Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
I see that Russia is reporting 799 deaths again. This raises the questions, which authoritarian dictatorship has the least accurate Covid death statistics? and, relatedly, which authoritarian dictatorship is most blatantly trolling its own population with inaccurate Covid death statistics?
Russia is certainly challenging China on the second question now.
The thing about Russia is that even though the health authorities put out some fairly dubious stats the Russian statistical authority is reporting excess deaths and attributing them to covid. So unless that changes the numbers will eventually catch up with reality.
That's before they get sent on secondment to the Siberian salt mines.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with them in + a recipe card.
The lady on the advert says that because they only send the precisely measured ingredients she ultimately makes a massive saving through lack of food waste.
I see that Russia is reporting 799 deaths again. This raises the questions, which authoritarian dictatorship has the least accurate Covid death statistics? and, relatedly, which authoritarian dictatorship is most blatantly trolling its own population with inaccurate Covid death statistics?
Russia is certainly challenging China on the second question now.
The thing about Russia is that even though the health authorities put out some fairly dubious stats the Russian statistical authority is reporting excess deaths and attributing them to covid. So unless that changes the numbers will eventually catch up with reality.
Indeed. It’s easy to ‘hide’ numbers in reported daily statistics, if you’re that way inclined.
Hiding actual numbers of deaths over time is somewhat more difficult. Russia’s official statistics show excess fatalities in the past 18 months, well above any number officially attributed to the novel coronavirus.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with them in + a recipe card.
The lady on the advert says that because they only send the precisely measured ingredients she ultimately makes a massive saving through lack of food waste.
Colour me sceptical. In general, if we buy any uncommon ingredients for a particular dish, we just then have that dish a number of times or find another use for it.
And the price of those boxes is really really high, you have to be chucking away a lot of food waste.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
Hello Fresh was actually quite useful to us - at least, it was when they started sending it to the correct address.
We didn't have a great deal of free time, and had got ourselves caught up in the same quick 'n dirty throw-things-in-a-pan meals. We did it for a few months; enough time to pick up some good, quick recipes, and to readjust our meals. We still occasionally use some of the recipes, if slightly modified.
Though since the little 'un, we've mostly gone back into our old ways ...
Each to their own, but I couldn't think anything worse than eating ready meals every day. Cooking really isn't hard nor does it have to be time consuming.
Mmm, but if you're not used to it and don't have much experience beyond absolute basics it can be a bit daunting. As somebody who never has cooked much I don't have the cupboard full of basic ingredients or the experience and confidence to improvise a meal without following a recipe (at least not one that rises above the level of 'beans on toast' or 'pie and oven chips'...)
Back in early 2020 when I started WFH I quickly realized that without access to the office canteen I was likely to fall into a diet with too many ready meals. So I signed up with one of these recipe-box companies. I'm definitely paying for the convenience, but it does mean that I don't have to do the work of planning what I'm going to eat and making sure I buy the right stuff in a big supermarket shop -- it cuts it down to literally just the 'do the cooking' part. Not for everybody and not the cheapest approach, but it's worked for me.
Yes, the threshold to do it at all is underestimated by those who do it regularly - I'd not heard of recipe boxes companies and that sounds a good idea. A friend who does cook nudged me into doing some and offered advice, and we soon ran into exchanges like "You don't have turmeric???" "What is turmeric?", as well as equipment issues like not having baking trays, drainers, ladles, pestles, graters, etc. Also, recipe books are full of jargon which is mysterious to new cooks though perfectly familiar to regular cooks. I can see it could be fun if one really got into it, but the initial investment of time and purchases is, as you say, daunting.
I always remember a Baxters 2-page advert for two ways of making a soup. One filled an entire page with descriptions of what to get and what to do. The other said "1. Buy a tin of Baxter's soup. 2. Boil it. Leave the rest to us." Convincing.
Clearly we need remedial cookery courses for ex-MPs.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with them in + a recipe card.
The lady on the advert says that because they only send the precisely measured ingredients she ultimately makes a massive saving through lack of food waste.
Colour me sceptical. In general, if we buy any uncommon ingredients for a particular dish, we just then have that dish a number of times or find another use for it.
And the price of those boxes is really really high, you have to be chucking away a lot of food waste.
I had some of those in the discount period.
It all seems quite pricey to have basic ingredients and a recipe delivered.
But I guess it depends whether you are stuck in the house, live somewhere in a food desert etc. O do always wonder about the emissions of all these tiny 'organic' / 'vegan' / whatever parcels being wrapped up and delivered 300 miles to move 500g of something.
I'm getting on a bit further with the garden this year - looks like oodles of tomatoes this year, as opposed to about 10 last year.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with them in + a recipe card.
The lady on the advert says that because they only send the precisely measured ingredients she ultimately makes a massive saving through lack of food waste.
Sounds a load of balls - but as a one off for learning a new recipe, not a bad idea.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
You are paying for the zero effort in getting the ingredients, guaranteeing not missing an ingredient and being given new recipe ideas.
I was recently making a dish where the main flavour component was miso paste. I was half way through making the dish when I discovered I didn't have any miso paste! I had to execute a hard pivot.
Getting a recipe box means that doesn't happen. Yes they are expensive but they are very convenient if you enjoy cooking.
Incidentally happy to share my Gousto refferal code!
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with them in + a recipe card.
The lady on the advert says that because they only send the precisely measured ingredients she ultimately makes a massive saving through lack of food waste.
She's lying. The premium you pay is absolutely massive on ingredient cost.
Each to their own, but I couldn't think anything worse than eating ready meals every day. Cooking really isn't hard nor does it have to be time consuming.
Mmm, but if you're not used to it and don't have much experience beyond absolute basics it can be a bit daunting. As somebody who never has cooked much I don't have the cupboard full of basic ingredients or the experience and confidence to improvise a meal without following a recipe (at least not one that rises above the level of 'beans on toast' or 'pie and oven chips'...)
Back in early 2020 when I started WFH I quickly realized that without access to the office canteen I was likely to fall into a diet with too many ready meals. So I signed up with one of these recipe-box companies. I'm definitely paying for the convenience, but it does mean that I don't have to do the work of planning what I'm going to eat and making sure I buy the right stuff in a big supermarket shop -- it cuts it down to literally just the 'do the cooking' part. Not for everybody and not the cheapest approach, but it's worked for me.
Yes, the threshold to do it at all is underestimated by those who do it regularly - I'd not heard of recipe boxes companies and that sounds a good idea. A friend who does cook nudged me into doing some and offered advice, and we soon ran into exchanges like "You don't have turmeric???" "What is turmeric?", as well as equipment issues like not having baking trays, drainers, ladles, pestles, graters, etc. Also, recipe books are full of jargon which is mysterious to new cooks though perfectly familiar to regular cooks. I can see it could be fun if one really got into it, but the initial investment of time and purchases is, as you say, daunting.
I always remember a Baxters 2-page advert for two ways of making a soup. One filled an entire page with descriptions of what to get and what to do. The other said "1. Buy a tin of Baxter's soup. 2. Boil it. Leave the rest to us." Convincing.
Clearly we need remedial cookery courses for ex-MPs.
Or you can get them on Alexa. "Alexa, tell me easy recipes for ...."
And of course there is the YouTube. There are loads and loads and loads of channels showing you have to make basically any type of food you can ever imagine.
On topic: You do have to wonder what the mechanism is by which Sunak replaces Johnson. Johnson doesn't seem eager to stand down just two years into being PM (and with much of that time taken up by COVID), and challenging a sitting PM who is anything other than staggeringly unpopular seems hella risky.
I still strongly suspect that Johnson will remain PM until the next election - which he is favourite to win. That final bit is yet another big incentive for him to fight for the role.
The mechanism is
- Either Johnson quits - Or a stalking horse candidate gets enough votes etc - Sunak runs in the election to replace Johnson
If Sunak makes a direct challenge, historically, he has very little chance of becoming leader.
OK, to be more precise: How likely is each mechanism? Johnson has no reason to quit and every reason to stay, Tory party rules no longer permit stalking horse candidates, and as you say a direct challenge is very unlikely to work.
When a sufficiently large number of Conservative MPs want him to go, then Johnson will go. The actual mechanism is a detail at that point. There is no sign of that at the moment.
I mostly agree, though even then it can take a long time to get the MPs who dislike a leader for various reasons to collaborate. After all, May survived for two years after losing her majority in Parliament and being mostly hated by a clear majority of Tory MPs. But since they were from different factions and feared not being able to control the aftermath, she held on for quite a while.
Indeed. I use Deliveroo six times a week, sometimes more. It costs about £5 more than collecting food myself. If I did collect it myself, the cab fare home would be £5, so the whole deal is cost-neutral. But there is a limit to how much more people will pay for convenience. Tbh the bit I've never really understood is how the drivers make enough money to justify getting out of bed but clearly they must do.
What they are doing of course is demonstrating to the DHSS that they are working, albeit at low pay. Otherwise they would be continually called in and subjected to harangues about finding a job, reskilling and so on.
Good real-world insight there of the kind that politicians tend to miss, as not many have been in Job Centres.
Personally I don't get the appeal of takeaways vs popping something in the microwave, unless there's half a dozen of you. If you're on your own or a couple, then getting some microwaveable food with the next shop or home delivery costs about £3 a head, and preparing it takes 5-10 minutes. Why would I want to hang about waiting for someone to turn up with a lukewarm parcel costing two or three times as much?
Lukewarm junk food doesn't appeal to me much, though I do collect from the Chinese takeaway every other month or so, and a Sikh takeaway about the same.
I had a Deliveroo from Wagamma when round Fox Jr's a couple of months back. Tepid and lots of single use plastics. Not the way that I want to live.
I just batch cook and freeze leftovers now. Microwave meals are full of fat, sugar and salt. No way to eat.
And as we found out with the horse meat scandal, ready meals (even big branded ones) are generally very poor quality ingredients.
As with everything, the super low priced version comes at... a price.
Each to their own, but I couldn't think anything worse than eating ready meals every day. Cooking really isn't hard nor does it have to be time consuming.
Mrs U and I work incredibly long hours (hence why I can be found posting at 4am and then 8-9am), and we still basically cook all our own meals from scratch.
There are also different levels of "scratch". I'll be making a quiche for tea tonight with fresh ingredients, but I'll be using ready-rolled pastry.
Is it puff? No sense in doing otherwise for puff, certainly, at all times. My late mother was a superb baker but always used readymade puff pastry.
I'm not that great at shortcrust even ... what do you recommend?
The Sainsbury's stuff does the job for me.
Look for the all-butter stuff, it's just nicer; though it is so easy to make up a batch of shortcrust, and freeze it portioned and rolled, with greaseproof paper between sheets. Invest in a stand mixer, let it do the work - it's not as good as doing it by hand, but you can do a big batch very quickly; just make sure you barely work it enough to get it to a crumb. Err on the side of under-worked. Roll between sheets of greaseproof or clingfilm for ease.
Roux brothers recipe:
250 g plain flour 10g caster sugar 5g salt
then, in a well in the middle:
125 g cold unsalted butter 1 egg
(work to a crumb with fingers or machine)
Then when it is just barely a crumb, dribble in *at most*
40g cold water
Add a little bit, wait a moment, and see if it is just sticky enough to come together.
Ball up, wrap in clingfilm, stick in the fridge for an hour, then portion it up and roll into discs as I said above. Stick between sheets of greasproof, bag and freeze.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
You are paying for the zero effort in getting the ingredients, guaranteeing not missing an ingredient and being given new recipe ideas.
I was recently making a dish where the main flavour component was miso paste. I was half way through making the dish when I discovered I didn't have any miso paste! I had to execute a hard pivot.
Getting a recipe box means that doesn't happen. Yes they are expensive but they are very convenient if you enjoy cooking.
Incidentally happy to share my Gousto refferal code!
I can certainly see why they boomed during the lockdowns. No restaurants, people generally didn't want to keep going to a supermarket (if at all) just to pick up an odd item (and all that WFHing, they aren't going to be passing on the way back from work) and it was something to do.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
You are paying for the zero effort in getting the ingredients, guaranteeing not missing an ingredient and being given new recipe ideas.
I was recently making a dish where the main flavour component was miso paste. I was half way through making the dish when I discovered I didn't have any miso paste! I had to execute a hard pivot.
Getting a recipe box means that doesn't happen. Yes they are expensive but they are very convenient if you enjoy cooking.
Incidentally happy to share my Gousto refferal code!
I can certainly see why they boomed during the lockdowns. No restaurants, people generally didn't want to keep going to a supermarket (if at all) just to pick up an odd item (and all that WFHing, they aren't going to be passing on the way back from work) and it was something to do.
They seem to be an effective starter, for some people, in learning to cook.
Is there any evidence of "Johnson's desperation for a [US] trade deal"? It seems to be something that certain people cling to unthinkingly.
At the time, of course, it was bandied about as one of the great Brexit benefits. But now that Boris's NI antics have left it dead in the water, and everyone realizes it would have been a bit crap for the UK anyway, Boris seems happy to forget all about it.
I think that's right, though I'm sure Liz Truss would love it. The problems are (a) Biden would need a new fast-track agreement from Congress for it (otherwise it would get niggled to death in clause-by-clause debate), and that won't happen until after the mid-terms, if then (b) the pressure from NGOs over the relatively minor Australian deal has made it clear that the political cost of a US deal would be enormous. I don't think Boris sees any urgent need to pay it.
Was there much pressure from NGOs? I think they already faced down the heavy pressure when they stopped the NFU and others forcing deal-breaking restrictions into any 'negotiating mandate' via law earlier in the process.
The EU have tried to force countries / continents to accept EU restrictions, significantly due to pressure from NGOs and others with an 'in' via the Europarl, and it has stopped the process. eg Mercosaur, TTIP.
Each to their own, but I couldn't think anything worse than eating ready meals every day. Cooking really isn't hard nor does it have to be time consuming.
Mmm, but if you're not used to it and don't have much experience beyond absolute basics it can be a bit daunting. As somebody who never has cooked much I don't have the cupboard full of basic ingredients or the experience and confidence to improvise a meal without following a recipe (at least not one that rises above the level of 'beans on toast' or 'pie and oven chips'...)
Back in early 2020 when I started WFH I quickly realized that without access to the office canteen I was likely to fall into a diet with too many ready meals. So I signed up with one of these recipe-box companies. I'm definitely paying for the convenience, but it does mean that I don't have to do the work of planning what I'm going to eat and making sure I buy the right stuff in a big supermarket shop -- it cuts it down to literally just the 'do the cooking' part. Not for everybody and not the cheapest approach, but it's worked for me.
Yes, the threshold to do it at all is underestimated by those who do it regularly - I'd not heard of recipe boxes companies and that sounds a good idea. A friend who does cook nudged me into doing some and offered advice, and we soon ran into exchanges like "You don't have turmeric???" "What is turmeric?", as well as equipment issues like not having baking trays, drainers, ladles, pestles, graters, etc. Also, recipe books are full of jargon which is mysterious to new cooks though perfectly familiar to regular cooks. I can see it could be fun if one really got into it, but the initial investment of time and purchases is, as you say, daunting.
I always remember a Baxters 2-page advert for two ways of making a soup. One filled an entire page with descriptions of what to get and what to do. The other said "1. Buy a tin of Baxter's soup. 2. Boil it. Leave the rest to us." Convincing.
Never boil yer soup! Even tinned stuff.
'Simmer' is lesson 2. Especially as it is so easily confused with a biscuit. "What do I do now - put the butter biscuit in the ****ing soup? Aye right."
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
You are paying for the zero effort in getting the ingredients, guaranteeing not missing an ingredient and being given new recipe ideas.
I was recently making a dish where the main flavour component was miso paste. I was half way through making the dish when I discovered I didn't have any miso paste! I had to execute a hard pivot.
Getting a recipe box means that doesn't happen. Yes they are expensive but they are very convenient if you enjoy cooking.
Incidentally happy to share my Gousto refferal code!
I can certainly see why they boomed during the lockdowns. No restaurants, people generally didn't want to keep going to a supermarket (if at all) just to pick up an odd item (and all that WFHing, they aren't going to be passing on the way back from work) and it was something to do.
I seem to remember a few restaurants switched to doing cook-it-yourself kits during the first lockdown.
This bit was of particular note: ...The government and the DPK plan to establish harsh penalties for violation of contractual non-compete clauses, which are a type of clause that restricts an individual's ability to work in a particular industry for a period of time after ending one engagement. It is to protect employers from departing employees who may unfairly use what they have learned at their previous job to compete against their former employers.
This is to establish a legal basis for penalizing employees in the semiconductor and battery industries, most of whom have thus far been able to nullify such contracts following court decisions that found for them on constitutional grounds that guarantee freedom of employment...
Lukewarm junk food doesn't appeal to me much, though I do collect from the Chinese takeaway every other month or so, and a Sikh takeaway about the same.
I had a Deliveroo from Wagamma when round Fox Jr's a couple of months back. Tepid and lots of single use plastics. Not the way that I want to live.
I just batch cook and freeze leftovers now. Microwave meals are full of fat, sugar and salt. No way to eat.
Mmm, it's all a trade-off between health, cost and time. I keep an eye on weight and have an annual blood and BP test showing nothing concerning, so microwaving works for me. Cooking for myself doesn't appeal much, though I do it now and then for a change or with guests. But Deliveroo for me has the worst of all worlds - I'm sure it's microwaved anyway with low-quality ingredients, and tepid and expensive and delayed too.
Still not understood why anyone does it! But apparently in New York it's now the norm for most young people - the idea of actually cooking yourself, even with a microwave, seems antique to them, and outsourcing to delivery companies saves worrying about equipping a kitchen at all.
Though in Ancient Rome apparently everyone lived on takeaways!
A junk food diet, ordered by App from the sofa, and delivered by exploited cyclists while an Internet company rakes off commission seems to pretty much encapsulate what is wrong with modern life to me.
Fire-regs in Insulae?
And that rich chap coming aloong with his fire brigade and offering you a price, decreasing by the minute, to buy your flat as it burns and his chaps stand conspicuously idle ...
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
You are paying for the zero effort in getting the ingredients, guaranteeing not missing an ingredient and being given new recipe ideas.
I was recently making a dish where the main flavour component was miso paste. I was half way through making the dish when I discovered I didn't have any miso paste! I had to execute a hard pivot.
Getting a recipe box means that doesn't happen. Yes they are expensive but they are very convenient if you enjoy cooking.
Incidentally happy to share my Gousto refferal code!
I can certainly see why they boomed during the lockdowns. No restaurants, people generally didn't want to keep going to a supermarket (if at all) just to pick up an odd item (and all that WFHing, they aren't going to be passing on the way back from work) and it was something to do.
I seem to remember a few restaurants switched to doing cook-it-yourself kits during the first lockdown.
Round my way, a number of local gastro pubs did delivery of their meals, but also you could buy (and have delivered) from basically what they usually order from their suppliers, so you could make yourself some "restaurant" quality home meals.
Each to their own, but I couldn't think anything worse than eating ready meals every day. Cooking really isn't hard nor does it have to be time consuming.
Mmm, but if you're not used to it and don't have much experience beyond absolute basics it can be a bit daunting. As somebody who never has cooked much I don't have the cupboard full of basic ingredients or the experience and confidence to improvise a meal without following a recipe (at least not one that rises above the level of 'beans on toast' or 'pie and oven chips'...)
Back in early 2020 when I started WFH I quickly realized that without access to the office canteen I was likely to fall into a diet with too many ready meals. So I signed up with one of these recipe-box companies. I'm definitely paying for the convenience, but it does mean that I don't have to do the work of planning what I'm going to eat and making sure I buy the right stuff in a big supermarket shop -- it cuts it down to literally just the 'do the cooking' part. Not for everybody and not the cheapest approach, but it's worked for me.
Yes, the threshold to do it at all is underestimated by those who do it regularly - I'd not heard of recipe boxes companies and that sounds a good idea. A friend who does cook nudged me into doing some and offered advice, and we soon ran into exchanges like "You don't have turmeric???" "What is turmeric?", as well as equipment issues like not having baking trays, drainers, ladles, pestles, graters, etc. Also, recipe books are full of jargon which is mysterious to new cooks though perfectly familiar to regular cooks. I can see it could be fun if one really got into it, but the initial investment of time and purchases is, as you say, daunting.
I always remember a Baxters 2-page advert for two ways of making a soup. One filled an entire page with descriptions of what to get and what to do. The other said "1. Buy a tin of Baxter's soup. 2. Boil it. Leave the rest to us." Convincing.
Clearly we need remedial cookery courses for ex-MPs.
Or you can get them on Alexa. "Alexa, tell me easy recipes for ...."
My mother certainly didn't despise the Be-Ro cookbook. I've just found one of the pre-war ones in my parents' effects. Carefully preserved for future use.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
You are paying for the zero effort in getting the ingredients, guaranteeing not missing an ingredient and being given new recipe ideas.
I was recently making a dish where the main flavour component was miso paste. I was half way through making the dish when I discovered I didn't have any miso paste! I had to execute a hard pivot.
Getting a recipe box means that doesn't happen. Yes they are expensive but they are very convenient if you enjoy cooking.
Incidentally happy to share my Gousto refferal code!
I can certainly see why they boomed during the lockdowns. No restaurants, people generally didn't want to keep going to a supermarket (if at all) just to pick up an odd item (and all that WFHing, they aren't going to be passing on the way back from work) and it was something to do.
They seem to be an effective starter, for some people, in learning to cook.
Yes, Fox Jr 2 learned to cook with their kits. The vegetarian selections are good, so those with youngsters to feed something more healthy than pizza and pasta can train them to cook for themselves.
There is a lot of waste in the packaging, but little food waste, and handy to have everything together. It is a good way to freshen up a cooking rut, but we tired of it after 6 months or so.
I see that Russia is reporting 799 deaths again. This raises the questions, which authoritarian dictatorship has the least accurate Covid death statistics? and, relatedly, which authoritarian dictatorship is most blatantly trolling its own population with inaccurate Covid death statistics?
Russia is certainly challenging China on the second question now.
The thing about Russia is that even though the health authorities put out some fairly dubious stats the Russian statistical authority is reporting excess deaths and attributing them to covid. So unless that changes the numbers will eventually catch up with reality.
That's before they get sent on secondment to the Siberian salt mines.
I think that perhaps they are able to do their job because the data comes out quite a lot later, so by the time they say 'it was really four times that' the pandemic has already moved on.
The charts on the page below are quite telling, some countries are seeing excess deaths running at 10 times or more than deaths attributed to covid. So Russia is not unusual, or even the worst at recording deaths accurately.
This bit was of particular note: ...The government and the DPK plan to establish harsh penalties for violation of contractual non-compete clauses, which are a type of clause that restricts an individual's ability to work in a particular industry for a period of time after ending one engagement. It is to protect employers from departing employees who may unfairly use what they have learned at their previous job to compete against their former employers.
This is to establish a legal basis for penalizing employees in the semiconductor and battery industries, most of whom have thus far been able to nullify such contracts following court decisions that found for them on constitutional grounds that guarantee freedom of employment...
The anti-China clause. Think Japan did this a few years back.
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
Thank you for the offer and the kind thought, but alas, I am teaching then and I don’t see how I could count it as CPD to get cover.
Which is a shame as I would like to ask (a) how she fucked up exams so imposingly (b) why she was appointed Head of OFSTED despite having no relevant qualifications or experience without the role even being advertised and (c) why she continues to hold the role despite being a clear safeguarding risk.
I’d probably be kicked out after question 1, of course.
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
But (fractionally) fewer trust him to look after a pooch than a partner.
My instant and unthought reaction to Mr Johnson's becoming PM candidate was, as I recall, "I wouldn't trust him to look after my tortoise!". Which is very odd as the aforesaid chelonian has been dead for years .
Each to their own, but I couldn't think anything worse than eating ready meals every day. Cooking really isn't hard nor does it have to be time consuming.
Mmm, but if you're not used to it and don't have much experience beyond absolute basics it can be a bit daunting. As somebody who never has cooked much I don't have the cupboard full of basic ingredients or the experience and confidence to improvise a meal without following a recipe (at least not one that rises above the level of 'beans on toast' or 'pie and oven chips'...)
Back in early 2020 when I started WFH I quickly realized that without access to the office canteen I was likely to fall into a diet with too many ready meals. So I signed up with one of these recipe-box companies. I'm definitely paying for the convenience, but it does mean that I don't have to do the work of planning what I'm going to eat and making sure I buy the right stuff in a big supermarket shop -- it cuts it down to literally just the 'do the cooking' part. Not for everybody and not the cheapest approach, but it's worked for me.
Yes, the threshold to do it at all is underestimated by those who do it regularly - I'd not heard of recipe boxes companies and that sounds a good idea. A friend who does cook nudged me into doing some and offered advice, and we soon ran into exchanges like "You don't have turmeric???" "What is turmeric?", as well as equipment issues like not having baking trays, drainers, ladles, pestles, graters, etc. Also, recipe books are full of jargon which is mysterious to new cooks though perfectly familiar to regular cooks. I can see it could be fun if one really got into it, but the initial investment of time and purchases is, as you say, daunting.
I always remember a Baxters 2-page advert for two ways of making a soup. One filled an entire page with descriptions of what to get and what to do. The other said "1. Buy a tin of Baxter's soup. 2. Boil it. Leave the rest to us." Convincing.
Clearly we need remedial cookery courses for ex-MPs.
Or you can get them on Alexa. "Alexa, tell me easy recipes for ...."
My mother certainly didn't despise the Be-Ro cookbook. I've just found one of the pre-war ones in my parents' effects. Carefully preserved for future use.
I have the 1950s one mum used, and the newer 1980s (?) edition which I sometimes use.
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
I am sure Boris Johnson would do a better job of putting up a shelf, or even a three-storey extension, than Sam Freedman did of reforming school governance.
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
How many Tory voters are looking for a way out of an unhappy relationship?
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
I'd answer "yes" to the 'trust' question though I don't think my partner would want to have a meal with Boris tbh ! A badly put up shelf OTOH - now that's going to be in your house forever.
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
But (fractionally) fewer trust him to look after a pooch than a partner.
My instant and unthought reaction to Mr Johnson's becoming PM candidate was, as I recall, "I wouldn't trust him to look after my tortoise!". Which is very odd as the aforesaid chelonian has been dead for years .
Luckily for Johnson midwit tories simp so hard for grifters that he doesn't even have to try to obfuscate his venality and incompetence.
Yes and most of those 41% of Tory voters want Boris to stay as PM as the header shows.
It does not matter if the 33% of Labour voters or 8% of LDs and 7% of Greens prefer Rishi as barely any of them will vote Tory anyway even if Rishi becomes leader
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
I'd answer "yes" to the 'trust' question though I don't think my partner would want to have a meal with Boris tbh ! A badly put up shelf OTOH - now that's going to be in your house forever.
Nearly all the anti-Boris headers seem to end up with a poll showing the Tory lead stretching. Kinda funny really...
Imagine how far clear they’d be if Rishi was in charge!!!
Boris will be gone when the party feels he cannot win. It's really that simple. All this nonsense about Boris 'fanbois' simply misunderstands party supporters and what motivates them. I can only suppose it makes them all fell better on twitter.
Sometimes, I think humanity is doomed due to the low Darwinian pressures nowadays On the other hand, mitigating this should be as simple as geting Netflix, Amazon et al to heavily promote Contagion* to anyone who has ever watched I Am Legend.
*To be fair, if the vaccine development process was anything like that portrayed in Contagian, I'd be an anti-vaxxer, but I doubt these people will realise that jabbing yourself as soon as one monkey isn't dead is not good practice.
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
Mr Sarwar? Not exactly sizsling, but he's not a MP. You'd have to go for Mr Ian Murray. Absolutely nobody else to choose from in Scotland to be SKs's heir.
Yes and most of those 41% of Tory voters want Boris to stay as PM as the header shows.
It does not matter if the 33% of Labour voters or 8% of LDs and 7% of Greens prefer Rishi as barely any of them will vote Tory anyway even if Rishi becomes leader
Of course. It’s one of the reasons why gross positives are better than net ratings - it doesn’t matter how much the other side dislike you, in fact I’d say it rallies the troops when they obsessively target the leader
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
Mr Sarwar? Not exactly sizsling, but he's not a MP. You'd have to go for Mr Ian Murray. Absolutely nobody else to choose from in Scotland to be SKs's heir.
Salmond? He's the best pm the UK never had I've been told..
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
My idea of someone who can take on Boris, and fire up support, is Jess Phillips.
About 20 minutes ago, I placed the maximum bet (£6.25!) Ladbrokes would give me on Kemi Badenoch as next Conservative leader, at 50/1. Now 25/1, although you might still be able to get 50/1 elsewhere.
Honestly no. Not going to happen. The core Tory party membership is too right-wing, too subconciously bigoted for that to happen imo.
I was a member for years, and I think you are very wrong on that.
I may be - I hope I am tbh. But I think the key word in your post is 'was'.
What you have to remember is that, even if there is subconscious bigotry (something by definition unknowable), the party has a long record of making choices which seem to go against the stereotype (plus some which were bang on it, of course!) First Jewish PM. First woman PM. Second woman PM. First Muslim holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. Second Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Muslim woman minister to speak from the House of Commons despatch box [Who was that? No Googling!]
What I think happens here is that the party particularly likes 'outsider' politicians who express or embody its values, perhaps as a rebuff to the accusation that they are bigoted. And that is why I think Kemi Badenoch is one to watch. She also seems to be very good at self-promotion.
That's a good tip Richard. May be worthy of a header?
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
Who? Not the new invisible SLab leader surely? Or do you want Gordon back? Maybe Andy Murray? Stanley Baxter? I have no clue...and neither do they.
Nearly all the anti-Boris headers seem to end up with a poll showing the Tory lead stretching. Kinda funny really...
Imagine how far clear they’d be if Rishi was in charge!!!
Boris will be gone when the party feels he cannot win. It's really that simple. All this nonsense about Boris 'fanbois' simply misunderstands party supporters and what motivates them. I can only suppose it makes them all fell better on twitter.
Con +2 Green -2 On the back of Boris’s comments about Maggie closing mines!
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
My idea of someone who can take on Boris, and fire up support, is Jess Phillips.
Or Rayner. With Starmer Labour are bringing piss to a shit fight.
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
Mr Sarwar? Not exactly sizsling, but he's not a MP. You'd have to go for Mr Ian Murray. Absolutely nobody else to choose from in Scotland to be SKs's heir.
About 20 minutes ago, I placed the maximum bet (£6.25!) Ladbrokes would give me on Kemi Badenoch as next Conservative leader, at 50/1. Now 25/1, although you might still be able to get 50/1 elsewhere.
Honestly no. Not going to happen. The core Tory party membership is too right-wing, too subconciously bigoted for that to happen imo.
I was a member for years, and I think you are very wrong on that.
I may be - I hope I am tbh. But I think the key word in your post is 'was'.
What you have to remember is that, even if there is subconscious bigotry (something by definition unknowable), the party has a long record of making choices which seem to go against the stereotype (plus some which were bang on it, of course!) First Jewish PM. First woman PM. Second woman PM. First Muslim holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. Second Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Muslim woman minister to speak from the House of Commons despatch box [Who was that? No Googling!]
What I think happens here is that the party particularly likes 'outsider' politicians who express or embody its values, perhaps as a rebuff to the accusation that they are bigoted. And that is why I think Kemi Badenoch is one to watch. She also seems to be very good at self-promotion.
PB pedantry: Mr Disraeli was Anglican at the relevant time, wasn't he?
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
My idea of someone who can take on Boris, and fire up support, is Jess Phillips.
Or Rayner. With Starmer Labour are bringing piss to a shit fight.
Yes, but I’d say the advantage of Phillips is she has the horrible spite of the Corbynites yet is more of a Blairite politically, so can appeal to both sets of Lab voters even if Corbynite membership hate her . Both benefit from being a woman, but I think Jess could become known by her first name only, which helps too.
I’m on at 50/1 anyway. Hills are still 33s, Tissue Prices b365 16/1
Something that has bugged me for sometime is the fact that Boris supposedly wrote two articles one pro one anti Brexit to decide where he stood. Logically that means he didn't have a firm definite view at that stage. Now I don't know about the rest of you, but as someone who tends to have strong views there are occasions when I am not sure on something and when I'm not sure I may form a view, but I may also be swayed, so the last thing I do is go out campaigning for my current position. Instead I listen to the arguments and play devils advocate.
I suspect May was in this position re her Remain position.
It does not come over as honest, but more opportunistic that Boris then took the position he did (Ditto I think for Gove).
Is not another interpretation that he was waiting for the result (or some crucial vote within the Party) and then publish the corresponding article? Leading from the back, so to speak.
I can't remember the context of the dual articles, so this may be quite implausible on the logic of the situation.
I can't remember all the details either, but as he was a leader of the leave campaign this must have been before that obviously.
When one writes a pro and con list for yourself it is because you don't know what to do, or you think you do but want to convince yourself. It is implausible that you are so muddled that you have no idea beforehand and after doing it you are so convinced by the argument that you want to lead the campaign.
This argument is either bollocks or your mind is just made up of a spaghetti of thoughts (which with Boris is always possible).
Sorry but that's not reasonable.
Many people I know write pro and con lists and once they've settled on a position go hell to leather for it. I don't think the fact that he thought through both sides of the argument first is a reason for criticism - and I wouldn't if he'd landed on the other side either.
As it happens I was in a similar position. I started off on the Remain side and I was torn in the referendum. I literally ended up writing a pro and con list myself too for the three options I foresaw (hard leave, EEA and Remain - this is before EEA was ruled out by Boris and Gove during the campaign) and doing so helped switch me from Remain to Leave.
Does the fact I considered both sides of the debate somehow devalue my opinion in your eyes? Does it devalue my vote?
People who rush headlong without considering both sides because they've predetermined their decision and can't be swayed no matter the argument are not worthy of more respect.
There is a big difference between you and Boris. What you did was completely rational. You considered both sides and went out to vote accordingly.
There is a big difference between that and becoming a leader of the campaign. I know of nobody who is undecided about a political issue who on making a decision which way to jump then goes hell for leather on campaigning for it. Nobody does. They do it reluctantly as the best option in their opinion.
If you are talking about a decision where on making that decision there is a fork in the road at that point then of course you go hell for leather for it eg changing jobs, buying a house etc. You maybe in doubt but once decided you work hard to make it work, BUT that wasn't that type of decision. The decision was whether to argue for it, not whether to do it. That is very different.
A normal person would do the pros and cons and vote accordingly.
I don't agree, he's a leading politician so leading in politics is literally his day job.
The same is the case for many people's jobs. I don't know what sector you work in but personally in my day job I've had to weigh up pros and cons as to whether to do a project or not - and then once deciding to proceed with the project you then go hell for leather to make sure the project is a success.
If people only led projects they hadn't weighed up the pros and cons for first, then that would not be an improvement to almost any walk of life.
You are mixing up two different things. There is a big difference between making the decision and then the implementation. Once decided you go hell for leather, but frankly anyone who argues forcefully for something they actually are not sure of is being dishonest.
So if I was in a meeting where I wasn't sure on the decision to be made I would listen and question and then make up my mind. I wouldn't argue for something I wasn't sure about. That is what Boris claims to have done.
Once decided I would back whatever decision was made with a commitment to carry it out.
Yes and most of those 41% of Tory voters want Boris to stay as PM as the header shows.
It does not matter if the 33% of Labour voters or 8% of LDs and 7% of Greens prefer Rishi as barely any of them will vote Tory anyway even if Rishi becomes leader
Of course. It’s one of the reasons why gross positives are better than net ratings - it doesn’t matter how much the other side dislike you, in fact I’d say it rallies the troops when they obsessively target the leader
Another reason why the twitterati keep getting it wrong.
About 20 minutes ago, I placed the maximum bet (£6.25!) Ladbrokes would give me on Kemi Badenoch as next Conservative leader, at 50/1. Now 25/1, although you might still be able to get 50/1 elsewhere.
Honestly no. Not going to happen. The core Tory party membership is too right-wing, too subconciously bigoted for that to happen imo.
I was a member for years, and I think you are very wrong on that.
I may be - I hope I am tbh. But I think the key word in your post is 'was'.
What you have to remember is that, even if there is subconscious bigotry (something by definition unknowable), the party has a long record of making choices which seem to go against the stereotype (plus some which were bang on it, of course!) First Jewish PM. First woman PM. Second woman PM. First Muslim holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. Second Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Muslim woman minister to speak from the House of Commons despatch box [Who was that? No Googling!]
What I think happens here is that the party particularly likes 'outsider' politicians who express or embody its values, perhaps as a rebuff to the accusation that they are bigoted. And that is why I think Kemi Badenoch is one to watch. She also seems to be very good at self-promotion.
PB pedantry: Mr Disraeli was Anglican at the relevant time, wasn't he?
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
My idea of someone who can take on Boris, and fire up support, is Jess Phillips.
Or Rayner. With Starmer Labour are bringing piss to a shit fight.
About 20 minutes ago, I placed the maximum bet (£6.25!) Ladbrokes would give me on Kemi Badenoch as next Conservative leader, at 50/1. Now 25/1, although you might still be able to get 50/1 elsewhere.
Honestly no. Not going to happen. The core Tory party membership is too right-wing, too subconciously bigoted for that to happen imo.
I was a member for years, and I think you are very wrong on that.
I may be - I hope I am tbh. But I think the key word in your post is 'was'.
What you have to remember is that, even if there is subconscious bigotry (something by definition unknowable), the party has a long record of making choices which seem to go against the stereotype (plus some which were bang on it, of course!) First Jewish PM. First woman PM. Second woman PM. First Muslim holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. Second Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Muslim woman minister to speak from the House of Commons despatch box [Who was that? No Googling!]
What I think happens here is that the party particularly likes 'outsider' politicians who express or embody its values, perhaps as a rebuff to the accusation that they are bigoted. And that is why I think Kemi Badenoch is one to watch. She also seems to be very good at self-promotion.
PB pedantry: Mr Disraeli was Anglican at the relevant time, wasn't he?
Yes I think he was.
He was certainly of Jewish extraction but RN isn't using that sense of 'outsider' in his examples.
Something that has bugged me for sometime is the fact that Boris supposedly wrote two articles one pro one anti Brexit to decide where he stood. Logically that means he didn't have a firm definite view at that stage. Now I don't know about the rest of you, but as someone who tends to have strong views there are occasions when I am not sure on something and when I'm not sure I may form a view, but I may also be swayed, so the last thing I do is go out campaigning for my current position. Instead I listen to the arguments and play devils advocate.
I suspect May was in this position re her Remain position.
It does not come over as honest, but more opportunistic that Boris then took the position he did (Ditto I think for Gove).
Is not another interpretation that he was waiting for the result (or some crucial vote within the Party) and then publish the corresponding article? Leading from the back, so to speak.
I can't remember the context of the dual articles, so this may be quite implausible on the logic of the situation.
I can't remember all the details either, but as he was a leader of the leave campaign this must have been before that obviously.
When one writes a pro and con list for yourself it is because you don't know what to do, or you think you do but want to convince yourself. It is implausible that you are so muddled that you have no idea beforehand and after doing it you are so convinced by the argument that you want to lead the campaign.
This argument is either bollocks or your mind is just made up of a spaghetti of thoughts (which with Boris is always possible).
Sorry but that's not reasonable.
Many people I know write pro and con lists and once they've settled on a position go hell to leather for it. I don't think the fact that he thought through both sides of the argument first is a reason for criticism - and I wouldn't if he'd landed on the other side either.
As it happens I was in a similar position. I started off on the Remain side and I was torn in the referendum. I literally ended up writing a pro and con list myself too for the three options I foresaw (hard leave, EEA and Remain - this is before EEA was ruled out by Boris and Gove during the campaign) and doing so helped switch me from Remain to Leave.
Does the fact I considered both sides of the debate somehow devalue my opinion in your eyes? Does it devalue my vote?
People who rush headlong without considering both sides because they've predetermined their decision and can't be swayed no matter the argument are not worthy of more respect.
There is a big difference between you and Boris. What you did was completely rational. You considered both sides and went out to vote accordingly.
There is a big difference between that and becoming a leader of the campaign. I know of nobody who is undecided about a political issue who on making a decision which way to jump then goes hell for leather on campaigning for it. Nobody does. They do it reluctantly as the best option in their opinion.
If you are talking about a decision where on making that decision there is a fork in the road at that point then of course you go hell for leather for it eg changing jobs, buying a house etc. You maybe in doubt but once decided you work hard to make it work, BUT that wasn't that type of decision. The decision was whether to argue for it, not whether to do it. That is very different.
A normal person would do the pros and cons and vote accordingly.
I don't agree, he's a leading politician so leading in politics is literally his day job.
The same is the case for many people's jobs. I don't know what sector you work in but personally in my day job I've had to weigh up pros and cons as to whether to do a project or not - and then once deciding to proceed with the project you then go hell for leather to make sure the project is a success.
If people only led projects they hadn't weighed up the pros and cons for first, then that would not be an improvement to almost any walk of life.
You are mixing up two different things. There is a big difference between making the decision and then the implementation. Once decided you go hell for leather, but frankly anyone who argues forcefully for something they actually are not sure of is being dishonest.
So if I was in a meeting where I wasn't sure on the decision to be made I would listen and question and then make up my mind. I wouldn't argue for something I wasn't sure about. That is what Boris claims to have done.
Once decided I would back whatever decision was made with a commitment to carry it out.
I completely disagree. Anyone who argues forcefully having weighed up the pros and cons, and decides pros outweigh cons, is intellectually honest.
Anyone who argues forcefully having NOT bothered to weigh up the pros and cons first is intellectually naive at best.
You're conflating weighing up the pros and cons with being uncertain after you've done so.
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
My idea of someone who can take on Boris, and fire up support, is Jess Phillips.
Or Rayner. With Starmer Labour are bringing piss to a shit fight.
Yes, but I’d say the advantage of Phillips is she has the horrible spite of the Corbynites yet is more of a Blairite politically, so can appeal to both sets of Lab voters even if Corbynite membership hate her . Both benefit from being a woman, but I think Jess could become known by her first name only, which helps too.
I’m on at 50/1 anyway
I'm not an obsessive watcher of the Labour infighting but I'd got the impression that the cordial loathing by the Corbynites of centrist mum Jess was as strong as for all their other hate figures, eg Tom Watson? They don't seem a bunch that are naturally up for any strategic nose holding.
'Simmer' is lesson 2. Especially as it is so easily confused with a biscuit. "What do I do now - put the butter biscuit in the ****ing soup? Aye right."
'Simmer' is lesson 2. Especially as it is so easily confused with a biscuit. "What do I do now - put the butter biscuit in the ****ing soup? Aye right."
It's getting too complicated already...
I consider myself a decent cook and have indeed been paid to do so, but I have no idea how simmer is confused with a bisuit? Is this a regional thing?
Madison Cawthorn @CawthornforNC 1984 is a great fiction novel to read but it seems like it is becoming the reality we are currently living under more and more each day. 1:32 am · 11 Aug 2021·Twitter for iPhone
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
My idea of someone who can take on Boris, and fire up support, is Jess Phillips.
Or Rayner. With Starmer Labour are bringing piss to a shit fight.
Yes, but I’d say the advantage of Phillips is she has the horrible spite of the Corbynites yet is more of a Blairite politically, so can appeal to both sets of Lab voters even if Corbynite membership hate her . Both benefit from being a woman, but I think Jess could become known by her first name only, which helps too.
I’m on at 50/1 anyway
I'm not an obsessive watcher of the Labour infighting but I'd got the impression that the cordial loathing by the Corbynites of centrist mum Jess was as strong as for all their other hate figures, eg Tom Watson? They don't seem a bunch that are naturally up for any strategic nose holding.
I’d say that’s right about the membership, definitely for the one I know, he hates her. But I think/what I meant she could pass as a corbynite to the less politically engaged as she is strident and fiery, compared to Sir Keir’s bland corporate look & manner
Clearly we need remedial cookery courses for ex-MPs.
Cyclefree kindly advised me on cooking pasta, and another friend has explained how to make an omelette. So sometimes I go wild with those.
I am trying to figure out whether this illustrates your wild and irrevocable out of touchness with the majority of the electorate or your complete empathetic understanding of them.
'Simmer' is lesson 2. Especially as it is so easily confused with a biscuit. "What do I do now - put the butter biscuit in the ****ing soup? Aye right."
It's getting too complicated already...
I consider myself a decent cook and have indeed been paid to do so, but I have no idea how simmer is confused with a bisuit? Is this a regional thing?
'Simmer' is lesson 2. Especially as it is so easily confused with a biscuit. "What do I do now - put the butter biscuit in the ****ing soup? Aye right."
It's getting too complicated already...
I consider myself a decent cook and have indeed been paid to do so, but I have no idea how simmer is confused with a bisuit? Is this a regional thing?
National thing. A make of Abernethy-type biscuit produced by Simmers in Edinburgh.
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
Sir Keir is going nowhere fast. Contrary to the received wisdom, the dull-but-capable look is having zero impact in these tumultuous times. Labour need to gamble and get a leader with - as Obama would say - some 'sizzle'. But who? What about that chap up in Scotland? Is he available?
Mr Sarwar? Not exactly sizsling, but he's not a MP. You'd have to go for Mr Ian Murray. Absolutely nobody else to choose from in Scotland to be SKs's heir.
David Cameron has denied lobbying the government on behalf of Illumina, a genetics company he worked for.
The denial comes after it emerged Mr Cameron encouraged Health Secretary Matt Hancock to speak at a conference co-hosted by the firm shortly before it won a £123m government contract. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-58146567
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
I tried them for a while when I lived in London. It was quick and easy and everything came in the right quantities, and it encouraged me to try making things that I would never have thought of doing, I still have the recipe cards and use them now and again. In the end I got fed up with all the dishes being fried - because they are aimed at the time-poor.
Also the instructions were very good, accompanied by pictures. None of the references to obscure cooking terminology or instructions like “cook until it is ready” that you find elsewhere.
About 20 minutes ago, I placed the maximum bet (£6.25!) Ladbrokes would give me on Kemi Badenoch as next Conservative leader, at 50/1. Now 25/1, although you might still be able to get 50/1 elsewhere.
Honestly no. Not going to happen. The core Tory party membership is too right-wing, too subconciously bigoted for that to happen imo.
I was a member for years, and I think you are very wrong on that.
I may be - I hope I am tbh. But I think the key word in your post is 'was'.
What you have to remember is that, even if there is subconscious bigotry (something by definition unknowable), the party has a long record of making choices which seem to go against the stereotype (plus some which were bang on it, of course!) First Jewish PM. First woman PM. Second woman PM. First Muslim holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. Second Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Muslim woman minister to speak from the House of Commons despatch box [Who was that? No Googling!]
What I think happens here is that the party particularly likes 'outsider' politicians who express or embody its values, perhaps as a rebuff to the accusation that they are bigoted. And that is why I think Kemi Badenoch is one to watch. She also seems to be very good at self-promotion.
PB pedantry: Mr Disraeli was Anglican at the relevant time, wasn't he?
Yes I think he was.
Yes - even so, it was seen as quite a moment for the Jewish community in the UK. The Times They Are A-Changin etc...
About 20 minutes ago, I placed the maximum bet (£6.25!) Ladbrokes would give me on Kemi Badenoch as next Conservative leader, at 50/1. Now 25/1, although you might still be able to get 50/1 elsewhere.
Honestly no. Not going to happen. The core Tory party membership is too right-wing, too subconciously bigoted for that to happen imo.
I was a member for years, and I think you are very wrong on that.
I may be - I hope I am tbh. But I think the key word in your post is 'was'.
What you have to remember is that, even if there is subconscious bigotry (something by definition unknowable), the party has a long record of making choices which seem to go against the stereotype (plus some which were bang on it, of course!) First Jewish PM. First woman PM. Second woman PM. First Muslim holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. Second Hindu holder of one of the three great offices of state. First Muslim woman minister to speak from the House of Commons despatch box [Who was that? No Googling!]
What I think happens here is that the party particularly likes 'outsider' politicians who express or embody its values, perhaps as a rebuff to the accusation that they are bigoted. And that is why I think Kemi Badenoch is one to watch. She also seems to be very good at self-promotion.
PB pedantry: Mr Disraeli was Anglican at the relevant time, wasn't he?
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
But (fractionally) fewer trust him to look after a pooch than a partner.
My instant and unthought reaction to Mr Johnson's becoming PM candidate was, as I recall, "I wouldn't trust him to look after my tortoise!". Which is very odd as the aforesaid chelonian has been dead for years .
Very wise not even to trust him with a dead tortoise. Basically, avoid giving him any job that requires honesty or where he can’t palm it off on someone else who actually knows what they are doing.
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
But (fractionally) fewer trust him to look after a pooch than a partner.
My instant and unthought reaction to Mr Johnson's becoming PM candidate was, as I recall, "I wouldn't trust him to look after my tortoise!". Which is very odd as the aforesaid chelonian has been dead for years .
Very wise not even to trust him with a dead tortoise. Basically, avoid giving him any job that requires honesty or where he can’t palm it off on someone else who actually knows what they are doing.
Not sure the final dependent clause actually is needed.
I look forwards to Rishi, Sajid or Kwasi being the next PM just so that Labour embarrass themselves by calling them race traitors (phrased differently, of course). There is a special kind of hatred from Labour reserved for Black and Asian people who have the temerity to not vote Labour. I expect them to make complete fools of themselves when the Tory party makes one of those three the PM.
Something that has bugged me for sometime is the fact that Boris supposedly wrote two articles one pro one anti Brexit to decide where he stood. Logically that means he didn't have a firm definite view at that stage. Now I don't know about the rest of you, but as someone who tends to have strong views there are occasions when I am not sure on something and when I'm not sure I may form a view, but I may also be swayed, so the last thing I do is go out campaigning for my current position. Instead I listen to the arguments and play devils advocate.
I suspect May was in this position re her Remain position.
It does not come over as honest, but more opportunistic that Boris then took the position he did (Ditto I think for Gove).
Is not another interpretation that he was waiting for the result (or some crucial vote within the Party) and then publish the corresponding article? Leading from the back, so to speak.
I can't remember the context of the dual articles, so this may be quite implausible on the logic of the situation.
I can't remember all the details either, but as he was a leader of the leave campaign this must have been before that obviously.
When one writes a pro and con list for yourself it is because you don't know what to do, or you think you do but want to convince yourself. It is implausible that you are so muddled that you have no idea beforehand and after doing it you are so convinced by the argument that you want to lead the campaign.
This argument is either bollocks or your mind is just made up of a spaghetti of thoughts (which with Boris is always possible).
Sorry but that's not reasonable.
Many people I know write pro and con lists and once they've settled on a position go hell to leather for it. I don't think the fact that he thought through both sides of the argument first is a reason for criticism - and I wouldn't if he'd landed on the other side either.
As it happens I was in a similar position. I started off on the Remain side and I was torn in the referendum. I literally ended up writing a pro and con list myself too for the three options I foresaw (hard leave, EEA and Remain - this is before EEA was ruled out by Boris and Gove during the campaign) and doing so helped switch me from Remain to Leave.
Does the fact I considered both sides of the debate somehow devalue my opinion in your eyes? Does it devalue my vote?
People who rush headlong without considering both sides because they've predetermined their decision and can't be swayed no matter the argument are not worthy of more respect.
There is a big difference between you and Boris. What you did was completely rational. You considered both sides and went out to vote accordingly.
There is a big difference between that and becoming a leader of the campaign. I know of nobody who is undecided about a political issue who on making a decision which way to jump then goes hell for leather on campaigning for it. Nobody does. They do it reluctantly as the best option in their opinion.
If you are talking about a decision where on making that decision there is a fork in the road at that point then of course you go hell for leather for it eg changing jobs, buying a house etc. You maybe in doubt but once decided you work hard to make it work, BUT that wasn't that type of decision. The decision was whether to argue for it, not whether to do it. That is very different.
A normal person would do the pros and cons and vote accordingly.
I don't agree, he's a leading politician so leading in politics is literally his day job.
The same is the case for many people's jobs. I don't know what sector you work in but personally in my day job I've had to weigh up pros and cons as to whether to do a project or not - and then once deciding to proceed with the project you then go hell for leather to make sure the project is a success.
If people only led projects they hadn't weighed up the pros and cons for first, then that would not be an improvement to almost any walk of life.
You are mixing up two different things. There is a big difference between making the decision and then the implementation. Once decided you go hell for leather, but frankly anyone who argues forcefully for something they actually are not sure of is being dishonest.
So if I was in a meeting where I wasn't sure on the decision to be made I would listen and question and then make up my mind. I wouldn't argue for something I wasn't sure about. That is what Boris claims to have done.
Once decided I would back whatever decision was made with a commitment to carry it out.
I completely disagree. Anyone who argues forcefully having weighed up the pros and cons, and decides pros outweigh cons, is intellectually honest.
Anyone who argues forcefully having NOT bothered to weigh up the pros and cons first is intellectually naive at best.
You're conflating weighing up the pros and cons with being uncertain after you've done so.
The issue isn’t so much weighing up the pros and cons as with having no principles or beliefs with the sole decision criterion being career self interest.
I look forwards to Rishi, Sajid or Kwasi being the next PM just so that Labour embarrass themselves by calling them race traitors (phrased differently, of course). There is a special kind of hatred from Labour reserved for Black and Asian people who have the temerity to not vote Labour. I expect them to make complete fools of themselves when the Tory party makes one of those three the PM.
Tell me about it.
It's bizarre the extreme right and the left seem obsessed about skin colour.
I remember being told that I didn't count as an ethnic minority because I was private educated, had a decent job, and voted Tory, apparently you have to vote Labour or struggled to be an ethnic minority.
Remember Corbyn said only Labour could unlock yours and my potential?
Anyhoo like Richard Nabavi I've got tasty odds on Kemi Badenoch from a while back, she's good on the comms front.
Be pretty funny if the Tory party elected a black leader whose surname was BAD ENOCH.
Yes and most of those 41% of Tory voters want Boris to stay as PM as the header shows.
It does not matter if the 33% of Labour voters or 8% of LDs and 7% of Greens prefer Rishi as barely any of them will vote Tory anyway even if Rishi becomes leader
Of course. It’s one of the reasons why gross positives are better than net ratings - it doesn’t matter how much the other side dislike you, in fact I’d say it rallies the troops when they obsessively target the leader
Another reason why the twitterati keep getting it wrong.
No, you're missing the point. It's actually really clever.
Hello Fresh and those other kits, I never really got the point of them.
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
I tried them for a while when I lived in London. It was quick and easy and everything came in the right quantities, and it encouraged me to try making things that I would never have thought of doing, I still have the recipe cards and use them now and again. In the end I got fed up with all the dishes being fried - because they are aimed at the time-poor.
Also the instructions were very good, accompanied by pictures. None of the references to obscure cooking terminology or instructions like “cook until it is ready” that you find elsewhere.
Yeah, I got a bit sick of fried food as well I think we did Gousto for a bit and packed up after a couple of months because the range was too limited. It did give us good ideas as you say. Some of the recipes are now weekly staples for us. Not sure if it was them or another one but they had a Thai chicken stir fry with Thai basil which we've adapted a bit and now do if we have guests over with satay chicken, prawn dumplings and a vegetable green curry.
Comments
There are a million different resources for free recipes and you are paying a massive premium for somebody to send you a box with some ingredients + a recipe card.
Hiding actual numbers of deaths over time is somewhat more difficult. Russia’s official statistics show excess fatalities in the past 18 months, well above any number officially attributed to the novel coronavirus.
And the price of those boxes is really really high, you have to be chucking away a lot of food waste.
We didn't have a great deal of free time, and had got ourselves caught up in the same quick 'n dirty throw-things-in-a-pan meals. We did it for a few months; enough time to pick up some good, quick recipes, and to readjust our meals. We still occasionally use some of the recipes, if slightly modified.
Though since the little 'un, we've mostly gone back into our old ways ...
BBC Good Food is excellent.
Or get *this* cookbook:
https://www.be-ro.co.uk/#
Or you can get them on Alexa.
"Alexa, tell me easy recipes for ...."
It all seems quite pricey to have basic ingredients and a recipe delivered.
But I guess it depends whether you are stuck in the house, live somewhere in a food desert etc. O do always wonder about the emissions of all these tiny 'organic' / 'vegan' / whatever parcels being wrapped up and delivered 300 miles to move 500g of something.
I'm getting on a bit further with the garden this year - looks like oodles of tomatoes this year, as opposed to about 10 last year.
I was recently making a dish where the main flavour component was miso paste. I was half way through making the dish when I discovered I didn't have any miso paste! I had to execute a hard pivot.
Getting a recipe box means that doesn't happen. Yes they are expensive but they are very convenient if you enjoy cooking.
Incidentally happy to share my Gousto refferal code!
The EU have tried to force countries / continents to accept EU restrictions, significantly due to pressure from NGOs and others with an 'in' via the Europarl, and it has stopped the process. eg Mercosaur, TTIP.
The "slow takeaway" movement.
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/biz/2021/08/367_313745.html
This bit was of particular note:
...The government and the DPK plan to establish harsh penalties for violation of contractual non-compete clauses, which are a type of clause that restricts an individual's ability to work in a particular industry for a period of time after ending one engagement. It is to protect employers from departing employees who may unfairly use what they have learned at their previous job to compete against their former employers.
This is to establish a legal basis for penalizing employees in the semiconductor and battery industries, most of whom have thus far been able to nullify such contracts following court decisions that found for them on constitutional grounds that guarantee freedom of employment...
There is a lot of waste in the packaging, but little food waste, and handy to have everything together. It is a good way to freshen up a cooking rut, but we tired of it after 6 months or so.
The charts on the page below are quite telling, some countries are seeing excess deaths running at 10 times or more than deaths attributed to covid. So Russia is not unusual, or even the worst at recording deaths accurately.
https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/coronavirus-excess-deaths-tracker
Best thing about this poll is that 21% of Tory voters would trust Boris to have dinner with their (female) partner but just 7% trust him to fix a shelf. People really do care a lot about DIY in Britain.
Thank you for the offer and the kind thought, but alas, I am teaching then and I don’t see how I could count it as CPD to get cover.
Which is a shame as I would like to ask (a) how she fucked up exams so imposingly (b) why she was appointed Head of OFSTED despite having no relevant qualifications or experience without the role even being advertised and (c) why she continues to hold the role despite being a clear safeguarding risk.
I’d probably be kicked out after question 1, of course.
My instant and unthought reaction to Mr Johnson's becoming PM candidate was, as I recall, "I wouldn't trust him to look after my tortoise!". Which is very odd as the aforesaid chelonian has been dead for years .
Owen Jones 🌹
@OwenJones84
·
1h
is Roger OK? Someone should check in with Roger.
…
It does not matter if the 33% of Labour voters or 8% of LDs and 7% of Greens prefer Rishi as barely any of them will vote Tory anyway even if Rishi becomes leader
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-58164833
Sometimes, I think humanity is doomed due to the low Darwinian pressures nowadays
*To be fair, if the vaccine development process was anything like that portrayed in Contagian, I'd be an anti-vaxxer, but I doubt these people will realise that jabbing yourself as soon as one monkey isn't dead is not good practice.
https://twitter.com/isosteph/status/1425147421751869440?s=20
Green -2
On the back of Boris’s comments about Maggie closing mines!
I’m on at 50/1 anyway. Hills are still 33s, Tissue Prices b365 16/1
So if I was in a meeting where I wasn't sure on the decision to be made I would listen and question and then make up my mind. I wouldn't argue for something I wasn't sure about. That is what Boris claims to have done.
Once decided I would back whatever decision was made with a commitment to carry it out.
Anyone who argues forcefully having NOT bothered to weigh up the pros and cons first is intellectually naive at best.
You're conflating weighing up the pros and cons with being uncertain after you've done so.
@dcexaminer
“They are now banning all my speech, including speech that is given on the Senate floor," said
@RandPaul.
"YouTube now thinks they are smart enough and godly enough that they can oversee speech, even constitutionally protected speech.""
https://twitter.com/dcexaminer/status/1425216970199339013
Madison Cawthorn
@CawthornforNC
1984 is a great fiction novel to read but it seems like it is becoming the reality we are currently living under more and more each day.
1:32 am · 11 Aug 2021·Twitter for iPhone
Love to see it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abernethy_biscuit
Second jab done. Pleased to finally get that out of the way. Efficient process.
The denial comes after it emerged Mr Cameron encouraged Health Secretary Matt Hancock to speak at a conference co-hosted by the firm shortly before it won a £123m government contract.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-58146567
Also the instructions were very good, accompanied by pictures. None of the references to obscure cooking terminology or instructions like “cook until it is ready” that you find elsewhere.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Disraeli
Is the Labour Party simply not very good nowadays?
It's bizarre the extreme right and the left seem obsessed about skin colour.
I remember being told that I didn't count as an ethnic minority because I was private educated, had a decent job, and voted Tory, apparently you have to vote Labour or struggled to be an ethnic minority.
Remember Corbyn said only Labour could unlock yours and my potential?
Anyhoo like Richard Nabavi I've got tasty odds on Kemi Badenoch from a while back, she's good on the comms front.
Be pretty funny if the Tory party elected a black leader whose surname was BAD ENOCH.
Talk about the whip hand...