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I am shocked by this poll finding – politicalbetting.com

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  • WhisperingOracleWhisperingOracle Posts: 9,855
    edited August 2021
    Cookie said:

    OK, I'll have a go at this.
    When I was a child, we often went on holiday to Scotland. My first four summer holidays were to the Isle of Arran. Scotland felt more part of my life than the South of England. Scotland never felt abroad - the banknotes were a novelty but that was all. I had a board game called the Great Game of Britain - I've mentioned it before - and it was about my country, not my country and a few others. I liked that I was part of a country that included the Highlands of Scotland and Edinburgh* as well as the Lake District, Devon, the Peak District, Snowdonia ( to use just my own childhood mental geography of Great Britain).

    I miss that.

    Of course, on one level it doesn't matter. Liking somewhere doesn't mean a political union with it is a good idea. Scotland isn't going anywhere. It's not going to be any more difficult to go on holiday there after independence. But a country is more than a convenience, it's a shared idea and a shared ideal. My mother is Scottish, my grandmother was very Scottish indeed. I grew up British first, then English.

    That's gone now sadly. I feel English, rather than British. Maybe Britishness never existed anyway outside of England but before 1998 the English didn't realise it. I don't blame the Scots - their identity is their choice - but even Scots unionists don't really believe in country called Britain, they believe in a country called Scotland whose interests are best served by a union with England and Wales. Meanwhile Scots nationalists seem to hold the same view of the UK that many on the Labour left have of Israel.

    But I do miss the national identity I grew up with.

    *It's always the nice bits people focus on isn't it? No unionists in England are dreamily thinking of Livingston when they extol the virtues of the Union, just as Remainers tend to wistfully think of Venice and Barcelona and rarely Nancy or Bochum.
    I feel more specifically British than I ever did growing up, speaking personally. There's very much more of a more positive English identity out there to be developed, but I don't personally find it in the currently more common, more reactive and angry strains of Englishness.
  • DougSealDougSeal Posts: 12,639
    Any chance we can move on from the foundational debates about Scottish Independence for a bit? No? Okay. Just asking.
  • kinabalukinabalu Posts: 44,291
    IshmaelZ said:

    I really cannot imagine what loving a country would feel like. I think there's a lot in the adage, Never love anything that isn't capable of loving you back.
    Well that's an interesting point. What do people who say they "love" their country actually mean by it? Could be a benign sort of thing, or it could be a bit yucky. Depends.
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 72,817
    Carnyx said:

    At least you have tried. And all the more credit.

    interestingly, the Labour argument would give far more importance to Livingston - that a working class person in Livingston has everything in common with one in, say, Luton, and far more so than with, say, a Scottish Tory.

    Also - the Scottish Tories were a separate party up to about 1955 - the Unionist Party - but that was Union with Ireland as much as England. Still, that nicely illustrates your thesis.
    Until 1965 actually. They merged with the main Conservative party at the same time as the Liberal Nationals.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unionist_Party_(Scotland)
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 72,817
    Cookie said:

    Off thread: currently sitting in Bodmin Minor Injuries unit after youngest daughter sliced her foot open quite horribly on something sharp in Polzeath beach. It had all been going so well: middle daughter and I had been in the sea, swimming and dodging the waves and were busy constructing channels on the sand; oldest daughter just off to mooch around the no-longer-massively-restricted shops with wife, youngest daughter had made several new friends among the rock pools, when suddenly a scream of anguish and much blood. So much blood. A very nice man from the RNLI patched her up well enough to get her up to the car and then a 45 minute drive to Bodmin.
    I've never been to such a quiet, tiny hospital. But it's very nice.
    Broadly confident they'll patch her together and we'll be out there again to orrow, though perhaps more cautiously shod.

    Ooof. Sorry to hear that. Hope her foot is OK and there’s no interruption to the holiday.
  • turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 18,316
    Cookie said:

    Off thread: currently sitting in Bodmin Minor Injuries unit after youngest daughter sliced her foot open quite horribly on something sharp in Polzeath beach. It had all been going so well: middle daughter and I had been in the sea, swimming and dodging the waves and were busy constructing channels on the sand; oldest daughter just off to mooch around the no-longer-massively-restricted shops with wife, youngest daughter had made several new friends among the rock pools, when suddenly a scream of anguish and much blood. So much blood. A very nice man from the RNLI patched her up well enough to get her up to the car and then a 45 minute drive to Bodmin.
    I've never been to such a quiet, tiny hospital. But it's very nice.
    Broadly confident they'll patch her together and we'll be out there again to orrow, though perhaps more cautiously shod.

    Ouch - sympathies to you both. When I was about 8 or 9 I broke my leg before a Devon holiday. Apparently I spent the holiday on the beach with a full plaster cast wrapped in a bun bag to keep it dry...
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 44,586
    DougSeal said:

    Any chance we can move on from the foundational debates about Scottish Independence for a bit? No? Okay. Just asking.

    It's actually been quite interesting, because of the point made by Foxy. The implication is: if you don't accept referenda on demand as a means of change then you have to accept parliamentary representation. At what point does refusal fo a referendum force acceptance of the SNP majority at Westminster as automatic start to negotiations for independence implementation?

    Yet under the so-called constitution no government or parliament at Westminster can bind its successors (except in the case of external treaties, etc.). So there is at the same time a clear time limit for any government's refusal of a referendum.

    The two aren't easily reconciled.
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 42,956
    IshmaelZ said:


    I really cannot imagine what loving a country would feel like. I think there's a lot in the adage, Never love anything that isn't capable of loving you back.

    I'm a convert to the idea of areas/cities/neigbourhoods/streets/islands etc being unmistakably their own place and I love some of them for sure, get that sort of electric shock I used to get occasionally when seeing a much adored woman. Countries are maybe a bit too big and unwieldy for that sort of thing. As for unitary states..
  • DougSealDougSeal Posts: 12,639
    Cookie said:

    Off thread: currently sitting in Bodmin Minor Injuries unit after youngest daughter sliced her foot open quite horribly on something sharp in Polzeath beach. It had all been going so well: middle daughter and I had been in the sea, swimming and dodging the waves and were busy constructing channels on the sand; oldest daughter just off to mooch around the no-longer-massively-restricted shops with wife, youngest daughter had made several new friends among the rock pools, when suddenly a scream of anguish and much blood. So much blood. A very nice man from the RNLI patched her up well enough to get her up to the car and then a 45 minute drive to Bodmin.
    I've never been to such a quiet, tiny hospital. But it's very nice.
    Broadly confident they'll patch her together and we'll be out there again to orrow, though perhaps more cautiously shod.

    Ouch! Sorry to hear that. Hope the rest of your holiday is a good one!
  • malcolmgmalcolmg Posts: 43,907
    ydoethur said:

    ‘Explode’ would have sufficed, Malc.
    Why would I explode , I either enjoy lower taxation or move house.
  • MattWMattW Posts: 25,681
    Evening all.

    Bizarre first world problem story at the BBC.
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-58129253
  • malcolmg said:

    Fat chance of that ever happening, despite the unionist fantasies, absolutely no part of Scotland will become English when independence occurs. More likely Northern England would want to join Scotland.
    Northern England and the English border counties will do very well at the expense of Scots investment and jobs
  • CandyCandy Posts: 51
    edited August 2021
    kinabalu said:



    Consider the PB mirror image of what I'm talking about in Leon and others. That would be me - an English Remainer with little time for emotional Sovereignty arguments - feeling antagonistically opposed to the arguments for the Union put forward by Scottish posters such as DavidL and LostPassword.

    You are not getting the arguments put forward by them because you are English.

    In other words it's because there is no jeopardy for you, because you are English and are unaffected by Scottish independence.

    Here is an analogy: lots of English Remainers are "certain" that Northern Ireland will vote for a unified Ireland "because Brexit".

    When you ask them, "Would you vote to abolish the NHS?", they indignantly reply with a resounding No.

    But they assume that the Northern Irish are so in love with the EU that they'd vote to give up the NHS and pay 50 euros per GP visit and 750 euros per hospital stay. In reality even the catholic Northern Irish won't vote for that. Nobody loves Ursula von der Leyen enough to introduce that kind of jeopardy into their lives.

    It's similar for the Scots. Despite professed love for the EU and admiration for VdL, they couldn't bring themselves to dice with death and reject AZ to help her crusade against that company. If they loved the EU and hated the UK with a purple passion, they'd put up with austerity to ensure their economy and currency was viable post independence. But they won't do that either - too much jeopardy. They could have given the SNP a resounding majority to force another ref, but they refused to do that either. Too risky.

    You see?
  • malcolmgmalcolmg Posts: 43,907
    edited August 2021
    IshmaelZ said:

    They sound a bit bleugh. Vanilla vodka? Passion fruit puree?

    The dirty martini is a permitted drink.
    I had a sip and it tasted very pleasant.
    PS: I do agree the Dirty one would be better
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 44,586
    Candy said:

    You are not getting the arguments put forward by them because you are English.

    In other words it's because there is no jeopardy for you, because you are English and are unaffected by Scottish independence.

    Here is an analogy: lots of English Remainers are "certain" that Northern Ireland will vote for a unified Ireland "because Brexit".

    When you ask them, "Would you vote to abolish the NHS?", they indignantly reply with a resounding No.

    But they assume that the Northern Irish are so in love with the EU that they'd vote to give up the NHS and pay 50 euros per GP visit and 750 euros per hospital stay. In reality even the catholic Northern Irish won't vote for that. Nobody loves Ursula von der Leyen enough to introduce that kind of jeopardy into their lives.

    It's similar for the Scots. Despite professed love for the EU and admiration for VdL, they couldn't bring themselves to dice with death and reject AZ to help her crusade against that company. If they loved the EU and hated the UK with a purple passion, they'd put up with austerity to ensure their economy and currency was viable post independence. But they won't do that either - too much jeopardy. They could have given the SNP a resounding majority to force another ref, but they refused to do that either. Too risky.

    You see?
    Buit the Scots did vote a substantial majoroty at Holyrood to force another referendum. You need to include the Scottish Greens as well.

    And the choice of vaccine was entirely up to the medics - one just took what they had/recommended. Nothijng to do with EU internal politics.
  • WhisperingOracleWhisperingOracle Posts: 9,855
    edited August 2021
    DougSeal said:

    Ouch! Sorry to hear that. Hope the rest of your holiday is a good one!
    Yes indeed, ditto. It always makes me particularly angry when there's something that doesn't belong polluting and disfiguring beaches, and to be as hazardous as injuring is even worse.
  • malcolmgmalcolmg Posts: 43,907
    Candy said:

    You are not getting the arguments put forward by them because you are English.

    In other words it's because there is no jeopardy for you, because you are English and are unaffected by Scottish independence.

    Here is an analogy: lots of English Remainers are "certain" that Northern Ireland will vote for a unified Ireland "because Brexit".

    When you ask them, "Would you vote to abolish the NHS?", they indignantly reply with a resounding No.

    But they assume that the Northern Irish are so in love with the EU that they'd vote to give up the NHS and pay 50 euros per GP visit and 750 euros per hospital stay. In reality even the catholic Northern Irish won't vote for that. Nobody loves Ursula von der Leyen enough to introduce that kind of jeopardy into their lives.

    It's similar for the Scots. Despite professed love for the EU and admiration for VdL, they couldn't bring themselves to dice with death and reject AZ to help her crusade against that company. If they loved the EU and hated the UK with a purple passion, they'd put up with austerity to ensure their economy and currency was viable post independence. But they won't do that either - too much jeopardy. They could have given the SNP a resounding majority to force another ref, but they refused to do that either. Too risky.

    You see?
    Definitely a bona fide nutjob
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,552
    kinabalu said:

    Well that's an interesting point. What do people who say they "love" their country actually mean by it? Could be a benign sort of thing, or it could be a bit yucky. Depends.
    I think we need @casino on this one
  • DougSeal said:

    Any chance we can move on from the foundational debates about Scottish Independence for a bit? No? Okay. Just asking.

    To be honest it is very polarised and tedious.

    Furthermore, indyref2 will not happen before GE 24 for many reasons, not least the HOC ex the SNP and Plaid would veto it

    It is a constitutional issue that will continue for years to come and will be ever more an issue for Scotland as business investors decide it is just too uncertain to commit millions/billions to the Scots economy
  • stodgestodge Posts: 14,277
    IshmaelZ said:


    I really cannot imagine what loving a country would feel like. I think there's a lot in the adage, Never love anything that isn't capable of loving you back.

    If I were a bluff old cynic, I'd imagine their "love" is qualified by their support for the existing Government and its policies.

    Would this "love" be so evident if Jeremy Corbyn were Prime Minister and instigating his Labour policies even if that meant keeping the UK "together" ?

    Just a thought.
  • malcolmgmalcolmg Posts: 43,907

    Northern England and the English border counties will do very well at the expense of Scots investment and jobs
    More bollox
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 72,817
    Gordon bloody Bennet.

    Where do they dig these imbeciles up?

    Afghanistan troop withdrawal a strategic mistake, warns ex-general
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58139590

    (No, not that, which is perfectly reasonable. It’s this.)

    A UK Government spokeswoman said: "We recognise that the security situation in Afghanistan is serious, and reports of the escalating violence are extremely disturbing.

    We do not believe there is any military solution to Afghanistan's conflict, and call on the Taliban to end their campaign of violence and engage in meaningful dialogue with the Afghan government.

    There needs to be a negotiated solution to ensure a lasting peace."’


    How could anyone spout BS like that with a straight face?

    Whatever the reasons for our withdrawal from Afghanistan, it should have been recognised and understood that in doing so the country was being handed back to the Taleban.
  • malcolmg said:

    More bollox
    Hi Malc.

    Glad you enjoyed your lunch and hope you have a very pleasant evening

    All the best
  • malcolmgmalcolmg Posts: 43,907
    ydoethur said:

    Until 1965 actually. They merged with the main Conservative party at the same time as the Liberal Nationals.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unionist_Party_(Scotland)
    There is no Scottish Tory party , they are an offshoot and part of the London Tory party , aka labour.
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,552
    edited August 2021

    I'm a convert to the idea of areas/cities/neigbourhoods/streets/islands etc being unmistakably their own place and I love some of them for sure, get that sort of electric shock I used to get occasionally when seeing a much adored woman. Countries are maybe a bit too big and unwieldy for that sort of thing. As for unitary states..
    As I think John Keegan described one soldier putting it: I didn't join the army I joined the 10th Hussars. And indeed the army is founded upon small identifiable units. You fight for your mates not the greater good.

    A "country" is as you say just too big to handle practically.
  • Omnium said:

    Actually I passed a chap in the street yesterday. I'd guess he was Sri-Lankan or thereabouts in origin. Anyway he had a great moustache.

    Did your chin look like you recalled after 30y?
    Why Sri Lankan, rather than Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi?
  • CandyCandy Posts: 51
    Carnyx said:



    And the choice of vaccine was entirely up to the medics - one just took what they had/recommended. Nothijng to do with EU internal politics.

    You had the choice to reject the vaccine and stay unvaccinated.,

    If you love the EU and Ursula von der Leyen beyond everything, you'd be prepared to put your life on the line to help her crusade against AZ and against perfidious Brexit Britain.

    But it turns out Scots didn't really love the EU enough to make sacrifices of that sort...
  • Northern_AlNorthern_Al Posts: 8,710
    Candy said:

    You are not getting the arguments put forward by them because you are English.

    In other words it's because there is no jeopardy for you, because you are English and are unaffected by Scottish independence.

    Here is an analogy: lots of English Remainers are "certain" that Northern Ireland will vote for a unified Ireland "because Brexit".

    When you ask them, "Would you vote to abolish the NHS?", they indignantly reply with a resounding No.

    But they assume that the Northern Irish are so in love with the EU that they'd vote to give up the NHS and pay 50 euros per GP visit and 750 euros per hospital stay. In reality even the catholic Northern Irish won't vote for that. Nobody loves Ursula von der Leyen enough to introduce that kind of jeopardy into their lives.

    It's similar for the Scots. Despite professed love for the EU and admiration for VdL, they couldn't bring themselves to dice with death and reject AZ to help her crusade against that company. If they loved the EU and hated the UK with a purple passion, they'd put up with austerity to ensure their economy and currency was viable post independence. But they won't do that either - too much jeopardy. They could have given the SNP a resounding majority to force another ref, but they refused to do that either. Too risky.

    You see?
    What a pile of pompous piffle.

    There aren't "lots of English remainers" that are "certain" that NI would vote for a unified Ireland - certainly not for many years. Source?

    Your obsession with VdL is just bizarre, as is the incoherent argument about the AZ vaccine.
  • kinabalukinabalu Posts: 44,291
    Candy said:

    You are not getting the arguments put forward by them because you are English.

    In other words it's because there is no jeopardy for you, because you are English and are unaffected by Scottish independence.

    Here is an analogy: lots of English Remainers are "certain" that Northern Ireland will vote for a unified Ireland "because Brexit".

    When you ask them, "Would you vote to abolish the NHS?", they indignantly reply with a resounding No.

    But they assume that the Northern Irish are so in love with the EU that they'd vote to give up the NHS and pay 50 euros per GP visit and 750 euros per hospital stay. In reality even the catholic Northern Irish won't vote for that. Nobody loves Ursula von der Leyen enough to introduce that kind of jeopardy into their lives.

    It's similar for the Scots. Despite professed love for the EU and admiration for VdL, they couldn't bring themselves to dice with death and reject AZ to help her crusade against that company. If they loved the EU and hated the UK with a purple passion, they'd put up with austerity to ensure their economy and currency was viable post independence. But they won't do that either - too much jeopardy. They could have given the SNP a resounding majority to force another ref, but they refused to do that either. Too risky.

    You see?
    I do see - what I see is you rather not seeing what I'm typing out and posting. Eg I'm not saying the Scots love the EU and will vote for Sindy. In fact, right now, I'd make No the fav if the vote happens.

    And your 1st sentence is the very opposite of what I said. I said that I DO get the pro-union arguments put forward by pro-union Scottish posters. I'm not antagonistic towards them.

    Cf the English Leavers who ARE antagonistic towards anti-union Scottish posters. That is my very point! That's what I'm saying I don't get.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 97,999
    ydoethur said:

    Gordon bloody Bennet.

    Where do they dig these imbeciles up?

    Afghanistan troop withdrawal a strategic mistake, warns ex-general
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58139590

    (No, not that, which is perfectly reasonable. It’s this.)

    A UK Government spokeswoman said: "We recognise that the security situation in Afghanistan is serious, and reports of the escalating violence are extremely disturbing.

    We do not believe there is any military solution to Afghanistan's conflict, and call on the Taliban to end their campaign of violence and engage in meaningful dialogue with the Afghan government.

    There needs to be a negotiated solution to ensure a lasting peace."’


    How could anyone spout BS like that with a straight face?

    Whatever the reasons for our withdrawal from Afghanistan, it should have been recognised and understood that in doing so the country was being handed back to the Taleban.

    I'm sure it was recognised and understood, they just won't say it.

    I don't know why anyone would work in government PR, it seems soul destroying. As you say, calling on the winning side to stop winning is just idiotic to say.
  • CookieCookie Posts: 14,617
    kinabalu said:

    Well that's an interesting point. What do people who say they "love" their country actually mean by it? Could be a benign sort of thing, or it could be a bit yucky. Depends.
    I love my country.
    I like many other countries. I could happily gaze out on Lake Garda for hours, I marvel at Prague or Amsterdam, I am exhilarated by the endless woods of North America. But I don't love them for they are not mine; they are not home.
    But give me the view of Lancashire from Rivington Pike, or Cheshire from Shutlingsloe, or Sheffield as you come in from the Peak District, or the soft undulations of Devon, or the Yorkshire Dales, or any view at all in the Lake District, and it is genuine lump-in-the-throat stuff.
    I used to often visit relatives in southern Spain. That moment when the plane descended through the clouds above Manchester Airport - the green, GREEN, fields - so very green, after a week in Spain - the neat suburbs, the wonderful familiarity - if that feeling wasn't love I don't know what it was.
    And it's not just geography. I love so much about England. Pubs. Comedy. The font on our road signs. Old fashioned road signs. The English English language. Cricket. Rugby. Most of our accents; the cadence to British speech. Baked goods. Real ale. Mild sarcasm. I love my country.
    As I said before my country used to be Britain. My relationship with Scotland is more guarded nowadays. The view from Stirling Castle still stirs, but is it mine any more? Probably not. As someone alluded upthread, Scotland no longer loves me back.
    There are gradations within England too of course. The North West and the Pennines arouse my love most of all; Sussex and Kent, on the other hand, lovely are they are, do not I flame the same emotions - they are English, but far from home in land and in accent.
    That is what it means to me to love my country. I don't think these feelings are anything strange or anything that needs anypartocular justification. I don't feel any moral superiority to be English. I just feel extremely fortunate. But I'm sure a French man or a Bulgarian could articulate an altogether equivalent set of emotions for their own country.
  • Northern_AlNorthern_Al Posts: 8,710
    edited August 2021
    Cookie said:

    I love my country.
    I like many other countries. I could happily gaze out on Lake Garda for hours, I marvel at Prague or Amsterdam, I am exhilarated by the endless woods of North America. But I don't love them for they are not mine; they are not home.
    But give me the view of Lancashire from Rivington Pike, or Cheshire from Shutlingsloe, or Sheffield as you come in from the Peak District, or the soft undulations of Devon, or the Yorkshire Dales, or any view at all in the Lake District, and it is genuine lump-in-the-throat stuff.
    I used to often visit relatives in southern Spain. That moment when the plane descended through the clouds above Manchester Airport - the green, GREEN, fields - so very green, after a week in Spain - the neat suburbs, the wonderful familiarity - if that feeling wasn't love I don't know what it was.
    And it's not just geography. I love so much about England. Pubs. Comedy. The font on our road signs. Old fashioned road signs. The English English language. Cricket. Rugby. Most of our accents; the cadence to British speech. Baked goods. Real ale. Mild sarcasm. I love my country.
    As I said before my country used to be Britain. My relationship with Scotland is more guarded nowadays. The view from Stirling Castle still stirs, but is it mine any more? Probably not. As someone alluded upthread, Scotland no longer loves me back.
    There are gradations within England too of course. The North West and the Pennines arouse my love most of all; Sussex and Kent, on the other hand, lovely are they are, do not I flame the same emotions - they are English, but far from home in land and in accent.
    That is what it means to me to love my country. I don't think these feelings are anything strange or anything that needs anypartocular justification. I don't feel any moral superiority to be English. I just feel extremely fortunate. But I'm sure a French man or a Bulgarian could articulate an altogether equivalent set of emotions for their own country.
    You are John Major and I claim my £5. :) (Though you forgot to mention the maids cycling to church or whatever it was he said).
  • mwadamsmwadams Posts: 3,767
    kle4 said:

    I'm sure it was recognised and understood, they just won't say it.

    I don't know why anyone would work in government PR, it seems soul destroying. As you say, calling on the winning side to stop winning is just idiotic to say.
    They are incapable of admitting that we have been beaten. Not militarily, of course. We could've carried on bleeding people and resources in Afghanistan for as long as we were prepared to do so. But that's the point. The Taliban only had to hang on until we lost the will to continue. And that is what has happened.
  • IanB2IanB2 Posts: 50,822
    Cookie said:

    I love my country.
    I like many other countries. I could happily gaze out on Lake Garda for hours, I marvel at Prague or Amsterdam, I am exhilarated by the endless woods of North America. But I don't love them for they are not mine; they are not home.
    But give me the view of Lancashire from Rivington Pike, or Cheshire from Shutlingsloe, or Sheffield as you come in from the Peak District, or the soft undulations of Devon, or the Yorkshire Dales, or any view at all in the Lake District, and it is genuine lump-in-the-throat stuff.
    I used to often visit relatives in southern Spain. That moment when the plane descended through the clouds above Manchester Airport - the green, GREEN, fields - so very green, after a week in Spain - the neat suburbs, the wonderful familiarity - if that feeling wasn't love I don't know what it was.
    And it's not just geography. I love so much about England. Pubs. Comedy. The font on our road signs. Old fashioned road signs. The English English language. Cricket. Rugby. Most of our accents; the cadence to British speech. Baked goods. Real ale. Mild sarcasm. I love my country.
    As I said before my country used to be Britain. My relationship with Scotland is more guarded nowadays. The view from Stirling Castle still stirs, but is it mine any more? Probably not. As someone alluded upthread, Scotland no longer loves me back.
    There are gradations within England too of course. The North West and the Pennines arouse my love most of all; Sussex and Kent, on the other hand, lovely are they are, do not I flame the same emotions - they are English, but far from home in land and in accent.
    That is what it means to me to love my country. I don't think these feelings are anything strange or anything that needs anypartocular justification. I don't feel any moral superiority to be English. I just feel extremely fortunate. But I'm sure a French man or a Bulgarian could articulate an altogether equivalent set of emotions for their own country.
    Indeed. People feel homesick for objectively godawful parts of the world. It must be some sort of evolutionary defence mechanism, allowing us to populate the entire planet rather than all trying to live around the Mediterranean.
  • OmniumOmnium Posts: 11,313

    Why Sri Lankan, rather than Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi?
    Just my guess. A certain elegance.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 97,999
    mwadams said:

    They are incapable of admitting that we have been beaten. Not militarily, of course. We could've carried on bleeding people and resources in Afghanistan for as long as we were prepared to do so. But that's the point. The Taliban only had to hang on until we lost the will to continue. And that is what has happened.
    Vietnam redux?
  • YoungTurkYoungTurk Posts: 158
    ydoethur said:

    Gordon bloody Bennet.

    Where do they dig these imbeciles up?

    Afghanistan troop withdrawal a strategic mistake, warns ex-general
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58139590

    (No, not that, which is perfectly reasonable. It’s this.)

    A UK Government spokeswoman said: "We recognise that the security situation in Afghanistan is serious, and reports of the escalating violence are extremely disturbing.

    We do not believe there is any military solution to Afghanistan's conflict, and call on the Taliban to end their campaign of violence and engage in meaningful dialogue with the Afghan government.

    There needs to be a negotiated solution to ensure a lasting peace."’


    How could anyone spout BS like that with a straight face?

    Whatever the reasons for our withdrawal from Afghanistan, it should have been recognised and understood that in doing so the country was being handed back to the Taleban.

    Having lost the war against Afghanistan (I can't follow the BBC line of saying "the Taleban" are taking territory from "the Afghans"), perhaps the USG is getting ready to celebrate next month's 20th anniversary of the abolition of Vietnam Syndrome by "winning the battle" by carpet-bombing the sh** out of the country on their way out. It looks like "helicopter skids" time too. I wonder which embassy all the diplomats will assemble in this time...
  • TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 43,552
    ydoethur said:

    Gordon bloody Bennet.

    Where do they dig these imbeciles up?

    Afghanistan troop withdrawal a strategic mistake, warns ex-general
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58139590

    (No, not that, which is perfectly reasonable. It’s this.)

    A UK Government spokeswoman said: "We recognise that the security situation in Afghanistan is serious, and reports of the escalating violence are extremely disturbing.

    We do not believe there is any military solution to Afghanistan's conflict, and call on the Taliban to end their campaign of violence and engage in meaningful dialogue with the Afghan government.

    There needs to be a negotiated solution to ensure a lasting peace."’


    How could anyone spout BS like that with a straight face?

    Whatever the reasons for our withdrawal from Afghanistan, it should have been recognised and understood that in doing so the country was being handed back to the Taleban.

    Military strategist also I see.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    Carnyx said:

    Er, you're forgetting that the Scottish Greens also had an independence referendum in their manifesto and that there is therefore a comfortable majority at Holyrood with the SNP for another referendum. As there is in the Scottish MPs.

    And Yes polling latest is higher than in 2014, not lower. (Ignoring HYUFD's various interpretations.)
    They’re not “forgetting”. They are intentionally trying to mislead. The problem is that it is very transparent.
  • squareroot2squareroot2 Posts: 6,975
    IanB2 said:

    Indeed. People feel homesick for objectively godawful parts of the world. It must be some sort of evolutionary defence mechanism, allowing us to populate the entire planet rather than all trying to live around the Mediterranean.
    You wont feel homesick when you see the Hundred on tv.. you will just feel sick.
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 42,956
    kle4 said:

    Vietnam redux?
    Or S***land?
  • CookieCookie Posts: 14,617
    Carnyx said:

    At least you have tried. And all the more credit.

    interestingly, the Labour argument would give far more importance to Livingston - that a working class person in Livingston has everything in common with one in, say, Luton, and far more so than with, say, a Scottish Tory.

    Also - the Scottish Tories were a separate party up to about 1955 - the Unionist Party - but that was Union with Ireland as much as England. Still, that nicely illustrates your thesis.
    Well that's an interesting point - perhaps once upon a time the Labour Party would have seen the identity of a working class person from Luton to be equivalent to that of one from Livingston - just as a Tory would have seen a middle class person from Cheadle as sharing the same interests as one from Newton Mearns. But since the 90s the Labour Party pushed the angle that the identity of the working class person from Livinsgton was Scottish, and that he was being ill-served by being in a unitary state (which was often governed by the Conservatives) - and thus a Scottish Parliament was necessary. And we all know what happened as a result.
  • MexicanpeteMexicanpete Posts: 30,501
    .
    ydoethur said:

    Gordon bloody Bennet.

    Where do they dig these imbeciles up?

    Afghanistan troop withdrawal a strategic mistake, warns ex-general
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58139590

    (No, not that, which is perfectly reasonable. It’s this.)

    A UK Government spokeswoman said: "We recognise that the security situation in Afghanistan is serious, and reports of the escalating violence are extremely disturbing.

    We do not believe there is any military solution to Afghanistan's conflict, and call on the Taliban to end their campaign of violence and engage in meaningful dialogue with the Afghan government.

    There needs to be a negotiated solution to ensure a lasting peace."’


    How could anyone spout BS like that with a straight face?

    Whatever the reasons for our withdrawal from Afghanistan, it should have been recognised and understood that in doing so the country was being handed back to the Taleban.

    Asking the Taliban to end their campaign of violence is rather a quaint, if somewhat naive and overly optimistic request.

    Still, if one doesn't ask...
  • squareroot2squareroot2 Posts: 6,975

    .

    Asking the Taliban to end their campaign of violence is rather a quaint, if somewhat naive and overly optimistic request.

    Still, if one doesn't ask...
    Its bullshit speak..
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 72,817
    kle4 said:

    I'm sure it was recognised and understood, they just won't say it.

    I don't know why anyone would work in government PR, it seems soul destroying. As you say, calling on the winning side to stop winning is just idiotic to say.
    The problem is not that they can’t say it, it’s that they’ve said something demonstrably untrue.

    There is an obvious military solution to Afghanistan’s current situation. A total Taleban victory. Which, to judge from the last 72 hours, is what is about to happen.

    The fact that it is a very bad solution indeed for everyone other than the mullahs of the Taleban isn’t a military problem.

    I’m in a difficult situation here because I never thought we should have invaded in 2001 anyway. I didn’t see what we could achieve or how we could achieve it.

    And unfortunately, after twenty years of fighting that has cost thousands of lives, damaged Afghanistan further, and spread instability into other countries around, we’re back where we started.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 97,999
    ydoethur said:

    The problem is not that they can’t say it, it’s that they’ve said something demonstrably untrue.

    There is an obvious military solution to Afghanistan’s current situation. A total Taleban victory. Which, to judge from the last 72 hours, is what is about to happen.

    The fact that it is a very bad solution indeed for everyone other than the mullahs of the Taleban isn’t a military problem.

    I’m in a difficult situation here because I never thought we should have invaded in 2001 anyway. I didn’t see what we could achieve or how we could achieve it.

    And unfortunately, after twenty years of fighting that has cost thousands of lives, damaged Afghanistan further, and spread instability into other countries around, we’re back where we started.
    Not at al. Now they play cricket.
  • IanB2IanB2 Posts: 50,822
    There has been a lot of rainfall in a short amount of time, creating localised flooding events rather than it being a wet period.

    The worst-hit places were the City of London, which has had 143 per cent of its average rainfall this summer, the Isle of Wight with 174 per cent of its average summer rainfall, and Surrey with 126 per cent.

    [Met Office] Ms Mitchell believes the Isle of Wight will only get rainier and imagines the percentage will be “much higher by the end of summer”.

    By comparison, Scotland has only has 38 per cent of its average rainfall and Ms Mitchell said “a few northern areas have been much, much drier”.
  • CandyCandy Posts: 51
    ydoethur said:



    Whatever the reasons for our withdrawal from Afghanistan, it should have been recognised and understood that in doing so the country was being handed back to the Taleban.

    According to this tweet:

    https://twitter.com/MacaesBruno/status/1424059898753548291

    "Why is Biden leaving? "We have to leave so everything is completely forgotten by the midterms""

    Biden is a lot more ruthless than Trump. When Trump sacked John Bolton for warmogering, he kept saying "You don't have to kill people. You don't always have to kill people". He had a peaceful four years with very few foreign deaths.

    Biden isn't as squeamish. He thinks there will be a lot of carnage but he doesn't care because he thinks Americans will have forgotten it all by midterms.
  • YoungTurkYoungTurk Posts: 158
    edited August 2021
    If we wanted to make it a tatartodozen of plebiscites this century in England, after Brexit and AV, why not hold a referendum on building Hadrian's Wall 10 foot higher English independence? Winning the World Cup in 1966 as a non-independent country still smarts.
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 72,817
    Candy said:

    According to this tweet:

    https://twitter.com/MacaesBruno/status/1424059898753548291

    "Why is Biden leaving? "We have to leave so everything is completely forgotten by the midterms""

    Biden is a lot more ruthless than Trump. When Trump sacked John Bolton for warmogering, he kept saying "You don't have to kill people. You don't always have to kill people". He had a peaceful four years with very few foreign deaths.

    Biden isn't as squeamish. He thinks there will be a lot of carnage but he doesn't care because he thinks Americans will have forgotten it all by midterms.
    I thought that it was Trump who arranged the withdrawal? Under an agreement with the Taleban that they would be nice?

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-51674103
  • SandyRentoolSandyRentool Posts: 22,558
    ydoethur said:

    Gordon bloody Bennet.

    Where do they dig these imbeciles up?

    Afghanistan troop withdrawal a strategic mistake, warns ex-general
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58139590

    (No, not that, which is perfectly reasonable. It’s this.)

    A UK Government spokeswoman said: "We recognise that the security situation in Afghanistan is serious, and reports of the escalating violence are extremely disturbing.

    We do not believe there is any military solution to Afghanistan's conflict, and call on the Taliban to end their campaign of violence and engage in meaningful dialogue with the Afghan government.

    There needs to be a negotiated solution to ensure a lasting peace."’


    How could anyone spout BS like that with a straight face?

    Whatever the reasons for our withdrawal from Afghanistan, it should have been recognised and understood that in doing so the country was being handed back to the Taleban.

    Looks like Jeremy Corbyn is working part time at the Foreign Office.
  • tlg86tlg86 Posts: 26,420
    Earlier I posted an alternative Olympic medal table where only medals in different sports were counted. I actually think some of the groupings of events into sports is unfair (especially track and field), so I've regrouped the following:

    Remove BMX freestyle from cycling
    Split up Canoe sprint and slalom
    Combine multi-discipline events: triathlon, modern pentathlon, heptathlon and decathlon
    Split track and field into:
    Walking
    Running (800m, 1500m, 5000m, 10000m, and Marathon)
    Sprinting (100m, 200m, 400m, 100/110m hurdles, 400m hurdles, and relays)
    Jumping (long, high, triple)
    Pole vaulting
    Throwing (discuss, shot, hammer, and javelin)

    This gives the following table (diff is to the official table):

    Rank, Diff, Team, Gold, Silver, Bronze, Total
    1. (0), United States, 17, 18, 15, 30
    2. (0), China, 13, 14, 10, 21
    3. (0), Japan, 11, 13, 13, 20
    4. (+1), ROC, 10, 13, 10, 19
    5. (-1), Great Britain, 9, 12, 18, 21
    6. (+3), Germany, 8, 10, 9, 17
    7. (+3), Italy, 8, 7, 11, 18
    8. (0), France, 7, 8, 8, 15
    9. (-3), Australia, 7, 5, 12, 19
    10. (+1), Canada, 7, 4, 8, 13
    11. (+1), Brazil, 7, 4, 6, 13
    12. (-5), Netherlands, 5, 7, 9, 12
    13. (+2), Hungary, 4, 5, 6, 9
    14. (+4), Czech Republic, 4, 4, 3, 7
    15. (+5), Norway, 4, 2, 2, 8
    16. (+6), Spain, 3, 7, 5, 14
    17. (0), Poland, 3, 5, 4, 8
    18. (+5), Sweden, 3, 5, 0, 6
    19. (-6), New Zealand, 3, 4, 6, 11
    19. (-3), South Korea, 3, 4, 6, 8
    21. (-7), Cuba, 3, 3, 5, 8
    22. (+3), Denmark, 3, 3, 3, 8
    23. (+3), Croatia, 3, 3, 2, 5
    24. (0), Switzerland, 3, 2, 5, 6
    25. (+2), Iran, 3, 2, 1, 4
    26. (+2), Serbia, 3, 1, 5, 7
    27. (+2), Belgium, 3, 1, 3, 7
    28. (+2), Bulgaria, 3, 1, 1, 5
    28. (+3), Slovenia, 3, 1, 1, 4
    30. (+2), Uzbekistan, 3, 0, 2, 5
    31. (+3), Chinese Taipei, 2, 4, 6, 10
    32. (+3), Turkey, 2, 2, 4, 6
    33. (0), Georgia, 2, 2, 1, 3
    34. (+2), Greece, 2, 1, 1, 4
    35. (+3), Ecuador, 2, 1, 0, 2
    36. (+3), Ireland, 2, 0, 2, 2
    37. (+4), Qatar, 2, 0, 1, 3
    38. (+6), Ukraine, 1, 6, 10, 12
    39. (+9), India, 1, 2, 4, 6
    40. (+5), Belarus, 1, 2, 3, 4
    41. (+9), Slovakia, 1, 2, 1, 4
    42. (+4), Romania, 1, 2, 0, 2
    42. (+4), Venezuela, 1, 2, 0, 3
    42. (+10), South Africa, 1, 2, 0, 2
    45. (+8), Austria, 1, 1, 5, 6
    46. (+3), Hong Kong, 1, 1, 3, 5
    46. (+8), Egypt, 1, 1, 3, 4
    48. (+7), Indonesia, 1, 1, 2, 2
    48. (+8), Portugal, 1, 1, 2, 3
    50. (-31), Kenya, 1, 1, 1, 1
    50. (-29), Jamaica, 1, 1, 1, 1
    50. (-14), Uganda, 1, 1, 1, 1
    50. (0), Philippines, 1, 1, 1, 2
    50. (+6), Ethiopia, 1, 1, 1, 1
    55. (+3), Tunisia, 1, 1, 0, 2
    56. (-17), Israel, 1, 0, 2, 3
    57. (+2), Estonia, 1, 0, 1, 1
    57. (+2), Fiji, 1, 0, 1, 1
    57. (+2), Latvia, 1, 0, 1, 2
    57. (+2), Thailand, 1, 0, 1, 2
    61. (-19), Bahamas, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (-19), Kosovo, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (+2), Bermuda, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (+2), Morocco, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (+2), Puerto Rico, 1, 0, 0, 1

    I think this better reflects how good the Americans are. And we can take heart from tying China in terms of medalling in different sports.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    Cookie said:

    OK, I'll have a go at this.
    When I was a child, we often went on holiday to Scotland. My first four summer holidays were to the Isle of Arran. Scotland felt more part of my life than the South of England. Scotland never felt abroad - the banknotes were a novelty but that was all. I had a board game called the Great Game of Britain - I've mentioned it before - and it was about my country, not my country and a few others. I liked that I was part of a country that included the Highlands of Scotland and Edinburgh* as well as the Lake District, Devon, the Peak District, Snowdonia ( to use just my own childhood mental geography of Great Britain).

    I miss that.

    Of course, on one level it doesn't matter. Liking somewhere doesn't mean a political union with it is a good idea. Scotland isn't going anywhere. It's not going to be any more difficult to go on holiday there after independence. But a country is more than a convenience, it's a shared idea and a shared ideal. My mother is Scottish, my grandmother was very Scottish indeed. I grew up British first, then English.

    That's gone now sadly. I feel English, rather than British. Maybe Britishness never existed anyway outside of England but before 1998 the English didn't realise it. I don't blame the Scots - their identity is their choice - but even Scots unionists don't really believe in country called Britain, they believe in a country called Scotland whose interests are best served by a union with England and Wales. Meanwhile Scots nationalists seem to hold the same view of the UK that many on the Labour left have of Israel.

    But I do miss the national identity I grew up with.

    *It's always the nice bits people focus on isn't it? No unionists in England are dreamily thinking of Livingston when they extol the virtues of the Union, just as Remainers tend to wistfully think of Venice and Barcelona and rarely Nancy or Bochum.
    A very insightful post. When I think of England, Italy or Greece, I too think of the nice bits.

    But the most insightful bit is this: “… even Scots unionists don't really believe in country called Britain, they believe in a country called Scotland whose interests are best served by a union with England and Wales.”

    The Union started as a transaction, and it’s twilight years are dominated by transactional politics. It was probably largely transactional during most of the intervening years. It is likely that the English did buy the myth of one country. Few others did.
  • kinabalukinabalu Posts: 44,291
    Carnyx said:

    I'll be interested to see what you find.

    A PB pedantry: 'metro' is (I believe) yoof-speak for metrosexual. No doubt the chap in question is well-groomed, but perhaps you mean metropolitan?
    Yes, metropolitan. Touch of metrosexual too, as it happens, but that's by the by.
  • OmniumOmnium Posts: 11,313

    Looks like Jeremy Corbyn is working part time at the Foreign Office.
    If he actually does any work ever I'll eat my hat. There is nothing on the planet which will be helped with adding a dose of 'Jeremy Corbyn'
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 72,817
    kle4 said:

    Not at al. Now they play cricket.
    Well, they played cricket before, except for a brief hiatus when the Taleban banned it. Just not to the current level.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghanistan_national_cricket_team
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 72,817
    Omnium said:

    If he actually does any work ever I'll eat my hat. There is nothing on the planet which will be helped with adding a dose of 'Jeremy Corbyn'
    That’s an exaggeration. He did wonders for the Conservative party’s vote in 2019.
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 42,956

    A very insightful post. When I think of England, Italy or Greece, I too think of the nice bits.

    But the most insightful bit is this: “… even Scots unionists don't really believe in country called Britain, they believe in a country called Scotland whose interests are best served by a union with England and Wales.”

    The Union started as a transaction, and it’s twilight years are dominated by transactional politics. It was probably largely transactional during most of the intervening years. It is likely that the English did buy the myth of one country. Few others did.
    The Union, most successful when it interfered little and cared less about how Scotland ran itself.
  • stodgestodge Posts: 14,277
    IanB2 said:

    There has been a lot of rainfall in a short amount of time, creating localised flooding events rather than it being a wet period.

    The worst-hit places were the City of London, which has had 143 per cent of its average rainfall this summer, the Isle of Wight with 174 per cent of its average summer rainfall, and Surrey with 126 per cent.

    [Met Office] Ms Mitchell believes the Isle of Wight will only get rainier and imagines the percentage will be “much higher by the end of summer”.

    By comparison, Scotland has only has 38 per cent of its average rainfall and Ms Mitchell said “a few northern areas have been much, much drier”.

    The synoptic pattern this summer has been a continuation of that often seen in April or May which then moves into the "traditional" summer pattern of settled and warmer conditions to the south and east and more unsettled weather affecting Northern and Western parts.

    The question, perhaps, is why has the synoptic pattern failed to change? The Atlantic, in terms of Low Pressure systems rushing towards us from the west, has been very quiet this summer - this has consolidated the patterns in situ. Is this part of something else happening - slowing Gulf Stream etc, or is this just year-on-year variation or a bit of both?
  • TazTaz Posts: 16,882
    kle4 said:

    Not at al. Now they play cricket.
    Not for much longer. I fear.
  • AlistairAlistair Posts: 23,670
    edited August 2021
    Candy said:



    Biden is a lot more ruthless than Trump. When Trump sacked John Bolton for warmogering, he kept saying "You don't have to kill people. You don't always have to kill people".He had a peaceful four years with very few foreign deaths

    Absolute, utter nonsense.

    Drone strikes under Trump exploded. And he removed the directive to collate and report civilian casualties.

    In 3 years Trump carried out 20% more Drone Strikes than Obama managed in 8.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-47480207
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 72,817
    Alistair said:

    Absolute, utter nonsense.

    Drone strikes under Trump exploded. And he removed the directive to collate and report civilian casualties.

    In 3 years Trump carried out 20% more Drone Strikes than Obama managed in 8.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-47480207
    He also assassinated Soleimani (can’t remember how to spell his name) which triggered several violent events, including the attacking of American bases and the shooting down of an airliner.
  • state_go_awaystate_go_away Posts: 5,849
    tlg86 said:

    Earlier I posted an alternative Olympic medal table where only medals in different sports were counted. I actually think some of the groupings of events into sports is unfair (especially track and field), so I've regrouped the following:

    Remove BMX freestyle from cycling
    Split up Canoe sprint and slalom
    Combine multi-discipline events: triathlon, modern pentathlon, heptathlon and decathlon
    Split track and field into:
    Walking
    Running (800m, 1500m, 5000m, 10000m, and Marathon)
    Sprinting (100m, 200m, 400m, 100/110m hurdles, 400m hurdles, and relays)
    Jumping (long, high, triple)
    Pole vaulting
    Throwing (discuss, shot, hammer, and javelin)

    This gives the following table (diff is to the official table):

    Rank, Diff, Team, Gold, Silver, Bronze, Total
    1. (0), United States, 17, 18, 15, 30
    2. (0), China, 13, 14, 10, 21
    3. (0), Japan, 11, 13, 13, 20
    4. (+1), ROC, 10, 13, 10, 19
    5. (-1), Great Britain, 9, 12, 18, 21
    6. (+3), Germany, 8, 10, 9, 17
    7. (+3), Italy, 8, 7, 11, 18
    8. (0), France, 7, 8, 8, 15
    9. (-3), Australia, 7, 5, 12, 19
    10. (+1), Canada, 7, 4, 8, 13
    11. (+1), Brazil, 7, 4, 6, 13
    12. (-5), Netherlands, 5, 7, 9, 12
    13. (+2), Hungary, 4, 5, 6, 9
    14. (+4), Czech Republic, 4, 4, 3, 7
    15. (+5), Norway, 4, 2, 2, 8
    16. (+6), Spain, 3, 7, 5, 14
    17. (0), Poland, 3, 5, 4, 8
    18. (+5), Sweden, 3, 5, 0, 6
    19. (-6), New Zealand, 3, 4, 6, 11
    19. (-3), South Korea, 3, 4, 6, 8
    21. (-7), Cuba, 3, 3, 5, 8
    22. (+3), Denmark, 3, 3, 3, 8
    23. (+3), Croatia, 3, 3, 2, 5
    24. (0), Switzerland, 3, 2, 5, 6
    25. (+2), Iran, 3, 2, 1, 4
    26. (+2), Serbia, 3, 1, 5, 7
    27. (+2), Belgium, 3, 1, 3, 7
    28. (+2), Bulgaria, 3, 1, 1, 5
    28. (+3), Slovenia, 3, 1, 1, 4
    30. (+2), Uzbekistan, 3, 0, 2, 5
    31. (+3), Chinese Taipei, 2, 4, 6, 10
    32. (+3), Turkey, 2, 2, 4, 6
    33. (0), Georgia, 2, 2, 1, 3
    34. (+2), Greece, 2, 1, 1, 4
    35. (+3), Ecuador, 2, 1, 0, 2
    36. (+3), Ireland, 2, 0, 2, 2
    37. (+4), Qatar, 2, 0, 1, 3
    38. (+6), Ukraine, 1, 6, 10, 12
    39. (+9), India, 1, 2, 4, 6
    40. (+5), Belarus, 1, 2, 3, 4
    41. (+9), Slovakia, 1, 2, 1, 4
    42. (+4), Romania, 1, 2, 0, 2
    42. (+4), Venezuela, 1, 2, 0, 3
    42. (+10), South Africa, 1, 2, 0, 2
    45. (+8), Austria, 1, 1, 5, 6
    46. (+3), Hong Kong, 1, 1, 3, 5
    46. (+8), Egypt, 1, 1, 3, 4
    48. (+7), Indonesia, 1, 1, 2, 2
    48. (+8), Portugal, 1, 1, 2, 3
    50. (-31), Kenya, 1, 1, 1, 1
    50. (-29), Jamaica, 1, 1, 1, 1
    50. (-14), Uganda, 1, 1, 1, 1
    50. (0), Philippines, 1, 1, 1, 2
    50. (+6), Ethiopia, 1, 1, 1, 1
    55. (+3), Tunisia, 1, 1, 0, 2
    56. (-17), Israel, 1, 0, 2, 3
    57. (+2), Estonia, 1, 0, 1, 1
    57. (+2), Fiji, 1, 0, 1, 1
    57. (+2), Latvia, 1, 0, 1, 2
    57. (+2), Thailand, 1, 0, 1, 2
    61. (-19), Bahamas, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (-19), Kosovo, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (+2), Bermuda, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (+2), Morocco, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (+2), Puerto Rico, 1, 0, 0, 1

    I think this better reflects how good the Americans are. And we can take heart from tying China in terms of medalling in different sports.

    The medal table (whether this or the official one) is a little sad in a way. Congrats to team GB and the overall strategy of UK sport and the sport bodies over the last two decades to get it. However one cannot deny it is money that buys medals whether that is fully focused grants from gvernement/lottery or just wider national or family/individual wealth.

    It shows that if you are a sporting youngster in Pakistan,India ,Africa or indeed South America or many parts of Asia you will not have the chance to be the best . Whilst this may not be the most pressing problem in Africa or India say it does show the immense imbalance in general life opportunity across all sectors - sport , education, freedom, career etc and its a pity
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146

    The Union, most successful when it interfered little and cared less about how Scotland ran itself.
    You’re insightful too Divvie!
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 79,000
    Think the Afghan government will either be possible, dead or in exile v shortly
  • BenpointerBenpointer Posts: 35,098
    tlg86 said:

    Earlier I posted an alternative Olympic medal table where only medals in different sports were counted. I actually think some of the groupings of events into sports is unfair (especially track and field), so I've regrouped the following:

    Remove BMX freestyle from cycling
    Split up Canoe sprint and slalom
    Combine multi-discipline events: triathlon, modern pentathlon, heptathlon and decathlon
    Split track and field into:
    Walking
    Running (800m, 1500m, 5000m, 10000m, and Marathon)
    Sprinting (100m, 200m, 400m, 100/110m hurdles, 400m hurdles, and relays)
    Jumping (long, high, triple)
    Pole vaulting
    Throwing (discuss, shot, hammer, and javelin)

    This gives the following table (diff is to the official table):

    Rank, Diff, Team, Gold, Silver, Bronze, Total
    1. (0), United States, 17, 18, 15, 30
    2. (0), China, 13, 14, 10, 21
    3. (0), Japan, 11, 13, 13, 20
    4. (+1), ROC, 10, 13, 10, 19
    5. (-1), Great Britain, 9, 12, 18, 21
    6. (+3), Germany, 8, 10, 9, 17
    7. (+3), Italy, 8, 7, 11, 18
    8. (0), France, 7, 8, 8, 15
    9. (-3), Australia, 7, 5, 12, 19
    10. (+1), Canada, 7, 4, 8, 13
    11. (+1), Brazil, 7, 4, 6, 13
    12. (-5), Netherlands, 5, 7, 9, 12
    13. (+2), Hungary, 4, 5, 6, 9
    14. (+4), Czech Republic, 4, 4, 3, 7
    15. (+5), Norway, 4, 2, 2, 8
    16. (+6), Spain, 3, 7, 5, 14
    17. (0), Poland, 3, 5, 4, 8
    18. (+5), Sweden, 3, 5, 0, 6
    19. (-6), New Zealand, 3, 4, 6, 11
    19. (-3), South Korea, 3, 4, 6, 8
    21. (-7), Cuba, 3, 3, 5, 8
    22. (+3), Denmark, 3, 3, 3, 8
    23. (+3), Croatia, 3, 3, 2, 5
    24. (0), Switzerland, 3, 2, 5, 6
    25. (+2), Iran, 3, 2, 1, 4
    26. (+2), Serbia, 3, 1, 5, 7
    27. (+2), Belgium, 3, 1, 3, 7
    28. (+2), Bulgaria, 3, 1, 1, 5
    28. (+3), Slovenia, 3, 1, 1, 4
    30. (+2), Uzbekistan, 3, 0, 2, 5
    31. (+3), Chinese Taipei, 2, 4, 6, 10
    32. (+3), Turkey, 2, 2, 4, 6
    33. (0), Georgia, 2, 2, 1, 3
    34. (+2), Greece, 2, 1, 1, 4
    35. (+3), Ecuador, 2, 1, 0, 2
    36. (+3), Ireland, 2, 0, 2, 2
    37. (+4), Qatar, 2, 0, 1, 3
    38. (+6), Ukraine, 1, 6, 10, 12
    39. (+9), India, 1, 2, 4, 6
    40. (+5), Belarus, 1, 2, 3, 4
    41. (+9), Slovakia, 1, 2, 1, 4
    42. (+4), Romania, 1, 2, 0, 2
    42. (+4), Venezuela, 1, 2, 0, 3
    42. (+10), South Africa, 1, 2, 0, 2
    45. (+8), Austria, 1, 1, 5, 6
    46. (+3), Hong Kong, 1, 1, 3, 5
    46. (+8), Egypt, 1, 1, 3, 4
    48. (+7), Indonesia, 1, 1, 2, 2
    48. (+8), Portugal, 1, 1, 2, 3
    50. (-31), Kenya, 1, 1, 1, 1
    50. (-29), Jamaica, 1, 1, 1, 1
    50. (-14), Uganda, 1, 1, 1, 1
    50. (0), Philippines, 1, 1, 1, 2
    50. (+6), Ethiopia, 1, 1, 1, 1
    55. (+3), Tunisia, 1, 1, 0, 2
    56. (-17), Israel, 1, 0, 2, 3
    57. (+2), Estonia, 1, 0, 1, 1
    57. (+2), Fiji, 1, 0, 1, 1
    57. (+2), Latvia, 1, 0, 1, 2
    57. (+2), Thailand, 1, 0, 1, 2
    61. (-19), Bahamas, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (-19), Kosovo, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (+2), Bermuda, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (+2), Morocco, 1, 0, 0, 1
    61. (+2), Puerto Rico, 1, 0, 0, 1

    I think this better reflects how good the Americans are. And we can take heart from tying China in terms of medalling in different sports.

    Seems like utter bollocks to me. Why split athletics like that? Why combine modern pentathlon, triathlon , heptathlon and decathlon? Why split canoe sprint and slalom (and yet keep equestrian dressage with jumping)?

    Surely you could split it all up in whatever way to wished to make whatever point you were looking to make?
  • squareroot2squareroot2 Posts: 6,975
    Are the Talinban sponsored by iran. Maybe Itmean needs a warning that will ne carried out...if not heeded...
  • AlistairAlistair Posts: 23,670
    ydoethur said:

    He also assassinated Soleimani (can’t remember how to spell his name) which triggered several violent events, including the attacking of American bases and the shooting down of an airliner.
    It's one of the most trite "I'm no fan of Trump but at least he did..." lines that gets trotted out by massive Trump fans trying to blend in.

    It's repeated so often it has somehow become "common knowledge" amongst people who should know better and check their sauces.

  • tlg86tlg86 Posts: 26,420

    Seems like utter bollocks to me. Why split athletics like that? Why combine modern pentathlon, triathlon , heptathlon and decathlon? Why split canoe sprint and slalom (and yet keep equestrian dressage with jumping)?

    Surely you could split it all up in whatever way to wished to make whatever point you were looking to make?
    I thought about equestrian, but I think the involvement of a horse means that it's fair enough to keep it altogether.

    I think the athletics deserves to be split up more because the disciplines are very different. The sprinting/running are more different than say the different distances in the swimming, in my opinion.

    The two types of canoeing seem completely different to me. Perhaps there's a case for sticking the canoe sprint with the rowing as they are a bit similar.
  • moonshinemoonshine Posts: 5,814
    Alistair said:

    It's one of the most trite "I'm no fan of Trump but at least he did..." lines that gets trotted out by massive Trump fans trying to blend in.

    It's repeated so often it has somehow become "common knowledge" amongst people who should know better and check their sauces.

    Speaking of sauces. I can report that Leon’s Harare hot sauce is epic in a beef sandwich.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 44,586

    They’re not “forgetting”. They are intentionally trying to mislead. The problem is that it is very transparent.
    I'm being polite. And also ironic. In the Aye right mould.
  • BenpointerBenpointer Posts: 35,098
    Leon said:

    My prediction was pathetically pessimistic and wrong. Yay!

    I was very close with my China edging America prediction, however....
    You were not alone in your crap prediction tbf. Gracenote and 538 were both woefully off the mark.

    (And @FrancisUrquhart was way out in his prediction of GB Athletics medals!)

    Next time will be intriguing. Will France step up as hosts?
  • StockyStocky Posts: 10,267
    kinabalu said:

    Yes, metropolitan. Touch of metrosexual too, as it happens, but that's by the by.
    It's that cravat that tips you over.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 44,586
    Cookie said:

    Well that's an interesting point - perhaps once upon a time the Labour Party would have seen the identity of a working class person from Luton to be equivalent to that of one from Livingston - just as a Tory would have seen a middle class person from Cheadle as sharing the same interests as one from Newton Mearns. But since the 90s the Labour Party pushed the angle that the identity of the working class person from Livinsgton was Scottish, and that he was being ill-served by being in a unitary state (which was often governed by the Conservatives) - and thus a Scottish Parliament was necessary. And we all know what happened as a result.
    Not more recently, though, once they realised that they were being ripped in two between the SNP (etc) and the Tories (etc). They did try to push that in recent years, eg. in 2013-14 (if memory serves right).

    Mr Galloway also makes the same sort of argument, or made, afew years back, I think.
  • state_go_awaystate_go_away Posts: 5,849
    edited August 2021
    tlg86 said:

    I thought about equestrian, but I think the involvement of a horse means that it's fair enough to keep it altogether.

    I think the athletics deserves to be split up more because the disciplines are very different. The sprinting/running are more different than say the different distances in the swimming, in my opinion.

    The two types of canoeing seem completely different to me. Perhaps there's a case for sticking the canoe sprint with the rowing as they are a bit similar.
    Good points although think "fighting" should be more grouped - Judo,wrestling and Karate are simalar for instance.Also think diving is more gymnastics than swimming
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    Alistair said:

    It's one of the most trite "I'm no fan of Trump but at least he did..." lines that gets trotted out by massive Trump fans trying to blend in.

    It's repeated so often it has somehow become "common knowledge" amongst people who should know better and check their sauces.

    Or roux the day they failed to do so.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 44,586
    YoungTurk said:

    If we wanted to make it a tatartodozen of plebiscites this century in England, after Brexit and AV, why not hold a referendum on building Hadrian's Wall 10 foot higher English independence? Winning the World Cup in 1966 as a non-independent country still smarts.

    Rebuilding Hadrian's Wall would transfer Bigg Market on a Friday night to Scotland. I know we have the Byres Road in Glasgow, and Coogait in Edinburgh, but really.
  • tlg86tlg86 Posts: 26,420

    Good points although think "fighting" should be more grouped - Judo,wrestling and Karate are simalar for instance.Also think diving is more gymnastics than swimming
    Diving is separate from swimming and I think it deserves to be its own category.

    I know little about the fighting sports and whether they are sufficiently similar to be grouped. My instinct is that they should be separate. As an aside, I think Taekwondo is the best of those types of sports.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    Cookie said:

    Well that's an interesting point - perhaps once upon a time the Labour Party would have seen the identity of a working class person from Luton to be equivalent to that of one from Livingston - just as a Tory would have seen a middle class person from Cheadle as sharing the same interests as one from Newton Mearns. But since the 90s the Labour Party pushed the angle that the identity of the working class person from Livinsgton was Scottish, and that he was being ill-served by being in a unitary state (which was often governed by the Conservatives) - and thus a Scottish Parliament was necessary. And we all know what happened as a result.
    In fairness, Labour didn’t really choose to implement Scottish devolution. They had no choice in the end.
  • AslanAslan Posts: 1,673
    tlg86 said:

    Diving is separate from swimming and I think it deserves to be its own category.

    I know little about the fighting sports and whether they are sufficiently similar to be grouped. My instinct is that they should be separate. As an aside, I think Taekwondo is the best of those types of sports.
    Having dressage as a sport is ridiculous.
  • Pro_RataPro_Rata Posts: 5,505
    Cookie said:

    OK, I'll have a go at this.
    When I was a child, we often went on holiday to Scotland. My first four summer holidays were to the Isle of Arran. Scotland felt more part of my life than the South of England. Scotland never felt abroad - the banknotes were a novelty but that was all. I had a board game called the Great Game of Britain - I've mentioned it before - and it was about my country, not my country and a few others. I liked that I was part of a country that included the Highlands of Scotland and Edinburgh* as well as the Lake District, Devon, the Peak District, Snowdonia ( to use just my own childhood mental geography of Great Britain).

    I miss that.

    Of course, on one level it doesn't matter. Liking somewhere doesn't mean a political union with it is a good idea. Scotland isn't going anywhere. It's not going to be any more difficult to go on holiday there after independence. But a country is more than a convenience, it's a shared idea and a shared ideal. My mother is Scottish, my grandmother was very Scottish indeed. I grew up British first, then English.

    That's gone now sadly. I feel English, rather than British. Maybe Britishness never existed anyway outside of England but before 1998 the English didn't realise it. I don't blame the Scots - their identity is their choice - but even Scots unionists don't really believe in country called Britain, they believe in a country called Scotland whose interests are best served by a union with England and Wales. Meanwhile Scots nationalists seem to hold the same view of the UK that many on the Labour left have of Israel.

    But I do miss the national identity I grew up with.

    *It's always the nice bits people focus on isn't it? No unionists in England are dreamily thinking of Livingston when they extol the virtues of the Union, just as Remainers tend to wistfully think of Venice and Barcelona and rarely Nancy or Bochum.
    Yes, that's pretty much it for me as well. I studied in Scotland between 88 and 96. Yes, some of b the differences were more the money, the Daily Record and it's doom headlines, the TV was slightly different, there was a different national history. But, it mostly felt like a bulked up version of the regionalism I already knew from the North rather than something qualitatively different.

    I can see the political sense in, and am a supporter of, a proper right of self determination. I can see the political argument for separation.

    But ultimately it will be the cultural divorce that will pain me more. I had a series of flag waving cards of Great British inventors as a kid and amongst the series were Logie Baird, Macadam, Dunlop. And Scotland will ultimately lose its English equivalent - Attenborough, Monty Python - name your poison from hundreds - they will no longer be yours (the SNP being another set of very anti BBC people is no accident).

    I hadn't been to Dublin until a few years ago. I was in a cafe having breakfast and reading the paper. Whatever particular commonality with the Republic we ever had is long gone, any Irishness there might be in thistorical Brits is rarely acknowledged. Of course, Ireland's experience of Union is much different from Scotland's, even if historical injustices neither ended at the North Channel, nor the Solwsy Firth, nor even the Watford Gap.

    But sitting in Dublin, feeling that bit of dislocation and thinking that Edinburgh might feel like this in 50 years, and the loss both ways that will entai, that saddens mel. It is more than leaving the EU.
  • eekeek Posts: 29,394
    One for @rcs1000 - an overview on why inflation is continually low

    https://eu.thestarpress.com/story/opinion/columnists/2021/08/08/michael-hicks-inflation-puzzle-partly-solved/5504806001/

    The argument is basically flexible labour markets and monopolies. One to have a think about
  • squareroot2squareroot2 Posts: 6,975
    Aslan said:

    Having dressage as a sport is ridiculous.
    I tell you what , you try it and see how you get on.....
  • BenpointerBenpointer Posts: 35,098
    edited August 2021
    Aslan said:

    Having dressage as a sport is ridiculous.
    Any more so than rythmic gymnastics, synchronised swimming or breakdancing?

    https://news.sky.com/story/breakdancing-confirmed-as-olympic-sport-for-2024-paris-games-12154546
  • tlg86tlg86 Posts: 26,420
    Aslan said:

    Having dressage as a sport is ridiculous.
    That's a different argument!
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 44,586
    Pro_Rata said:

    Yes, that's pretty much it for me as well. I studied in Scotland between 88 and 96. Yes, some of b the differences were more the money, the Daily Record and it's doom headlines, the TV was slightly different, there was a different national history. But, it mostly felt like a bulked up version of the regionalism I already knew from the North rather than something qualitatively different.

    I can see the political sense in, and am a supporter of, a proper right of self determination. I can see the political argument for separation.

    But ultimately it will be the cultural divorce that will pain me more. I had a series of flag waving cards of Great British inventors as a kid and amongst the series were Logie Baird, Macadam, Dunlop. And Scotland will ultimately lose its English equivalent - Attenborough, Monty Python - name your poison from hundreds - they will no longer be yours (the SNP being another set of very anti BBC people is no accident).

    I hadn't been to Dublin until a few years ago. I was in a cafe having breakfast and reading the paper. Whatever particular commonality with the Republic we ever had is long gone, any Irishness there might be in thistorical Brits is rarely acknowledged. Of course, Ireland's experience of Union is much different from Scotland's, even if historical injustices neither ended at the North Channel, nor the Solwsy Firth, nor even the Watford Gap.

    But sitting in Dublin, feeling that bit of dislocation and thinking that Edinburgh might feel like this in 50 years, and the loss both ways that will entai, that saddens mel. It is more than leaving the EU.
    I think it's more the BBC has been very anti SNP from the start. But that doesn't affect such things as Sir David Attenborough, who is on his own very considerable merits. The Irish watch lots of BBC - or used to when TV was more of a thing. I have relatives who are Irish.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    Which Scottish athletes won medals at Tokyo 2020? How many medals did Scotland win in total?

    https://www.scotsman.com/sport/other-sport/which-scottish-athletes-won-medals-at-tokyo-2020-how-many-medals-did-scotland-win-in-total-3338251
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    Aslan said:

    Having dressage as a sport is ridiculous.
    If you have quasi-racist views as to the relative importance of different species, I suppose it is. If 2 human partnerships are allowed in sailing, why do you object to 1 human/1 horse combos elsewhere?
  • MrEdMrEd Posts: 5,578
    tlg86 said:

    That's a different argument!
    Ah back to the Olympics :)

    I see one of the "progression" sports for funding is fencing, which I think makes a hell of a lot of sense - lots of medals, relatively cheap and it is something we should have a natural affinity for...
  • LeonLeon Posts: 58,881
    edited August 2021
    This interminable argument about Sindyref if so pointless, it is almost decadent

    Fact is, there ain't gonna be a referendum before 2024, and probably long after that. London won't grant one. The Scots can't force one. That's it

    Unless some of our madder Nits have an idea for UDI, civil war or invading and conquering England, there is no debate

    And even if Boris dropped dead tomorrow and was weirdly replaced by Alex Salmond, the chances are very high the SNP would still not call a vote, for the very good reason that it would probably be lost, destroying the cause for 30 years
  • sladeslade Posts: 2,136
    Pulpstar said:

    Think the Afghan government will either be possible, dead or in exile v shortly

    I had a strange dream last night. I had been captured by the Taliban ( How? Why?). They assumed I was a Christian and attempted to convert me to Islam. I explained that I did not believe in God - God had not created Man but Man had created God. This confused them so they laid on a feast for me. Suspecting poison I only ate one grain of rice. In the ensuing dialogue I said that Muhammad was a Jew -this confused them even further. Then I woke up with a sense of achievement. What is that all about? Checking on Wikipedia today it seems that a number of the tribes of Arabia were indeed Jews. Others were polytheistic but some were monotheistic ( but which god?).
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 44,586
    IshmaelZ said:

    If you have quasi-racist views as to the relative importance of different species, I suppose it is. If 2 human partnerships are allowed in sailing, why do you object to 1 human/1 horse combos elsewhere?
    "Speciesist" is the term, I believe. Just being helpful.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 58,881
    moonshine said:

    Speaking of sauces. I can report that Leon’s Harare hot sauce is epic in a beef sandwich.
    Told ya!

  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    Carnyx said:

    "Speciesist" is the term, I believe. Just being helpful.
    I didn't think that was combative enough.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    Neil Oliver on GB News: he won’t let his teenage children take Covid19 vaccine.

    (The age of majority is 16 in Scotland. But does Oliver live in his home country?)
  • Carnyx said:

    Rebuilding Hadrian's Wall would transfer Bigg Market on a Friday night to Scotland. I know we have the Byres Road in Glasgow, and Coogait in Edinburgh, but really.
    Or we could extend England as far as the Antonine Wall.

    After all, Edinburgh was part of Northumbria for a while.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 126,200

    Are the Talinban sponsored by iran. Maybe Itmean needs a warning that will carried out...if not heeded...

    No, they are Sunni, Iran is Shia
  • BenpointerBenpointer Posts: 35,098

    Neil Oliver on GB News: he won’t let his teenage children take Covid19 vaccine.

    (The age of majority is 16 in Scotland. But does Oliver live in his home country?)

    What a total dick he is. He lives in Stirling according to wiki but I imagine Scotland would be glad to export him.
This discussion has been closed.