This is what we've waited for This is it boys this is war The president is on the line As 99 red balloons go by
You have a bit of in the ground military experience. What’s your take on what’s happening, is it going to escalate?
Fucked if I know. I have more than a passing acquaintance with platforms and capabilities but predicting the actions of an evil orange clown and the Iranian regime are beyond the ambit of my powers.
That’s an insane flight path. BA look like they almost clipped Iranian airspace there.
Bloody narrow escape.
What were they thinking? Were they thinking?
I remember thinking the same thing about the ill-fated plane that flew over a war zone in Ukraine a few years ago without going high enough to avoid a potential missile.
In a wide-ranging interview with the Financial Times, the outgoing governor warned that central banks were running out of the ammunition needed to combat a downturn.
Carney's version of "sorry, there's no money left".
He also says:
Despite concerns about a potential downturn, Mr Carney was optimistic about the City’s prospects after Brexit. He made clear there was no point in London, as a world financial centre, being a rule taker from Brussels.
He urged the UK government to avoid aligning its financial regulations with those in the EU in the hope of better trade terms after Brexit.
“It is not desirable at all to align our approaches, to tie our hands and to outsource regulation and effectively supervision of the world’s leading complex financial system to another jurisdiction,” he said.
This is exactly right, and why I favour a pretty hard exit in services even at the cost of passporting etc.
If we’re going to be out we need full regulatory control over financial services, and the City is big and ugly enough to thrive globally regardless. And to probably still thrive in Europe too as it offers services and liquidity that the rest of the EU will struggle to match.
Do you think the EU realise they might have overplayed their negotiations? The first WA was a major victory for them, and seen as one. On every point the UK was diminished and out negotiated. I can only assume they thought they could get the whole thing at the time overturned and if not, don’t worry they’ll be a vassal satellite state that will dance to their tune. This seems much less likely now. If the city of London doesn’t converge with what they want and is not diminished by it, other areas of the economy will have similar freedom.
One likely outcome is that Britain will leave the EU on terms that benefit London at the expense of the rest of the country just at the point that the government is committed to diverting infrastructure spending from London to everywhere else. Sounds almost guaranteed to make Brexit an even worse mess than it was going to be anyway.
That’s an insane flight path. BA look like they almost clipped Iranian airspace there.
Bloody narrow escape.
What were they thinking? Were they thinking?
I remember thinking the same thing about the ill-fated plane that flew over a war zone in Ukraine a few years ago without going high enough to avoid a potential missile.
Lots of aircraft from different airlines/countries were in the air over that region at the same time. They could have brought down a Singapore A380 just as easily and with far greater loss of life.
The BA flight that nearly overflow Iran (as many airlines continue to do) diverted to Athens, presumably to refuel.
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Britain, with an extremist fanatical government and an extremist fanatical main party of opposition, is in no position to deliver lectures.
So that was it? A bit of face saving from Iran. Talk about empty gestures.
Iran has to hope that was it.
Because they are playing with the best exponents of long-range demolition the planet has ever seen. If Trump gets out the bed on the wrong side today, he could use conventional weapons to reduce Iran's GDP by half, by teatime. Without a single US soldier stepping foot in the place.
The worry is that Trump doesn't have a right side of the bed...
I suspect the bushfires in Australia started of natural causes to start with (and at a higher rate from normal) but were exacerbated by “copycat” arson once they were widely reported, both from drama-seeking youths and also the loony wing of the eco movement.
It won’t have escaped anyone’s attention at how high-profile and political this became so quickly, and humans will often rationalise anything they feel they need or want to do to exploit that.
I wonder what evidence that you have for this allegation?
The fires in Victoria were not started deliberately according to the governor of the state and the police.
Of the 200 arrests for fire offences, 101 were in Queensland, which has not had a bad fire season, mostly consisting of unattended or unauthorised campfires and dropped cigarettes.
I find it depressing how readily people buy into fake news about climate change, and conspiracy theories, rather than acknowledge the real risks that we are causing for the planet and human society.
This is what we've waited for This is it boys this is war The president is on the line As 99 red balloons go by
You have a bit of in the ground military experience. What’s your take on what’s happening, is it going to escalate?
Fucked if I know. I have more than a passing acquaintance with platforms and capabilities but predicting the actions of an evil orange clown and the Iranian regime are beyond the ambit of my powers.
It was more out of optimistic hope.... you are right that both sides are governed by unpredictable personalities who will act in ways that won’t always be in their nation’s interest or in any way rational.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
It sought to suspend democracy to force through a policy for which it had no mandate that no one had voted for with far-reaching implications, and is in the course of jettisoning part of the country to secure a hardline version of its policy. That’s extremism and fanaticism in action.
I suspect the bushfires in Australia started of natural causes to start with (and at a higher rate from normal) but were exacerbated by “copycat” arson once they were widely reported, both from drama-seeking youths and also the loony wing of the eco movement.
It won’t have escaped anyone’s attention at how high-profile and political this became so quickly, and humans will often rationalise anything they feel they need or want to do to exploit that.
I wonder what evidence that you have for this allegation?
The fires in Victoria were not started deliberately according to the governor of the state and the police.
Of the 200 arrests for fire offences, 101 were in Queensland, which has not had a bad fire season, mostly consisting of unattended or unauthorised campfires and dropped cigarettes.
I find it depressing how readily people buy into fake news about climate change, and conspiracy theories, rather than acknowledge the real risks that we are causing for the planet and human society.
The arson story is being pushed by the usual bot farms. The Russian state sees climate change as very much to its long term strategic advantage. Russia-1 had a program about how fantastic the greening of Siberia is going to be quite recently.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
Mr. Meeks, the previous Commons was at odds with the referendum result. A case can be made for either, but given neither main party (in 2017 election) was anything other than for leaving the EU their conduct was itself questionable.
Boris Johnson's proroguing attempt was dickish, but it wasn't the first precedent-breaking spot of tomfoolery. Not sure I recall you being so outraged by the Speaker taking sides overtly.
Dr. Foxy, a problem with lots of this stuff is that it's difficult to know. The fire-breaks line (ie not enough had been done to burn off during winter to prevent such huge fires taking hold later) sounds eminently plausible but it's not easy to actually work out if that's correct or not.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Britain, with an extremist fanatical government and an extremist fanatical main party of opposition, is in no position to deliver lectures.
Alastair you are losing the plot and any sense of proportion.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
It sought to suspend democracy to force through a policy for which it had no mandate that no one had voted for with far-reaching implications, and is in the course of jettisoning part of the country to secure a hardline version of its policy. That’s extremism and fanaticism in action.
Bless. Going to be a tough five years for you, isn’t it ?
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Britain, with an extremist fanatical government and an extremist fanatical main party of opposition, is in no position to deliver lectures.
Alastair you are losing the plot and any sense of proportion.
I’ve given my explanation. You haven’t addressed it. You just don’t like the fact that your shared obsession marks you out as a fanatic.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
It sought to suspend democracy to force through a policy for which it had no mandate that no one had voted for with far-reaching implications, and is in the course of jettisoning part of the country to secure a hardline version of its policy. That’s extremism and fanaticism in action.
Bless. Going to be a tough five years for you, isn’t it ?
It’s going to be a tough few decades for the country. The spiral of decline is now firmly set in.
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Britain, with an extremist fanatical government and an extremist fanatical main party of opposition, is in no position to deliver lectures.
I really dont see how our government being extreme or not should prevent someone in britain having and putting forth a view on the caucaus system.
For all those Facebook conspiracy theorists, Cambridge Analytica were snake oil salesmen, as anyone with any understanding of media targeting already knew.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
"abandoned democracy"
The two most risible words you have ever published.
Just found out that Zak Crawley, England’s new test match opening batsmen, is the son of the biggest trader on the LIFFE market, where I used to work
Well Terry Crawley was in the BTPs and made his fortune when Italy were allowed to enter the Euro. What pit were you in? I ran the European end for Pru Bache for 4 years
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
I long ago came to terms with Britain leaving the EU. It’s a disaster on many levels. I’m still going to correct the unhinged and unfounded optimism that Leavers exude and point out basic errors in what they are pleased to call their thinking.
It’s terribly sad but this disaster has a long way to play out yet. We all have to hunker down.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Are they any more ridiculous than the way our parties choose their leaders ?
In a wide-ranging interview with the Financial Times, the outgoing governor warned that central banks were running out of the ammunition needed to combat a downturn.
Carney's version of "sorry, there's no money left".
He also says:
Despite concerns about a potential downturn, Mr Carney was optimistic about the City’s prospects after Brexit. He made clear there was no point in London, as a world financial centre, being a rule taker from Brussels.
He urged the UK government to avoid aligning its financial regulations with those in the EU in the hope of better trade terms after Brexit.
“It is not desirable at all to align our approaches, to tie our hands and to outsource regulation and effectively supervision of the world’s leading complex financial system to another jurisdiction,” he said.
It's worth pointing out that regulators (Carney counts as one for the purposes of this discussion) have different agendas from the financial institutions they regulate and neither necessarily are concerned about generating business in the UK. Regulators are focused on stopping bad things happen, are risk averse, and want to have maximum control. International banks are the archetypal "citizens of nowhere" and don't care where they make their money.
One major bank's worth of assets have shifted to the rEU since the referendum. More will go as the shutters come down. This is customer driven, not bank driven. A significant part of the customer base wants to deal with businesses in the European Union.
Brexit is undoubtedly bad for financial services, but given it's happening the question of regulation and access is nuanced. The EU don't want to outsource their regulation to a country they can't control either, for the reasons Carney has set out. Member states see an opportunity of taking over lucrative UK business.
There are many other UK services export businesses that would benefit from high alignment, I think. But it doesn't look like it's happening.
I suspect the bushfires in Australia started of natural causes to start with (and at a higher rate from normal) but were exacerbated by “copycat” arson once they were widely reported, both from drama-seeking youths and also the loony wing of the eco movement.
It won’t have escaped anyone’s attention at how high-profile and political this became so quickly, and humans will often rationalise anything they feel they need or want to do to exploit that.
I wonder what evidence that you have for this allegation?
The fires in Victoria were not started deliberately according to the governor of the state and the police.
Of the 200 arrests for fire offences, 101 were in Queensland, which has not had a bad fire season, mostly consisting of unattended or unauthorised campfires and dropped cigarettes.
I find it depressing how readily people buy into fake news about climate change, and conspiracy theories, rather than acknowledge the real risks that we are causing for the planet and human society.
The arson story is being pushed by the usual bot farms. The Russian state sees climate change as very much to its long term strategic advantage. Russia-1 had a program about how fantastic the greening of Siberia is going to be quite recently.
The imprimatur of the baby faced Bannonite should be enough to convince anyone. I expect Hopkins, Yaxley-Lennon and the Spiked mob have already weighed in with considered, evidence based analysis.
I suspect the bushfires in Australia started of natural causes to start with (and at a higher rate from normal) but were exacerbated by “copycat” arson once they were widely reported, both from drama-seeking youths and also the loony wing of the eco movement.
It won’t have escaped anyone’s attention at how high-profile and political this became so quickly, and humans will often rationalise anything they feel they need or want to do to exploit that.
I wonder what evidence that you have for this allegation?
The fires in Victoria were not started deliberately according to the governor of the state and the police.
Of the 200 arrests for fire offences, 101 were in Queensland, which has not had a bad fire season, mostly consisting of unattended or unauthorised campfires and dropped cigarettes.
I find it depressing how readily people buy into fake news about climate change, and conspiracy theories, rather than acknowledge the real risks that we are causing for the planet and human society.
The arson story is being pushed by the usual bot farms. The Russian state sees climate change as very much to its long term strategic advantage. Russia-1 had a program about how fantastic the greening of Siberia is going to be quite recently.
Sounds possible. And the propensity of folks to treat Twitter as a reliable news source in isolation, particularly when it confirms their prejudices, is evident.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
Did you notice that they did it again a couple of weeks ago?
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Are they any more ridiculous than the way our parties choose their leaders ?
In fairness the Labour Party is currently giving them a run for their money. The qualifying barriers for potential leaders seem eccentric to say the least.
I suspect the bushfires in Australia started of natural causes to start with (and at a higher rate from normal) but were exacerbated by “copycat” arson once they were widely reported, both from drama-seeking youths and also the loony wing of the eco movement.
It won’t have escaped anyone’s attention at how high-profile and political this became so quickly, and humans will often rationalise anything they feel they need or want to do to exploit that.
I wonder what evidence that you have for this allegation?
The fires in Victoria were not started deliberately according to the governor of the state and the police.
Of the 200 arrests for fire offences, 101 were in Queensland, which has not had a bad fire season, mostly consisting of unattended or unauthorised campfires and dropped cigarettes.
I find it depressing how readily people buy into fake news about climate change, and conspiracy theories, rather than acknowledge the real risks that we are causing for the planet and human society.
The arson story is being pushed by the usual bot farms. The Russian state sees climate change as very much to its long term strategic advantage. Russia-1 had a program about how fantastic the greening of Siberia is going to be quite recently.
The imprimatur of the baby faced Bannonite should be enough to convince anyone. I expect Hopkins, Yaxley-Lennon and the Spiked mob have already weighed in with considered, evidence based analysis.
My experience with some climate change fanatics makes me wonder if this was an idea that got out of hand. They can be like religious zealots convinced that others don’t share their apocalyptic vision of the future. Can you imagine how quickly it will turn if just one of those charged is an environmental activist ?
You have experience of climate change fanatics who deliberately set off wildfires to make a point ?
BTW which “policy without a mandate” was it that the attempted prorogation was intended to ram through? Presumably now the Government has a majority there should be no such concerns and the policy will be enacted.
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Are they any more ridiculous than the way our parties choose their leaders ?
In fairness the Labour Party is currently giving them a run for their money. The qualifying barriers for potential leaders seem eccentric to say the least.
One may not like the outcomes, but it’s hard to argue that the US system is less reflective of popular will than (say) the Tory selectorate.
I suspect the bushfires in Australia started of natural causes to start with (and at a higher rate from normal) but were exacerbated by “copycat” arson once they were widely reported, both from drama-seeking youths and also the loony wing of the eco movement.
It won’t have escaped anyone’s attention at how high-profile and political this became so quickly, and humans will often rationalise anything they feel they need or want to do to exploit that.
I wonder what evidence that you have for this allegation?
The fires in Victoria were not started deliberately according to the governor of the state and the police.
Of the 200 arrests for fire offences, 101 were in Queensland, which has not had a bad fire season, mostly consisting of unattended or unauthorised campfires and dropped cigarettes.
I find it depressing how readily people buy into fake news about climate change, and conspiracy theories, rather than acknowledge the real risks that we are causing for the planet and human society.
The arson story is being pushed by the usual bot farms. The Russian state sees climate change as very much to its long term strategic advantage. Russia-1 had a program about how fantastic the greening of Siberia is going to be quite recently.
Sounds possible. And the propensity of folks to treat Twitter as a reliable news source in isolation, particularly when it confirms their prejudices, is evident.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Are they any more ridiculous than the way our parties choose their leaders ?
I think so in terms of drawn out and convoluted processes - the way different states assign delegates is mind boggling - it is several levels crazier than ours. Doesnt necessarily means its inherently worse, they are involving a lot of people intentionally l, but more ridiculous? Yes.
My experience with some climate change fanatics makes me wonder if this was an idea that got out of hand. They can be like religious zealots convinced that others don’t share their apocalyptic vision of the future. Can you imagine how quickly it will turn if just one of those charged is an environmental activist ?
You have experience of climate change fanatics who deliberately set off wildfires to make a point ?
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
That it was by the previous government, not this one has evidently passed you by.
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Are they any more ridiculous than the way our parties choose their leaders ?
I think so in terms of drawn out and convoluted processes - the way different states assign delegates is mind boggling - it is several levels crazier than ours. Doesnt necessarily means its inherently worse, they are involving a lot of people intentionally l, but more ridiculous? Yes.
It is a glorious carnival of democracy.
What is ridiculous is the almost complete lack of restraints on campaign finance.
It seems to me that a major part of the problem Labour and/or opposition to the Johnson Govt have is that they steadfastly refuse to do any serious analysis or thinking about what the Government is actually doing or might want to do.
All the criticism is constantly on “outrage” mode, assuming every action is in line with what they imagine the Tories should want (being “evil Tories”) rather than what they actually want.
In some ways you’re seeing a bit of this with Trump as well. There has it seems to me been little real evidence that Trump wants a war with Iran (or anyone else). In fact almost all the opposite. Now he may end up causing/getting one, that is a different matter, but I don’t think that he WANTS one. But you wouldn’t know that from the way many of his critics have reacted.
On topic the caucuses are just ridiculous. I really don’t understand why the Americans persist in them. Undemocratic, positively encouraging and rewarding fanatics over ordinary citizens they have nothing to commend them.
Are they any more ridiculous than the way our parties choose their leaders ?
In fairness the Labour Party is currently giving them a run for their money. The qualifying barriers for potential leaders seem eccentric to say the least.
One may not like the outcomes, but it’s hard to argue that the US system is less reflective of popular will than (say) the Tory selectorate.
I don’t think that is comparing like with like. We have a Parliamentary system where the primary job of the leader is to lead in the House of Commons. It’s right that MPs therefore have a major say. Corbyn and his completely inept shadow cabinet with most of those with any ability on the back benches shows what happens when you ignore that. The comparison is more akin to Speaker in Congress which is decided by the elected representatives alone. The idea is that 2 viable alternatives with broad support in the PCP are put to the membership. I think it works.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
Relatively restrained response from POTUS so far and no US casualties
80 according to Iranian TV. Everyone can have their own truths these days.
Everyone’s happy. Iranians get to convince their domestic audience that lots of people died, whilst nobody actually died. American denials of any casualties just reinforce the message even further.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
If this Govt. posed the threat to democracy your rantings would suggest, then the people would have banished them from power for a generation or more.
They have however just given them a majority of 80.
So, either you have got this massively out of proportion - or 14m Tory voters have.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
I long ago came to terms with Britain leaving the EU. It’s a disaster on many levels. I’m still going to correct the unhinged and unfounded optimism that Leavers exude and point out basic errors in what they are pleased to call their thinking.
It’s terribly sad but this disaster has a long way to play out yet. We all have to hunker down.
As a former remainer who has come to terms with leaving I am hoping that we can chart our own course to the future and I expect we will have ups and downs but we must turn the page
It seems to me that a major part of the problem Labour and/or opposition to the Johnson Govt have is that they steadfastly refuse to do any serious analysis or thinking about what the Government is actually doing or might want to do.
All the criticism is constantly on “outrage” mode, assuming every action is in line with what they imagine the Tories should want (being “evil Tories”) rather than what they actually want.
In some ways you’re seeing a bit of this with Trump as well. There has it seems to me been little real evidence that Trump wants a war with Iran (or anyone else). In fact almost all the opposite. Now he may end up causing/getting one, that is a different matter, but I don’t think that he WANTS one. But you wouldn’t know that from the way many of his critics have reacted.
You wouldn’t know that from the way Trump has acted.
Happy to make the following prediction: some of the most enthusiastic supporters of Boris Johnson just now on here are going to be completely alienated from him by the time of the next election. He has a long history of betraying those who trust him when it suits him. He's not going to stop now.
Happy to make the following prediction: some of the most enthusiastic supporters of Boris Johnson just now on here are going to be completely alienated from him by the time of the next election. He has a long history of betraying those who trust him when it suits him. He's not going to stop now.
Don’t worry, they’ll just change their views and principles to suit.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
If this Govt. posed the threat to democracy your rantings would suggest, then the people would have banished them from power for a generation or more.
They have however just given them a majority of 80.
So, either you have got this massively out of proportion - or 14m Tory voters have.
Now that the Tories have a majority they will be unilaterally suspending democracy every time they vote to go into recess.
Hopefully the course of the last Parliament (has anyone come up with a catchy name for it yet that can go down in the history books?) will be an aberration and we won’t face a similar situation for 20-30 years.
I suspect the bushfires in Australia started of natural causes to start with (and at a higher rate from normal) but were exacerbated by “copycat” arson once they were widely reported, both from drama-seeking youths and also the loony wing of the eco movement.
It won’t have escaped anyone’s attention at how high-profile and political this became so quickly, and humans will often rationalise anything they feel they need or want to do to exploit that.
I wonder what evidence that you have for this allegation?
The fires in Victoria were not started deliberately according to the governor of the state and the police.
While this individual can’t be relied on as a source. Management of forest/undergrowth has a big impact on these things. It seems clear that Australia this year has had an unusually hot summer and a lot less rain making everything much drier.
I was reading about fire management in California, Nevada and Arizona (was there recently at many of their national parks). That how they had got too good at putting out fires, that by trying to extinguish all fires and not letting them run their course made future fires much worse.
Practices that humans have done for many years, clearing areas and controlled burns are now not considered environmentally friendly and ironically unsustainable. It’s too easy just to blame climate change. It’s like blaming ‘society’, it absolves of of individual blame.
The same way in the uk, in which the centuries old practice of dredging rivers was phased out as it worsens water quality (quite drastically in some cases), but means that rivers that have historically emptied quite quickly now build up and break their banks.
It’s not that trends in changes in waterfall and temperature don’t need to be taken into account, but there are many too keen to attribute climate change as the reason, when it might be part of the problem but not the primary driver.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
If this Govt. posed the threat to democracy your rantings would suggest, then the people would have banished them from power for a generation or more.
They have however just given them a majority of 80.
So, either you have got this massively out of proportion - or 14m Tory voters have.
Now that the Tories have a majority they will be unilaterally suspending democracy every time they vote to go into recess.
Hopefully the course of the last Parliament (has anyone come up with a catchy name for it yet that can go down in the history books?) will be an aberration and we won’t face a similar situation for 20-30 years.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
If this Govt. posed the threat to democracy your rantings would suggest, then the people would have banished them from power for a generation or more.
They have however just given them a majority of 80.
So, either you have got this massively out of proportion - or 14m Tory voters have.
Now that the Tories have a majority they will be unilaterally suspending democracy every time they vote to go into recess.
Hopefully the course of the last Parliament (has anyone come up with a catchy name for it yet that can go down in the history books?) will be an aberration and we won’t face a similar situation for 20-30 years.
The Mad Parliament?
People were livid.....
Frothers were frothing you mean. Just like the sky is blue and the pope is Catholic.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
If this Govt. posed the threat to democracy your rantings would suggest, then the people would have banished them from power for a generation or more.
They have however just given them a majority of 80.
So, either you have got this massively out of proportion - or 14m Tory voters have.
Now that the Tories have a majority they will be unilaterally suspending democracy every time they vote to go into recess.
Hopefully the course of the last Parliament (has anyone come up with a catchy name for it yet that can go down in the history books?) will be an aberration and we won’t face a similar situation for 20-30 years.
The Mad Parliament?
People were livid.....
The Turkey Parliament , perhaps? (Something about voting and Christmas).
My experience with some climate change fanatics makes me wonder if this was an idea that got out of hand. They can be like religious zealots convinced that others don’t share their apocalyptic vision of the future. Can you imagine how quickly it will turn if just one of those charged is an environmental activist ?
You have experience of climate change fanatics who deliberately set off wildfires to make a point ?
Bit self-referential there on your straw man point, NPH ? Just challenging you on your assertion, because I was surprised by it. I guess I should take your original comment at face value and you do in fact have experience of climate change fanatics who deliberately set off wildfires to make a point.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
Its all doom and gloom this morning.. Cheer up, it may never happen...
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
“Abandoned democracy” by “winning an election”?
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
Did the whole “suspending our entire democratic system” pass you by?
If this Govt. posed the threat to democracy your rantings would suggest, then the people would have banished them from power for a generation or more.
They have however just given them a majority of 80.
So, either you have got this massively out of proportion - or 14m Tory voters have.
Now that the Tories have a majority they will be unilaterally suspending democracy every time they vote to go into recess.
Hopefully the course of the last Parliament (has anyone come up with a catchy name for it yet that can go down in the history books?) will be an aberration and we won’t face a similar situation for 20-30 years.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
Its all doom and gloom this morning.. Cheer up, it may never happen...
The problem for Alistair it seems is that as far as he is concerned it has already happened.
Whatever happens the Iraqis get shafted. Seems we've returned to normal.
A point not lost on the Iraqis.
From an interview a few days ago with their president: https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/where-will-us-iran-tensions-play-out-an-interview-with-barham-salih-iraqs-president For the last forty years, Iraq has been a main domain of conflicts across the Middle East. Everyone had a proxy to fight this war on Iraqi soil, essentially using Iraqi resources and Iraqi lives. I do not want to see my country embroiled in yet another conflict, and I do not want to see another war undermining the hard-won stability that Iraq has achieved. The success in Iraq is real but very fragile. I fear that it cannot survive another conflict in the Middle East....
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
Its all doom and gloom this morning.. Cheer up, it may never happen...
Johnson wants people to move on, there's nothing to see here. I would say there is an awful lot that should be seen here. There's also a space for politicians that don't want to "fuck business".
Whatever happens the Iraqis get shafted. Seems we've returned to normal.
A point not lost on the Iraqis.
From an interview a few days ago with their president: https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/where-will-us-iran-tensions-play-out-an-interview-with-barham-salih-iraqs-president For the last forty years, Iraq has been a main domain of conflicts across the Middle East. Everyone had a proxy to fight this war on Iraqi soil, essentially using Iraqi resources and Iraqi lives. I do not want to see my country embroiled in yet another conflict, and I do not want to see another war undermining the hard-won stability that Iraq has achieved. The success in Iraq is real but very fragile. I fear that it cannot survive another conflict in the Middle East....
Johnson wants people to move on, there's nothing to see here. I would say there is an awful lot that should be seen here. There's also a space for politicians that don't want to "fuck business".
Strategic blunder from Boris, he should have asked for a divided country if he wanted the Remainersoruses to come into the fold
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
Its all doom and gloom this morning.. Cheer up, it may never happen...
That was the comfort blanket pre Dec 12
I'm cheered that Prime Minister Jeremy Corbyn and his merry band of anti-semites will never happen...
Johnson wants people to move on, there's nothing to see here. I would say there is an awful lot that should be seen here. There's also a space for politicians that don't want to "fuck business".
Strategic blunder from Boris, he should have asked for a divided country if he wanted the Remainersoruses to come into the fold
Johnson wants people to move on, there's nothing to see here. I would say there is an awful lot that should be seen here. There's also a space for politicians that don't want to "fuck business".
Strategic blunder from Boris, he should have asked for a divided country if he wanted the Remainersoruses to come into the fold
Johnson is sitting pretty from his perspective. Don't think he's blundered. There are always winners from any major change. Johnson is one of Brexit's winners.
Others are bureaucrats who benefit from the explosion of red tape and some businesses in the EU. Also Putin.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
I long ago came to terms with Britain leaving the EU. It’s a disaster on many levels. I’m still going to correct the unhinged and unfounded optimism that Leavers exude and point out basic errors in what they are pleased to call their thinking.
It’s terribly sad but this disaster has a long way to play out yet. We all have to hunker down.
As a former remainer who has come to terms with leaving I am hoping that we can chart our own course to the future and I expect we will have ups and downs but we must turn the page
You turn the page if you want to, this laddy's not for page turning.
Johnson wants people to move on, there's nothing to see here. I would say there is an awful lot that should be seen here. There's also a space for politicians that don't want to "fuck business".
Strategic blunder from Boris, he should have asked for a divided country if he wanted the Remainersoruses to come into the fold
Remainersoruses. Cute.
Should that be Remainersorearses, though?
Remainersorearsus meeksii.
Like the dinosaurs, they too shall not inherit the Earth.....
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
I am not persuaded by that argument and expect a more positive outcome for our Country, but time will tell
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
Its all doom and gloom this morning.. Cheer up, it may never happen...
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
Its all doom and gloom this morning.. Cheer up, it may never happen...
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
What whinging rubbish, it was defeatist 'managed decline' after the end of the British Empire which led to Thatcherite resurgence as she believed in Britain and it is defeatism from the establishment again that our only future lies in the EU that led to Brexit and Boris who believes in a global free trading independent Britain
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
I long ago came to terms with Britain leaving the EU. It’s a disaster on many levels. I’m still going to correct the unhinged and unfounded optimism that Leavers exude and point out basic errors in what they are pleased to call their thinking.
It’s terribly sad but this disaster has a long way to play out yet. We all have to hunker down.
As a former remainer who has come to terms with leaving I am hoping that we can chart our own course to the future and I expect we will have ups and downs but we must turn the page
You turn the page if you want to, this laddy's not for page turning.
Throughout my life, especially in business, I have led change or adopted change
Those who reject change get left behind or in business go bankrupt
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
What whinging rubbish, it was defeatist 'managed decline' after the end of the British Empire which led to Thatcherite resurgence as she believed in Britain and it is defeatism from the establishment again that our only future lies in the EU that led to Brexit and Boris who believes in a global free trading independent Britain
Boris doesn't believe in business. I think that's important.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
What whinging rubbish, it was defeatist 'managed decline' after the end of the British Empire which led to Thatcherite resurgence as she believed in Britain and it is defeatism from the establishment again that our only future lies in the EU that led to Brexit and Boris who believes in a global free trading independent Britain
Boris doesn't believe in business. I think that's important.
Mr. Meeks, ironic to describe the Government as extremist and fanatical in a thread with plenty of discussion about Iran.
The British government is as middle of the road cemented in the inertia of a long culture of parliamentary democracy as it is possible to be. Even the radical socialists that sit at the top of the opposition are still completely tied to change through democratic means and subject to the courts and ECHR.
You can tell yourself horse balls are oranges but it won’t make it true. The government has abandoned democracy and even the country’s territorial integrity to pursue its policy obsession.
Alastair.
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
The Soviets also characterised "traitors" to their ideology as mentally ill.
That is not the point I am making.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
You don't move on from a disaster. You suffer it and seek to mitigate it. That is going to take a lot of time and the country is going to suffer a lot of damage. All we can do is brace for the long term decline that we are now firmly set in.
What whinging rubbish, it was defeatist 'managed decline' after the end of the British Empire which led to Thatcherite resurgence as she believed in Britain and it is defeatism from the establishment again that our only future lies in the EU that led to Brexit and Boris who believes in a global free trading independent Britain
Boris doesn't believe in business. I think that's important.
What rot. What Boris does believe is that Big Business should not just say "It has to be this way" with Govt. serving everything up to it on a silver platter. Having their own political agenda, whilt ensuring that shareholder and employee power is kept to a bare minimum.
Boris very much believes in small and medium-sized business. As the upcoming budget will show.
That’s an insane flight path. BA look like they almost clipped Iranian airspace there.
Bloody narrow escape.
What were they thinking? Were they thinking?
I flew over Syria when I flew via Dubai in the middle of the civil war and my parents flew over Afghanistan and Iran and Iraq coming back from India.
It depends how high you are flying
A lot of planes ended up scattered all over the Middle East last night, as they all usually either overfly Iran or Iraq. With airspace of both effectively closed, the required diversions either East over Pakistan or West over Saudi Arabia use too much fuel and they had to stop. Two BA flights from Heathrow bound for Dubai both ended up in Istanbul for a fuel stop.
What whinging rubbish, it was defeatist 'managed decline' after the end of the British Empire which led to Thatcherite resurgence as she believed in Britain and it is defeatism from the establishment again that our only future lies in the EU that led to Brexit and Boris who believes in a global free trading independent Britain
Boris doesn't believe in business. I think that's important.
With an inveterate liar like Johnson, it's easy to make the mistake of thinking everything he says is a lie. That's not so. When Johnson says, "fuck business" he means it. More precisely, he prioritises his Brexit ideology over preserving this or that business and jobs, or ensuring a conducive framework for doing business. Swathes of industry are negatively impacted by Johnson's trade-off
There's a rationale behind Johnson's trade-off. He is resolving the Great Brexit Contradiction in favour of economic damage and away from rule taking. May came a cropper trying to square that circle.
I think people should be aware that's the trade-off he's making and be comfortable with it.
Comments
The BA flight that nearly overflow Iran (as many airlines continue to do) diverted to Athens, presumably to refuel.
Because they are playing with the best exponents of long-range demolition the planet has ever seen. If Trump gets out the bed on the wrong side today, he could use conventional weapons to reduce Iran's GDP by half, by teatime. Without a single US soldier stepping foot in the place.
The worry is that Trump doesn't have a right side of the bed...
The fires in Victoria were not started deliberately according to the governor of the state and the police.
https://twitter.com/JarrodWhittaker/status/1214309782728785920?s=09
Of the 200 arrests for fire offences, 101 were in Queensland, which has not had a bad fire season, mostly consisting of unattended or unauthorised campfires and dropped cigarettes.
I find it depressing how readily people buy into fake news about climate change, and conspiracy theories, rather than acknowledge the real risks that we are causing for the planet and human society.
Not you, obvs - but the sources for the story..
Boris Johnson's proroguing attempt was dickish, but it wasn't the first precedent-breaking spot of tomfoolery. Not sure I recall you being so outraged by the Speaker taking sides overtly.
Dr. Foxy, a problem with lots of this stuff is that it's difficult to know. The fire-breaks line (ie not enough had been done to burn off during winter to prevent such huge fires taking hold later) sounds eminently plausible but it's not easy to actually work out if that's correct or not.
https://mol.im/a/7862625
I fear you are becoming more and more irrational and I really do hope you will be able to come to terms with our exiting the EU in time, otherwise you are risking your mental health
Johnson’s approach makes SINDY less, not more likely.
A “policy obsession” that won a referendum and handsomely rewarded its supporters at our most recent election - and punished its opponents.
But apart from that, top hole analysis!
The two most risible words you have ever published.
Did the recent general election pass you by?
It’s terribly sad but this disaster has a long way to play out yet. We all have to hunker down.
It depends how high you are flying
One major bank's worth of assets have shifted to the rEU since the referendum. More will go as the shutters come down. This is customer driven, not bank driven. A significant part of the customer base wants to deal with businesses in the European Union.
Brexit is undoubtedly bad for financial services, but given it's happening the question of regulation and access is nuanced. The EU don't want to outsource their regulation to a country they can't control either, for the reasons Carney has set out. Member states see an opportunity of taking over lucrative UK business.
There are many other UK services export businesses that would benefit from high alignment, I think. But it doesn't look like it's happening.
https://twitter.com/PrisonPlanet/status/1214596003300597760?s=20
And the propensity of folks to treat Twitter as a reliable news source in isolation, particularly when it confirms their prejudices, is evident.
Iran also looking to deescalate after this revenge attack for the death of Sulemeini
https://twitter.com/JZarif/status/1214736614217469953?s=20
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/trump-is-the-most-unpopular-president-since-ford-to-run-for-reelection/
What is ridiculous is the almost complete lack of restraints on campaign finance.
All the criticism is constantly on “outrage” mode, assuming every action is in line with what they imagine the Tories should want (being “evil Tories”) rather than what they actually want.
In some ways you’re seeing a bit of this with Trump as well. There has it seems to me been little real evidence that Trump wants a war with Iran (or anyone else). In fact almost all the opposite. Now he may end up causing/getting one, that is a different matter, but I don’t think that he WANTS one. But you wouldn’t know that from the way many of his critics have reacted.
They have however just given them a majority of 80.
So, either you have got this massively out of proportion - or 14m Tory voters have.
https://twitter.com/SpeakerPelosi/status/1214706118494212104?s=20
Maybe the pisspoor Democrat candidate for 2020 will be lucky too.
I like Alastair and I am genuinely concerned that he is able to move on
Hopefully the course of the last Parliament (has anyone come up with a catchy name for it yet that can go down in the history books?) will be an aberration and we won’t face a similar situation for 20-30 years.
I was reading about fire management in California, Nevada and Arizona (was there recently at many of their national parks). That how they had got too good at putting out fires, that by trying to extinguish all fires and not letting them run their course made future fires much worse.
Practices that humans have done for many years, clearing areas and controlled burns are now not considered environmentally friendly and ironically unsustainable. It’s too easy just to blame climate change. It’s like blaming ‘society’, it absolves of of individual blame.
The same way in the uk, in which the centuries old practice of dredging rivers was phased out as it worsens water quality (quite drastically in some cases), but means that rivers that have historically emptied quite quickly now build up and break their banks.
It’s not that trends in changes in waterfall and temperature don’t need to be taken into account, but there are many too keen to attribute climate change as the reason, when it might be part of the problem but not the primary driver.
People were livid.....
Just like the sky is blue and the pope is Catholic.
https://twitter.com/spectatorindex/status/1214719039995400194
From an interview a few days ago with their president:
https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/where-will-us-iran-tensions-play-out-an-interview-with-barham-salih-iraqs-president
For the last forty years, Iraq has been a main domain of conflicts across the Middle East. Everyone had a proxy to fight this war on Iraqi soil, essentially using Iraqi resources and Iraqi lives. I do not want to see my country embroiled in yet another conflict, and I do not want to see another war undermining the hard-won stability that Iraq has achieved. The success in Iraq is real but very fragile. I fear that it cannot survive another conflict in the Middle East....
Johnson wants people to move on, there's nothing to see here. I would say there is an awful lot that should be seen here. There's also a space for politicians that don't want to "fuck business".
Good.
Should that be Remainersorearses, though?
Others are bureaucrats who benefit from the explosion of red tape and some businesses in the EU. Also Putin.
Like the dinosaurs, they too shall not inherit the Earth.....
Those who reject change get left behind or in business go bankrupt
Free market and corporatist are very different.
Boris very much believes in small and medium-sized business. As the upcoming budget will show.
There's a rationale behind Johnson's trade-off. He is resolving the Great Brexit Contradiction in favour of economic damage and away from rule taking. May came a cropper trying to square that circle.
I think people should be aware that's the trade-off he's making and be comfortable with it.