovely apartment blocks and elegant squares and swish new gardens. It looks like a rich new burb in, say, Melbourne or Vancouver. And this is elephant and bleeding castle. What happened to the barrier blocks and smack dealers?!?
It all felt very affluent and agreeable and multiracial in a GOOD way. London at its best
So I actually hied home feeling quite upbeat about London and the UK. And then my friend gave me his brutal diagnosis of Britain’s future
Oh well. Nice while it lasted”
Honest...
For consumers the important bit is the gateway the VPN has that connects to the rest of the internet. If the gateway is say in Paris to all intents and purposes it looks like you are surfing the internet from a Cafe in Paris rather than you bedroom in Blackpool
And internet requests from Paris won’t trigger the please give us your age checks that some sites apply to visitors from UK ip addresses
The big question is over visa overstayers, those who were here illegally but no longer are. This is the largest group of people illegally in the country. I think I recall they are included, but I'd have to dig through the methods.
That is why these days you want a VPN when connecting to any wifi you don't control yourself.
Edit: a particular benefit is that - I think - I would be able to access betting sites and BBC iplayer and Now tv and Netflix etc while abroad).
In late September we will be on a Marella Cruise.
Of the major brands they are basically 2 big companies that own all of the ones you will see widely advertised. Proton is the exception that they are their own thing.
https://vpnpro.com/blog/hidden-vpn-owners-unveiled-97-vpns-23-companies/
NEW THREAD
Yes, you can access Betfair and BBC iPlayer as if you’re at home, if you choose to connect through the UK. You also get adverts on YouTube and the like for whichever country you choose - I quite like the Norwegian adverts as they seem fun, and always short, compared to the annoying English language ones. If you have to endure the ads it adds a little bit of interest.
Downsides, it does slow things down a little and there are some things you can’t do without pausing the VPN, such as editing Wikipedia, or ordering Waitrose shopping (on my home PC; it seems to work on the iPad). And a few other niggles that I can’t remember.
If you go to the UN link, the most recent data are for June.
This is what it says:
"..In June 2025, 12.7K metric tonnes (t) of humanitarian aid processed through the UN 2720 Mechanism were delivered to Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem or Erez West/Zikim crossings. Since the limited resumption of humanitarian aid movements on 18 May, all UN-manifested aid has been tracked and monitored by UN 2720 through a combination of on-the-ground Monitors and cross- verification with partners. UN 2720 Monitors continue to verify the collection and delivery of aid to its intended civilian destination
within Gaza, subject to access permissions. Out of the total 111.7K t overall aid deliveredthrough the Mechanism, food constitutes most of the consignments (74%) followed by shelter items (18%). As of 30 June, a total of over 105,000 t (over 151,000 pallets) of aid are in the pipeline of the UN 2720 Mechanism, approved by COGAT (including Ready to Dispatch) but still pending delivery to Gaza."
I'm not sure where the figures in the tweet come from ?
Sure, Paula Vennells would probably claim to be deeply in favour LGBTQ+, Black Lives Matter and on the side of the oppressed. Probably has bunch of awards for the same. She created & presided, of course, over a system that brutally oppressed people of a lower social group.
Punched down, and very hard she punched down, at that.
This is because the #NU10K profess the beliefs that are required of their social standing. But they have contracted out their morality to the Process. See Starmer and his beliefs of trans being whatever the Supreme Court says.
Since the nostrum they repeat are not part of their inner lives, it’s barely hypocritical when they act against them.
Their deep beliefs are in their right to power and the right to power of People Like Them. The rest is as superficial as a car wrap. And as easily changed.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/bulletins/populationestimatesforenglandandwales/mid2024
Sure, Paula Vennells would probably claim to be deeply in favour LGBTQ+, Black Lives Matter and on the side of the oppressed. Probably has bunch of awards for the same. She created & presided, of course, over a system that brutally oppressed people of a lower social group.
Punched down, and very hard she punched down, at that.
This is because the #NU10K profess the beliefs that are required of their social standing. But they have contracted out their morality to the Process. See Starmer and his beliefs of trans being whatever the Supreme Court says.
Since the nostrum they repeat are not part of their inner lives, it’s barely hypocritical when they act against them.
Their deep beliefs are in their right to power and the right to power of People Like Them. The rest is as superficial as a car wrap. And as easily changed.
That’s the point. With these people it’s all performative. They don’t actually believe in anything apart from their own interest.
I jest but I find it very hard to see how a CofE can see many of the things they see and keep their faith...
Also anyone who doesn’t believe in vague niceness is burnt at the stake.
Slowly.
He’s probably just gloating that he did 2 minutes work and got this
I asked you what his tipple was? Response came there none
I wonder how many of those were bots?
(I can't read it as it is behind a paywall, and wants me to use my credit card to prove I can afford a subscription. I can see the mug-sketch, and Sean looks surprised - as if he has just done a Kozo Nishino.)
OK - so that's not whom I thought you were hinting at, who is (allegedly) a teetotaller (and a Nat Con of sorts). He's also worth a bit more than 100 million.
Back to square one !
I doubt I’ve given anywhere near enough info TBH
In brighter news, my plane is moving towards the runway. Yay
Although I preferred Elephant the way it was.