Totally off-topic but a wonderful scam. Trains from Gatwick to London. All operated by GTR who have multiple brands - Thameslink, Southern and Gatwick Express.
The GX train is the same rolling stock as the Southern train, takes the same time (30 mins vs 32 for the non-"express". On the screens at Gatwick both are advertised as operated by Southern. One train is red, the other white and green.
So if you get the SN train it's £9 single. If you get the GX service it's £18 single. I know trains, looked for "southern" and was surprised to see GX stock rolling in. So I changed platform for the 2 minutes slower service.
How many people are they scamming like this? You literally pay double the fare for the same train on the same route with a 2 minute time difference...
EDIT - apparently the Gatwick Express is suspended. So no double fare. But when it is running it's still double the fare to save 2 minutes
It is a scam, but not the worst. The Heathrow express gets that title. I once paid about £40 to get my wife and I to paddington to try and make a connection. The HEX took 29 minutes rather than 15, and we missed the connection, and there was no way of getting any refund of the £40 because it wasn't delayed for long enough for delay repay to kick in. It is a total joke.
First class on the heathrow express is the ultimate scam at twice the price, flogged to innocent tourists by the station staff.
Is he actually too stupid to know that he's shilling for Putin, or too stupid to care?
Exempli gratia -
The Jewish Chronicle @JewishChron In a show on Iran’s Press TV, disgraced former MP Chris Williamson asserts: “Jewish identity of President Zelensky has been used by many in the West to cover NATO's clear alliance with neo Nazi batallions in the war against Russia" https://twitter.com/JewishChron/status/1503424582354706435
This man would have been in the Cabinet if Corbyn had won in 2017.
Hope the if Corbyn had won klaxon is well maintained, it’s seeing a lot of action.
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
To be serious for a sec, I'm firmly left, almost all my instincts are, but my nagging suspicion that capitalism is easier to critique than to viably replace keeps me out of the very low numbers. However I do have strong and sincere egalitarian views, some of them quite outlier, and this plops me solidly in the 20s. But I must keep the exact number a secret as explained.
Go for the Scandi model then: let capitalism rip but then tax it ‘till the pips squeak.
Capture of artillery is consistent with Ukranian claims of Russian tactical reverses outside Mikolayiv.
Ukrainian forces captured four D-30A/2A18M 122mm howitzers in the vicinty of #Mykolaiv, along with large quantities of 3OF56 projectiles with propellant charges/cases; it appears that a small artillery position was abandoned. https://mobile.twitter.com/UAWeapons/status/1503667414365614080
Towed artillery. That's very quaint.
I'll buy one, for the front garden. That will deal with the knut who parks his P100D across the pavement....
If there are Ukrainian farmers around, everything is "towed"....
We're at risk of losing our moorings here. Best, imo, if exactly where people stand on the L to R via C spectrum is determined by somebody who is known for being objective to a fault. Therefore me, I suppose. Do I have the time? Yes, I think so. And if not I'll do some juggling to create it.
But what political spectrum is that ?
Economic issues, social issues, environmental issues, international issues etc.
Which can be further subdivided for example some right wingers support low taxation above all while others support balanced budgets.
And that can be further subdivided for examples some people prefer taxation on income while others prefer taxation on wealth.
Indeed. The left right continuum is far too simplistic for modern politics, unless you view the world through HYUFD's upside down monochrome binoculars.
No, you're a 65. Nothing simplistic there.
Not sure I understand. Is that where you think I am on the continuum (15 points right of the median)?
Yep. Bringing all of your views together - each being a point in their own right - 65 emerges as the single weighted average measure. In words - an inhabitant of the centre ground just as and slightly before it starts to merge into more clearly right wing territory. House prices are quite high there, above the national average.
It may be a fair assessment lol. Where are you? about 45?
I do have a score - a fair and accurate one which is lower than 45 - but as the person running the show I have to keep it to myself. For obvious reasons. If I were to disclose it and people violently disagreed they'd start disputing their own scores and the whole system would be undermined.
Presumably, they’re hoping there’s still a railway line to get them out tonight?
What the hell are they thinking?
Hopefully there’s a lot more to this story, that we don’t yet know about.
If it’s as described, three leaders on a train (which has to go across 600km of Ukranian country to get to Kiev from Poland), then they’d better hope they have a few hundred special forces involved in the operation, and several contingency options to get them back out of the war zone.
Is he actually too stupid to know that he's shilling for Putin, or too stupid to care?
Exempli gratia -
The Jewish Chronicle @JewishChron In a show on Iran’s Press TV, disgraced former MP Chris Williamson asserts: “Jewish identity of President Zelensky has been used by many in the West to cover NATO's clear alliance with neo Nazi batallions in the war against Russia" https://twitter.com/JewishChron/status/1503424582354706435
This man would have been in the Cabinet if Corbyn had won in 2017.
Hope the if Corbyn had won klaxon is well maintained, it’s seeing a lot of action.
He's someone right now taking money to talk for the enemy, who just five years ago was on the verge of power over me.
You should stick to learning to sound the Salmond Siren.
To be serious for a sec, I'm firmly left, almost all my instincts are, but my nagging suspicion that capitalism is easier to critique than to viably replace keeps me out of the very low numbers. However I do have strong and sincere egalitarian views, some of them quite outlier, and this plops me solidly in the 20s. But I must keep the exact number a secret as explained.
Thanks - it’s often more interesting to see how people score themselves on this kind of spectrum than to try and get an ‘objective’ view. There’s probably more consensus on the point about capitalism (imperfect but hard to better) thank sometimes appears in more partisan commentary…
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
Sky just said the Polish and other leaders are travelling by train to Kyiv
Surprised they gave that information
Presumably Putin has been told that any attack on said train will be an act of war on a NATO state?
Oh that's a good idea. Give him a way of quickly triggering a wide european war in an easy hit.
Madness. Utter madness.
We don't know his state of mind, but it is perfectly possible he would see a wider european war as a way of covering up the military mess in Ukr and diverting any discontent at home.
Don't give him easy ways to engineer this.
If I was Biden I would apoplectic about this visit.
Presumably, they’re hoping there’s still a railway line to get them out tonight?
What the hell are they thinking?
Hopefully there’s a lot more to this story, that we don’t yet know about.
If it’s as described, three leaders on a train (which has to go across 600km of Ukranian country to get to Kiev from Poland), then they’d better hope they have a few hundred special forces involved in the operation, and several contingency options to get them back out of the war zone.
I think they are trying to nail the EU's trousers to the mast head on Ukraine. Which will upset certain people who will be demanding sanctions are dropped the moment that Putin half puts his tiny pee-pee away....
Presumably, they’re hoping there’s still a railway line to get them out tonight?
What the hell are they thinking?
Hopefully there’s a lot more to this story, that we don’t yet know about.
If it’s as described, three leaders on a train (which has to go across 600km of Ukranian country to get to Kiev from Poland), then they’d better hope they have a few hundred special forces involved in the operation, and several contingency options to get them back out of the war zone.
If something goes wrong it's a massive issue for NATO and the EU. IF they pull it off it's a big propaganda victory for Ukraine ("look, Russia is nowhere near surrounding Kiev").
EU diplomats "privately fuming" about the Polish, Czech and Slovenian PMs visiting Ukraine:
@DaveKeating Other EU perm reps here in Brussels privately fuming about this visit, which risks being the “spark for World War 3” as one official put it.
It was apparently both uncoordinated with other allies and, astonishingly, pre-announced before they left on the train across Ukraine.
Seth G. Jones @SethGJones Russian casualties continue to mount, with roughly 6,000-8,000 Russian military fatalities thus far. To put that into perspective, there have been more Russian combat deaths in barely 2 weeks in Ukraine than U.S. combat deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq combined in two decades
Sky just said the Polish and other leaders are travelling by train to Kyiv
Surprised they gave that information
Presumably Putin has been told that any attack on said train will be an act of war on a NATO state?
Oh that's a good idea. Give him a way of quickly triggering a wide european war in an easy hit.
Madness. Utter madness.
We don't know his state of mind, but it is perfectly possible he would see a wider european war as a way of covering up the military mess in Ukr and diverting any discontent at home.
Don't give him easy ways to engineer this.
If I was Biden I would apoplectic about this visit.
Reminds me of the alleged Operation Long Jump - a plot to assassinate Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin at the Tehran Conference.
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
How is that relevant to the Ukraine. Germany never set foot in Great Britain....
Covid anecdote. Lots of it going around where I am (Bucks). My 86yo father-in-law (triple jabbed and got Delta last Autumn) met up with 6 other friends of similar ages last week. 5 of them got Covid afterwards (not him) but are all fine. I also know quite a few people of my age (40s) who have caught it recently but all seem to be the ones who had somehow managed to avoid getting it previously. Aligns with lots of Covid cases but hopefully not going to have a massive impact on hospitalisations.
That sounds promising. The only question I have (expert anywhere?) is about vaccines waning. I had my booster over six months ago, and have some health fragilities as well as knocking on a bit. Are there any plans to add another jab for those outside the really old/vulnerable? Or should I be confident that the six-month old booster is still protecting me fine? A bit more government communication on this would be helpful.
There is a booster scheme starting shortly for elderly and immune compromised. I also expect we may have a similar scheme in the autumn, catching those who normally get flu shots.
The current wibble from the wibblers is all about getting covid multiple times and it getting worse each time... Some evidence in some patients of damage to the immune system, which is clearly sub optimal. However for most people a couple of infections and you have pretty good baseline immunity. Later events tend to mildness. This is totally born* out by hospital data. Take note of how few are on MV beds. Take not of how many are admitted for other issues and happen to have covid. The wibblers are getting in a tizz that everyone is going to keep catching covid, that it will get worse each time as it degrades their immune system and that they are playing Russian Roulette with long covid - i.e. every infection has x chance of getting long covid, so the more times you go to the well, the greater your chance of long covid.
There is a lot we don't know. I suspect there will be high correlation between wibblers and people who have long covid. Some people suffer grievous harm from covid - organ damage etc. But others are probably more akin to CFS - they need help, but it probably won't be via a pharmaceutical treatment. It also won't help to have people dismiss it. I was interested by a long covid clinic story in the Times a week or so back. For one patient, the treatment was breathing related, and very mush like meditation/mindfullness. The implication was that he had become extremely anxious about things, which caused him to stop breathing correctly, which then made him breathless, and anxious...
As I keep saying, some long covid is clearly associated with physical damage. Some I suspect is damage to the mind. Both need our compassion, help and support.
My wife sprained her ankle in 2019. If she walks too far it becomes bruised and painful again. When she mentioned this on an NHS pain management course she was told it was impossible that she still had a physical injury, and this was all in her mind.
The treatment of people with chronic conditions by the NHS is generally disgraceful, and it's that experience which makes my wife particularly reluctant to risk adding long Covid to her existing chronic condition. (But that means she's basically trapped)
Perhaps long Covid creates an opportunity for the NHS to start again with chronic conditions, and learn how to deal with them?
Sorry to hear that. I'd say the original injury probably never healed completely or correctly, so fresh damage is more likely through (over)use. Not ideal. Not the same, but I have a persistent calf injury that manifests itself when I start running again - I can walk forever, and there is no way a calf injury is still present, but it will manifest itself if I do too much. Annoying, as I really enjoy running.
The body is extremely complex, and sadly the NHS is not set up for a lot of the things we ask it to do. At some point we just have to get on with life, as hard as that sounds. I hope your wife is able to enjoy her life and isn't in too much pain.
Interesting report in The Guardian on Zelenskiy's address today. He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan. Apparently they speak daily.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
The reason for that was that during the Battle of France, refugees were a serious hinderance on the roads. Hence german atrocities against refugees - if they found a blocked road, it wasn't uncommon for them to fire a burst or 2 from an MG42 to clear the road....
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
How is that relevant to the Ukraine. Germany never set foot in Great Britain....
Gee, I wonder.
'If the Invader Comes': Codenamed Operation Sealion, Hitler's plans to invade Britain were set for July 1940. Following the German invasions of Poland and France, it was a threat taken seriously. This leaflet issued in 1940 by the Ministry of Information in co-operation with the War Office and the Ministry of Home Security was entitled If the Invader Comes. It's message is a practical one and it's tone up-beat in an attempt to quell the very real fears which civilians must have been experiencing - "The Germans threaten to invade Great Britain. If they do so they will be driven out by our Navy, our Army and our Air Force."
I had more or less given up on expecting people to think, but at the very least you might attempt to read.
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
You are quite mad and amazingly ignorant. Did you miss the fact that we evacuated millions from the most dangerous areas of Britain in WW2?
I think you are just looking for excuses not to have those nasty foreigners coming here.
Yes. Absolutely gob-smacking. That would make me an uber-Trotskyist or something.
To be fair, his definition of a proper conservative applies to about six people. Outside of that we are all socialists. It really is the reverse-Corbynite fringe.
Although it's interesting that for HYUFD voting Conservative is an essential qualification for being "rightwing", whereas for many Corbynites voting Labour at most elections isn't required for being "leftwing" - in fact it also makes you "rightwing". So not quite a mirror-image.
Corbynites would though have required you to vote Labour in 2017 and 2019 at minimum to be considered leftwing.
Much as I would require you to have voted Conservative in 2019 to be considered rightwing
"Much as I would require you to have voted Conservative in 2019 to be considered rightwing"
Says the self appointed judge and jury on such matters. Really quite comical.
Do you not realise you are starting to become a laughing stock? A parody of a Tory? I wouldn't be at all surprised if Viz end up creating a character based on you; I can picture it now: "True Blue HYU" The first episode could be HYU goes speed dating to find girls that are True Conservatives.
I don't see what is wrong with HYUFD supporting the tories whatever their policy choices.
Plenty of people on here supported labour under Corbyn and labour under Starmer, two very different animals.
Some people are just tribal.
And to give HYUFD his due, he is unfailingly polite.
Is he actually too stupid to know that he's shilling for Putin, or too stupid to care?
Exempli gratia -
The Jewish Chronicle @JewishChron In a show on Iran’s Press TV, disgraced former MP Chris Williamson asserts: “Jewish identity of President Zelensky has been used by many in the West to cover NATO's clear alliance with neo Nazi batallions in the war against Russia" https://twitter.com/JewishChron/status/1503424582354706435
This man would have been in the Cabinet if Corbyn had won in 2017.
Hope the if Corbyn had won klaxon is well maintained, it’s seeing a lot of action.
He's someone right now taking money to talk for the enemy, who just five years ago was on the verge of power over me.
You should stick to learning to sound the Salmond Siren.
I can only salute your indefatigability in bravely ranting about Putin on an obscure blog. I assume you've made arrangements to counter the inevitable FSB hit squad heading your way?
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
How is that relevant to the Ukraine. Germany never set foot in Great Britain....
Gee, I wonder.
'If the Invader Comes': Codenamed Operation Sealion, Hitler's plans to invade Britain were set for July 1940. Following the German invasions of Poland and France, it was a threat taken seriously. This leaflet issued in 1940 by the Ministry of Information in co-operation with the War Office and the Ministry of Home Security was entitled If the Invader Comes. It's message is a practical one and it's tone up-beat in an attempt to quell the very real fears which civilians must have been experiencing - "The Germans threaten to invade Great Britain. If they do so they will be driven out by our Navy, our Army and our Air Force."
I had more or less given up on expecting people to think, but at the very least you might attempt to read.
Interesting report in The Guardian on Zelenskiy's address today. He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan. Apparently they speak daily.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
It’s indeed true that the PM features a lot on Ukranian TV. Alongside pictures of Ukranian troops shouting “God Save the Queen” in English, usually while holding the NLAW weapons the UK sent over.
Remember the context, that the UK have been training the Ukranian military since 2014. The two militaries are good friends.
Interesting report in The Guardian on Zelenskiy's address today. He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan. Apparently they speak daily.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
'He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan.'
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
You are quite mad and amazingly ignorant. Did you miss the fact that we evacuated millions from the most dangerous areas of Britain in WW2?
The UK evacuated 3,750,000 people internally and 14,000 children into other countries: I have no problem with Ukraine doing the same. If it had been possible for the people of Britain to simply cross the border into a safe country with a much higher standard of living, how do you think WWII would have panned out?
Interesting report in The Guardian on Zelenskiy's address today. He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan. Apparently they speak daily.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
I suspect Zelenskiy is just playing mind games with Putin here, who would have thought all his Christmases had come at once when he successfully installed Boris as British PM.
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
You are quite mad and amazingly ignorant. Did you miss the fact that we evacuated millions from the most dangerous areas of Britain in WW2?
The UK evacuated 3,750,000 people internally and 14,000 children into other countries: I have no problem with Ukraine doing the same. If it had been possible for the people of Britain to simply cross the border into a safe country with a much higher standard of living, how do you think WWII would have panned out?
There's two key differences - Britain was never invaded in WW2, and men of fighting age aren't allowed to leave Ukraine.
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
How is that relevant to the Ukraine. Germany never set foot in Great Britain....
Gee, I wonder.
'If the Invader Comes': Codenamed Operation Sealion, Hitler's plans to invade Britain were set for July 1940. Following the German invasions of Poland and France, it was a threat taken seriously. This leaflet issued in 1940 by the Ministry of Information in co-operation with the War Office and the Ministry of Home Security was entitled If the Invader Comes. It's message is a practical one and it's tone up-beat in an attempt to quell the very real fears which civilians must have been experiencing - "The Germans threaten to invade Great Britain. If they do so they will be driven out by our Navy, our Army and our Air Force."
I had more or less given up on expecting people to think, but at the very least you might attempt to read.
We are an island - where exactly could people flee to?
The advice in the UK will differ from what the Ukraine said to do because - well it's possible for women and children to cross a land border to safety.
That isn't exactly an option in the UK (well it may be now via the Channel Tunnel but it wasn't in 1940)..
But please continue your xenophobic utterly inhumane posts.
Is he actually too stupid to know that he's shilling for Putin, or too stupid to care?
Exempli gratia -
The Jewish Chronicle @JewishChron In a show on Iran’s Press TV, disgraced former MP Chris Williamson asserts: “Jewish identity of President Zelensky has been used by many in the West to cover NATO's clear alliance with neo Nazi batallions in the war against Russia" https://twitter.com/JewishChron/status/1503424582354706435
This man would have been in the Cabinet if Corbyn had won in 2017.
Hope the if Corbyn had won klaxon is well maintained, it’s seeing a lot of action.
He's someone right now taking money to talk for the enemy, who just five years ago was on the verge of power over me.
You should stick to learning to sound the Salmond Siren.
I can only salute your indefatigability in bravely ranting about Putin on an obscure blog. I assume you've made arrangements to counter the inevitable FSB hit squad heading your way?
I expect it'll be the independent, demilitarised and deNazified Scotland's FSB branch that'll provide the hit squad.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Interesting report in The Guardian on Zelenskiy's address today. He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan. Apparently they speak daily.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
It’s indeed true that the PM features a lot on Ukranian TV. Alongside pictures of Ukranian troops shouting “God Save the Queen” in English, usually while holding the NLAW weapons the UK sent over.
Remember the context, that the UK have been training the Ukranian military since 2014. The two militaries are good friends.
A story I heard on a podcast: in the 1920s and early 1930s, Germany did a load of secret training in Russia as part of a military pact, as they were banned form training in Germany (esp. air force). The USSR gave them training areas, and the Germans gave them technology.
In 1944/5, the Red Army were rolling across Germany. Red Army soldiers enter a house where a retired German senior officer is living. He points to a photos on the wall, showing him with two of the now-senior Russian officers leading the attack (ones who had survived the purges). Since there was no way they were going to attack someone who was in a photo with their leaders, they left him alone. (I think they said the German spoke Russian as well.)
Is he actually too stupid to know that he's shilling for Putin, or too stupid to care?
Exempli gratia -
The Jewish Chronicle @JewishChron In a show on Iran’s Press TV, disgraced former MP Chris Williamson asserts: “Jewish identity of President Zelensky has been used by many in the West to cover NATO's clear alliance with neo Nazi batallions in the war against Russia" https://twitter.com/JewishChron/status/1503424582354706435
This man would have been in the Cabinet if Corbyn had won in 2017.
Hope the if Corbyn had won klaxon is well maintained, it’s seeing a lot of action.
He's someone right now taking money to talk for the enemy, who just five years ago was on the verge of power over me.
You should stick to learning to sound the Salmond Siren.
I can only salute your indefatigability in bravely ranting about Putin on an obscure blog. I assume you've made arrangements to counter the inevitable FSB hit squad heading your way?
I expect it'll be the independent, demilitarised and deNazified Scotland's FSB branch that'll provide the hit squad.
Not sure what your strong point is aside from hysteria, but give up on the satire. That's incoherent.
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
In case you missed it, short of shutting the border there is no way to stop these refugees. The war is not in some far away country, it is right on the border of Europe and the Ukrainians are quite rightly seeking refuge wherever they can find it.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
You are quite mad and amazingly ignorant. Did you miss the fact that we evacuated millions from the most dangerous areas of Britain in WW2?
The UK evacuated 3,750,000 people internally and 14,000 children into other countries: I have no problem with Ukraine doing the same. If it had been possible for the people of Britain to simply cross the border into a safe country with a much higher standard of living, how do you think WWII would have panned out?
We evacuated them to places that were likely to be safe. Where exactly is that in Ukraine? And given the men are staying behind to fight (and women didn't generally fight in WW2) your point is just a straw man argument to hide the fact you don't like immigrants, no matter how desperate they are.
Yours is both a false and an offensive attitude to take.
Russia is preparing a mass deforestation of Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories, said the Ministry of Defense, citing a letter from Sergei Shoigu to Putin, Russia is planning to cut down greenery of “any age, regardless of ownership and land zoning.” https://mobile.twitter.com/Hromadske/status/1503694649436819463
I think Russia is trying to recreate the entire Vietnam war - only with an incredibly accelerated timeline.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
Utter bollocks. Where was their concern for sporting integrity when Abramovich was pumping £1.5bn of his gains into their squad?
Middlesborough have done nothing wrong. Its Chelsea that face the sanctions, Middlesborough should have a full crowd.
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
Happier to have women and children rather than men.
Ukrainian men are primarily staying to fight for their homeland while the women and children flee.
The "refugees" photographed in crossings/Calais etc seem to be 90%+ young men not women or children.
Its certainly easier to appreciate the former more than the latter as genuine refugees deserving of sympathy.
The unarguable statistical analysis of ‘seem to be 90%+ young men’ certainly clears up the issue for me.
Yes, in most refugees situations, young men feature strongly. They tend to be more mobile, so can flee, but also are heavily targeted by despotic regimes as either potential conscripts or potential opponents. Being male and of military age doesn't mean being a fake.
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
Happier to have women and children rather than men.
Ukrainian men are primarily staying to fight for their homeland while the women and children flee.
The "refugees" photographed in crossings/Calais etc seem to be 90%+ young men not women or children.
Its certainly easier to appreciate the former more than the latter as genuine refugees deserving of sympathy.
The unarguable statistical analysis of ‘seem to be 90%+ young men’ certainly clears up the issue for me.
The actual figure is roughly 3:1 Men:Women.
(Refugee Council figures)
The Syrian men tried to stay and fight for their homeland. With little Western support, they were largely defeated by the Syrian regime, with Iranian and Russian backing. If Russia wins in Ukraine, you can expect the demographics of the refugees to change.
We're at risk of losing our moorings here. Best, imo, if exactly where people stand on the L to R via C spectrum is determined by somebody who is known for being objective to a fault. Therefore me, I suppose. Do I have the time? Yes, I think so. And if not I'll do some juggling to create it.
But what political spectrum is that ?
Economic issues, social issues, environmental issues, international issues etc.
Which can be further subdivided for example some right wingers support low taxation above all while others support balanced budgets.
And that can be further subdivided for examples some people prefer taxation on income while others prefer taxation on wealth.
Indeed. The left right continuum is far too simplistic for modern politics, unless you view the world through HYUFD's upside down monochrome binoculars.
No, you're a 65. Nothing simplistic there.
Not sure I understand. Is that where you think I am on the continuum (15 points right of the median)?
Yep. Bringing all of your views together - each being a point in their own right - 65 emerges as the single weighted average measure. In words - an inhabitant of the centre ground just as and slightly before it starts to merge into more clearly right wing territory. House prices are quite high there, above the national average.
It may be a fair assessment lol. Where are you? about 45?
I do have a score - a fair and accurate one which is lower than 45 - but as the person running the show I have to keep it to myself. For obvious reasons. If I were to disclose it and people violently disagreed they'd start disputing their own scores and the whole system would be undermined.
I wonder if the Daily Mail is happy with refugees from Ukraine is because they're not black unlike those nasty people from Syria
And there it is, the racism card is played explicitly.
Ukraine refugees are women and children escaping theRussian army who are killing civilians. Those crossing the channel are young male economic migrants.
Yes. Absolutely gob-smacking. That would make me an uber-Trotskyist or something.
To be fair, his definition of a proper conservative applies to about six people. Outside of that we are all socialists. It really is the reverse-Corbynite fringe.
Although it's interesting that for HYUFD voting Conservative is an essential qualification for being "rightwing", whereas for many Corbynites voting Labour at most elections isn't required for being "leftwing" - in fact it also makes you "rightwing". So not quite a mirror-image.
Corbynites would though have required you to vote Labour in 2017 and 2019 at minimum to be considered leftwing.
Much as I would require you to have voted Conservative in 2019 to be considered rightwing
"Much as I would require you to have voted Conservative in 2019 to be considered rightwing"
Says the self appointed judge and jury on such matters. Really quite comical.
Do you not realise you are starting to become a laughing stock? A parody of a Tory? I wouldn't be at all surprised if Viz end up creating a character based on you; I can picture it now: "True Blue HYU" The first episode could be HYU goes speed dating to find girls that are True Conservatives.
I don't see what is wrong with HYUFD supporting the tories whatever their policy choices.
Plenty of people on here supported labour under Corbyn and labour under Starmer, two very different animals.
Some people are just tribal.
And to give HYUFD his due, he is unfailingly polite.
Yes - and isn't nasty despite all the abuse that gets hurled his way. Some could learn a lot from HYUFD.
Despite our many differences, I consider him one of my best friends on this website.
We're at risk of losing our moorings here. Best, imo, if exactly where people stand on the L to R via C spectrum is determined by somebody who is known for being objective to a fault. Therefore me, I suppose. Do I have the time? Yes, I think so. And if not I'll do some juggling to create it.
But what political spectrum is that ?
Economic issues, social issues, environmental issues, international issues etc.
Which can be further subdivided for example some right wingers support low taxation above all while others support balanced budgets.
And that can be further subdivided for examples some people prefer taxation on income while others prefer taxation on wealth.
Indeed. The left right continuum is far too simplistic for modern politics, unless you view the world through HYUFD's upside down monochrome binoculars.
No, you're a 65. Nothing simplistic there.
Not sure I understand. Is that where you think I am on the continuum (15 points right of the median)?
Yep. Bringing all of your views together - each being a point in their own right - 65 emerges as the single weighted average measure. In words - an inhabitant of the centre ground just as and slightly before it starts to merge into more clearly right wing territory. House prices are quite high there, above the national average.
It may be a fair assessment lol. Where are you? about 45?
I do have a score - a fair and accurate one which is lower than 45 - but as the person running the show I have to keep it to myself. For obvious reasons. If I were to disclose it and people violently disagreed they'd start disputing their own scores and the whole system would be undermined.
I wonder if the Daily Mail is happy with refugees from Ukraine is because they're not black unlike those nasty people from Syria
And there it is, the racism card is played explicitly.
Ukraine refugees are women and children escaping theRussian army who are killing civilians. Those crossing the channel are young male economic migrants.
Syria is not a safe country to live in, neither is Afghanistan.
Gender is irrelevant, if you're a refugee you are deserving of our help.
Of course to the Daily Mail and many Tories, it's because they're brown or black, whereas those nice Ukranians are white and Christian.
Strange they also hated their Polish cousins for so long, taking our jobs.
Just want to get this clear.
We are racist because we want to allow white Christian Ukrainians in.
We are racist because we didn’t want white Christian polish plumbers in.
We are racist because we don’t want Syrian Moslems in.
The white Christian Poles are racist because they didn’t want Syrian Moslems in.
Syrian Moslems are racist for not wanting Syrian Coptic Christians around.
We are racist for not taking in Syrians who wanted to flee Syria because of white Christian Russians teaming up with “black” Syrian Moslem dictator trying to kill them.
White Christian Russians are also killing White Christian Ukrainians who we want to allow in.
It all looks a little more complicated than us just being racist.
Sky just said the Polish and other leaders are travelling by train to Kyiv
Surprised they gave that information
Presumably Putin has been told that any attack on said train will be an act of war on a NATO state?
Oh that's a good idea. Give him a way of quickly triggering a wide european war in an easy hit.
Madness. Utter madness.
We don't know his state of mind, but it is perfectly possible he would see a wider european war as a way of covering up the military mess in Ukr and diverting any discontent at home.
Don't give him easy ways to engineer this.
If I was Biden I would apoplectic about this visit.
Rubbish. Biden doesn't get to decide where European leaders travel. Any attack on them by Putin would not rebound to his advantage.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
Utter bollocks. Where was their concern for sporting integrity when Abramovich was pumping £1.5bn of his gains into their squad?
Middlesborough have done nothing wrong. Its Chelsea that face the sanctions, Middlesborough should have a full crowd.
It remains to be seen what the situation is with away fans going to Stamford Bridge. Presumably if I can't go to the Arsenal game there in April/May, then that should also be behind closed doors.
Interesting report in The Guardian on Zelenskiy's address today. He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan. Apparently they speak daily.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
It’s indeed true that the PM features a lot on Ukranian TV. Alongside pictures of Ukranian troops shouting “God Save the Queen” in English, usually while holding the NLAW weapons the UK sent over.
Remember the context, that the UK have been training the Ukranian military since 2014. The two militaries are good friends.
A story I heard on a podcast: in the 1920s and early 1930s, Germany did a load of secret training in Russia as part of a military pact, as they were banned form training in Germany (esp. air force). The USSR gave them training areas, and the Germans gave them technology.
In 1944/5, the Red Army were rolling across Germany. Red Army soldiers enter a house where a retired German senior officer is living. He points to a photos on the wall, showing him with two of the now-senior Russian officers leading the attack (ones who had survived the purges). Since there was no way they were going to attack someone who was in a photo with their leaders, they left him alone. (I think they said the German spoke Russian as well.)
Ron Perlman's character in "Enemy at the Gates" said he was at the Sniper School at Zossen (presumably Germany) before the War.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
Utter bollocks. Where was their concern for sporting integrity when Abramovich was pumping £1.5bn of his gains into their squad?
Middlesborough have done nothing wrong. Its Chelsea that face the sanctions, Middlesborough should have a full crowd.
Isn't the Chelsea excuse that they aren't allowed to sell tickets to away fans?
We're at risk of losing our moorings here. Best, imo, if exactly where people stand on the L to R via C spectrum is determined by somebody who is known for being objective to a fault. Therefore me, I suppose. Do I have the time? Yes, I think so. And if not I'll do some juggling to create it.
But what political spectrum is that ?
Economic issues, social issues, environmental issues, international issues etc.
Which can be further subdivided for example some right wingers support low taxation above all while others support balanced budgets.
And that can be further subdivided for examples some people prefer taxation on income while others prefer taxation on wealth.
Indeed. The left right continuum is far too simplistic for modern politics, unless you view the world through HYUFD's upside down monochrome binoculars.
No, you're a 65. Nothing simplistic there.
Not sure I understand. Is that where you think I am on the continuum (15 points right of the median)?
Yep. Bringing all of your views together - each being a point in their own right - 65 emerges as the single weighted average measure. In words - an inhabitant of the centre ground just as and slightly before it starts to merge into more clearly right wing territory. House prices are quite high there, above the national average.
It may be a fair assessment lol. Where are you? about 45?
I do have a score - a fair and accurate one which is lower than 45 - but as the person running the show I have to keep it to myself. For obvious reasons. If I were to disclose it and people violently disagreed they'd start disputing their own scores and the whole system would be undermined.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
Err, that match is in Middlesbrough. What possible reason does Chelsea have for playing in an empty stadium?
Russia is preparing a mass deforestation of Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories, said the Ministry of Defense, citing a letter from Sergei Shoigu to Putin, Russia is planning to cut down greenery of “any age, regardless of ownership and land zoning.” https://mobile.twitter.com/Hromadske/status/1503694649436819463
I think Russia is trying to recreate the entire Vietnam war - only with an incredibly accelerated timeline.
I think it's more plans for their occupation which are never likely to be implemented. But it's quite clear that their thinking on that hasn't changed since WWII, either - wholesale looting of occupied territories.
Interesting report in The Guardian on Zelenskiy's address today. He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan. Apparently they speak daily.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
It’s indeed true that the PM features a lot on Ukranian TV. Alongside pictures of Ukranian troops shouting “God Save the Queen” in English, usually while holding the NLAW weapons the UK sent over.
Remember the context, that the UK have been training the Ukranian military since 2014. The two militaries are good friends.
A story I heard on a podcast: in the 1920s and early 1930s, Germany did a load of secret training in Russia as part of a military pact, as they were banned form training in Germany (esp. air force). The USSR gave them training areas, and the Germans gave them technology.
In 1944/5, the Red Army were rolling across Germany. Red Army soldiers enter a house where a retired German senior officer is living. He points to a photos on the wall, showing him with two of the now-senior Russian officers leading the attack (ones who had survived the purges). Since there was no way they were going to attack someone who was in a photo with their leaders, they left him alone. (I think they said the German spoke Russian as well.)
Ron Perlman's character in "Enemy at the Gates" said he was at the Sniper School at Zossen (presumably Germany) before the War.
The real life collaboration between the SD and the NKVD was special.
Apparently they got on really, really well together. Shared interests and all that.
Yes. Absolutely gob-smacking. That would make me an uber-Trotskyist or something.
To be fair, his definition of a proper conservative applies to about six people. Outside of that we are all socialists. It really is the reverse-Corbynite fringe.
Although it's interesting that for HYUFD voting Conservative is an essential qualification for being "rightwing", whereas for many Corbynites voting Labour at most elections isn't required for being "leftwing" - in fact it also makes you "rightwing". So not quite a mirror-image.
Corbynites would though have required you to vote Labour in 2017 and 2019 at minimum to be considered leftwing.
Much as I would require you to have voted Conservative in 2019 to be considered rightwing
"Much as I would require you to have voted Conservative in 2019 to be considered rightwing"
Says the self appointed judge and jury on such matters. Really quite comical.
Do you not realise you are starting to become a laughing stock? A parody of a Tory? I wouldn't be at all surprised if Viz end up creating a character based on you; I can picture it now: "True Blue HYU" The first episode could be HYU goes speed dating to find girls that are True Conservatives.
I don't see what is wrong with HYUFD supporting the tories whatever their policy choices.
Plenty of people on here supported labour under Corbyn and labour under Starmer, two very different animals.
Some people are just tribal.
And to give HYUFD his due, he is unfailingly polite.
Wonder if the medium term plan is to creep Western leaders into Kyiv (starting with the three PMs today), while advertising their presence to the Russians. It's a way of taking the heat out of the situation and makes it politically impossible to shell the city to bits.
Starmer (I bet in response to a question from The Times which is obsessed with this issue) took what read to me as a sober and balanced position (with caveats) in favour of reforming the GRA, ie the reforms that Mrs May was going to do and that were again recommended by the relevant HoC select committee in Dec last year. That the article manages to present what he said as something wild and off the scale extremist says a lot about how this debate gets conducted imo.
Russia is preparing a mass deforestation of Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories, said the Ministry of Defense, citing a letter from Sergei Shoigu to Putin, Russia is planning to cut down greenery of “any age, regardless of ownership and land zoning.” https://mobile.twitter.com/Hromadske/status/1503694649436819463
I think Russia is trying to recreate the entire Vietnam war - only with an incredibly accelerated timeline.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
Utter bollocks. Where was their concern for sporting integrity when Abramovich was pumping £1.5bn of his gains into their squad?
Middlesborough have done nothing wrong. Its Chelsea that face the sanctions, Middlesborough should have a full crowd.
Isn't the Chelsea excuse that they aren't allowed to sell tickets to away fans?
Yeah, and?
That's because they are owned by a close associate of tyrant. They're lucky to be playing at all.
I wonder why so many people are willing to have Ukrainians in their homes and not say people from Afghanistan or Iraq?
iv. If the Ukranians win, they'll want to go back.
Will they? If the refugees want the benefits of EU membership, security from Russia, and GDP per capita of more than $3000, they have the choice between staying put and getting them instantly or going back to the bombed-out Ukraine and maybe achieving those goals in twenty years time. And, of course, anybody who has already fled will eventually have the right to have the rest of their family join them through family reunification rules. There is little political will to send asylum seekers back, and in many cases the asylum seekers themselves or members of the public (often misguidedly) actively fight against it.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
I don't think Zelensky is giving much thought to refugees at the moment, he is busy trying to win the war. The 3 million refugees are safe and have far more options than many refugees fleeing warzones. They should be an afterthought, but they have now become the main story - a distraction perhaps from the horrors of the actual war.
Ultimately, from a rationalist perspective, @Chelyabinsk is correct, the open door policy on refugees is not conducive to winning the war - the military age population have to fight, and there needs to be a workforce, and a local population to resist the invaders. The Ukranians themselves stopped men aged 18-60 from leaving due to wartime necessity. If everyone left then there would be no one to fight and the Russians would just mop up.
That all said, I confess that - were I to have family in Ukraine right now - I would do everything I could to get them out. It would be a case of emotion over reason.
Interesting report in The Guardian on Zelenskiy's address today. He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan. Apparently they speak daily.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
It’s indeed true that the PM features a lot on Ukranian TV. Alongside pictures of Ukranian troops shouting “God Save the Queen” in English, usually while holding the NLAW weapons the UK sent over.
Remember the context, that the UK have been training the Ukranian military since 2014. The two militaries are good friends.
A story I heard on a podcast: in the 1920s and early 1930s, Germany did a load of secret training in Russia as part of a military pact, as they were banned form training in Germany (esp. air force). The USSR gave them training areas, and the Germans gave them technology.
In 1944/5, the Red Army were rolling across Germany. Red Army soldiers enter a house where a retired German senior officer is living. He points to a photos on the wall, showing him with two of the now-senior Russian officers leading the attack (ones who had survived the purges). Since there was no way they were going to attack someone who was in a photo with their leaders, they left him alone. (I think they said the German spoke Russian as well.)
Ron Perlman's character in "Enemy at the Gates" said he was at the Sniper School at Zossen (presumably Germany) before the War.
The real life collaboration between the SD and the NKVD was special.
Apparently they got on really, really well together. Shared interests and all that.
Not sure that western intelligence services have much to be proud about when it comes to discovering they had lots in common with Nazi nasties.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
Err, that match is in Middlesbrough. What possible reason does Chelsea have for playing in an empty stadium?
They think it's unfair because they won't have 4,500 fans there.
There's another supposed leak from the FSB outlining a Russian plan for escalation starting with a statement saying that the collective West has effectively declared war on Russia and setting a deadline to reverse sanctions and support for Ukraine or face military retaliation. It's likely to be disinformation but in either case it suggests Russia still wants to test the resolve of the coalition against them.
We're at risk of losing our moorings here. Best, imo, if exactly where people stand on the L to R via C spectrum is determined by somebody who is known for being objective to a fault. Therefore me, I suppose. Do I have the time? Yes, I think so. And if not I'll do some juggling to create it.
But what political spectrum is that ?
Economic issues, social issues, environmental issues, international issues etc.
Which can be further subdivided for example some right wingers support low taxation above all while others support balanced budgets.
And that can be further subdivided for examples some people prefer taxation on income while others prefer taxation on wealth.
Indeed. The left right continuum is far too simplistic for modern politics, unless you view the world through HYUFD's upside down monochrome binoculars.
No, you're a 65. Nothing simplistic there.
Not sure I understand. Is that where you think I am on the continuum (15 points right of the median)?
Yep. Bringing all of your views together - each being a point in their own right - 65 emerges as the single weighted average measure. In words - an inhabitant of the centre ground just as and slightly before it starts to merge into more clearly right wing territory. House prices are quite high there, above the national average.
It may be a fair assessment lol. Where are you? about 45?
I do have a score - a fair and accurate one which is lower than 45 - but as the person running the show I have to keep it to myself. For obvious reasons. If I were to disclose it and people violently disagreed they'd start disputing their own scores and the whole system would be undermined.
Interesting report in The Guardian on Zelenskiy's address today. He seems to be that most unfashionable of things, a Boris fan. Apparently they speak daily.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
It’s indeed true that the PM features a lot on Ukranian TV. Alongside pictures of Ukranian troops shouting “God Save the Queen” in English, usually while holding the NLAW weapons the UK sent over.
Remember the context, that the UK have been training the Ukranian military since 2014. The two militaries are good friends.
A story I heard on a podcast: in the 1920s and early 1930s, Germany did a load of secret training in Russia as part of a military pact, as they were banned form training in Germany (esp. air force). The USSR gave them training areas, and the Germans gave them technology.
In 1944/5, the Red Army were rolling across Germany. Red Army soldiers enter a house where a retired German senior officer is living. He points to a photos on the wall, showing him with two of the now-senior Russian officers leading the attack (ones who had survived the purges). Since there was no way they were going to attack someone who was in a photo with their leaders, they left him alone. (I think they said the German spoke Russian as well.)
Ron Perlman's character in "Enemy at the Gates" said he was at the Sniper School at Zossen (presumably Germany) before the War.
The real life collaboration between the SD and the NKVD was special.
Apparently they got on really, really well together. Shared interests and all that.
Not sure that western intelligence services have much to be proud about when it comes to discovering they had lots in common with Nazi nasties.
ha ha ha
The SD and NKVD collaborated on torture and murder - you should read about the parties they had to celebrate the handing over of the thousands of "political refugees" to each other. They fucking loved it.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
Utter bollocks. Where was their concern for sporting integrity when Abramovich was pumping £1.5bn of his gains into their squad?
Middlesborough have done nothing wrong. Its Chelsea that face the sanctions, Middlesborough should have a full crowd.
Isn't the Chelsea excuse that they aren't allowed to sell tickets to away fans?
Yeah, and?
That's because they are owned by a close associate of tyrant. They're lucky to be playing at all.
Syria is not a safe country to live in, neither is Afghanistan.
Gender is irrelevant, if you're a refugee you are deserving of our help.
Of course to the Daily Mail and many Tories, it's because they're brown or black, whereas those nice Ukranians are white and Christian.
Strange they also hated their Polish cousins for so long, taking our jobs.
Just want to get this clear.
We are racist because we want to allow white Christian Ukrainians in.
We are racist because we didn’t want white Christian polish plumbers in.
We are racist because we don’t want Syrian Moslems in.
The white Christian Poles are racist because they didn’t want Syrian Moslems in.
Syrian Moslems are racist for not wanting Syrian Coptic Christians around.
We are racist for not taking in Syrians who wanted to flee Syria because of white Christian Russians teaming up with “black” Syrian Moslem dictator trying to kill them.
White Christian Russians are also killing White Christian Ukrainians who we want to allow in.
It all looks a little more complicated than us just being racist.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
Err, that match is in Middlesbrough. What possible reason does Chelsea have for playing in an empty stadium?
They think it's unfair because they won't have 4,500 fans there.
Won’t ‘Boro sell tickets to Chelsea fans?
Ah, so the issue is that the away fans usually buy the tickets from their own club, rather than from the host club, so Chelsea fans can’t buy tickets? Oh well, I’m sure ‘Boro will ask the FA to waive the away fans requirement, given the circumstances.
There's another supposed leak from the FSB outlining a Russian plan for escalation starting with a statement saying that the collective West has effectively declared war on Russia and setting a deadline to reverse sanctions and support for Ukraine or face military retaliation. It's likely to be disinformation but in either case it suggests Russia still wants to test the resolve of the coalition against them.
Russia still wants to test the resolve of the coalition against them? Golly, that's a bolt out of the blue and no mistake! #youhearditherefirst
Starmer (I bet in response to a question from The Times which is obsessed with this issue) took what read to me as a sober and balanced position (with caveats) in favour of reforming the GRA, ie the reforms that Mrs May was going to do and that were again recommended by the relevant HoC select committee in Dec last year. That the article manages to present what he said as something wild and off the scale extremist says a lot about how this debate gets conducted imo.
Starmer, as a lawyer, is also taking the current legal position in the UK IIRC: Legally speaking, trans women are women. That is what the law says. (Pace issues around GRC reform which used to be the all-party consensus until the right decided to drag trans people into a culture war they didn’t ask for.)
If you ask a lawyer a question it should be entirely unsurprising when they give you the current legal definition.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
Err, that match is in Middlesbrough. What possible reason does Chelsea have for playing in an empty stadium?
It's a cup game, so normally the away team would be entitled to (IIRC) 45% of the gate receipts. So this looks like a child smashing up his brother's toy - if I can't have it, you can't have it either.
Covid anecdote. Lots of it going around where I am (Bucks). My 86yo father-in-law (triple jabbed and got Delta last Autumn) met up with 6 other friends of similar ages last week. 5 of them got Covid afterwards (not him) but are all fine. I also know quite a few people of my age (40s) who have caught it recently but all seem to be the ones who had somehow managed to avoid getting it previously. Aligns with lots of Covid cases but hopefully not going to have a massive impact on hospitalisations.
That sounds promising. The only question I have (expert anywhere?) is about vaccines waning. I had my booster over six months ago, and have some health fragilities as well as knocking on a bit. Are there any plans to add another jab for those outside the really old/vulnerable? Or should I be confident that the six-month old booster is still protecting me fine? A bit more government communication on this would be helpful.
I am due to visit Sicily in June. The Italian authorities are relaxing their rules for the six month plus boostered so long as the three vaccines have been mix and matched. I am thrice Pfizered, and will not be allowed in as fully vaccinated on current terms.
Difficult to keep track of travel requirements. Also going to Italy in June, arriving by car via France & Switzerland. Have had the 3 jabs 2 AZ, 1 Pfizer. As it stands can I just enter Italy without doing anything but having proof of our vax? I'm being lazy you sound as though you have researched the issue!
As has been mentioned Sicily has specific conditions. I believe with mix and matched vaccines you can download the code to get into venues in Italy. If your booster is less than six months old you are fine anyway.
The city of Hanover said that they would withdraw Gerhard Schröder's honorary citizenship (like freedom of the city) if he didn't distance himself from Putin, and in response Schröder chose to give it up.
There's another supposed leak from the FSB outlining a Russian plan for escalation starting with a statement saying that the collective West has effectively declared war on Russia and setting a deadline to reverse sanctions and support for Ukraine or face military retaliation. It's likely to be disinformation but in either case it suggests Russia still wants to test the resolve of the coalition against them.
I just read that
This "FSB" mole now sounds quite insane. Designed to spook us (perhaps from the very start?)
Sky just said the Polish and other leaders are travelling by train to Kyiv
Surprised they gave that information
Presumably Putin has been told that any attack on said train will be an act of war on a NATO state?
Oh that's a good idea. Give him a way of quickly triggering a wide european war in an easy hit.
Madness. Utter madness.
We don't know his state of mind, but it is perfectly possible he would see a wider european war as a way of covering up the military mess in Ukr and diverting any discontent at home.
Don't give him easy ways to engineer this.
If I was Biden I would apoplectic about this visit.
Rubbish. Biden doesn't get to decide where European leaders travel. Any attack on them by Putin would not rebound to his advantage.
Of course he doesn't get to decide but he has a view. And I cannot believe he is happy.
We have no idea whether Putin is thinking straight enough to see what is really to his advantage or not. It is clear the information he gets is utter nonsense e.g. from his spies telling him Ukr will welcome invasion with open arms or the billions you spent upgrading the military have all been wisely spent.
Trains from Lviv to Kyiv appear to take around 7 and a half hours. So a visit to Kyiv and back by the three leaders is not just a quick in and out but probably a couple of days including travel?
Comments
First class on the heathrow express is the ultimate scam at twice the price, flogged to innocent tourists by the station staff.
Taking in millions of refugees is a hideously short-sighted policy. The more money the West spends on integrating refugees the less money it has to spend on defence; the more skilled migrants flee to the West the harder it will be for Ukraine to rebuild; and the more pro-Western migrants leave the Ukraine the easier Russia will find it to influence the country after the war is over. But the days when policy was built on rational analysis rather than emotion are long gone.
Edit: not sure where pops came from…
(Refugee Council figures)
The attempts to go multi axis - spider plots - haven't really caught on either, though.
EDIT: What's your score?
If it’s as described, three leaders on a train (which has to go across 600km of Ukranian country to get to Kiev from Poland), then they’d better hope they have a few hundred special forces involved in the operation, and several contingency options to get them back out of the war zone.
You should stick to learning to sound the Salmond Siren.
Then idea we could or should stop them coming West for refuge is utterly ludicrous.
Madness. Utter madness.
We don't know his state of mind, but it is perfectly possible he would see a wider european war as a way of covering up the military mess in Ukr and diverting any discontent at home.
Don't give him easy ways to engineer this.
If I was Biden I would apoplectic about this visit.
Seems like madness to me though.
@SethGJones
Russian casualties continue to mount, with roughly 6,000-8,000 Russian military fatalities thus far. To put that into perspective, there have been more Russian combat deaths in barely 2 weeks in Ukraine than U.S. combat deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq combined in two decades
https://twitter.com/SethGJones/status/1503555268201832449
===
I guess Putin will be deploying the omelette argument.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Long_Jump
Iain Cameron
@ScotlandDX
Navtex from UTT Odessa Radio Ukraine on 518 KHz
https://twitter.com/ScotlandDX/status/1503528394000056320
"People are advised not to be taken by surprise; not to flee their homes but to 'stay put'; not to believe or spread rumours; to keep watch; not to help Germans in any way but to be ready to help the military. "Remember always that the best defence of Great Britain is the courage of her men and women.....Think before you act, but think always of your country before you think of yourself."
Could Labour's first female leader be a man?
https://unherd.com/2022/03/keir-starmer-is-gaslighting-women/
The body is extremely complex, and sadly the NHS is not set up for a lot of the things we ask it to do. At some point we just have to get on with life, as hard as that sounds. I hope your wife is able to enjoy her life and isn't in too much pain.
"Russian 'war machine' will target other European countries, Zelenskiy warns
"In a live address to Western leaders this morning, Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelenskiy warned the Russian “war machine” will target them if it is not stopped.
"Zelenskiy thanked countries who have “taken a moral stance” against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, in particular the UK prime minister Boris Johnson “for his leadership”."
'If the Invader Comes': Codenamed Operation Sealion, Hitler's plans to invade Britain were set for July 1940. Following the German invasions of Poland and France, it was a threat taken seriously. This leaflet issued in 1940 by the Ministry of Information in co-operation with the War Office and the Ministry of Home Security was entitled If the Invader Comes. It's message is a practical one and it's tone up-beat in an attempt to quell the very real fears which civilians must have been experiencing - "The Germans threaten to invade Great Britain. If they do so they will be driven out by our Navy, our Army and our Air Force."
I had more or less given up on expecting people to think, but at the very least you might attempt to read.
I think you are just looking for excuses not to have those nasty foreigners coming here.
The Russians will take 20-30 years to figure out the pricing, timetables etc.....
Remember the context, that the UK have been training the Ukranian military since 2014. The two militaries are good friends.
Are you new here?
The worry, is that the train lines West from Kiev, are currently being used for evacuation trains.
The advice in the UK will differ from what the Ukraine said to do because - well it's possible for women and children to cross a land border to safety.
That isn't exactly an option in the UK (well it may be now via the Channel Tunnel but it wasn't in 1940)..
But please continue your xenophobic utterly inhumane posts.
Gender is irrelevant, if you're a refugee you are deserving of our help.
Of course to the Daily Mail and many Tories, it's because they're brown or black, whereas those nice Ukranians are white and Christian.
Strange they also hated their Polish cousins for so long, taking our jobs.
It is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of sporting integrity. Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current circumstances.
Not the smartest of moves.
In 1944/5, the Red Army were rolling across Germany. Red Army soldiers enter a house where a retired German senior officer is living. He points to a photos on the wall, showing him with two of the now-senior Russian officers leading the attack (ones who had survived the purges). Since there was no way they were going to attack someone who was in a photo with their leaders, they left him alone. (I think they said the German spoke Russian as well.)
Yours is both a false and an offensive attitude to take.
Middlesborough have done nothing wrong. Its Chelsea that face the sanctions, Middlesborough should have a full crowd.
Despite our many differences, I consider him one of my best friends on this website.
Big names below. Includes Russian PM Mikhail Mishustin, defence minister Sergei Shoigu, ex-president Dmitry Medvedev.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2022/03/15/boris-johnson-latest-ukraine-refugees-oligarchs-sanctions-live/ https://twitter.com/benrileysmith/status/1503715247235997702/photo/1
We are racist because we want to allow white Christian Ukrainians in.
We are racist because we didn’t want white Christian polish plumbers in.
We are racist because we don’t want Syrian Moslems in.
The white Christian Poles are racist because they didn’t want Syrian Moslems in.
Syrian Moslems are racist for not wanting Syrian Coptic Christians around.
We are racist for not taking in Syrians who wanted to flee Syria because of white Christian Russians teaming up with “black” Syrian Moslem dictator trying to kill them.
White Christian Russians are also killing White Christian Ukrainians who we want to allow in.
It all looks a little more complicated than us just being racist.
Biden doesn't get to decide where European leaders travel. Any attack on them by Putin would not rebound to his advantage.
I'd chuck the scumbags out of the cup.
- Russia has started to camouflage its vehicles to hide against drones and then when they are finished they abandon them.
- Perhaps they didn't abandon them. Perhaps they just couldn't find them.
The Hague sets date for ruling on Russia's war.
Ukraine is requesting that Russia be ordered to end its war and withdraw troops from the country. The International Court of Justice will issue a ruling on March 16.
https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1503475041475993600
*sorry, rents out.
But it's quite clear that their thinking on that hasn't changed since WWII, either - wholesale looting of occupied territories.
https://twitter.com/ejn1976/status/1503533937196417026?s=21
Apparently they got on really, really well together. Shared interests and all that.
Wonder if the medium term plan is to creep Western leaders into Kyiv (starting with the three PMs today), while advertising their presence to the Russians. It's a way of taking the heat out of the situation and makes it politically impossible to shell the city to bits.
When I was at uni, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tour_of_Duty_(TV_series) was always on at about 3am, perfect for staggering in drunk and opening a can.
"I see a red door...."
That's because they are owned by a close associate of tyrant. They're lucky to be playing at all.
Ultimately, from a rationalist perspective, @Chelyabinsk is correct, the open door policy on refugees is not conducive to winning the war - the military age population have to fight, and there needs to be a workforce, and a local population to resist the invaders. The Ukranians themselves stopped men aged 18-60 from leaving due to wartime necessity. If everyone left then there would be no one to fight and the Russians would just mop up.
That all said, I confess that - were I to have family in Ukraine right now - I would do everything I could to get them out. It would be a case of emotion over reason.
Economic Left/Right: -6.13
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -7.64
… so, close to kinabalu.
The SD and NKVD collaborated on torture and murder - you should read about the parties they had to celebrate the handing over of the thousands of "political refugees" to each other. They fucking loved it.
Ah, so the issue is that the away fans usually buy the tickets from their own club, rather than from the host club, so Chelsea fans can’t buy tickets? Oh well, I’m sure ‘Boro will ask the FA to waive the away fans requirement, given the circumstances.
Voters might not be as keen to accept big numbers of Ukrainians as some would have us believe.
When there are four Ukrainians in your kid's class or one is ahead of you for medical treatment, sentiment could sour further, sadly.
#youhearditherefirst
If you ask a lawyer a question it should be entirely unsurprising when they give you the current legal definition.
This "FSB" mole now sounds quite insane. Designed to spook us (perhaps from the very start?)
OTOH if it is authentic, we are heading into WW3
We have no idea whether Putin is thinking straight enough to see what is really to his advantage or not. It is clear the information he gets is utter nonsense e.g. from his spies telling him Ukr will welcome invasion with open arms or the billions you spent upgrading the military have all been wisely spent.