@KevinASchofield now Andrea Leadsom becomes the latest senior Tory to mount a strong defence of the privileges committee and say she will vote for its report tonight.
The longer this debate goes on, the worse Rishi Sunak's decision to dodge the vote looks ...
I agree. It makes him look weak. People will contrast how Starmer faced down the Corbynistas
Partly, that's because Sunak is weak.
Also, he's more than a bit complicit. He was in Downing Street all the time. It's the old Watergate questions- what did he know (my guess, more than he has let on) and when did he know it (ages ago).
He went out of his way to push for Johnson. Whatsapped his way through some dodgy Covid dealings, while burnishing his Insta account for brand Rishi.
He’s a massive shit, he just looks like less of a one compared to Johnson.
@KevinASchofield now Andrea Leadsom becomes the latest senior Tory to mount a strong defence of the privileges committee and say she will vote for its report tonight.
The longer this debate goes on, the worse Rishi Sunak's decision to dodge the vote looks ...
I agree. It makes him look weak. People will contrast how Starmer faced down the Corbynistas
What, by campaigning to put him in Downing Street? At least Sunak (eventually) resigned.
Mine was a non partisan post as I do not want to see a Labour government. You may well believe what you wrote in response, but mine was an observation on how the electorate generally may see it.
@RobDotHutton Jake Berry: "The former prime minister Boris Johnson cannot be held responsible for what people thought he meant." Perhaps what he really needed was a better public.
@euanmccolm Jake Berry now attacking the public for its interpretation of what Johnson said. Bold.
The calibre of people supporting BoZo tells its own story...
Will vote in favour; commends the committee. Looks like she is taking on the challenge of rising above the minutiae…
“debate strikes at the heart of the bond of trust between the public and this parliament”
Tobias Elwood intervenes to indicate his support.
May: “with leadership comes responsibility….”
Yes, May just confirmed she will vote in favour of the report condemning Boris.
I am sure the former PM will enjoy every moment of it too!
And so she should. Amuses me that Johnson expected loyalty to him but has never shown loyalty to anyone else, including his own family
Loyalty to people is a mugs' game. You're just giving them license to use you as a doormat. If you ever face a choice between abandoning a well-thought-out principle at the request of a person, treat the person as though they've been grooming you. Otherwise you'll be left clearing up the mess they caused you to make, looking like a twat because you knew better but did the wrong thing anyway.
I assume that is humour masquerading as cynicism? Or maybe just both? Blind loyalty of the my country/party right or wrong variety (witness HYUFD and swivel-eyed Trump supporters) is extremely dangerous. A world without loyalty at all would be a dysfunctional and dangerous mirror image of HY's stupidity
No, that was entirely in earnest. You should not be loyal to people (or countries or institutions or anything) if they require you to fold on your principles.
If my wife murdered someone, I'd turn her in. If my country asked me to commit war crimes, I'd defect. If my company asked me to look the other way while they circumvented AML laws I'd take the receipts to the police.
Principles first. Don't ignore your moral compass if it's telling you your loyalty is about to lead you astray.
If its saying that its about to lead you astray then absolutely do not put loyalty ahead of principles.
But loyalty can be behind principles but ahead of nothing. Its not all or nothing.
If loyalty costs you nothing and you have two options that are both the same, then loyalty can be a reasonable tie-breaker.
Yes, for both practical and moral reasons. Loyalty is minor principle, but entirely subordinate to major principles like not treating people as things.
Breaking - AP (via Seattle Times) - Search underway for missing submersible that takes people to see Titanic
A search is underway for a missing submersible that carries people to view the wreckage of the Titanic, according to media reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard told BBC News that a search was underway Monday off the coast of Newfoundland. OceanGate Expeditions confirmed it owned the missing vessel.
“We are exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely,” the company said in a statement to BBC News. “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
The U.S. Coast Guard in Boston did not immediately return messages sent by The Associated Press. However, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said a Canadian military aircraft and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel are assisting the search effort, which is being led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In 2021, OceanGate Expeditions began what it expected to become an annual voyage to chronicle the deterioration of the iconic ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank in 1912.
The company said at the time that in addition to archaeologists and marine biologists, the expeditions also would include roughly 40 paid tourists who would take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks in the five-person submersible.
The initial group of tourists was funding the expedition by spending anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000 apiece.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
Will vote in favour; commends the committee. Looks like she is taking on the challenge of rising above the minutiae…
“debate strikes at the heart of the bond of trust between the public and this parliament”
Tobias Elwood intervenes to indicate his support.
May: “with leadership comes responsibility….”
Yes, May just confirmed she will vote in favour of the report condemning Boris.
I am sure the former PM will enjoy every moment of it too!
And so she should. Amuses me that Johnson expected loyalty to him but has never shown loyalty to anyone else, including his own family
Loyalty to people is a mugs' game. You're just giving them license to use you as a doormat. If you ever face a choice between abandoning a well-thought-out principle at the request of a person, treat the person as though they've been grooming you. Otherwise you'll be left clearing up the mess they caused you to make, looking like a twat because you knew better but did the wrong thing anyway.
I assume that is humour masquerading as cynicism? Or maybe just both? Blind loyalty of the my country/party right or wrong variety (witness HYUFD and swivel-eyed Trump supporters) is extremely dangerous. A world without loyalty at all would be a dysfunctional and dangerous mirror image of HY's stupidity
No, that was entirely in earnest. You should not be loyal to people (or countries or institutions or anything) if they require you to fold on your principles.
If my wife murdered someone, I'd turn her in. If my country asked me to commit war crimes, I'd defect. If my company asked me to look the other way while they circumvented AML laws I'd take the receipts to the police.
Principles first. Don't ignore your moral compass if it's telling you your loyalty is about to lead you astray.
Ah, you have now qualified it. Your previous post seemed to infer that any loyalty was bogus. I cannot disagree with what you have written on this one.
PS when I next see your wife I will advise her to not share too many secrets with you.
She says she can't see you tomorrow because The Idiot will be around. Curious to know who she's talking about, since my travel plans are cancelled so I'll get to meet him.
Bugger, that's put the kybosh on my Scotland trip. Hold the Lear jet.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Redfield & Wilton Strategies @RedfieldWilton The UK Government's net competency rating is -30%, the lowest rating we've recorded since 23 April (-31%).
RFK Jr on the Pfizer Vaccine: "22,000 people got the Vaccine and 22,000 didn't. During that six month period, 1 Vaccinated person died of Covid and in the placebo group 2 people died. That allows Pfizer and the FDA to say the Vaccine is 100% effective."
RFK junior sounsd indististinguishable from Trump.
He's really unconvincing
However I think the refusal by scientists to debate RFK's antivaxxery on Joe Rogan is a major mistake. They are haughtily doing it on the basis that debating him would give credence to a "conspiracy theory"
But for a year these same pompous, self-important scientists told us "lab leak" was a baseless conspiracy, and forbade debates on it
People no longer kneel, automatically, before The Science. If antivaxxery is foolish nonsense (and it probably is, but we don;t know for sure, and this is a live issue) then debate it, Prove your case. Make RFK look like a jerk. Don't avoid debate on the basis scientists shouldn't have to bother with these "nutters". The scientists were the nutters who told us lab leak was impossible
1) scientists are not typically good at communicating science - the few who do are also looked down on by the scientific community because they aren't producing research (the thing that shows you're a good scientist) and are likely instead making TV shows 2) when do we tell people to shut up and stop being stupid? At some point we have to - evolution, germ theory, flat earthers: when do we stop? The argument about vaccines is about saving lives, and it is good to have better vaccine education in general, but to dignify actual antivaxxers with a debate or response is nonsense 3) why is Joe Rogan being paid stupid money by spotify to spread this kind of dangerous misinformation. It is hardly curtailing free speech to not pay someone millions of dollars for doing something - I think it is more than reasonable to have had a part of the contract that says doing that kind of nonsense will lead to losing money or even cancellation of the show 4) "A lie will go around the world before the truth has put it's shoes on". It is easy to lie. It is easy to say "Bill Gates put a microchip in the vaccine". It is easy to say "Scientists have never found a transitionary species in the fossil record". You know what takes a long time? Explaining how vaccines work, how we know they work, and what they do; how we have found transition fossils, how many of them we have found, and what that suggests about evolution. It is always easier to make a baseless claim, or multiple baseless claims, and when the person arguing in good faith spends all their time debunking one baseless claim you shout "ah ha, see how he ignored all the other baseless claims I made!" (it's called a Gish Gallop after the famous creationist Dr Gish who used to do that - he also had an appearance in Dave Gorman's Googlewhack Adventure, for those of you who may have seen that)
All in all, taking bad faith arguments as if they are good faith and trying to dissect them whilst giving them a larger audience to be spread does not work. Better would be governments coming down hard on social media moderation and refusing to accept the argument that stuff is moderated by ai or algorithms and say "if you can't moderate content without actual humans viewing the content, either hire humans or close down because your platform is actively harmful)
I'm not sure the BIB is true. Many excellent scientists are also excellent at talking about it. There is a significant trend in science now to show public engagement - how will you engage (in both directions) with the public? This is both listening to the public as well as disseminating information.
There is sometimes a bit of jealousy about scientists who have become the rock stars of science (Brian Cox, Alice Roberts etc). Sometimes they have achieved the status of Professor for non academic merit, but because of the public role. But generally people accept it.
We've also seen a lot more engagement on SM, such as Twitter through the pandemic, some good, some bad. Its notable how many of my colleagues are on twitter and promoting their work via that platform.
Two that immediately spring to mind are Richard Feynman and Stephen Jay Gould. Both at the very forefront of their disciplines (Quantum Mechanics and Evolutionary theory) yet both great communicators, popularisers and educators. Being a great media figure does not in any way mean one is not also a great scientist.
I have all Gould's books but its been some years since I dipped in. One essay always sticks in my mind - a tale of false memory where he describes sitting somewhere with a relative that he remembers from childhood and then comes to realise that his memory cannot be correct. And yet the memory persists.
I had a conversation with my folks yesterday where they told me that schoolfriends used to ring me up for homework advice on a regular basis. I cannot recall this at all. Nothing, Not one occasion, but I have no reason to doubt them. What else have I forgotten?
Stephen Jay Gould was essentially a Marxist. Not really the cuddly professorial character he is often portrayed as
Good writer, tho. Crisp and lucid prose
Of course this is a classic example of why one's politics should not be the defining characteristic by which we are judged. I disagree with his marxist views whilst recognising how and why they developed. But I don't find they in any way interfere with his scientific writings and was surprised to find out about his politics after many years of reading his works both for academic and pleasure purposes.
His work on punctuated equilibriums also looks to be absolutely spot on.
Agreed. I was fortunate to be studying Geology at Uni when this was still the big debate and I buy into the concept pretty much completely.
It's not wrong, it's just not interesting because how else did anyone ever think or say evolution works? It demolishes s complete straw man.theory of absolute uniformitarianism which nobody ever held.
Wrong. Utterly wrong. The slow steady progress idea with gradual genetic change resulting in speciation was THE idea underpinning evolution for decades. Indeed at the time I was at university that argument was mainstream. The idea it was a straw man argument is simply wrong from start to finish. Eldridge and Gould changed the whole way evolution was considered and understood.
Not wrong. Any theory of evolution says that you change when external circumstances change, and not otherwise barring a bit of genetic drift. Things stay the same for more of the time than they change. So punctuated equilibrium is exactly what Darwin predicts.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Oh do stop it. You posted for years that Starmer was ok. Now you're reverting to tory story propaganda output because you finally have a non risible leader and there's an election coming.
Deltapoll @DeltapollUK now 🚨🚨New Voting Intention🚨🚨 Labour lead is nineteen percentage points in the latest results from Deltapoll. Con 27% (-4) Lab 46% (+4) Lib Dem 10% (-2) Other 16% (+2) Fieldwork: 16th - 19th June 2023 Sample: 1,554 GB adults (Changes from 9th - 12th June 2023)
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Oh do stop it. You posted for years that Starmer was ok. Now you're reverting to tory story propaganda output because you finally have a non risible leader and there's an election coming.
Speaking for myself: Starmer is ok. I have no problem with saying that.
But I expect a PM to be better than just 'OK'. Sadly, we don't seem to get them, even if you take into account the impossibilities of the job.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Oh do stop it. You posted for years that Starmer was ok. Now you're reverting to tory story propaganda output because you finally have a non risible leader and there's an election coming.
Nigel seems to be part of a cadre of posters who will allow themselves to complain occasionally about the Cons but will also vote for them regardless. Even economic malfeasance and outright corruption is unable to shake their votes.
See also, BigG, DavidL and CasinoRoyale.
They all seem to have formed their view of Labour in the 1980s or earlier, with the exception of CR who’s just an young fogey.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Oh do stop it. You posted for years that Starmer was ok. Now you're reverting to tory story propaganda output because you finally have a non risible leader and there's an election coming.
Lol. He is boring though isn't he? I mean Sunak is pretty dull, but Starmer is off the scale. If Sunak had been advised by a careers counsellor to be a Chartered Accountant, SKS would have gone one further and gone for the career in Quantity Surveying!
But you are right. I quite like Starmer. I also quite like my accountant. Both appear to be competent but dull.
Deltapoll @DeltapollUK now 🚨🚨New Voting Intention🚨🚨 Labour lead is nineteen percentage points in the latest results from Deltapoll. Con 27% (-4) Lab 46% (+4) Lib Dem 10% (-2) Other 16% (+2) Fieldwork: 16th - 19th June 2023 Sample: 1,554 GB adults (Changes from 9th - 12th June 2023)
Deltapoll’s irritating tendency to group together “other” makes any LLG vs RefCon comparison difficult without diving into the data. A very FPTP way of presenting party scores.
Still, even if Green was only 3% they’d still have a pretty good LLG score.
Breaking - AP (via Seattle Times) - Search underway for missing submersible that takes people to see Titanic
A search is underway for a missing submersible that carries people to view the wreckage of the Titanic, according to media reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard told BBC News that a search was underway Monday off the coast of Newfoundland. OceanGate Expeditions confirmed it owned the missing vessel.
“We are exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely,” the company said in a statement to BBC News. “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
The U.S. Coast Guard in Boston did not immediately return messages sent by The Associated Press. However, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said a Canadian military aircraft and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel are assisting the search effort, which is being led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In 2021, OceanGate Expeditions began what it expected to become an annual voyage to chronicle the deterioration of the iconic ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank in 1912.
The company said at the time that in addition to archaeologists and marine biologists, the expeditions also would include roughly 40 paid tourists who would take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks in the five-person submersible.
The initial group of tourists was funding the expedition by spending anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000 apiece.
This sad story is important. (I say 'sad', as I fear that it's not going to end well).
There is a growing trend of people doing dangerous things, with the idea - or image - that they are safe. Whether it is going down to the Titanic as a tourist, or going to space, there are dangers that should not be ignored. After the Challenger disaster, NASA was rightly criticised because the risks of spaceflight had not been correctly passed onto astronauts. The same may well be sadly true of these private companies.
I've missed most of the 'debate' due to parenting.
Has there been a true tubthumping moment; a speech of pure, angry derision?
Mrs May and Angela Eagle are worth pausing the iPlayer recording to hear. But the standard of parliamentary debate isn’t what it once was. We’re still waiting for a Geoffrey Howe moment, let alone anything to match up to Callaghan versus Thatcher of 1979.
According to Paul Mason, there is a new conspiracy theory emanating from far-left / Corbynista circles: that Keir Starmer is a “spycop”: some kind of establishment or even CIA plant.
Stuff like this, as well as the anti-Semitism and the pathetic response to Salisbury is why I disagree with posters who claim that Corbyn was somehow on a par or even a less malign option than Johnson in 2019.
RFK Jr on the Pfizer Vaccine: "22,000 people got the Vaccine and 22,000 didn't. During that six month period, 1 Vaccinated person died of Covid and in the placebo group 2 people died. That allows Pfizer and the FDA to say the Vaccine is 100% effective."
RFK junior sounsd indististinguishable from Trump.
He's really unconvincing
However I think the refusal by scientists to debate RFK's antivaxxery on Joe Rogan is a major mistake. They are haughtily doing it on the basis that debating him would give credence to a "conspiracy theory"
But for a year these same pompous, self-important scientists told us "lab leak" was a baseless conspiracy, and forbade debates on it
People no longer kneel, automatically, before The Science. If antivaxxery is foolish nonsense (and it probably is, but we don;t know for sure, and this is a live issue) then debate it, Prove your case. Make RFK look like a jerk. Don't avoid debate on the basis scientists shouldn't have to bother with these "nutters". The scientists were the nutters who told us lab leak was impossible
1) scientists are not typically good at communicating science - the few who do are also looked down on by the scientific community because they aren't producing research (the thing that shows you're a good scientist) and are likely instead making TV shows 2) when do we tell people to shut up and stop being stupid? At some point we have to - evolution, germ theory, flat earthers: when do we stop? The argument about vaccines is about saving lives, and it is good to have better vaccine education in general, but to dignify actual antivaxxers with a debate or response is nonsense 3) why is Joe Rogan being paid stupid money by spotify to spread this kind of dangerous misinformation. It is hardly curtailing free speech to not pay someone millions of dollars for doing something - I think it is more than reasonable to have had a part of the contract that says doing that kind of nonsense will lead to losing money or even cancellation of the show 4) "A lie will go around the world before the truth has put it's shoes on". It is easy to lie. It is easy to say "Bill Gates put a microchip in the vaccine". It is easy to say "Scientists have never found a transitionary species in the fossil record". You know what takes a long time? Explaining how vaccines work, how we know they work, and what they do; how we have found transition fossils, how many of them we have found, and what that suggests about evolution. It is always easier to make a baseless claim, or multiple baseless claims, and when the person arguing in good faith spends all their time debunking one baseless claim you shout "ah ha, see how he ignored all the other baseless claims I made!" (it's called a Gish Gallop after the famous creationist Dr Gish who used to do that - he also had an appearance in Dave Gorman's Googlewhack Adventure, for those of you who may have seen that)
All in all, taking bad faith arguments as if they are good faith and trying to dissect them whilst giving them a larger audience to be spread does not work. Better would be governments coming down hard on social media moderation and refusing to accept the argument that stuff is moderated by ai or algorithms and say "if you can't moderate content without actual humans viewing the content, either hire humans or close down because your platform is actively harmful)
I'm not sure the BIB is true. Many excellent scientists are also excellent at talking about it. There is a significant trend in science now to show public engagement - how will you engage (in both directions) with the public? This is both listening to the public as well as disseminating information.
There is sometimes a bit of jealousy about scientists who have become the rock stars of science (Brian Cox, Alice Roberts etc). Sometimes they have achieved the status of Professor for non academic merit, but because of the public role. But generally people accept it.
We've also seen a lot more engagement on SM, such as Twitter through the pandemic, some good, some bad. Its notable how many of my colleagues are on twitter and promoting their work via that platform.
Two that immediately spring to mind are Richard Feynman and Stephen Jay Gould. Both at the very forefront of their disciplines (Quantum Mechanics and Evolutionary theory) yet both great communicators, popularisers and educators. Being a great media figure does not in any way mean one is not also a great scientist.
I have all Gould's books but its been some years since I dipped in. One essay always sticks in my mind - a tale of false memory where he describes sitting somewhere with a relative that he remembers from childhood and then comes to realise that his memory cannot be correct. And yet the memory persists.
I had a conversation with my folks yesterday where they told me that schoolfriends used to ring me up for homework advice on a regular basis. I cannot recall this at all. Nothing, Not one occasion, but I have no reason to doubt them. What else have I forgotten?
Stephen Jay Gould was essentially a Marxist. Not really the cuddly professorial character he is often portrayed as
Good writer, tho. Crisp and lucid prose
Of course this is a classic example of why one's politics should not be the defining characteristic by which we are judged. I disagree with his marxist views whilst recognising how and why they developed. But I don't find they in any way interfere with his scientific writings and was surprised to find out about his politics after many years of reading his works both for academic and pleasure purposes.
His work on punctuated equilibriums also looks to be absolutely spot on.
Agreed. I was fortunate to be studying Geology at Uni when this was still the big debate and I buy into the concept pretty much completely.
It's not wrong, it's just not interesting because how else did anyone ever think or say evolution works? It demolishes s complete straw man.theory of absolute uniformitarianism which nobody ever held.
Wrong. Utterly wrong. The slow steady progress idea with gradual genetic change resulting in speciation was THE idea underpinning evolution for decades. Indeed at the time I was at university that argument was mainstream. The idea it was a straw man argument is simply wrong from start to finish. Eldridge and Gould changed the whole way evolution was considered and understood.
Not wrong. Any theory of evolution says that you change when external circumstances change, and not otherwise barring a bit of genetic drift. Things stay the same for more of the time than they change. So punctuated equilibrium is exactly what Darwin predicts.
Breaking - AP (via Seattle Times) - Search underway for missing submersible that takes people to see Titanic
A search is underway for a missing submersible that carries people to view the wreckage of the Titanic, according to media reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard told BBC News that a search was underway Monday off the coast of Newfoundland. OceanGate Expeditions confirmed it owned the missing vessel.
“We are exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely,” the company said in a statement to BBC News. “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
The U.S. Coast Guard in Boston did not immediately return messages sent by The Associated Press. However, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said a Canadian military aircraft and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel are assisting the search effort, which is being led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In 2021, OceanGate Expeditions began what it expected to become an annual voyage to chronicle the deterioration of the iconic ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank in 1912.
The company said at the time that in addition to archaeologists and marine biologists, the expeditions also would include roughly 40 paid tourists who would take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks in the five-person submersible.
The initial group of tourists was funding the expedition by spending anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000 apiece.
This sad story is important. (I say 'sad', as I fear that it's not going to end well).
There is a growing trend of people doing dangerous things, with the idea - or image - that they are safe. Whether it is going down to the Titanic as a tourist, or going to space, there are dangers that should not be ignored. After the Challenger disaster, NASA was rightly criticised because the risks of spaceflight had not been correctly passed onto astronauts. The same may well be sadly true of these private companies.
I have no sympathy for posts beginning "I have no sympathy...", but the element of rich twattishness here needs to be recognised. Mass grave tourism is not attractive.
According to Paul Mason, there is a new conspiracy theory emanating from far-left / Corbynista circles: that Keir Starmer is a “spycop”: some kind of establishment or even CIA plant.
Stuff like this, as well as the anti-Semitism and the pathetic response to Salisbury is why I disagree with posters who claim that Corbyn was somehow on a par or even a less malign option than Johnson in 2019.
(Of course, I voted for neither).
Rather hilarious flip-side of Harold Wilson as KGB mole theory.
Breaking - AP (via Seattle Times) - Search underway for missing submersible that takes people to see Titanic
A search is underway for a missing submersible that carries people to view the wreckage of the Titanic, according to media reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard told BBC News that a search was underway Monday off the coast of Newfoundland. OceanGate Expeditions confirmed it owned the missing vessel.
“We are exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely,” the company said in a statement to BBC News. “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
The U.S. Coast Guard in Boston did not immediately return messages sent by The Associated Press. However, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said a Canadian military aircraft and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel are assisting the search effort, which is being led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In 2021, OceanGate Expeditions began what it expected to become an annual voyage to chronicle the deterioration of the iconic ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank in 1912.
The company said at the time that in addition to archaeologists and marine biologists, the expeditions also would include roughly 40 paid tourists who would take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks in the five-person submersible.
The initial group of tourists was funding the expedition by spending anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000 apiece.
This sad story is important. (I say 'sad', as I fear that it's not going to end well).
There is a growing trend of people doing dangerous things, with the idea - or image - that they are safe. Whether it is going down to the Titanic as a tourist, or going to space, there are dangers that should not be ignored. After the Challenger disaster, NASA was rightly criticised because the risks of spaceflight had not been correctly passed onto astronauts. The same may well be sadly true of these private companies.
I have no sympathy for posts beginning "I have no sympathy...", but the element of rich twattishness here needs to be recognised. Mass grave tourism is not attractive.
Everest was an example I was going to mention; but the risks of that are fairly well acknowledged. And sadly, so many people have died going up Everest that it is now 'mass grave tourism'.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Oh do stop it. You posted for years that Starmer was ok. Now you're reverting to tory story propaganda output because you finally have a non risible leader and there's an election coming.
Nigel seems to be part of a cadre of posters who will allow themselves to complain occasionally about the Cons but will also vote for them regardless. Even economic malfeasance and outright corruption is unable to shake their votes.
See also, BigG, DavidL and CasinoRoyale.
They all seem to have formed their view of Labour in the 1980s or earlier, with the exception of CR who’s just an young fogey.
I know that talking bollox without reference to reality is an increasing specialist subject area for you, but I think @kinabalu and many other slightly less myopic posters on here are well aware that I have not voted blue for the past two GEs, and at none of the locals either, and I was one of the few right of centre posters on here who realised what an idiot Johnson was long before holding that view was fashionable.
I might well vote Tory at the next one because giving the loonies in the Labour Party unfettered power which an overall majority would give them is not something I particularly like the idea of. I also quite like Sunak (though he has gone down in my estimation today) and do not see podgy Sir Kier as an improvement one iota.
According to Paul Mason, there is a new conspiracy theory emanating from far-left / Corbynista circles: that Keir Starmer is a “spycop”: some kind of establishment or even CIA plant.
Stuff like this, as well as the anti-Semitism and the pathetic response to Salisbury is why I disagree with posters who claim that Corbyn was somehow on a par or even a less malign option than Johnson in 2019.
(Of course, I voted for neither).
Earlier today, I posted links to a video that is apparently going to be shown at Glastonbury, that appears to highlight these conspiracy theories.
Never mind yesterday's fat oaf, the big news today is that Sunak has declined to offer more help to struggling mortgage payers. I mean, we'll see how long that position lasts as the pained screaming ramps up through the rest of this year and into the next, but for all of us who are desperately willing the vastly overinflated property bubble to burst in spectacular fashion it can't be anything but positive news.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Oh do stop it. You posted for years that Starmer was ok. Now you're reverting to tory story propaganda output because you finally have a non risible leader and there's an election coming.
Nigel seems to be part of a cadre of posters who will allow themselves to complain occasionally about the Cons but will also vote for them regardless. Even economic malfeasance and outright corruption is unable to shake their votes.
See also, BigG, DavidL and CasinoRoyale.
They all seem to have formed their view of Labour in the 1980s or earlier, with the exception of CR who’s just an young fogey.
I did vote for Blair twice and would have voted lib dem if Johnson had stayed in office
I am not captured by Starmer like some , as he flip flops regularly
Abolish tuition fees - not now
Spend 28 billion pa on green issues - not now
Stop all new oil and gas licences - not now
Abolish all union legislation since 2016 - absolutely handing unprecedented power to the trade unions
Accepts 1.6 million from stop oil but that is OK
And as far as public sector wage demands are concerned then he will bow to his union masters
The policy of abolishing of vat on school fees and non dom status is paltry to the sums needed and Starmer has not laid out how he is going to pay for his government either in borrowing or higher taxes, which by the way he has consistently condemned
None of this means Starmer will not be the next PM but he is not entitled to a free pass
Never mind yesterday's fat oaf, the big news today is that Sunak has declined to offer more help to struggling mortgage payers. I mean, we'll see how long that position lasts as the pained screaming ramps up through the rest of this year and into the next, but for all of us who are desperately willing the vastly overinflated property bubble to burst in spectacular fashion it can't be anything but positive news.
Great idea. repossessions, misery depression and suicide. What a nice person you must be.
Breaking - AP (via Seattle Times) - Search underway for missing submersible that takes people to see Titanic
A search is underway for a missing submersible that carries people to view the wreckage of the Titanic, according to media reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard told BBC News that a search was underway Monday off the coast of Newfoundland. OceanGate Expeditions confirmed it owned the missing vessel.
“We are exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely,” the company said in a statement to BBC News. “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
The U.S. Coast Guard in Boston did not immediately return messages sent by The Associated Press. However, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said a Canadian military aircraft and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel are assisting the search effort, which is being led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In 2021, OceanGate Expeditions began what it expected to become an annual voyage to chronicle the deterioration of the iconic ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank in 1912.
The company said at the time that in addition to archaeologists and marine biologists, the expeditions also would include roughly 40 paid tourists who would take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks in the five-person submersible.
The initial group of tourists was funding the expedition by spending anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000 apiece.
This sad story is important. (I say 'sad', as I fear that it's not going to end well).
There is a growing trend of people doing dangerous things, with the idea - or image - that they are safe. Whether it is going down to the Titanic as a tourist, or going to space, there are dangers that should not be ignored. After the Challenger disaster, NASA was rightly criticised because the risks of spaceflight had not been correctly passed onto astronauts. The same may well be sadly true of these private companies.
I have no sympathy for posts beginning "I have no sympathy...", but the element of rich twattishness here needs to be recognised. Mass grave tourism is not attractive.
Everest was an example I was going to mention; but the risks of that are fairly well acknowledged. And sadly, so many people have died going up Everest that it is now 'mass grave tourism'.
The Challenger astronauts will have grown up knowing about the Apollo 1 disaster and would definitely have been aware that spaceflight as it was then and is now is risky.
Breaking - AP (via Seattle Times) - Search underway for missing submersible that takes people to see Titanic
A search is underway for a missing submersible that carries people to view the wreckage of the Titanic, according to media reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard told BBC News that a search was underway Monday off the coast of Newfoundland. OceanGate Expeditions confirmed it owned the missing vessel.
“We are exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely,” the company said in a statement to BBC News. “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
The U.S. Coast Guard in Boston did not immediately return messages sent by The Associated Press. However, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said a Canadian military aircraft and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel are assisting the search effort, which is being led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In 2021, OceanGate Expeditions began what it expected to become an annual voyage to chronicle the deterioration of the iconic ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank in 1912.
The company said at the time that in addition to archaeologists and marine biologists, the expeditions also would include roughly 40 paid tourists who would take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks in the five-person submersible.
The initial group of tourists was funding the expedition by spending anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000 apiece.
This sad story is important. (I say 'sad', as I fear that it's not going to end well).
There is a growing trend of people doing dangerous things, with the idea - or image - that they are safe. Whether it is going down to the Titanic as a tourist, or going to space, there are dangers that should not be ignored. After the Challenger disaster, NASA was rightly criticised because the risks of spaceflight had not been correctly passed onto astronauts. The same may well be sadly true of these private companies.
It depends whether they've been made aware of the dangers beforehand.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Oh do stop it. You posted for years that Starmer was ok. Now you're reverting to tory story propaganda output because you finally have a non risible leader and there's an election coming.
Nigel seems to be part of a cadre of posters who will allow themselves to complain occasionally about the Cons but will also vote for them regardless. Even economic malfeasance and outright corruption is unable to shake their votes.
See also, BigG, DavidL and CasinoRoyale.
They all seem to have formed their view of Labour in the 1980s or earlier, with the exception of CR who’s just an young fogey.
I did vote for Blair twice and would have voted lib dem if Johnson had stayed in office
I am not captured by Starmer like some , as he flip flops regularly
Abolish tuition fees - not now
Spend 28 billion pa on green issues - not now
Stop all new oil and gas licences - not now
Abolish all union legislation since 2016 - absolutely handing unprecedented power to the trade unions
Accepts 1.6 million from stop oil but that is OK
And as far as public sector wage demands are concerned then he will bow to his union masters
The policy of abolishing of vat on school fees and non dom status is paltry to the sums needed and Starmer has not laid out how he is going to pay for his government either in borrowing or higher taxes, which by the way he has consistently condemned
None of this means Starmer will not be the next PM but he is not entitled to a free pass
Agree.
But no right thinking person could vote to give the Tories another go, after the shambles and shame and corruption of the last few years.
RFK Jr on the Pfizer Vaccine: "22,000 people got the Vaccine and 22,000 didn't. During that six month period, 1 Vaccinated person died of Covid and in the placebo group 2 people died. That allows Pfizer and the FDA to say the Vaccine is 100% effective."
RFK junior sounsd indististinguishable from Trump.
He's really unconvincing
However I think the refusal by scientists to debate RFK's antivaxxery on Joe Rogan is a major mistake. They are haughtily doing it on the basis that debating him would give credence to a "conspiracy theory"
But for a year these same pompous, self-important scientists told us "lab leak" was a baseless conspiracy, and forbade debates on it
People no longer kneel, automatically, before The Science. If antivaxxery is foolish nonsense (and it probably is, but we don;t know for sure, and this is a live issue) then debate it, Prove your case. Make RFK look like a jerk. Don't avoid debate on the basis scientists shouldn't have to bother with these "nutters". The scientists were the nutters who told us lab leak was impossible
1) scientists are not typically good at communicating science - the few who do are also looked down on by the scientific community because they aren't producing research (the thing that shows you're a good scientist) and are likely instead making TV shows 2) when do we tell people to shut up and stop being stupid? At some point we have to - evolution, germ theory, flat earthers: when do we stop? The argument about vaccines is about saving lives, and it is good to have better vaccine education in general, but to dignify actual antivaxxers with a debate or response is nonsense 3) why is Joe Rogan being paid stupid money by spotify to spread this kind of dangerous misinformation. It is hardly curtailing free speech to not pay someone millions of dollars for doing something - I think it is more than reasonable to have had a part of the contract that says doing that kind of nonsense will lead to losing money or even cancellation of the show 4) "A lie will go around the world before the truth has put it's shoes on". It is easy to lie. It is easy to say "Bill Gates put a microchip in the vaccine". It is easy to say "Scientists have never found a transitionary species in the fossil record". You know what takes a long time? Explaining how vaccines work, how we know they work, and what they do; how we have found transition fossils, how many of them we have found, and what that suggests about evolution. It is always easier to make a baseless claim, or multiple baseless claims, and when the person arguing in good faith spends all their time debunking one baseless claim you shout "ah ha, see how he ignored all the other baseless claims I made!" (it's called a Gish Gallop after the famous creationist Dr Gish who used to do that - he also had an appearance in Dave Gorman's Googlewhack Adventure, for those of you who may have seen that)
All in all, taking bad faith arguments as if they are good faith and trying to dissect them whilst giving them a larger audience to be spread does not work. Better would be governments coming down hard on social media moderation and refusing to accept the argument that stuff is moderated by ai or algorithms and say "if you can't moderate content without actual humans viewing the content, either hire humans or close down because your platform is actively harmful)
I'm not sure the BIB is true. Many excellent scientists are also excellent at talking about it. There is a significant trend in science now to show public engagement - how will you engage (in both directions) with the public? This is both listening to the public as well as disseminating information.
There is sometimes a bit of jealousy about scientists who have become the rock stars of science (Brian Cox, Alice Roberts etc). Sometimes they have achieved the status of Professor for non academic merit, but because of the public role. But generally people accept it.
We've also seen a lot more engagement on SM, such as Twitter through the pandemic, some good, some bad. Its notable how many of my colleagues are on twitter and promoting their work via that platform.
Two that immediately spring to mind are Richard Feynman and Stephen Jay Gould. Both at the very forefront of their disciplines (Quantum Mechanics and Evolutionary theory) yet both great communicators, popularisers and educators. Being a great media figure does not in any way mean one is not also a great scientist.
I have all Gould's books but its been some years since I dipped in. One essay always sticks in my mind - a tale of false memory where he describes sitting somewhere with a relative that he remembers from childhood and then comes to realise that his memory cannot be correct. And yet the memory persists.
I had a conversation with my folks yesterday where they told me that schoolfriends used to ring me up for homework advice on a regular basis. I cannot recall this at all. Nothing, Not one occasion, but I have no reason to doubt them. What else have I forgotten?
Stephen Jay Gould was essentially a Marxist. Not really the cuddly professorial character he is often portrayed as
Good writer, tho. Crisp and lucid prose
Of course this is a classic example of why one's politics should not be the defining characteristic by which we are judged. I disagree with his marxist views whilst recognising how and why they developed. But I don't find they in any way interfere with his scientific writings and was surprised to find out about his politics after many years of reading his works both for academic and pleasure purposes.
His work on punctuated equilibriums also looks to be absolutely spot on.
Agreed. I was fortunate to be studying Geology at Uni when this was still the big debate and I buy into the concept pretty much completely.
It's not wrong, it's just not interesting because how else did anyone ever think or say evolution works? It demolishes s complete straw man.theory of absolute uniformitarianism which nobody ever held.
Wrong. Utterly wrong. The slow steady progress idea with gradual genetic change resulting in speciation was THE idea underpinning evolution for decades. Indeed at the time I was at university that argument was mainstream. The idea it was a straw man argument is simply wrong from start to finish. Eldridge and Gould changed the whole way evolution was considered and understood.
Not wrong. Any theory of evolution says that you change when external circumstances change, and not otherwise barring a bit of genetic drift. Things stay the same for more of the time than they change. So punctuated equilibrium is exactly what Darwin predicts.
You clearly weren't around in the late 70s and 80s to see and hear the phyletic gradualists lining up to attack punctuated equilibrium hypothesis. Even Darwin retreated from the catastrophist idea prior to publication.
Indeed even today gradualism is the main way evolution is taught at degree level with a hat tip to PE.
Of course I am grateful for the debate as I got 15% of my degree from writing about it.
You should stop getting all your ideas from Dawkins. He has his own hypothesis to push and the best way to do that in his eyes apparently is to undermine all the others. Something he has spent most of his life doing.
According to Paul Mason, there is a new conspiracy theory emanating from far-left / Corbynista circles: that Keir Starmer is a “spycop”: some kind of establishment or even CIA plant.
Stuff like this, as well as the anti-Semitism and the pathetic response to Salisbury is why I disagree with posters who claim that Corbyn was somehow on a par or even a less malign option than Johnson in 2019.
(Of course, I voted for neither).
Thing is, you have an actual Johnson PM calamity against a mere hypothetical Corbyn PM one. And you have to weight an actual as greater than a hypothetical, all else being equal.
Breaking - AP (via Seattle Times) - Search underway for missing submersible that takes people to see Titanic
A search is underway for a missing submersible that carries people to view the wreckage of the Titanic, according to media reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard told BBC News that a search was underway Monday off the coast of Newfoundland. OceanGate Expeditions confirmed it owned the missing vessel.
“We are exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely,” the company said in a statement to BBC News. “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
The U.S. Coast Guard in Boston did not immediately return messages sent by The Associated Press. However, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said a Canadian military aircraft and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel are assisting the search effort, which is being led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In 2021, OceanGate Expeditions began what it expected to become an annual voyage to chronicle the deterioration of the iconic ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank in 1912.
The company said at the time that in addition to archaeologists and marine biologists, the expeditions also would include roughly 40 paid tourists who would take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks in the five-person submersible.
The initial group of tourists was funding the expedition by spending anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000 apiece.
This sad story is important. (I say 'sad', as I fear that it's not going to end well).
There is a growing trend of people doing dangerous things, with the idea - or image - that they are safe. Whether it is going down to the Titanic as a tourist, or going to space, there are dangers that should not be ignored. After the Challenger disaster, NASA was rightly criticised because the risks of spaceflight had not been correctly passed onto astronauts. The same may well be sadly true of these private companies.
It depends whether they've been made aware of the dangers beforehand.
You can bet your house their families will say they weren't to get the compo payout 😅
Never mind yesterday's fat oaf, the big news today is that Sunak has declined to offer more help to struggling mortgage payers. I mean, we'll see how long that position lasts as the pained screaming ramps up through the rest of this year and into the next, but for all of us who are desperately willing the vastly overinflated property bubble to burst in spectacular fashion it can't be anything but positive news.
Providing 'support' for mortgage payers will simply accelerate inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer
House prices might fall a little in nominal terms but there won't be a collapse, of course inflation enhances the real impact
Property should be viewed as a home to live in, not an investment
Happy Juneteenth! US public holiday celebrating emancipation of slaves in Texas in June 1865 by Union Army, about two months after Lee's surrender to Grant at Appomattox CH.
And thanks to our British cousins, for putting on this splendid entertainment from Westminster to enliven the day!
According to Paul Mason, there is a new conspiracy theory emanating from far-left / Corbynista circles: that Keir Starmer is a “spycop”: some kind of establishment or even CIA plant.
Stuff like this, as well as the anti-Semitism and the pathetic response to Salisbury is why I disagree with posters who claim that Corbyn was somehow on a par or even a less malign option than Johnson in 2019.
(Of course, I voted for neither).
Thing is, you have an actual Johnson PM calamity against a mere hypothetical Corbyn PM one. And you have to weight an actual as greater than a hypothetical, all else being equal.
No. Simply no. Boris' flaws were all too visible before he became PM. He did not change; he changed the party and removed many of the people against him. What makes you think that Corbyn would become a paragon of virtue and sanity if he had become PM? especially when as party leader he tried to change his party into his image.
Breaking - AP (via Seattle Times) - Search underway for missing submersible that takes people to see Titanic
A search is underway for a missing submersible that carries people to view the wreckage of the Titanic, according to media reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard told BBC News that a search was underway Monday off the coast of Newfoundland. OceanGate Expeditions confirmed it owned the missing vessel.
“We are exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely,” the company said in a statement to BBC News. “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
The U.S. Coast Guard in Boston did not immediately return messages sent by The Associated Press. However, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said a Canadian military aircraft and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel are assisting the search effort, which is being led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In 2021, OceanGate Expeditions began what it expected to become an annual voyage to chronicle the deterioration of the iconic ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank in 1912.
The company said at the time that in addition to archaeologists and marine biologists, the expeditions also would include roughly 40 paid tourists who would take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks in the five-person submersible.
The initial group of tourists was funding the expedition by spending anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000 apiece.
This sad story is important. (I say 'sad', as I fear that it's not going to end well).
There is a growing trend of people doing dangerous things, with the idea - or image - that they are safe. Whether it is going down to the Titanic as a tourist, or going to space, there are dangers that should not be ignored. After the Challenger disaster, NASA was rightly criticised because the risks of spaceflight had not been correctly passed onto astronauts. The same may well be sadly true of these private companies.
It depends whether they've been made aware of the dangers beforehand.
They won't have been. Guaranteed.
Another point; don't call them 'explorers'. They are not. They are adventurers. There's a massive difference, albeit with some overlap, between the two.
Never mind yesterday's fat oaf, the big news today is that Sunak has declined to offer more help to struggling mortgage payers. I mean, we'll see how long that position lasts as the pained screaming ramps up through the rest of this year and into the next, but for all of us who are desperately willing the vastly overinflated property bubble to burst in spectacular fashion it can't be anything but positive news.
Providing 'support' for mortgage payers will simply accelerate inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer
House prices might fall a little in nominal terms but there won't be a collapse, of course inflation enhances the real impact
Property should be viewed as a home to live in, not an investment
I think a peak to trough in nominal terms of around 20%.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Oh do stop it. You posted for years that Starmer was ok. Now you're reverting to tory story propaganda output because you finally have a non risible leader and there's an election coming.
Nigel seems to be part of a cadre of posters who will allow themselves to complain occasionally about the Cons but will also vote for them regardless. Even economic malfeasance and outright corruption is unable to shake their votes.
See also, BigG, DavidL and CasinoRoyale.
They all seem to have formed their view of Labour in the 1980s or earlier, with the exception of CR who’s just an young fogey.
I did vote for Blair twice and would have voted lib dem if Johnson had stayed in office
I am not captured by Starmer like some , as he flip flops regularly
Abolish tuition fees - not now
Spend 28 billion pa on green issues - not now
Stop all new oil and gas licences - not now
Abolish all union legislation since 2016 - absolutely handing unprecedented power to the trade unions
Accepts 1.6 million from stop oil but that is OK
And as far as public sector wage demands are concerned then he will bow to his union masters
The policy of abolishing of vat on school fees and non dom status is paltry to the sums needed and Starmer has not laid out how he is going to pay for his government either in borrowing or higher taxes, which by the way he has consistently condemned
None of this means Starmer will not be the next PM but he is not entitled to a free pass
Agree.
But no right thinking person could vote to give the Tories another go, after the shambles and shame and corruption of the last few years.
It depends if the alternative is worse and Sunak has 18 months at most to move on from Johnson
It is an unbelievably high bar and I expect a majority Starmer government but again I am not giving him a free pass
Never mind yesterday's fat oaf, the big news today is that Sunak has declined to offer more help to struggling mortgage payers. I mean, we'll see how long that position lasts as the pained screaming ramps up through the rest of this year and into the next, but for all of us who are desperately willing the vastly overinflated property bubble to burst in spectacular fashion it can't be anything but positive news.
Providing 'support' for mortgage payers will simply accelerate inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer
House prices might fall a little in nominal terms but there won't be a collapse, of course inflation enhances the real impact
Property should be viewed as a home to live in, not an investment
I think a peak to trough in nominal terms of around 20%.
Never mind yesterday's fat oaf, the big news today is that Sunak has declined to offer more help to struggling mortgage payers. I mean, we'll see how long that position lasts as the pained screaming ramps up through the rest of this year and into the next, but for all of us who are desperately willing the vastly overinflated property bubble to burst in spectacular fashion it can't be anything but positive news.
Providing 'support' for mortgage payers will simply accelerate inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer
House prices might fall a little in nominal terms but there won't be a collapse, of course inflation enhances the real impact
Property should be viewed as a home to live in, not an investment
Item 1: tick. Item 3: tick. Item 2: we can but hope, but you're probably right. Any downward correction is liable to be limited by lack of supply - but hopefully a nice bit of extra wage inflation will help to improve affordability.
I'm frustrated enough being a rapidly ageing bloke stuck in a starter flat; needless to say the barmy property market must be excruciating for those condemned to permarenting from scalper landlords.
@BethRigby Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But it was so predictable. He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
An early election would be a nice idea if we were really going to replace the government with something better. Unfortunately the alternative is Sir Kier Boredom and the loony Labour Public Sector Party ffs!
Oh do stop it. You posted for years that Starmer was ok. Now you're reverting to tory story propaganda output because you finally have a non risible leader and there's an election coming.
Nigel seems to be part of a cadre of posters who will allow themselves to complain occasionally about the Cons but will also vote for them regardless. Even economic malfeasance and outright corruption is unable to shake their votes.
See also, BigG, DavidL and CasinoRoyale.
They all seem to have formed their view of Labour in the 1980s or earlier, with the exception of CR who’s just an young fogey.
I did vote for Blair twice and would have voted lib dem if Johnson had stayed in office
I am not captured by Starmer like some , as he flip flops regularly
Abolish tuition fees - not now
Spend 28 billion pa on green issues - not now
Stop all new oil and gas licences - not now
Abolish all union legislation since 2016 - absolutely handing unprecedented power to the trade unions
Accepts 1.6 million from stop oil but that is OK
And as far as public sector wage demands are concerned then he will bow to his union masters
The policy of abolishing of vat on school fees and non dom status is paltry to the sums needed and Starmer has not laid out how he is going to pay for his government either in borrowing or higher taxes, which by the way he has consistently condemned
None of this means Starmer will not be the next PM but he is not entitled to a free pass
Agree.
But no right thinking person could vote to give the Tories another go, after the shambles and shame and corruption of the last few years.
It depends if the alternative is worse and Sunak has 18 months at most to move on from Johnson
It is an unbelievably high bar and I expect a majority Starmer government but again I am not giving him a free pass
What would you 'giving him a free pass' look like btw? How would we spot it?
Never mind yesterday's fat oaf, the big news today is that Sunak has declined to offer more help to struggling mortgage payers. I mean, we'll see how long that position lasts as the pained screaming ramps up through the rest of this year and into the next, but for all of us who are desperately willing the vastly overinflated property bubble to burst in spectacular fashion it can't be anything but positive news.
Providing 'support' for mortgage payers will simply accelerate inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer
House prices might fall a little in nominal terms but there won't be a collapse, of course inflation enhances the real impact
Property should be viewed as a home to live in, not an investment
I think a peak to trough in nominal terms of around 20%.
Quite possible. I was thinking more like 10% max.
It will probably be difficult to put a precise figure on it because the market will respond differently in different areas and different segments.
RFK Jr on the Pfizer Vaccine: "22,000 people got the Vaccine and 22,000 didn't. During that six month period, 1 Vaccinated person died of Covid and in the placebo group 2 people died. That allows Pfizer and the FDA to say the Vaccine is 100% effective."
RFK junior sounsd indististinguishable from Trump.
He's really unconvincing
However I think the refusal by scientists to debate RFK's antivaxxery on Joe Rogan is a major mistake. They are haughtily doing it on the basis that debating him would give credence to a "conspiracy theory"
But for a year these same pompous, self-important scientists told us "lab leak" was a baseless conspiracy, and forbade debates on it
People no longer kneel, automatically, before The Science. If antivaxxery is foolish nonsense (and it probably is, but we don;t know for sure, and this is a live issue) then debate it, Prove your case. Make RFK look like a jerk. Don't avoid debate on the basis scientists shouldn't have to bother with these "nutters". The scientists were the nutters who told us lab leak was impossible
1) scientists are not typically good at communicating science - the few who do are also looked down on by the scientific community because they aren't producing research (the thing that shows you're a good scientist) and are likely instead making TV shows 2) when do we tell people to shut up and stop being stupid? At some point we have to - evolution, germ theory, flat earthers: when do we stop? The argument about vaccines is about saving lives, and it is good to have better vaccine education in general, but to dignify actual antivaxxers with a debate or response is nonsense 3) why is Joe Rogan being paid stupid money by spotify to spread this kind of dangerous misinformation. It is hardly curtailing free speech to not pay someone millions of dollars for doing something - I think it is more than reasonable to have had a part of the contract that says doing that kind of nonsense will lead to losing money or even cancellation of the show 4) "A lie will go around the world before the truth has put it's shoes on". It is easy to lie. It is easy to say "Bill Gates put a microchip in the vaccine". It is easy to say "Scientists have never found a transitionary species in the fossil record". You know what takes a long time? Explaining how vaccines work, how we know they work, and what they do; how we have found transition fossils, how many of them we have found, and what that suggests about evolution. It is always easier to make a baseless claim, or multiple baseless claims, and when the person arguing in good faith spends all their time debunking one baseless claim you shout "ah ha, see how he ignored all the other baseless claims I made!" (it's called a Gish Gallop after the famous creationist Dr Gish who used to do that - he also had an appearance in Dave Gorman's Googlewhack Adventure, for those of you who may have seen that)
All in all, taking bad faith arguments as if they are good faith and trying to dissect them whilst giving them a larger audience to be spread does not work. Better would be governments coming down hard on social media moderation and refusing to accept the argument that stuff is moderated by ai or algorithms and say "if you can't moderate content without actual humans viewing the content, either hire humans or close down because your platform is actively harmful)
I'm not sure the BIB is true. Many excellent scientists are also excellent at talking about it. There is a significant trend in science now to show public engagement - how will you engage (in both directions) with the public? This is both listening to the public as well as disseminating information.
There is sometimes a bit of jealousy about scientists who have become the rock stars of science (Brian Cox, Alice Roberts etc). Sometimes they have achieved the status of Professor for non academic merit, but because of the public role. But generally people accept it.
We've also seen a lot more engagement on SM, such as Twitter through the pandemic, some good, some bad. Its notable how many of my colleagues are on twitter and promoting their work via that platform.
Two that immediately spring to mind are Richard Feynman and Stephen Jay Gould. Both at the very forefront of their disciplines (Quantum Mechanics and Evolutionary theory) yet both great communicators, popularisers and educators. Being a great media figure does not in any way mean one is not also a great scientist.
I have all Gould's books but its been some years since I dipped in. One essay always sticks in my mind - a tale of false memory where he describes sitting somewhere with a relative that he remembers from childhood and then comes to realise that his memory cannot be correct. And yet the memory persists.
I had a conversation with my folks yesterday where they told me that schoolfriends used to ring me up for homework advice on a regular basis. I cannot recall this at all. Nothing, Not one occasion, but I have no reason to doubt them. What else have I forgotten?
Stephen Jay Gould was essentially a Marxist. Not really the cuddly professorial character he is often portrayed as
Good writer, tho. Crisp and lucid prose
Of course this is a classic example of why one's politics should not be the defining characteristic by which we are judged. I disagree with his marxist views whilst recognising how and why they developed. But I don't find they in any way interfere with his scientific writings and was surprised to find out about his politics after many years of reading his works both for academic and pleasure purposes.
His work on punctuated equilibriums also looks to be absolutely spot on.
Agreed. I was fortunate to be studying Geology at Uni when this was still the big debate and I buy into the concept pretty much completely.
It's not wrong, it's just not interesting because how else did anyone ever think or say evolution works? It demolishes s complete straw man.theory of absolute uniformitarianism which nobody ever held.
Wrong. Utterly wrong. The slow steady progress idea with gradual genetic change resulting in speciation was THE idea underpinning evolution for decades. Indeed at the time I was at university that argument was mainstream. The idea it was a straw man argument is simply wrong from start to finish. Eldridge and Gould changed the whole way evolution was considered and understood.
Not wrong. Any theory of evolution says that you change when external circumstances change, and not otherwise barring a bit of genetic drift. Things stay the same for more of the time than they change. So punctuated equilibrium is exactly what Darwin predicts.
You clearly weren't around in the late 70s and 80s to see and hear the phyletic gradualists lining up to attack punctuated equilibrium hypothesis. Even Darwin retreated from the catastrophist idea prior to publication.
Indeed even today gradualism is the main way evolution is taught at degree level with a hat tip to PE.
Of course I am grateful for the debate as I got 15% of my degree from writing about it.
You should stop getting all your ideas from Dawkins. He has his own hypothesis to push and the best way to do that in his eyes apparently is to undermine all the others. Something he has spent most of his life doing.
I don't get all my ideas from Dawkins. I cannot imagine how a gradualist theory of evolution would work; there's nothing gradual about moving from one Galapagos island to another. If there is such a theory and Gould demolished it good for him, but it doesn't make him the Messiah
Same with the spandrel stuff. Look at your face. I can tell you first class evolutionary stories about your eyes and teeth and nose and slightly iffy ones about your beard and eyebrows, but things like your forehead and chin are quite obviously just the way things are to join the evolved bits. What was ever non obvious about that?
Never mind yesterday's fat oaf, the big news today is that Sunak has declined to offer more help to struggling mortgage payers. I mean, we'll see how long that position lasts as the pained screaming ramps up through the rest of this year and into the next, but for all of us who are desperately willing the vastly overinflated property bubble to burst in spectacular fashion it can't be anything but positive news.
Providing 'support' for mortgage payers will simply accelerate inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer
House prices might fall a little in nominal terms but there won't be a collapse, of course inflation enhances the real impact
Property should be viewed as a home to live in, not an investment
A former member of the Bank of England was interviewed on yesterday's Sophie on Sunday and provided one of the most sensible and informative responses to the present crisis and said that covid and Ukraine were the driving factor behind inflation, and in a much smaller way brexit, but that no government could risk bailing out mortgage holders as that would provide an immediate response from the markets in even higher interest rates
Indeed Starmer refused to endorse bailing out mortgagees in this current climate
Comments
Whatsapped his way through some dodgy Covid dealings, while burnishing his Insta account for brand Rishi.
He’s a massive shit, he just looks like less of a one compared to Johnson.
Jake Berry: "The former prime minister Boris Johnson cannot be held responsible for what people thought he meant." Perhaps what he really needed was a better public.
@euanmccolm
Jake Berry now attacking the public for its interpretation of what Johnson said. Bold.
The calibre of people supporting BoZo tells its own story...
― Sun Tzu
Lists out Johnson’s lies.
A search is underway for a missing submersible that carries people to view the wreckage of the Titanic, according to media reports.
The U.S. Coast Guard told BBC News that a search was underway Monday off the coast of Newfoundland. OceanGate Expeditions confirmed it owned the missing vessel.
“We are exploring and mobilising all options to bring the crew back safely,” the company said in a statement to BBC News. “Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families.”
The U.S. Coast Guard in Boston did not immediately return messages sent by The Associated Press. However, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, said a Canadian military aircraft and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel are assisting the search effort, which is being led by the U.S. Coast Guard.
In 2021, OceanGate Expeditions began what it expected to become an annual voyage to chronicle the deterioration of the iconic ocean liner that struck an iceberg and sank in 1912.
The company said at the time that in addition to archaeologists and marine biologists, the expeditions also would include roughly 40 paid tourists who would take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks in the five-person submersible.
The initial group of tourists was funding the expedition by spending anywhere from $100,000 to $150,000 apiece.
Think Sunak going to have an issue with privileges cttee vote if senior Tories like May support the motion as PM dodges. He promised govt of integrity, accountability and professionalism. Opponents will criticise if he avoids the vote. Watch KS call him weak at PMQs on Weds
But Bazball, so they'll carry on pushing for wickets.
He should probably just call an election. Time to get rid of him, he’s not up to it.
Is this the first time this has happened ?!?
Brendan Smith-Clarke tweeted earlier he was not going to to turn up for “silly games”, and has gone to the cricket instead.
The UK Government's net competency rating is -30%, the lowest rating we've recorded since 23 April (-31%).
Government Competency Rating (18 June):
Incompetent: 49% (+5)
Competent: 19% (-3)
Net: -30% (-8)
Changes +/- 11 June
now
🚨🚨New Voting Intention🚨🚨
Labour lead is nineteen percentage points in the latest results from Deltapoll.
Con 27% (-4)
Lab 46% (+4)
Lib Dem 10% (-2)
Other 16% (+2)
Fieldwork: 16th - 19th June 2023
Sample: 1,554 GB adults
(Changes from 9th - 12th June 2023)
But I expect a PM to be better than just 'OK'. Sadly, we don't seem to get them, even if you take into account the impossibilities of the job.
See also, BigG, DavidL and CasinoRoyale.
They all seem to have formed their view of Labour in the 1980s or earlier, with the exception of CR who’s just an young fogey.
Has there been a true tubthumping moment; a speech of pure, angry derision?
But you are right. I quite like Starmer. I also quite like my accountant. Both appear to be competent but dull.
https://twitter.com/johnharris1969/status/1670837935665561620
and
https://twitter.com/Haggis_UK/status/1670828872898576385
Still, even if Green was only 3% they’d still have a pretty good LLG score.
There is a growing trend of people doing dangerous things, with the idea - or image - that they are safe. Whether it is going down to the Titanic as a tourist, or going to space, there are dangers that should not be ignored. After the Challenger disaster, NASA was rightly criticised because the risks of spaceflight had not been correctly passed onto astronauts. The same may well be sadly true of these private companies.
He's a very good fielder but I think Jonty Rhodes might have caught something like that
That was in response to IanB2, of course.
One can only hope that the hole he is digging will bury his own career.
Tell that to the victims of child abuse at Islington Council.
Stuff like this, as well as the anti-Semitism and the pathetic response to Salisbury is why I disagree with posters who claim that Corbyn was somehow on a par or even a less malign option than Johnson in 2019.
(Of course, I voted for neither).
WTAF?
Sir J(umped-up) Rees-Mogg now raving about "no stain on his character".
That ship sailed LOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG ago. Ran on the rocks and sank five miles out of port.
I might well vote Tory at the next one because giving the loonies in the Labour Party unfettered power which an overall majority would give them is not something I particularly like the idea of. I also quite like Sunak (though he has gone down in my estimation today) and do not see podgy Sir Kier as an improvement one iota.
https://labourlist.org/2023/06/the-big-lie-jeremy-corbyn-glastonbury-screening-film-watch-conspiracy-mason/
I am not captured by Starmer like some , as he flip flops regularly
Abolish tuition fees - not now
Spend 28 billion pa on green issues - not now
Stop all new oil and gas licences - not now
Abolish all union legislation since 2016 - absolutely handing unprecedented power to the trade unions
Accepts 1.6 million from stop oil but that is OK
And as far as public sector wage demands are concerned then he will bow to his union masters
The policy of abolishing of vat on school fees and non dom status is paltry to the sums needed and Starmer has not laid out how he is going to pay for his government either in borrowing or higher taxes, which by the way he has consistently condemned
None of this means Starmer will not be the next PM but he is not entitled to a free pass
But no right thinking person could vote to give the Tories another go, after the shambles and shame and corruption of the last few years.
Indeed even today gradualism is the main way evolution is taught at degree level with a hat tip to PE.
Of course I am grateful for the debate as I got 15% of my degree from writing about it.
You should stop getting all your ideas from Dawkins. He has his own hypothesis to push and the best way to do that in his eyes apparently is to undermine all the others. Something he has spent most of his life doing.
House prices might fall a little in nominal terms but there won't be a collapse, of course inflation enhances the real impact
Property should be viewed as a home to live in, not an investment
And thanks to our British cousins, for putting on this splendid entertainment from Westminster to enliven the day!
Another point; don't call them 'explorers'. They are not. They are adventurers. There's a massive difference, albeit with some overlap, between the two.
It is an unbelievably high bar and I expect a majority Starmer government but again I am not giving him a free pass
After all piss and wind are both valuable commodities when put to good (or even ill) use. SJRM?
I'm frustrated enough being a rapidly ageing bloke stuck in a starter flat; needless to say the barmy property market must be excruciating for those condemned to permarenting from scalper landlords.
Same with the spandrel stuff. Look at your face. I can tell you first class evolutionary stories about your eyes and teeth and nose and slightly iffy ones about your beard and eyebrows, but things like your forehead and chin are quite obviously just the way things are to join the evolved bits. What was ever non obvious about that?
Deltapoll just out have the Labour lead at 19%
The mean Labour lead of the last 4 four national opinion polls is 19.25%
Sunak is stronger? Really?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_next_United_Kingdom_general_election
Nightwatchman! That's brave.
Indeed Starmer refused to endorse bailing out mortgagees in this current climate