@Sandpit Clearly life is better under Putin, Assad and Hezbollah than Obama, Al-Nusra and ISIS
Great to see Christmas celebrated everywhere in the world, especially where there has been conflict during the year.
Also great to point out to the atheist jobsworths in Britain that it's Christmas in most of the Muslim world too - or maybe that 50' tree I walked past last night - with a full size nativity scene at the base - was for something else? https://twitter.com/MallofEmirates/status/809361896734359552
That completely and utterly trashes the bail-in rules of the EU. The EU will have to act to block it and enforce the rules.
I believe they are bailing in those who have more than €100,000 of the subordinated debt, but not those who have less.
They will claim that it complies with bail in rules, as they are bailing billions of Euros of subordinated debt holders. I suspect it will end up in front of the ECJ in about 2025.
I'm perfectly calm. Just not in the mood to be lectured to by someone who has supported the policies of Merkel, policies that have let in thousands of potential terrorists. Your blind love of her is just sad. Your support of Erdogan is sickening, I thought that after he made nice with Putin you would have an about turn but clearly I was wrong, your uncritical eye when it comes to Turkey and Erdogan is just ridiculous.
Max, find *one* post where I have supported Merkel's policy (in fact, in common with others I've referred to it as 'madness').
Go on. Because as far as I'm aware I haven't supported it once. As I say above, I complimented Cameron's stance at the same time as criticising Merkels.
My 'support' for Erdogan is nothing of the sort: as you'd know if you actually read my posts with an open mind. Mentioning the problems that confront Turkey is not the same as supporting Erdogan.
In a similar manner, you might also like to look up my comments on Gulen.
Basically: you are out of order.
I'll take back the Merkel remarks, but on Erdogan you have a huge blindspot in that he created the conditions for the millions of refugees. He aided and abetted ISIS in its early days when they were referred to as "Sunni militia" groups, he has backed Al-Nusra and other jihadists fighting against the Kurds and until he was forced to reverse by economic ruin he destroyed the detente the West had with Russia in Syria by shooting down a Russian plane which strayed into Turkish airspace for 16 seconds.
The man is a maniac and yet all we get from you is "yeah but the circumstances are tough, so we should not judge him". They are circumstances he created and had prospered from looking at the rerun in which the HDP were smashed after a few convenient bombs went off and the PKK were blamed (despite not claiming them, even though they always do when it is them).
Erdogan is a despot and you are a fool to dance to his tune of sympathy for Turkey when we should have no tolerance of his actions.
I'm about average height, although when I was about 13 I was one of the tallest people in my year at school. That meant that I had to watch about 50% of people go from being considerably shorter than me to being taller than me over the course of about 5 years, which was a slighly disconcerting experience.
The Italians have very sensibly decided to stick two fingers up at the Germans and to bail out their banks.
Brexit is going to be the least of the EU's problems in the new year. The question now is what punishment can the ECB conceivably give Italy for bailing out their banks? Surely they can't just let it go, and can't/won't kick them out of the Euro as that would bring the single currency to its knees.
They will claim that it complies with bail in rules, as they are bailing billions of Euros of subordinated debt holders. I suspect it will end up in front of the ECJ in about 2025.
Quite probably it will quietly be smothered in a thick layer of Eurofudge. The EU, and Germany, have bigger problems to worry about right now.
That completely and utterly trashes the bail-in rules of the EU. The EU will have to act to block it and enforce the rules.
I believe they are bailing in those who have more than €100,000 of the subordinated debt, but not those who have less.
They will claim that it complies with bail in rules, as they are bailing billions of Euros of subordinated debt holders. I suspect it will end up in front of the ECJ in about 2025.
That definitely doesn't comply. Only depositors have the €100k protection, the rules make no mention of any protection for subordinated bond holders.
There also doesn't seem to be any bail-in of uninsured deposits which are technically in line ahead of subordinated debt for bailing in. This is a massive fuck you to the EU Bank bail in rules.
AndyJS I reached my tallest at 14. That was about 6' 3". So I was, in relative terms, a monster at that stage. Fortunately, I stopped growing and most of my friends ended up within a few inches of the same height, with a couple a tad taller.
Being taller than my infant school teacher (4' 11" at age six) was disconcerting for her!
Hmm, before we get too smug about the british police, remember the jean charles de menezes case and the poorly attempted cover up.
I worked with the team in counter-terrorism back then. It was a tragic mistake of identity - but the officers who shot him thought they were risking their own lives by jumping on him/shooting to stop a suicide bomber who'd blow them to smithereens in seconds. They were incredibly brave.
Senior officers had no confidence in Sir Ian Blair - at all.
There've been dozens of attacks stopped by the intelligence and police services since then. Perhaps less carping about a tragic mistake a decade ago is in order.
Well, you can't blame them for having no confidence in Ian Blair or for that matter Cressida Dick, who were both blatantly political appointments.
However, in the case of Senor de Menezes, what bothered people more was the fact that the police tried to cover it up with a series of really quite breathtakingly stupid lies. If they had held their hands up and admitted they got it wrong making a tough decision at a difficult moment, I think most people would have supported them. But first lying to the public, then the Home Office, then the press and finally the coroner in the face of unequivocal eyewitness testimony was the most stupid decision since Nixon authorised the Watergate break in.
My other half is 6'2, shes said it would be weird for her to go out with anyone under 6 foot. I'm 6'1.
So many things are weird - I'm allergic to men in football shirts - even David Genola in his prime. I just see small children in supermarket queues. My husband who I fancied the arse off bought himself a NUFC shirt and I refused to be seen with him wearing it. I'd be less bothered if he'd worn a dress.
That reminds me of a bizarre experience I had in Jamaica back in the early 2000s. I was drinking in a hotel bar and another guest asked me for a date.
I declined - he instantly accused me of 'being shortist'. He was short - and frankly I feel awkward being 4" taller than a partner. He was so hair-trigger about it and I'd never mentioned his height. He went on and on and on! In public
He'd have done a lot better approaching women who weren't taller than he was - or gotten therapy for his short man issues.
You should have said loud enough for everyone to hear "No, it's because your f**king ugly!" or something.
Perhaps... "No need to be short with me"
Or...
"Look mate... I would tell you that real reason, I'm just worried it would go over your head."
Here's hoping the Democrats will take back the house in 2018. It'll also be interesting to see who exerts more influence in the Trump administration - establishment Republicans like Priebus, Ryan or figures like Bannon.
As a side note, I'm 5'0, so I'm clearly the midget of PB.
If it helps for balance, as someone of middling height I've always found tall women pretty unattractive.
I wonder how much of it is to do with a form of projected power. Like having your office chair set higher up?
After always dating tall men, and wearing high heels - I was used to bending my knees to talk to someone/looking downwards as natural. When I went out with a guy 5 10 - I wore kitten heels and it just felt weird/a compromise with myself/odd looking upwards so much.
My dad was 6 2/mum 5 3 so maybe that has some subconscious thing too.
@MaxPB Yeah but you know how irrational markets can be
Well right now the announcement has been given a "don't be ridiculous" response from everyone here. Not a single person believes this plan will survive contact with the ECB.
Morris Dancer, I think my function is to make everyone around me feel tall! Even some of my shorter friends are taller than me - 5'2, 5'3 etc. My mum is also short as well - she's 5'0 too. My dad is 5'9.
@ edmund "You're basically describing ObamaCare, except that: 1) It's not all paid for out of federal taxation, because that would cost too much, so all you get is a subsidy 2) Because of (1), not everybody wants to buy it, so they let people who don't want in pay a tax penalty instead."
So, it's not basically Obamacare at all.
Charles is describing a tax-based (and hence progressive) system with optional add-ons
Obamacare is a very regressive forced cross-subsidization system.
Morris Dancer, I think my function is to make everyone around me feel tall! Even some of my shorter friends are taller than me - 5'2, 5'3 etc. My mum is also short as well - she's 5'0 too. My dad is 5'9.
My petite female friends have a special appeal - they get the guys who want to protect and are usually really nice chaps. Height seems to have a noticeable impact on personality.
A good friend is 6 7 and horribly self conscious/stooping/shuffling - everything about his posture says I Hate Being This Tall And Slim.
By-election confirmed in a Lab/Con marginal which voted Leave. What a race! Real test for the Tories, have to say they need to win it.
Don't think it's a 'must-win' - no government has gained a seat from the opposition since 1982 and none since 1960 where the principle line-up was essentially the same as at the previous election. All the same, it'll be an 'aim to win'.
Never mind the size of Reed's majority - how tall is he?
Kawczynski worked in the business entertainment industry before he became an international account manager in the telecommunications industry, a position he held for ten years.[5] At 6 feet 8 1⁄2 inches (204.5 cm), he claimed in 2005 to be the tallest MP in history and "officially a giant".[6]
I'll take back the Merkel remarks, but on Erdogan you have a huge blindspot in that he created the conditions for the millions of refugees. He aided and abetted ISIS in its early days when they were referred to as "Sunni militia" groups, he has backed Al-Nusra and other jihadists fighting against the Kurds and until he was forced to reverse by economic ruin he destroyed the detente the West had with Russia in Syria by shooting down a Russian plane which strayed into Turkish airspace for 16 seconds.
The man is a maniac and yet all we get from you is "yeah but the circumstances are tough, so we should not judge him". They are circumstances he created and had prospered from looking at the rerun in which the HDP were smashed after a few convenient bombs went off and the PKK were blamed (despite not claiming them, even though they always do when it is them).
Erdogan is a despot and you are a fool to dance to his tune of sympathy for Turkey when we should have no tolerance of his actions.
Okay, you've withdrawn the first part of your slur / rant.
Now for you to withdraw the rest, including the above accusations against me.
Let's get onto what is apparently your real issue; Erdogan. Again, if you read my posts in the past, you'll see where I've:
*) Criticised his takeover of the media, the judiciary, the police and others; and his treatment of political parties as being counter to democracy.
*) Mentioned (repeatedly) the story of the relationship between him and Gulen, and the hilarious way it broke down. In fact, I was the only person mentioning Gulen on here for ages as I pointed out he was someone to watch.
*) Repeatedly expressed support for the Kurds (though not the terrorists in the PKK), and lamented the breakdown of the Solution peace process.
*) Backed a Kurdish homeland as the only long-term solution for Turkey's eastern provinces (something Assad supporters do not do over Syria). This is not a popular position within Turkey, to say the least.
*) Mentioned the way he is following Putin's playbook in securing power.
And much more. And as I've also said in the past, members of my extended family live in Turkey, and are not exactly in the regime's good books.
And I have never said: "yeah but the circumstances are tough, so we should not judge him"
But I do mention the situation Turkey finds itself in. For instance, the social and economic chaos that 2.5 million refugees from a war waging on the country's southern border is causing.
I also challenge some of the 'facts' you give above, but it's evidently pointless arguing them with you as you seem very ill-informed and one-eyed on the topic.
I will say this however: anyone hating Erdogan for what he is doing, and supporting Assad for his far worse crimes, is more than a fool; they need their heads testing.
Father Christmas relies on freedom of movement and the customs union to bring presents from Lapland.
It appears he does.
He also uses zero hours contracts for his staff as the work is definetly seasonal while spending most of his time delivering drunk in charge of a slay (allegedly) and let's not get into the number of civil aviation and Federal avaiation flight violations that occur on an annual basis placing other legitimate air travellers at risk. (Providing carriers are not on strike, work to rule etc)
Health and safety is also an issue with going down chimneys in fire areas without suitable protection, working at height without fall protection and entering enclosed spaces without proper risk assessment.
At least he doesn't tell us what flag we have to have on our number plates though.
By-election confirmed in a Lab/Con marginal which voted Leave. What a race! Real test for the Tories, have to say they need to win it.
Don't think it's a 'must-win' - no government has gained a seat from the opposition since 1982 and none since 1960 where the principle line-up was essentially the same as at the previous election. All the same, it'll be an 'aim to win'.
In a leave seat vs Corbyn's Labour, I think the party has to win it. If UKIP are still shambolic at that point then the party will pick up a lot of support from that 15%.
Miss Plato, from memory, Maximinus Thrax was tall. And a total thug. I think Basil II was pretty short, but he was also hard as nails (but fairer, provided you weren't a Bulgar prisoner, than Thrax and a good deal more popular).
In normal circumstances, this would be a dead easy hold for the opposition, increasing their majority. In this seat at this time, maybe not. UKIP, Corbyn and the nuclear industry factor could all eat away at Labour's vote share, possibly allowing the Tories to come through the middle. It will certainly be an interesting one.
@ Dr Foxinsoxuk "When Obamacare goes in America diabetics will be uninsurable. Complications are horrendous there, particularly tbe chronic vascular ones."
As anyone on here who has followed the issue knows, I have hated Obamacare from day 1 because it fudges all but two issues - actually all but one. The nearly-not-fudged issue is universality. The not fudged issue is pre-existing conditions. But mandating coverage of these conditions is what is bankrupting it.
My own view is that these are in fact the best things about Obamacare, and that it will be very hard for the GOP to repeal and replace without protecting these two very popular elements. It will be expensive without Zeke Emanuel's Death Panels, so expect to see some GOPers suddenly, if quietly, see the light and convert.
Father Christmas relies on freedom of movement and the customs union to bring presents from Lapland.
It appears he does.
He also uses zero hours contracts for his staff as the work is definetly seasonal while spending most of his time delivering drunk in charge of a slay (allegedly) and let's not get into the number of civil aviation and Federal avaiation flight violations that occur on an annual basis placing other legitimate air travellers at risk. (Providing carriers are not on strike, work to rule etc)
Health and safety is also an issue with going down chimneys in fire areas without suitable protection, working at height without fall protection and entering enclosed spaces without proper risk assessment.
At least he doesn't tell us what flag we have to have on our number plates though.
@SunriseIsabel: BREAKING: The Queen's travel plans to Sandringham have been cancelled. Her Majesty is thought to be unwell. Not confirmed by B'ham Palace
How exciting! Copeland is about as far as it is possible to be - geographically and temperamentally - from Islington North. Interesting to see how Labour play this. May be a small majority, but the Labour vote in these parts is extremely sticky, and swings tend to be low. Coverage likely to be less exccitable than Richmond. I'd be surprised if any political correspondents even know anyone who lives in Whitehaven.
Could Labour field a candidate who has been winning popular votes for weeks on end for this seat, a Mr Edward Balls might be available.
My guess would be that any potential Labour candidate will be very nervous about applying. Their best bet would be to go with someone completely embedded into the local community.
One thing is true, all parties have to throw the kitchen sink at this one.
I doubt the Lib Dems will.
Although it does border the safest Lib Dem seat in England interestingly enough ! This won't get soft peddled, Farron will want to do as well as possible here.
How exciting! Copeland is about as far as it is possible to be - geographically and temperamentally - from Islington North. Interesting to see how Labour play this. May be a small majority, but the Labour vote in these parts is extremely sticky, and swings tend to be low. Coverage likely to be less exccitable than Richmond. I'd be surprised if any political correspondents even know anyone who lives in Whitehaven.
Will the Nutty Boy stand for the Kippers? Cumbria is in his euro-region.
Suggest Labour find a union official from Sellafield who voted Leave. Not a Momentumite from Islington.
Nuttall is waiting for Leigh isn't he? I'd have thought he'd be less interested in a seat where Con and Lab will be going full-throttle rather than somewhere where he'd have a clearer run at Lab.
Although it does border the safest Lib Dem seat in England interestingly enough ! This won't get soft peddled, Farron will want to do as well as possible here.
I rather doubt that, given their starting position.
Still, any party which takes votes off Labour shouldn't be discouraged!
@SunriseIsabel: BREAKING: The Queen's travel plans to Sandringham have been cancelled. Her Majesty is thought to be unwell. Not confirmed by B'ham Palace
2016 has 10 days left. Let's hope the Grim reapers not going out with a bang this year.
Is this how it ends for Jezza? A very bad defeat could be what does for him - or will it be explained away as being due to the lack of support for the dear leader?
One thing is true, all parties have to throw the kitchen sink at this one.
I doubt the Lib Dems will.
Although it does border the safest Lib Dem seat in England interestingly enough ! This won't get soft peddled, Farron will want to do as well as possible here.
How do the boundary proposals affect things there? Would Farron be getting any of Copeland? If so, I can certainly see the incentive to put in more of an effort than they presumably did in 2015.
Though where Deloitte is concerned one might also point out that it would generally be a condition of employment that one would not undermine or bring into disrepute ones employer. Something Deloitte were clearly guilty of in this case.
In my professional life, I've used Deloitte for several very expensive/detailed studies that required total confidentiality and discretion. If they did this to me, I'd never consider them again. Ever.
They broke the trust bond and there's enough choice in the market to simply ignore them in future. The whining in The Times has got little support - all the top comments have the same view as me - they did this to themselves and have got off pretty lightly with just a 6 month self-imposed tendering ban. If I still had Whitehall money to spend, Deloitte would be at the bottom of the list from now on.
Initially I thought Deloitte's only had one daft consultant who strayed over their remit and commented on the PMs style in writing..... That memo was then leaked. But the major act of stupidity were these comments and interviews given by David Sproul, chief executive of Deloitte UK "he would move work abroad if the Government’s stance on foreign workers was too hard line". Just crazy and I hope all the UK partners will look at the £ millions he is costing them. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/brexit-deloitte-says-will-move-work-out-of-uk-theresa-may-immigration-restrictions-article-50-a7422461.html
Not bidding for 6 months will have a very long tail of being excluded from follow on work etc etc running into years.
Comments
They will claim that it complies with bail in rules, as they are bailing billions of Euros of subordinated debt holders. I suspect it will end up in front of the ECJ in about 2025.
The man is a maniac and yet all we get from you is "yeah but the circumstances are tough, so we should not judge him". They are circumstances he created and had prospered from looking at the rerun in which the HDP were smashed after a few convenient bombs went off and the PKK were blamed (despite not claiming them, even though they always do when it is them).
Erdogan is a despot and you are a fool to dance to his tune of sympathy for Turkey when we should have no tolerance of his actions.
Interesting times ahead. Buy gold!
There also doesn't seem to be any bail-in of uninsured deposits which are technically in line ahead of subordinated debt for bailing in. This is a massive fuck you to the EU Bank bail in rules.
Being taller than my infant school teacher (4' 11" at age six) was disconcerting for her!
However, in the case of Senor de Menezes, what bothered people more was the fact that the police tried to cover it up with a series of really quite breathtakingly stupid lies. If they had held their hands up and admitted they got it wrong making a tough decision at a difficult moment, I think most people would have supported them. But first lying to the public, then the Home Office, then the press and finally the coroner in the face of unequivocal eyewitness testimony was the most stupid decision since Nixon authorised the Watergate break in.
Mr. Max/Mr. 1000, quite.
Miss Plato, alas, I'm 5'8".
Mr. JS, I was one of the tallest when I was about 8 or so and went through much the same.
Or...
"Look mate... I would tell you that real reason, I'm just worried it would go over your head."
Here's hoping the Democrats will take back the house in 2018. It'll also be interesting to see who exerts more influence in the Trump administration - establishment Republicans like Priebus, Ryan or figures like Bannon.
As a side note, I'm 5'0, so I'm clearly the midget of PB.
After always dating tall men, and wearing high heels - I was used to bending my knees to talk to someone/looking downwards as natural. When I went out with a guy 5 10 - I wore kitten heels and it just felt weird/a compromise with myself/odd looking upwards so much.
My dad was 6 2/mum 5 3 so maybe that has some subconscious thing too.
https://twitter.com/britainelects/status/811561473201803264
Nothing wrong with being 5'. My mum's that height.
It's quite nice, actually. Makes me feel tall
Con gain from Labour who were lead by a very left wing leader.
1) It's not all paid for out of federal taxation, because that would cost too much, so all you get is a subsidy
2) Because of (1), not everybody wants to buy it, so they let people who don't want in pay a tax penalty instead."
So, it's not basically Obamacare at all.
Charles is describing a tax-based (and hence progressive) system with optional add-ons
Obamacare is a very regressive forced cross-subsidization system.
A good friend is 6 7 and horribly self conscious/stooping/shuffling - everything about his posture says I Hate Being This Tall And Slim.
Interesting by-election.
Ed Balls
Paul Mason
Now for you to withdraw the rest, including the above accusations against me.
Let's get onto what is apparently your real issue; Erdogan. Again, if you read my posts in the past, you'll see where I've:
*) Criticised his takeover of the media, the judiciary, the police and others; and his treatment of political parties as being counter to democracy.
*) Mentioned (repeatedly) the story of the relationship between him and Gulen, and the hilarious way it broke down. In fact, I was the only person mentioning Gulen on here for ages as I pointed out he was someone to watch.
*) Repeatedly expressed support for the Kurds (though not the terrorists in the PKK), and lamented the breakdown of the Solution peace process.
*) Backed a Kurdish homeland as the only long-term solution for Turkey's eastern provinces (something Assad supporters do not do over Syria). This is not a popular position within Turkey, to say the least.
*) Mentioned the way he is following Putin's playbook in securing power.
And much more. And as I've also said in the past, members of my extended family live in Turkey, and are not exactly in the regime's good books.
And I have never said: "yeah but the circumstances are tough, so we should not judge him"
But I do mention the situation Turkey finds itself in. For instance, the social and economic chaos that 2.5 million refugees from a war waging on the country's southern border is causing.
I also challenge some of the 'facts' you give above, but it's evidently pointless arguing them with you as you seem very ill-informed and one-eyed on the topic.
I will say this however: anyone hating Erdogan for what he is doing, and supporting Assad for his far worse crimes, is more than a fool; they need their heads testing.
He also uses zero hours contracts for his staff as the work is definetly seasonal while spending most of his time delivering drunk in charge of a slay (allegedly) and let's not get into the number of civil aviation and Federal avaiation flight violations that occur on an annual basis placing other legitimate air travellers at risk. (Providing carriers are not on strike, work to rule etc)
Health and safety is also an issue with going down chimneys in fire areas without suitable protection, working at height without fall protection and entering enclosed spaces without proper risk assessment.
At least he doesn't tell us what flag we have to have on our number plates though.
Bah humbug
Eddie Izzard
Michael Sheen
As anyone on here who has followed the issue knows, I have hated Obamacare from day 1 because it fudges all but two issues - actually all but one. The nearly-not-fudged issue is universality. The not fudged issue is pre-existing conditions. But mandating coverage of these conditions is what is bankrupting it.
My own view is that these are in fact the best things about Obamacare, and that it will be very hard for the GOP to repeal and replace without protecting these two very popular elements. It will be expensive without Zeke Emanuel's Death Panels, so expect to see some GOPers suddenly, if quietly, see the light and convert.
Revisions compared to a month ago. Changes mostly updated data (few methodological changes)
1997: 58.2%
2001: 51.8%
2005: 50.5%
2010: 46.0%
2015: 42.3%
2017: ???
May be a small majority, but the Labour vote in these parts is extremely sticky, and swings tend to be low.
Coverage likely to be less exccitable than Richmond. I'd be surprised if any political correspondents even know anyone who lives in Whitehaven.
Suggest Labour find a union official from Sellafield who voted Leave. Not a Momentumite from Islington.
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2016/12/19/is-santa-claus-dare-say-it-conservative.html
It is actually a funny piece.
2001: 51.8%
2005: 50.5%
2010: 46.0%
2015: 42.3%
2017: ???
chuckles.
That's almost a consistent 4 % loss over 2 decades.
This is not going to end well for Labour.
John Woodcock next door in Barrow to follow Reed out of the door early next year?
Still, any party which takes votes off Labour shouldn't be discouraged!
But the major act of stupidity were these comments and interviews given by David Sproul, chief executive of Deloitte UK "he would move work abroad if the Government’s stance on foreign workers was too hard line". Just crazy and I hope all the UK partners will look at the £ millions he is costing them.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/brexit-deloitte-says-will-move-work-out-of-uk-theresa-may-immigration-restrictions-article-50-a7422461.html
Not bidding for 6 months will have a very long tail of being excluded from follow on work etc etc running into years.