Rees-Mogg’s belittling the Scottish CON leader was dumb – politicalbetting.com

IanB2 said:

MoonRabbit said:

Theuniondivvie said:

IanB2 said:

Theuniondivvie said:

StuartDickson said:

Taz said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

Theuniondivvie said:

HYUFD said:

Scott_xP said:

BREAKING: The Queen removes military titles from Prince Andrew. https://twitter.com/chrisshipitv/status/1481674113752215552/photo/1

A tough personal decision for the Queen no doubt but as usual she has done the best thing for the royal family.

Note he is no longer referred to as HRH either, just the Duke of York and confirmed Andrew will do no further public duties as now

Tories do the best thing for the Tory party.
HMQ does the best thing for her family.

Who's left to the best thing for the country?

Certainly not the SNP

Nicola Sturgeon is rated higher among the English than Boris Johnson.

Sturgeon has a -20% approval now, even if she has not yet plumbed to Salmond depths
https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Nicola_Sturgeon

Johnson is -30, so my point stands.

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Boris_Johnson

When you’re benchmarking her against Johnson, effectively saying ‘at least she’s better than Johnson, thats pretty desperate stuff.

But we’re talking about her popularity in England. Her party doesn’t even put up candidates in England.

It’s pretty unusual for any foreign leader to be more popular than that country’s own head of government. Maybe Obama was more popular than Brown? Probably other, better examples. But still bloody unusual.

4th most popular in the UK on that list of 285 UK pols.

Yoons: proof were it needed that Sturgeon is an abject failure. WHY ISN’T SHE FIRST?!

If there were any way in which Nicola could take (and be persuaded to take) the job of UK PM, and be willing to bat for the entire country, I’d take her like a shot.

I believe in that case Leon may challenge you to a duel as his favoured option would be Salmond, the best pm that the UK never had.

I think I am getting hang of this now.

After the Malmesbury Monoliths appear and pass through the posts like animals marching through tellytubby land, we all get drunk and await the arrival of Leon. Particularly on Thursdays.

My goodness he has a lot to Pontificate on tonight. I think he will start on Labour MPs taking half a million pounds from Chinese spy’s.

Surely they are aliens masquerading as Chinese?

MoonRabbit said:

IshmaelZ said:

Carnyx said:

Malmesbury said:

Theuniondivvie said:

Farooq said:

IanB2 said:

“I was trying to come up with a comparison to Boris’s ‘I thought it was a work event’ and all I can think of are those people who go into hospital with a bottle stuck up their bum and claim they slipped and fell onto it.”

That's the last time I take a doctor into my confidence.

It’s fine on PB as long as the bottle didn’t contain ghastly plebby supermarket wine.

Only if it isn't *interesting* wine. It's not unusual for supermarkets to get hold of some really good stuff.

Bit like the "own brand" single malts - sometimes hides a gem...

Lidl had some surprisingly good whisky about 3-4 years back. It had some stupid name like The Jizz of McGillicuddy of the Reeks but was excellent value for the quality.

That would be whiskey, and it's The McGillicuddy. Omit that and it sounds really silly.

It sounds silly unless you get it right. 😐

MoonRabbit said:

Theuniondivvie said:

IanB2 said:

Theuniondivvie said:

StuartDickson said:

Taz said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

Theuniondivvie said:

HYUFD said:

Scott_xP said:

BREAKING: The Queen removes military titles from Prince Andrew. https://twitter.com/chrisshipitv/status/1481674113752215552/photo/1

A tough personal decision for the Queen no doubt but as usual she has done the best thing for the royal family.

Note he is no longer referred to as HRH either, just the Duke of York and confirmed Andrew will do no further public duties as now

Tories do the best thing for the Tory party.
HMQ does the best thing for her family.

Who's left to the best thing for the country?

Certainly not the SNP

Nicola Sturgeon is rated higher among the English than Boris Johnson.

Sturgeon has a -20% approval now, even if she has not yet plumbed to Salmond depths
https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Nicola_Sturgeon

Johnson is -30, so my point stands.

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Boris_Johnson

When you’re benchmarking her against Johnson, effectively saying ‘at least she’s better than Johnson, thats pretty desperate stuff.

But we’re talking about her popularity in England. Her party doesn’t even put up candidates in England.

It’s pretty unusual for any foreign leader to be more popular than that country’s own head of government. Maybe Obama was more popular than Brown? Probably other, better examples. But still bloody unusual.

4th most popular in the UK on that list of 285 UK pols.

Yoons: proof were it needed that Sturgeon is an abject failure. WHY ISN’T SHE FIRST?!

If there were any way in which Nicola could take (and be persuaded to take) the job of UK PM, and be willing to bat for the entire country, I’d take her like a shot.

I believe in that case Leon may challenge you to a duel as his favoured option would be Salmond, the best pm that the UK never had.

I think I am getting hang of this now.

After the Malmesbury Monoliths appear and pass through the posts like animals marching through tellytubby land, we all get drunk and await the arrival of Leon. Particularly on Thursdays.

My goodness he has a lot to Pontificate on tonight. I think he will start on Labour MPs taking half a million pounds from Chinese spy’s.

IanB2 said:

MoonRabbit said:

Theuniondivvie said:

IanB2 said:

Theuniondivvie said:

StuartDickson said:

Taz said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

Theuniondivvie said:

HYUFD said:

Scott_xP said:

BREAKING: The Queen removes military titles from Prince Andrew. https://twitter.com/chrisshipitv/status/1481674113752215552/photo/1

A tough personal decision for the Queen no doubt but as usual she has done the best thing for the royal family.

Note he is no longer referred to as HRH either, just the Duke of York and confirmed Andrew will do no further public duties as now

Tories do the best thing for the Tory party.
HMQ does the best thing for her family.

Who's left to the best thing for the country?

Certainly not the SNP

Nicola Sturgeon is rated higher among the English than Boris Johnson.

Sturgeon has a -20% approval now, even if she has not yet plumbed to Salmond depths
https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Nicola_Sturgeon

Johnson is -30, so my point stands.

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Boris_Johnson

When you’re benchmarking her against Johnson, effectively saying ‘at least she’s better than Johnson, thats pretty desperate stuff.

But we’re talking about her popularity in England. Her party doesn’t even put up candidates in England.

It’s pretty unusual for any foreign leader to be more popular than that country’s own head of government. Maybe Obama was more popular than Brown? Probably other, better examples. But still bloody unusual.

4th most popular in the UK on that list of 285 UK pols.

Yoons: proof were it needed that Sturgeon is an abject failure. WHY ISN’T SHE FIRST?!

If there were any way in which Nicola could take (and be persuaded to take) the job of UK PM, and be willing to bat for the entire country, I’d take her like a shot.

I believe in that case Leon may challenge you to a duel as his favoured option would be Salmond, the best pm that the UK never had.

I think I am getting hang of this now.

After the Malmesbury Monoliths appear and pass through the posts like animals marching through tellytubby land, we all get drunk and await the arrival of Leon. Particularly on Thursdays.

My goodness he has a lot to Pontificate on tonight. I think he will start on Labour MPs taking half a million pounds from Chinese spy’s.

Surely they are aliens masquerading as Chinese?

Taz said:

MoonRabbit said:

Nigel_Foremain said:

OldKingCole said:

malcolmg said:

Nigel_Foremain said:

Carnyx said:

Nigel_Foremain said:

HYUFD said:

Remember however the Tories had 0 Scottish seats in 1997 and only 1 seat even in 2015 when they won an overall UK majority.

The Scottish party is no more important to the Tory party than any other regional branch of it, it is the UK Tory party as a whole who will decide who its leader is, after all that is the whole point of the Union. The whole UK determines the UK government, not just Scots, Scots have their own parliament for much domestic policy post devolution but Westminster still remains the UK parliament

You carry on reaching out to those swing voters!

I notice his assertion the whole point of the Union of the Kingdoms is to support the Conservative Party. Just to avoid the need for any quic edits, he said" it is the UK Tory party as a whole who will decide who its leader is, after all that is the whole point of the Union."

Here is a deal: you stop kicking HYUFD and I'll stop kicking Malcolm? How long can we keep it up?

You flatter yourself you scumbag of scumbags. Why have you stopped F***ing off foreskin. The day you are able to kick me will be the day I become Pope. @Nigel_Foremain @Carnyx

Antacids are quite useful when one is suffering from severe indigestion! Can really upset the mood.

Foreskin? lol. This is the extent of the silly little mans "wit". I don't need to kick him really he does such a good job of it himself.😂😂😂😂😂😂

I heard a cheap circumcision is known as a hatchet job.

Can we really do jokes like that on here?

I had a job as a circumcisors assistant a few years back. The basic pay was poor but I got to keep half the tips.

Malmesbury said:

MoonRabbit said:

IanB2 said:

MoonRabbit said:

Theuniondivvie said:

IanB2 said:

Theuniondivvie said:

StuartDickson said:

Taz said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

Theuniondivvie said:

HYUFD said:

Scott_xP said:

BREAKING: The Queen removes military titles from Prince Andrew. https://twitter.com/chrisshipitv/status/1481674113752215552/photo/1

A tough personal decision for the Queen no doubt but as usual she has done the best thing for the royal family.

Note he is no longer referred to as HRH either, just the Duke of York and confirmed Andrew will do no further public duties as now

Tories do the best thing for the Tory party.
HMQ does the best thing for her family.

Who's left to the best thing for the country?

Certainly not the SNP

Nicola Sturgeon is rated higher among the English than Boris Johnson.

Sturgeon has a -20% approval now, even if she has not yet plumbed to Salmond depths
https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Nicola_Sturgeon

Johnson is -30, so my point stands.

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Boris_Johnson

When you’re benchmarking her against Johnson, effectively saying ‘at least she’s better than Johnson, thats pretty desperate stuff.

But we’re talking about her popularity in England. Her party doesn’t even put up candidates in England.

It’s pretty unusual for any foreign leader to be more popular than that country’s own head of government. Maybe Obama was more popular than Brown? Probably other, better examples. But still bloody unusual.

4th most popular in the UK on that list of 285 UK pols.

Yoons: proof were it needed that Sturgeon is an abject failure. WHY ISN’T SHE FIRST?!

If there were any way in which Nicola could take (and be persuaded to take) the job of UK PM, and be willing to bat for the entire country, I’d take her like a shot.

I believe in that case Leon may challenge you to a duel as his favoured option would be Salmond, the best pm that the UK never had.

I think I am getting hang of this now.

After the Malmesbury Monoliths appear and pass through the posts like animals marching through tellytubby land, we all get drunk and await the arrival of Leon. Particularly on Thursdays.

My goodness he has a lot to Pontificate on tonight. I think he will start on Labour MPs taking half a million pounds from Chinese spy’s.

Surely they are aliens masquerading as Chinese?

Who knows where the evening takes us? Could be a real corker uncorked on here tonight. Yes I agree. Finishing up in the early hours with Leon only just discovering midwich cuckoos was based on real events.

What if they were Chinese masquerading as aliens, masquerading as Chinese?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A62njA3H-4c&t=146s

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

Carnyx said:

OnlyLivingBoy said:

Malmesbury said:

Big_G_NorthWales said:

MoonRabbit said:

Scott_xP said:

BREAKING: The Metropolitan Police will NOT investigate any of the Downing Street parties unless and until the Sue Gray inquiry finds evidence of criminality.

ie the Met are relying on an internal inquiry to decide for them whether a crime was committed.

Full statement 👇 https://twitter.com/PaulBrandITV/status/1481678636096892929/photo/1

Sounds wrong. But Sue would have to stop and wait for them, delaying from end of next week till who knows when?

I am very relieved the Met will not act before Sue Gray's report which is due in 10 days, but would have been kicked into the long grass and this political crisis seeing no ending

My guess is that the police saw no upside. Get involved and effectively stretch out/blur the issue, and potentially start yet another political fight of police vs politicians.

Everyone who went to Oxford between the late 80s and the early 2000s thinks that the police are completely corrupt and useless already... Why *really* make enemies of the next cabinet. Half of whom....

Are the police in Oxford especially bad? That Morse chap was pretty good wasn't he?

Maybe not Oxford specifically, but the same force was not well thought of even before that: I remember Thames Valley Police's idea of good PR was to invite Roger Graef to do a fly on the wall TV doc in the early 1980s. The result was catastrophic for their reputation, abvoe all their handling of a rape complainant.

http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/464502/index.html

There was a certain chap who pretty much lived in the Gloucester Arms throughout that period.

He sold soft(ish) drugs to half of Oxford. Or at least his friends did.

The police never arrested him or his friends. They arrested anyone else who tried setting up in the drug dealing business, though. Very efficient they were at that. Students sent down from the university every year.....

The one explanation was that after the death of Olivia Channing, having someone keep the Oxford *scene* nice and tidy was a good thing for everyone.

Channon, to be scrupulously accurate

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

MarkH said:

I sense a shifting of the the political tectonic plates. The next Tory leader must lance the boil of the ERG/Covid Recovery Group as Kinnock did with Momentum, although will probably face a similar fate.
Since the CRG rebellion, the Rees-Moggs etc believe they have free reign, appealing to the c100,000 party members but increasingly alienating UK voters. As with Johnson, any new leader will be in thrall to the CRG unless they call a GE and remove the whip, so they can't stand, as Johnson did with Tory moderates.
Johnson irretrievably lost any authority over his party with the CRG revolt against Plan B so was already a dead man walking. Even before 'party gate'.
Previous PMs have been able to turn their tenure into filthy lucre. This option is no longer open to Johnson as he has already rewarded his acolytes and will have no traction as a columnist, expert meeting chair or lobbyist and will become. effectively homeless, on loss of office. Even as an after-dinner speaker to software salesmen, his appeal as the 'dim-sounding-but-actually-very-clever' speaker will fail if just one person suffered a bereavement during lockdown.
Starmer must be hoping he'll cling on, with every PMQs 'he said this then, he said that then' which one is the truth? will resonate. Starmer has been collecting and collating receipts for 18 months now.
His awkward squad, (Corbynite/Momentum) is easier to control. Without the whip, Corbyn faces a future of cultivating his allotment while collecting his pension. While his wife would advocate this course, his lifetime of 'tilting against windmills' will probably mean him setting up his own party. Without the party whip he cannot stand as an MP. Membership or support for such a new party would mean expulsion from Labour/removal of whip for Starmer's awkward squad.
And then there is running a de facto 'progressive alliance' between Lib Dems and Labour where, as we have seen, there has already been an implicit pact in by-elections.

Welcome to PB!

On one of your points, think you're under-estimating Boris Johnson post-PM prospects. Certainly he would be a big draw in USA, as former premier AND as a Benny Hill impersonator. No BoJo fatigue over here! Heck, most of us barely know who he is. Certainly we have no real antipathy (or love) for him, just another Brit twit politico/talking head.

Am NOT talking chump change, but LOTS of greenback dollars, at least for a few years on (what used to be called) the rubber chicken circuit.

Alistair said:

Lol

https://twitter.com/maggieNYT/status/1481665695322681350?t=qW82798f5kv_7Nh6PglnGQ&s=19

Alistair said:

Lol

https://twitter.com/maggieNYT/status/1481665695322681350?t=qW82798f5kv_7Nh6PglnGQ&s=19

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

Re: "The Apprentice" note that You Know Who was the star of the American knock-off.

So he made himself famous - "You're fired" - before becoming POTUS.

IS it possible, or even probable, that Boris Johnson will be the star of a new UK-edition of "The Apprentice" after he departs No. 10?

Practical Putinism for fun & profit.

TheScreamingEagles said:

I've joined, so should you all.

https://www.republic.org.uk/join_republic

TheScreamingEagles said:

IshmaelZ said:

TheScreamingEagles said:

RobD said:

TheScreamingEagles said:

I've joined, so should you all.

https://www.republic.org.uk/join_republic

We’re on to you. All part of your plan to become democratically elected dictator of the UK?

My first priority, to ensure France honours the Treaty of Troyes.

That would spoil the most perfect insult in history. 1066 they invade our country and steal it. 1945 we invade theirs and give it back to them because we have no use for it.

Revenge, best served cold.

THAT IS FAKE NEWS.

The French have never invaded and stolen our country, the Normans did, but not the French.

It is how I sleep soundly at night.

rottenborough said:

Alistair said:

Lol

https://twitter.com/maggieNYT/status/1481665695322681350?t=qW82798f5kv_7Nh6PglnGQ&s=19

Trump doesn't want to debate a man he claims is senile? Hmmmm...

IanB2 said:

Malmesbury said:

MoonRabbit said:

IanB2 said:

MoonRabbit said:

Theuniondivvie said:

IanB2 said:

Theuniondivvie said:

StuartDickson said:

Taz said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

StuartDickson said:

HYUFD said:

Theuniondivvie said:

HYUFD said:

Scott_xP said:

BREAKING: The Queen removes military titles from Prince Andrew. https://twitter.com/chrisshipitv/status/1481674113752215552/photo/1

A tough personal decision for the Queen no doubt but as usual she has done the best thing for the royal family.

Note he is no longer referred to as HRH either, just the Duke of York and confirmed Andrew will do no further public duties as now

Tories do the best thing for the Tory party.
HMQ does the best thing for her family.

Who's left to the best thing for the country?

Certainly not the SNP

Nicola Sturgeon is rated higher among the English than Boris Johnson.

Sturgeon has a -20% approval now, even if she has not yet plumbed to Salmond depths
https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Nicola_Sturgeon

Johnson is -30, so my point stands.

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/public_figure/Boris_Johnson

When you’re benchmarking her against Johnson, effectively saying ‘at least she’s better than Johnson, thats pretty desperate stuff.

But we’re talking about her popularity in England. Her party doesn’t even put up candidates in England.

It’s pretty unusual for any foreign leader to be more popular than that country’s own head of government. Maybe Obama was more popular than Brown? Probably other, better examples. But still bloody unusual.

4th most popular in the UK on that list of 285 UK pols.

Yoons: proof were it needed that Sturgeon is an abject failure. WHY ISN’T SHE FIRST?!

If there were any way in which Nicola could take (and be persuaded to take) the job of UK PM, and be willing to bat for the entire country, I’d take her like a shot.

I believe in that case Leon may challenge you to a duel as his favoured option would be Salmond, the best pm that the UK never had.

I think I am getting hang of this now.

After the Malmesbury Monoliths appear and pass through the posts like animals marching through tellytubby land, we all get drunk and await the arrival of Leon. Particularly on Thursdays.

My goodness he has a lot to Pontificate on tonight. I think he will start on Labour MPs taking half a million pounds from Chinese spy’s.

Surely they are aliens masquerading as Chinese?

Who knows where the evening takes us? Could be a real corker uncorked on here tonight. Yes I agree. Finishing up in the early hours with Leon only just discovering midwich cuckoos was based on real events.

What if they were Chinese masquerading as aliens, masquerading as Chinese?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A62njA3H-4c&t=146s

Who gifted us the virus rather as Pizarro did to the Aztecs and Incas?

IshmaelZ said:

OldKingCole said:

Consequent upon something on BBC East I’ve just looked at the candidates nominated for Southend West. For those who have some info posted on Wikipedia, the words ‘far right fruitcakes and nut-jobs’ come to mind.
There’s also an unspecified Independent and a Psychedelic Movement candidate.

I’d have to think hard and get more information before I decided where to put my cross!

The Psychedelic Movement bloke is anything but, rt wing nutter under a false flag

rottenborough said:

OldKingCole said:

Consequent upon something on BBC East I’ve just looked at the candidates nominated for Southend West. For those who have some info posted on Wikipedia, the words ‘far right fruitcakes and nut-jobs’ come to mind.
There’s also an unspecified Independent and a Psychedelic Movement candidate.

I’d have to think hard and get more information before I decided where to put my cross!

No Bus Pass Elvis Party candidate?

OldKingCole said:

IanB2 said:

Daily Mail:

A letter written by Boris Johnson's classics master when he was at Eton has resurfaced saying he 'believes it is churlish of us not to regard him as an exception'.

The report, from Martin Hammond to Stanley Johnson in 1982, rapped the 17-year-old for thinking he should be free of the 'network of obligation that binds everyone'.

The classics schoolmaster also slammed him for being 'affronted when criticised for what amounts to a gross failure of responsibility'.

It comes as the PM's future hangs on a knife edge as ministers pleaded with Tories MPs to wait for a probe into No 10 parties before calling for him to quit.

This has resurfaced more times than an orca off Vancouver.

OldKingCole said:

Consequent upon something on BBC East I’ve just looked at the candidates nominated for Southend West. For those who have some info posted on Wikipedia, the words ‘far right fruitcakes and nut-jobs’ come to mind.
There’s also an unspecified Independent and a Psychedelic Movement candidate.

I’d have to think hard and get more information before I decided where to put my cross!

DecrepiterJohnL said:

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

MarkH said:

I sense a shifting of the the political tectonic plates. The next Tory leader must lance the boil of the ERG/Covid Recovery Group as Kinnock did with Momentum, although will probably face a similar fate.
Since the CRG rebellion, the Rees-Moggs etc believe they have free reign, appealing to the c100,000 party members but increasingly alienating UK voters. As with Johnson, any new leader will be in thrall to the CRG unless they call a GE and remove the whip, so they can't stand, as Johnson did with Tory moderates.
Johnson irretrievably lost any authority over his party with the CRG revolt against Plan B so was already a dead man walking. Even before 'party gate'.
Previous PMs have been able to turn their tenure into filthy lucre. This option is no longer open to Johnson as he has already rewarded his acolytes and will have no traction as a columnist, expert meeting chair or lobbyist and will become. effectively homeless, on loss of office. Even as an after-dinner speaker to software salesmen, his appeal as the 'dim-sounding-but-actually-very-clever' speaker will fail if just one person suffered a bereavement during lockdown.
Starmer must be hoping he'll cling on, with every PMQs 'he said this then, he said that then' which one is the truth? will resonate. Starmer has been collecting and collating receipts for 18 months now.
His awkward squad, (Corbynite/Momentum) is easier to control. Without the whip, Corbyn faces a future of cultivating his allotment while collecting his pension. While his wife would advocate this course, his lifetime of 'tilting against windmills' will probably mean him setting up his own party. Without the party whip he cannot stand as an MP. Membership or support for such a new party would mean expulsion from Labour/removal of whip for Starmer's awkward squad.
And then there is running a de facto 'progressive alliance' between Lib Dems and Labour where, as we have seen, there has already been an implicit pact in by-elections.

Welcome to PB!

On one of your points, think you're under-estimating Boris Johnson post-PM prospects. Certainly he would be a big draw in USA, as former premier AND as a Benny Hill impersonator. No BoJo fatigue over here! Heck, most of us barely know who he is. Certainly we have no real antipathy (or love) for him, just another Brit twit politico/talking head.

Am NOT talking chump change, but LOTS of greenback dollars, at least for a few years on (what used to be called) the rubber chicken circuit.

I've tipped Boris to become a moosehead professor at one of your well-heeled universities. He can teach a 2-hour course on British politics, and another on Ancient Greece. Seven figures for a week's work, if that. Here is an extract from his Rome vs Greece debate against Prof Mary Beard:-

Boris Johnson: "The Romans were bastards"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0qchnptckA

rottenborough said:

I see Cressida has washed her hands of the whole party gate affair by saying Met follows national guidelines on covid enforcement:

"'Throughout the pandemic the Met has followed the national 4 Es approach of enforcing the Coronavirus Regulations. Where live ongoing breaches of the restrictions were identified, officers engaged with those present, explained the current restrictions, encouraged people to adhere to them, and only as a last resort moved to enforcement." - quote from Mail

Tell that to the students fined £10k for a house party.

rottenborough said:

OldKingCole said:

Consequent upon something on BBC East I’ve just looked at the candidates nominated for Southend West. For those who have some info posted on Wikipedia, the words ‘far right fruitcakes and nut-jobs’ come to mind.
There’s also an unspecified Independent and a Psychedelic Movement candidate.

I’d have to think hard and get more information before I decided where to put my cross!

No Bus Pass Elvis Party candidate?

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

OldKingCole said:

Consequent upon something on BBC East I’ve just looked at the candidates nominated for Southend West. For those who have some info posted on Wikipedia, the words ‘far right fruitcakes and nut-jobs’ come to mind.
There’s also an unspecified Independent and a Psychedelic Movement candidate.

I’d have to think hard and get more information before I decided where to put my cross!

Note that the Official Monster Raving Loony Party is NOT fielding a candidate in Southend West.

Presumable out of respect for the tragic circumstances behind this byelection?

Something beyond the ken or character of the REAL nutbags?

IF yours truly had a vote there, think I'd either skip the by-election or spoil my ballot paper. Certainly would NOT vote for the Conservative, however worthy.

UNLESS perhaps she publicly denounced/renounced Boris Johnson. Which is (I think) doubtful.

IshmaelZ said:

MightyAlex said:

IshmaelZ said:

OldKingCole said:

Consequent upon something on BBC East I’ve just looked at the candidates nominated for Southend West. For those who have some info posted on Wikipedia, the words ‘far right fruitcakes and nut-jobs’ come to mind.
There’s also an unspecified Independent and a Psychedelic Movement candidate.

I’d have to think hard and get more information before I decided where to put my cross!

The Psychedelic Movement bloke is anything but, rt wing nutter under a false flag

https://jasonpilley.files.wordpress.com/2022/01/2022page2.jpg

Giving us mycophiles a bad name.

My thought entirely

Bumper season on Dartmoor btw. Indeed still is, I found some prize specimens on New Years Day.

MarkH said:

I sense a shifting of the the political tectonic plates. The next Tory leader must lance the boil of the ERG/Covid Recovery Group as Kinnock did with Momentum, although will probably face a similar fate.
Since the CRG rebellion, the Rees-Moggs etc believe they have free reign, appealing to the c100,000 party members but increasingly alienating UK voters. As with Johnson, any new leader will be in thrall to the CRG unless they call a GE and remove the whip, so they can't stand, as Johnson did with Tory moderates.
Johnson irretrievably lost any authority over his party with the CRG revolt against Plan B so was already a dead man walking. Even before 'party gate'.
Previous PMs have been able to turn their tenure into filthy lucre. This option is no longer open to Johnson as he has already rewarded his acolytes and will have no traction as a columnist, expert meeting chair or lobbyist and will become. effectively homeless, on loss of office. Even as an after-dinner speaker to software salesmen, his appeal as the 'dim-sounding-but-actually-very-clever' speaker will fail if just one person suffered a bereavement during lockdown.
Starmer must be hoping he'll cling on, with every PMQs 'he said this then, he said that then' which one is the truth? will resonate. Starmer has been collecting and collating receipts for 18 months now.
His awkward squad, (Corbynite/Momentum) is easier to control. Without the whip, Corbyn faces a future of cultivating his allotment while collecting his pension. While his wife would advocate this course, his lifetime of 'tilting against windmills' will probably mean him setting up his own party. Without the party whip he cannot stand as an MP. Membership or support for such a new party would mean expulsion from Labour/removal of whip for Starmer's awkward squad.
And then there is running a de facto 'progressive alliance' between Lib Dems and Labour where, as we have seen, there has already been an implicit pact in by-elections.

rottenborough said:

Tim Montgomerie 🇬🇧
@montie
·
1h
I don’t see anything like the necessary momentum within the parliamentary Conservative Party to oust the PM.

===

The wounded albatross will still be around for the May locals imho.

Carnyx said:

OnlyLivingBoy said:

Malmesbury said:

Big_G_NorthWales said:

MoonRabbit said:

Scott_xP said:

BREAKING: The Metropolitan Police will NOT investigate any of the Downing Street parties unless and until the Sue Gray inquiry finds evidence of criminality.

ie the Met are relying on an internal inquiry to decide for them whether a crime was committed.

Full statement 👇 https://twitter.com/PaulBrandITV/status/1481678636096892929/photo/1

Sounds wrong. But Sue would have to stop and wait for them, delaying from end of next week till who knows when?

I am very relieved the Met will not act before Sue Gray's report which is due in 10 days, but would have been kicked into the long grass and this political crisis seeing no ending

My guess is that the police saw no upside. Get involved and effectively stretch out/blur the issue, and potentially start yet another political fight of police vs politicians.

Everyone who went to Oxford between the late 80s and the early 2000s thinks that the police are completely corrupt and useless already... Why *really* make enemies of the next cabinet. Half of whom....

Are the police in Oxford especially bad? That Morse chap was pretty good wasn't he?

Maybe not Oxford specifically, but the same force was not well thought of even before that: I remember Thames Valley Police's idea of good PR was to invite Roger Graef to do a fly on the wall TV doc in the early 1980s. The result was catastrophic for their reputation, abvoe all their handling of a rape complainant.

http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/464502/index.html

Malmesbury said:

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

DecrepiterJohnL said:

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

MarkH said:

I sense a shifting of the the political tectonic plates. The next Tory leader must lance the boil of the ERG/Covid Recovery Group as Kinnock did with Momentum, although will probably face a similar fate.
Since the CRG rebellion, the Rees-Moggs etc believe they have free reign, appealing to the c100,000 party members but increasingly alienating UK voters. As with Johnson, any new leader will be in thrall to the CRG unless they call a GE and remove the whip, so they can't stand, as Johnson did with Tory moderates.
Johnson irretrievably lost any authority over his party with the CRG revolt against Plan B so was already a dead man walking. Even before 'party gate'.
Previous PMs have been able to turn their tenure into filthy lucre. This option is no longer open to Johnson as he has already rewarded his acolytes and will have no traction as a columnist, expert meeting chair or lobbyist and will become. effectively homeless, on loss of office. Even as an after-dinner speaker to software salesmen, his appeal as the 'dim-sounding-but-actually-very-clever' speaker will fail if just one person suffered a bereavement during lockdown.
Starmer must be hoping he'll cling on, with every PMQs 'he said this then, he said that then' which one is the truth? will resonate. Starmer has been collecting and collating receipts for 18 months now.
His awkward squad, (Corbynite/Momentum) is easier to control. Without the whip, Corbyn faces a future of cultivating his allotment while collecting his pension. While his wife would advocate this course, his lifetime of 'tilting against windmills' will probably mean him setting up his own party. Without the party whip he cannot stand as an MP. Membership or support for such a new party would mean expulsion from Labour/removal of whip for Starmer's awkward squad.
And then there is running a de facto 'progressive alliance' between Lib Dems and Labour where, as we have seen, there has already been an implicit pact in by-elections.

Welcome to PB!

On one of your points, think you're under-estimating Boris Johnson post-PM prospects. Certainly he would be a big draw in USA, as former premier AND as a Benny Hill impersonator. No BoJo fatigue over here! Heck, most of us barely know who he is. Certainly we have no real antipathy (or love) for him, just another Brit twit politico/talking head.

Am NOT talking chump change, but LOTS of greenback dollars, at least for a few years on (what used to be called) the rubber chicken circuit.

I've tipped Boris to become a moosehead professor at one of your well-heeled universities. He can teach a 2-hour course on British politics, and another on Ancient Greece. Seven figures for a week's work, if that. Here is an extract from his Rome vs Greece debate against Prof Mary Beard:-

Boris Johnson: "The Romans were bastards"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0qchnptckA

To be absolutely fair, the Romans were utter bastards.

What, you mean like compared to the bubonic plague?

When they conquered people they conquered them, but I'm pushed to find an act of vindictive genocide anywhere near the one decreed by the hugely overrated C5th Athens for the Mytilenians and actually carried out on the Melians. And they managed to interact with the Jews without murderous antisemitism, which lots of people find quite tricky.

The careers of Caesar and Pompey as a start? they made Colston look really small time.... Mass slaughter followed by mass slavery and a topping of theft....

As for genocide - what do you call what happened to Carthage?

Theuniondivvie said:

Thing on Alpha Men Assemble on C4 News, very QAnony vibe. Their fixation with what the the authorities and lockdown are supposedly doing to kids also strikes a strongly recognisable chord.

'If there aren't millions turning out for this we may as well go home, lay down and let the Communists take over!'

Pro_Rata said:

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

OldKingCole said:

Consequent upon something on BBC East I’ve just looked at the candidates nominated for Southend West. For those who have some info posted on Wikipedia, the words ‘far right fruitcakes and nut-jobs’ come to mind.
There’s also an unspecified Independent and a Psychedelic Movement candidate.

I’d have to think hard and get more information before I decided where to put my cross!

Note that the Official Monster Raving Loony Party is NOT fielding a candidate in Southend West.

Presumable out of respect for the tragic circumstances behind this byelection?

Something beyond the ken or character of the REAL nutbags?

IF yours truly had a vote there, think I'd either skip the by-election or spoil my ballot paper. Certainly would NOT vote for the Conservative, however worthy.

UNLESS perhaps she publicly denounced/renounced Boris Johnson. Which is (I think) doubtful.

I tried to hunt out some kinds of social media footprint of the independent candidate and I think - treat this as unconfirmed, as it could be a different person - she may be a British based Russian activist lawyer, author of 'What Russians Really Think', knows Navalny and supports open immigration. Tbc.

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

DecrepiterJohnL said:

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

MarkH said:

I sense a shifting of the the political tectonic plates. The next Tory leader must lance the boil of the ERG/Covid Recovery Group as Kinnock did with Momentum, although will probably face a similar fate.
Since the CRG rebellion, the Rees-Moggs etc believe they have free reign, appealing to the c100,000 party members but increasingly alienating UK voters. As with Johnson, any new leader will be in thrall to the CRG unless they call a GE and remove the whip, so they can't stand, as Johnson did with Tory moderates.
Johnson irretrievably lost any authority over his party with the CRG revolt against Plan B so was already a dead man walking. Even before 'party gate'.
Previous PMs have been able to turn their tenure into filthy lucre. This option is no longer open to Johnson as he has already rewarded his acolytes and will have no traction as a columnist, expert meeting chair or lobbyist and will become. effectively homeless, on loss of office. Even as an after-dinner speaker to software salesmen, his appeal as the 'dim-sounding-but-actually-very-clever' speaker will fail if just one person suffered a bereavement during lockdown.
Starmer must be hoping he'll cling on, with every PMQs 'he said this then, he said that then' which one is the truth? will resonate. Starmer has been collecting and collating receipts for 18 months now.
His awkward squad, (Corbynite/Momentum) is easier to control. Without the whip, Corbyn faces a future of cultivating his allotment while collecting his pension. While his wife would advocate this course, his lifetime of 'tilting against windmills' will probably mean him setting up his own party. Without the party whip he cannot stand as an MP. Membership or support for such a new party would mean expulsion from Labour/removal of whip for Starmer's awkward squad.
And then there is running a de facto 'progressive alliance' between Lib Dems and Labour where, as we have seen, there has already been an implicit pact in by-elections.

Welcome to PB!

On one of your points, think you're under-estimating Boris Johnson post-PM prospects. Certainly he would be a big draw in USA, as former premier AND as a Benny Hill impersonator. No BoJo fatigue over here! Heck, most of us barely know who he is. Certainly we have no real antipathy (or love) for him, just another Brit twit politico/talking head.

Am NOT talking chump change, but LOTS of greenback dollars, at least for a few years on (what used to be called) the rubber chicken circuit.

I've tipped Boris to become a moosehead professor at one of your well-heeled universities. He can teach a 2-hour course on British politics, and another on Ancient Greece. Seven figures for a week's work, if that. Here is an extract from his Rome vs Greece debate against Prof Mary Beard:-

Boris Johnson: "The Romans were bastards"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0qchnptckA

To be absolutely fair, the Romans were utter bastards.

What, you mean like compared to the bubonic plague?

When they conquered people they conquered them, but I'm pushed to find an act of vindictive genocide anywhere near the one decreed by the hugely overrated C5th Athens for the Mytilenians and actually carried out on the Melians. And they managed to interact with the Jews without murderous antisemitism, which lots of people find quite tricky.

The careers of Caesar and Pompey as a start? they made Colston look really small time.... Mass slaughter followed by mass slavery and a topping of theft....

As for genocide - what do you call what happened to Carthage?

The theory was everyone was enslaved I thought? Rather than the Kill all the men orders for Melos/Mytilene. The practical difference may have been trivial of course

I just get ranty and pissed off by lazy veneration of Athens because they built some swanky buildings with stolen money, and voluntarily sat through a lot of B Movie level shit by the likes of sodding Euripides, and so on, and people are still secretly impressed by Johnson quoting translations of boring Aeschylus. Looking for an ancient world analogue of bojo most people would look to Rome, but actually the best fit is genuinely Pericles, and not in a good way.

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

DecrepiterJohnL said:

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

MarkH said:

I sense a shifting of the the political tectonic plates. The next Tory leader must lance the boil of the ERG/Covid Recovery Group as Kinnock did with Momentum, although will probably face a similar fate.
Since the CRG rebellion, the Rees-Moggs etc believe they have free reign, appealing to the c100,000 party members but increasingly alienating UK voters. As with Johnson, any new leader will be in thrall to the CRG unless they call a GE and remove the whip, so they can't stand, as Johnson did with Tory moderates.
Johnson irretrievably lost any authority over his party with the CRG revolt against Plan B so was already a dead man walking. Even before 'party gate'.
Previous PMs have been able to turn their tenure into filthy lucre. This option is no longer open to Johnson as he has already rewarded his acolytes and will have no traction as a columnist, expert meeting chair or lobbyist and will become. effectively homeless, on loss of office. Even as an after-dinner speaker to software salesmen, his appeal as the 'dim-sounding-but-actually-very-clever' speaker will fail if just one person suffered a bereavement during lockdown.
Starmer must be hoping he'll cling on, with every PMQs 'he said this then, he said that then' which one is the truth? will resonate. Starmer has been collecting and collating receipts for 18 months now.
His awkward squad, (Corbynite/Momentum) is easier to control. Without the whip, Corbyn faces a future of cultivating his allotment while collecting his pension. While his wife would advocate this course, his lifetime of 'tilting against windmills' will probably mean him setting up his own party. Without the party whip he cannot stand as an MP. Membership or support for such a new party would mean expulsion from Labour/removal of whip for Starmer's awkward squad.
And then there is running a de facto 'progressive alliance' between Lib Dems and Labour where, as we have seen, there has already been an implicit pact in by-elections.

Welcome to PB!

On one of your points, think you're under-estimating Boris Johnson post-PM prospects. Certainly he would be a big draw in USA, as former premier AND as a Benny Hill impersonator. No BoJo fatigue over here! Heck, most of us barely know who he is. Certainly we have no real antipathy (or love) for him, just another Brit twit politico/talking head.

Am NOT talking chump change, but LOTS of greenback dollars, at least for a few years on (what used to be called) the rubber chicken circuit.

I've tipped Boris to become a moosehead professor at one of your well-heeled universities. He can teach a 2-hour course on British politics, and another on Ancient Greece. Seven figures for a week's work, if that. Here is an extract from his Rome vs Greece debate against Prof Mary Beard:-

Boris Johnson: "The Romans were bastards"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0qchnptckA

To be absolutely fair, the Romans were utter bastards.

What, you mean like compared to the bubonic plague?

When they conquered people they conquered them, but I'm pushed to find an act of vindictive genocide anywhere near the one decreed by the hugely overrated C5th Athens for the Mytilenians and actually carried out on the Melians. And they managed to interact with the Jews without murderous antisemitism, which lots of people find quite tricky.

The careers of Caesar and Pompey as a start? they made Colston look really small time.... Mass slaughter followed by mass slavery and a topping of theft....

As for genocide - what do you call what happened to Carthage?

The theory was everyone was enslaved I thought? Rather than the Kill all the men orders for Melos/Mytilene. The practical difference may have been trivial of course

I just get ranty and pissed off by lazy veneration of Athens because they built some swanky buildings with stolen money, and voluntarily sat through a lot of B Movie level shit by the likes of sodding Euripides, and so on, and people are still secretly impressed by Johnson quoting translations of boring Aeschylus. Looking for an ancient world analogue of bojo most people would look to Rome, but actually the best fit is genuinely Pericles, and not in a good way.

dixiedean said:

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

DecrepiterJohnL said:

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

MarkH said:

I sense a shifting of the the political tectonic plates. The next Tory leader must lance the boil of the ERG/Covid Recovery Group as Kinnock did with Momentum, although will probably face a similar fate.
Since the CRG rebellion, the Rees-Moggs etc believe they have free reign, appealing to the c100,000 party members but increasingly alienating UK voters. As with Johnson, any new leader will be in thrall to the CRG unless they call a GE and remove the whip, so they can't stand, as Johnson did with Tory moderates.
Johnson irretrievably lost any authority over his party with the CRG revolt against Plan B so was already a dead man walking. Even before 'party gate'.
Previous PMs have been able to turn their tenure into filthy lucre. This option is no longer open to Johnson as he has already rewarded his acolytes and will have no traction as a columnist, expert meeting chair or lobbyist and will become. effectively homeless, on loss of office. Even as an after-dinner speaker to software salesmen, his appeal as the 'dim-sounding-but-actually-very-clever' speaker will fail if just one person suffered a bereavement during lockdown.
Starmer must be hoping he'll cling on, with every PMQs 'he said this then, he said that then' which one is the truth? will resonate. Starmer has been collecting and collating receipts for 18 months now.
His awkward squad, (Corbynite/Momentum) is easier to control. Without the whip, Corbyn faces a future of cultivating his allotment while collecting his pension. While his wife would advocate this course, his lifetime of 'tilting against windmills' will probably mean him setting up his own party. Without the party whip he cannot stand as an MP. Membership or support for such a new party would mean expulsion from Labour/removal of whip for Starmer's awkward squad.
And then there is running a de facto 'progressive alliance' between Lib Dems and Labour where, as we have seen, there has already been an implicit pact in by-elections.

Welcome to PB!

On one of your points, think you're under-estimating Boris Johnson post-PM prospects. Certainly he would be a big draw in USA, as former premier AND as a Benny Hill impersonator. No BoJo fatigue over here! Heck, most of us barely know who he is. Certainly we have no real antipathy (or love) for him, just another Brit twit politico/talking head.

Am NOT talking chump change, but LOTS of greenback dollars, at least for a few years on (what used to be called) the rubber chicken circuit.

I've tipped Boris to become a moosehead professor at one of your well-heeled universities. He can teach a 2-hour course on British politics, and another on Ancient Greece. Seven figures for a week's work, if that. Here is an extract from his Rome vs Greece debate against Prof Mary Beard:-

Boris Johnson: "The Romans were bastards"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0qchnptckA

To be absolutely fair, the Romans were utter bastards.

What, you mean like compared to the bubonic plague?

When they conquered people they conquered them, but I'm pushed to find an act of vindictive genocide anywhere near the one decreed by the hugely overrated C5th Athens for the Mytilenians and actually carried out on the Melians. And they managed to interact with the Jews without murderous antisemitism, which lots of people find quite tricky.

The careers of Caesar and Pompey as a start? they made Colston look really small time.... Mass slaughter followed by mass slavery and a topping of theft....

As for genocide - what do you call what happened to Carthage?

The theory was everyone was enslaved I thought? Rather than the Kill all the men orders for Melos/Mytilene. The practical difference may have been trivial of course

I just get ranty and pissed off by lazy veneration of Athens because they built some swanky buildings with stolen money, and voluntarily sat through a lot of B Movie level shit by the likes of sodding Euripides, and so on, and people are still secretly impressed by Johnson quoting translations of boring Aeschylus. Looking for an ancient world analogue of bojo most people would look to Rome, but actually the best fit is genuinely Pericles, and not in a good way.

Yeah. And at least the Spartans were genuinely fuck off hard.

franklyn said:

This is an interesting story in the context of today's news about Chinese spies in Westminster. I am sure that it is just a coincidence
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/tory-mps-300000-link-china-25453267

Scott_xP said:

Sorted...

Boris Johnson plans big shake-up of Downing Street team - https://@FTXft.com/3Gt90XA via @FT

Scott_xP said:

Sorted...

Boris Johnson plans big shake-up of Downing Street team - https://@FTXft.com/3Gt90XA via @FT

DecrepiterJohnL said:

Scott_xP said:

Sorted...

Boris Johnson plans big shake-up of Downing Street team - https://@FTXft.com/3Gt90XA via @FT

Junior heads must roll. And your link is kaput.

dixiedean said:

OldKingCole said:

dixiedean said:

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

DecrepiterJohnL said:

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

MarkH said:

I sense a shifting of the the political tectonic plates. The next Tory leader must lance the boil of the ERG/Covid Recovery Group as Kinnock did with Momentum, although will probably face a similar fate.
Since the CRG rebellion, the Rees-Moggs etc believe they have free reign, appealing to the c100,000 party members but increasingly alienating UK voters. As with Johnson, any new leader will be in thrall to the CRG unless they call a GE and remove the whip, so they can't stand, as Johnson did with Tory moderates.
Johnson irretrievably lost any authority over his party with the CRG revolt against Plan B so was already a dead man walking. Even before 'party gate'.
Previous PMs have been able to turn their tenure into filthy lucre. This option is no longer open to Johnson as he has already rewarded his acolytes and will have no traction as a columnist, expert meeting chair or lobbyist and will become. effectively homeless, on loss of office. Even as an after-dinner speaker to software salesmen, his appeal as the 'dim-sounding-but-actually-very-clever' speaker will fail if just one person suffered a bereavement during lockdown.
Starmer must be hoping he'll cling on, with every PMQs 'he said this then, he said that then' which one is the truth? will resonate. Starmer has been collecting and collating receipts for 18 months now.
His awkward squad, (Corbynite/Momentum) is easier to control. Without the whip, Corbyn faces a future of cultivating his allotment while collecting his pension. While his wife would advocate this course, his lifetime of 'tilting against windmills' will probably mean him setting up his own party. Without the party whip he cannot stand as an MP. Membership or support for such a new party would mean expulsion from Labour/removal of whip for Starmer's awkward squad.
And then there is running a de facto 'progressive alliance' between Lib Dems and Labour where, as we have seen, there has already been an implicit pact in by-elections.

Welcome to PB!

On one of your points, think you're under-estimating Boris Johnson post-PM prospects. Certainly he would be a big draw in USA, as former premier AND as a Benny Hill impersonator. No BoJo fatigue over here! Heck, most of us barely know who he is. Certainly we have no real antipathy (or love) for him, just another Brit twit politico/talking head.

Am NOT talking chump change, but LOTS of greenback dollars, at least for a few years on (what used to be called) the rubber chicken circuit.

I've tipped Boris to become a moosehead professor at one of your well-heeled universities. He can teach a 2-hour course on British politics, and another on Ancient Greece. Seven figures for a week's work, if that. Here is an extract from his Rome vs Greece debate against Prof Mary Beard:-

Boris Johnson: "The Romans were bastards"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0qchnptckA

To be absolutely fair, the Romans were utter bastards.

What, you mean like compared to the bubonic plague?

When they conquered people they conquered them, but I'm pushed to find an act of vindictive genocide anywhere near the one decreed by the hugely overrated C5th Athens for the Mytilenians and actually carried out on the Melians. And they managed to interact with the Jews without murderous antisemitism, which lots of people find quite tricky.

The careers of Caesar and Pompey as a start? they made Colston look really small time.... Mass slaughter followed by mass slavery and a topping of theft....

As for genocide - what do you call what happened to Carthage?

The theory was everyone was enslaved I thought? Rather than the Kill all the men orders for Melos/Mytilene. The practical difference may have been trivial of course

I just get ranty and pissed off by lazy veneration of Athens because they built some swanky buildings with stolen money, and voluntarily sat through a lot of B Movie level shit by the likes of sodding Euripides, and so on, and people are still secretly impressed by Johnson quoting translations of boring Aeschylus. Looking for an ancient world analogue of bojo most people would look to Rome, but actually the best fit is genuinely Pericles, and not in a good way.

Yeah. And at least the Spartans were genuinely fuck off hard.

And gay. AIUI the idea was that gay ‘partners’ fought beside each other because neither would let the other down.

Helped with the interlocking phalanx too. An extra way to interlock...

Scott_xP said:

DecrepiterJohnL said:

Scott_xP said:

Sorted...

Boris Johnson plans big shake-up of Downing Street team - https://@FTXft.com/3Gt90XA via @FT

Junior heads must roll. And your link is kaput.

https://twitter.com/katie_martin_fx/status/1481717895159820292

Phil said:

dixiedean said:

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

IshmaelZ said:

Malmesbury said:

DecrepiterJohnL said:

SeaShantyIrish2 said:

MarkH said:

I sense a shifting of the the political tectonic plates. The next Tory leader must lance the boil of the ERG/Covid Recovery Group as Kinnock did with Momentum, although will probably face a similar fate.
Since the CRG rebellion, the Rees-Moggs etc believe they have free reign, appealing to the c100,000 party members but increasingly alienating UK voters. As with Johnson, any new leader will be in thrall to the CRG unless they call a GE and remove the whip, so they can't stand, as Johnson did with Tory moderates.
Johnson irretrievably lost any authority over his party with the CRG revolt against Plan B so was already a dead man walking. Even before 'party gate'.
Previous PMs have been able to turn their tenure into filthy lucre. This option is no longer open to Johnson as he has already rewarded his acolytes and will have no traction as a columnist, expert meeting chair or lobbyist and will become. effectively homeless, on loss of office. Even as an after-dinner speaker to software salesmen, his appeal as the 'dim-sounding-but-actually-very-clever' speaker will fail if just one person suffered a bereavement during lockdown.
Starmer must be hoping he'll cling on, with every PMQs 'he said this then, he said that then' which one is the truth? will resonate. Starmer has been collecting and collating receipts for 18 months now.
His awkward squad, (Corbynite/Momentum) is easier to control. Without the whip, Corbyn faces a future of cultivating his allotment while collecting his pension. While his wife would advocate this course, his lifetime of 'tilting against windmills' will probably mean him setting up his own party. Without the party whip he cannot stand as an MP. Membership or support for such a new party would mean expulsion from Labour/removal of whip for Starmer's awkward squad.
And then there is running a de facto 'progressive alliance' between Lib Dems and Labour where, as we have seen, there has already been an implicit pact in by-elections.

Welcome to PB!

On one of your points, think you're under-estimating Boris Johnson post-PM prospects. Certainly he would be a big draw in USA, as former premier AND as a Benny Hill impersonator. No BoJo fatigue over here! Heck, most of us barely know who he is. Certainly we have no real antipathy (or love) for him, just another Brit twit politico/talking head.

Am NOT talking chump change, but LOTS of greenback dollars, at least for a few years on (what used to be called) the rubber chicken circuit.

I've tipped Boris to become a moosehead professor at one of your well-heeled universities. He can teach a 2-hour course on British politics, and another on Ancient Greece. Seven figures for a week's work, if that. Here is an extract from his Rome vs Greece debate against Prof Mary Beard:-

Boris Johnson: "The Romans were bastards"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0qchnptckA

To be absolutely fair, the Romans were utter bastards.

What, you mean like compared to the bubonic plague?

When they conquered people they conquered them, but I'm pushed to find an act of vindictive genocide anywhere near the one decreed by the hugely overrated C5th Athens for the Mytilenians and actually carried out on the Melians. And they managed to interact with the Jews without murderous antisemitism, which lots of people find quite tricky.

The careers of Caesar and Pompey as a start? they made Colston look really small time.... Mass slaughter followed by mass slavery and a topping of theft....

As for genocide - what do you call what happened to Carthage?

The theory was everyone was enslaved I thought? Rather than the Kill all the men orders for Melos/Mytilene. The practical difference may have been trivial of course

I just get ranty and pissed off by lazy veneration of Athens because they built some swanky buildings with stolen money, and voluntarily sat through a lot of B Movie level shit by the likes of sodding Euripides, and so on, and people are still secretly impressed by Johnson quoting translations of boring Aeschylus. Looking for an ancient world analogue of bojo most people would look to Rome, but actually the best fit is genuinely Pericles, and not in a good way.

Yeah. And at least the Spartans were genuinely fuck off hard.

“300” is a Hollywood film (or a comic, depending on preference), not reality.

For an opposing view see, eg: https://acoup.blog/2019/09/20/collections-this-isnt-sparta-part-vi-spartan-battle/