Well sure. But the exchange was me responding to the charge that I am an antisemite for holding the view that Starmer expelling Corbyn risks internal party strife which could outweigh the political benefit. Found that a bit harsh and not really fair.
That said, Corbyn plainly has a blind spot on the issue (Angela Rayner's words) rather than holding anti-Semitic views himself, but it will long be claimed that this proves otherwise.
But when you are leader, a blind spot is a pretty glaringly big problem, as it means tackling the problem is impossible. Personality wise they could nto be more different, but like Trump he seems incapable of even acknowledging the possibility that he is part of the problem. Even when he might say it is his fault, his actions and other words show he doesn't really think that's possible.
Not sure where things will go next though. Corbyn has always been a serial rebel but unlike some of his followers has been committed to the Labour brand. What happens when either his suspension is lifted, and Keir has to welcome him back, or he is told there is no path back until he retracts his statements?
I bet it was Seamus Milne who concocted that phrase. He’s the classic posh, effete, public school Marxist who gets a tiny pathetic thrill out of martial class-war rhetoric, whereas in reality he’d be the first person running away to America to hide from Pol Pot
Pb and its denizens can be variously irritating, boring or mad (including me) but we are all human and we are all facing something nearly incomprehensible in its scale and horror. A once in a century disaster.
I bet it was Seamus Milne who concocted that phrase. He’s the classic posh, effete, public school Marxist who gets a tiny pathetic thrill out of martial class-war rhetoric, whereas in reality he’d be the first person running away to America to hide from Pol Pot
Pb and its denizens can be variously irritating, boring or mad (including me) but we are all human and we are all facing something nearly incomprehensible in its scale and horror. A once in a century disaster.
May God save us all. Or as many as He can manage.
Phone a friend who makes you laugh.
I’m okay - but thanks. I believe I have survived my dark night of the soul. Now it is just bleak, despairing laughter, with a vague hope of survival at the end. That’ll do.
It’s civil war. They are choosing sides. It’s fantastic
Well that at least makes clear why you are whooping with delight .... and I had thought you were honest fighter against ingrained & systemic racism and anti-semitism
In fact, this must be the happiest pb.com thread since ... oh, I don't know, ... since 18 February 2019. when Chuka & Co left Labour and broke the mould of British politics by forming Change UK.
"As turnout in North Carolina is now above 81% of the total turnout in the 2016 election,1 it’s become clear that early voting has become a major part of the story. Among those who have already voted, Biden has a sizeable lead over Trump, 62% to 36%. Among those who had not voted when the field was conducted, Trump leads 64% to 30%. A clear story of this election is that Biden’s voters are voting and have voted and that the Trump campaign is counting on election day turnout to boost its numbers."
Just how big does turnout have to be for Trump to claw back that 26% lead Biden appears to have in the votes already cast?
Looking at the demographics, I would tend to bet on Trump in NC based on that poll. Interestingly there is no gender split at all, which contradicts what most pollsters are saying.
I bet it was Seamus Milne who concocted that phrase. He’s the classic posh, effete, public school Marxist who gets a tiny pathetic thrill out of martial class-war rhetoric, whereas in reality he’d be the first person running away to America to hide from Pol Pot
More like those sad, sad fools who went to Cambodia to tour the Pol Pot regime. Some even made it back....
Pb and its denizens can be variously irritating, boring or mad (including me) but we are all human and we are all facing something nearly incomprehensible in its scale and horror. A once in a century disaster.
May God save us all. Or as many as He can manage.
Phone a friend who makes you laugh.
I’m okay - but thanks. I believe I have survived my dark night of the soul. Now it is just bleak, despairing laughter, with a vague hope of survival at the end. That’ll do.
It's a bloody awful business, to quote Lord Grantham.
You were right months ago in your alter ego, despite the occasional mockery. We are in for a very torrid winter.
Usyk is miles away the better boxer and, all things being equal, should run rings around Chisora, beat him easily on points and maybe even stop him in the later rounds.
But...but...Usyk hasn't really proven himself against a true banging heavyweight and Chisora can bang, ask Carlos Takam. And if Chisora lands he can stop most people and certainly a cruiserweight.
6.6 is just to long imo. And I have backed him (and the draw at 50s for luck) accordingly.
The phrase 'punching down' - seemingly beloved of trans activists and 'anti-racists' is a highly offensive one to begin with. Who says making jokes about transsexual people is 'punching down'?
I bet it was Seamus Milne who concocted that phrase. He’s the classic posh, effete, public school Marxist who gets a tiny pathetic thrill out of martial class-war rhetoric, whereas in reality he’d be the first person running away to America to hide from Pol Pot
Do you think he'd get the horn at all those muscly Para types joining the the Churchill statchoo defenders?
Believe it or not I was going to make the exact same reference (I just thought it would blunt the point). The finest cave art is as good as, and often strangely similar to, the purest Matisse or Picasso. Your example absolutely proves that.
Interestingly cave art doesn’t get “better” - ie more representative. Chauvet, the earliest great example, has some of the “best”. It is 30,000 years old.
My visit to Font-du-Gaume, where you see the real thing not a reconstruction, was a paradigm-shifting experience for me. It smashes you over the head when you see it - people that long ago had all the intelligence we do.
Pb and its denizens can be variously irritating, boring or mad (including me) but we are all human and we are all facing something nearly incomprehensible in its scale and horror. A once in a century disaster.
May God save us all. Or as many as He can manage.
Phone a friend who makes you laugh.
I’m okay - but thanks. I believe I have survived my dark night of the soul. Now it is just bleak, despairing laughter, with a vague hope of survival at the end. That’ll do.
It's a bloody awful business, to quote Lord Grantham.
You were right months ago in your alter ego, despite the occasional mockery. We are in for a very torrid winter.
I bet it was Seamus Milne who concocted that phrase. He’s the classic posh, effete, public school Marxist who gets a tiny pathetic thrill out of martial class-war rhetoric, whereas in reality he’d be the first person running away to America to hide from Pol Pot
Caldwell’s story has always intrigued me, in a sad way. Even sadder are the western sailors who accidentally tacked into Khmer Rouge Cambodian waters. Tortured, killed.
Critical Race Theory etc means that only prejudice against the down trodden counts as bad. So hating on private educated people, for example is OK. And minorities can't be racist, since that would be... "punching sideways"???
The problem is that Jews, as a group, in the West, are not down trodden. In fact, many are wealthy and powerful.... so they shouldn't be classed as "down".
But racism against Jews is still bad.
So now "punching up" is problem....{fizzzzzzz} LOGIC ERROR! OUT OF CHEESE! REDO FROM START!
Pb and its denizens can be variously irritating, boring or mad (including me) but we are all human and we are all facing something nearly incomprehensible in its scale and horror. A once in a century disaster.
May God save us all. Or as many as He can manage.
Phone a friend who makes you laugh.
I’m okay - but thanks. I believe I have survived my dark night of the soul. Now it is just bleak, despairing laughter, with a vague hope of survival at the end. That’ll do.
It's a bloody awful business, to quote Lord Grantham.
You were right months ago in your alter ego, despite the occasional mockery. We are in for a very torrid winter.
The phrase 'punching down' - seemingly beloved of trans activists and 'anti-racists' is a highly offensive one to begin with. Who says making jokes about transsexual people is 'punching down'?
It's how Marxists see the world.
Violence and abuse is acceptable to those perceived to be in a position of power.
I did an improv class in Frederick MD. The lady teaching the class laid down that it is a golden rule in comedy that you don't punch down. So, it is not ok for white people to make jokes about black, or hispanics or jews, but it is ok to make jokes about Brits. When I asked if that meant Brits were superior to white Americans, she did not see the humour.
Pb and its denizens can be variously irritating, boring or mad (including me) but we are all human and we are all facing something nearly incomprehensible in its scale and horror. A once in a century disaster.
May God save us all. Or as many as He can manage.
Phone a friend who makes you laugh.
I’m okay - but thanks. I believe I have survived my dark night of the soul. Now it is just bleak, despairing laughter, with a vague hope of survival at the end. That’ll do.
It's a bloody awful business, to quote Lord Grantham.
You were right months ago in your alter ego, despite the occasional mockery. We are in for a very torrid winter.
Talking to yourself again Sean.
I know that to a racist all Chinese people look alike and, perhaps, to a Philistine all writers are one but I'm not Sean. I think you probably know that and you're trying to rile me because you're ... well ... being a little bit sad.
"As turnout in North Carolina is now above 81% of the total turnout in the 2016 election,1 it’s become clear that early voting has become a major part of the story. Among those who have already voted, Biden has a sizeable lead over Trump, 62% to 36%. Among those who had not voted when the field was conducted, Trump leads 64% to 30%. A clear story of this election is that Biden’s voters are voting and have voted and that the Trump campaign is counting on election day turnout to boost its numbers."
Just how big does turnout have to be for Trump to claw back that 26% lead Biden appears to have in the votes already cast?
Looking at the demographics, I would tend to bet on Trump in NC based on that poll. Interestingly there is no gender split at all, which contradicts what most pollsters are saying.
It is a cracking poll for Trump. It is making me consider taking my NC bet profit and walk g away. However it has turnout simply too low. There is not going to be less people voting in 2020 than 2016 in NC.
Similar story with Georgia. Very slight correlation between Clinton vote share and current turnout.
The biggest problem with these correlations is the different sizes of the counties.
Genuine question, is there any kind of uniformity with US counties? I know in sparsely-populated parts of the country they can be very large, but I presume the populations are still a lot more variable than, say, UK constituencies?
The counties are administrative divisions, rather than electoral ones. Rather than comparing to Westminster constituencies, think of the local authorities that declared individual results for the Brexit referendum. They were all different sizes too for similar historical and local administration reasons.
Correct.
Note that largest county by population in US is Los Angeles County, California = 10,039,107 (est. 2019)
Smallest county in population is Loving County, Texas = 134 (est. 2017)
One thing to keep in mind on Election Night when looking at maps showing how candidates are doing in various states county-by-county, is that in many states, one or two counties with large population have MORE votes that a gaggle of small (in pop) counties.
For example, PBers may remember the 2008 Missouri primary, where the difference between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton was quite small. As votes came in that night, almost all of the Show Me State's counties went for Hillary.
Toward the end of the night, virtually all the votes had been reported from these hinterlands - and the REMAINING votes to be counted & reported were concentrated in two large counties: St Louis County (not the city but it's inner suburbs) and Jackson County (Kansas City, Mo). AND when these votes where posted, they put Obama over the top statewide.
Pb and its denizens can be variously irritating, boring or mad (including me) but we are all human and we are all facing something nearly incomprehensible in its scale and horror. A once in a century disaster.
May God save us all. Or as many as He can manage.
Phone a friend who makes you laugh.
I’m okay - but thanks. I believe I have survived my dark night of the soul. Now it is just bleak, despairing laughter, with a vague hope of survival at the end. That’ll do.
It's a bloody awful business, to quote Lord Grantham.
You were right months ago in your alter ego, despite the occasional mockery. We are in for a very torrid winter.
Talking to yourself again Sean.
No, she’s right. I was right.
Can we not have a repeat of the February "we're all f*cked"/"we're all going to die" shtick please?
We will have to lockdown hard again, and possibly for longer, and then the numbers will come right down again, it will soon be spring, and then hopefully a vaccine will be available.
The phrase 'punching down' - seemingly beloved of trans activists and 'anti-racists' is a highly offensive one to begin with. Who says making jokes about transsexual people is 'punching down'?
It's how Marxists see the world.
Violence and abuse is acceptable to those perceived to be in a position of power.
Well, yes, the implication that abuse would be acceptable if it was aimed 'up' is also deplorable, but I was talking about the classification of transsexuals etc. as 'down' in the first place. It's highly offensive to whichever so-called 'down' group it is being used to refer to.
Lady G & others, my father was fortunate enough to go into Lascaux before it was closed in 1963. He spoke of it as one of the greatest experiences of his life. Decades later he would fall silent as he tried to describe it.
John and Jeremy, a pair of yesterday's men, fighting yesterday's battles.
John, I thought understood the ramifications of December 12th 2019 with his quip about a failed socialist revolution that didn't end in a sports stadium, Jeremy possibly still thinks he won.
Well sure. But the exchange was me responding to the charge that I am an antisemite for holding the view that Starmer expelling Corbyn risks internal party strife which could outweigh the political benefit. Found that a bit harsh and not really fair.
Yeah, a lot of stuff flying around today.
On your substantial point, from a purely party-political standpoint, I think suspending him was the right decision. Labour has to shake off the stink of anti-Semistism fast, and quietly eliminating it from the party won't be sufficient to do that.
That said, Corbyn plainly has a blind spot on the issue (Angela Rayner's words) rather than holding anti-Semitic views himself, but it will long be claimed that this proves otherwise. Plus I detest the way that the left has co-opted the ultra-right term "zero tolerance".
I've never believed that the ends justify the means, but successful politicians have to. Unjust but necessary may be the verdict?
Hello again,
I have always voted Labour but I joined the party because of Corbyn. Not the man - I like my potential PMs a little brighter and more contemporary - but the political direction his election indicated. At last (I thought) goodbye to timid tinkerism and cringing under the gaze of the likes of Murdoch, and a big and long overdue Hello to a serious intention - at least an intention - of changing this country so that the single biggest determinant of life prospects is no longer parental bank balance. So, ok, it's over. Fine. And probably a great decision here from Starmer since it shows he's ruthless and lazer focused on winning the next election. But I'm not punching the air about it. I just don't feel that way. I feel pretty muted.
Believe it or not I was going to make the exact same reference (I just thought it would blunt the point). The finest cave art is as good as, and often strangely similar to, the purest Matisse or Picasso. Your example absolutely proves that.
Interestingly cave art doesn’t get “better” - ie more representative. Chauvet, the earliest great example, has some of the “best”. It is 30,000 years old.
My visit to Font-du-Gaume, where you see the real thing not a reconstruction, was a paradigm-shifting experience for me. It smashes you over the head when you see it - people that long ago had all the intelligence we do.
I’ve now been to all the major cave art sites (that are open, unlike Lascaux etc). Font de Gaume is spectacular. I also recommend pech merle and gargas (the creepy hands!)
The phrase 'punching down' - seemingly beloved of trans activists and 'anti-racists' is a highly offensive one to begin with. Who says making jokes about transsexual people is 'punching down'?
It's how Marxists see the world.
Violence and abuse is acceptable to those perceived to be in a position of power.
Well, yes, the implication that abuse would be acceptable if it was aimed 'up' is also deplorable, but I was talking about the classification of transsexuals etc. as 'down' in the first place. It's highly offensive to whichever so-called 'down' group it is being used to refer to.
They want to overthrow the capitalist order - that's it.
The working class have proved unreliable and so they think it might be more profitable to do it via weaponising race and identity instead.
And, in terms of tactics, who's to say they're wrong?
They've got much closer going down this route in mature Western democracies than I ever thought they would.
I bet it was Seamus Milne who concocted that phrase. He’s the classic posh, effete, public school Marxist who gets a tiny pathetic thrill out of martial class-war rhetoric, whereas in reality he’d be the first person running away to America to hide from Pol Pot
Caldwell’s story has always intrigued me, in a sad way. Even sadder are the western sailors who accidentally tacked into Khmer Rouge Cambodian waters. Tortured, killed.
Pb and its denizens can be variously irritating, boring or mad (including me) but we are all human and we are all facing something nearly incomprehensible in its scale and horror. A once in a century disaster.
May God save us all. Or as many as He can manage.
Phone a friend who makes you laugh.
I’m okay - but thanks. I believe I have survived my dark night of the soul. Now it is just bleak, despairing laughter, with a vague hope of survival at the end. That’ll do.
It's a bloody awful business, to quote Lord Grantham.
You were right months ago in your alter ego, despite the occasional mockery. We are in for a very torrid winter.
Talking to yourself again Sean.
No, she’s right. I was right.
Can we not have a repeat of the February "we're all f*cked"/"we're all going to die" shtick please?
We will have to lockdown hard again, and possibly for longer, and then the numbers will come right down again, it will soon be spring, and then hopefully a vaccine will be available.
Let's not be needlessly despondent.
Why will we need to do that? It seems clear to me that nature in its benevolent wisdom is simply trying to get this disease through the system as fast as possible, and our utterly inept political class is, as usual, making things needlessly more difficult. I am sorry to be negative, but our policy toward health in this country is infantile and antediluvian, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that a global pandemic has simply highlighted these glaring deficiencies.
John and Jeremy, a pair of yesterday's men, fighting yesterday's battles.
John, I thought understood the ramifications of December 22th 2019 with his quip about a failed socialist revolution that didn't end in a sports stadium, Jeremy possibly still thinks he won.
I get the impression John actually cares about winning in an electoral sense, while for Jeremy that's a mild disappointment so long as you win where it matters: On twitter, and the hearts of your supporters.
I'm Spartacus! I thought Corbyn was the worst leader Labour have ever had and from the moment he was elected I didn't think he had a snowball in Hell's chance of winning but I never believed and still don't that he 'has a racist bone in his body' to quote his son and there aren't many Party leaders i could say that about. Just a few examples Michael Howard (Gypsies etc) Margaret Thatcher (South Africa) Boris Johnson (Watermelons and pilarboxes) IDS (don't get me started........)
Do you not think Corbyn is confused? Corbyn conflates Neatanyahu extremism with people like Margaret Hodge and Luciana Berger. Whether he means to or not is irrelevant. It is still anti-Semitic.
I don't like seeing Israeli forces open automatic fire on Palestinian teenagers when one throws a stone at a soldier, but I don't blame Luciana Berger for the carnage.
That's possible but it could equally be the other way round. Luciana Berger Margaret Hodge and Louise Ellman could be said to take criticism of Netanyahu and his government as anti Semitism. As could talking to Hezbollah-the closest thing to a socialist political party in Leabanon. During the 2014 Israeli invasion of Gaza where 2,200 Gazans were killed Louise Ellman chose to act as Israeli spokesperson for what amounted to a slaughter. She wouldn't hear a word said against Israel-she was known as MP for Tel Aviv- and it pissed off a lot of Labour supporters both Jew and Gentile alike
Pb and its denizens can be variously irritating, boring or mad (including me) but we are all human and we are all facing something nearly incomprehensible in its scale and horror. A once in a century disaster.
May God save us all. Or as many as He can manage.
Phone a friend who makes you laugh.
I’m okay - but thanks. I believe I have survived my dark night of the soul. Now it is just bleak, despairing laughter, with a vague hope of survival at the end. That’ll do.
It's a bloody awful business, to quote Lord Grantham.
You were right months ago in your alter ego, despite the occasional mockery. We are in for a very torrid winter.
Talking to yourself again Sean.
No, she’s right. I was right.
Let's not be needlessly despondent.
Sadly it's not entirely needless. Some realism is required but I take your point.
Some of this situation was preventable. Alas, no more.
I rarely come on here after my early morning fix and I generally now avoid all news channels after I've performed a dawn blitz. I find myself comfort viewing increasingly: benign shows like Downton Abbey, Midsomer Murders, Friends ... even Dad's Army.
The US election is providing me with a lot of happy relief mainly because I'm confident I'm going to win and, far more importantly, so is common sense in America.
Lady G & others, my father was fortunate enough to go into Lascaux before it was closed in 1963. He spoke of it as one of the greatest experiences of his life. Decades later he would fall silent as he tried to describe it.
Not to detract from the greatness of Lascaux but it has little to do with modern art which was as much an intellectual investigation into plasticity as anything else.
I bet it was Seamus Milne who concocted that phrase. He’s the classic posh, effete, public school Marxist who gets a tiny pathetic thrill out of martial class-war rhetoric, whereas in reality he’d be the first person running away to America to hide from Pol Pot
Caldwell’s story has always intrigued me, in a sad way. Even sadder are the western sailors who accidentally tacked into Khmer Rouge Cambodian waters. Tortured, killed.
Believe it or not I was going to make the exact same reference (I just thought it would blunt the point). The finest cave art is as good as, and often strangely similar to, the purest Matisse or Picasso. Your example absolutely proves that.
Interestingly cave art doesn’t get “better” - ie more representative. Chauvet, the earliest great example, has some of the “best”. It is 30,000 years old.
Well sure. But the exchange was me responding to the charge that I am an antisemite for holding the view that Starmer expelling Corbyn risks internal party strife which could outweigh the political benefit. Found that a bit harsh and not really fair.
That said, Corbyn plainly has a blind spot on the issue (Angela Rayner's words) rather than holding anti-Semitic views himself, but it will long be claimed that this proves otherwise.
But when you are leader, a blind spot is a pretty glaringly big problem, as it means tackling the problem is impossible. Personality wise they could nto be more different, but like Trump he seems incapable of even acknowledging the possibility that he is part of the problem. Even when he might say it is his fault, his actions and other words show he doesn't really think that's possible.
Not sure where things will go next though. Corbyn has always been a serial rebel but unlike some of his followers has been committed to the Labour brand. What happens when either his suspension is lifted, and Keir has to welcome him back, or he is told there is no path back until he retracts his statements?
I'd have preferred it if you'd quoted my entire comment, which was not that long, rather than the one bit that can be taken as siding with Corbyn. I did also say that Labour needs to get rid of the stink of anti-Semitism and that it was the right decision in party political terms.
Anyway, I agree with what you say. Blind-spots like this are why his leadership (aside from helping Labour regain its soul at the start), proved a disaster. Not relevant to his suspension from the party though.
I don't think Starmer will have any trouble welcoming him back if that is the verdict. But if he makes further comments or isn't allowed back without a retraction, yeah, it'll be messy. If nothing else, it'll cost the party plenty of members.
I'm Spartacus! I thought Corbyn was the worst leader Labour have ever had and from the moment he was elected I didn't think he had a snowball in Hell's chance of winning but I never believed and still don't that he 'has a racist bone in his body' to quote his son and there aren't many Party leaders i could say that about. Just a few examples Michael Howard (Gypsies etc) Margaret Thatcher (South Africa) Boris Johnson (Watermelons and pilarboxes) IDS (don't get me started........)
Do you not think Corbyn is confused? Corbyn conflates Neatanyahu extremism with people like Margaret Hodge and Luciana Berger. Whether he means to or not is irrelevant. It is still anti-Semitic.
I don't like seeing Israeli forces open automatic fire on Palestinian teenagers when one throws a stone at a soldier, but I don't blame Luciana Berger for the carnage.
That's possible but it could equally be the other way round. Luciana Berger Margaret Hodge and Louise Ellman could be said to take criticism of Netanyahu and his government as anti Semitism. As could talking to Hezbollah-the closest thing to a socialist political party in Leabanon. During the 2014 Israeli invasion of Gaza where 2,200 Gazans were killed Louise Ellman chose to act as Israeli spokesperson for what amounted to a slaughter as did the Chief Rabbi and it pissed off a lot of Labour supporters both Jew and Gentile alike
I am sorry Roger. I am right, I am not sure you are.
I find the logic of this particular defence of Corbyn to be a bit flawed. By his own words, given he doesn't accept the extent of the problem the report identified, then despite his mealy mouthed words he personally was not in a position to move forward. Therefore, his suspension was itself necessary to move forward.
I just cannot see Texas happening. Would be nice to be wrong.
Well that map is bollocks for a start. Trump has lost Pennsylvania.
Such a lost cause Trump is having three rallies there Saturday.
Honestly, why is he bothering?
He may or not be a lost cause there, but I do not understand how the number of rallies someone has in a place is a sign one way or another. People have praised Obama's campaign information, but campaigns don't always have good info, or use that info well, as Hilary demonstrated, so he could be 20 pts ahead or 20pts behind there, but if his info was crap he might still go there. Likewise, anywhere Biden goes doesn't necessarily say anything about the strength of his campaign. It's possible, but cannot be certain.
I've just come back from my uncle's funeral in Inverness, a sad event made grimmer by Covid and other elements (however that's not it). Turns out that through my Lewis gran I'm distantly related to The Donald, a common great x grandfather at some point in the 19th century, one of the MacLeods of Portvoller apparently.
I have a single orange bristle in my beard, I'm hoping that's the only instance of common genetic inheritance.
I've just come back from my uncle's funeral in Inverness, a sad event made grimmer by Covid and other elements (however that's not it). Turns out that through my Lewis gran I'm distantly related to The Donald, a common great x grandfather at some point in the 19th century, one of the MacLeods of Portvoller apparently.
I have a single orange bristle in my beard, I'm hoping that's the only instance of common genetic inheritance.
"... a massive threat from the government's apparent determination to tear apart the USP of British food in order to strike trade deals in desperation"
I've just come back from my uncle's funeral in Inverness, a sad event made grimmer by Covid and other elements (however that's not it). Turns out that through my Lewis gran I'm distantly related to The Donald, a common great x grandfather at some point in the 19th century, one of the MacLeods of Portvoller apparently.
I have a single orange bristle in my beard, I'm hoping that's the only instance of common genetic inheritance.
"... a massive threat from the government's apparent determination to tear apart the USP of British food in order to strike trade deals in desperation"
PB HISTORIANS: has any other major party in Britain suspended its immediately previous leader? I can’t think of an example. Any abroad in other democracies?
UKIP?
A thread on their leadership woes would be worth a good laugh, even though they are not major anymore.
I was once quoted on Oddschecker in the "Next UKIP leader" market
You were in the running ?
No, it was Shadsy mucking about. I was in the running as a candidate in 2015 vs Emily Thornberry in Islington South
EDIT But I decided not to bother
Gosh, I did not know that. The real thing then.
I will cease with the "West Ham" harassment forthwith.
Ha no I'm not from Islington, I support The Arsenal because my Grandad, who was from Islington, did.
Ah, nice. My dad took me week in week out for years when I was a small boy to Hillsborough to watch Sheffield Wednesday - the Owls - but all the time I secretly supported Man U. Not now though. These days I vastly prefer your 2 teams, the Arse and the Hammers, to Man U.
Comments
A A Council of War, ffs....
Just like the inner circle of Old Bolsheviks were The Party. Before Stalin did "rm -rf *"
Not sure where things will go next though. Corbyn has always been a serial rebel but unlike some of his followers has been committed to the Labour brand. What happens when either his suspension is lifted, and Keir has to welcome him back, or he is told there is no path back until he retracts his statements?
https://twitter.com/blaireerskine/status/1321394578952495105
https://poll.qu.edu/florida/release-detail?ReleaseID=3682
2,697,901 (I've taken the numbers for the midpoint day of the poll)
Biden leads 62-36 with Early Voters according to the poll. A lead of 650000 ish
In a fit of insanity the pollsters do not breakout Have Voted from Will Vote. So impossible to see their implied turnout.
However if everyone registered to vote turns out to vote then Trump would need to win the remainder by 14 points.
In fact, this must be the happiest pb.com thread since ... oh, I don't know, ... since 18 February 2019. when Chuka & Co left Labour and broke the mould of British politics by forming Change UK.
https://www.uml.edu/docs/2020-NC-Oct-Topline_tcm18-331629.pdf
You were right months ago in your alter ego, despite the occasional mockery. We are in for a very torrid winter.
Even Trafalgar have that for Biden...maybe they'll end up a with a D lean this election.
Biden 54 .. Trump 43
Clinton was +3
http://stpetepolls.org/files/StPetePolls_2020_CD13GEN_October28_EH39F.pdf
https://twitter.com/bencooper/status/1321873862238285824?s=20
Dereck Chisora is 6.6 (bf) vs Usyk (1.19).
Usyk is miles away the better boxer and, all things being equal, should run rings around Chisora, beat him easily on points and maybe even stop him in the later rounds.
But...but...Usyk hasn't really proven himself against a true banging heavyweight and Chisora can bang, ask Carlos Takam. And if Chisora lands he can stop most people and certainly a cruiserweight.
6.6 is just to long imo. And I have backed him (and the draw at 50s for luck) accordingly.
https://twitter.com/johnmcdonnellMP/status/1321815831416889345
So they think there will be 1.9 million more voters than the 2.7 million who have already voted.
For a total votership of 4.6 million? Turnout in 2016 was 4.7 million.
Yeah. No.
So that's an exit from tier 2 to tier 3 I guess.
It shows why (contrary to what I thought at the time) she wasn't ready to be leader and Starmer was the right choice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuart_Robert_Glass
Critical Race Theory etc means that only prejudice against the down trodden counts as bad. So hating on private educated people, for example is OK. And minorities can't be racist, since that would be... "punching sideways"???
The problem is that Jews, as a group, in the West, are not down trodden. In fact, many are wealthy and powerful.... so they shouldn't be classed as "down".
But racism against Jews is still bad.
So now "punching up" is problem....{fizzzzzzz} LOGIC ERROR! OUT OF CHEESE! REDO FROM START!
Violence and abuse is acceptable to those perceived to be in a position of power.
Isn;'t Obama heading to Michigan, of all places on Saturday?
Note that largest county by population in US is Los Angeles County, California = 10,039,107 (est. 2019)
Smallest county in population is Loving County, Texas = 134 (est. 2017)
One thing to keep in mind on Election Night when looking at maps showing how candidates are doing in various states county-by-county, is that in many states, one or two counties with large population have MORE votes that a gaggle of small (in pop) counties.
For example, PBers may remember the 2008 Missouri primary, where the difference between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton was quite small. As votes came in that night, almost all of the Show Me State's counties went for Hillary.
Toward the end of the night, virtually all the votes had been reported from these hinterlands - and the REMAINING votes to be counted & reported were concentrated in two large counties: St Louis County (not the city but it's inner suburbs) and Jackson County (Kansas City, Mo). AND when these votes where posted, they put Obama over the top statewide.
We will have to lockdown hard again, and possibly for longer, and then the numbers will come right down again, it will soon be spring, and then hopefully a vaccine will be available.
Let's not be needlessly despondent.
John, I thought understood the ramifications of December 12th 2019 with his quip about a failed socialist revolution that didn't end in a sports stadium, Jeremy possibly still thinks he won.
Yes, both Obama and Biden will be in Michigan.
No words.
I have always voted Labour but I joined the party because of Corbyn. Not the man - I like my potential PMs a little brighter and more contemporary - but the political direction his election indicated. At last (I thought) goodbye to timid tinkerism and cringing under the gaze of the likes of Murdoch, and a big and long overdue Hello to a serious intention - at least an intention - of changing this country so that the single biggest determinant of life prospects is no longer parental bank balance. So, ok, it's over. Fine. And probably a great decision here from Starmer since it shows he's ruthless and lazer focused on winning the next election. But I'm not punching the air about it. I just don't feel that way. I feel pretty muted.
The working class have proved unreliable and so they think it might be more profitable to do it via weaponising race and identity instead.
And, in terms of tactics, who's to say they're wrong?
They've got much closer going down this route in mature Western democracies than I ever thought they would.
Instead it appears the US and UK governments were supporting them, AFTER they'd committed the worst genocide post WW2.
I must admit I was ignorant of this particular bit of modern UK history. Wow. Not a good look...
https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/politics/2014/04/how-thatcher-gave-pol-pot-hand
https://twitter.com/LenMcCluskey/status/1321875115798339584
Some of this situation was preventable. Alas, no more.
I rarely come on here after my early morning fix and I generally now avoid all news channels after I've performed a dawn blitz. I find myself comfort viewing increasingly: benign shows like Downton Abbey, Midsomer Murders, Friends ... even Dad's Army.
The US election is providing me with a lot of happy relief mainly because I'm confident I'm going to win and, far more importantly, so is common sense in America.
It's quite interesting.
Anyway, I agree with what you say. Blind-spots like this are why his leadership (aside from helping Labour regain its soul at the start), proved a disaster. Not relevant to his suspension from the party though.
I don't think Starmer will have any trouble welcoming him back if that is the verdict. But if he makes further comments or isn't allowed back without a retraction, yeah, it'll be messy. If nothing else, it'll cost the party plenty of members.
Penn too.
SUSPEND NANDY!
Honestly, why is he bothering?
Campaogn outside the rust belt - loss of focus means Biden going to lose the rust belt.
It's a perfect system
I've just come back from my uncle's funeral in Inverness, a sad event made grimmer by Covid and other elements (however that's not it). Turns out that through my Lewis gran I'm distantly related to The Donald, a common great x grandfather at some point in the 19th century, one of the MacLeods of Portvoller apparently.
I have a single orange bristle in my beard, I'm hoping that's the only instance of common genetic inheritance.
"... a massive threat from the government's apparent determination to tear apart the USP of British food in order to strike trade deals in desperation"
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-54736413
(A majority of farmers voted "Leave")
Even his haters must appreciate the fact he has given his estimation of the fair value price and gone in at the bottom of the market to take the value