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MIND THE GAP: HOW LONG WILL BORIS JOHNSON SERVE AS PRIME MINISTER? – politicalbetting.com

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  • kle4kle4 Posts: 91,392
    That gap you talk about in the header has previously struck me, I'm glad I'm not the only weirdo to do so.
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    I was there last month. They didn't even send a photographer for the article, cos it's all scaffolding and safety fences ATM.

    The tragedy is that it's an historical gem. The interiors are completely period and staggeringly horrible, but given its location it will never pay its way as NTS.
  • squareroot2squareroot2 Posts: 6,287
    kjh said:

    The thought of poor Carrie having to copulate with that repulsive blob induces my gag reflex. I’m away out for a refreshing walk with the hound to regain faith in humankind and peruse the beauty of mother nature.

    A very fine example of Boris Derangement Syndrome.

    And why this place is currently not worth visiting. I'll be back once Boris departs. Be about 8 years, I reckon.....
    OGH is STILL smarting since the Lib Dems were reduced to a rump party with an insignificant leader or two. The deranged comments are something else and are akin to some of the shite that I hear is spouted on twitter. The more they spout, the more its hurting them. GOOD.
    I don't think you can hold OGH responsible for the comments you don't like here unless you think they are all from him?
    I don't hold him .responsible for the comments and I never said that I did! That is your misinterpretation
  • malcolmgmalcolmg Posts: 41,673
    IanB2 said:

    pigeon said:

    Not least, the equity markets are long overdue a major correction.

    I see no particular reason why asset prices should nosedive so long as interest rates remain close to zero. If leaving money in the bank means that its value gradually gets inflated away, people who have wealth are always going to want to invest it elsewhere.

    I also see no particular reason why interest rates should rise significantly. Many or most governments, businesses and individuals are more heavily indebted than ever because of the pandemic. What incentive is there for central banks to strangle their economies by cranking up the cost of servicing those debts?
    Central banks will leave it too late, and when the inflationary spiral kicks off next year interest rates will have to rise.
    Debatable yet whether it is transitory, a possibility but unlikely. If they allow interest rates to go up much there will be mayhem with people bankrupted. Hard to see how they can allow interest rates to go up by much if the ywant to stay in power.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 91,392
    ydoethur said:

    tlg86 said:

    ydoethur said:

    Surprised you included the Wellington caretaker ministry of 1834 but not the Earl of Bath’s ministry in 1748.

    After all, Bath did actually accept office, unlike Wellington who specifically refused it.

    Take it up with Wikipedia!

    One thing I did do differently was to count the first and last days as half days.
    One of the reasons I double-check Wikipedia is because it is so frequently wrong. For example, at the moment it is still claiming Richard III was the rightful king and that there is an ongoing debate about whether he murdered his nephews. Good luck to anyone who tries to change that to reflect the facts.
    'Rightful is a word fraught with difficulty anyway.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,709
    edited August 2021
    Certainly making 2026 and overtaking Major, Cameron and Attlee etc would be a minimum I would have thought for Boris.

    However if he wants to enter the Premier League of PMs and join the likes of Thatcher and Blair, Pitt, Gladstone and Salisbury he needs to do at least 10 years or close to that such as the nearly 9 years Asquith did.

    That means he would stay PM and lead the Tories not only into the next general election but if he won into almost all of the subsequent Parliament too, stepping down in 2029 or shortly before
  • OldKingColeOldKingCole Posts: 31,715
    edited August 2021

    theProle said:

    The thought of poor Carrie having to copulate with that repulsive blob induces my gag reflex. I’m away out for a refreshing walk with the hound to regain faith in humankind and peruse the beauty of mother nature.

    Poor Carrie?
    Unlike Marina, who appeared to be a fairly decent type who foolishly married Boris, Carrie deserves everything she gets. She's a foul and horrible woman, who appears to have married Boris for one reason only - so she can be the power behind the throne.
    Wasn't Marina simply the Carrie of her day? Boris was still married to Allegra when courting Marina. In both cases, the marriages were already breaking down. I've no idea if Carrie is "foul and horrible" but surely Boris has some agency.
    Reminds me of a guy I knew 25 years ago. Had two kids with the first wife, moved on to an affair then two kids with the next. Unbelievably a third wife came along and got to two kids... I would be nervous at that point...
    One comes across people like every so often. It's the children for whom I feel sorry. Could easily screw them up mentally.
  • OldKingColeOldKingCole Posts: 31,715
    HYUFD said:

    Certainly making 2026 and overtaking Major, Cameron and Attlee etc would be a minimum I would have thought for Boris.

    However if he wants to enter the Premier League of PMs and join the likes of Thatcher and Blair, Pitt, Gladstone and Salisbury he needs to do at least 10 years.

    That means he would stay PM and lead the Tories not only into the next general election but if he won into almost all of the subsequent Parliament too, stepping down in 2029

    You do paint some unpleasant pictures.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 91,392

    CD13 said:

    Highly amused by Corbyn P's antics across at Guido. Not sure that humiliating him was necessary, though. He clearly has mental health issues and making him a figure of fun isn't needed. Even if the scam was done well.

    What actually happened? The sad fact is that it is easy to con people, but did anything happen here or did they pull out too early? Did any money change hands? Did behaviour change as a result? If it is "no" to both questions then all they've done is made a fool of a crank most people considered a fool anyway.
    He's also spread some truly nasty and even dangerous things taking advantage of other people for god knows what reason. Humiliation would appear entirely reasonable in that circumstance.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146

    CD13 said:

    Mr Mark,

    Boris Derangement Syndrome? Very good.

    I find him annoying, but it seems to work politically or him. That's what works up his enemies most.

    Should Boris Derangement Syndrome be used for those who dislike him for what he stands for and end up calling him names, or for those who have spent their life backing good governance, fiscal conservativism, pro business, pro rule of law values yet now back a nationalist, authoritarian, anti-business and corrupt government because it is led by "Boris" and a blue rosette wins.
    The latter.

    The modern iteration of the Tory party:

    - English Nationalist, not One Nation
    - Revolutionary, not Conservative
    - High tax/high debt, not Friedman
    - State control, not free market
    - Social engineering, not conservatism
    - Nasty, not paternal
    - Reactive, not confident
    - Populist, not principled
    - Clown, not competence
    - Degenerate, not moral
    - Cash for pals, not good governance
    - Fiscal spaffing, not fiscal moderation
    - Fuck business, not pro business
    - Proroguing parliament, not the rule of law
    - Lying to the monarch, not respecting institutions
    - Authoritarian, not liberal
    - Corruption, not ethics

    The only constant is the blue rosettes.
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 14,772
    The chart in the thread header really is fascinating. It seems incredibly unlikely that we would have such an apparently clear delineation into three groups by chance. So the obvious question raised is which group we think Johnson is in?

    I've made my prediction here before that I think he will win a 2023 GE with an increased majority - so that would put him comfortably clear of the also-rans group. Will he then still be there for a GE in 2027?

    I think that's the most likely scenario. Money troubles are more likely to be a temptation for corruption than for walking away. He's spent decades aiming for this apex of his political career so I don't see a voluntary departure.

    I also think that whatever it is that gives him such an electorally strong relationship with the voters is likely to last longer than most people think, though of course failure is always ultimately inevitable.

    So I expect Johnson to beat Asquith's 8.7 years and make it into the top tier - in longevity terms - of our PMs.
  • theProle said:

    The thought of poor Carrie having to copulate with that repulsive blob induces my gag reflex. I’m away out for a refreshing walk with the hound to regain faith in humankind and peruse the beauty of mother nature.

    Poor Carrie?
    Unlike Marina, who appeared to be a fairly decent type who foolishly married Boris, Carrie deserves everything she gets. She's a foul and horrible woman, who appears to have married Boris for one reason only - so she can be the power behind the throne.
    Wasn't Marina simply the Carrie of her day? Boris was still married to Allegra when courting Marina. In both cases, the marriages were already breaking down. I've no idea if Carrie is "foul and horrible" but surely Boris has some agency.
    Reminds me of a guy I knew 25 years ago. Had two kids with the first wife, moved on to an affair then two kids with the next. Unbelievably a third wife came along and got to two kids... I would be nervous at that point...
    One comes across people like every so often. It's the children for whom I feel sorry.Could easily screw them up mentally.
    Mixed and single parent families are common these days. Yes, it's not always easy but most families muddle through. Boris's own parents split up, and in any case he was at boarding school (and thus away from his family) through his formative years.
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614

    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    They are perhaps the only group of consumers with sufficiently large wallets and sufficiently poor taste.
    Who on Earth would want a massive building, on an island in the middle of nowhere?

    The only way to make money on it, would be a very high-end retreat hotel, but could they attract enough customers, if they need to take a helicopter from Inverness or a boat from Skye?
  • Morris_DancerMorris_Dancer Posts: 60,933
    Mr. Sandpit, someone with a large number of genetically engineered superfish?
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138
    edited August 2021

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    I've been there and had a good look aroiund and can only concur. I'd add

    7. It's in a temperate rain forest - very often pishing it down with midges and clegs (about 66inches a year, though I assume that's down on the low ground near the castle at Kinloch - will be higher oin the high ground). I remember staying there many uyears ago with the bathroom window open on a calm misty evening: not a mistake I made again. (The trees were previously eradicated: are being replaced.)
    8. Direct ferry to Mallaig.
    9. No mention of a transfer/buyout by the community.

    PS> Still a great island to explore.
  • QuincelQuincel Posts: 3,949

    CD13 said:

    Highly amused by Corbyn P's antics across at Guido. Not sure that humiliating him was necessary, though. He clearly has mental health issues and making him a figure of fun isn't needed. Even if the scam was done well.

    What actually happened? The sad fact is that it is easy to con people, but did anything happen here or did they pull out too early? Did any money change hands? Did behaviour change as a result? If it is "no" to both questions then all they've done is made a fool of a crank most people considered a fool anyway.
    Money did change hands, though they had swapped it for monopoly money without Corbyn noticing. And promises of behaviour had been made but, owing to the fake money, never materialised of course.
  • OldKingColeOldKingCole Posts: 31,715
    edited August 2021

    theProle said:

    The thought of poor Carrie having to copulate with that repulsive blob induces my gag reflex. I’m away out for a refreshing walk with the hound to regain faith in humankind and peruse the beauty of mother nature.

    Poor Carrie?
    Unlike Marina, who appeared to be a fairly decent type who foolishly married Boris, Carrie deserves everything she gets. She's a foul and horrible woman, who appears to have married Boris for one reason only - so she can be the power behind the throne.
    Wasn't Marina simply the Carrie of her day? Boris was still married to Allegra when courting Marina. In both cases, the marriages were already breaking down. I've no idea if Carrie is "foul and horrible" but surely Boris has some agency.
    Reminds me of a guy I knew 25 years ago. Had two kids with the first wife, moved on to an affair then two kids with the next. Unbelievably a third wife came along and got to two kids... I would be nervous at that point...
    One comes across people like every so often. It's the children for whom I feel sorry.Could easily screw them up mentally.
    Mixed and single parent families are common these days. Yes, it's not always easy but most families muddle through. Boris's own parents split up, and in any case he was at boarding school (and thus away from his family) through his formative years.
    While I agree that mixed and single parent families are common these days, and yes there's a lot of 'muddling though'; as indeed there is in life anyway, I feel you are making my case with your second sentence.

    Although, to be fair, his siblings are closer to the norm!
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 91,392
    edited August 2021
    On length of stints it seems correct that once gone he isnt getting another stint, that's our politics now (indeed you'd be fortunate to get a second chance as LOTO after a GE - Corbyn did so as he exceeded expectation, and weirdly his fans have acted like he won and is untouchable ever since).

    I think he has a good shot at 5-6 years at least, and I think he'd want to go past Cameron. It's a big majority to defend with Scotland still blocking a previous route to many seats for Labour, among other reasons, so he can lose a lot and still make it.

    So the question us when the next GE is and how long he goes on after it. I'm going 2023 and then another 3 years, if he wins.
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 39,748
    Dura_Ace said:

    Being PM is always better than being a slightly richer ex-PM as there are lots of perks that only oligarch money could buy. He'll go when the tories finally topple him or he loses a GE, not a second sooner.

    I'd didn't know he'd bunned up Carrie Antoinette again. She'd better start putting buttstuff on the menu or otherwise homebody is just going to keep breeding.

    That’s the point I think, has BJ really done enough to ensure Brand Boris has legs without the appurtenances of being leader of an EFL nation? He goes and it’s an immediate cessation of his every whim being pandered to, it’s the slog of organising the monetisation of his deathless oratory & prose and it’s a lifetime of the many turds that have been stuffed under the carpet rolling out and being thrown back at him.

    Trump managed to make himself the most famous man in the world which will probably keep his Potemkin billionaire status afloat until he carks it, yet he still wants back in.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    Sandpit said:

    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    They are perhaps the only group of consumers with sufficiently large wallets and sufficiently poor taste.
    Who on Earth would want a massive building, on an island in the middle of nowhere?

    The only way to make money on it, would be a very high-end retreat hotel, but could they attract enough customers, if they need to take a helicopter from Inverness or a boat from Skye?
    It is utterly impossible to make money from the monstrosity. This eyesore has been on the agenda for over 5 decades, and nobody has ever come up with a remotely viable solution.

    My preferred option is:

    - carefully remove any worthwhile contents and flog them off
    - demolish the eyesore and try to sell some of the masonry, slates and architectural details
    - dig up the foundations and allow nature to take her course

    Alternatively, follow step one above, but then allow the edifice to rot in a supposedly “romantic” fashion, like so many other Scottish structures. Only problem with that is that it is an H&S nightmare.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 91,392

    Mr. Sandpit, someone with a large number of genetically engineered superfish?

    Topical!
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138
    Sandpit said:

    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    They are perhaps the only group of consumers with sufficiently large wallets and sufficiently poor taste.
    Who on Earth would want a massive building, on an island in the middle of nowhere?

    The only way to make money on it, would be a very high-end retreat hotel, but could they attract enough customers, if they need to take a helicopter from Inverness or a boat from Skye?
    Boat from Mallaig or Arisaig, not Skye (no point as it takes longer, unless there anyway). Nearest airfield is the one at Oban or Portree but I'm not sure how functional they are. Glasgow isn't much firther than Inverness.

    Also - Rum is a NNR so there will be severe controls on what can be done in the way of frightening the wildlife.
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    FPT utterly brilliant website linked by @rcs1000 about travel in the Roman Empire. https://orbis.stanford.edu/

    I was of course wrong about everything. I said it would take a year to get from (roughly) Sebasteia (now central Turkey) to Inverness. The answer is between 100-130 days depending on cost and season. For a fast summer passage you'd go Black Sea - Med - overland Marseille to Bordeaux. Cheaper to go on along N Africa, out through the Straits and round by ship.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,709
    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20
  • AlistairAlistair Posts: 23,670
    Alistair said:

    Anyone have a good idea of how the UK does flu deaths?

    According to the ONS here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/895233/Surveillance_Influenza_and_other_respiratory_viruses_in_the_UK_2019_to_2020_FINAL.pdf#page=54

    22,000 people died of flu in the bad 2017/18 season in England. But that's an estimate using the FluMOMO algorithm.
    Population adjusted that would be the equivalent to 2143 flu deaths in Scotland

    However National Records Scotland keeps a record of "Mentions flu of the Death certificate" exactly the same as they are currently doing "mentions Covid on the death certificate" and their record for the 2017/18 season was approx 500 flu deaths.

    That's a huge difference.

    This leads to a number of questions:
    Does anyone know why we use the FluMOMO numbers when reporting Flu deaths rather than death certificates?
    What does this mean for determining that Covid is now "no worse than Flu", if you use FluMOMO figures then you can have quite a lot of deaths and be similar, if you use death certificates than you need to more than quarter the number of deaths to be similar

    I found this: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/827518/Recent_trends_in_mortality_in_England.pdf

    It is not straightforward to estimate the number of people who die each year from flu.
    [43] For many people who die from flu-related complications, flu is not mentioned on the
    death certificate or it is not selected as the underlying cause of death. For example,
    many older people, who are particularly vulnerable to flu, are not tested to confirm a flu
    infection. Some people with flu go on to develop pneumonia (which is more frequently
    recorded on the death certificate) but flu can also aggravate an existing chronic
    condition, such as heart disease, which is then selected as the underlying cause of
    death instead. Reporting the number of deaths where flu is recorded as the underlying
    cause of death would therefore greatly underestimate the burden of flu infections on
    mortality
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138

    Sandpit said:

    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    They are perhaps the only group of consumers with sufficiently large wallets and sufficiently poor taste.
    Who on Earth would want a massive building, on an island in the middle of nowhere?

    The only way to make money on it, would be a very high-end retreat hotel, but could they attract enough customers, if they need to take a helicopter from Inverness or a boat from Skye?
    It is utterly impossible to make money from the monstrosity. This eyesore has been on the agenda for over 5 decades, and nobody has ever come up with a remotely viable solution.

    My preferred option is:

    - carefully remove any worthwhile contents and flog them off
    - demolish the eyesore and try to sell some of the masonry, slates and architectural details
    - dig up the foundations and allow nature to take her course

    Alternatively, follow step one above, but then allow the edifice to rot in a supposedly “romantic” fashion, like so many other Scottish structures. Only problem with that is that it is an H&S nightmare.
    Some of it has already gone to rot - the gardens offices. Happy memories of a midgy and cleggy visit to a ruined greenhouse with the heated pools to keep the turtles fresh till required for the soup.
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    Carnyx said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    I've been there and had a good look aroiund and can only concur. I'd add

    7. It's in a temperate rain forest - very often pishing it down with midges and clegs (about 66inches a year, though I assume that's down on the low ground near the castle at Kinloch - will be higher oin the high ground). I remember staying there many uyears ago with the bathroom window open on a calm misty evening: not a mistake I made again. (The trees were previously eradicated: are being replaced.)
    8. Direct ferry to Mallaig.
    9. No mention of a transfer/buyout by the community.

    PS> Still a great island to explore.
    I wanna do the ridge walk, what the call the Rum Cuillin, next year.

    It does seem to have its own particularly shit microclimate there, even by comparison with its near neighbours.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    Carnyx said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    I've been there and had a good look aroiund and can only concur. I'd add

    7. It's in a temperate rain forest - very often pishing it down with midges and clegs (about 66inches a year, though I assume that's down on the low ground near the castle at Kinloch - will be higher oin the high ground). I remember staying there many uyears ago with the bathroom window open on a calm misty evening: not a mistake I made again. (The trees were previously eradicated: are being replaced.)
    8. Direct ferry to Mallaig.
    9. No mention of a transfer/buyout by the community.

    PS> Still a great island to explore.
    Communities are only interested in buying out assets. Kinloch is a massive liability.

    I too have a connection with Rum: I’ve stood for election there, twice. Or was it three times? The memory is not quite what it was.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,614
    IshmaelZ said:

    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    I was there last month. They didn't even send a photographer for the article, cos it's all scaffolding and safety fences ATM.

    The tragedy is that it's an historical gem. The interiors are completely period and staggeringly horrible, but given its location it will never pay its way as NTS.
    "The interiors are completely period and staggeringly horrible" - so it meets one of the conditions to be a protected building then.
  • YoungTurkYoungTurk Posts: 158
    That chart is mental! Using ranking as an axis over-accentuates the gap. If the dots were arranged in 1D, we'd have to look harder, we'd observe "Oh yes, that's the biggest gap - there it is", and then we'd think "So what?"

    Ranking gives us very little useful info about how long a PM might serve. We might as well consider each PM's height and make the chart 3D.

    Alternatively, perhaps I'm wrong - but if that gap is spooky, then what about the lack of any overlaps between the dots? Are the stints really spaced out like that? If so, that's even spookier. What's the smallest gap between stint-lengths? Have there ever been two PMs whose stint-lengths are within 10 days of each other's? If the smallest gap is as big as it looks on the chart, then there's nowhere for Johnson to fit in until he overtakes Heath and either becomes the best performing Also-Ran or makes it into the company of the Solid Performers.

    If I had time today, I would take the bottom 67 of the 77, run a Monte Carlo simulation, and plot the distribution of x=(longest stint)-(second longest stint).

    :smiley:

    PS Are you a bookie, Tom?
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 91,392

    kle4 said:

    CD13 said:

    Highly amused by Corbyn P's antics across at Guido. Not sure that humiliating him was necessary, though. He clearly has mental health issues and making him a figure of fun isn't needed. Even if the scam was done well.

    What actually happened? The sad fact is that it is easy to con people, but did anything happen here or did they pull out too early? Did any money change hands? Did behaviour change as a result? If it is "no" to both questions then all they've done is made a fool of a crank most people considered a fool anyway.
    He's also spread some truly nasty and even dangerous things taking advantage of other people for god knows what reason. Humiliation would appear entirely reasonable in that circumstance.
    He chose to humiliate himself.

    A good few years back, there was a "sting" by IIRC a CH4 team. They tried offering a very shady deal to various members of the House of Lords. A number fell over in the rush to self themselves for a mess of pottage....

    One Lord (DUP I think), was filmed listening to their proposal. He considered, then told them that what they proposed was immoral and hopefully illegal. If it wasn't illegal, he would try and make it so. He then told them to leave and never come back.

    The idea that offering someone a stack of money to sell their morals is anyway "unfair" is bollocks. If you sell out, that's up to you. That's who you chose to be.

    In addition, Piers Corbyn has been presenting himself a lone "sword of truth"* in his attacks on vaccines etc - Showing that he has feet of clay is exactly what is needed.

    *Yes, indeed. That sword.
    Unless theres truly misleading editing (which is always alleged, but not every edit is misleading) you can be confident if the target whinges about the fact of being filmed or tricked that they have little defence.

    And as you note the position someone holds matters and, relevantly to him, his you present yourself matters. Its why moral crusaders being hypocrites is bigger news than someone else doing the same thing.
  • FairlieredFairliered Posts: 3,869
    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    Specifically, a footballer who likes midges!
  • HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    I've never got over Anchor butter changing nationality.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 91,392
    YoungTurk said:

    That chart is mental! Using ranking as an axis over-accentuates the gap. If the dots were arranged in 1D, we'd have to look harder, we'd observe "Oh yes, that's the biggest gap - there it is", and then we'd think "So what?"

    Ranking gives us very little useful info about how long a PM might serve. We might as well consider each PM's height and make the chart 3D.

    Alternatively, perhaps I'm wrong - but if that gap is spooky, then what about the lack of any overlaps between the dots? Are the stints really spaced out like that? If so, that's even spookier. What's the smallest gap between stint-lengths? Have there ever been two PMs whose stint-lengths are within 10 days of each other's? If the smallest gap is as big as it looks on the chart, then there's nowhere for Johnson to fit in until he overtakes Heath and either becomes the best performing Also-Ran or makes it into the company of the Solid Performers.

    If I had time today, I would take the bottom 67 of the 77, run a Monte Carlo simulation, and plot the distribution of x=(longest stint)-(second longest stint).

    :smiley:

    PS Are you a bookie, Tom?

    I believe the two shortest reigning PMs had stints of within 10-15 days, and were back to back to visit.
  • from yesterday: "Some other sports with an outside chance are Freestyle BMX and women's Modern Pentathlon."

    two down.
  • malcolmgmalcolmg Posts: 41,673
    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Don't tell me they need cheese as well.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,614

    Mr. Sandpit, someone with a large number of genetically engineered superfish?

    Which then raises the question - assuming, that the genetically engineered superfish have some intelligence, would they be counted in the next ONS survey? Which ethnic category would they be placed in? What would this do to the COVID vaccination ratio for the island?

    Or have I just found the answer to the NIMS discrepancy - it counts enhanced haddock?
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138
    IshmaelZ said:

    Carnyx said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    I've been there and had a good look aroiund and can only concur. I'd add

    7. It's in a temperate rain forest - very often pishing it down with midges and clegs (about 66inches a year, though I assume that's down on the low ground near the castle at Kinloch - will be higher oin the high ground). I remember staying there many uyears ago with the bathroom window open on a calm misty evening: not a mistake I made again. (The trees were previously eradicated: are being replaced.)
    8. Direct ferry to Mallaig.
    9. No mention of a transfer/buyout by the community.

    PS> Still a great island to explore.
    I wanna do the ridge walk, what the call the Rum Cuillin, next year.

    It does seem to have its own particularly shit microclimate there, even by comparison with its near neighbours.
    The weather does vary!

    I never did the full ridge walk - but just going up Allival and Askival and then down Glen Dibidil and back by the almost coastal path was a huge treat on a clear blue sunny day. However, it's also good to walk across the island to Bloodstone Hill - great views of Canna and the Long Isle etc.

    One caveat - check restrictions relating to the deer population and research on it - I haven't been for a long time but at that time one could not go into a certain area except at set times (Sunday for instance).
  • Daveyboy1961Daveyboy1961 Posts: 3,335
    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
  • YoungTurkYoungTurk Posts: 158
    YoungTurk said:

    That chart is mental! Using ranking as an axis over-accentuates the gap. If the dots were arranged in 1D, we'd have to look harder, we'd observe "Oh yes, that's the biggest gap - there it is", and then we'd think "So what?"

    Ranking gives us very little useful info about how long a PM might serve. We might as well consider each PM's height and make the chart 3D.

    Alternatively, perhaps I'm wrong - but if that gap is spooky, then what about the lack of any overlaps between the dots? Are the stints really spaced out like that? If so, that's even spookier. What's the smallest gap between stint-lengths? Have there ever been two PMs whose stint-lengths are within 10 days of each other's? If the smallest gap is as big as it looks on the chart, then there's nowhere for Johnson to fit in until he overtakes Heath and either becomes the best performing Also-Ran or makes it into the company of the Solid Performers.

    If I had time today, I would take the bottom 67 of the 77, run a Monte Carlo simulation, and plot the distribution of x=(longest stint)-(second longest stint).

    :smiley:

    PS Are you a bookie, Tom?

    Damn! There have been gaps between stint-lengths of 1 day (twice), 2 days (twice), and 3 days (three times). So the dots on that chart have been nicely spaced out for effect. I'd better sell my investment in Shagger :smile:
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    IshmaelZ said:

    Carnyx said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    I've been there and had a good look aroiund and can only concur. I'd add

    7. It's in a temperate rain forest - very often pishing it down with midges and clegs (about 66inches a year, though I assume that's down on the low ground near the castle at Kinloch - will be higher oin the high ground). I remember staying there many uyears ago with the bathroom window open on a calm misty evening: not a mistake I made again. (The trees were previously eradicated: are being replaced.)
    8. Direct ferry to Mallaig.
    9. No mention of a transfer/buyout by the community.

    PS> Still a great island to explore.
    I wanna do the ridge walk, what the call the Rum Cuillin, next year.

    It does seem to have its own particularly shit microclimate there, even by comparison with its near neighbours.
    Rum does indeed have a microclimate, and an exceedingly unpleasant one for mammals. Biting insects bloody love the place. This of course partly explains why construction of the house was the height of Victorian folly.
  • OldKingColeOldKingCole Posts: 31,715
    Carnyx said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Carnyx said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    I've been there and had a good look aroiund and can only concur. I'd add

    7. It's in a temperate rain forest - very often pishing it down with midges and clegs (about 66inches a year, though I assume that's down on the low ground near the castle at Kinloch - will be higher oin the high ground). I remember staying there many uyears ago with the bathroom window open on a calm misty evening: not a mistake I made again. (The trees were previously eradicated: are being replaced.)
    8. Direct ferry to Mallaig.
    9. No mention of a transfer/buyout by the community.

    PS> Still a great island to explore.
    I wanna do the ridge walk, what the call the Rum Cuillin, next year.

    It does seem to have its own particularly shit microclimate there, even by comparison with its near neighbours.
    The weather does vary!

    I never did the full ridge walk - but just going up Allival and Askival and then down Glen Dibidil and back by the almost coastal path was a huge treat on a clear blue sunny day. However, it's also good to walk across the island to Bloodstone Hill - great views of Canna and the Long Isle etc.

    One caveat - check restrictions relating to the deer population and research on it - I haven't been for a long time but at that time one could not go into a certain area except at set times (Sunday for instance).
    You surely weren't allowed to enjoy yourself by deer watching on the Sabbath!
  • RobDRobD Posts: 58,941

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    That must be getting awfully repetitive for you. ;)
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,709
    edited August 2021

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    After the deal with Australia it would be our second trade deal not carried over from deals we already had when in the EU.


  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138
    IshmaelZ said:

    Carnyx said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    I've been there and had a good look aroiund and can only concur. I'd add

    7. It's in a temperate rain forest - very often pishing it down with midges and clegs (about 66inches a year, though I assume that's down on the low ground near the castle at Kinloch - will be higher oin the high ground). I remember staying there many uyears ago with the bathroom window open on a calm misty evening: not a mistake I made again. (The trees were previously eradicated: are being replaced.)
    8. Direct ferry to Mallaig.
    9. No mention of a transfer/buyout by the community.

    PS> Still a great island to explore.
    I wanna do the ridge walk, what the call the Rum Cuillin, next year.

    It does seem to have its own particularly shit microclimate there, even by comparison with its near neighbours.
    PS It's a NNR so there are interesting things in connexion with that.

    https://www.nature.scot/enjoying-outdoors/scotlands-national-nature-reserves/rum-national-nature-reserve
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    YoungTurk said:

    That chart is mental! Using ranking as an axis over-accentuates the gap. If the dots were arranged in 1D, we'd have to look harder, we'd observe "Oh yes, that's the biggest gap - there it is", and then we'd think "So what?"

    Ranking gives us very little useful info about how long a PM might serve. We might as well consider each PM's height and make the chart 3D.

    Alternatively, perhaps I'm wrong - but if that gap is spooky, then what about the lack of any overlaps between the dots? Are the stints really spaced out like that? If so, that's even spookier. What's the smallest gap between stint-lengths? Have there ever been two PMs whose stint-lengths are within 10 days of each other's? If the smallest gap is as big as it looks on the chart, then there's nowhere for Johnson to fit in until he overtakes Heath and either becomes the best performing Also-Ran or makes it into the company of the Solid Performers.

    If I had time today, I would take the bottom 67 of the 77, run a Monte Carlo simulation, and plot the distribution of x=(longest stint)-(second longest stint).

    :smiley:

    PS Are you a bookie, Tom?

    I think this is one of the weakest PB headers I’ve seen in a long time. There is absolutely zilch to be learned from studying that graph. Not in terms of predicting the future.
  • tlg86tlg86 Posts: 25,164
    YoungTurk said:

    YoungTurk said:

    That chart is mental! Using ranking as an axis over-accentuates the gap. If the dots were arranged in 1D, we'd have to look harder, we'd observe "Oh yes, that's the biggest gap - there it is", and then we'd think "So what?"

    Ranking gives us very little useful info about how long a PM might serve. We might as well consider each PM's height and make the chart 3D.

    Alternatively, perhaps I'm wrong - but if that gap is spooky, then what about the lack of any overlaps between the dots? Are the stints really spaced out like that? If so, that's even spookier. What's the smallest gap between stint-lengths? Have there ever been two PMs whose stint-lengths are within 10 days of each other's? If the smallest gap is as big as it looks on the chart, then there's nowhere for Johnson to fit in until he overtakes Heath and either becomes the best performing Also-Ran or makes it into the company of the Solid Performers.

    If I had time today, I would take the bottom 67 of the 77, run a Monte Carlo simulation, and plot the distribution of x=(longest stint)-(second longest stint).

    :smiley:

    PS Are you a bookie, Tom?

    Damn! There have been gaps between stint-lengths of 1 day (twice), 2 days (twice), and 3 days (three times). So the dots on that chart have been nicely spaced out for effect. I'd better sell my investment in Shagger :smile:
    The time is on the y axis, so the gaps that matter are vertical.

    I’m a statto not a bookie.
  • Daveyboy1961Daveyboy1961 Posts: 3,335
    HYUFD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    After the deal with Australia it would be our second trade deal not carried over from deals we already had when in the EU.


    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138

    Carnyx said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Carnyx said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    I've been there and had a good look aroiund and can only concur. I'd add

    7. It's in a temperate rain forest - very often pishing it down with midges and clegs (about 66inches a year, though I assume that's down on the low ground near the castle at Kinloch - will be higher oin the high ground). I remember staying there many uyears ago with the bathroom window open on a calm misty evening: not a mistake I made again. (The trees were previously eradicated: are being replaced.)
    8. Direct ferry to Mallaig.
    9. No mention of a transfer/buyout by the community.

    PS> Still a great island to explore.
    I wanna do the ridge walk, what the call the Rum Cuillin, next year.

    It does seem to have its own particularly shit microclimate there, even by comparison with its near neighbours.
    The weather does vary!

    I never did the full ridge walk - but just going up Allival and Askival and then down Glen Dibidil and back by the almost coastal path was a huge treat on a clear blue sunny day. However, it's also good to walk across the island to Bloodstone Hill - great views of Canna and the Long Isle etc.

    One caveat - check restrictions relating to the deer population and research on it - I haven't been for a long time but at that time one could not go into a certain area except at set times (Sunday for instance).
    You surely weren't allowed to enjoy yourself by deer watching on the Sabbath!
    Not a problem there.

    Incidentally the original population was completely displaced by the then laird and carted off to N America except IIRC one shepherd and his family (probably a Lowlander anyway being a shepherd?). Subsequently all incomers broiught in from various places by the later laird. I forget he details - there are a couple of books on the island by Magnusson and by Love the former warden - or the subsequent ecclesiastical history but I imagine it was a matter of occasional visits from the C of S and RC chaps on Eigg, and (when they had one) the Free Kirk minister and later missionary.
  • OnlyLivingBoyOnlyLivingBoy Posts: 14,911

    Good morning

    I do find obsessing about Boris and Carrie relationship rather tedious, and to be fair she had suffered a miscarriage which is a very upsetting event as my own daughter can affirm

    However, turning to happier times my sons wedding to his long term partner yesterday was just perfect and their two children delightful, not least their 7 year old son walking up the aisle in his formal smaller version wedding suit proudly carrying the rings

    The church service was perfect despite covid restrictions on hymn singing, but the organist rendition of one of the hymns in Welsh moved everyone

    The reception in the marquee worked a treat, and it may surprise some but we had guests from Scotland , England and Wales and there was wide consensus that all the politicians should have acted together and the political point scoring between the administrations was simply unacceptable

    No matter, politics was not on the agenda and it was just a happy and joyous day for each and everyone

    Glad you all had a great day. There's nothing like a good wedding, such a lovely hopeful occasion, with family and friends, food, drink and dancing. Emotional too. I am going to be an absolute mess if/when my kids get hitched! Best wishes to your son and daughter in law and all of your family.
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 39,748
    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    That must be getting awfully repetitive for you. ;)
    Christ, proscribing calling Johnson a **** and sarkiness about La Truss, what a killjoy!
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138

    IshmaelZ said:

    Carnyx said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    I've been there and had a good look aroiund and can only concur. I'd add

    7. It's in a temperate rain forest - very often pishing it down with midges and clegs (about 66inches a year, though I assume that's down on the low ground near the castle at Kinloch - will be higher oin the high ground). I remember staying there many uyears ago with the bathroom window open on a calm misty evening: not a mistake I made again. (The trees were previously eradicated: are being replaced.)
    8. Direct ferry to Mallaig.
    9. No mention of a transfer/buyout by the community.

    PS> Still a great island to explore.
    I wanna do the ridge walk, what the call the Rum Cuillin, next year.

    It does seem to have its own particularly shit microclimate there, even by comparison with its near neighbours.
    Rum does indeed have a microclimate, and an exceedingly unpleasant one for mammals. Biting insects bloody love the place. This of course partly explains why construction of the house was the height of Victorian folly.
    Thge story is that the Lancashire textile weaving machinery manufacturer who bought the place and built Kinloch Castle insisted that his builders (almost certainly Lowlanders anyway) wore kilts while doing the work. The midges and clegs loved that. It was only, IIRC, a very large tobacco allowance that kept them at work.

    But I'd need to recheck the books by Magnusson and Love.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    pigeon said:

    pigeon said:

    Not least, the equity markets are long overdue a major correction.

    I see no particular reason why asset prices should nosedive so long as interest rates remain close to zero. If leaving money in the bank means that its value gradually gets inflated away, people who have wealth are always going to want to invest it elsewhere.

    I also see no particular reason why interest rates should rise significantly. Many or most governments, businesses and individuals are more heavily indebted than ever because of the pandemic. What incentive is there for central banks to strangle their economies by cranking up the cost of servicing those debts?
    How sweet. You think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates.

    And “elsewhere” does not have to be equity.
    Actually, yes, I do.

    And there is nowhere else to go, apart from sovereign bonds which will simply serve to continue to depress yields. If, theoretically, everyone tried to pile into property there wouldn't be enough of it in the world to meet the demand.

    Any post-pandemic burst of inflation is liable to be temporary. The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates.
    The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates…

    … rock bottom reproduction rates, near zero immigration, old and rapidly aging population unable to be supported by shrinking labour pool.

    In other words, an unhealthy society.

    Greens will love the “low growth” bit though.

    But you’re wrong if you think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates. The real economic truths always fell the proud in the end.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,614

    Sandpit said:

    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    They are perhaps the only group of consumers with sufficiently large wallets and sufficiently poor taste.
    Who on Earth would want a massive building, on an island in the middle of nowhere?

    The only way to make money on it, would be a very high-end retreat hotel, but could they attract enough customers, if they need to take a helicopter from Inverness or a boat from Skye?
    It is utterly impossible to make money from the monstrosity. This eyesore has been on the agenda for over 5 decades, and nobody has ever come up with a remotely viable solution.

    My preferred option is:

    - carefully remove any worthwhile contents and flog them off
    - demolish the eyesore and try to sell some of the masonry, slates and architectural details
    - dig up the foundations and allow nature to take her course

    Alternatively, follow step one above, but then allow the edifice to rot in a supposedly “romantic” fashion, like so many other Scottish structures. Only problem with that is that it is an H&S nightmare.
    When Prince Charles gets his stint on the throne, I will propose the "Royal And Honourable Society For the Dynamiting of Architectural Carbuncles".

    Our operations will include choreographing them to a full orchestra (evening dress, naturally) playing a suitable selection of music.....

    On a serious note - leave the foundations. They will make some future archeologists happy.
  • Scott_xPScott_xP Posts: 32,735
    Carnyx said:

    The midges and clegs loved that. It was only, IIRC, a very large tobacco allowance that kept them at work.

    Heavy tobacco smoke is the traditional midge repellent
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138
    Scott_xP said:

    Carnyx said:

    The midges and clegs loved that. It was only, IIRC, a very large tobacco allowance that kept them at work.

    Heavy tobacco smoke is the traditional midge repellent
    Or a tigh dubh (traditional black house) with a layer of peat smoke at standing head height.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,614

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
  • OldKingColeOldKingCole Posts: 31,715

    Good morning

    I do find obsessing about Boris and Carrie relationship rather tedious, and to be fair she had suffered a miscarriage which is a very upsetting event as my own daughter can affirm

    However, turning to happier times my sons wedding to his long term partner yesterday was just perfect and their two children delightful, not least their 7 year old son walking up the aisle in his formal smaller version wedding suit proudly carrying the rings

    The church service was perfect despite covid restrictions on hymn singing, but the organist rendition of one of the hymns in Welsh moved everyone

    The reception in the marquee worked a treat, and it may surprise some but we had guests from Scotland , England and Wales and there was wide consensus that all the politicians should have acted together and the political point scoring between the administrations was simply unacceptable

    No matter, politics was not on the agenda and it was just a happy and joyous day for each and everyone

    Glad you all had a great day. There's nothing like a good wedding, such a lovely hopeful occasion, with family and friends, food, drink and dancing. Emotional too. I am going to be an absolute mess if/when my kids get hitched! Best wishes to your son and daughter in law and all of your family.
    Indeed, a wedding is usually a hopeful, cheerful occasion, isn't it. Had a great time at our last family one; Eldest Grandson's. Just hoping for another now, although that seems likely to be some time.
  • OldKingColeOldKingCole Posts: 31,715

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    Out of the frying pan?
  • RobDRobD Posts: 58,941

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,238
    My god. Charlotte Worthington. May the Lord bless her

    She has single-handledly-ly-ishly turned on the Olympics, for me

    1. I didn’t know humans could even do that on bikes
    2. Bloody hell
    3. Yay
    4. She got gold!
    5. She’s an ex chef. Not some loser posho rower, ie not one of 800,000 such in the UK
    6. Take ALL the money from the rowers, give it to the BMXers, it’s just a better sport
    7. Yay!
  • squareroot2squareroot2 Posts: 6,287

    pigeon said:

    pigeon said:

    Not least, the equity markets are long overdue a major correction.

    I see no particular reason why asset prices should nosedive so long as interest rates remain close to zero. If leaving money in the bank means that its value gradually gets inflated away, people who have wealth are always going to want to invest it elsewhere.

    I also see no particular reason why interest rates should rise significantly. Many or most governments, businesses and individuals are more heavily indebted than ever because of the pandemic. What incentive is there for central banks to strangle their economies by cranking up the cost of servicing those debts?
    How sweet. You think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates.

    And “elsewhere” does not have to be equity.
    Actually, yes, I do.

    And there is nowhere else to go, apart from sovereign bonds which will simply serve to continue to depress yields. If, theoretically, everyone tried to pile into property there wouldn't be enough of it in the world to meet the demand.

    Any post-pandemic burst of inflation is liable to be temporary. The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates.
    The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates…

    … rock bottom reproduction rates, near zero immigration, old and rapidly aging population unable to be supported by shrinking labour pool.

    In other words, an unhealthy society.

    Greens will love the “low growth” bit though.
    Schoolinh result
    But you’re wrong if you think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates. The real economic truths always fell the proud in the end.
    Isn't Scotland like tgat save for early deaths due to drink and drugs add appalling schooling and a Govt akin to Japan.. almost but not quite twins....
  • CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,540
    Not a great start....new SNP Complaints Officer starts attacking SNP MP.....

    https://www.pressreader.com/uk/the-scottish-mail-on-sunday/20210801/281724092592412
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,614

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    Out of the frying pan?
    Brexiters won't mind, because it is specifically a trade deal, not political (ha).

    No, various Remainers will see it as a definite barrier to Rejoin, or even to semi-rejoin (watering down Brexit over years to be membership in all but name).

  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    Carnyx said:

    Sandpit said:

    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    They are perhaps the only group of consumers with sufficiently large wallets and sufficiently poor taste.
    Who on Earth would want a massive building, on an island in the middle of nowhere?

    The only way to make money on it, would be a very high-end retreat hotel, but could they attract enough customers, if they need to take a helicopter from Inverness or a boat from Skye?
    It is utterly impossible to make money from the monstrosity. This eyesore has been on the agenda for over 5 decades, and nobody has ever come up with a remotely viable solution.

    My preferred option is:

    - carefully remove any worthwhile contents and flog them off
    - demolish the eyesore and try to sell some of the masonry, slates and architectural details
    - dig up the foundations and allow nature to take her course

    Alternatively, follow step one above, but then allow the edifice to rot in a supposedly “romantic” fashion, like so many other Scottish structures. Only problem with that is that it is an H&S nightmare.
    Some of it has already gone to rot - the gardens offices. Happy memories of a midgy and cleggy visit to a ruined greenhouse with the heated pools to keep the turtles fresh till required for the soup.
    Never attempted turtle soup. However, inspired by a Tuscan holiday, I did once attempt sea urchin soup. It was a resounding failure.
  • DecrepiterJohnLDecrepiterJohnL Posts: 23,926
    edited August 2021
    deleted to fix formatting
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    @tlg86 great stuff.

    Can you click one button to turn this into a bell curve, or would that be work?
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,238

    Good morning

    I do find obsessing about Boris and Carrie relationship rather tedious, and to be fair she had suffered a miscarriage which is a very upsetting event as my own daughter can affirm

    However, turning to happier times my sons wedding to his long term partner yesterday was just perfect and their two children delightful, not least their 7 year old son walking up the aisle in his formal smaller version wedding suit proudly carrying the rings

    The church service was perfect despite covid restrictions on hymn singing, but the organist rendition of one of the hymns in Welsh moved everyone

    The reception in the marquee worked a treat, and it may surprise some but we had guests from Scotland , England and Wales and there was wide consensus that all the politicians should have acted together and the political point scoring between the administrations was simply unacceptable

    No matter, politics was not on the agenda and it was just a happy and joyous day for each and everyone

    Bless you and yours, Big G.

    Life, indeed, goes on
  • Daveyboy1961Daveyboy1961 Posts: 3,335
    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
    thankfully we should be able to purchase cabbages from Christmas Island, potatoes from Pitcairn Island, asperagus from Australia, tomatoes from Tahiti, (anymore alliterative veg?), once our farming industry goes to the wall.
  • JosiasJessopJosiasJessop Posts: 38,517
    Sandpit said:

    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    They are perhaps the only group of consumers with sufficiently large wallets and sufficiently poor taste.
    Who on Earth would want a massive building, on an island in the middle of nowhere?

    The only way to make money on it, would be a very high-end retreat hotel, but could they attract enough customers, if they need to take a helicopter from Inverness or a boat from Skye?
    Some people like it. The theatre impresario Cameron Mackintosh has a large house on the shores of Loch Nevis, to the east of Mallaig. When it burnt down (well, exploded), he had it rebuilt at rather large cost. I stayed in a bunkhouse (an old chapel) at Tarbet during my coastal walk; the bunkhouse was full of workmen working on the house. They spent half the night watching porn on the TV, sitting on and around the altar to do so.

    One of the more unique nights of my life. To get mobile reception from Inverie, you had to stand on a milk crate at the top of a little hillock outside the bunkhouse.

    https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/the-castle-sir-cameron-built-g8rx3zwcz8q
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146

    pigeon said:

    pigeon said:

    Not least, the equity markets are long overdue a major correction.

    I see no particular reason why asset prices should nosedive so long as interest rates remain close to zero. If leaving money in the bank means that its value gradually gets inflated away, people who have wealth are always going to want to invest it elsewhere.

    I also see no particular reason why interest rates should rise significantly. Many or most governments, businesses and individuals are more heavily indebted than ever because of the pandemic. What incentive is there for central banks to strangle their economies by cranking up the cost of servicing those debts?
    How sweet. You think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates.

    And “elsewhere” does not have to be equity.
    Actually, yes, I do.

    And there is nowhere else to go, apart from sovereign bonds which will simply serve to continue to depress yields. If, theoretically, everyone tried to pile into property there wouldn't be enough of it in the world to meet the demand.

    Any post-pandemic burst of inflation is liable to be temporary. The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates.
    The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates…

    … rock bottom reproduction rates, near zero immigration, old and rapidly aging population unable to be supported by shrinking labour pool.

    In other words, an unhealthy society.

    Greens will love the “low growth” bit though.
    Schoolinh result
    But you’re wrong if you think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates. The real economic truths always fell the proud in the end.
    Isn't Scotland like tgat save for early deaths due to drink and drugs add appalling schooling and a Govt akin to Japan.. almost but not quite twins....
    Scotland differs from Japan in a multitude of ways, not least of which is the immigration factor. Scotland has a strong flow of immigrants.
  • tlg86tlg86 Posts: 25,164
    IshmaelZ said:

    @tlg86 great stuff.

    Can you click one button to turn this into a bell curve, or would that be work?

    I had a go at doing something like that but it just shows a really long tail.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,709
    edited August 2021

    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
    thankfully we should be able to purchase cabbages from Christmas Island, potatoes from Pitcairn Island, asperagus from Australia, tomatoes from Tahiti, (anymore alliterative veg?), once our farming industry goes to the wall.
    It won't go to the wall, there will be great demand in Australia and New Zealand for British chicken and beef and milk and fruit and veg
  • CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,540
    "I'm not taking part in this vaccine experiment"

    You are. You're the control group.

    Currently around 10% in the UK

    ....and 80% in ICU


    https://twitter.com/Holbornlolz/status/1421527009549856772?s=20
  • squareroot2squareroot2 Posts: 6,287

    pigeon said:

    pigeon said:

    Not least, the equity markets are long overdue a major correction.

    I see no particular reason why asset prices should nosedive so long as interest rates remain close to zero. If leaving money in the bank means that its value gradually gets inflated away, people who have wealth are always going to want to invest it elsewhere.

    I also see no particular reason why interest rates should rise significantly. Many or most governments, businesses and individuals are more heavily indebted than ever because of the pandemic. What incentive is there for central banks to strangle their economies by cranking up the cost of servicing those debts?
    How sweet. You think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates.

    And “elsewhere” does not have to be equity.
    Actually, yes, I do.

    And there is nowhere else to go, apart from sovereign bonds which will simply serve to continue to depress yields. If, theoretically, everyone tried to pile into property there wouldn't be enough of it in the world to meet the demand.

    Any post-pandemic burst of inflation is liable to be temporary. The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates.
    The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates…

    … rock bottom reproduction rates, near zero immigration, old and rapidly aging population unable to be supported by shrinking labour pool.

    In other words, an unhealthy society.

    Greens will love the “low growth” bit though.
    Schoolinh result
    But you’re wrong if you think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates. The real economic truths always fell the proud in the end.
    Isn't Scotland like tgat save for early deaths due to drink and drugs add appalling schooling and a Govt akin to Japan.. almost but not quite twins....
    . .
    Scotland differs from Japan in a multitude of ways, not least of which is the immigration factor. Scotland has a strong flow of immigrants.
    I thought that was surplanted by an even bigger exodus
  • MattWMattW Posts: 18,080
    Having pointed out the trial in the comments a few days ago, I should note that Lab MP Apsana Begum has been cleared of fraudulent housing claims.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-58024457

    One less opportunity for the King of the North to get a seat in Parliament.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    HYUFD said:

    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
    thankfully we should be able to purchase cabbages from Christmas Island, potatoes from Pitcairn Island, asperagus from Australia, tomatoes from Tahiti, (anymore alliterative veg?), once our farming industry goes to the wall.
    It won't go to the wall, there will be great demand in Australia and New Zealand for British chicken and beef and milk and fruit and veg
    Facepalm.
  • YoungTurkYoungTurk Posts: 158

    CD13 said:

    Highly amused by Corbyn P's antics across at Guido. Not sure that humiliating him was necessary, though. He clearly has mental health issues and making him a figure of fun isn't needed. Even if the scam was done well.

    What actually happened? The sad fact is that it is easy to con people, but did anything happen here or did they pull out too early? Did any money change hands? Did behaviour change as a result? If it is "no" to both questions then all they've done is made a fool of a crank most people considered a fool anyway.
    It seems no money did change hands. I find this very sad, not amusing. One could have been forgiven for thinking that PC had a little bit of wisdom where undercover ops were concerned, but it seems that if he had any he's lost it now. He's not an idiot like Jason Spencer, but he should have twigged (if he hadn't already) when the selfies started being taken.

    He was once great at predicting the weather - an English eccentric freethinker in the best sense who walked all over the professionals at the Met Office.
  • Olympics. Considering the medal table and specifically the ratio of Gold to Silver medals, it is notable how efficiently Japan and Australia have converted their contenders into winners.
    Rank    Country         Gold    Silver  Bronze  Total
    1 China 23 14 12 49
    2 USA 20 20 14 54
    3 Japan 17 5 8 30
    4 Australia 14 3 14 31
    5 ROC 11 15 12 38
    6 Great Britain 9 10 12 31
    7 Korea 5 4 7 16
    8 France 4 10 6 20
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/olympics/57836709
  • JosiasJessopJosiasJessop Posts: 38,517

    Sandpit said:

    MattW said:

    Talking of edifices which have run out of luck:

    ‘Scotland's most striking castle on tiny remote island for sale at just £1’

    https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/scotlands-most-striking-castle-tiny-21194439.amp

    Hate to be pedantic, but that headline is riddled with porkies:
    1. it is not a “castle”, it is a late Victorian estate house
    2. it is not “striking”, it is horrifically ugly and completely out of place in its environment
    3. in a list of Scotland’s “most striking” structures, it wouldn’t make the top 5000
    4. Rum is not tiny; it is the largest island in its archipelago
    5. It is not for sale (even the article itself explicitly says that “Kinloch Castle is not currently on the open market for sale”)
    6. It does not cost £1

    So, in summary, the only remotely truthful assertion is that Rum is “remote”, although even that is nonsense if you happen to live in Eigg, Skye or Mallaig. And “remoteness” is a function of demography, politics and fashions in transportation. Rum was very central if you were a competent seafarer during the Lordship of the Isles.

    This is the very peak of junk journalism. A primary school child could write a better article. The culprit? The despicable Reach plc. What a bunch of chancers.

    One for a footballer.
    They are perhaps the only group of consumers with sufficiently large wallets and sufficiently poor taste.
    Who on Earth would want a massive building, on an island in the middle of nowhere?

    The only way to make money on it, would be a very high-end retreat hotel, but could they attract enough customers, if they need to take a helicopter from Inverness or a boat from Skye?
    It is utterly impossible to make money from the monstrosity. This eyesore has been on the agenda for over 5 decades, and nobody has ever come up with a remotely viable solution.

    My preferred option is:

    - carefully remove any worthwhile contents and flog them off
    - demolish the eyesore and try to sell some of the masonry, slates and architectural details
    - dig up the foundations and allow nature to take her course

    Alternatively, follow step one above, but then allow the edifice to rot in a supposedly “romantic” fashion, like so many other Scottish structures. Only problem with that is that it is an H&S nightmare.
    When Prince Charles gets his stint on the throne, I will propose the "Royal And Honourable Society For the Dynamiting of Architectural Carbuncles".

    Our operations will include choreographing them to a full orchestra (evening dress, naturally) playing a suitable selection of music.....

    On a serious note - leave the foundations. They will make some future archeologists happy.
    I'm a firm believer that any building - in fact, any structure - needs a use. If it doesn't have a use, then it shouldn't really be there. Most historic buildings we see around us have had several or many different lives. In the case of a friend's house, from dwelling, to pub, to village fire station, and then back to dwelling.

    The 'use' might be as a tourist attraction, or even a romantic ruin. But if the structure has no use, best to let it go.

    In the case of this castle, it seems that it is firmly in the 'no use' category. If someone can find a use for it, and wants to pay for its upkeep, brilliant. But sometimes it is best just to let them go.

    I'm fed up with people wanting to keep the country in aspic for 'heritage' reasons - and I love heritage. Let building and structures evolve; preserve the best, but let everything else change.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,709
    MattW said:

    Having pointed out the trial in the comments a few days ago, I should note that Lab MP Apsana Begum has been cleared of fraudulent housing claims.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-58024457

    One less opportunity for the King of the North to get a seat in Parliament.

    The King of the North has made clear he has no desire to get back into Parliament until the next general election.

    He is quite happy to let Starmer lose the next general election and if he does then be the leader in waiting after
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,238

    pigeon said:

    pigeon said:

    Not least, the equity markets are long overdue a major correction.

    I see no particular reason why asset prices should nosedive so long as interest rates remain close to zero. If leaving money in the bank means that its value gradually gets inflated away, people who have wealth are always going to want to invest it elsewhere.

    I also see no particular reason why interest rates should rise significantly. Many or most governments, businesses and individuals are more heavily indebted than ever because of the pandemic. What incentive is there for central banks to strangle their economies by cranking up the cost of servicing those debts?
    How sweet. You think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates.

    And “elsewhere” does not have to be equity.
    Actually, yes, I do.

    And there is nowhere else to go, apart from sovereign bonds which will simply serve to continue to depress yields. If, theoretically, everyone tried to pile into property there wouldn't be enough of it in the world to meet the demand.

    Any post-pandemic burst of inflation is liable to be temporary. The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates.
    The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates…

    … rock bottom reproduction rates, near zero immigration, old and rapidly aging population unable to be supported by shrinking labour pool.

    In other words, an unhealthy society.

    Greens will love the “low growth” bit though.
    Schoolinh result
    But you’re wrong if you think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates. The real economic truths always fell the proud in the end.
    Isn't Scotland like tgat save for early deaths due to drink and drugs add appalling schooling and a Govt akin to Japan.. almost but not quite twins....
    Scotland differs from Japan in a multitude of ways, not least of which is the immigration factor. Scotland has a strong flow of immigrants.
    Scotland does not have a ‘strong flow of immigrants’. It is basically Greenland with a bit of Georgian architecture. The climate is so vile - 10 months of winter and 2 months of midges - it sends people mad. This explains why its population has barely budged in a century (whereas England has added 10-20m inhabitants in the same time). It also explains why so many Scots live abroad. Including, er, you.
  • OldKingColeOldKingCole Posts: 31,715
    HYUFD said:

    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
    thankfully we should be able to purchase cabbages from Christmas Island, potatoes from Pitcairn Island, asperagus from Australia, tomatoes from Tahiti, (anymore alliterative veg?), once our farming industry goes to the wall.
    It won't go to the wall, there will be great demand in Australia and New Zealand for British chicken and beef and milk and fruit and veg
    Evidence? Seem to recall more than adequate beef when I've been to Aussie; indeed they export it to SE Asia and Japan. New Zealand, as I recall, has excellent, and excellent supplies of milk. Can't imagine that our fruit can compete with theirs, either.
    What you haven't mentioned is that the Aussies were quite keen to replace the sales of wine to China that they've recently lost.
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 39,748
    HYUFD said:

    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
    thankfully we should be able to purchase cabbages from Christmas Island, potatoes from Pitcairn Island, asperagus from Australia, tomatoes from Tahiti, (anymore alliterative veg?), once our farming industry goes to the wall.
    It won't go to the wall, there will be great demand in Australia and New Zealand for British chicken and beef and milk and fruit and veg
    And we all know what can come from chicken and veg…h*t br*th.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    edited August 2021

    pigeon said:

    pigeon said:

    Not least, the equity markets are long overdue a major correction.

    I see no particular reason why asset prices should nosedive so long as interest rates remain close to zero. If leaving money in the bank means that its value gradually gets inflated away, people who have wealth are always going to want to invest it elsewhere.

    I also see no particular reason why interest rates should rise significantly. Many or most governments, businesses and individuals are more heavily indebted than ever because of the pandemic. What incentive is there for central banks to strangle their economies by cranking up the cost of servicing those debts?
    How sweet. You think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates.

    And “elsewhere” does not have to be equity.
    Actually, yes, I do.

    And there is nowhere else to go, apart from sovereign bonds which will simply serve to continue to depress yields. If, theoretically, everyone tried to pile into property there wouldn't be enough of it in the world to meet the demand.

    Any post-pandemic burst of inflation is liable to be temporary. The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates.
    The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates…

    … rock bottom reproduction rates, near zero immigration, old and rapidly aging population unable to be supported by shrinking labour pool.

    In other words, an unhealthy society.

    Greens will love the “low growth” bit though.
    Schoolinh result
    But you’re wrong if you think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates. The real economic truths always fell the proud in the end.
    Isn't Scotland like tgat save for early deaths due to drink and drugs add appalling schooling and a Govt akin to Japan.. almost but not quite twins....
    . .
    Scotland differs from Japan in a multitude of ways, not least of which is the immigration factor. Scotland has a strong flow of immigrants.
    I thought that was surplanted by an even bigger exodus
    Nope.

    Evolution of the population of Scotland 1954–2014. Data from National Records of Scotland 2014.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mid-year_Estimates_of_Scotland's_Population_54-14.png

    1500 500,000
    1600 800,000
    1707 1,000,000
    1755 1,265,380
    1801 1,608,420
    1811 1,805,864
    1821 2,091,521
    1831 2,364,386
    1841 2,620,184
    1851 2,888,742
    1861 3,062,294
    1871 3,360,018
    1881 3,735,578
    1891 4,025,647
    1901 4,472,103
    1911 4,760,904
    1921 4,882,407
    1931 4,842,989
    1939 5,006,700
    1951 5,095,969
    1961 5,179,000
    1971 5,229,000
    1981 5,035,000
    1991 5,083,000
    2001 5,062,000
    2011 5,295,000
    2019 5,463,300
  • Good morning

    I do find obsessing about Boris and Carrie relationship rather tedious, and to be fair she had suffered a miscarriage which is a very upsetting event as my own daughter can affirm

    However, turning to happier times my sons wedding to his long term partner yesterday was just perfect and their two children delightful, not least their 7 year old son walking up the aisle in his formal smaller version wedding suit proudly carrying the rings

    The church service was perfect despite covid restrictions on hymn singing, but the organist rendition of one of the hymns in Welsh moved everyone

    The reception in the marquee worked a treat, and it may surprise some but we had guests from Scotland , England and Wales and there was wide consensus that all the politicians should have acted together and the political point scoring between the administrations was simply unacceptable

    No matter, politics was not on the agenda and it was just a happy and joyous day for each and everyone

    Glad you all had a great day. There's nothing like a good wedding, such a lovely hopeful occasion, with family and friends, food, drink and dancing. Emotional too. I am going to be an absolute mess if/when my kids get hitched! Best wishes to your son and daughter in law and all of your family.
    Thank you and I can say with certainty, as all three of our children are now married, that you will experience incredible emotions, but they are the best of all emotions
  • MexicanpeteMexicanpete Posts: 24,584
    edited August 2021
    IanB2 said:

    tlg86 said:

    tlg86 said:

    When will Boris go? I doubt he will run again and risk losing.

    I seem to recall that being said about Donald Trump.
    Boris is a winner, since being elected President of the Oxford Union, through two different seats in the Commons, twice Mayor, then party leader and Prime Minister and most recently the general election. Winning defines Boris, and it is not just his ego but also his commercial standing.

    It is not the same as Donald Trump who won only a single election, and was deluded to think he could not lose.
    Running away because he might lose won’t do much for his street cred.
    This is a man who regularly hides himself away - in a fridge, upstairs with the lights off when IDS came to call….
    Wouldn't you pretend to be out of IDS came a calling?

    That is no slur on Johnson. On this site alone, only HYUFD would attend to the front door if IDS came knocking.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138

    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
    thankfully we should be able to purchase cabbages from Christmas Island, potatoes from Pitcairn Island, asperagus from Australia, tomatoes from Tahiti, (anymore alliterative veg?), once our farming industry goes to the wall.
    Turnips from Tristan da Cunha.
  • RobDRobD Posts: 58,941
    Carnyx said:

    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
    thankfully we should be able to purchase cabbages from Christmas Island, potatoes from Pitcairn Island, asperagus from Australia, tomatoes from Tahiti, (anymore alliterative veg?), once our farming industry goes to the wall.
    Turnips from Tristan da Cunha.
    Has to be in the Pacific unfortunately.
  • kjhkjh Posts: 10,458

    kjh said:

    The thought of poor Carrie having to copulate with that repulsive blob induces my gag reflex. I’m away out for a refreshing walk with the hound to regain faith in humankind and peruse the beauty of mother nature.

    A very fine example of Boris Derangement Syndrome.

    And why this place is currently not worth visiting. I'll be back once Boris departs. Be about 8 years, I reckon.....
    OGH is STILL smarting since the Lib Dems were reduced to a rump party with an insignificant leader or two. The deranged comments are something else and are akin to some of the shite that I hear is spouted on twitter. The more they spout, the more its hurting them. GOOD.
    I don't think you can hold OGH responsible for the comments you don't like here unless you think they are all from him?
    I don't hold him .responsible for the comments and I never said that I did! That is your misinterpretation
    So what was the point of that sentence then? It had no relevance to what you posted if what you say is true, so why post it?
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    Leon said:

    pigeon said:

    pigeon said:

    Not least, the equity markets are long overdue a major correction.

    I see no particular reason why asset prices should nosedive so long as interest rates remain close to zero. If leaving money in the bank means that its value gradually gets inflated away, people who have wealth are always going to want to invest it elsewhere.

    I also see no particular reason why interest rates should rise significantly. Many or most governments, businesses and individuals are more heavily indebted than ever because of the pandemic. What incentive is there for central banks to strangle their economies by cranking up the cost of servicing those debts?
    How sweet. You think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates.

    And “elsewhere” does not have to be equity.
    Actually, yes, I do.

    And there is nowhere else to go, apart from sovereign bonds which will simply serve to continue to depress yields. If, theoretically, everyone tried to pile into property there wouldn't be enough of it in the world to meet the demand.

    Any post-pandemic burst of inflation is liable to be temporary. The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates.
    The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates…

    … rock bottom reproduction rates, near zero immigration, old and rapidly aging population unable to be supported by shrinking labour pool.

    In other words, an unhealthy society.

    Greens will love the “low growth” bit though.
    Schoolinh result
    But you’re wrong if you think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates. The real economic truths always fell the proud in the end.
    Isn't Scotland like tgat save for early deaths due to drink and drugs add appalling schooling and a Govt akin to Japan.. almost but not quite twins....
    Scotland differs from Japan in a multitude of ways, not least of which is the immigration factor. Scotland has a strong flow of immigrants.
    Scotland does not have a ‘strong flow of immigrants’. It is basically Greenland with a bit of Georgian architecture. The climate is so vile - 10 months of winter and 2 months of midges - it sends people mad. This explains why its population has barely budged in a century (whereas England has added 10-20m inhabitants in the same time). It also explains why so many Scots live abroad. Including, er, you.
    Yes Jim, we feel the love.

    image
  • OldKingColeOldKingCole Posts: 31,715

    Good morning

    I do find obsessing about Boris and Carrie relationship rather tedious, and to be fair she had suffered a miscarriage which is a very upsetting event as my own daughter can affirm

    However, turning to happier times my sons wedding to his long term partner yesterday was just perfect and their two children delightful, not least their 7 year old son walking up the aisle in his formal smaller version wedding suit proudly carrying the rings

    The church service was perfect despite covid restrictions on hymn singing, but the organist rendition of one of the hymns in Welsh moved everyone

    The reception in the marquee worked a treat, and it may surprise some but we had guests from Scotland , England and Wales and there was wide consensus that all the politicians should have acted together and the political point scoring between the administrations was simply unacceptable

    No matter, politics was not on the agenda and it was just a happy and joyous day for each and everyone

    Glad you all had a great day. There's nothing like a good wedding, such a lovely hopeful occasion, with family and friends, food, drink and dancing. Emotional too. I am going to be an absolute mess if/when my kids get hitched! Best wishes to your son and daughter in law and all of your family.
    Thank you and I can say with certainty, as all three of our children are now married, that you will experience incredible emotions, but they are the best of all emotions
    Now settle down and prepare to attend the weddings of your grandchildren.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,709
    edited August 2021

    HYUFD said:

    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
    thankfully we should be able to purchase cabbages from Christmas Island, potatoes from Pitcairn Island, asperagus from Australia, tomatoes from Tahiti, (anymore alliterative veg?), once our farming industry goes to the wall.
    It won't go to the wall, there will be great demand in Australia and New Zealand for British chicken and beef and milk and fruit and veg
    Evidence? Seem to recall more than adequate beef when I've been to Aussie; indeed they export it to SE Asia and Japan. New Zealand, as I recall, has excellent, and excellent supplies of milk. Can't imagine that our fruit can compete with theirs, either.
    What you haven't mentioned is that the Aussies were quite keen to replace the sales of wine to China that they've recently lost.
    We also produce our own beef and lamb it may surprise you to know and there are excellent English sparkling wines as well now but no reason consumers both here and in Australia and New Zealand cannot have more choice and removal of tariffs, unless you are anti free trade.

  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 39,138
    RobD said:

    Carnyx said:

    RobD said:

    HYUFD said:

    Liz Truss says the UK is on the verge of a trade deal with New Zealand

    https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1421744617020608513?s=20

    Oh, thank God for that!...We are all saved.....
    More seriously, it is another step towards being accepted into the CPTPP.

    Which will really upset some people, for a fairly obvious reason.
    The only thing outstanding is the small matter of diverting all our trade through the Pitcairns.
    thankfully we should be able to purchase cabbages from Christmas Island, potatoes from Pitcairn Island, asperagus from Australia, tomatoes from Tahiti, (anymore alliterative veg?), once our farming industry goes to the wall.
    Turnips from Tristan da Cunha.
    Has to be in the Pacific unfortunately.
    But it's on the way there!
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,238

    pigeon said:

    pigeon said:

    Not least, the equity markets are long overdue a major correction.

    I see no particular reason why asset prices should nosedive so long as interest rates remain close to zero. If leaving money in the bank means that its value gradually gets inflated away, people who have wealth are always going to want to invest it elsewhere.

    I also see no particular reason why interest rates should rise significantly. Many or most governments, businesses and individuals are more heavily indebted than ever because of the pandemic. What incentive is there for central banks to strangle their economies by cranking up the cost of servicing those debts?
    How sweet. You think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates.

    And “elsewhere” does not have to be equity.
    Actually, yes, I do.

    And there is nowhere else to go, apart from sovereign bonds which will simply serve to continue to depress yields. If, theoretically, everyone tried to pile into property there wouldn't be enough of it in the world to meet the demand.

    Any post-pandemic burst of inflation is liable to be temporary. The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates.
    The future is Japan: low inflation, low growth, rock bottom interest rates…

    … rock bottom reproduction rates, near zero immigration, old and rapidly aging population unable to be supported by shrinking labour pool.

    In other words, an unhealthy society.

    Greens will love the “low growth” bit though.
    Schoolinh result
    But you’re wrong if you think that central banks can indefinitely control interest rates. The real economic truths always fell the proud in the end.
    Isn't Scotland like tgat save for early deaths due to drink and drugs add appalling schooling and a Govt akin to Japan.. almost but not quite twins....
    . .
    Scotland differs from Japan in a multitude of ways, not least of which is the immigration factor. Scotland has a strong flow of immigrants.
    I thought that was surplanted by an even bigger exodus
    Nope.

    Evolution of the population of Scotland 1954–2014. Data from National Records of Scotland 2014.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mid-year_Estimates_of_Scotland's_Population_54-14.png

    1500 500,000
    1600 800,000
    1707 1,000,000
    1755 1,265,380
    1801 1,608,420
    1811 1,805,864
    1821 2,091,521
    1831 2,364,386
    1841 2,620,184
    1851 2,888,742
    1861 3,062,294
    1871 3,360,018
    1881 3,735,578
    1891 4,025,647
    1901 4,472,103
    1911 4,760,904
    1921 4,882,407
    1931 4,842,989
    1939 5,006,700
    1951 5,095,969
    1961 5,179,000
    1971 5,229,000
    1981 5,035,000
    1991 5,083,000
    2001 5,062,000
    2011 5,295,000
    2019 5,463,300
    Hahahaha

    So the population has barely budged from 1971 to 2021? Fifty years???


    In the same period the population of England went from 46 milllion to 56 million. ie England casually added two Scotlands

    Scotland is absolutely beautiful, in parts, if you’re in the right mood, in the right weather. But no one wants to live there. This is just a fact. Awkwardly reinforced by the fact that one of the Scots who chooses not to live there is, er, you
  • MattWMattW Posts: 18,080

    Good morning

    I do find obsessing about Boris and Carrie relationship rather tedious, and to be fair she had suffered a miscarriage which is a very upsetting event as my own daughter can affirm

    However, turning to happier times my sons wedding to his long term partner yesterday was just perfect and their two children delightful, not least their 7 year old son walking up the aisle in his formal smaller version wedding suit proudly carrying the rings

    The church service was perfect despite covid restrictions on hymn singing, but the organist rendition of one of the hymns in Welsh moved everyone

    The reception in the marquee worked a treat, and it may surprise some but we had guests from Scotland , England and Wales and there was wide consensus that all the politicians should have acted together and the political point scoring between the administrations was simply unacceptable

    No matter, politics was not on the agenda and it was just a happy and joyous day for each and everyone

    Glad you all had a great day. There's nothing like a good wedding, such a lovely hopeful occasion, with family and friends, food, drink and dancing. Emotional too. I am going to be an absolute mess if/when my kids get hitched! Best wishes to your son and daughter in law and all of your family.
    Thank you and I can say with certainty, as all three of our children are now married, that you will experience incredible emotions, but they are the best of all emotions
    Time for a Round the World cruise.

    Covid permitting.
  • Good morning

    I do find obsessing about Boris and Carrie relationship rather tedious, and to be fair she had suffered a miscarriage which is a very upsetting event as my own daughter can affirm

    However, turning to happier times my sons wedding to his long term partner yesterday was just perfect and their two children delightful, not least their 7 year old son walking up the aisle in his formal smaller version wedding suit proudly carrying the rings

    The church service was perfect despite covid restrictions on hymn singing, but the organist rendition of one of the hymns in Welsh moved everyone

    The reception in the marquee worked a treat, and it may surprise some but we had guests from Scotland , England and Wales and there was wide consensus that all the politicians should have acted together and the political point scoring between the administrations was simply unacceptable

    No matter, politics was not on the agenda and it was just a happy and joyous day for each and everyone

    Glad you all had a great day. There's nothing like a good wedding, such a lovely hopeful occasion, with family and friends, food, drink and dancing. Emotional too. I am going to be an absolute mess if/when my kids get hitched! Best wishes to your son and daughter in law and all of your family.
    Thank you and I can say with certainty, as all three of our children are now married, that you will experience incredible emotions, but they are the best of all emotions
    Now settle down and prepare to attend the weddings of your grandchildren.
    Indeed though our eldest grandchild is 18 and starts university in September studying Italian and Japanese with a desire to spend time in Japan at some date in the future, so marriage is not on the immediate radar
This discussion has been closed.