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PaddyPower now has a market on which constituency Boris will stand in at #GE2015 .bit.ly/I8PkIO twitter.com/MSmithsonPB/st…
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He'd be very popular in South Yorkshire.
Surprised Padfdy Power haven't put a Liverpool seat on the list.
From one sentence in the Maze to another in Stormont, the guy cant seem to catch a break.
but does he like Teddy Bears?
He was last seen with a ballot box in one hand and a teddy bear in another.
Teddy Bears vote. They also have a high turnout.
Moving to your patch, are the Cllrs all from Southwark? http://www.catherinemcdonald.org.uk/what-people-are-saying/
Yes, they are, there would appear to be 0 local momentum behind her campaign, I'd be very surprised if she won.
1,. I notice that many kickers of points after tries go through the same routine. They stand behind the ball, feet together, crouch slightly, their hands clasped tightly in front of them, looking like they are seriously constipated, and desperately trying to have a dump. Why is this?
2. In rugby league games, during the individual shots after a try, many of the players raise their hands in front, and hook their first fingers together - why is this?
As to players leading out small children in miniature uniforms at the start of a game - that is just creepy.
Now there's the nominations phase. Just candidates with at least 1 nomination (from ward branches and affiliates) can be considered at shortlisting stage.
Its only in the third world ie Latin America where depositors have faced bigger losses in recent times.
your 1. This strange crouching kicking technique was first used by the great England kicker Johny Wilkinson, and is now seemingly universally used. It's a bit like the Fosberry flop in the high jump. You don't have to do it that way, but that seems to be the most effective way.
Kickers all used to have their only individual styles, but now most use the Wilkinson way.
LD 32.6%
Con 23.6%
UKIP 23.2%
Lab 14.1%
Others 6.5%
It's before the watershed! I'm sure Marf can do versions with personalised vices. Mine would be too embarrassing to say.
He could be sure of doing better than Dellingpole did.
Presumably, the Maldives won't be discouraging this type of investment with 40% haircuts on the deposits of Russians on the basis they are probably all gangster scum.
I believe the Super League as a whole and all clubs in it are trying to raise awareness and funds for Joining Jack and the players 'salute' with that symbol.
http://joiningjack.org/menu/competitions/jj-salute.aspx
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-21941395
Expect a rabid rebuttal for each and every time Tory/LibDem/SNP/BNP/Ukip breaks wind.
Ever had the rug being pulled from under you?This guy is an expect in rug-pulling!
Agreed. It is an excellent step but it makes the decision to appoint the former head of such a dysfunctional and disorganised body to a more senior post even more inexplicable.
Ms Homer seems to have left an organisation that was so incapable of doing its job that it now needs to be broken up. Her argument that the problems arose after her departure show, if anything, an even greater lack of awareness and sense of responsibility. I really don't understand this one.
Hopefully the dreadful idea of using agency status to avoid responsibility has now hit its high watermark and will remain in retreat.
Hmmm
"The hotel was so new they didn't have a money-counting machine so two local girls had to stay up til 3am counting the notes."
The above sentence shows how backward the UK is in a simple thing like money-counting machines: so wither our economy? No major bank in london seems to have one on the counter available for the depositor or saver to see. Instead one has to wait for laborious hand counting to end. All the banks in in Europe and most in the middle east do have them, and they are so easy and quick to count and change your money, whatever the currency.
Not sure that is necessarily a good idea. Don't really fancy an even larger mortgage, but clearly something needs to change. The stench of Stagnation is pungent.
The civil servants at UKBA behaved how labour wanted them to behave, just as labour got the civil servants it wanted at the NHS. Token expulsions only.
Interesting point.
Not sure they would be allowed to introduce extra 'runners' after the bet had been struck.
We must ask Tissue Price when he next surfaces.
EDIT: btw, I meant to imply anyway that 1/6 would be value against standing anywhere at the next GE.
I disagree. Civil servants carry out the instructions of their ministers, and I bet that was exactly the case here. The understand was probably something along the lines of 'make it look as if you're doing something, the immigration natives are getting restless'
Us plebs are just stuck in the middle.
Well call me old fashioned if you like but a civil servant who is willing to work on such a basis (even if your hypothesis is true and I always prefer incompetence as an explanation to conspiracy) is not fit to be employed, let alone promoted.
Yes, I noticed that, but I'm still not sure they can do that.
TP's the man.
There used to be a poster on here called Tapestry. Haven't seen him for a while but you 2 would get on famously.
Just remember that if those supposedly organising these conspiracies were half as competent as they would need to be we would have competent administration in this country. The record of the last 50 years suggests otherwise.
I thought senior civil servants have a duty to carry out the instructions of ministers, whether they agree with the instruction or not. They are meant to be unbiased and unpolitical tools of policy. That is their function.
The civil servants at the UKBA were only the tools of labour policy at the time. If you want to blame someone, blame the minister. He has the power.
David alludes to a certain 'Tapestry', once of this parish.
It is not a compliment.
(In fact, if I were you, I'd consult my lawyer.)
Good for Super League - sounds like a worthy cause.
I see Caroline Lucas has decided to cast in her lot with Owen Jones at the People's Front of Judea....
Surprise? significance?
"This is my latest hotel. Huvafen Fushi. It's clientele is 36% Brits, the Russians are the next most frequent visitors.
http://huvafenfushi.peraquum.com/default.aspx"
Even by your standards that looks pretty special.
It is not just London that has gone offshore from the domestic economy; there is a whole new class out there.
Can you answer one for me?
You've seen the kickers in the Six Nations. Most of them are pretty deadly anywhere within 50 yards, despite often having to kick at an angle. Why don't US Football coaches pick some of them up?
I'm not 100% sure what you are referring to but Caroline is a left-wing MP for a left-wing party and I expect (and would profit from) that to remain the case after 2015.
http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/david-blackburn/2013/03/theresa-mays-abolition-of-ukba-shows-how-the-immigration-consensus-favours-the-tories-and-her/
The Brits probably got it at 75% discount on Priceline.
US demographics being what they are, you'd have thought soccer can only get stronger.
" Guess what? It is 95% full. That counts as complete occupancy in hotel world"
Not in my experience it doesn't, at least not in the UK.
A number of years ago, I used to stay a couple of nights a month in a modern well-run hotel in a suburb of Leeds. The hotel which was owned by a major national chain was managed by the brother of a well known celebrity so I won't mention his or the hotel's name.
Over the several months during which I stayed there I got to know this manager well and we'd often share a few drinks in the bar. He was proud of the fact that his hotel had around the highest occupancy rate of any in the group - pushing 105% on a Monday - Friday basis IIRC which baffled me somewhat until he explained that a number of, ahem, "husband and wife" guests would sometimes arrive during the course of the day usually without any luggage, paying for their room on arrival only to depart usually within the hour.
I don't know what happened to the manager in question, but I felt sure he was destined either for promotion for demonstrating enterprise or the sack for running a whore house.
I agree with May that it's better if quangos are inside ministries so the Minister can't say who-me? when things go wrong. That said, we should accept that things do sometimes go wrong, and it takes evidence of systematic failure to make it fair to demand that heads roll.
To reply to AN1 on the last thread - as you say, people tend to judge the NHS by their experience of it, and polls suggest that most patients find the experience positive. It's the voters you need to convince if you want to break up the NHS, not me. But there's a reason why the Tories don't try, and it's not that they all genuinely think the system is wonderful. That's why I was curiuous about UKIP's view. Do they want it broken up and competition to rule?
Bribes are not just about money. Indeed, such non-monetary bribes can be easier to conceal. It may only be a handful, but it would not surprise me in the least if a few of the people around you were staying as part of a bribe.
One for your 'I told you so' dept:
Telegraph going behind a paywall:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/digital-media/9954534/The-Telegraph-subscribe-to-Britains-finest-journalism.html
One for the fop finder general Tim methinks....
Just about everyone has recent experience of the NHS - usually in the form of the GP.
Moans include the booking arrangements, the Receptionists, the opening hours and NOT their experience of the GP themselves, which is almost always positive - or of the nurse who deals with vaccinations and most children's minor medical matters.
They dissociate the medical (good, kind, caring) from the non-medical staff (rude, obstructive).
Few have any experience of overseas medical care, nor ask why we trumpet shorter waiting-times without asking 'Why are there ANY waiting-lists/times AT ALL? (other countries manage to avoid them)'. The uncomfortable answer is that it saves some money that way, even if it also causes increased and avoidable pain and suffering.
Hence they regard the NHS as being A Good Thing, without wondering why their Tesco is open 24/7 (or at least 18/7), whilst their GP's surgery is open for 6hrs or so, 5 days a week (in terms of actually interacting with a GP); the out-of-hours service, which a GP practice used to provide themselves is another instance of Labour's monumental incompetence at management.
Particularly of professionals: school terms were geared to the Christian and farming calendars, yet remain almost immutable, whilst the hours (formerly 9-4, now 9-3ish) were geared around a Mum collecting her child/ren and then calling in at the shops to buy food for family supper when husband got home at 5-6.
None of those constraints apply today - Q. so why are we wedded to them? A - because it suits the employees to do so (ie not the consumers)
While it is a reasonable case that it *may* lead to rising house prices, the Chancellor can't just go out and throw "wills" around just because some journalist wants him to.
"Refuses to admit". PAH!
Another interesting fact is that a large percentage of American footballers are bankrupt within 5 years of retirement. They get treated a lot worse than most other US sports professionals - certainly basketball and baseball players.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-21942995
Not be jingoist about this. I'm genuinely curious.
I really enjoy watching American Football and am suitably impressed by the athletic prowess and professionalism on display - except when it comes to kicking.
I appreciate that the football they use is smaller and more difficult to kick accurately but even so....
Of course a fan could tell you more
@PickardJE: RT @psmith: *** TELEGRAPH LAUNCHES PAYWALL *** online access restricted to paper/tablet subscribers, everyone else gets 20 free http://bit.ly/15QpqQN
For a place kicker it might be good. Depending on how the game goes, you might get off the bench, perform the kick off with the ball on the kicking tee, then go sit down again as few as 2 or 3 times per game. That's your sole contribution to the game. It's a boring living. You don't need accuracy, except to prevent the ball going through the end zone if possible.
Also don't forget that there is a 25 second play clock in the NFL. Taking time to collect yourself is not an option.
Kicking field goals is a very different animal. You pace off your 6 or 8 step drop back with the play clock typically running already. You begin your run when the ball is snapped, something over which the kicker has no control. When you start your run the ball isn't visible, merely the holder's finger on the ground where the ball will be. The ball will arrive a split second before your foot contacts it. It's a question of holder and kicker working together day after day to get the timing down.
Kicking in the NFL is a completely different skill than in rugby, or soccer for that matter. A few have made the transition, but not that many.
Regarding somebody's comment regarding salaries - for 2013 the MINIMUM salary of an NFL player is $405,000. This rises to a minimum of $630,000 in their 3rd year.
So even a rookie kicker warming the bench all day will get at least $405k in his first season, and a 50% bounce over the next 3.
Also remember of course, that if a field goal kicker misses 4-5 kicks in a row, or generally doesn't have a 75% or higher average, he will be released by the team and replaced. Most kickers tend to have been with several teams.
Field goal kickers have a high pressure job. If you miss the kick, other players will stay away from you, and it's very lonely.
That's why I was curiuous about UKIP's view. Do they want it broken up and competition to rule?
It's on their website and the answer would seem to be neither. Their answer is devolution.
http://www.ukip.org/content/ukip-policies/2843-health-ukip-policy#
See, I KNEW a fan would know more
From the Eurozone. This time Spain.
The Bank of Spain expects the Spanish economy to register a larger contraction than the current government forecast.
The Spanish central bank said that the economy will contract by 1.5% this year and only expand in 2014 by 0.6%.
This forecast compares with government estimates of only a 0.5% drop in 2013, with stronger growth of 1.2% for next year.
The bank also said it expects Spain's deficit to moderate to 6.0% of gross domestic product this year and only decrease to 5.9% in 2014.
Unemployment is also estimated to reach no less than 27.1% in 2013 before a slight decrease to 26.8% in 2014. The government forecast was for 24.3% and 23.3%, respectively.
Even though Spain's deficit forecasts are better than those of the UK, we should all thank our Gods that we have George in control over here.
4. Restore traditional nursing, especially the non-university-trained State Enrolled Nurses or equivalent.
Hmm where have I heard that recently.....?
Paul Thorburn (Welsh rugby kicker) trained with an American football team in the 80s and he was pretty hopeless - he played in the American Bowl exhibition game at Wembley. They let him kick-off and his kick was about 20 yards short of where it should have been and after that the coach didn't let him have another go.
It is always risky to disaggregate single factors. Moreover, I'm not the Chancellor and so the public statements that I make may have less impact on the market.
Anyone - given that you have repeatedly said that high house prices are a problem for the economy, why would you want the Chancellor to stand up and say something that will be reported as "Chancellor says house prices will rise" and could lead to a self-reinforcing trend? Far better for him to say nothing.
Thanks TimB. Very helpful.
I dimly recall from the early days of Channel 4's coverage of the sport here that there was an English kicker (John Smith?) who played successfully for a few seasons with the Patriots. The story went that a US coach on holiday in the UK had seen him playing soccer for Torquay (or some similarly modest outfit) and recruited him for a trial. It went well and the young man was suddenly earning the kind of salary that would have made even the top soccer stars envious.
I always thought that if he could do it, so could plenty of others - and particularly those playing Rugby rather than Association football.
Obviously John Smith adapted pretty well, and maybe he had some rare talent, but all the same I have always thought US coaches might be missing a trick by not scouting more around the soccer leagues of Europe.
But I do appreciate the kind of differences and difficulties you highlight.
" Surely a lot of those people would be young people living with their parents or married people having affairs."
I feel sure that in most instances that was precisely the case - I was merely spicing up the story somewhat!
Those days are long gone. Today, bereft of both wit and ambition, the shuffling zombie movement that passes for the Left no longer calls for full employment, or a "great production", or the right of men to hunt and read to their heart's content (hunting is evil, right?). Instead it demands, or rather pleads for, the protection of the welfare state from government cuts. That's it.
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/brendanoneill2/100209116/what-self-respecting-member-of-the-working-class-would-sign-up-for-the-patronising-zombified-peoples-assembly/
You're entitled to disagree, obviously, but you can see that parties are reluctant openly to criticise what is arguably our one really popular national institution apart from the monarchy (which, in a precise mirror image, Labour doesn't try to attack, even if we're not really persuaded it's a brilliant idea).
Noted with thanks, Mike.
Yes, I remember Thorburn, but was unaware of the American football connection.